I stand with my hands clasped in front of me as I wait for instructions. Today is the day that the first Winter Soldier contract is going to be carried out. It took days of pleading with my father before he agreed to let me come. I argued with him until I was blue in the face and I'm pretty sure he only let me come because nobody else knows how to control the Soldier. Truth be told, I think the Soldier frightens my father but he'll never admit it.
Dane stands beside me as we watch agents put gear on the Soldier. He's outfitted in all black. He's given cargo pants, boots, and a motorcycle-esque jacket that exposes his metal arm. All items of clothing are laden with weapons, some hidden and others exposed. To top off his look, he's given a mask that obscures the lower half of his face. The mask is equipped with an air filter to protect him if he finds himself in a situation where poisonous gasses are present. Every aspect of his uniform was meticulously planned and designed.
An agent puts eye black on the Soldier's face and gives him special tactical glasses and then steps away from him, rubbing his blackened fingers on his pants. If I hadn't been working with the Soldier I would be very intimidated by his looks. Hell, even after working with him I'm still intimidated by his appearance.
"Everyone load up." The squadron leader announces, breaking the tense silence of the room.
Dane and I are going to be transported with the Soldier, not with the rest of the squadron. The Soldier climbs into the big armored vehicle first, followed by me, and then Dane. Dane sits close to me so that our legs are touching one another. I nonchalantly pull my leg away from his. After hearing his conversation with my father the other week, I feel uneasy being near Dane, not that I ever felt comfortable around him in the first place. I know it's just a matter of time before my father tells me of their plan.
The vehicle starts up loudly, and we're on our way to the mission site. The plan is to let the Soldier handle things on his own, after all he is an elite trained assassin. However, to make sure the contract is fulfilled, a squadron of special force Hydra soldiers are coming along as well. I've never seen the Soldier in action before and I'm anxious to see how this is going to play out.
Weeks ago an agent was planted within the target's circle in order to find out where the subject was going to be. It also allowed Hydra to install cameras at the hit site so that people observing can see what's happening in real time, and also provide proof to the client that their contract was fulfilled. It's a very complex ordeal, and I'm sure it's going to pay off.
The target is supposed to be going to lunch with the Hydra plant to discuss some sort of deal. The deal is just a facade to get the target as secluded from the public as possible. After all, the Winter Soldier is not supposed to be known to the public. He is to remain elusive. I feel myself become more nervous the closer to the site we get. We plan on parking a mile away from the site and having the squadron set up in locations nearby in case they are needed.
After what feels like hours of driving, the vehicle stops and is turned off. Someone opens the door for us and we all step out, the Soldier standing by my side. We're in some abandoned warehouse it seems. Inconspicuously, I place a hand on his back and hope that it brings him some sort of reassurance or comfort. After all, I have no idea what's going through his mind right now.
I remove my hand from his back and follow the squadron leader to what is going to be the communications point, where all the monitors to the cameras will be. Agents are rushing around to quickly set everything up. I check the shiny silver watch on my wrist, thirty minutes until the hit. I motion for the Soldier to follow me and I tell Dane to stay where he is, otherwise I know he would've followed me.
Secluded away from the others, the Soldier stares at me, equipment covering his face so I can't see it. I look into the glasses and sigh lightly, I think I'm more stressed out than anyone over this. My reputation is on the line too, it's not just about the Soldier's performance. I straighten out his jacket and glance at my watch again. Time seems to be flying by.
"You're going to do just fine, remember, the target is going to be wearing the blue suit. The man in the black is with us. I have no doubt that you're going to do just fine. Be confident in yourself and your abilities. I'll be here for you afterwards, I promise." I try to give him the best pep talk I can come up with. I feel my stomach tying itself in knots. Obviously, he doesn't respond to me. We stand in silence until an agent comes up to the two of us, interrupting our solemn moment.
"Miss Averina, it's time to put the asset in position." He speaks with false confidence. I can tell he's terrified, his voice wavered as he spoke and I can see the sweat on his brow. I nod my head stiffly and turn to the Soldier.
