Remorseless

Zara closed herself in the bathroom, not wanting to be fussed over, telling Bucky she'd be fine after a hot shower. She leaned on the counter, looking at her reflection, brows creased in pain. Her usually bright blue eyes appeared several shades darker than usual, accompanied by dark rings under her eyes. She was still shivering, her icy wet hair stuck against her pale skin, drawing a contrast against her blue lips. Her skin felt like it was crawling and her head was pounding still.
When Candice had read her, Zara hadn't felt one bit of pain or dizziness, but this was different. Larson's influence was agony. She doubted very much that this was something a couple of migraine tablets were going to fix. Trying to do good by her, Bucky had run the shower, and left her to it while he ran down to Simmons' office to get her some painkillers

She picked her crumpled pants up off the floor, fishing her phone from the back pocket. With trembling hands, she scrolled through the contacts until she found the one she wanted. The dial tone was harsh against her ear, hell, any sound was agony right now... She found herself impatiently pacing back and forth while waiting for the person on the other end to answer. She rolled her eyes, about to hang up when a husky, tired voice full of annoyance answered.
"Yeah?"
Zara frowned, worried she'd called the wrong number.
"Is this Jessica Jones?" She asked, hesitantly.
"Depends who's asking..."
"It's Zara. Zara Jones, I met you at Luke's bar the other night." She said, jamming her eyes shut as she covered them with her hand, trying to block any light out. Her other hand found the light switch, plunging the steam-filled room into darkness.

"Hello?" She tested, after realizing the line had gone quiet. "Are you there?"
"Yeah I'm here..." Came Jessica's reply, her voice somewhat softer. "What's up?"
Zara let out a strained, barely audible moan, sliding to the floor with her back against the wall. She took a second to compose herself, her teeth gritted through the pain as she began to speak.
"What do you know about a mind controller that goes by 'Larson'? Business guy, saw him on the outskirts of New York tonight." She asked, cutting to the chase.
"The only Larson I know of around here is the attorney Creg Larson. He's the 'son' from Larson & Sons law firm... He's not enhanced as far as we know..."
"How sure are you? The guy I saw was at a Hydra base we broke into tonight, made a guy slit his own throat. They had him under control, I don't know how..." Zara said, taking a moment to breathe, holding the phone away from her as she did for a moment.
"6'2, sandy brown hair, good looking, mid to late thirties?"
"Ugh, shit... Sounds like him. Leave it with me I'll look into it." Jessica said, the sound of paper being torn from a notepad in the background as she wrote the name down.
"One more thing..." Zara asked, after a few moments of silence. "He tried to get into my head..." She said, swallowing down the lump in her throat as the pain became less and less bearable.
"Hurts like hell doesn't it?" Came Jessica's sympathetic voice.
"What do I do?"
"Distance will break the connection. Get as far away as you can, and don't come home until the pain stops," She explained. "It's like a shitty phone connection, it can only hold on for so long, then you have to dial out again."
"But what about when I get back, won't he just come after me again?" Zara asked, wiping a few escaping tears from her cheeks.
"No, he can't get you again until you're right in front of him..."
"Thanks Jessica."
"No problem..." Came Jessica's answer, a little hesitation in her voice. "I'll call you tomorrow, ok?"
"You don't have to do that"
"Shut up, I'm calling you so you better answer. Look after yourself little Jones..."

Zara sniffed, putting her phone down beside her as she wiped both eyes, letting out a breath. She looked up to see Bucky standing in front of her, even in the dark she could make out his face full of worry. He held out a hand to help her up which she took, very gently pulling her to her feet. He pulled her top off over her head and placing a kiss to her forehead.
"Get in the shower, I'll get you some dry clothes and then we'll go." He said, keeping his voice soft.
"How much did you hear?" She asked, her voice a little croaky as he pulled the shower door open.
"Enough that we'll have something to talk about on the way home. Now get in."




