Doctor Stark (C. Barton)

Chapter Thirty

Clint and Mercedes had been put on house arrest, but they had chosen their children over signing anything. They were finished with the super hero life. They were tired of the way they had been treated by the government. People were going to be in danger in the future, but Clint and Mercedes were not going to be a part of the rescue squad.

Mercedes hadn't talked to her father since the day they were let out of the prison they were kept in. He tried to approach her, but she ignored him, and acted as if he wasn't there. She was angry with him, and no simple apology was going to fix it. She doubted he'd ever figure out how to fix everything that he had done.

A couple of days after she and Clint had gotten home, they recieved a letter from Steve. He explained to them that he had gotten Bucky to a place that would help him. He told them that he was going on the run, and he was going to be hiding out from the world. He let them know that he'd write to them once more again soon, and he'd give them a way to contact him if they ever needed him.

The next night, Mercedes recieved a call from Pepper. She explained to her that Tony was hurt by Steve and Bucky. He had followed them, and they had seriously hurt him. Mercedes was worried about him, even though she was still very angry at him for everything he did. She wanted to know why Steve and Bucky had hurt him so bad though.

Only a few days later did Mercedes get some answers. She had been checking in with Pepper when it came to Rhodey's condition. Rhodey had been severely hurt during the fight between Team Cap and Team Iron Man. She was really worried about him, even though he hadn't been on her side.

Anyhow, Tony had come to the farmhouse to talk to Mercedes. She had greeted him coldly, and he understood why she had been that way. He had technically put her in a cage, and now she had an ankle monitor that tracked her at all times to make sure she wasn't doing wrong. She was listed a criminal, and it was because he hadn't protected her from being put in a jail cell.

"Why are you here?" She asked, crossing her arms.

"You and I have some things to discuss." He replied, hoping she would talk to him.

The girl allowed him inside, and brought him to the kitchen. Bean and Pumpkin were taking a nap, so they didn't know Tony was there. If they did, they'd want to see their grandfather. They loved the man dearly, and keeping them away from him really hurt Mercedes.

"I found out some things we didn't know, when I followed Rogers and Barnes," Tony began, and Mercedes motioned for him to continue,"Barnes had been framed for killing King T'Chaka, but it was for bigger reasons. There were other Winter Soldiers, but when we got there, they were all dead. Anyway, there was this TV, and a video started playing. While watching, I recognized the road..." Tony trailed off, causing Mercedes to frown. 

"What was the video?" She asked, her heart hammering in her chest.

"The video showed who killed my parents, your grandparents." Tony replied, making her frown.

"Who killed them?" She questioned, her voice low.

"Barnes killed them," He revealed,"but what makes it worse, is that Rogers new, and he didn't tell either of us." He said, and her heart seemed to sink in her chest.

Mercedes sat in silence for a moment, and she felt herself becoming increasingly more angry. She couldn't believe Steve had kept all of that from her, especially when he had her helping him protect the man who killed her grandparents. She tried to understand that Bucky was controlled by HYDRA, but that barely registered with her. He still killed them, and he didn't tell her. Steve didn't tell her, and he was supposed to be her friend.

"I helped them! I saved Barnes' ass, and he kept that from me! He didn't tell me anything! I protected the man that killed my family!" Mercedes exclaimed, but Tony quickly tried to console her.

"Hey, calm down, the kids are asleep, and you don't want to wake them up." He commented, causing her to sigh and try to calm herself down a bit.

She was breathing heavily, and her hands were shaking because of her huge amount of emotions. Clint had gotten home from the store and seen her practically shaking with anger. At first, he believed that Tony was the reason she was angry, but he soon realized that something else was the problem.

"What's wrong?" Clint asked, setting the grocery bags down.

"Steve," Mercedes practically spat the man's name,"he's a liar, a manipulative friend, and an asshole."

"What happened?" Clint questioned, feeling like Tony lied to Mercedes about something to make her hate Steve.

"Steve knew who killed my grandparents, and he didn't tell me. Instead he had me thinking the man needed to be helped. He had me protect the man who killed my grandparents, and he never told me what he did." She told him, causing Clint to sigh.

"I'm sorry, guys," Clint commented,"if I had known, I would've given an excuse as to why we couldn't help them." He said, causing Mercedes to shake her head.

"It's okay," Mercedes murmured,"it's not your fault." She replied, and Clint gave her a sympathetic smile.

"You staying for dinner, Stark?" Clint asked, trying to calm down the atmosphere in the room.

"Uh, sure," Tony answered,"I'd love to see the kiddos." He added, and the couple smiled.

"It's time for them to get up, if you want to go get them." Mercedes commented, causing Tony to nod.

Things weren't going to be the same, but at least they had each other...