Frost

Chapter 67

The Truth

"You reckless and crazy bitch" was the first thing Ivy heard after her eyes started to flutter open. Pain was something she was used to. An eternal companion that surrounded her and would not leave her alone. Pain was sometimes the only thing that reminded her that she was still alive and had to keep fighting. Keep fighting to escape the pain and break free from the imaginary chains that bound her to pain. Pain, however, also reminded her that she was human and not a monster. Vendetta had tried to make her believe she was one, but she had more humanity than any of them. Pain had shaped her into this person she was today.

"Jack?" her raspy voice asked as she tried to open her eyes. She couldn't see where she was, but she would always recognize the smell. She was in a hospital. Ivy slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She had guessed correctly and was in a small hospital room. The curtains were closed, thankfully, so her eyes could look around in peace. She glanced at Jack, who was looking at her worriedly, but also a little sourly. He had changed his clothes, he wasn't wearing the clothes from before. A little time had to have passed.

"Bucky?" she whispered. Jack pressed his lips into a grim line and rubbed the back of his head. "He fished you and Steve out of the river and brought you to the shore. There was no trace of him after that." Ivy closed her eyes and let her head sink into her pillow. "He's gone?" she whispered, though she already knew the answer.

She didn't know what she had been hoping for. She knew things couldn't have been the same, but she had still hoped to get Bucky back. "Hey," Jack said softly, and Ivy looked to him. "It's like it was with you back then. After you escaped Vendetta and your memories weren't quite there your first instinct was to run away too" Jack reminded her and she nodded. But she also remembered that after she got her memories back, she didn't want to go back either.

"We'll find him. I know a pretty good hacker who could help us" Jack tried to cheer her up. "You think Dave will help us?" asked Ivy uncertainly. She hadn't seen the hacker since their first encounter. He was pretty good at being a ghost. "It's not like he has any hobbies or anything better to do" Jack smirked.

"How are the others? Are they okay?" asked Ivy worriedly and Jack nodded. "Yep, Steve is in the room next to yours with Sam by his side. Clint took off with the excuse he needed coffee and never came back and Natasha is kicking the government's ass right now."

"Natasha is doing what and why?" asked Ivy, confused. Jack sighed and ran his right hand through his dark hair. "Natasha released Hydras data and with it all the identities she had over the years" Jack told her, but Ivy knew it wasn't the end of it. "What else Jack?" she asked nervously and Jack took a deep breath. "The world also now knows that Ivy Stark is alive. So get ready for reporters and paparazzi."

Ivy groaned and buried her face in her hands. She would rather have continued to be dead to society than have to deal with annoying and nosy reporters. The former Ivy everyone would be talking about now had gone down with the plane in 1945. She was someone else and she had to figure out who she was first herself.

"Just too bad we're getting out of here," Jack muttered with a small smile. Ivy lifted her hands from her face and looked at Jack curiously. "What, I mean someone has to put an end to Vendetta, track down the remaining remnants of Hydra and find Bucky. That seems like a good opportunity to get out of here" Jack smirked at her and she smiled.

"I couldn't stand it here anyway" she said and Jack laughed. His laugh didn't last long though. Ivy looked at him analyzing and knew something was wrong. Something was bothering him. He knew something and he wanted to tell her. And by the look on his face, it was nothing good.