In My Eyes

Ch•6- Good old days

        I quickly closed the file, feeling sweat form on my forehead. Jessica Carter? Tara Carter? The file says that the woman in the photograph is named Tara Carter. But that is a picture of my Mother, her last name was Sebastian and that was my last name too... Right? I made sure that nobody was paying attention to me before I peeked back at the file.

        It was definitely my Mother in the photograph. I mean, she did lie to me about being a Flower Shop worker, maybe she also lied about her name. She just lied about her whole life! I understand that she was trying to keep my safe and all... but I think that this is going overboard.

        "Find anything?" Dad asked, startling me slightly. I looked up to him, closing the file and tossed it in the pile.

        "Nope" I shook my head and pulled out another file from the box. Dad went back to his business, hopefully not suspecting a thing. I glanced over the the file that had an 'inactive' stamped red on the front. I reached over and slipped it under my leg.

"Known associates" Barton mumbled from his position by the stairs.

       "Baron Strucker had a lot of friends" Steve flipped through all the files that he gathered that involve Strucker in anyway.

       "Well" Bruce sighed from his chair "these people are all horrible" he set his file down on the table.

       "Wait, I know that guy" Dad pointed to the file that was just in Bruce's hand. He reached over and picked it up "From back in the day. He operates off the African coast. Black market arms" Steve glared at Dad, giving a small shake of his head "There are conventions. All right?" Dad defended himself "You meet people. I didn't sell him anything. He was talking about finding something new, a game-changer. It was all very Ahab"

"This?" Thor pointed to the marks all along the back of his neck.

"It's a tattoo, I don't think he had it"

        "Those are tattoos" Thor corrected, pointing directly at the red mark on the side of his neck "this is a brand"

        "Yeah" Bruce was already at the computer and was searching for the meaning of the mans brand on the internet "It's a word in an African dialect meaning 'thief' in a much less friendly way"

"What dialect?" Steve asked.

"W-Wakanada?" Bruce squinted his eyes to the screen and tried to say what he was reading.

        I looked over his shoulder and slipped my glasses on "Wakanda" I said, and then furrowed my eyebrows together in confusion "I've never heard of that"

      "If this guy got out of Wakanda with some of their trade goods..." Dad thought, staring at the screen.

"I thought your father said he got the last of it?" Steve asked.

       "I don't follow" Bruce stood up from his chair and stood beside Dad "What comes out of Wakanda?"

       Dad and Steve glanced to each other before turning their heads to look at Steve's Captain America shield that rested at the side of the table "The strongest metal on Earth"

                                       ***

         I sat in the kitchen a few minutes after our Wakanda discovery. The file that I found buried in the others sat in my hands. It felt like it was burning my skin. I must have read over it one hundred times. Tara Carter. That name is so foreign, yet it's the real name of my Mother. So that means, my last name was originally Carter before Stark. My last name was never Sebastion. Why on earth would she change her last name?

        "Hey Kid" Dad spoke from the doorway of the kitchen, he knocked lightly on the wall, letting me know of his presence "We're about to head out, I-... What's up?" He noticed the file sitting in front of me.

"I found this" I spun around in the stool to face him.

"Something on Strucker?" He walked towards me and picked up the file.

          "Nope" I shook my head and extended the file to him. Dad took the file and opened it, his eyes widened slightly "What does this all mean?" I asked, not knowing what else to say "My Mom didn't just lie about her real job, she lied about her name. Her Name. That means, my last name was never Sebastion. What does this all mean? Why all the secrets?" I placed my elbow on the table and leaned my cheek against my palm.

         "I don't have the answers for you kid" Dad shook his head "No one really does, and I'm sorry" I looked back down to her photo, thinking of all the good times. All the Mother-Daughter dates, the Carnival visits with her and my Aunt. None of it was real, it was all an act, an illusion to make me think that everything was normal "But hey, look" he closed the folder "let's not focus on this right now, okay? I know it's hard for you, I know you want to know more but-"

        "Ultron" I finished, rubbing my hands over my knees "he's our main priority right now"
I closed the file, shutting my eyelids for a long moment. Dad put his arm around my shoulder comfortingly, leaning his head against mine. I let out a slow puff of air "I just miss her" Dad stood there for a moment, just watching me. I didn't know what else to say, I gave a small, sad smile before slipping off the chair.

        I headed upstairs to my room and closed the door behind me. Everyone was downstairs, getting ready to take off in the jet.

        I set the file down in my closet, noticing a small framed photo laying face down in the corner of the closet. I bent down and lifted it up.

       The photo was my Mother and I, my aunt was beside me. She had beautiful blonde hair just like my mothers. She was the younger sibling, maybe ten years younger. She was my best friend before my Mother died. I haven't seen her since "I miss you Mom" I rubbed my fingers over the glass framed photo "I wish I could see you" my lip trembled as I looked up to the ceiling "I know you can see me" my voice cracked like a small child, because that's all I am.

        My Mother and my Aunt had the same smile. We were sitting on a park bench in the middle of a park in D.C. Those were the good days.

I know what happened to my Mom.

But, I always wondered what happened to my Aunt.