First We Were Friends - A Bucky Barnes Novel

Chapter 1. Peace and Quiet

Ever since Colonel James Rhodes was named Director of the new incarnation of the Avengers he and Bucky had a somewhat uneasy relationship. Part of it was that Bucky, and to a certain extent Sam, still felt somewhat responsible for the spinal injury that ended Rhodes career as an Avenger. Part of it was that even though Rhodes was officially retired from the U.S. Air Force he still acted like a military man. Both Bucky and Sam respected that. They both still wore their dog tags but felt that military style discipline didn't work well with what was essentially a civilian agency. So when a complaint was made that they didn't follow the military chain of command when they were on a joint mission with an elite task force Rhodes felt he had no choice but to pull them from the mission. At their debriefing both men were angry.

Bucky turned his head in that way he did when he was frustrated or irritated. "So we make a spur of the moment decision to act and the Captain is pissed at us for not clearing it with him first?"

"You know in the spur of the moment you have to trust your men," said Sam. "He didn't trust us from the get go. He kept calling Bucky World War II guy."

"I know," replied Rhodes trying to sooth their egos. "It was a mismatch from the start and that's my fault. I thought he would respect your military backgrounds but he didn't. He's one of these guys who got his promotion through connections. You're not being replaced. Our cooperation with them has ended."

"So what are we supposed to do for two weeks?" asked Bucky. "I don't want to sit around here waiting for an emergency to happen."

"I don't blame you," replied Rhodes. "Take a holiday. Go somewhere nice."

Bucky looked at him with daggers which Rhodes ignored. "It's not like I can blend in," replied Bucky. "Maybe a cabin in a remote place but they don't exactly advertise those."

"I know one you can go to," interjected Sam. "It's in California, at Lake Tahoe. I know someone who inherited it and needs some maintenance work on it. Loose deck boards, sanding, that sort of thing. Everything is there. You like keeping busy, it's perfect for you."

"Why don't you do it then?" asked Bucky, not willing to give up his aggrieved air just yet.

"Because Sarah has a bunch of things for me to do on the boat," he replied, "and you know she won't let us work on it together."

That was true. The last time they worked on the boat they took apart the pump without knowing exactly what they were doing. Bucky sighed but accepted Sam's offer. By the end of the day he had the address, the code to get in the door and the code to disable the security system. All the tools would be there as well as wood to replace the deck boards. The owner was even going to order and pay for groceries for him that he could pick up on the way from the airport. Rhodes gave him a military pass so he didn't have to pay for the flight to Reno, and a military discount code for the vehicle rental.

Early the next morning Bucky was on a flight to Reno and even got his seat upgraded to business class because he smiled at the counter attendant. When it landed he picked up the truck at the vehicle rental, figuring if he had to buy more wood he should have a vehicle that could hold a load. Plugging his phone into the CarPlay screen he inputted the address of the grocery store and set out to pick up his groceries. After picking up the food he entered the address of the cabin and started driving, stopping at a liquor store on the way for some beer and scotch. When he reached the road that encircled Lake Tahoe he began having second thoughts as it looked to be developed everywhere and not with what he thought of as traditional cabins. Many of the homes were expensive looking. As he got closer to his destination on the California side he noticed that the stretch he was on did have older looking buildings and the CarPlay voice told him his destination was the next left. Pulling into the driveway he was happy to see it was an older cabin, perhaps a little rundown but at least in what appeared to be a quieter part of the lake. He entered the code for the door, then the code to turn off the security and opened the curtains to a beautiful view of the lake. Smiling he went back out to the truck and brought the groceries in, loading the fridge and cupboards. Then he opened the sliding glass doors and went out onto the deck, seeing right away the boards that would need replacing. He went down the stairs to the ground, noticing the hand rail was loose, another thing that needed repairing. The pathway to the lake was short and there was a dock that he walked out on. Looking down into the water he could see it was pretty clear. Bob, Sam's friend who had inherited the cabin from his parents, said there were fish there and Bucky was free to use the tackle in the shed. The key for that was in the kitchen.