Cruel Fate | Bucky Barnes

DEAL BREAKERS

"You should know, Baron, that people don't just come into my bar and make demands."

Zemo smiled politely and sat down across from the woman, "Not a demand. An offer."

Selby smiled wickedly and glanced around the group. Her eyes lingered on the other three, filling with intrigue.

"What's the offer?" she asked.

Zemo stood up, "Tell us about the super soldier serum. In return, I'll give you him."

He walked behind Bucky to indicated that he was speaking about him. He ran a hand along his shoulders, making Bucky tense up the slightest.

"Along with the code words to control him, of course. He will do anything you want."

Selby stood up to inspect him. But her eyes only lingered on him for a moment. Instead, her gaze shifted to see Anna standing a few feet next to them.

"Interesting offer, Zemo," she sighed, "But I'm afraid such protected information requires a bit more. Perhaps you could also offer me the Lady Death here?"

Anna made eye contact with Selby and glared. The woman didn't seem intimidated even as she moved within inches of Anna's body.

"I've heard stories," she whispered, "Men cower when they hear whispers of the lady hunting them...then they crawl and beg for mercy in their final moments."

"It's a good thing you're a woman then, isn't it?" Anna questioned rhetorically.

Selby's lips turned upward and formed a smile. She raised her hand to slowly stroke the side of Anna's face. But before she could make contact, Anna snatched her wrist in a tight grip. Selby's guards tensed up and reached for their guns, but Anna didn't seem worried.

"I'd let go if I were you, darling. Otherwise, my friends will be forced to do something not so innocent," Selby warned.

Anna tilted her head to the side slightly and narrowed her eyes in a challenging way. She kept her strong position and even tightened her grip on Selby's wrist.

"If you speak to me, you lose your hand. Touch me, and you lose your legs. But threaten me? You lose your life."

She roughly shoved Selby's hand away. The woman let out an uneasy chuckle and backed away.

"The super soldier serum is here in Madripoor," she stated, "You'll have Dr. Wilfred Nagel to thank...or kill, depending which side you're on. The Power Broker had him working on it for awhile but things didn't go as planned."

"Is Nagel still here in Madripoor?" Zemo asked.

Selby laughed, "Oh, the bread crumbs you can have for free but the bakery is gonna cost you. I want the girl."

Anna moved to attack the woman but Bucky shot his arm out to hold her back. She struggled against him but was interrupted by the ringing of Sam's phone.

All negotiations stopped as they waited in anticipation. Selby smirked and commanded him to answer it on speakerphone. Sam reluctantly did so, speaking in a calm manner.

"Hello?"

"Hey, we need to talk about our situation. It's driving me nuts over here."

Sam played dumb, "What situation?"

"Are you high?" the woman scoffed, "I'm talking about the only situation we have."