3 | TWO GHOSTS • BUCKY BARNES [COMPLETED]

V.

They had to go. Right away.

Before the funeral, Gideon had not yet decided where she wanted to go after. She felt almost homeless, itching for more leads, more information about HYDRA or Bucky.

Be careful what you wish for, she wished she told her past self.

But her next destination had already been decided from the moment the BREAKING NEWS banner crossed the screen, and she dreaded it under these conditions.

Vienna was warm and sunny. It was a poor reflection of what everyone was feeling.

Her and Sam sat in a buzzing coffee shop, waiting for Steve as he talked on the phone with Natasha. Sharon also promised them classified information. They needed to plan out their next move and fast.

Gideon fingered with a half empty paper cup, and anxiety rushed through her. Alcohol and caffeine did not prove to be a good mix under these circumstances.

She was going to see Bucky today. Definitively.

Despite the evidence, she didn't think he bombed the UN, at least not on his own free will. HYDRA had had control over him for decades, using him as their best weapon. She never thought they would do something like this though, something so public.

Steve then returned, pulling out the chair next to her. Dark shades covered all of their eyes. No one needed to know they were in a place that they were not supposed to be.

"She tell you to stay out of it," Sam asked him. Gideon took another sip of coffee, watching them. "Might have a point."

"He'd do it for me," Steve defended.

"1945 maybe. I just want to make sure we've considered all of our options. The people that shoot at you guys usually wind up shooting at me."

"We still have to try," Gideon noted. Despite everything, she still had hope. She was willing to fight for Bucky until there was nothing left to fight for.

Sharon then slid casually beside Steve. Speaking softly with minimized lip movements to look like she wasn't interacting with them, she uttered, "Tips have been pouring in since that footage went public. Everybody thinks the Winter Soldier goes to their gym. Most of its noise. Except for this."

She nudged a file between Gideon and Steve. The brunette flipped it open and hastily scanned the text. Her eyes landed on an address, and she couldn't help but turn to the CIA agent, "How did you find this? We've been looking for something like this for the past two years."

"I think you've been looking in the wrong places. He hasn't been with HYDRA since the helicarriers," she explained softly and hurriedly. "It helps to have more eyes too. You don't always have to work alone Aunt Gideon."

"Well it looks like we're alone on this one," Sam commented.

Steve's grim expression hasn't changed, but they all knew the truth. Going after Bucky, saving him, would make them all criminals.

Sharon continued, "My boss expects a briefing pretty much now. So that's all of a head start you're gonna get."

"Thank you," Steve nodded as the woman packed her bearings.

"And you're gonna have to hurry. We have orders to shoot onsite."

The race to Romania was a blur. [But so was everything else within the past week.]

Gideon's heart rate accelerated as each minute ticked down, but their jet was fast, and Gideon drove faster. The address led them to a rundown apartment in the heart of Bucharest.