The Shield and the Rose || S. Rogers

The Lake

🌶️🌶️ Just a little spice for your life 🌶️🌶️

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Without Steve or the Avengers in New York, Katherine took advantage of the time and freedom to make her way back to the Avengers Tower. On her last visit to the Tower, she had swiped another badge from a different agent.

In the time that Steve and the others had been gone, she had snuck in and explored different offices and labs later in the evening. Keeping a running list of what she found, she took note of one particular room that had housed a computer system. Looking to turn it on, she frowned at the login screen. Making a note to herself to ask Victoria to get her in contact with someone capable of hacking, she browsed a shelving unit hosting files.

Gazing along the line of labeled boxes, she settled her eyes on one reading Steve's name. Taking a quick glance around at the other boxes, she realized that each of the Avenger's had boxes in of files. Opening Steve's box, she flicked through the tabs until she found one from earlier that year.

As she gazed at what she had found in the file, she placed it along a desk and pulled the images from the file. There were different pictures that had been printed out. One of Steve when he was still a part of S.H.I.E.L.D. stuck out to her. She didn't need to have him in front of her and be able to his thoughts to know that he wasn't exactly excited in the picture. His expression was stoic, his lips almost turned into a frown. Setting the image aside, she looked at the other pictures that inside.

One was of the Winter Soldier and her frown grew as she felt that pang of guilt that would hit her when she thought of him. She could only hope that he was okay and away from anyone that knew his words. Looking at another image, the blood drained from her face. It was a photograph of Rumlow and Sitwell standing with both Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. Victoria and her father were plain to see in the image. Her heart pounding, she looked at another photo behind it. 

Katherine was surprised that she hadn't thrown up when she realized that it was a security image showing her walking down the halls that day. Blood pounded in her ears as she tried to think as calmly and quickly as she could. Taking the image of herself, she stuffed it underneath her shirt where no one would even think of reaching or touching. Leaving the other photo behind, she closed the file and stuck it back into Steve's box.

Leaving the room the way that she found it, she made her way home for the evening. Dropping the badge she had used somewhere it could be found in the lobby before she left, she swiftly made her way home. Looking at the image of herself from the security footage, she found that she wound up shoving it in the box of equipment in her spare room.

She didn't sleep comfortably that night at all. A feeling of unease washed over and continued to drape itself over her for the remainder of the night and into the next morning. She just hoped that no one had seen and paid attention to the image. Especially when she knew that there were those around Steve who still didn't exactly trust her.

It was early in the morning when she received a text from Steve saying that they had arrived home safely. Sending a response asking if he was too tired for lunch that day, she smiled when she saw his response.

Too tired? I'm never too tired for you

Laughing to herself as she asked if he would rather pick up lunch to take to her apartment that afternoon, she watched as his text came through telling her that he liked the idea. Looking to her alarm clock, she sighed and decided that she wouldn't be getting anymore sleep that night. Freshening up for the day, she found herself going to her spare room and calling Victoria.