CHAPTER SEVEN.
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— IZETA GROANED WHEN SHE FELT SOMEONE SHAKING HER.
"I'm not sleeping. I'm resting my eyes." She groaned, not opening her eyes.
"Well, then get off your ass and open your eyes. There's a crisis going on!" Sam huffed, making her open her eyes and sit up.
He offered her a hand, to which she took, "You good?" Sam asked, touching her arm.
"Yeah." Izeta smiled, slapping his stomach.
"We gotta find that weird ass doctor. Get into my mind, and look for him, so you know what he looks like." Sam ordered, making her nod as they continued to walk, while doing so, she read his mind.
They were about to reach the doors to go outside when an agent came up from her behind, grabbing her arm.
She quickly twisted his arm, before kicking him in the face with her leg, making him fall to the ground.
"Oh." Sam chuckled, "What? You said to get off my ass." Izeta replied, as the duo looked in the ground for the doctor.
"It's just, you kick your leg very high." Sam said, impressed.
"Do I?" Izeta asked, with her eyebrows furrowed, "I feel like any person could do that."
"Those weird gymnastics kids, maybe. But the strength you put in your leg when you do it, like, you straight up knocked him out." Sam continued, his eyes looking sweeping over the crowd.
"Mm. Film it, next time." Izeta hummed, a smirk on her face, though rushing towards a piece of clothing when she saw it.
Sam followed, before picking it up, mumbling a, "Shit."
— THEY WERE NOW AT AN ABANDONED GARAGE, SAM AND IZETA HAD FOUND STEVE AND BUCKY, WET.
"Hey, Cap!" Sam yelled, running over to Steve while Izeta watched as James groaned.
"Steve. Izeta." James whispered, though the duo kept a hard expression.
"Which Bucky am I talking to?" Steve questioned him, squinting his eyes.
"Your mom's name was Sarah. You used to wear newspapers in your shoes." James chuckled before his eyes switched to Izeta, "Your favourite colour is purple, because it's red and blue mixed, and those colours are your siblings favourite colours."
"Can't read that in a museum." Steve smiled, while Izeta and James made eye contact. She had her James back.
"Just like that, we're supposed to be cool?" Sam questioned, looking between the father and daughter duo.
"What did I do?" Bucky asked, a shaky breath leaving his lips. Before, looking at Izeta for an answer, she'd never lie to him.
"Enough." Steve answered for her, looking at the bruises on Izeta's neck and face.
"Oh, God, I knew this would happen. Everything HYDRA put inside me is still there. All he had to was say the goddamn words." James spat, not noticing the bruises that covered Izeta's body.
"Who was he?" Steve asked him, talking about the so called 'doctor'.
"I don't know." James admitted, "People are dead. The bombing, the setup . . . the doctor did all that just to get 10 minutes with you. I need you to do better than 'I don't know'." Steve told him, making Izeta glare his way.
"What did he ask? Or talk about?" Izeta asked gently, making Bucky send a small grateful nod her way, before he began to think.
"He wanted to know about Siberia. Where we were kept. He wanted to know exactly where." James explained, as Izeta carefully walked towards him, leaning against the concrete block, beside him.
"Why would he need to know that?" Steve questioned him, making Izeta look down at James, both of them thinking the same thing.
"Because, he's not the only Winter Soldier." Izeta hummed, her eyes never leaving James'.
"Who were they?" Steve questioned the duo, while Sam stood by, silently. While Izeta pulled up the hard metal, so Bucky could remove his metal arm.
"Their most elite death squad. More kills than anyone in HYDRA history. And that was before the serum." James explained, while Izeta nodded.
"They all end up like you?" Sam asked, making Izeta snort.
"Worse. You don't wanna come across those guys." Izeta scoffed, shivering at the memory.
"The doctor, could he control them?" Steve asked them, "Enough." Bucky replied.
"Said he wanted to see an empire fall." Steve quoted him.
"With these guys, he could do it. They speak 30 languages, can hide in plain sight . . infiltrate, assassinate, destabilise. They can take a whole country down in one night, you'd never see them coming." James continued explaining, making Sam raise his eyebrows.
"Sounds like someone I know." Sam scoffed, pointing his finger at his best friend.
James and Izeta looked at eachother, almost communicating with their minds as he nodded at her.
"That's because I was supposed to become one. They cancelled it, though. Never found out why." Izeta shrugged, she was glad they discontinued it, she would never want to live forever. That's the last thing she wanted to do.
She watched as Sam walked towards Steve, after giving her a nod.
Izeta turned towards Bucky, who was already watching her. And, as she turned around, the hair that covered her bruises, was revealed.
He exhaled quickly, before looking at her face, to see a cut on her face, "Did I do that?"
"No, no, just some Soldiers and Agents. It's fine." Izeta lied, her fingers trailing over the blue and purple, almost brown marks.
"Izeta, don't lie to me." James insisted, as he watched her carefully.
"Fine. You did, but you snapped out of it before you could do more damage." Izeta shrugged, as James reached out to wipe the blood away from her temple, making her eyes flutter close, for a moment.
"Anastasya, I almost killed you. Why didn't you fight back?" He whispered, eyes scanning her face.
"I didn't want to fight you, James. Besides, I wouldn't be able to beat you." Izeta chuckled, making Bucky shake his head.
"You know damn well, you could. With and without your powers. I do remember vividly you beating my ass when we were training." James hummed, making Izeta smile at him.
"Yeah, I know. But, I wanted to raise your spirits a bit." Izeta smirked, while James huffed at her, before fondly rolling his eyes.
Izeta pushed herself up from the stone she was leaning on and walked towards him, only for him to raise his finger, "No, don't. I don't want to hurt you again."
"You could never hurt me." Izeta spoke, truthfully. He only let out a breath before opening his arms, slightly.
Izeta quickly walked in them, as his arms wrapped around her waist, while hers wrapped around his neck, her chin resting on his head, "I missed you, so much."
"I missed you more than you could imagine, Izeta." Bucky breathed, gripping her tighter, as a tear fell from Izeta's eye.