Chapter eight

An hour earlier…

The best party remixes of the year were loudly playing from red speakers that were hanging on the walls in the local strip club. They perfectly fit into the interior where everything was black, red and occasionally pink. The furniture was old-fashioned, but it wasn’t that bad. There were worse strip clubs than this; however, there were also better ones with prettier girls, and most of the bars looked more from the twenty-first century. This particular one looked like the eighties bar with the worst German strippers ever.

Five men of different ages were sitting at the bar and holding drinks in hands while their horny, hungry eyes were looking at two dancing girls. Their minds were filled with dirty images. All they wanted was to take the girls and have fun with them. One of the girls was wearing white lingerie, swaying her hips and brightly smiling. The second was using the dance pole to be sexier, but she was failing horribly. When Izzy’s eyes saw what she was trying to do, she did her best to hold her laugh. “What a stupid hoe,” she mumbled under her nose.

Izzy needed to become one of them, to fit into the scene. She was only wearing sexy black lingerie with suspenders, stockings and high heels just like the rest of the staff. Her hair was brushed in a very high ponytail and the significant scar she had on her neck was hidden under a lot of make-up. It was a drill to hide it. She was mostly known because of it. The people would talk about a woman with a scar on the right side of her neck that looked like a devil from the hell.
“Hey, sexy girl, why don’t you come here and give me a lap dance,” a man called after her with a significant southern accent. When the girl turned to him, she was disgusted by his look. He was older, with almost no hair, weird long beard and he didn’t take much care of himself. When he smiled, his teeth were like stars – yellow and far from each other. If she could vomit, she would have already done it. “Come on, darling, what are you waiting for?”

Before she replied, her slender fingers gently brushed against the edge of the nearest table. Izzy did it on purpose. On the tip of her index finger was an extremely miniature device of a size of a contact lens. It was a camera – a device specially made for this occasion by one of her friends. She had six of them and she needed to place them in strategic places. “Darling, I am way too expensive for you,” she winked at him and continued with the job she was doing. The object she had to eliminate could appear anytime.

The last two cameras were placed in front of the only VIP room they had and with a little luck, inside of the room. All of the cameras were connected to her laptop that was in Rick’s hands back in Charleston. Luckily, the strip club had a Wi-Fi connection and it was easier for the cameras to connect to it.

Just when she left the VIP room, a blonde girl stopped her with a weirdly-stupid grin on her face. “You are the new girl, right?” her voice was very high and unpleasant. It made Izzy’s blood boil a little. “For your information, there is this filthy rich guy coming and I want to tell you, he’s mine tonight. Don’t try to take him away.”

“Have you seen your face in the mirror, darling?” Izzy pointed at her enormously big duck lips covered in pink lipstick. “With that face, I doubt he would want you tonight,” and with a triumphant smile, she waved her fingers. Izzy was never polite to people. She couldn’t even pretend it. But, then again, she was divergent and weird. Her brain was working differently.

After taking one shot of vodka at the bar, the door to the club opened and four men in black suits stepped in. The target was finally here. The gorillas looked around, scanning if everything was perfectly safe for the man who paid them enormous money. Once they were sure, the boss – a fat Asian man – stepped inside with a shit-eating grin on his face. Izzy’s dark eyes found his and her heart almost skipped a beat. She was way too excited for this assassination. Children were excited about Christmas presents; Izzy was excited to commit a murder. Usually, she would have done it very quickly, without stupid intercessions or plans – only one swift move, pulling a trigger and the man would be dead. She was asked to do it with a sniper gun. One boss was trying to destroy the other one.

The girls started to throw themselves at his feet, begging him to take one of them into the VIP room. They would do anything for his money.

It was time to move. Izzy put a fake smile on her lips and seductively walked right to the man. She brushed her ponytail with fingers, twirling the ends on her finger, and took a deep breath of that horrible smell that was swimming in the air. The Asian man caught her eye and immediately pointed at her and walked towards her. “You,” he said confidentially, “I want to take you home when I’m finished here,” and he stopped very close her body.

