4.4 | Trigger ✓

09 | девять

A/N

Just a reminder that this is the penultimate chapter of Trigger. So enjoy it while it lasts, because we're almost at the end.

x Noelle

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0 9

д е в я т ь

(n i n e)

FOR THE FIRST time, she truly feared him.

He wasn't Bucky anymore – just the Winter Soldier. Her feet were rooted to the ground, her heart thundering in her chest as he slowly lifted his gaze to look right at her. But instead of the usual warmth they held, his eyes were cold and empty now, not a trace of emotion visible on his face. And all she could think about were the words he'd said to her earlier –

Kill me before I kill you.

But how could she?

"Listen to me," She whispered quietly, taking wavering steps away from him as his gaze sharpened. "I know you're in there. Just – listen to me, please – "

A gleam of brown and silver caught her attention and his gaze zeroed in on the direction she was looking – at the rifle lying on the floor And then he was swiftly crossing the room in seconds, swiping and loading the rifle along the way. It was a precious few seconds, the tiniest window of opportunity that she used to retrieve Natasha's gloves from the couch. She'd barely had the chance to tug one of them on before she felt the barrel of the gun steady against her head.

Felt him pull the trigger.

Felt the empty click within.

He fired empty blanks several more times. No bullets. He'd used them all up earlier. The Winter Soldier couldn't remember her, but then, he couldn't remember what he did earlier as Bucky either. She used his moment of distraction to reach up, pressing the button on her silver bracelet, only to feel the jolt of electroshock subside just as quickly when he wrapped his metal fingers around her wrist, sending a surge of energy back.

Electromagnetic pulse, she could practically hear his voice in her head when he'd once told her about the functions of his bionic arm. Can be used to render an electronic device useless.

Ripping the bracelet from her wrist, he twisted her arm behind her back and slammed her against the nearest wall, ramming the handle of the rifle against her shoulder before dropping it to the ground with a clatter. A pained cry escaped her lips and she struggled, using her other hand to pry him off her. He was quicker, the fingers of his other hand latching around her arm, bending it at an angle that was so excruciating she felt that it was going to snap.

"Stop – " She gasped, feebly wrapping her fingers around his arm.

She felt a pulse from the black glove on her hand, a sudden static shock that swept through her and sent him flinching away like he'd just touched an open flame. Her shoulder felt dislocated, somehow, but she ignored the searing pain and scrambled to her feet, grabbing Redwing and feeling around for the catch on the drone.

"I'm sorry." She shook her head, feeling a shiver race down her spine when he righted himself and looked at her with death in his eyes, striding towards her with lethal purpose. "I know you're in there somewhere, and – "

He closed the gap between them and she reached up, a tiny device in her hand that she'd pulled from Redwing. But she didn't even have the time to launch it at him before his metal hand was knocking it out of the way, sending the device skittering across the room where it fizzed out in a failed charge of electricity.