Frost

Chapter 60

Time of death

Ivy stood tensely next to Steve in the hospital, staring through a window at Fury lying on the operating table. She tried not to let on how much she was actually freaking out inside. Someone had tried to kill Fury twice and both times she had been with him. Was it because they knew there were traitors in Shield? Was she next? Or worse, were Jack, Steve or Natasha next?

Ivy inwardly tried to count to hundred to somehow calm herself down and also distract herself at the same time. She didn't necessarily like Fury, but she didn't wish him dead. And she knew there were other people who cared about him. She stared down at her hands, hating the sight. Her hands were once again covered in blood. Would she ever get the blood off of her? Would there finally come times when she wouldn't wash the blood off her hands before going to sleep? She just wanted peace and a normal life.

"Is he gonna make it?" asked Natasha as she stepped next to Steve. Ivy looked over at her. Natasha was also trying to hide her feelings. But Ivy knew she was worried. She didn't know much about Natasha, but she had noticed that she and Fury had a father-daughter relationship. Ivy never had anything like a father or anyone close to that role. She did wonder sometimes what it must feel like to have a father who loves and supports you. But you couldn't have everything in life.

"I don't know," Steve replied honestly, looking over at Natasha with concern. The two still hadn't made up, and Ivy hated that they were meeting again under such circumstances. Natasha tried to ignore Steve's worried look, or pretended not to care. Inside, she was  longing for someone to take her hand.

"Tell me about the shooter," she prompted them both. Ivy looked down at her shoes and bit her lip. She couldn't get the assassin out of her mind. His posture, his eyes... Ivy couldn't explain it, but she was drawn to him and she hated it. He had tried to kill her and Fury and she couldn't get his damn blue eyes out of her head.

"He's fast and strong. Had a metal arm" Steve reported. Ivy felt Natasha's gaze on her briefly and looked up to meet Natasha's green eyes. Something wasn't right about her look, though. Especially when Steve brought up the metal arm. Ivy got the feeling that Natasha knew who was being talked about. Natasha and Ivy broke eye contact when Maria Hill joined them.

"Ballistics?" Natasha asked the other agent. "Three slugs, no rifling. Completely untraceable" Hill replied. "Soviet-made," Natasha concluded, and Ivy looked at her curiously. "Yeah," Maria agreed with her.

The four watched in shock as Fury's condition got worse. Ivy rubbed her face and didn't worry about getting blood on it. She was a mess by now anyway, a little blood on her face wouldn't hurt. A couple of nurses had tried to take her to one of the rooms to examine her as well, but Ivy had assured them she was fine. Whether it was a lie or the truth she didn't know herself right now.

"He's in V-tach" called one of the male nurses. "Crash cart coming in" replied a female nurse. "Nurse, help me with the drape" the doctor said in response. Ivy didn't know whether she held her breath or did the opposite.

"BP is dropping."

"Defibrillator!"

Ivy put her hand over her mouth as Fury's pulse approached zero. This couldn't happen. He was Nick Fury. He was practically immortal and no one could change that. He was going to survive this, he had to survive this.

"I want you to charge him at one hundred."

"Don't do this to me, Nick," Natasha whispered. Steve's hand approached Natasha's. He waited a small moment to see if she would pull her hand away before their fingers interlocked.

"Stand back. Three, two, one. Clear!" the doctor shouted, giving Fury a shock with the defibrillator. "Pulse?"

"No pulse."