Unexpected

Ideas, Traveling, and Guns

"That's not going to happen!" I heard Steve say adamantly as I sat at one of the room's computers, trying, to the best of my abilities, to write exactly what the man behind the camera had said.

"They're not offering us much of a choice." Jenkins responded.

"We're not going to choose between two lives."

"Captain Rogers-"

"We are here to protect people, not desert them when they're in dire need. We messed up, now we have to clean up our mess." Steve argued back.

"Rogers, we have to be realistic here..." I heard Rumlow.

I tried to block out their voices, tried to block out everything, even the words I was translating hurriedly. How could there even be an argument about this? How could they consider abandoning one of their own agents to be killed? Frustration boiled in me, but I managed to keep my mouth shut, clenching my teeth. I did not have the standing to speak here.

"I've called Fury. He'll be the deciding opinion." Jenkins sighed tiredly before coming up behind me.

"There." I mumbled, leaning back to show her the screen where the threats and demands were clearly spelled out.

"If we play it right we can save both."

"We already tried being clever, Cap. That's what got us in this position." Rumlow sighed, "They want everything to be remote now, no one present for the drop off."

"That doesn't mean you can't set up a camera, or a sniper or something." I huffed under my breath as I stood from my chair. How could they consider just giving up and giving in?

"What was that?"

My body froze suddenly. Dang it! I still had the headset on! They could hear me still!

"Agent Copper, what did you say?" Jenkins spoke up, her soured lips pressed tightly together as I turned to face her in the dimness of the room.

"They want a remote drop location. Drop off the money and the name of the agent we choose, then they'll leave behind instructions on where to pick up the agents whose life we chose and video of the execution of the other. Then the team would go to pick up the body and the agent at whatever location they say. There would be no face-to-face contact, but that doesn't mean we can't plant a sneaky tracking chip or camera on the ransom money or something. That could lead the team to them before... before..." I glanced down at the transcript detailing the torture, then death of the unchosen agent.

"That could work." Steve said, now visible on screen again.

"It'd be risky. If they find the tracker they could kill both our men on the spot." Rumlow sighed, scratching his beard, "But, yeah, if it works, we could save both.

"There's no guarantee they'll keep their word. They could kill both anyways." Steve said, his face set in stony determination, "I think it's a risk we'll need to make."

"I agree, Captain." The deep voice of Director Fury said as the room's door swung open, revealing a rectangle of light from the hall that edged him.

Shortly after Fury arrived, I was dismissed, my part of this mission complete until further notice. I nodded to the director who was dressed in his usual black, before removing my headset and handing it back to Agent Jenkins.

As I placed it in her hand I leaned in a bit and whispered, "They're not coming home any time soon are they?"

Silently so that her response wouldn't be picked up by her headset, Jenkins swung her head from side to side. I nodded, exhaling disappointedly, and left to return to my office. Gosh, this job was emotionally draining!