Winter's Sister

4

I've been a slave for about a year and a half. Mr. Killicks had told me the night before that our 'anniversary' was in two days, as he went by every six months. So, tomorrow. He said I had been serving him well. That he was proud of me.

I was utterly disgusted by it. I hated him. He was purely evil. I was only fifteen. He punished me every chance he got. Even the teensiest mistake was reason enough for him to torture me.

To make things worse, he had learned of my healing abilities. How I stole other's pain. It had become hard to control. Skin contact, and his pain became mine. I didn't have any choice. In anything.

I'd had hardly any human contact besides Mr. Killicks for almost two years, except for the times he let his friends have a turn with me. I was always afraid, and my sleep was plagued with nightmares. As far as I knew, there wasn't a soul alive that I could trust.

The night passed uneventfully. So did the next day. Then, it was night once more. Mr. Killicks led me once again to the playroom. The most feared room in the house.

"Happy anniversary, Natalia," Mr. Killicks whispered in my ear. I shivered. He would want a reply.

"Happy anniversary, master," I said, trying not to cringe at the words leaving my mouth.

Mr. Killicks surprised me by leaving me in the bra and panties I was wearing. As per his request, it was the same lingerie I had been purchased in. He stood me on the stool, as I had not really grown any, before latching his mouth to mine, pushing his tongue through my lips. I didn't fight him. I knew better, by now. As he kissed me, he groped my breast through my bra. One hand slipped down. Pushing my panties aside, he stuck a finger inside me, pumping, before adding another. I was still sore from two days ago, and it caused me to groan against his lips in pain, which he seemed to enjoy. I felt tears rolling down my face as my knees became weak. I placed my hands by his shoulders, feeling unable to stand on my own. A quiet sob wracked my body.

"Natalia, what have I told you about crying during our time together?" Mr. Killicks asked, still playing with my lower regions.

"That it's not allowed," I answered quietly. "I-I'm sorry, m-master. Please forgive me..."

But even as I spoke, more tears fell down my face. In anger, Mr. Killicks slammed the back of his hand across my face. Yelping in fear and pain, I grabbed onto his sleeves so I wouldn't fall. Suddenly, Mr. Killicks was yanked away from me. The lack of support holding me up caused me to fall off the stool.

I could hear Mr. Killicks screaming and yelling in pain, but I couldn't bring myself to look. Then, I heard a gunshot. It was close. I peeked up, and through my tears, I saw Bucky- no, James, the Winter Soldier- standing above Mr. Killicks, pointing his gun at the now unconscious- or probably dead- man.

I gasped aloud, and James looked at me. There was something different about him. He put his gun down slowly, as if he didn't want to scare me. Too late there. He took a step towards me, but I backed away until I was huddled in the corner of the room. Every man since I had been kidnapped had hurt me in some way, even James, and I had not been able to interact with any women. If James was here, he was just going to hurt me again. Everyone else did.

James held his hands up in surrender. "Ree," he whispered brokenly. "I-it's me. It's Bucky. I-I remember. Oh gosh, I remember everything, Ree. A-and I am so sorry. And I know, I can never apologize enough for what I've done, especially what I've done to you. It's all my fault." He was crying. James would never cry.

"It's Hydra's fault, Bucky," I corrected, my voice hoarse from strain. "They made you do it. I-I knew you, the real you, wouldn't hurt me."

Bucky gently pulled me to him, kissing the top of my head repeatedly. "You had more faith in me than I did," he admitted.

"You're my big brother," I said. "It's hard not to trust you. I'm still scared, but not as much as I was."

"That's good enough for me." Bucky carefully let go of me so he could wrap his large coat around me, covering my welts and bruises, as well as the fact that I was only wearing a bra and panties. I was extremely thin, to the point where you could see my individual ribs. Mr. Killicks had decided a year ago that I was 'too fat', even though I had already been just under a hundred pounds.

I cried into Bucky's chest, afraid I was going to wake up and see that him killing Mr. Killicks was just a dream.

"I'm here, now, Ree," Bucky soothed. "I'm here. Hydra won't get you again. No one like that guy will ever lay a finger on you. I promise."

He held me close for a long time, before picking me up bridal style and carrying me out of the mansion. He set me down in the passenger seat of a waiting pick-up truck, buckling the seatbelt for me. Then, he went around the front so he could drive.

"Where are we going?" I asked quietly after a while. He didn't answer me for a moment, and at first I thought he hadn't heard me.

"Somewhere I know you will be safe," Bucky answered. He looked sad, and he wasn't meeting my eyes.

"We're not staying together, are we?" I questioned.

"No," Bucky replied. "Hydra made me do some horrible things. A lot of people want me dead because of them. It's not safe being anywhere near me, so I'm planning on making this road trip as fast as possible. That being said, we could use some food."

"Bucky," I said, hearing the quiet radio giving the weather. "Wh-what day is it?"

Bucky looked at my apprehensive expression as I stared at all the super tall buildings. "You don't know," he muttered. "Do you remember being in the glass container, and it being really cold?"

I nodded. "I hate the cold," I commented.

"Me too, kiddo," he stated. "Well, that container basically froze you in time. It kept you thirteen years old. When they woke you up, it had been seventy years. They froze me for a long time, too."

"Wait," I murmured. "Then, everyone we knew is either really really old, or... dead."

Bucky grimaced and nodded. "There is still one person you'll remember. He looks different. Better, though. I'm taking you to him."

"Who?" I asked.

"Steve," Bucky said. "He was frozen, too. Woke up a few years ago. Hydra wanted me to kill him, but he managed to break me out of whatever trance they had put me in."

"Steve Rogers?" I practically exclaimed. "Why would they want you to kill Steve Rogers? He's, like, so good, compared to most people!"

Bucky chuckled, before proceeding to explain how Steve had basically been experimented on with a 'super soldier serum'. I had heard of Captain America, but somehow never realized the man behind the shield was Steve. Steve had never told me in his letters, never the type to brag.

"Some things never change," Bucky said as we pulled in to a McDonald's drive-thru. "Same as you used to get?"

I nodded, excited to see something, other than my brother, that was familiar. I ate my food quickly, surprised my weak stomach was able to handle the greasy burger and fries.