VAIN | Inside the Universe

Chapter Sixteen • The Rise and Fall of Plight

Jasper Sitwell, after many attempts to try and spark conversation, finally broke our silence.

"HYDRA doesn't like leaks."

"Sitwell can you shut the hell up? Clearly no one cares about what your HYDRA cult is gonna do to you." Sam snaps.

Nat reaches up to Sam and Steve from the back where Sitwell sits tied between us two. "Insight's launching in sixteen hours, we're cutting it a little bit close here."

Eager to reassure, Steve rolls his head to her from the passenger seat with a little smile at the sight of her. "I know. We'll use him to bypass the DNA scans and access the Helicarriers directly."

"What?! Are you crazy? That is a terrible, terrible idea." Sitwell protests from the back, prompting each pair of eyes to make a complete 360.

"I can't hear his voice anymore." I declare in great celebration before climbing to take his seat in the middle and pushing him against the doors window. "Watch the trees or something."

"None of you understand how horrible that plan is. The system in Triskelion has already washed itself of any trace of me. I haven't checked in for more than two hours. I'm probably being searched for as we speak. They will kill me and kill you twice on sight--"

Sam grips his hands on the wheel until his knuckles turn a dangerous pale pink. "Safiya, baby, if you truly love me you would kick his face in for us all right now."

As if on queue, the glass of Sitwells window shatters clean off the frame and he's thrown out of the car into oncoming traffic.

I shoot my head to Sam and Steve and throw my hands up, meeting their mirrored faces. "That was not my loving confession."

A thud on the top of the car misdirects all our attention as bullets come shooting at the back seats. Nat throws herself into the passenger seat onto Steve's lap and I roll on the floor, bracing myself as Steve pulls the break handle to bring the car to an abrupt stop.

Falling from the top of the car, a body drops in the street in front of us, but in no way falls with a loss of footing. The body braces itself, showing its clear strength as it recovers its stance within seconds, giving us a moment for a clear view of our attacker.

I swear my eyes strained themselves.

Shit.

His mask could hide him from everyone but two. No, the metal arm didn't give it away. He can't hide from his past. Not even in his most brainwashed state.

Nat grabs the gun from the glove box and starts to shoot through the windshield, but another car deliberately smashes into the back of us, knocking the gun out of her hand, driving us closer to the weapon standing in front of us.

A weapon whose identity is about to kill two people in this car twice over.

He jumps and latches himself to the top of the car, using his fashioned arm to pierce through the metal and rip the steering wheel from the frame.

"Shit!" Sam screams through the chaos. "Safiya get up front!"

Without hesitation, I jump onto Sam's lap as he pushes my head down and covers it with his arms. The car behind us smashes into the back again, spinning us out beyond our control.

We're about to go up in flames.

Steve leans his shield against the passenger side door, grabbing onto Sam, Nat, and I. "Hang on!"

He breaks the door off the car and we're sent sliding through the streets, watching the car flip a few more feet before stopping with an impact that would have been fatal for us all.