Duyên || Clint Barton

016 || fear

•••

"You're going to walk into the kitchen now" the person said, digging the gun further into my back.
I nodded again, taking a few shaky steps into the kitchen, my eyes darting around for an escape.
"Stay stood there. Don't move" they demanded, before I felt the weight of the gun removed from my back.
By now I was trembling with fear, desperately trying to remember any self-defence training, when I suddenly remembered something.

Clint had always been quite a cautious guy. When we had first moved into the house, I caught him hiding weapons around the house. I didn't complain as I thought he must have been following his training - now I'm bloody glad I didn't.

Turning my head slightly, I could see the intruder poking around the drawers, looking for something. Taking this opportunity I started to edge my way over to the side of the counter where I knew a gun was stored. With a trembling hand I reached under the counter and pulled out the pistol, concealing it under my loose top before swiftly making my way back to my original positioning.

I knew I didn't want to shoot him, every fibre of my being was trying to figure out another way.

"You know" the man said quietly "It has been quite hard to track you. But then when we finally find you - to see that you're pregnant? That was a surprise to all of us"
"What?" I gasped, my hand flying to my stomach "no im not"
"Have you done a test?"
"No? But I haven't needed to - I would know if I was pregnant!" I insisted.
"That's not what our scanners showed. We've been monitoring this place for weeks, you're roughly 2 weeks along" the man sniffed, before moving to another set of drawers.
"I can't be" I whispered, a new anxiety setting in.
"But you are. Funny how things work out isn't it? We won't kill you of course - no that baby is too valuable. We'll use it to restart the Red Room protocol" he stated, sending chills down my spine "the baby will be fine - after all, your friend Natasha was one of us before Clint stole her away"
"If anything you're saying is true, and I highly doubt it is, I can assure you you'll never get your hands on my baby" I hissed, adrenaline pulsing through my system.
"You've got guts - I admire that. Maybe we'll find a use for you after all" he mused "I think I'll take you with us after we kill the two upstairs"

That was the final straw. With strength I didn't know I had, I pulled out the gun from under my top and shot the man in the back.

I was numb. Frozen solid. My gaze never moving from the body.
"Grace? Grace!" Clint shouted, two pairs of feet rushing down the stairs.
I didn't turn to face them as they entered the room. I couldn't.

Blood.
Blood on the wall, on the floor, on the body. The dead body.

I couldn't move.

"Hey, lower the gun" Natasha spoke calmly, her hand reaching out to push the gun slowly out of my hands.
I didn't resist, my brain numb to all thoughts and feelings.
As the gun was removed from my hand, my knees buckled, sending me to the floor.

"He was going to kill you" I whispered, tears spilling from my eyes "The Red Room. He was going to kill you - I - the baby - he was - oh god I killed him -"
Warm arms wrapped around me, rocking me back and forth.
"You're okay, shhh you're okay"

•••

"You seem to be getting really comfortable here" Natasha smiled, punching Clint's shoulder amicably.
"Well it's a comfortable place" he shrugged, a content look on his face.
"Not just that - Grace. I like her, you did good pal"
"Well I'd hope so considering you helped this in the first place" he snorted.
"Oh wait!" He exclaimed "Grace forgot to show you the best bit - this was all her idea by the way"
He walked over to the bed, lifting the top up to show a compartment space underneath, just big enough to fit some weapons.
"She remembered" Natasha smiled, happy tears pooling in her eyes.

One night the two had gotten very drunk and ended up spilling a lot of secrets, many which would never be repeated. Natasha had revealed how she still struggled with feeling safe, and how she (like Clint) had many weapons concealed throughout her apartment.

"She thought that you could store some here so that you feel safe when you're staying with us" Clint explained, his grin showing how proud he was of his girlfriend's idea.
"That's so swee-"

Natasha was cut off with the sound of a gunshot. She met Clint's gaze with wide eyes, before the two immediately dashed for the stairs. On the way past the bedroom Clint grabbed a knife from under a flowerpot, before following Natasha downstairs.
"Grace? Grace!" Clint shouted, as the two assassins flew down the staircase. Fear made his stomach drop when Grace didn't reply, the worst case scenarios already playing out in his head.

What he saw in front of him was so much worse.
Grace was stood trembling, a gun held outstretched, her eyes locked on to a slumped body.

"Hey, lower the gun" Natasha spoke calmly, her hand reaching out to push the gun slowly out of her hands, her voice not betraying her feelings as she approached Grace.

As Natasha took the gun from her hand, she collapsed to the ground, still shaking.

"He was going to kill you" She whispered, tears spilling from her eyes as she continued to avoid our gaze "The Red Room. He was going to kill you - I - the baby - he was - oh god I killed him -"
Natasha and Clint exchanged a shocked look, knowing what this meant.
Clint engulfed her in a hug, rocking her back and forth in an attempt to calm her as Natasha walked around the counter to make sure the man was dead.
"You're okay, shhh you're okay"