Chapter 3
"Reports have been coming out of the incident all morning. The fire seems to have been set by local resident Scott Lang. Ms. Van Dyne is so far the only reported casualty. Scott's young daughter, Cassie......"
Natasha switches off the radio and drives in silence. It's very fittingly an unusually cold and gray morning.
She eventually pulls to the side of the road and stops fighting the tears in her eyes.
It's her fault.
She let Scott walk out of that office and kill Hope. She should have known. She should have fucking known.
"How long has he been playing statue?"
Thor is looking in on Scott. The man is just staring straight ahead. Eyes completely lifeless.
"Since six this morning. The bastard will go back and forth between this, and begging God for forgiveness. I called for an armed transport which should be arriving within the hour."
The two can't seem to turn away from the sight.
Suddenly, the bell above the door rings as someone new enters the building. Expecting it to be one of the other deputies, they turn instead to find the mayor, Tony Stark, and a man dressed in full army uniform enter the building.
"Morning, gentleman. I'm Colonel James Rhodes with the United States Air Force. I'm here to speak with the sheriff."
Clint steps forward to shake the man's hand.
"That'd be me. How can I help you?"
Stark looks jumpy. More so than usual. Clint can tell that something isn't right.
"Let me first apologize for bursting in unannounced, but I'm here under very extraneous circumstances. Two days ago I got a call from my supervisor, saying that a C-130 had gone down in a small town in Iowa. Tony's an old friend of mine, so when I saw that it had crashed here in Waverly, I booked the next flight out of D.C.. The plane was on it's way to a base in Montana, its contents meant to be destroyed."
Thor sits up from his chair suddenly causing the three other men to stare at him.
"Two days ago we got a call from Justin Hammer saying that he heard something big crash out in Odin's Mire. Hill and I didn't even give the call a passing glance."
Tony lets out a humorless laugh and turns to the deputy.
"Because he's full of shit?"
Thor gives the mayor a genuine smile before continuing.
"Full to the brim."
Clint clears his throat and gets everyone's attention on him.
"You said the cargo was meant to be destroyed? What was the craft carrying?"
Rhodes hesitates.
Now Clint is certain something is very, very wrong.
"The name being thrown around the Capitol is Extremis. It......"
Scott suddenly jumps toward the cell bars and starts screaming at the four other men.
"It was created as a biological weapon, and if you'll excuse me,"
Before anyone in the room has time to even blink, he pulls out his sidearm and places a bullet between Scott's eyes.
"That man was very much infected."
Bucky has never been very religious. That's why he's surprised to end up sitting in a pew inside of the eerily quiet and empty church just across the street from the morgue.
He had been sitting here for almost a half hour. He's pretty sure Sitwell was somewhere in the building, but after the last encounter Bucky had with the man, he wasn't at all eager to speak with him.
All he can think about is Cassie. He feels silent tears start to roll down his cheeks. The girl had been so full of love and life yesterday. He can't imagine what the news is going to do to her.
He stands and walks toward the pulpit, stopping in front of the baptismal pool.
He had told that little girl that she would just have to spend one night at her grandmother's house, and then she'd be returned to her dad and Hope. Now, she will never see her step-mother again, and if she does ever see her dad, it will either be in a maximum security prison or insane asylum.
An audio alert on his phone snaps Bucky out of his thoughts. It's a text alert saying that an alarm had been set off inside the morgue.
A prevailing instinct had him dialing Steve's number before he had even finished reading the alert.
"Hel....."
"Where are you?"
"I love you too, honey. My day is going just fine, thanks for asking."
Bucky audibly sighs. His asshole fiancé would try something smart.
"Steve, shut the Hell up and answer my question."
"I'm two blocks from the station, why?"
"An alarm was triggered at the morgue. Meet me there as soon as you can."
When Steve speaks again, it's with the same protective warmth that makes Bucky absolutely melt.
"I'm on my way already."
As he exits the church, he begins dialing Bobbi's number.
"Hello?"
"Bobbi, you aren't at the morgue right now, are you?"
"No I'm not, why?"
"I'll let you know as soon as I find out. Sorry for bothering you."
