Chapter 2
Steve thought that the date was going well, all things considered. Sure he was lying about who was, but the woman’s real date was a jerk who stood her up. And Steve was going to be honest with her. Eventually.
And he had found out her name: Wendy. That had been tricky, considering he was supposed to know that already. He was proud of himself and thought that he was doing well getting to know her.
“So what do you do for a living?”
…..
Agent Rogers was asking a lot of personal questions: where she lived, what she did for fun, many siblings she had. Peggy hadn’t developed this cover that much- just a name really. Maybe he was trying to say that she would need a more developed cover identity.
“Oh I work as a secretary. What do you do?”
“I’m an artist. Freelance, but I’m also trying to find something more steady.”
Aha! She could see exactly where he was going with this.
“That’s wonderfull!” She pulled out a pen and passed it to him, along with a napkin. “I know this is only our first date but would you be willing to draw something for me?”
...
She wanted him to draw something? Was this some kind of test of his artistic abilities? But she did say “only our first date”. He hoped that meant she was interested in him.
It didn’t take Steve long to decide what to draw. He had been wanting to sketch her since he first saw her, He just wished her had better art supplies on hand. Steve put his pen to napkin. He’d have to redraw her at home.
…
Peggy waited as he worked. This was taking quite a bit of time. She was glad though. He must be writing a detailed message. Finally she would have some answers. Unless he was writing in code. That might take longer, but she would figure it out eventually.
She was confused when he finally passed her a sketch of herself. It was… quite good actually. Perhaps he really did have artistic training. She knew many agents who liked to add a bit of truth to their covers- they claimed it made them more believable. It still didn’t explain why he drew her though. Was he telling her that she was a target? But then why take the time to draw a portrait when he could just write it down? They were out of sight of any of the waiters or other patrons. And the security cameras couldn’t capture them at this angle. She had made sure of that.
None of this was making sense. And on the one day they sent an agent into a restaurant Erskine changed his schedule? The whole thing was very suspicious.
…
“This is a trap.” Her eyes narrowed.
Steve wondered what he had done wrong.
“What? No! You don’t have to like it. It’s fine, really.”
She shook her head. “You know what I mean.”
He had no idea what she meant. “Uhh.... Are you upset that I sketched you? Because I wasn’t trying to be a creep, Wendy. You were just right in front of me and I…” No that wasn’t it either. She was still glaring in a way that made him terrified. She must have figured out that he was lying about being her date.
“Who sent you.” It was more of a threat than a question. What was the name of the friend that she had said set her up? He couldn’t remember. It was time to come clean.
…
“Okay. The truth is, nobody sent me. I’m not your date. I’m sorry. I saw that you had been stood up and I know how that feels. I didn’t realize that you never met him and I was trying to keep you from being embarrassed. I know I should have explained. I’m sorry.”
…
It wasn’t a story that Peggy had heard before. She almost had to admire his creativity. Almost.
“ I don’t know if you’re just dedicated to your cover or if trying to distract me. But I’m not interested. But you need to be straight with me right now. Who are you working for. Where is Erskine.” She reached across the table and grabbed his arm. “You have 30 seconds, or I break your wrist.”
…
Oh my god. What the hell had he gotten himself into. He was going to die.
“You have to believe me! I have no idea who Erskine is. I’m telling the truth.”
“Twenty-five.”
His thoughts raced.
“Listen, I don’t know if you’re a spy or with the mafia or what. But I can tell you don’t want to cause a scene. If you break my arm that will definitely draw attention.”
“I’ll claim self defense. Say that you tried to grope me. Who’s going to believe you? Fifteen seconds.”
Steve swallowed nervously.
…
Peggy really didn’t want to break the man’s arm. Not in public at least. He clearly thought she was bluffing. She wasn’t, but she really hoped he caved first.
“Ten sec-” She heard a muffled crash in the kitchen, followed by the sound of raised voices, arguing in Russian. Other patrons might dismiss is as a fight between the staff, if they noticed anything. But Peggy spoke enough Russian to catch the words “hostage” and “threat” Swearing she grab her gun from her purse and ran in that direction.
…
Steve had no idea what was going on. But he knew a fight when he heard it. Against all logic, he found himself following the woman who had just threatened him. Self preservation had never been his strong suit.
If he survived this, Bucky was going to kill him.