Bucky lifted her into the passenger seat of the quinjet, buckling her in before going around to the other side and pulling himself into the pilot's seat. The doors closed and the engine came to life. Bucky dimmed the cockpit lights and gave her hand a squeeze to make sure she was okay, taking her nod as the cue to lift off and get them into the air. As usual his takeoff was smooth and precise, and she was grateful the flight was fast and uneventful. She glanced over to him between the fingers she had over her eyes, he was so determined, so competent. A smile crossed her lips despite the awful pain she was in, and for that moment all she could think about was how lucky she was.
"How you doin' ever there, babe?" He asked, sensing her eyes on him. She gave a thumbs up, still not up for talking as they whizzed through the air. He reached over, giving her thigh a squeeze, Zara placing her hand over his in gratitude.

Within minutes, the ringing in her ears settled down and she was finally able to open her eyes, the headache subsiding. She let out a breath of relief, turning to face him as he slowed the jet to a hover. Bucky turned in his seat, taking her face in his hands , his eyes searching hers for any trace of anything unusual. A small smile crossed his lips, Zara letting herself smile as well as he pressed his lips to hers.
"Are you okay?" He asked, "Your eyes look clearer..."
"Yeah I think I am, thanks so much for getting me out of range... Even after I pissed you off..."

Bucky let out a breath, shaking head a little as he leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees.
"Zara, I'd do anything for you. Any time, any day. You know that. No matter how crazy you make me, I'll always be there for you. Every single time. No matter what. Got it?" He said, in an almost scolding tone, making her blush a little as he glared into her eyes to drive his point home. Zara nodded a little sheepishly, part of her felt like crying for some reason she couldn't put her finger on.
"And while we're on the subject... There's nothing you couldn't tell me, no matter how mad you think I'd get. If you're in trouble, I can't protect you if you don't talk. If something happened to you, and I didn't know..." He trailed off, looking away for a moment. He swallowed hard before he could continue.

"It's not easy for me to let people in. You know that. I love you, Zara. So god damned much... That's a huge deal whether you know it or not-"
"Believe me, Bucky, I know. I love you too, you know that, right?"
"Then why all the secrecy? Where are you running off to every other week? What are you upto?"
"Bucky, you can trust me. It will all pay off-
"What? What's gonna pay off?"

Zara closed her eyes, letting out a breath and bracing herself a little.
"I've been following Hydra activity and chasing Ward. I have a few solid leads, and I've come close a few ti-"
"No" He cut her off, controlling the anger in his voice. "I don't want you anywhere NEAR Ward-"
"This is exactly why I didn't tell you, I knew you'd flip out!"
"This is NOT me flipping out... What kind of guy would I be if I was happy for my girl to walk out into a fucking battle zone, huh?"
"The kind of guy who's girl is a fucking Shield Agent, that's who. I can handle myself, Barnes, and it's time you understood that."
"I understand that damn well, Zara! Christ! Rogers and I don't even go into Hydra Bases alone, and we're SUPER SOLDIERS! You're a tiny, 110 pound girl - who can fight, sure, but up against someone like me, you wouldn't stand a fucking chance." He said, realizing his hands had balled into fists at the thought.
"Don't you think I know that?" She snapped, daring to make eye contact with him. "You could snap me like a twig without raising a sweat. That's the whole point."
"What's the whole point!? You're on a suicide mission, is that it!? Or you think I'm going to hurt you!?"
"God damn it Bucky, I'm on a protection mission!"

Bucky let out a single 'ha!' leaning back on his chair as though he'd had enough of the conversation.
"Right. And who the hell are you protecting, running into the clutches of Hydra alone, huh?"
"I'm protecting YOU! They have mind controllers working for them. One of which I had the displeasure of running into tonight. If one of them sinks their hooks into me, I can be stopped. You, Rogers, Banner, or anyone else can't." She said, watching his expression change from angry to thoughtful as he took the information in.