"Not at all, love."
As he reaches the opposite side of the road, he slows his pace before very quietly entering the main parlor of the funeral home, his 'office' sitting in the back of the building.
He just stands and listens. The room is perfectly silent, the shadows cast by the furniture in the room looking like distorted faces spreading across the floor.
Against his better judgement, he begins to step toward the back half of the building.
He's out cold on the floor an instant later.
Steve is sure that nothing serious is wrong. That alarm goes off every time the wind blows a tad to hard. Everything that has happened recently has been eating away at his nerves however, making his mind immediately paint out the worst scenarios possible.
"What the Hell?"
He watches as Dottie Underwood pedals her bike to the center of the street, right toward his cruiser.
He hits the brakes, but she keeps coming in his direction, the smile she's wearing very unsettling. The woman herself is actually quite unsettling as a general rule, but in this moment much more so, and Steve can't help the shutter that sweeps over his body. She stops the bicycle about four feet from the front of his car. Then she just sits there for a few fleeting moments, staring at him with that too sweet smile on her face.
Suddenly, as if realizing that she is in the middle of the damn road, waves at Steve apologetically and rides off in the direction she came.
Realizing that she may be intoxicated, he sends a quick text to Bucky telling him not to go anywhere near the alarm until he gets there, and begins following Dottie.
She must realize she's being tailed, because she picks up her pace, and rounds a corner into an alley a little further down the street.
As he rolls up next to the spot where she cut out, he finds the bike abandoned on the pavement, Dottie nowhere in sight.
Placing the cruiser in park, he just stares dumbly at the bike. What the fuck was she doing, and why the Hell would she run from him?
Natasha finally pulls up outside of her office, but hesitates to exit the car. She doesn't yet feel ready to enter the last place she saw Hope alive. The place where she sent her friend off to her death.
She's pulled out of her grief-laden thoughts when a figure inside the building darts past her periphery. She had given Wanda the day off, so no one should be inside the building today.
The same figure passes by the window, and this time, she can see that he is wearing a lab coat.
She nearly sprints to the entrance door, and after turning the key in the lock, throws it open.
It's enough to startle the man that has invaded her place of employment. He just stares wide-eyed at her, clearly to shocked to formulate a response.
"May I kindly ask who the fuck are you, and what the fuck are you doing in my office?"
The man at least has the decency to look guilty, before raising his hands out in front of him, as if wanting to placate the very tense situation.
"My name is Bruce Banner. I'm here on behalf of the CDC and the United States Air Force. We're investigating a possible wide-spread contamination of this town's water supply. I was hoping that you would already be here when I arrived, but I had to let myself in."
She just stares on at him. Then, slowly, what he just told her starts to register in her mind.
"A contamination of what?"
His face hardens just the slightest bit, but it's enough to make Natasha's stomach jump completely.
"It's a weaponized virus known as Extremis. An aircraft carrying the virus crashed about two miles outside of the town, and released the strain into the arterial flood ways surrounding Waverly."
Everything sort of slots into place in her mind in that moment. Both Erik and Scott had traces of rhabdovirdae in their saliva. They also lived on the first two properties that the water from the bog reached. If whatever that plane had been carrying had entered the water, it could be the same thing that caused their mental deterioration.
"What does the government plan to do about the contamination?"
Bruce drops his hands at his sides and tries for a disarming smile. He fails miserably.
"Colonel Rhodes is talking with the sheriff about a possible quarantine center at the high-school as we speak. There, we can get a grasp of how wide spread this thing is, and start trying to find a cure for the infected. I was hoping you could help with that."
Natasha finally staggers to the nearest chair, and let's herself fall into it.
"You want a rabies immunoglobulin? I don't have the capacity for an operation like that, Dr. Banner. This is a small town. Besides, all chances of an antibody fighting the virus ended when the government weaponized it."
The man seems to consider her words thoroughly, before finally huffing out a defeated breath, and taking a seat across the room from her.
They sit in silence for a few minutes, before the doctor finally gives her another shy smile.
"It had to be rabies. Why couldn't they have weaponized something simple? Like pinkeye?"
