Coffee, Courage and a Captain

Chapter Thirty: Bad News

Charlotte nervously played with the pendant around her neck as she stood behind Howard whilst he welded the last of the metal panelling onto their tank-destroying prototype. Overhead, the sounds of air raid sirens and the nearby explosions of the bombs hitting the city around them made Charlotte grip her mug tighter.

They hadn't had an air raid in a while, and the sound of the sirens had caught her and Howard off guard. The power had been shut off hours earlier when the first explosion had happened, so Charlotte had turned on the back-up generator she and Howard had put together- which was powered by a repurposed tank battery. The rest of the lab workers who had remained after hours were sent home, which left Charlotte and Howard in the only lit room in the entire bunker at nine o'clock at night.

Her left hand held her third cup of coffee for that evening and her right hand held her most recent letter from Steve, which Phillips had got redirected to her form wherever the Howling Commandos were currently stationed- rumour had it that they were in Hungary. She had sent off small care package to Steve and Bucky for Christmas a few weeks prior, and the newest letter would most likely confirm whether they got it or not. Even Howard had pitched in, buying them a very nice bottle of whiskey.

Charlotte took a swig of the last of her coffee and walk over to where the HYDRA tank batteries sat in their specially-made containment unit. Phillips had got Charlotte to build it as he wished to keep her abilities under wraps and had cited that glowing eyes were not subtle, and she was banned from approaching them without Peggy or Howard present.

Charlotte grinned a little as she inspected the smaller batteries that she had created a few weeks earlier in the small burgundy leather gloves Howard had purchased for her for Christmas, trying to get around Phillips's rules. They were the size of regular double-A batteries and she had designed them to power everyday objects with a regulator to ensure it didn't burn through any electronics. She had specifically designed a couple of flashlights that directly incorporated them, and installed the new batteries as back-ups in some of the vehicles that had been sent over to France a month prior.

Peggy peered over Charlotte's shoulder at the glowing batteries. "This is really impressive, Charlotte."

To Charlotte's credit, she didn't jump at the sudden appearance of the agent. Peggy had taken to sneaking into the lab as quietly as possible to startle them- claiming that it was easy because the two technicians were constantly absorbed in their work. Charlotte believed she got some form of satisfaction from it.

"She's been working on them for months," Howard commented from where he worked on their prototype. "Amongst other things."

The woman in question chose not to respond, staring at the batteries as she felt the dull ache in the middle of her chest. She raised her gloved hand to her necklace, touching it gently for reassurance.

"Charlie, you've been on edge all morning," Howard stated in exasperation, setting the torch down and staring at her with his hands on his hips. "What?"

Charlotte grimaced. "I feel sick," she murmured. "Like, off. My chest hurts."

Peggy frowned. "You don't- and can't- get sick," she reiterated, stepping forward to place the back of her hand against Charlotte's forehead and check her temperature. "You feel fine."

Howard frowned. "I've known you for nearly two years now," he responded, walking over to where Charlotte stood. "I've never seen you sick." He glanced down at the mug she held in her hands. "Maybe lay off the coffee?"

"Do you know who you're telling that to?" Peggy interjected, a small smile on her face that quickly faded when she saw Charlotte's expression.

"My chest just hurts," Charlotte murmured. "It feels tight."