"It's not like I'm running into bases, guns blazing. I have contacts all over, I have people watching the airports and the roads. I have people watching the internet, and I even have contacts at the morgues... I've broken into computer systems with the help of a few tech friends, and snuck into warehouses. I have friends away from Shield that are enhanced that are on the trail as well... I've GOT this." She said, determination in her voice.
"I still don't understand why you couldn't tell me, Zee..."
"Because you would have stopped me... And this is too damned important." She said, reaching over to take his hand, letting his fingers interlock with hers. "You're too important" She added.
"Of course I would have stopped you. I'M supposed to protect YOU, not the other way around.
"It's not the forties anymore, Buck... It doesn't work like that anymore."

Bucky let out an exasperated breath, leaning over to kiss her, his metal hand tucking her loose hair behind her ear as he did.
"Call me old school, but I don't care what year it is. I don't like you risking yourself for me, we both know I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you..." He said, his voice soft, "If we do this, we do it as a team. Okay?"
"You'd do the same for me, Buck..." She said, biting her lip. "I just don't want you near them, it scares the shit out of me just thinking about it..."
"Well it scares the shit out of me thinking of you walking into their clutches, and nobody being there to help you." He said, squeezing her hands in his, his eyes full of worry.
"Bucky Barnes doesn't get scared."
"Oh yes he does..." He said, his 'no nonsense' expression on. Zara nodded, letting out a long breath.
"Okay fine. How about we make a deal?"
"I'm listening."
"You stay away from Hydra, and I keep you informed of anything I find out. And if I need to go somewhere, I keep you in the loop with the details..." She said, arching a brow thoughtfully.
"I can't guarantee I can stay away from Hydra, Zee.... If they show up while I'm on a mission-"
"-Just promise me you'll try. If you know there's a mind controller, you get the hell outta there..." She said, looking into his eyes, her expression very serious. Bucky nodded, leaning over to kiss her, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

Bucky straightened up, turning back in his seat to face to front again, Zara doing the same. They buckled themselves back in as Bucky reached up, flicking a few overhead switches, getting ready to fly back.
"So who's Jessica?" He asked as they got moving.



The morning came quickly, Zara was glad to have gotten a few hours sleep. She woke up in Bucky's arms, they'd held each other a little tighter than usual during the night, both worried about the other, given the lengthy talk they'd had in the jet, and then back at the room. Bucky woke up when she stirred, still on high alert, even in his sleep. She stroked his brow with her thumb, a small smile crossing his lips. She propped herself up to kiss him, that worried look still lingering in his eyes which he was quick to shake off as soon as he realized she'd noticed.

The meeting was pretty uneventful. Zara got up in front of all of them, ignoring her nerves and explained what she'd been doing over the past few months, and what she'd discovered. Most of them were happy to get new intel, no matter how it came about. Coulson had been angry at her, and Steve had shot Bucky a look, which Bucky had waved off. To her surprise, Tony had been quite angry at her, unashamed to have a go at her in front of the others for putting herself in danger. She shot Bucky a look, annoyed at him for nodding in agreement with Tony. She was quick to tell them all to get over it, and move onto the whole point of the meeting, which was Larson.
Zara had brought in the USB drive from the night before, handing it to Tony who had its contents projected on a holographic screen in front of them all.

Jessica had been right, it was Creg Larson, the attorney. Interestingly, as he'd been a big supporter of the superhero registration act that was still in discussion. He'd gone missing a couple of months later, and his father had put out a huge campaign, looking for him. Rewards were offered, his picture had been plastered all over the city, adds on television, the works. Yet here he was, a 'gifted' and off working with Hydra, who he had always openly despised... Zara made a mental note to pass this information onto Jessica as soon as she could.

The meeting concluded with Tony promising to get started on more mind control shields. He'd have to design them in such a way that their team members could wear them out on the field. Tony's had been built into his helmet, so the extra weight hadn't mattered. He was going to need to streamline these, and get them made asap. Now that Hydra were stepping their game up, so must they. The news that Ward had taken the reins at Hydra came as no surprise to Coulson, who was now even more determined to take him down. It was decided then and there that as soon as the mind devices were finalized, they'd launch an attack.
Zara swallowed hard, suddenly feeling a little sick on hearing Coulson declare war. War was never fun, especially when there was so much at stake and the risks were so much higher...



