Cold Enemies, Warm Romances

Chapter Fifteen - WB039

Whew, I actually didn't update the same day TRBW did! I think that's a first . . . ;) Anyway, I hope you like it!

***

“If it saves Clint and Bruce, I just might be,” Saleen retorted, slipping the vial into her back pocket. “Until then, we’ll stick to the gamma radiation.”

“You better,” Tony warned her. “Do we have a Plan C?”

Saleen bit her lip. “Never thought that far.”

“Hopefully we don’t have to,” Tony agreed, starting to work on the computers.

Saleen nodded, starting to lay out the tracking. “Yeah,” she replied softly. “I hope so, too.”

***

“Bruce!”

Bruce started awake when he heard his name be called, and he sat up straight, hitting someone else’s head. “Ow!” he shouted.

“Yeah, me too, buddy,” a familiar voice commented, and Bruce looked up to notice that Clint was sitting only a few feet away, rubbing his head, too. “Do you remember what happened?”

“I remember fighting like my life depending on it, and then being knocked out cold,” Bruce replied, sitting cross-legged. “You?”

“Jessie saved my sorry ass a few times,” Clint replied. “Loki said something I couldn’t hear, and then I was out.”

The door next to them slid open. “And boy, is she a stubborn Midgardian.”

Clint shot to his feet, and so did Bruce. “Is she okay?” Clint demanded as Loki walked in casually.

Loki smiled. “Miss Nightshade? She’s perfectly fine,” he assured Clint, who didn’t look very assured. “She just didn’t want a fair trade.”

“Depends on what the trade was,” Bruce retorted.

Loki shrugged. “I thought it was fair. She gets Agent Barton back, she gives me her blood.”

“She’d never take that,” Clint told him immediately. “And if you dare think of hurting her – ”

Loki held up his hands. “No need to finish the sentence, Barton. Nevertheless, she can take care of herself, as can that mortal that can appear like a Frost Giant.”

Bruce narrowed his eyes. “If you threatened Saleen . . . ”

“I did no such thing,” Loki replied, smiling. “Although, when I saw her talking to Mr. Stark, she was debating about the blood.”

Bruce snarled, standing up. “She wouldn’t do it!”

“Oh, she said it herself,” Loki argued, standing up as well. “She’s willing to give up her own blood, with the mutation in it, just for you.” He nodded at Clint. “Therefore, if I get Miss Nightshade’s, then Agent Barton is good to go.”

Clint opened his mouth to reply when his cell phone went off in the corner. Loki got to it first, and he looked at the caller ID before smirking in victory towards Clint. He clicked the answer button and held it up to his ear. “Agent Barton is currently not available,” he said smoothly. “How may I help you, Miss Nightshade?”

Clint’s eyes widened in disbelief over what was going on. Bruce was in disbelief, too. What the hell is she doing?

***

Jessie swallowed, trying to figure out what to say. “Look, I’ll come to where you are. Just say where you are, and don’t hurt Clint or Bruce.”