Chapter 13
Clint had had time to think as he was relaying the Winter Soldier’s story to Kate. Going through the details with her had actually even helped fit a few pieces into place. He had a theory now. Which was better than nothing at least. The key was Rollins. The presence of the (former?) Hydra operative in Barnes’ apartment indicated one of two things.
Option 1, Hydra had somehow turned Barnes again. Not a great option, but also the less likely one, given that Rollins was tied up unconscious in a closet, and not...doing literally anything else.
Option 2, then, Rollins was Barnes’ prisoner. Which again, given the tied up unconscious in a closet of it all…seemed likely. (Technically there was an Option 3 floating in the back of his mind, but that was some kinky shit Clint was not giving the time of day right now.).
So, Option 2. Barnes had hunted down Rollins. And to do that, he’d probably have needed connections in the underworld. Who knows what Rollins had been up to in the last, Jesus, nearly ten years? Clint was feeling old. So connections. People on the ground who knew where a slimeball like Rollins would be operating. Enter the tracksuits.
Sure, they may not be on the same level as Hydra, but organised crime was exactly that, organised. It was definitely plausible the tracksuits could find information on ex-Hydra operatives if they were still active. Any of those guys still around after Insight would likely have resorted to selling their services, and those skills were not exactly the type that lent themselves to above-board work. Clint would know.
So Barnes got his shit together, and decided to weed out any last Hydra jerks running around. Gets a contact in the tracksuits, makes some agreement for information. Catches Rollins. And then what? Owes a favour to the tracksuits? One that could be repaid with say, handing over the location of Clint and Kate if he happened to come across them?
Hard to picture the guy Steve used to talk about just handing over an innocent kid to a bunch of gangsters but...Clint had to face it, the Winter Soldier was a far cry from the Bucky Barnes Steve would have known in the forties. The shit he’d seen and done...Clint could imagine the guy’s moral compass got a bit screwy over the years.
Damn, he didn’t even have to imagine. He’d seen how Barnes had turned on Kate with his own eyes.
At the very least even, if the tracksuits know who Barnes is, they know the connection to Clint, and all of a sudden the safe house is a lot less safe.
Ha, safe. As if Barnes hadn’t already tried to kill Kate once today, and it wasn’t even lunchtime. Trying to get the kid out of trouble and he just lands her at the feet of someone even more dangerous. What a hero he was.
But that’s fine. He was taking back control of the situation. He always worked best thinking on his feet. Nat used to give him hell for flying by the seat of his pants half the time, but in the end she always trusted his gut.
Damn he missed her. Why the hell did this asshole get a second chance, but Nat was gone? All the shit she had been through, and still managed to come out the other side a good person. But she was dead, and these scumbags lived on, continuing to make the world a worse place for everyone. He was going to fix this.