What Fades Away

chapter 10: drumming song

a/n: smut, thigh riding, dirty talking Bucky Barnes, feelings

The authorities descend upon the tower. It doesn't take long for the lobby of the complex to be filled with FBI and NYPD officers, asking questions and taking pictures of every piece of evidence they can find.

Mara is in shock, panic coursing through her body with each person that asks her another question. She thought she was safe with Bucky and the others, that no one would be able to touch her in here.

She looks up from her spot on the couch, wearing a jacket that Yelena brought her. She's pretty sure it's Bucky's.

There's an uncontrollable shiver that Mara can't seem to shake. The spot on the floor she's been staring at for the past fifteen minutes is starting to blur, edges becoming fuzzy and out of focus.

"Mara," a husky voice says, their hand on her shoulder making her jump.

Bucky is standing behind her, icy eyes scanning her face and body repeatedly. He's looking for any sign that she's going to break, the urge to hide Mara away from everything is almost overwhelming.

"The agents want to talk to you," he says, leaning down so they are at eye level over the back of the couch. "You can say no, sweetheart. Don't think they can make you. We have a lawyer we can call too."

Bucky brushes a strand of hair out of Mara's face. His voice is calming, something about the deep rumble in his chest that makes Mara feel like she's wrapped in a warm blanket.

"No, it's okay. I wanna get this over with. You and Sam can't figure out what the fuck is going on with all these cops here," Mara states plainly.

The ferocity that he sees in her slips through, making the corner of Bucky's mouth turn up a little. He follows Mara over to the group of agents. Yelena and Sam are both there, already having talked to officials and shared any security footage they have access to.

"Hey, Mara. Are you okay?" Alexander pushes through the group, just having come from the elevator.

Mara feels Bucky's hand skim across her lower back, long fingers curling around her hip. She has to bite the inside of her cheek, hiding a smile at Bucky's show of possessiveness.

"Just a little freaked out. Could be worse. Have you found anything out?" Mara asks, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Oh, it's Agent Asshole," Yelena murmurs, loud enough for only Bucky to hear. He snorts a little and Mara shoots a look over her shoulder.

"We chmecked the security cameras in the lobby. It seems that someone disabled them remotely, so our tech team is working on a trace." Alexander says, checking his phone briefly. "The officers said that no one disabled the cameras on these floors?"

"No, they're still functioning. We have them connected to our phones so if anyone unusual comes in, we get an alert," Yelena mentions, showing Alexander the app on her phone.

"Okay, I'm going to need the footage from these cameras, as well as access to the servers."

Bucky takes a step closer to Mara.

"Don't you need a warrant for that?" Bucky questions, looking directly at Alexander.

Mara sees Alexander clench his jaw, the muscles in his neck tensing up in annoyance. It's something she has never noticed him do before.

"We can get one, or you can hand it over willingly," Alexander replies sternly.

"There's no problem, Agent. We can give you the information you need," Sam interjects, looking pointedly at Bucky. Mara shifts from one foot to another, uncomfortable.