Mechanical Love ~ A Hawkeye Fan Fiction

~Chapter 2~

After I got home, I ordered some food to be delivered and jumped in the shower. The way the hot water beat down onto my fair skin was making it pink, but it felt so good. I was so angry with Rumlow and what he did in the elevator. I had never been a violent person, but I wanted to ball up my fist and just belt him in his face. It took a lot just to knee him in the groin. As I shampooed my hair, I realized how long it had gotten. Maybe I should try to pull it back into a ponytail?

Getting out and putting my robe on, I heard the doorbell. Picking up my phone, I turned on the monitor to see the delivery person. I hit the speaker.

"Just leave it by the door. Thank you."

"You're welcome, ma'am. Have a good evening."

I watched as she sat the bag down and walked away. Waiting until she walked away, I went to the front door, opened it and picked up the bag of Sushi and Sashimi that I had ordered. Nothing could sooth my soul like a good coconut and shrimp roll. Sitting it down on the coffee table, I grabbed my laptop to set it down beside the bag. I walk back into the bedroom to change into my tank top and shorts.

Pulling the towel off my head, I brush my hair out and brush it out. I do indeed discover that I can pull it back into a tiny ponytail. Hearing that beeping sound coming from my bedside table, I open the drawer and pull out the phone.

"Hello?"

"Dr. Lacey?"

"Yes?"

"It's Natasha."

"Yes?"

"Tony wanted me to check in with you."

"Where is Tony?"
"Tony is in Indonesia handling a situation there."

"Oh, I see."

"So, how's it going?"

"Pierce is pretty slick, I'll give him credit for that. I have found something new but I haven't cracked it yet. Rumlow is overstepping his boundaries. He harassed me in the elevator today."
"When you say harassed you, what kind of harassment are we talking about?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, is someone bothering Dr. Lacey?"

I didn't recognize that voice.

"Natasha, is someone there with you," I asked her.

"Yes, but it's fine. He knows what is going on. He is privy to the situation."

"Oh, alright. Well, to answer your question, it was part sexual harassment and part intimidation. He did accuse me of being up to something, so I don't know if he really thinks that or if he was messing with me."

"Do I need to send you some backup?"

"No! I'll be alright for now. Let me crack what is on this USB."

"Fine. You know how to get in touch with me if you need me. Stay safe, Dr. Lacey."

"Thank you, Natasha."

We hung up and I put the phone back into it's hiding spot. Leaving the bedroom, I went into the kitchen to grab the wine and stemless wine glass. After getting myself set up, I began eating my sushi, drinking my wine and working on cracking the codes on the USB. This...this was my happy place. Until....

"Oh shit....this isn't good...Alexander, what have you done?"

***

I paced back and forth for over an hour contemplating calling Natasha back. This...this could really bad if they did this. I had to stop this from happening. Damn it! Finally, I walked to my bedroom, opened the bedside table drawer, lifted the wood up and pulled the phone out. Looking down at the phone, I wondered if I need to call or actually video call her so she could see this.

This constitutes a video call! My fingers were shaking as I hit the numbers and then the camera icon. It rang two times and then Natasha appeared on the screen. Her hair was blonde!

"Why is your hair blonde?"

"You don't like it?"

"We aren't red head sisters anymore," I said with a nervous giggle.

She laughed at me; "Lucy, this makes me nervous."

"Nat, this isn't good. Pierce is planning something catastrophic. We cannot let this happen."

"Hold on and let me put you up on the big screen. Some of the others are here."

"Oh, I'm not presentable, Natasha!"

"Lucy, stop it, you're beautiful."

I quickly wifi'd the phone into the tv. There were five others in the room with her. My cheeks got hot from embarrassment.

"Excuse my appearance," I said quietly. "I had a rough day."

"Natasha told us what Rumlow did to you," Dr. Banner said. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm alright. Rumlow is menacing and a dick."

I heard some chuckles from the room.

"So," Natasha said. "Tell us what you've discovered."

"So, according to what I was able to crack off of the USB from his private computer, Pierce and his science team has created a serum that they want to inject into soldiers with no way to tell if it is going to work or not. It could either kill them or make them like Steve. They've pretty much recreated that serum, but at a more high-tech level. And it looks like Rumlow is going to be the first one to get it! He volunteered himself."

"Then we have to get you out of there, Dr. Lacey," Dr. Banner said.

"No, that will just cause suspicion."

"She's right," Natasha said. "If we pull her now, that will look suspicious, Bruce."

"So, what should we do. With Tony not being here, he left you in charge," the man in black said.

I wasn't quite sure who that was because his back was to me. He was facing Natasha and I couldn't hear his voice clearly. He was sitting on the edge of the table that Natasha was standing at. He lifted his hand and placed it on her shoulder. She cut her eyes up at him. He leaned down to her. It was obvious he whispered something in her ear.

"Tony would tell you to leave her in place and send someone else to be there with her."

"Happy, why are you even in here," Natasha asked as she looked over her shoulder into the corner where Happy was sitting, eating a bag of pistachios.

"I have no where else to be right now and I'm driving Dr. Banner around."

I tried not to laugh at the conversation. The pit of my stomach had a different feeling in it. If they were considering sending someone else here to watch my back, that did worry me a bit. But, so did Pierce's plan.

"Nat?"

"What is it, Lucy?"

"What are you thinking? What do you think we should do?"

"How long have you been undercover now?"
"Six months give or take."

"This is the biggest thing since you've been there. It's about time for Pierce to do something crazy like this. Lucy, I'm going to send you some backup. Better to be safe than sorry. You're a normal human being. You're not some metahuman with super strength and I don't want anything happening to you. You are valuable to us. He will identify himself to you when he gets there. Until then, stay safe."

"Okay, Natasha."

"We will talk soon, Lucy," she said, and the screen went black.

Well shit...