Shadows of the past

The Interrogation

Alexander nodded glumly, "I've never had any cause to regret it." As he was behind the whole thing, he felt little to no remorse for the guy, just a piece of a puzzle that needed to be removed. He turned to the boys, who looked deep in thought. "Captain, Lieutenant. Why was Nick in your apartment?" Bells rang in each soldier's head at the question.

Both men looked at each other, agreeing silently, telling them to go with Fury's last wish - even if Pierce was Nick's good friend. Steve looked up at Pierce, putting on a confused face, "I don't know." He lied. Pierce stared at the pair as he sat, trying to figure them out, "Did you know it was bugged?" He noted, personally when he listened to the tapes, he could hear the hidden message in his voice. Bucky glanced at Steve, "We did." He nodded, leaning on his elbows on his knees, eyeing the governor with scrutinizing eyes.

"Did he tell you he was the one who bugged it?" The men sat, not knowing what to say to that each of them had made a silent guess when they had heard about the spying equipment, it being something the late man was good at after all.

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Pierce grabbed the file off the table, "Batroc was hired anonymously to attack the Lemurian Star, and he was contacted by e-mail and paid by wire transfer. Then, the money was run through seventeen fictitious accounts, the last going to a holding company registered to a Jacob Veech." He closed the file backup, handing it to Steve.

The soldiers looked at each other, "Are we supposed to know who that is?" Steve raised an eyebrow, never hearing of the name. Looking at Bucky, it told him they were in the same place. Answering, Pierce shook his head, "Not Likely," he muttered, "Veech died six years ago. His last address was 14-35 Elmhurst Drive." There was a halt, "Nick's mother lived at 14-37." Steve went through the file - reading things with a trained eye, Bucky looking over his shoulder in curiosity.

Suddenly, Bucky and Steve's heads snapped up in disbelief, finally getting what Pierce was saying, "Are you saying Fury hired the pirates?" They asked, looking towards each other slightly, a small glare as they did so. "Why?" Bucky continued, bringing his head back to the situation at hand.

After listening to his speech, Steve continued to look at the file in front of him while Bucky sat and observed Alexander Pierce, trying to induce a conclusion on the man. Steve's head lifted slightly as he stalked slowly. "If you knew Nick Fury," he began, it didn't sound like the full story was being told. Not surprised if the order for a raid was coerced by Fury - selling off intelligence. That didn't sound like him at all. "You'd know that's not true."

Pierce nodded with a raised eyebrow, "Why do you think us three are talking." He reminded, knowing he had to get that information - they could ruin the whole plan. Even if there would be a low chance of that happening, it would be all the soldiers needed to ruin their upcoming plans.

Alexander got up from his seat, Steve and Bucky following him in unison. He strolled over to the floor-length windows behind his desk. "See, I took a seat on the Council not because I wanted to but because Nick asked me to because we were both realists." He leaned against the windows with his right arm, gazing out upon the city, "We knew that despite all the diplomacy and the handshaking and the rhetoric, that to build a better world sometimes means having to tear the old one." He looked back at the boys, " And that makes enemies."

Bucky frowned at the wording, the way they were said was not sitting right with him. What Pierce was saying wasn't what Nick had been telling them. He took the world for what it was; Alexander spoke about tearing the old one down and rebuilding. The way they were said made him feel dread of future events. Glancing at Steve, who looked back at him, he knew they had the same gut feeling.

"Those people that call you dirty because you got the guts to stick your hands in the mud and try to build something better. And the idea that those people could be happy today. That makes me angry." He paused, placing his hands in his trouser pockets, "Captain, Lieutenant - you were the last to see Nick alive. I don't think that's an accident, and I don't think you do either. So, I'm going to ask again. Why was he there?"

The soldiers knew what they were to say, not trusting the man. Bucky, from the first time he met the guy, and shortly after Pierce spoke about how Nick was going to sell intelligence; was what confirmed it for Steve. Bucky and Steve could feel the dirt roll off him.

Bucky looked into the man's eyes, "He told us not to trust anyone; he held my hand as he passed out from the bullets." He noted a dangerous spark in Pierce's eyes, disappearing almost immediately.

"I wonder," he hypothesized," If that included him."

They were silent until Steve spoke up. "I'm sorry," he began, "Those were his last words. Excuse us." Both men picked up the shields they had taken off when they had first sat down, clipping them back into their holders. Steve and Bucky walked towards the office door, each having a strong urge to leave.

"Captain," Pierce called, now leaning on his desk. "Lieutenant!" Steve and Bucky turned together, "Somebody murdered my friend, and I'm going to find out why." Narrowing his eyes at the two heroes," Anyone gets in my way, they're going to regret it. Anyone."

"Understood." Both soldiers nodded and spoke in unison, not bothering to glare at each other as they spoke. Turning and walking out the door, feeling Pierce's deadly gaze on their backs.

"I don't trust him, Steve," Bucky cautioned, trying not to attract attention from agents walking past them. "Not at all." Steve nodded, Bucky being the best judge of character and demeanour as Marni had taught him how to read body language, always willing to go with Bucky's gut feeling rather than his own. "I don't think we can trust SHIELD either, not like we ever have." He chuckled as they came to the elevator. " Right now, we're on our own."

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A/n

They've met Pierce, should the boys be right and trust their guts? Probably. I hope you like the unplanned part, this was originally not going to be part of the story but I decided it was important so here it is. Please feel free to vote, follow, and leave feedback in the comments. Don't forget to look after yourself 💕

Word count: 1836