Chapter 2
It felt like a reasonably dumb idea to go to Budapest. But here we were, looking for someone of my mothers past. Someone I had met in theory but never in a way I could recall. My mothers sister, not by blood. But raised together. Closest thing to a childhood family she ever got as far as I know.
We had taken an additional train and bus to get to the safe house. And when we stepped foot into the community, I felt my mom radiate caution. Not that we hadn’t in the past months. Being a place this communal while on the run and in hiding will cause unease.
We rode up the elevator and I wasn’t sure what to expect. But I had to trust the plan. Stay outside, look for signs of real danger, go in when I think it’s clear. Improvise if/when needed.
The elevator was creaky on the way up and smelled like dust. On the way up, I stayed out of my mom's head as much as possible. Not just here but at all times. Now I felt like that was more important than ever. She was preparing for something that threw us off course.
The elevator stopped with a jolt and we stepped out, went for the stashed guns in a trash chute. I reached in for my gun and loaded it as she did the same. She stood up and nodded at me, reaching to pick the lock as I stood back and pinpointed someone inside.
“I know you’re out there.” A muffled female voice called out from inside. I watched my mom take a deep breath.
“I know you know I'm out here.” She said as she pulled out her gun before stepping inside slamming the door behind her with her foot. I also took a deep breath and leaned back on the wall next to the door.
“Then why are you skulking about like it's a minefield?” The voice said quieter than before.
“Cause I don’t know if I can trust you.” I heard, just as quietly, from my mother.
Their voices got quieter and quieter, all I could pick up on were emotions and preliminary thoughts. I strained harder to hear something else, but I couldn’t. It wasn’t a distance thing, it felt like a block. Like someone else knew how to block telepathy.
Then the fighting began. I quieted my breath and calmed it, hearing the struggling on both sides of the fight. Then, I felt the pain. The breathing on both of them being cut off. And I heard past the preliminary thoughts. I was clear.
“Перемирие” I heard in a strained from from my mother as I walked into the apartment. I walked into the unfinished dining room to see my mother and Yelena panting on the floor with a curtain around their necks.
Yelena looked over at me as she caught her breath. She looked me up and down with wide eyes. I walked over and reached my hand out to help my mom onto her feet.
“You’ve grown.” She told Yelena, grabbing my hand and standing up. Yelena looked between the both of us and stood up after she pulled the curtain off her.
“No shit.’ She said, walking past my mother and I.
“You had to come to Budapest, didn’t you?” My mother asked, following her into the kitchen.
“I came here because I thought you wouldn’t.” Yelena said, grabbing a bottle of alcohol from the refrigerator. “But since you’re here, what bullet does that?” She asked, pointing to the three point holes in the wall behind me.
“Arrows. Not bullets.” I said, looking at the vodka on the table.
“If you didn’t think we’d come here, why’d you send this?” My mother asked, placing the red viles on the table. We had spent the entire way here looking at them and wondering what they were.
“You brought it back here?” Yelena asked incredulously, walking out of the kitchen.
“We’re not here for a reunion but you need to tell me what that is.” My mom said following her. I looked at the viles one last time before following.
“It’s a synthetic gas. The counteragent to chemical subjugation. The gas immunizes the brain's neural-pathways from external manipulation.” Yelena said simply as she stuffed clothes into a bag
“Maybe in English next time?”
“It’s a mind control antidote.” Yelena said again in Russian. I snickered as I grabbed a shirt off the rack without looking at it.
“Why didn’t you take it to one of your super-scientist friends? They can explain it to you. Tony Stark, maybe?” Yelena asked and I scoffed. If only it were that easy.
“Yeah, We’re not really on speaking terms right now, so…” My mom said trailing off as she looked through the clothing rack.
“Great. Perfect timing. Where’s an Avenger when you need one?” I put on the shirt I grabbed as Yelena spoke sarcastically.
"Look, we're not supposed to be here right now. We're on the run. You could have gotten us killed." My mother said turning around and pulling off her shirt.
"What was I supposed to do? You're the only superhero people that I know." Yelena said as I walked out of the room and into the storage room with guns. "That was the whole reason that I sent it to you."
After a beat of silence, Yelena spoke again,"I kept checking the news. I was hoping to see 'Captain America brings down the Red Room'"
My heart dropped. I looked towards the room I just left and watched as Yelena walked out nonchalantly.
"What?" I asked, feeling my heart beat rapidly. Yelena just walked around and began putting things in her bag.
"Taking down the Red Room?" My mom said finally walking out of the room too. "What are you talking about? It's been gone for years."
"Dreykov's dead. We killed him." I said Yelena walked into the same room as me. I couldn't help but watch her with wide eyes.
"You two don't really believe that, do you?" Yelena asked with an unbelievable smile. When my mother didn't respond, she stepped out of the room to make direct eye contact with her. "You really do believe that."
"Dreykov's dead. It took almost destroying the entire city just to get to him." My mother said as I stood in the doorway. I took a shaky breath and thought about the vials.
"If you're so sure then tell me what happened. Tell me exactly." Yelena said, looking between both of us. I cleared my throat and teleported out of the room, landing myself in front of the kitchen window.
"Shit." I heard distantly from Yelena.
I took a deep breath as I heard the two older women a few feet away. I walked over to the bottle of vodka sitting on the table and pulled it up to my lips. I took a big gulp as the other two walked in.
"That's what I'd call imploding a five-story building and shooting it out with the Hungarian Special Forces." I set down the bottle as my mother gave me a look.
"It took us 10 days before we could get out of Budapest." I said staring off into the hallway.
"And you checked the body?"
I felt myself grow sick. It could have been from the vodka I just drank or the fact that Dreykov was alive and had been alive for who knows how long.
"There was no body left to check." My mother said once she took a shot and began walking out of the kitchen.
"You're forgetting Dreykov's daughter."
I tensed up at the mention of the little girl that we killed as collateral. Collateral. What a disgusting thing. Then I heard voices. Not voices. Thoughts.
"Wait-" Then, footsteps sounded on the roof and an explosion followed soon after.