A Reckless Soul | Captain America ✓

CRIMINALS AND MORE CRIMINALS

"SIR, do we tell Audrey?" Maria asked urgently, holding back a bundle of nerves. She was a cheetah ready to pounce because of the exciting new information she had received from a reliable source.

Fury's single good eye narrowed at his laptop's screen. "I suppose we should let her know."

"And what about the rest of the team?"

"Round them up in the conference room and inform them of this. How long ago was this footage taken?"

"Just last night."

"And you're not a 100 percent sure—"

"The face is too distorted. It was too dark during the time of the transactions, but yes," she replied, curtly interrupting her boss. "We scanned the body and the height and build are a match."

Fury rubbed a hand over his mouth. His mind a whirlpool of ideas and doubts. "Bring Embers up," he spoke rather hastily then as if remembering something, called out, "Oh and Hill?"

She turned back round to regard her boss, "Yes?"

"Where is the other sibling?"

"He's just getting back now."

He lifted a dark brow in anticipation. "So everything went well?"

"Training is really helping to improve his..." she paused for the appropriate word, "ability. But he still has trouble maintaining a human form when shifting—however, it is getting better."

Leisurely leaning back in his office chair he asked, "How?" He wasn't convinced, he needed more straws to grasp then what Hill had cryptically revealed.

Standing with her back facing the office door left ajar when she opened it, she folded her hands behind her back and proudly explained, "He now can withstand the change for a day without fainting."

This made Fury's eyebrows arch in the direction of the ceiling. Astonished, he said with relief in his tone of voice, "Good. He seems like a quick learner."

"He is. In fact, he's far better to train than his sister."

A chuckle rolled off Fury's grinning mouth. "She's...stubborn, I know."

"Fury," she started, dark brows furrowed together as if she were frustrated about a particular event, but was actually irritated by a certain 'person.' "If only she cooperated more—" Hill had to cease from ranting when Fury swung up a hand for her to stop.

"You know she has exceptional skills. If she didn't, she wouldn't have so easily slipped past our radar stealing those paintings over the years. Don't be fooled by her lack of skills that she hasn't been showing. Push her hard enough and you'll see what I mean."

Hill shook her head, her arms unfolding from behind to rest at her sides as she intently expressed her opinion, suggesting, "What if we saw her...other abilities? If she is so good as you say, maybe letting her have her powers back might bring her to show the skill you say she has."

The director thought about what Hill had said, and although he didn't disagree entirely, he didn't quite feel up to unleashing the monster to its full capacity, yet. "I'll think about it," was all he settled on saying.

____

"So we know my father is Hydra's new weapons manufacturer." Arms tightly crossed in front of her chest, Audrey's rusty brown eyes were drawn to the floor in an intense gaze as she chewed her bottom lip in deep concentration.