Afghan War army veteran Bucky Barnes has spent the last nine years working as a private investigator, the only job he could get after being found responsible for the deaths of two young boys in Afghanistan. After a year in military prison and a dis...
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While they were in the planning meeting another man entered the room and several greeted him. He sat at the back and observed but didn't contribute anything nor was he asked anything. When the meeting ended he came over with his briefcase to Bucky, offering his hand.
"Just the man I was looking for," he said. "You are James Buchanan Barnes, also known as Bucky?"
"That's me," said Bucky. "You are?"
"Phil Coulson," he replied. "Lawyer and no one. I offered my services to represent you when I contacted your friend Steve Rogers after the first arrest of Rumlow and Pierce. Really, I was always going to represent you once the army finally realized your charges were bogus and the dishonourable discharge was overturned. I have with me the final settlement that is being offered to you by the Department of the Army and approved by the Secretary of the Army himself. Can we go somewhere private? I could do with a cup of coffee."
Natalie poured him a cup of coffee and he thanked her, identifying her as Natalie Madison.
"I have already spoken to your parents and this is my official offer to represent you all in your lawsuit against the New York Police Department and the Pittsburgh Police Department. They exposed you to danger due to the corruption within the New York police force that saw information about your whereabouts being shared with the man who killed your sister then kidnapped and assaulted you."
"How much will this cost?" she asked.
"Nothing," he said. "It comes out of the money that was liberated from those criminals. I do think you're entitled to compensation so please give it some thought. Other than Detective Rogers over there I am appalled at how NYPD handled your safety."
They walked together to the conference room and he pulled the package out of his briefcase. "This is the final settlement offer," he said. "I've been back and forth with them for some time. Basically what this says is first of all they will reverse your guilty verdict and your dishonourable discharge. They are officially apologizing not just for that but also for the poor legal representation you received as on review even they admitted there were serious legal questions about many of the things that led to your guilty verdict. All records showing the guilty verdict and dishonourable discharge will be destroyed and you will instead receive an Honourable Discharge. It also means any citations or medals that your unit received will be awarded to you. They will also pay for you to go to college in the program of your choice as you would have had that assistance when you left the army under normal circumstances. They'll also pay the taxes on the settlement."
Bucky said nothing. Coulson took a piece of paper out of the pile and placed it in front of Bucky. He picked up the paper and looked at it, showed it to Natalie, then put it down on the table. He stood up, walked around and ran his hands through his hair. Coulson watched him, puzzled, but didn't say anything at first.
"Is there a problem with the settlement, Bucky?" asked Coulson. "Do you want to turn it down? I wouldn't advise that."
"No, no ... I'm not turning it down," said Bucky, trying to stay calm. "Are you for real? They're going to pay me that much for fucking up my life for the past 10 years? They're making me a millionaire? And they're sending me to college? And they're paying the taxes on the settlement?"