“Wow,” she licked her lips, trying to be as seductive as possible. “I am honored, sexy boy,” she gently touched his shoulders and purred into his ear. “I can be a very bad girl for you if your heart wishes to,” she bit his earlobe and it made her stomach roll. “I will wait for you in front of the club in an hour. Now, I have to take care of other customers.” Apparently, the boss was satisfied and as an approval, he smacked her ass with his hand. “Oh, you are rough. I like that.”
“Wait for me,” he said with a gruff voice. “Don’t you dare leave without my approval.” That was it; that was all she needed to hear.When the man and his gorillas passed by her, it was time to leave the place and get ready for the action.

. . .

~Wait! He stopped at the bar and is talking to someone,~ Rick announced quickly and loudly before she could do anything stupid. Her grip on the gun loosened and she annoyingly rolled her big dark eyes. The sigh that came out of her throat must’ve been markedly heard on the other side of the line. ~Man, he’s taking his time. How can he be a boss when he’s this slow?~

Izzy’s eyes caught a sight of a black SUV car driving down the street. It wouldn’t be anything unusual if another car – the exact same type – followed the first one. “What the fuck…” she mumbled under her nose, not caring if Rick heard it or not. “Rick, what’s happening inside?” she looked through the telescope. She rather checked the situation. The cars stopped at the roadside.

~He’s laughing and talking to the bartender which is unusual. I’ve never seen a man like him talking to an average bartender. Damn, this would be a very bad gangster movie,~ his voice sounded disappointed. A sound of a breaking glass came from Rick’s line. ~Shit, someone is once again destroying my beautiful glasses. Anyway, his men are standing near him, checking the surroundings and just patiently waiting. Why?~ Before she could reply, he continued. ~Have you heard of puppy?~

“Can we talk about current mission and not about him?” she asked grumpily, but answered his question anyway. “No, I haven’t,” she said strictly, not saying more about Bucky. Izzy’s eyes were focused on the cars and the main entrance of the bar. She had a weird feeling – something was wrong, something changed and she didn’t know what it was. An unpleasant shiver went through her spine. “Why do you want to talk about him now? Now, when we have other things to do when I need to shoot one fucker down,” she adjusted on the cold ground and once again looked through the telescope. Maybe it was a stupid idea to only remain in the sexy lingerie and a long black coat.

~I thought that…~

The black-haired girl stopped listening to him the moment three more black SUV cars had arrived at the strip club. Many men in black tactical suits and guns in their hands stepped out of the vehicles, ready to burst into the club. One of them was shouting giving orders and the man had a very strong Russian accent. Izzy’s heartbeat speeded up. It was when she noticed the logo on their shoulders.

“Shit!”

~Izzy? What’s going on?~ Rick had asked right after she started to swear dramatically.

The woman put the sniper gun down and started to immediately pack her belongings. “Fuck, fucking fuck! They are here, Rick! Shit, shit,” her hands started to disassemble the gun, putting it back into its special cover. “They know I’m here. Fuck! How did they found out? How? Damn. Someone must have seen me.”

~How is that possible? Should I… ~

“No!” she cut him. “Don’t do anything unless I say otherwise. I’ll call you when I’m back in my motel room,” and with that, she ended the call by pressing a miniature button on the device that was in her ear. This situation was totally unexpected. Another rough, unpleasant shiver went through her spine while she was quickly packing up. The girl did her best not to catch their attention. Her moves were adroit. Her fingers were cold, but the sudden activity made her body warm up a little. As fast as she could, she packed everything. Putting the bag over her shoulders, she took one last look down on the road.

“Check this roof and also the building to your left. She must be here somewhere!” a deep male voice screamed. This sentence only proved they were looking for her. Who told them about her? Who knew she would be there? Closing her eyes and freezing for a moment, the only name popped in her mind – the Winter Soldier.

