The Winter Warrior // Captain America

«Chapter 17»

T H I R D   P E R S O N   P O V

Without making a single sound, the Winter Warrior slipped through the window and into Alexander Pierce's kitchen. No one was there, and it was completely dark. She soundlessly sat down at the kitchen table, the darkness cloaking her presence. She placed her gun on the table and made sure her metal arm was fully visible in the moonlight. She focused her ears, and in the distance, she heard footsteps.

Pierce, clad in a grey sweatsuit, casually entered the kitchen and opened up the fridge, taking out a container of milk. As he glanced over his shoulder, he detected the Winter Warrior. She slightly tilted her head, acknowledging him.  

"I'm going to go, Mr Pierce," a female voice with a foreign accent said from the hallway. "You need anything before I leave?" 

"No..." said Pierce. "Eh... It's fine, Renata, you can go home." 

"Okay, night-night," the woman replied.

"Goodnight," Pierce said, not taking his eyes off the Winter Warrior. He waited until the door closed before he spoke again, "Want some milk?" 

She didn't reply as she carefully observed Pierce's every move with a cold stare. 

"The time table has moved," said Pierce while he poured himself a glass of milk. "Our window is limited. Three targets, Level Six." He walked over to her. "They already cost me Zola. I want confirmed death in 10 hours." 

"Sorry, Mr Pierce, I forgot my..." The woman from earlier entered again, and she fully saw the Winter Warrior. She didn't react, though, because she knew Pierce would. "...phone." 

The woman looked terrified as she saw the metal arm, and the Winter Warrior tilted her head at the woman, eyeing her curiously.

"Oh, Renata," said Pierce. "I wish you would've knocked." He took the gun from the table and fired two shots, killing the woman in cold blood. Pierce turned back to the Winter Warrior. "Clean her up. No witnesses." 

She nodded once and rose to her feet, taking the gun from Pierce's hand and cleaning it on her sleeve. She stuffed it back in the holster around her thigh. She walked over to Renata's body and heaved her body over her shoulder. 

***

"Are you sure about this guy?" Natasha muttered quietly as her arm was slung over Steve's shoulder. She could barely stand on her own after the explosion at Camp Lehigh. Bucky and Steve got away with just a few scratches and bruises, but Natasha didn't have their supersoldier serum to heal faster. 

"I hope I am," Steve answered before knocking on the door of Sam Wilson's home. 

Seconds later, the door slid open. "Hey, man. I'm sorry about this, but we need a place to lay low," Steve said. 

"Everyone we know is trying to kill us," Natasha said, shifting her weight to the other foot. 

"Not everyone," said Sam after a second. He stepped aside to let the three of them in. "You can go clean up in the bathroom." 

"Thanks, Sam, we appreciate it," Bucky said before heading into the bathroom with Steve and Natasha where they tried to get rid of the smears and dust. 

Steve glanced in the mirror at Natasha, who sat on the bed in the bedroom next to the bathroom. She stared into nothing as she didn't move. "You okay?" he asked her and she jolted, looking up.

"Yeah," she said, continuing to clean her red hair which started to regain its natural curls. 

Steve sat down across from her and Bucky observed them from the doorframe. "What's going on?" Steve asked. 

Natasha hesitated before speaking, "When I first joined SHIELD, I thought I was going straight. But I guess I just traded in the KGB for HYDRA." She looked away. "I thought I knew whose lies I was telling, but I guess I can't tell the difference anymore." 

"There's a chance you might be in the wrong business," Steve said, making Natasha chuckle. 

"I owe you..." she whispered. 

Steve shook his head. "It's okay." 

"If it was the other way around, and it was down to me to save your life. Now you be honest with me," she said. "Would you trust me to do it?" 

"I would now," said Steve. "And I'm always honest." 

"Well, you seem pretty chipper for someone who just found out they died for nothing," Bucky commented, wiping his hands on a towel. 

"Well," Steve sighed, turning around to face his friend. "Guess I just like to know who we're fighting." 

Sam entered. "I made breakfast. If you guys eat that sort of thing," he said, making the group chuckle. 

Five minutes later, they sat at Sam's kitchen table. "So, the question is," Bucky spoke up. "Who at SHIELD could launch a domestic missile strike?" 

"Pierce," Steve sighed. 

"Who happens to be sitting on top of the most secure building in the world," Natasha commented. 

"But he's not working alone," Steve continued. "Zola's algorithm was on the Lemurian Star." 

"So was Jasper Sitwell," Natasha muttered. 

"So the real question is, how do the three most wanted people in Washington kidnap a SHIELD officer in broad daylight?" Bucky asked, folding his arms. 

Sam walked up to them. "The answer is, you don't," he said, dropping a file on the table in front of Steve.

"What's this?" Steve asked. 

"Call it a resume," Sam stated. 

Natasha picked up the photo that lay on top of the file. "Is that Bakhmala? The Khalid Khandil mission, that was you?" she asked. Sam didn't answer. "You didn't say he was a pararescue." 

Steve took the photo of Sam in some sort of uniform with a man in a similar outfit next to him. "Is this Riley?" he asked. 

"Yeah." Sam softly nodded. 

"I heard they couldn't bring in the choppers because of the RPGs," Natasha said. She turned to Sam. "What did you use? A stealth suit?" 

"No," answered Sam, holding up the file. "These." 

Bucky walked over as Steve flipped through it. He glanced over his friend's shoulder. "I thought you said you were a pilot," he said. 

"I never said pilot," Sam chuckled, shaking his head.

Steve sighed, looking down at the page. "I can't ask you to do this, Sam. You got out for a good reason." 

"Dude, Captain America needs my help. There's no better reason to get back in," Sam stated firmly. 

Steve nodded, smiling. He turned to Bucky. "You up for one more mission?" he asked. 

Bucky sighed. "If I want my freedom back, I guess I don't have a choice." 

"You always have a choice, Buck," Steve said. 

"I know." Bucky nodded. "So, where can we get our hands on one of these things?" he asked Sam. 

"The last one is at Fort Meade. Behind three guarded gates and a 12-inch steel wall," he answered. 

Steve glanced at Natasha, who shrugged. "Shouldn't be a problem," said Steve.