The Ambassador's Daughter

Chapter 5

The next morning, Louise dressed quickly in an outfit her father would not approve of: Blue jeans, runners, and a plain black t-shirt. It was a point of pride with William Brandt that his family had progressed from regular citizens to senators to ambassadors. He insisted that he and his family dress the part. Ambassador Brandt never let his family dress so casually, unless there was absolutely zero chance of anyone outside the family seeing them.

Knowing he would send her back to room to change if he caught her on her way out, Louise decided to climb out her window. She knew there would probably be hell to pay when her absence was discovered and when she returned dressed the way she was, but she did not want to dress like a dignitary's daughter today. Today she wanted to be Louise.

She climbed down the trellis outside her window and went quickly and quietly to the garage. "Gordon!" She called as she entered the building. A middle aged man in a chauffer's uniform appeared from a back room.

"Yes, Miss?"

"I need to go to the palace." Louise said, moving towards a black town car with American flags mounted on its hood and trunk. Gordon rushed forward and opened the door for her. She slipped in and hid behind the tinted, bullet-proof glass. She didn't relax until her car had pulled away from the embassy grounds and was on its way to the palace. She hated sneaking around her own home. But sometimes it was necessary.

Once she arrived at the palace, it did not take her long to be introduced into T'Challa's presence. She knew there would be a few servants who liked to speculate about her frequent visits to the palace, and the ease with which she was always waved through any and all security protocols and brought to T'Challa. She didn't care. She hated waiting.

Louise was not at all surprised to see Steve with T'Challa. Actually, she was getting so used to seeing the two of them, it would be more of a surprise to see one without the other. The seemed to have just finished a conversation. With the expectant looks on their faces, Louise had the uncomfortable feeling that she had been the topic of their conversation. Louise sat at the table with Steve and T'Challa.

"Good morning, Louise" Steve said, smiling. Louise smiled back.

"I have decided that I will try to help Bucky. I know it won't be easy, and if he's anything like you, Steve, he may not make it any easier, but he needs help." Steve grinned so widely, his face looked about ready to crack in two. T'Challa smiled, too, but more moderate. His eyes sparkled at her subtle jab at Steve.

"So, we have some details to discuss." T'Challa said, tenting his fingers and looking over the tips at Steve and Louise.

"Louise," Steve continued, "We need you to feel comfortable around Bucky. I know it may seem awkward, but if you can spend a little bit of time in his room a few days a week until we can assemble the necessary medical teams. You don't have to be in there alone, if that's causing you any alarm." Louise nodded, grateful that she wouldn't have to be alone with a frozen stranger.

"What sort of medical teams are you trying to assemble?" Louise asked.

T'Challa fielded this question, "We need a team of medical professionals who will be able to bring Mr. Barnes out of his stasis, and then at least one doctor who can check Mr. Barnes over to see that he is well physically."

"And probably another team to reattach Bucky's arm." Steve supplied.

"Reattach his arm?" Louise asked incredulously. Steve nodded.

"There will also be some psychiatric analysis that will have to occur. There is a reason Mr. Barnes still reacts to his trigger." T'Challa continued with his list of medical teams they would need to reawaken Bucky.

"There has to be some PTSD going on there, among other things." Louise added. She ran her fingers through her hair and sighed deeply, "This guy is a real mess," she muttered.

"You got that right," Steve agreed with a sad smile. Louise reached over and laid a hand on his arm.

"Ok, so how long will assembling all those teams take?" Louise asked. "Obviously, there will have to be thorough background checks and the like? I mean, we can't just let people who we know nothing about handle the Winter Soldier's mind and body. That would be really irresponsible."

"I have been formulating this plan almost from the moment I met you, Miss Louise. And I have been conducting background checks on the top medical professionals in Wakanda since Mr. Rogers arrived." T'Challa declared, "Most of them have medical degrees from top American medical colleges, some even have medical degrees from Switzerland. Our small country has had very little interaction with the outside world, so doctors here are unlikely to want to harm Mr. Barnes. And, being king, most of them are already on my pay-roll. I can have them assembled and briefed in a few weeks."

"So you want me to sit in a room with an unconscious, frozen person for a month?" Louise asked, skeptically.

"Well, anything sounds creepy when you say it that way," Steve teased. Louise smiled and shook her head. She leaned back in her chair and shrugged. What else was she supposed to do? She'd already agreed to this.

"Do I really have to sit in his room? What, exactly, is that supposed to accomplish?"

"I've heard that comatose patients and unborn children hear and respond to voices they hear." Steve supplied, "Hopefully the same is true for cryo patients."

"So that when he wakes up he's already got a connection to me and he'll feel safe with me." Louise guessed. Steve and T'Challa nodded. "Very well, I'll give it a try. When do we start?"

"Whenever you want." Steve said, struggling to keep his giddy grin to himself.