Chapter 19
Back at the tower, Shuri and Mikayla were still talking when Mikayla shivered. "Are you okay, Mikayla? Do you need some more covers?"
"Something's wrong, Shuri. Something with Clint." Mikayla's heart rate picked up. "Shuri? Where is he?"
"I do not know, Mikayla. I wish I did."
"Friday? Where is my husband?"
"Agent M, I'm not at liberty to say."
"Damn it, Friday. I know he's on some mission. What the hell is going on?"
"As I said, my security protocols are locked."
"Screw this." Mikayla swung her legs over the bed and stood. Not one to let a simple hospital gown stop her, she shuffled over to the shelf, grabbed another to wrap around her so she wouldn't flash anyone, then left her room. She heard Doctor Cho calling her, but she blatantly ignored her. "Screw medical. I'm being discharged tomorrow, plus Friday can monitor me." The farther Mikayla got away from the medical wing, the stronger she felt. "They'll debrief in the conference room, but I'll check the landing pad first." When she exited the elevator, she stomped off and waited at the door for the Quinjet to land. "Where the hell is Clint?" Mikayla yelled as a group exited the plane.
Steve was the first one to appear. "Shit."
"Language, Cap."
"Can it, Stark." Steve took a moment to compose himself. The group had talked about the situation on the flight back. After much arguing, Steve told everyone he would go to the medical wing and let Mikayla know. The team assumed Mikayla would figure out something was going on, so Steve nominated himself to be the one to share the news with her. He wasn't expecting to do that in the hangar before everyone, though. "Mikayla? Why are you here?"
"Where – is – my – husband, Steven Grant Rogers?" Mikayla was standing, arms crossed across her chest.
"Not here, Mikayla." Steve reached out, but Mikayla swatted his arm away.
"Damn it, Steve. Where is he? I'm not moving until I get some answers. What was this mission, anyway? And don't tell me I wasn't read in. I'm a damn SHIELD agent, I'm on the team, and I'm his wife. Don't think I won't call Nick if I don't get the answers I want."
Most of the team shrank back, letting Steve handle the situation. "Clint's missing."
"He's what? How many times do you people misplace your teammates?" Mikayla was now confronting the team, hands on her hips.
"She's got a point," Rhodey whispered to Tony, who decided his next project would be to implant tracking chips in each team member.
"How the hell did he go missing? Do we know who has him?"
This was the part Steve was not looking forward to telling Mikayla about, but he figured he might as well rip off the proverbial bandage and get it over with. "HYDRA. They have Bucky, too."
As soon as Mikayla heard the word, she lost all color in her face, and her legs seemed to lose the ability to do their job. She started sinking to the cement. Steve and Thor rushed to her and grabbed her arms before she fell. "Come, Lady Mikayla. Let us go inside where you can sit down." All she could do was nod. It was as if she'd lost the ability to control her body.
Once inside, the group solemnly went to the conference room. During the flight back, they'd given Hill and Fury an update. The duo reached out to their contacts and channels to see what information they could gather. Steve and Thor gently sat Mikayla on the couch, then stepped out of the way to make room for Wanda, who immediately sat beside her and put an arm around her. The rest of the team gathered around the table to debrief. To Mikayla, it was all white noise. Nothing good was going to come of HYDRA having Clint and Bucky. They'd try to turn Clint into one of their soldiers. She knew they wouldn't have taken him to kill him. She hoped whatever the Wakandans had done to Bucky worked; otherwise, he'd return to being the Winter Soldier. Mikayla finally had to put her head in her hands, pressing them against her eyes to try and stem the racing thoughts and the growing headache.
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Clint woke up, still groggy from the drugs he'd been given. He was alert enough to know he was tied to a chair with some metal device. Shaking the cobwebs in his head away, he looked around, finding himself in a dark room with no windows and one door, also with no window. He glanced up and saw the red blinking light of a camera. Clint tried to move his arms and legs, but whatever devices were being used to hold him were more substantial than he'd ever encountered. "Okay, Barton." He blinked a few times to help himself focus. "Think. What's the last thing you remember? The battle in the forest. Jumping out of the tree, the shot to the neck. Bucky was there. Did they get him, too? And why would Rumlow want Barnes? Shit, Rumlow was HYDRA. They want their Winter Soldier back. I know Bucky will fight that with everything he has. What the hell do they want with me? Damn, Mikayla's going to kill me for getting captured. I'll never hear the end of it."