Quickly, she made her way to the nearest darkest corner that formed a dark black shadow. When she stepped inside of it, she suddenly vanished without any trace. Her body appeared on another building. She stepped out of a shadow and went to the fire escape. Her pace wasn’t hasty. She remained focused, eyes everywhere. Holding the leather tab of the cover where the sniper gun was hidden, she went down the stairs. Her motorbike was parked nearby.

“Fucking stupid, annoying Hydra,” she angrily mumbled under her nose. “Ruining my brilliantly planned assassination,” she continued.

Only a few more steps and she was at the end of the dark alley. A hushed sound came from behind her. It was a sound of a loading gun. “Well, well, well, look what we have here,” a male voice with a German accent said. The raven-haired girl stopped and turned on her heel. She pursed her lips and rolled her dark eyes. Two men were looking at her, holding guns in their hands. “We’ve been looking for you, little one.”

“Do you realize what you’ve done tonight?” she kinked a brow, relaxing her body a little. “You are ruining my night out.”

“Sorry, Shadow, but not sorry at all,” he put a gun up and aimed at her. “You are coming with us. Hydra needs you back.”

Could she be more annoyed? Yes, she could. Dropping the bag on the ground, she vanished like a black smoke in a second. The men didn’t expect that. Just like she disappeared, she appeared behind them, playfully snapping their necks. It was a very easy work. “That should do it,” she brushed her hands against each other.

“Should it?” a new voice said close to her. It was soft, sounding like a mystical whisper. Izzy couldn’t react the way she wanted. She was too slow and a shooting sound rang in her ears. It was way too unexpected. A sharp pain went through her body, right under her right lung. Her breath got stuck in her throat. It hurt like a bitch. She touched the wound that formed not only in the back but also on her stomach, right under the right of the rib cage. Her fingers were covered in a lot of blood.

Was this it? Was this the way she would die? No. The wound was painful, but the bullet didn’t get any important organs. Luckily, she knew her body well; she knew how her metabolism worked. With a loud grunt, she turned around, slowly turning into a dark smoke. Her eyes were once again black and she was ready to hurt that fucker who shot her. She looked like a very angry devil with the intention to kill anyone who would come across her way.

Hydra was full of surprises and the person who wanted to take her down was one of them. He was a tall masculine man wearing black tactical suit typical for any Hydra assassin. At first, she thought it was Barnes trying to take her down, but when she looked closer, she noticed the short light-brown hair and no metal arm. This one must have been Hydra’s new creation. “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” she had to say it out loud, still holding the wound under the right rib cage.

Ready to take him down, she heard another loud gunshot. Only for a second, she thought he got her, but a painful growl came from the “assassin” and not from her. Someone shot him. Then there was second and third shot, followed by loading a gun. She knew the sound. It wasn’t a small gun, but something bigger. Who was trying to help her?

The man, the unsuccessful version of the Winter Soldier, fell on the ground like a ragdoll covered in dark blood. Izzy winced from pain and took a deep breath. There were the one and only person who could have helped her. “How did you find me, Barnes?” she asked confidently while trying to cover the pain.

The brunet appeared from behind a corner with an M4 carbine in his hands. This was the typical weapon he used to have with him on missions when they both worked for Hydra. Bucky was wearing black jeans with a dark brown jacket and he had a cap on his head. “You told me you are going here, remember?” he kinked a brow and came closer to the woman.

“Why are you here?” she leaned against a cold wall of a building, hissing in pain. A tear of sweat appeared on her forehead.

His blue eyes found blood on her hands. Bucky huffed and looked around, scanning the surroundings. “We need to get out and take care of your wound.”

“Look at you, how caring and worried you are,” she gave him a sarcastic smile. “Where should we write it?” The woman tried to laugh but the pain stopped her. “Shit.”

He rolled his eyes and handed her the gun. Without asking, his flesh hand sneaked under her knees and the metal one under her shoulders. He picked her up bridal style. “Save it for later, woman. We have to leave before someone will come. Where’s your motorbike?”