Zara walked out of the meeting stressed, feeling responsible for causing such a declaration.

If only I'd kept my mouth shut and not told them about Larson... I've probably just sentenced half of my friends to death or injury... But then again Tony wouldn't be making brainwave thingies for everyone... I suppose they'll be okay, they usually are, right?

She let out a breath, deciding it was ultimately for the best. She pulled her phone out, scrolling through the contacts and hit Jessica's number, putting the phone to her ear as she stepped into an empty room, Bucky closing the door behind them as he followed her in.
"Little Jones..." Came Jessica's tired voice.
"Hey... So, I found out that Larson is THE Larson. The lawyer, Creg."
"I thought as much, I was up half the night reading about him. I figured he matched your description, AND there was all that crap about him going missing, it fit. Funny that he should pop up now with Hydra and suddenly he's got abilities. I read that he suffers from an acute case of Osteoarthritis."
"...What's Osteoarthritis got to do with having super powers."
"Fish oil."
"Huh?"
"Jones, are you living under a rock?" Jessica asked, "There were fish oil caps that were found to be contaminated, causing mutations to be triggered in some people. Heaps of people died? It was all over the news?"
"I DID tell you I spent 6 months as a mindless zombie assassin and then another three or four months not knowing who I was? Pretty sure I wasn't up to date with world events..." Zara sassed.
"Noted. Google it." Jessica said back, her tone somewhat short. "Pretty sure that's what happened to him, how he ended up at Hydra I have no idea, but I'm working on it. Ten bucks says they found out what his power was, and offered him 'refuge', AKA, a nice big tube of Propofol and a concrete cell."
Zara nodded, chuckling despite herself, her eyes darting over to Bucky who was listening in from his side of the room and nodding in agreement.
"Definitely sounds plausible!" She said with a relieved smile.

"So when are you down my way again?" Jessica asked after a longish pause. Zara shot a look over to Bucky who shook his head as if to tell her it wouldn't be any time in the near future. She guessed that with all these new revelations, that sticking nearby the base was probably in her best interests. She hadn't had a one on one chat with Coulson, which was inevitable given how annoyed he'd been at her.
"Um... Probably not any time soon. I think staying close to home is the best option, given the circumstances..." She said regretfully.
"Really? ...Shit." Came her hushed voice through the speaker as if she'd pulled the phone away from her face before she'd cursed.

"Why, what's wrong?" Zara asked, frowning a little with intrigue.
"Oh no, nothing. I'd just looked up some stuff and have some info on your past that you may want to know. I wanted to talk to you about it, and ask you a few questions... In person" Came Jessica's hesitant voice.
"What kind of things?"
"You know what, never mind. I'll talk to you when I see you..."
"Jessica! What kind of things about my past!?"
"About your parents, your Dad especially."
"My Dad was a piece of shit, and he's dead anyway. I know because I killed him." Zara said, venom in her voice now. There was more silence on the other end of the line, Zara letting out a breath of exasperation, her father was the last person she wanted to discuss.

"It was you?" Jessica asked, shock in her voice. "YOU were the one who murdered Brian Jones!?"
"My Dad's name was Donald, not Brian. I was under Hydra's influence when it happened... But I'm not sorry, not one bit..."
"Before 1991 he was Brian-"
"What!?"

There was another long pause on the line, Zara growing sick of the dramatics quickly.
"Hello?" She said, annoyance in her voice as she rolled her eyes.
"He faked his dea-" She started, stopping short to take a breath, "You know what, I gotta go. Take care, Zara"

The line went dead, Jessica hanging up without letting Zara answer her. Zara growled loudly with frustration, hurling her phone angrily across the room, Bucky reaching out and catching it effortlessly with his flesh hand.

"What the hell was that all about? Before 1991 he was Brian? Seriously!?" Zara ranted, her brain flustered. She didn't need this, not today. "And why the hell did she go all weird, she knew I was an assassin. It's not like I killed HER Da-" She stopped short, cutting herself off with a hand over her mouth...

"Holy shit..."