Eyes of the Father

Chapter 4. On the Run

It had been almost two weeks since Bucky stowed away on a container ship in a Baltimore shipyard.   During that time he played a cat and mouse game with the ship's security who knew he was on the ship but hadn't been able to find him.  They did find the other three people who were already hiding on the ship when he snuck onto it.  Alternating between staying in an empty passenger cabin and a shipping container that he was able to break into he had so far succeeded in keeping hidden.  He even managed to find food, enough to keep him functional.  Whenever he could he would look at Lacey's book, reading and re-reading it.  He had also taken a picture of her from a photo album, using it as a bookmark since no one should dog ear the pages of a book. 

He wished he'd had the time to properly say goodbye to her, giving her more than that kiss in the bedroom to remember but he was damn sure he wasn't going to do anything more within earshot of the mobster trash that were trussed up in her living room.  Even though he had only known Lacey for a day and a night Bucky had been touched by her kindness and generosity to him, not to mention her trust when she allowed him into her bed.  He thought about their lovemaking, remembering how she raised herself into him as she came.  She was the first woman he had slept with since his escape from HYDRA and he couldn't stop thinking about her face in the throes of passion.  He thought of sending her a postcard once he landed in Europe but remembered he told her it was better and safer if she moved.  If she was smart she wouldn't have a forwarding address.  It was better for both of them to accept it couldn't continue, as he had hinted on the origami heart he made her.  Still, he couldn't keep the thought of his time with her out of his mind.

An alarm sounded on the ship and the captain announced over the PA system that they were performing a rescue of a small craft that had lost power.  Bucky put the book and picture back into the plastic bag he had to protect them, then packed them into his back pack.  Holding his ear to the door he didn't hear anyone approaching and opened it a crack to make sure before leaving the empty cabin.  If they were rescuing someone those people would likely be put into an empty cabin and he wasn't going to risk being found in this one.  Quickly he moved down the hallway, always checking around corners before moving on.  From there he went down a gangway and out onto the deck.  Bucky could hear some of the crew talking just ahead so he ducked into an alcove, waiting for their voices to fade away before he moved on.  As he got closer to the shipping container he had broken into he could hear more voices and realized they found the broken lock.  Security was being called to check the inside of the container and he grimaced, trying to find a way out of the maze of metal sea cans.  In desperation he jumped up and wedged himself between two containers that had a narrow gap between them.  It actually gave him a good view in two directions and he could hear everything that was said for some distance.  Staying in that narrow space he listened to everyone walking nearby, hearing the crew discuss the stowaway they were still looking for.  That was when he heard the ship would be picking up a pilot soon, providing him his exit strategy.  If he could get on that pilot boat he could disable the boat captain and any other crew then take control of the pilot boat until the nearest landfall.  It would be risky but he would have more control over where he landed. 

The rescue itself took about an hour and the ship was soon on its way.  As the early evening turned dark he took the chance of going to the railing looking for the pilot boat approaching the cargo ship.  He finally spotted it and watched it intently as it pulled up next to a hatch opening in the side of the cargo ship just above the water line.  He watched as the pilot stepped off the smaller craft and into the hatch.  The captain of the pilot boat then started to pull away and Bucky leaped over the railing, landing and rolling on the much smaller boat's deck.  A deck hand looked at him in amazement at the height he had jumped from then ran inside to tell the captain.  Bucky followed him, pulling the radio out before they could report a problem.  He recognized they were speaking Greek and asked them haltingly in what Greek he could muster to take him to land.  The captain looked at him coolly.