Who the hell is Peggy?

Chapter four | radio silence

The night had never been more quiet at the base. After the team had returned, Steve never came out of his tent. He went through Peggy's stuff that she had left that morning. He grabbed one of her dresses and sniffed her scent. He was never much of a crier but losing Peggy really had an impact on him. The zip of his tent went open and Bucky joined by his side. "The boys wanted to know if you needed anything, booze, food, a shoulder to cry on?" He looked at his best friend but Steve didn't say a word. Bucky wrapped an arm around his shoulder and looked at him. "It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself." "She said she loved me this morning." Steve said softly. "Excuse me?" Bucky said, not hearing what he said. Steve laid down Peggy's dress next to him and put his hands in his hair. "This morning during the meeting, she told me she loved me... very quietly." He repeated a little bit louder. "And all I did was nod, like a bloody idiot." His voice trembled. "I didn't know Carter was such a sensitive girl." Bucky laughed. "I always thought you'd be the first to open up like that to her, you big softie." He got a glare from Steve. "Leave me alone." His voice sounded empty, like there was no happiness left. "I'm sorry Steve, honestly. If there was something I could do to bring her back, you know I would." Steve turned away. "I told her many times she could step out of this mission and now she's gone, I lost her." He sighed and looked at Peggy's side of the bed, it would be empty for ever. "I need to be alone for a while. Just go back to the rest, I'll manage." He stood up and opened the zip for Bucky, silence hinting him he needed space.

"And?" Dougan threw a beer at Bucky. "He won't come. I'll try again tonight." He raised his beer high in the sky. "To Peggy." Bucky said but the rest of the group stay quiet and Bucky turned around. There stood Steve. "How are you doing, man?" "I want to look for her." Steve said in a broken voice. "She deserves at least a funeral." He bit the inside of his lip, trying not to cry in front of all the men. Bucky stood up and tapped his shoulder. "We don't know where she fell off, it could be many miles apart." Steve glared at him. "I don't care. Don't expect me at breakfast tomorrow, or the day after." He shrugged Bucky's hand off his shoulders, grabbed some of the left overs and returned to his tent. Steve couldn't even bother to freshen up or brush his teeth. He changed in his nightwear and laid on his bed, however he couldn't sleep all night. He had to know where she was.

~*~
"Alright boys, wake up. You've had enough beauty sleep." Bucky yelled through the base. "Everyone gather around." He ordered and within minutes, more than half of the 107th surrounded him. "Listen up, it's been a week since Captain Rogers left, since there's a radio silence Colonel Philips gave me the order to lead this mission. We go in teams of 10, we will search every single inch for any signs of Captain Rogers. Is that clear?" "Yes Sergeant." The men yelled and Bucky nodded. "We'll be leaving shortly, prepare yourself." Dugan took his bag and went to Bucky. "Does he still have hope he would find her? That fall was 300 meter, there's no way we know exactly where she is." He shrugged his shoulders. "What would you do if your wife got killed in action? Steve doesn't stop until he found his girl. He would die for Peggy, we all know that."

The moment they were ready to leave, Steve entered the base. His uniform was covered in blood, his shield was dirty. Bucky ran towards him. "Steve, what happened? Did you find her?" He asked worrying. Steve swallowed his nerves. "I found the place, she's gone..." he looked down at two items he had found, the hard disk and Peggy's lucky charm that Steve gave her for their one month anniversary. "Th- there was a trail of blood of at least 100 feet but then it stopped and the trail continued in car tires. Someone took her body." Tears escaped Steve's eyes. "She's gone." Bucky wrapped his arms around him. "I'm so sorry man."