"It's time. Follow this agent and he will put you in position. Good luck." I say quietly and watch as the Soldier takes my orders and follows the man.
I rejoin Dane and the others in front of the several monitors that are being set up. I check my watch again, fifteen minutes. I take a deep breath to try to calm myself. This is the moment everyone has been waiting for. On one hand I hope he is successful. It would not only save him but myself as well, though I know this reasoning is selfish. If he fails, then my father will lose millions in contracts and I know that will not go unpunished.
However, on the other hand, I feel for the man who has to take another's life. I know this isn't being done out of his own free will, he's being forced to murder. It's a lose-lose situation in my eyes.
"Are you excited?" Dane asks me. The last thing I want to do right now is have any sort of interaction with him, but I know if I act out of line my father will hear of it. I fake a smile and turn to him,
"I am excited. I know he's going to do well." I say and hope that he buys my performance. Luckily for me, Dane doesn't seem too in tune with any sort of emotional intelligence and doesn't question me. We both turn our attention to the monitors and I can see the Soldier being placed in position for the hit and is given an earpiece. Five minutes until the hit.
The squadron leader turns on his earpiece and makes sure that it works. The Soldier confirms that his earpiece is working. I start picking at the skin around my nails anxiously. The squadron leader gets a message on his phone and reads it. He informs the Soldier that the target will be moving in shortly.
The entire room is silent, everyone's eyes are glued to the screens. I think my heart is beating so heavily that the people around me can hear it. It's not long until I see two other people walk into view of the cameras. Any moment now.
I watch as the man in the black suit, the Hydra agent, offers the target a seat. The man sits down with the agent and I see the man look around the room quickly. I think he senses something is awry.
"Target is in position. Engage." The squadron leader speaks into the earpiece. With wide eyes I watch as the Soldier turns the corner and quickly heads to the target. The Hydra agent with the target abruptly stands ands runs from the scene so he isn't caught in the crossfire. The target shouldn't be armed, but you never know.
The target stands from his seat as the Hydra agent runs and looks around frantically. He sees the Soldier walking towards him and backs up as much as he can, tripping over his own feet as he tries to flee from the Soldier. I can see the man with his arms out in front of him, likely pleading for his life.
With skill, the Soldier grabs a knife from one of the holsters on his leg and spins it in his hand. In the blink of an eye, the Soldier slits the target's throat. The target's hands reach for his neck and he falls to his knees. I can see the blood run down his neck onto his hands. As the man loses blood he falls further onto the floor.
"Target eliminated. Return to communications." The squadron leader speaks into the earpiece. My throat feels dry and I can't seem to tear my eyes from the monitor. I hear people around me start to talk and celebrate the victory but I can't focus on them.
The man's body lay in a crimson pool, motionless. I know this is only the beginning of the carnage that surely to come. Once word gets out that the contract was successful, I have no doubt that even more contracts will come. The night of the presentation there were already several interested clients, but this just solidified that there will be more.
Someone shakes my shoulder, breaking my gaze from the corpse on the screen. Dane has a hand on my shoulder and I see a huge smile on his face.
"He did it." He says with great enthusiasm. I return the smile and nod,
"I knew he could do it." I say, feigning celebration with the others. I don't know how anyone can celebrate what just happened.
I watch as the Soldier walks back into the communications center, and everyone stares in awe. I can tell people want to congratulate him, but they know better than to engage in any way. Without skipping a beat, I shrug off Dane's hand and go to the Soldier. Agents begin deconstructing the setup and packing things up quickly. We can't stay here for long.
I see small dots of blood on the Soldier's natural hand and some on his metal one. I'll have to get that cleaned up when we get back. For now though, I lead him back to the armored vehicle and get him settled inside.
The agents get everything packed up and we're heading back to the base in record time. It's silent in our car, but not for long.
"Lost for words?" Dane asks me. I lift my gaze to meet his eyes,
"Yeah, something like that." I say and look over to the Soldier, who is staring straight forward.
