Daylight | Bucky Barnes x OC

xxii. a call for help.

It was pitch black outside and the only light came from the light on the dash of the car. Bucky was sat in the driver seat, contemplating what to do next.

He had driven himself and Aurora to a safe enough distance and kept the keys in the ignition ready to go if anything seemed suspicious, but it had been more than two hours since leaving the HYDRA hospital and Rory still hadn't woken up.

The blonde looked almost dead in the back seat. Her skin was pale and her eyes remained closed and Bucky was growing more and more anxious about what to do next. They had no passports, no way to get into another country and HYDRA knew where they were so staying wasn't safe. He was stuck, and time was moving onward.

The longer they stayed, the more at risk they were, so even if he wanted to take Aurora to a hospital, she would probably be in more danger there than she would be if she just stayed with him, but he knew that they couldn't stay there in the car forever.

On the one hand, he could try and negotiate with the contact that Aurora had initially tried to get the passports from, but the likelihood was that she sold them out in the first place so that wasn't an option. He considered smuggling onto a cargo plane or ship, using the cash they had to do that but given her current state, he doubted the cargo hold of anything was the right place for Rory.

That left him with very few options. Till now, Aurora had always dealt with the logistics of their travel. She always seemed to be one, two or even three steps ahead at all times and knew what to do in an emergency.

Emergency, that's when it hit him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the flip phone she had given him. Bucky didn't remember the name of the person to call in an emergency, but he remembered her telling him that there was someone they could call if they needed it and this seemed like the perfect opportunity.

Bucky looked through the short contact list. One was Rory and the other was labelled 'ICE'. In case of emergency. He contemplated for a second before pressing the call button and bringing it to his ear as it rang.

It rang for a good few seconds before he began to think nobody was going to answer, just as he was about to put the phone away, there was a response on the other end.

"Hello?" Nick Fury spoke down the phone.

"H-hello? Can you hear me?" Bucky spoke, amazed that his plan actually worked.

"You have five seconds to tell me who the hell you are before I hang up" Fury spoke in a cool tone.

"Bucky, Uh, James Barnes" He said, reciting his name.

"Have you called for round two, Mr Barnes? Because if you have, I promise it won't end well for you" Fury stated in the same cool tone, unphased by the man on the other end of the phone.

"No, Sir. Nothing like that, I have Aurora with me" Bucky replied quickly.

"So this is a ransom?" Nick replied, starting to get the slightest bit on edge at the mention of Rory.

"Absolutely not.. She's-" Bucky hesitated before deciding to come clean "She's been helping me, but something happened. She's hurt, she isn't waking up and now we're in Portugal with no passports and I don't know what to do." Bucky pleaded.

"Is she breathing?" Fury questioned.

"I-I think so." Bucky responded, glancing back at her.

"You think so? Have you cared to check?" Fury replied.

Bucky turned back, holding two fingers to her bruised neck "She's breathing, sir."

Nick paused, he was already wrapped up with his own takedown of HYRDA, so much so that he couldn't drop it to be there (as much as he wanted to). "Alright, I need you to walk me through what happened before I tell you how I can help".

Bucky paused as well "We were trying to get passports from a contact that Rory found, Francesca I think. It was a set up, Rumlow drugged her and took her to some kinda hospital. They took a lot of blood, beat her up a little as well I think. I got her out, and we are far enough away, but she is still pale and not waking up".

Fury gritted his teeth, making a mental note of the events to ensure those responsible were punished "You need to get her some medication, ferrus suphate pills for iron, ibuprofen for any pain and lots of water. I will speak to a /trusted/ contact and get some passports and transport. But I do need one thing from you, Mr Barnes" He stated.

Bucky nodded, making a mental note of the advice "Anything, Sir. I will hand myself in, whatever you want me to do."

Nick shook his head "Not necessary. Just make sure she doesn't die." He concluded before hanging up the call.

Bucky's breathing was heavy, he never expected Nick Fury to answer the call but in a weird way he was glad it was him he spoke to. He noted the advice and drove to a nearby 24 hour petrol station,  Aurora was still unconscious in the back so he locked her in the car momentarily while he got the instructed medication and hastily headed back to the car.

He got into the back seat with Aurora, placing her head on his lap as he gently stroked her hair. Even like this, she was still so beautiful. Despite her ordeal, she still looked peaceful. Her eyelids fluttered, slowly opening and scanning the area.

"Hey, hey, you're safe, you're with me" Bucky said softly as she slowly got up to look around.

"Bucky" She said with a relieved tone as she saw it was him "Where are we?" She asked.

"Gas station, waiting for someone to meet us here." He responded.

Aurora rubbed her eyes, arching a brow "Who?" she asked, still lightheaded and confused.

Bucky shook his head "I'm not entirely sure. Guess I'll know when they arrive with plane tickets and passports, just take it easy, okay?" he said softly.

Aurora nodded and laid back down "Thank you for saving me".

Bucky looked at her, brushing her hair out of her face "You saved me first." he stated, noticing that she was already falling asleep again. He didn't mind, he was happy to just wait there forever if it meant that she was peaceful.

A few hours passed before a man knocked on the window "Bucky Barnes? Rick Mason, Fury sent me." He said to a tense Bucky who quickly softened at the knowledge that Fury had sent him.

"Yeah, thanks for coming." He said, carefully moving Aurora so he could stand up and greet him. He extended a hand to shake, which Rick took before looking over at Rory.

"She doing any better?" Rick asked.

Bucky shrugged "She woke up for a little bit then passed back out. Her breathing isn't as shallow and she isn't as pale as she was, so I guess that's a good sign".

Rick nodded "Yeah.. I guess so." He began "I'm parked round the back, I'll drive us to an airfield a few miles away and then I can fly us to wherever you want to go next."

"Thank you, you have no idea" Bucky said gratefully, to which Rick simply nodded. He had already done a lot for them, but seeing Rory like this made him more eager to help. 

Bucky placed his hand on Aurora's shoulder to try and wake her. He shook her softly, causing her to slowly stir from her sleep. She opened her eyes to be greeted not only by Bucky, but Rick as well. She smiled half heartedly "What a coincidence seeing you here. You on vacation as well?" She joked.

Rick chuckled "Not this time, this time I'm here to save your ass" He joked back.

"Lucky me" She replied as she slowly sat up, Bucky rushing to support her as she did so.

"You ready to go?" Rick asked and Rory nodded. Bucky placed an arm around her as she stood up, supporting her weight as she got to her feet.

Bucky grabbed the bag of their things before helping Rory over to the car Rick had come in. From there, they drove the short distance to the airfield while Aurora struggled to stay awake.

"So, where are you two headed now?" Rick asked.

Bucky looked toward Aurora, who was looking at him. She shrugged "Maybe Italy? Makes the most sense since it's not too far away." Bucky nodded at the proposition and so did Rick.

"Italy it is then." Rick concluded, ready to take them on the next leg of their trip.