Betrayal - A Bucky Barnes Fanfic

Chapter 54

CW: violence, mention of blood and torture, death (no major character death)

Ava could see blood pouring from James's shoulder. His eyes were closed and Ava wasn't sure if she saw him breathing. Everything around her went silent, she was no longer aware of anything – only James's body lying motionless on the floor. Her mouth opened, she wanted to scream in agony, but no sounds reached her ears. With all the force she could muster, she tore at the cable ties that still bound her hands to the chair. She tore and pulled, but it was useless.

Exhausted, she slumped back in the chair, her eyes still fixed on James. He still did not move. Sobs broke from her throat, the sound finally reaching her ears, and tears streamed down her face like a broken dam.

Loki's deviant laughter mingled with Ava's desperate sobs. She had never hated Loki as much as she did at that moment. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Loki moving in James's direction, but she couldn't bring herself to take her eyes off James.

This was all her fault. James had only come to the warehouses because of her. He had warned her that the investigation was too dangerous. He had warned her. And she hadn't wanted to listen to him. Her heart throbbed painfully with every second that passed.

Then Loki entered her field of vision. He looked down at James with a grin on his face and knocked James's shoulder with his boot, making James lay on his back.

"Please," Ava pleaded. She couldn't bear to see James end up so humiliated. "Loki, I'm begging you. Just take me. I'm here. But please leave him alone." Her voice sounded strange, as if the words were coming from far away, from another Ava.

Loki fixed his gaze on Ava, his smarmy grin still in place.

"Don't worry, my dear. I won't make it that easy for James. But by the time I'm done with you, he'll wish he was dead." Loki then pressed his boot into James's wounded shoulder.

A groan came from James and Ava wasn't sure whether to be relieved or just more scared after Loki's threat. James is alive, her subconscious reminded her, and she allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief for a moment.

"So, Mister Barnes, are you back with us?" Loki had leaned down to James and he carelessly slapped his cheek to wake him up.

"Fuck off, you fucking asshole," James hissed in a strained voice.

Goosebumps spread over Ava's body, she had never been so worried. She didn't care what happened to her. All she wanted was for James to be safe and sound. Seeing him lying on the floor like that broke her heart into a million pieces.

"Good, you're awake. Now listen carefully," Loki began. He was still bent over James. "You went behind my back and I'm not going to let something like that slide. Especially not when it comes to my most precious commodity. I've made it abundantly clear from the start that Ava is my top priority – and that didn't mean you were allowed to fuck her. No one touches what's mine."

Loki paused dramatically, straightening up again. Slowly he took large steps towards Ava and she tried to push her body as far as she could against the back of the chair. She didn't want to be near him again. She could see there was blood on his hand. Probably James's blood.

"Now that my precious Ava is back in my possession," Loki continued, "I would like to share with you, Mister Barnes, what else I have planned for myself and Ava."

Loki stood behind Ava and placed a hand on her shoulder. She shuddered under his touch, but kept her gaze firmly fixed on James. He seemed to gather all his strength and rolled with a groan onto his side. Very slowly he straightened up and came to sit on his knees, his eyes fixed on the floor. His hair covered his face. Ava could see his chest heaving at rapid intervals, as if he was struggling to breathe properly. Fresh blood was oozing from his shoulder.