Let Go: Winterwidow

Chapter 15: Pound Cakes and S.H.I.E.L.D.

Bucky screamed as the door closed and he was being roughly forced into a seat. No, no he wasn't going to die, he couldn't!! He struggled and managed to free a hand which he curled into a fist and swung hard at whoever was manhandling him in the dark. Flesh made contact and his captor released him with a cry of pain.

The brunette seized his opportunity and bolted for the door, to freedom and would call the cops as soon as he got the hell out of this dump. Natasha needed to know everything, that this guy was a crook and couldn't be-

"Hold it right there, mister Barnes."

Bucky, against his better judgement, froze. It was Nicky Fury's voice. The brunette spun around and his oceanic eyes scanned the room as they adjusted to the unnatural darkness. He could see at the far end, there was a table sandwiched between two chairs, and a naked lightbulb was flicked on over it. There was Fury, gazing at him with his one good eye, always in a glare. He was sitting in one of the chairs, while another man- a man with a broken nose, was standing next to him.

"What the hell is this!" Bucky called down the long room, making the darker man chuckle. "You're sick if you think this is funny, I'm calling the cops-"

"Easy, tiger. Come and sit down, I wanna have a little talk with you..." Fury beckoned the brunette over, but Bucky stayed put, distrust in his eyes. "C'mon now, kid, I haven't got all day. We both don't wanna have to go through this damn interview but we're here now and there's nowhere for you to go."

Bucky glanced around again at the seemingly vacant room, feeling his pocket for his pepper spray and gasped when he realized he didn't have it. Had he dropped it? The blonde turned in a circle, not daring to get any closer without some form of protection.

"Looking for this?" Fury held up the little bottle and Bucky frowned with confusion.

"H-How did you-"

"Agent Coulson has got fancy hands, now doesn't he?" the darker man said calmly and nodded in the direction of the person whose nose Bucky had broken with his bare fist.

The brunette glared again. "Yeah, and a soft nose, too."

He wasn't understanding any of this at all. Bucky was expecting to come to a regular building complex with nice receptionists and potted plants and desks full of papers surrounded by cubicles. But this? Whatever this was, it definitely wasn't an office establishment...

Bucky sighed and trudged over to the table slowly, making sure to keep very aware of his surroundings in case this was all a trick too. He stood behind the chair and kept giving Fury that glare, which was returned to him with ten times the power.

"What do you want from me..." the brunette growled as he clenched his fists, ready to attack him if need be.

"I want you to sit your ass down in that chair," Fury retorted and rubbed his temple warily. "I'm surprised Nat even recommended him... not the brightest, is he?"

Coulson shook his head. "No sir, he really is not."

Bucky's sapphire eyes darted in Coulson's direction and a smirk played across his lips as he sat down across from Fury. He was about to come up with some smart comment about how he managed to break his nose, but then something about what Fury said made him hesitate. He looked back to him with a bewildered expression.

"Natasha knows about all this?" he asked with a slightly quivering voice. Why would she recommend him to this freak if she knew this was going to happen to him.

Fury sighed heavily. "Look, if she told you what was really going on you wouldn't have agreed to come here today. The truth is, we need someone like you on our team. The world does."

Bucky snorted and laughed. Was this guy for real? What was he now, some sort of super hero?

"Look man, I don't know what you're talking about, but I'm just an ordinary guy who needs a job," he began, pushing himself back up onto his feet. "I don't know what this is or what lies you've been feeding my wife, but I'm not interested. So if you don't mind, I'm going to leave now and go home."

Fury's glare somehow seemed to become more antagonizing and Bucky felt his stomach crawl slightly.

"I don't think so, Barnes," the darker man said in a low and threatening voice, rising up as well and turned around to grab something out of the darkness.

Bucky's heart started pounding and he began to back up a few paces, ready to sprint and ram the door down somehow if this freak planned on shooting him in here.

Fury turned back around and placed something back on the table. Two little mini pound cakes sat on plates, each with a fork embedded in them. Bucky stopped backing away and glanced to Fury with confusion again and the darker man gestured for him to come back over.

"I won't let you leave until you take these for yourself and your wife. I'm sure you two have been having a tough time," he said casually and pushed the plates forward, offering them to the brunette. "Go on. Take them."

Bucky hesitantly walked back to the table and reached out to take them when suddenly Fury shot out his hand and grabbed Bucky's wrist, yanking him forward and slamming his midriff into the edge of the table. Bucky yelped as the air was knocked out of him but struggled and before the darker man could do more damage the brunette flipped himself over onto the table and wrapped his legs around Fury's neck, throwing them back down and sending him soaring across the room. The cakes fell to the floor as Bucky tried to get up, but then he was brought into a headlock by Coulson and choked. Fury got up and brushed himself off neatly, then nodded and signalled for Coulson to release him.

Bucky slumped to the floor and cradled his neck. "W-What the hell was THAT for?!"

Fury walked up to him and crouched down at his level, handing him a small business card. Glaring once again, Barnes accepted it wordlessly and looked down at the logo.

S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Is this supposed to mean something to me?" the brunette snapped and looked up to Fury for answers.

Nick sighed and pulled himself back up, flicking off nonexistent dust from his shoulder. "Well, I believe it'll be the answer to all your problems, Barnes. You've got something in you that your wife sees, and I'm starting to see it too..."

Bucky's eyes widened. Nat saw something in him? What was that supposed to mean?? He opened his mouth to ask more questions, but then the darker man nodded to Coulson who yanked him up by his arm and dragged him out of the room. "H-Hey! Wait- wait a second!-"

Before he could splutter anything else, the door slammed, and Bucky was left shaking and clutching the business card tightly in his hand.