"It's gotta feel pretty good, knowing that you made this possible." Dane says. Though I know I should feel proud, I feel nothing but regret and sorrow. However, I smile and nod my head,
"It's just a lot to process is all. It's almost unreal." I say, realizing I didn't have to completely lie to him.
"I know your father will be very pleased." He says, but I sense some sort of eerie undertone.
"I hope so." I say and the conversation dies.
Once we arrive back at base, the squadron begins organizing their things, and the three of us get out of our vehicle. I excuse myself and the Soldier from the rest of everyone under the guise that I need to reprogram him. I walk the two of us through the hall, people moving to the side for us.
I open the door and let him walk in first. Once the door is closed, I know I can drop my facade. My shoulders slump slightly and I gently start disarming him. I gather the weapons strapped to him and remove the holsters. I place the guns on a rack in the back of the room, and put the clean knives in specialized briefcases to keep them in pristine condition.
I remove the knife and holster that keeps the murder weapon and set it aside for cleaning. The target's blood coats the blade, turning a rusty brown color from oxidation. I try my best to not touch the blood.
After I get the weapons and holsters off of his body, I lead him to the chair in the center of the room. I gingerly remove the glasses from his face, along with the mask. They both have their own specialized briefcases to be kept in as well.
I also remove his boots and put them aside.
"I'll be right back, stay here." I say quietly as I make my way out into the lab that's adjacent to his room. I grab a bottle of rubbing alcohol, some cotton balls, and fill a small glass bowl with water. Thankfully, there's nobody in the lab right now so I don't feel the intense stares of the scientists.
I go back to the room and see that he is sitting in the chair still. I place the things on my desk in the room and put some rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball. I walk over to him and move the stray pieces of hair out of his face. Carefully, I begin removing the eye black from his face, being extra cautious the closer to his eyes I get.
After the eye black is removed, I soak a cotton ball in water and clean the area again, I don't want to risk some rubbing alcohol going into his eyes. Then I clean the blood off his hands, removing all trace of murder.
I place the used cotton balls in a pile on my desk and retrieve the hairbrush I keep in the desk drawer. I go behind the chair and start running the brush through his dark, tangled hair. Quietly, I hum a tune in an attempt to help relax him. I know I told people I was going to reprogram him, but I don't see the need to. Plus, I don't want to add more trauma to his day.
After his hair is tangle free, I run my fingers through it, knowing that I always found some comfort and relief when my mother did this for me. Though that seems like ages ago now.
"I don't want to do this, but you know what time it is." I say and walk around the chair. He stands and follows me to his cryogenesis chamber, stepping in as the door opens. I sigh and lean in and place a kiss on his cheek before I engage the cryogenesis cycle. His bright blue eyes close just as I hit the button. It never gets easier.
I clean up the cotton balls and leave his room, feeling tired from the day. I go to my room and kick my uncomfortable shoes off. I hate keeping up appearances. I take the watch off and place it on my run down vanity. I find it funny how my father wants me to always dress and look extravagant, but can't be bothered to get new furniture for my room. It just reinforces to me that he doesn't actually care about me, but only about making good impressions on others. My appearance and actions are a direct reflection of him, in his eyes.
I sit on the edge of my bed and see the image of the dead man in my mind. My heart hurts for the target's family and for the Soldier. Neither of them wanted this.
I found that during this process it's easier for me to cope with things if I quit using the Soldier's name. I will always remember his name, but the things he's being forced to do here is not who he is, or was. So, I only find it respectful to not use his name.
A knock on the door interrupts my thoughts. I get up and open it, seeing my father and Dane standing in front of me. Dane has a smirk on his face, and my father's face is expressionless. I have a feeling I know what this is about.
"Adalyn, we need to talk." He says in a stone cold voice. I look between the two of them and nod, putting on the first pair of shoes I see so I can follow them to my father's office. The fatigue from earlier is gone, but unfortunately is replaced with anxiety and dread.