Buzzkill [Winter Soldier]

Chapter 31

That night, late after most of the lights in the building around her had gone out, Ruth heard a steady and gradual knock moving along the wall to the right of her cell door. She stood and quickly made her way over to the doorway and put her back against the wall to the right, hiding. If it were just someone messing around they would hopefully just walk past her.

The person got to her doorway just a moment after she moved, it was James. He again didn't face her and talked quietly,

"Apparently they need an asset to try and get a man into custody who refuses to come in. I was told to meet Pierce at his home to receive further instructions. I probably won't be back tonight, but I'll be fine."

"You know I don't stay up just to wait for you to get back, right?"

James turned his head to look at her, "Yes. I just don't want you to worry."

"It depends on who you're trying to bring in. My worry comes from me wishing I could be out there helping you. It would be because of me if the mission went south."

"That's not true."

"Isn't it?"

"I can handle myself," James retorted. 

"I know. But the way everyone around here is talking is making it seem like there is something bigger going on that would need more than one person to accomplish."

"What do you mean?" James asked.

"By killing Fury, Hydra is starting a war. There are some people who work for Fury that will do anything in their power to make sure he is avenged, and it's more than one person. If Pierce wants you to continue knocking them out one by one, they will retaliate at one point or another and you will get caught in the middle."

"How do you know all of this?"

Ruth kept her voice low and steady, "It was my job to know. Here they don't tell us anything but where I came from they told us everything."

James looked around when he heard a noise from the hallway behind him.

"You need to go," Ruth interrupted him.

James looked back at Ruth for a moment, nodded, then moved on.

Ruth assumed it was some time in the middle of the next day when commotion began to erupt from inside the Hydra building. It wasn't chaos, but everyone was moving at a fast and frantic pace back and forth to where they needed to go. Ruth was clueless as to what they could be doing.

In an instant she heard loud, angry footsteps marching closer and someone barging through her door.

It was Agent Rumlow.

He stormed through the room so briskly Ruth thought he was going to kill her. Rumlow came up right next to her as she sat on her bed and slammed his fist against the table beside her. She tried not to show on her face that she was incredibly startled.

"I'm getting tired of having you around here, Rogers." His voice was seething as he looked straight into Ruth's eyes.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Ruth tried to keep her voice steady.

"Who the hell do you think you are? Cap got away because of you."

"Why would that be because of me? I've been locked up in here by myself for a couple days now-"

"What did you tell him?" Rumlow interrupted.

"Tell who? I can't communicate with Captain America from in here."