Finding Death

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The next day...

Captain America

"Stark, can you search William Blake for me?" I ask from the sofa as Tony strides into the room, clearly bored. He slumps into the cushion beside me, turning off the reruns of Jeopardy on the TV. "Please?"

"Yes, absolutely, because my whole life revolves around you," Tony snarks with his signature smirk. "No, fine, I'm doing it. J.A.R.V.I.S.!" he yells, telling the talking computer my request. The results appear in a hologram format, Tony generously allowing me to swipe.

William Blake's a poet, it turns out. An old one. I skim through his works, searching for something, anything that might give me a clue. A title of one of his poems eventually sticks out: 'London'. Where the Carter family were born, where they grew up, where they worked. This is where Rikki will be.

*

Nomad

My thumbprint and stolen pass easily get me through the door of London's HYDRA base, but it's not long before I'm stopped by some bloody guards, obviously not recognising me. "Halt," a guy with a face like a rat points a gun at my chest, his partner eyeing me suspiciously. "Who are you?"

I raise my eyebrows, bored. "I'm almost shocked you don't recognise me- it has been a few years since I've been here, I suppose. Maybe it was before your time."

"Don't mess with us," the other, much better-looking soldier says. "Who are you?"

"Sergeant Carter," I answer. The expressions on the soldiers' faces rapidly fade, apologies spilling from them in every direction. I hold my hand up to quiet them. "Who's in charge here?"

"That would be Mr Evans, ma'am," the first soldier answers, the perfect picture of politeness.

"Of course. Now, take me to your techs," I've almost missed the power that being me has in HYDRA. Sergeant Barnes and I were high in the hierarchy. Everyone was scared of us, our talents and skills. I don't want to think about how many we executed for insubordination.

The first footsoldier holds the door open for me, seeming shocked when I tilt my head in gratitude. The second one whispers something to a short man and woman in the centre of the room; they look important; and are probably in charge. "Really?" the guy says loudly, staring at me. I give him a fake smile. "No way. I heard she was dead."

"I'm definitely not, thank you very much," I respond as blankly as I can.

"Sergeant, what do you need?" the woman asks, making her way over to me.

"Look, someone with some sense around here! I need a new access card please, love. Old one kind of got destroyed after a battle with the Avengers," I smile at the female technician- hopefully it'll help her trust me. Although, if she's smart, she won't trust anyone.

"Of course," she nods, glancing back over at the male. "Ignore everything Johnny says. He might be in charge, but..."

I get the gist. "Modern boys are overrated, huh."

"Absolutely."

"Smart," I follow the woman over as she starts in my new access card. The male, grumbling under his breath, sends out the soldiers and returns to his own work on the other side of the control centre. I could type in the access code on any of these computers and have the base shut down in seconds. These people are nuisances. "Hey, do you know if my room is still, you know, mine?" I ask quietly, tapping my fingers on a desk.