The door opened, and Rumlow was in the doorway. "Nice of you to join us, Barton."
Clint went stone-faced, not giving his true feelings away. "Long time no see, Brock. Last I remember, I was kicking your ass."
Rumlow snorted. "Just gave me time to plan." He motioned to someone behind him, stepping aside to let Rollins and some thick-necked, brawny guy into the room. 'HYDRA needs new soldiers, and you're the perfect candidate. Brainwashed once already, so this will go easier than the last specimen." There was a slight hitch in Clint's breathing. "I wasn't around when we tried to recruit her, but I heard she was a fighter." Rumlow stepped back in and leaned into Clint's face. He was so close Clint could feel his putrid breath. "I can't wait to watch you break. We've got bets going for how many sessions it'll take. Please struggle so I can win."
"Got the drugs?" Rollins asked. Rumlow nodded, jabbing a needle into Clint's neck before he had a chance to fight back. Clint didn't give him the satisfaction of a response but slowly plotted his revenge as Rollins and the nameless guy unshackled him.
The shot didn't knock him out like the last dose but weakened his body enough for them to drag him through several corridors to a larger room. Suddenly, a feeling of heat overwhelmed him, followed by a sudden coldness like he'd never experienced before. Clint noticed it was getting harder to stay focused; his thoughts were racing. 'As soon as I get out of here, I'm going to enjoy ripping him into a million pieces,' he thought. "I think they're working," the nameless guy said.
"Good," Rumlow said. "Put him on the table." Clint might as well have been a rag doll with how easily they tossed him onto a metal table, where his arms, legs, and chest were strapped down. "He should be ready for the next injection shortly. How's our other soldier?"
"Still out of it. They ran into an issue, though," Rollins replied. "The new arm is fastened differently, so it won't come off like the other one did."
"We'll let the doctors worry about that. Is he ready for transport?"
"Yes, he's in the chamber."
'Shit, they froze him. I've got to get out of here, kick some HYDRA ass, then get Bucky. Can't wait on the team for this one.' As Clint started to plan how to escape, he was pummeled with memories. His dad beating the crap out of him. His brother leaving him for dead. Those were cycling through his brain. Clint heard noises that sounded like whining. It took him some time to realize it was him.
"Told you it'd be a sight to see when you broke, Barton," Rumlow preened, proud that he was the one who finally got the valued agent to fall apart. "This next shot should do it."
Clint heard Rumlow talking to him through the assault of memories attacking his brain, but he felt powerless to react to the former SHIELD agent. The fog in his head was filled with the worst times in his life, bringing up events he'd long forgotten until one stuck out clearer than the others. "Agent Barton, welcome back."
"No, not Loki." Clint felt himself trying to resist, but he was helpless, beginning to succumb to the concoctions he was being shot up with. "Go 'way. Where's Mikayla? Leave her alone. You can't have her."
"Aw, ain't that sweet," Rumlow murmured. "Thinks he can protect her. Even if he does, it won't matter. When we're done with him, he won't even remember her. We'll make sure of it." Rumlow stepped away from the table, watching Clint as he tried to thrash but only succeeded in tossing his head from one side to the other, begging for someone to take away the pain and the memories. "I think he's ready for the chair now. Unstrap him." Rollins and the other man followed Rumlow's orders, unfastening the straps and then dragging Clint to the chair the team had heard so much about from Bucky and Mikayla. The other two men strapped him down once he was thrown into the chair. "Remember, Barton. You asked for the pain and memories to be taken away. Be careful what you ask for." Clint continued begging, this time adding in Mikayla's name. Rumlow stepped over to a control panel and pushed some buttons, watching with an evil sneer as the halo came down and encircled Clint's head. He reminded Rollins to check the mouthguard, then threw a switch. Clint's body tensed, then he screamed as the electric shocks entered his brain.