Experimental

Chapter 7

It was cold and damp. Della could feel a cold metal pressed against her back and knew she was underground before she opened her eyes. Her pretty pink dress was tattered and muddy and her long brown hair was falling out of the pigtails. She tried to move her arms, only to find her tiny wrists held to the table by leather straps. Her legs were the same. Della lifted her head and screamed.
***

Thea woke up to the sound of herself screaming. She sat quickly, taking in her surroundings before realizing where she was. With her enhanced hearing, she could hear Steve's door opening a level below her and smelt the familiar smell of Natasha's rosy perfume as she sat up out of bed. . "Crap," she muttered and stood, looking around the room. She spotted her backpack in the dark, ready to be grabbed at a moment's notice, by the door and her cell sitting on the stand next to her bed. The elevator doors opened below her and she sucked in a breath. Nat stood from her bed and pulled on a pair of sweats. Thea heard her muttering about wanting just one goodnight's sleep. Finally deciding on what to do, Thea ran to the door and grabbed the bag full of clothing and money she had saved over a period of time and her phone before opening the window and climbing out.

Her nose was immediately met with the smell of New York City and she sighed in relief before climbing down the fire escape, leaving Avengers' Tower in the dust. Thea headed towards the only place she knew would welcome her. Ollie. Her feet pounded the pavement as she jogged down the sidewalk toward The Diner.

If you're lucky enough to see the city at night, you take in the brilliant sight of twinkling lights and buildings glistening in the moonlight. You grinned as you heard the different musical styles combining together and the scent of the surrounding restaurants mixing into one amazing smell. But if you were trying to evade a team of superheroes, Times Square was the best place to be. Tourists and citizens crowded the sidewalks, taking photos of the billboards and storefronts and making it virtually impossible to be singled out. Taxis and double-decker buses drove down the streets, stopping randomly to avoid hitting a pedestrian. Thea kept her head down and headed for the diner, backpack in hand.
"Taxi!" She called and waved her hand wildly in the air. The yellow car stopped in front of her. She opened the door and plopped into the seat, sighing again. "Ollie's Diner, please."

***
Thea walked up to the door of Ollie's apartment above the diner. She had used the key had granted her to open up the building and climb the stairs in the back that she had used previously to escape the SHEILD agents. The knocked twice, quietly. A few moments later, the door opened to reveal the old man himself.

"Dora? What are you doin' her so late it's-" he looked at the clock inside, "it's almost 3 in the morning," he himself looked wide awake, like he hadn't slept for days.

"I know, Pop. I just needed somewhere to go. I have people after me-"

"Wait, what?" He sighed and ran a hand over his face, "I knew they would find you. I knew they would find out."

Thea shook her head in confusion. "I don't understand. Who would find me? What would they find out?"  He was silently staring at the floor. "Ollie?" Ollie rubbed his eyes.

"I'll make a pot of tea and we can talk. Just promise me that you won't think of me any differently," he looked at the woman reluctantly, his old eyes clouded with oceans of sorrow and guilt.

"Of course not, Pop."