“Fuck it. It is three blocks away. I’ll get us to my motel room with my ability,” she said it with gritted teeth and did her best to held another painful growl. “Shit, it hurts like a bitch.”

“You are weak. You won’t…”

“Shut the fuck up,” she was annoyed by his words. “Just hold me tight.”

He saw the darkness surrounding him. Even when she was hurt, she was fast. The black smoke swallowed them and the only thing he could feel was her body in her arms, holding it tightly. He didn’t understand her ability, but he was indeed fascinated. After a very short moment, the two of them appeared in a very small room with a bed, big round table, and almost no furniture – typical cheap motel. The room had a musty smell and the door to the bathroom was damaged. Bucky needed one more second to process what happened to him. She was able to take them from one place to another.

Izzy took a deep painful breath. “Put me on the table and listen to me what I say,” she demanded. Barnes did as she told him, carefully putting her on the table. Her hands quickly unfastened the black coat and exposed her almost naked body to him. His eyes widened and darkened at the same time. She was there only in sexy black lingerie with high heels and stockings. He quickly came to his mind when he saw the wound on her right side. “Ah,” another groan escaped her lips. “There is a black bag under the bed,” she started to talk and he quickly reacted, running to the bed. “You will find there weapons and clothing, but on its side, there is a small black cover.”

“I got it,” he said after ten seconds.

“Open it, there are injections. Take one and give me it.”

“What’s in there?” he asked.

She took a deep breath and answered his question. “It is like a sedative, but a stronger dose than usual. It will help me calm down. My body works differently and so does yours. Don’t forget, we were in Hydra.”

Bucky took one injection and injected her with it just like she wanted. “Okay, it’s done. Do you have any bondage here? I need to take care of the wound.”

The raven-haired girl took a deep relaxing breath. “Look into the bathroom. I hid there some. Oh, and in the bag, you can find there everything you need.”

It was strange, seeing Izzy lying on the table covered in blood. Bucky would have never thought that he’ll be the one saving her life. He tried to be gentle. They didn’t have any anesthesia or alcohol. Luckily, she packed forceps, needles, and suture for sewing the wound. It took him some time until he finally got a piece of the bullet out of her body.

“Why did you come back?” she broke the silence between them. Her head was turned to him, scanning his face. She could see how focused he was.

He was quiet for a second. “I thought about it, about what you said to me,” he started slowly, thinking about each word. “I replayed each moment together and every conversation we had. It makes sense now. And,” he hesitated but continued, “I had a dream or more like a memory how we worked together back in Hydra’s base. We had to assassinate someone in Warsaw.”

She smirked a little. “A dream told you that we worked together,” she mocked him with a raspy voice. “You remember correctly. Few days before the mission, I killed a very young girl. You were supposed to train a group of newcomers but I took them from you.”

“How can you remember the past?” he started to sew her up when the wound was finally clean. “I don’t remember who I was or what I did. I had to read about myself in a museum.”

Izzy’s left fingers went to her hair. The ponytail she had was a mess. She took a deep breath, her chest visibly heaved. “I have abilities. My brain works differently, so whenever they tried to wipe me out, they weren’t successful. Well, they did, but only for a moment. I would always remember – well, most of the things.”

“And what do you remember?”

“Aren’t you curious a little?” she raised her brow and once again smirked. “Tell me, why are you here. What do you want? What are you expecting now?”

He finished the sewing and cleaned the skin around it. “To be honest, I don’t know. I have no idea what to do now. Everyone is looking for me – Hydra, the police, government. I am a killer and they want me. I don’t know if I can start a new life. The only thing I can do is to hide.”

The girl tried to sit up, but it was a difficult task. Luckily, Bucky helped her. “But you must know why you came here.”

He nodded. “I do. You are the only person connected with my past and only you can give me the answers I need. I can help you if you can help me. I just need a place to stay and figure everything out. Will you,” he had to stop because he started to chuckle.

