stevebucky - hiraeth

4. Atlantis Alcatraz

They put Rogers in the middle. To make an example of him, Clint guessed. 

Everyone reacted when they brought him in. Wanda finally moved, Sam couldn't do anything but stare, his mouth wide open, and Scott started banging on the glass for whatever reason.

Steve wasn't waking up- which was odd. He didn't think sedatives worked on him, unless they had pumped him with elephant ones. Actually, he didn't think that was too far off of a possibility. 

If Steve was here, that meant Nat was still safe. He hoped she would stay that way.

                                                                              -

It took about half an hour for Steve to wake. He got up quickly, scanning the room, making eye contact with everyone. He realized where he was and shut his eyes tightly, visibly sighing. He looked right at Clint.

I'm sorry, Steve mouthed.

 Clint shook his head. It's fine.

Steve looked back and forth, and suddenly rammed his shoulder into the glass. Nothing happened.

"I would avoid doing that," Sharon said, stepping in front of Steve's cell. "That glass is five inches thick. Steve said something, but was muffled. Sharon pressed a button on a key fob.

"Really, Sharon?" Steve sighed.

"I mean, are you really all that surprised?" She tilted her head.

"No. But was it really necessary to play with my emotions like that?"

"I did it for trust. To work my way in. So, yes. You were terribly misguided. I almost felt bad for your friend a couple times!"

"You mean Sam?"

Sam visibly facepalmed from the other side of the room. Clint winced in sympathy.

"No, Steve. Dear god, it's worse than I thought." Sharon laughed. "We'll chat later, okay?"

                                                                              -

Steve was trapped now. He had failed everyone who was counting on him, and now he was just another captive.

And had Sharon been talking about? I almost felt bad for your friend a couple times! What did that even mean? Was she talking about Bucky? Why?

Dear god, it's worse than I thought.

Steve picked up a table and threw it at the glass.

Nothing. Obviously. 

Steve paced for a long time, watching the clock in his cell tick by. Occasionally he would throw things at the walls, his friends looking on.

Was he going to just rot away in here? Was that what everything had come to?

After what felt like an eternity, five incredibly burly men armed to the teeth came and opened the cell. Stupidly, Steve immediately made a run for it, but they knew it was coming and shoved at least four needles into his forearms. Nothing happened at first, so they put in more.

"This guy is built like a tank," one of the guys muttered.

"Quit your fangirling, Jerry," another one spat. Steve was starting to drift off, so they did one more injection for good luck.

Clint watched as his friend slumped to the ground, discarded needles rolling away on the floor beside him. Weren't sedatives supposed to take a little time to work? He figured that Steve probably burned them off fast, but this was just overkill. 6 injections just to get to another room.

They're afraid of him.

                                                                              -

Steve gradually became aware of his consciousness again, straightening his spine to see Sharon sitting at a table across from him, in a grey room with a camera at every corner.

"Good morning," Sharon said. 

"Is it-?"

"No." She narrowed her eyes and flashed a smile. "I'm going to ask you a few questions."

Steve watched her carefully.

"Are you in contact with one James Buchanan Barnes?" 

"No." Steve answered quickly. It had sounded like a lie, but it wasn't. He wished it was a lie.

Sharon pursed her lips. "Have you seen him at all since the events in Siberia?"

"No." He took too long to say that. She could tell, it was in her face.

"Are you aware of his current location?"

"No." 

Sharon leaned forward. "Steve, in order to make it easier for the both of us, I need you to stop lying."

"I'm not lying." A lie, of course.

"That's funny. You are, don't think I can't tell. So tell me. Where is Barnes?"

"I don't know." He was getting louder.

"Have you seen him at all? You stole a quinjet, so you would have gone somewhere with him afterward!"

Oh. Right. 

"He left on his own." Steve admitted. "I didn't follow him."

"You didn't follow- huh." Sharon laughed a little, biting her lip. "You just let James go? I thought all the times he wasn't here you just moped around like a sad puppy waiting for him to get back."

Steve went red, because that was exactly what he had done those last several weeks. And years.

"I'm not lying about that. He left on his own, and I didn't follow him."

"That's interesting." Sharon laced her fingers together and tucked her under her chin. "Now tell me the truth."

Improvise. "That is the truth. This is like that game," Steve said suddenly.

Sharon frowned. 

"Two lies and a truth. Right?"

"You mean two truths and a lie?" Sharon sighed.

"No. We're playing my version."

Sharon rolled her eyes. "So which one of the things you said was true?"

"Guess."

"Um..." she leaned way over the table, trying to maintain her bright face. "Just tell me now. Okay? This isn't a game, it's an interrogation."

"Oh, I didn't notice," Steve said, and slammed her head into the table, stunning her. He jumped up, glared at the cameras, and shoved through the door. Alarms immediately started blaring as Steve ran blindly towards another door.

He pushed it open and saw a group of government agents watching the security cameras. They noticed him and turned, jaws dropping.

Steve hesitated, then turned around to see Sharon Carter, royally pissed, her face a mess of blood, her nose weeping with red, holding a syringe.

"We've been working on this for a while," she said, lifting it up to the light. "I can't wait to see how it works on you."

"What is that?" Steve questioned, heart thumping.

"You'll see."

Guards grabbed him from behind and Sharon shoved the needle into his arm.