Special Touch Part: Three

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"No...this isn't right."

"What do you mean?" Steve asked with furrowed eyebrows, but Wanda was already picking up on your instincts, going with Sam to search the perimeter as you placed your hand against the metal door, "This is where we found the base...it's clearly Hydra, it's even got the symbol."

"Not very discreet," You mumbled, shaking your head, and then turning back around to let your eyes scan over the woods before you glanced at him again, "Okay, don't judge me."

"For wha-"

He stopped himself short when you crouched down and placed a palm to the ground, raising his eyebrows, but trying not to make any comments about it.

"Yeah, I was a scout until I was twelve, sue me," You answered the question he didn't ask, and he put his hands up in surrender, "But it hasn't rained here in...at least a week, right?"

"She's right." Sam's voice came from the opposite side of the building he left with Wanda.

"Then why is the surrounding area of this place damp," You mumbled, more to yourself, and went out a way to look over the roof, "Wanda?"

"Yeah?" She called back from the other side of the building where you couldn't see her.

"Do you see any trails of...mud or just moist ground?" You asked weakly, not exactly sure how to word it.

"Yes! I see some!" She shouted excitedly and the three of you made your way over.

Without saying anything or explaining your reasoning, you followed the darkened dirt path deeper into the woods.

"Water line." Sam filled in for everyone and Steve pretended to already have known, but Wanda nodded in understanding, thanking him for clearing it up.

"Oh, no fucking way, this is so cool," You gasped, noticing the small handle sticking out from the massive tree trunk, and you spun around to them, appearing to be as excited as a kid on Christmas morning, "Guys, guys!" You were jumping a little too, "It's like the ultimate tree house! We're about to be Keebler elves – or, oh my god, what if we meet them?"

"What's a Keebler elf?" Wanda asked and Steve started explaining, but you ignored them.

"I hope they have cookies because I'm starving." You muttered as you pulled the handle.

"Slowly," Sam warned, bringing his gun out, "The elves might not be too friendly."

"Puh-lease, Samuel," You scoffed with a smile, opening it wider, "I think they're the friendliest little bitches you'll ever meet."

You stepped inside without hesitation and a long set of stairs wound down into the ground, making you gulped audibly.

"Let me go first." Steve told you, holding his shield now.

"Shouldn't the immortal human shield lead the way?" Sam mumbled in a high voice and widened his eyes.

"Classy, Wilson, very classy." You teased, shaking your head, and then leading the way with false confidence.

Taking the last step, you were finally hesitant as the whole thing weighed on you.

It looked like a cookie cutter, apple pie, white picket fence – you get it – home on the inside. The doors were wooden, the walls white, fresh flowers in vases on the dining table, and the living room was spotless. It appeared to be a home that had been staged to be sold, but there was something off about it.

Wanda took the initiative, being a little more fearless than the other two, and started looking the place over up close. She stopped short when she caught the framed photo on the wall, turning to you slowly, and you held your breath.