“My couch is free you know,” she said the thing he wanted to ask about. Bucky looked into her face and an honest smile appeared on his lips. “There are so many things I have to tell you. Some of the moments are nice, but there are moments you won’t like,” her shoulders fall back. She is becoming dizzier and more tired. Izzy closed her dark eyes and breathed the air through her nose.

“You ok?” he made a move toward her and caught her before she could fall down from the table. “Oh, obviously not,” he answered his question.

“Put me to bed,” she mumbled, “I’ll be fine in the morning. The sedatives are working.”
Carefully he moved her from the table to the bed, helping her lie down. She was still in her lingerie but he didn’t care anymore. He got used to the sight in front of him. Bucky had almost forgotten how beautiful she was – intimidating, but beautiful.

“I’m going to find your bike,” he pushed himself from the bed and stuck his hand into the pockets of the jeans.

“If you steal it, I will cut you,” she threatened him. “I’m going to be fine in the morning. I just need a good sleep and I’ll be fine. Oh, fucking Hydra,” her voice was muffled by a pillow. Bucky was about to leave when he heard her one more time. “Thanks for helping me, Barnes.”

…

When early morning came, Izzy felt better than ever – like nothing happened to her before. She took a deep breath and sat up. She was still wearing the lingerie, but the heels weren’t on her feet anymore. She looked around. No one was in the room, only her. Where did Bucky go? Did he change his mind? That wouldn’t be new.

Izzy looked at the wound. It was healing pretty fast, but she could feel the pain occasionally. Carefully, she bent over the bed and pulled out a bag where her clothes were. She took out typical black tight jeans, loose shirt and put it all on. After she fixed her hair and brushed it in a high ponytail, she packed all her belongings. The door to the room opened and she quickly turned around, gun already in a hand.

“Put it down, it’s only me,” Bucky’s eyes widened for a moment, but he relaxed and closed the door.

“Where have you been?” she turned around and hid the gun behind her back. Izzy zipped the bag.

“I went for your bike,” he answered and took the keys out of the pocket of his jacket. “It’s parked outside of the motel, so if you are ready, we can leave.” Bucky approached her and took the bag she wanted to put over her shoulders.The woman wanted to say something to him, but he didn’t give her the opportunity. “Stop, you are injured.”

“So what? Just because I have a little wound it doesn’t mean that I am useless and can’t take my stuff. And, we need to get back to the same place you found me. I forgot to take my gun with us. It cost a fortune, plus it’s a unique piece.”

He draped the bag over his shoulder. “I was there and didn’t find it. Hydra must have taken it when we disappeared,” Bucky explained and went to the door. “Anything else you need to take?”
She was surprised. “Look at you! Are you making amends, Barnes?” she had to laugh. “You are becoming my personal bitch, are you aware of that?” While talking to him, she quickly checked the room and bathroom, making sure she had everything packed.

The brunet only rolled his eyes and opened the front door. “Just come on already. We don’t want Hydra to find us here, no?” he fixed the cap on his head and looked outside. No one was around; the street was calm because the motel was on the edge of the city.

Izzy stepped out of the room, holding the black coat in her hand, with a grimace on her face. Her eyes never left his blue one. “My personal guardian,” she was making fun of the sudden situation. “Aren’t ya cute?” She turned to the parking lot where her motorbike should have been parked. She opened her mouth, closed it and checked the machine. “Where is my bike?” she asked.

He gave her a baffled look. “What do you mean where’s your bike? It’s right in front of you.”

She did her best to hide her laugh. “Dude, that’s not my bike,” she said. “My bike is nothing like this,” she kinked a brow and crossed arms under her breasts. “If this was my bike, it would have a tiny scratch on its side, but it isn’t there. You stole someone’s bike.” After that, she started to laugh.

“No fucking way,” his flesh fingers landed on the top of his head. “But the key worked on it!”

“Come on, Barnes, let’s get my bike and go back to Charleston,” she kept a grin on her face and came even closer to him. Because no one was around, she used her powers to teleport them to her actual motorbike.

Notes