"YOU ARE AWARE THAT YOU JUST SHOT AND KILLED A MAN, RIGHT?"
Tony has his back turned to the entire group. Clearly, he doesn't like the sight of Scott's blood splattered onto the wall. Thor is holding Clint back from attacking Rhodes. The man seems unfazed by what he just did, however.
"Sheriff, I told you. He was clearly infected. We know that this virus so far only incubates in water, but we can't afford to take any chances. Whoever that man was before, this virus wiped all that away. I need to know that I can trust you to help me lead your town through this."
Clint makes a show of calming down, causing Thor to release his hold on the man. He allows himself a few deep breaths, then turns to face Rhodes once again.
"Lead them through what exactly? We drop the news of a biological emergency, and the whole town goes into a panic. How do you plan on making them cooperate long enough to find a solution? You've obviously seen what happens once the virus takes affect."
Tony finally seems to gather himself. He takes a breath and then turns to face Clint. This is the Tony that he came to know and respect. The man had a perfect poker face and a natural diplomatic quality. He cared about this town. Very much.
"We'll talk to the Reverend. Ask him to speak to the people in a mandatory town meeting at the church. Sheriff, if you'll be so helpful, we could maybe also say a few words. Try to keep everyone calm."
Clint has to admit to himself that Tony's plan is a good one. If the people of Waverly hear three people of power in the town saying that things were going to be handled and resolved, maybe then they will believe it.
He reaches for the phone behind him, then starts to dial Steve's number.
"Hello?"
"Steve, I need you to head on down to your fiancé's office and retrieve Sitwell for me. I'll explain everything else once you get here."
"Got it, Chief. See you soon."
Bucky jolts awake, sucking in every last bit of air he can manage.
The last thing he remembers is entering the front of the building, before his mouth was being covered by some type of cloth, and he was passed out on the floor.
What he notices first is that he's laying on his back. On top of an examination table. Tied down to it, actually.
What he notices next makes his blood run cold.
Selvig's body is hung in a crucifixion on the wall at the foot of the table he's tied down onto, blood pouring from fresh wounds all over his body. Incisions that he knows he and Bobbi didn't make.
"I cut and cut and cut, but I couldn't find the demons inside of him."
Sitwell materializes out of thin air right next to Bucky, and looks down at him with a dead stare.
"They must have left his body when he died. So, that must mean that I need a live test subject. I'm so glad you volunteered. The Lord will reward your service, Son."
Pain. Unbearable, screaming pain is what comes next.
Sitwell is very slowly and methodically dragging a scalpel across Bucky's stomach.
"Once I'm done, the evil in you will be gone. Then I can perform the procedure on myself. I can save this town from itself, James."
Bucky knows that he is losing a lot of blood. With the strength that he has left, and a sudden surge of adrenaline, he lifts his head to see a pair is scissors within reach. As soon as Sitwell has his back turned, he grabs for the scissors, and luckily, cuts the small rope that has him tied to the table.
"I'm going to make another incision now, this one will be deeper, so...."
His words are cut off when Bucky jams the pair of scissors into his eye when he turns to face him.
In a heartbeat, Bucky is off the table and running for the front of the building.
He wants to cry when he sees Steve's cruiser pull up outside the building.
"STOP!"
The same scalpel used on his stomach minutes before is now plunged into his shoulder blade. He staggers with the pain, and falls to his hands and knees.
Bucky is able to pull the thing out of his back, but Sitwell throws his foot up into his stomach while he's on the ground.
He rolls over onto his back, and the Reverend takes the opportunity to grab the knife from him.
"You shouldn't have done that, James. You made me very angry."
Bucky just closes his eyes and waits for the man to stab him in the chest or the neck, but instead almost jumps out of his skin when he hears a gunshot ring out in the small room.
His heartbeat slows incrementally once he's being lifted into Steve's arms.
"I've got you. Just close your eyes. I'm going to get you out of here."
He wishes he had listened to those words, because as soon as Steve turns to exit the building, Bucky looks back to see Sitwell with a hole blown through his chest, and that same dead smile on his lips.