Red, White & Blue | Bucky x Reader

Chapter Sixteen

We race down the expressway, Sam behind the wheel.

"HYDRA doesn't like leaks," Sitwell states from where he sits beside me in the backseat.

"So why don't you try sticking a cork in it?" Sam retorts.

"Insight's launching in sixteen hours," Natasha states, leaning over my other side to talk to Steve up front. "We're cutting it a little bit close here."

"I know," Steve replies. "We'll use him to bypass the DNA scans and access the Helicarriers directly."

Sitwell's eyes widen. "What?! Are you crazy? That is a terrible, terrible idea—"

Suddenly, there's a thump from above as someone lands on the roof, and an arm comes crashing through the window, dragging Sitwell through the broken glass and tossing him into oncoming traffic.

The assailant opens fire, shooting at us through the roof. Natasha springs into action, climbing on top of Steve in the front seat, pulling his head forward and pushing Sam's head out of the way with her foot, saving them both from the spray of bullets.

Steve pulls the emergency break, and the attacker is thrown from the car as we come to an abrupt stop. He flips over, landing on his knees and using his metal arm to slow himself down. We stare in horror as we come face-to-face with the Winter Soldier. Slowly, he stands, and I see that he looks exactly how he did the last time I saw him.

Natasha pulls out her gun, but a large SUV smashes into the back of our car, the impact knocking the gun from her hand before she can shoot. The SUV pushes us forward, and the Soldier jumps back onto our roof. I project a forcefield above us, expecting him to resume shooting, but instead, he punches through the windshield, ripping the steering wheel from Sam's grasp.

"Shit!" Sam shouts as Natasha retrieves her gun from the floor, shooting at the Winter Soldier through the roof. He jumps onto the hood of the SUV to avoid the bullets.

We continue charging through traffic without any way to steer, and the SUV nudges our rear wheel, causing us to ram against the dividing wall of the expressway.

"We need to get the hell out of this car!" I shout as we begin to wobble out of control.

"I have an idea!" Steve replies, breaking the car door off its hinge and turning to Natasha. "Hang on!"

Holding Natasha tightly, Steve pushes himself out of the car, landing on the broken door and using it like a sled to slide along the road. I follow his lead, climbing onto Sam and using my powers to break the driver's side door. As we land on the street, the car flips, rolling over and over as we slide along after it.

When we finally come to a stop, so does the SUV, and multiple HYDRA agents file out of it, joining the Winter Soldier. One of them hands the Soldier a grenade launcher, and he fires it at Steve, who pushes Natasha out of the way before ducking behind his shield. The grenade explodes on impact, blasting Steve off the overpass and to the street below.

Natasha, Sam, and I duck behind a couple of nearby vehicles as the HYDRA agents open fire. Natasha returns fire as I launch bolts of energy at them, providing Sam ample cover to run for his gear in the back of his destroyed car. The Winter Soldier fires another grenade at us, and I run for Natasha, launching myself at her as the grenade flies by, pushing us over the divider into oncoming traffic. Cars swerve to avoid us, and we run for the other side of the expressway, but as we pass an abandoned car, a grenade collides with it, exploding and throwing us over the side of the overpass. I grab onto Natasha as she shoots a small grappling hook at the underside of the bridge, swinging us safely to the ground.

We run for cover under the bridge, making our way to the other side of the street. As we approach the end of our cover, I grab Natasha's arm, stopping her in her tracks as I notice the shadow of the Soldier waiting above. Natasha slowly approaches the edge of the shadow, aiming upward and firing her weapon. The Soldier ducks down behind the barrier, and we use the opportunity to run behind an abandoned tow truck just ahead.

When the Soldier reappears, he angrily shoots at the ground, assuming we're still below the bridge. Natasha shoots back, and I launch an energy blast at the car beside him. It explodes, throwing HYDRA agents in every direction. We take off running in the other direction, and Natasha glances back with a smirk, hoping that the Winter Soldier will take the bait.

A little further up the street, Natasha pulls me behind a car and takes out her phone, making a quick recording before propping the phone up against the tire, the recording playing on a loop. We hide behind some nearby cars, waiting for the Winter Soldier to fall into the trap.

"I make an LZ, twenty-three hundred block of Virginia Avenue. Rendezvous two minutes," Natasha's voice says from the recording. "Taking fire above and below expressway. Civilians threatened. Repeat, civilians threatened."

From my hiding place, I watch as the Soldier rolls a grenade toward the decoy car before aiming his gun, waiting for us to jump out. The grenade explodes, and I see the momentary confusion in the Soldier's eyes before I send a car flying in his direction. He ducks, barely getting out of the way in time, and turns to me, gun raised. I smirk at him, and Natasha charges in from behind, jumping onto the Soldier's back and attempting to strangle him with a thin cord. He stumbles into a nearby car and reaches back, grabbing Natasha's leg and throwing her off him. Before he can shoot her, I knock him down with a wall of energy, grabbing Natasha's arm and hauling her up, pulling her further down the street.