Chapter 14
Steve sat on the curb of the gas station sidewalk in a haze. He watched as the police showed up, taking statements and investigating Bucky’s car. While Winnie yelled something over her phone, it sounded like she was talking to King Atlas.
They issued an amber alert. When the police reviewed the security tapes, they discovered ten minutes of footage had been deleted. People bustled around him trying to find Bucky. Steve felt useless. Even Sam, Clint, and Nat were helping by calling hospitals and friends to see if anyone had seen Bucky. Nothing so far.
Steve’s phone buzzed, it was the AMBER Alert. It didn’t feel real, it read:
AMBER Alert
Oahu, Hi. James Buchanan Barnes,16
6’2, 185lbs, bro. hair, blue eyes.
With Bucky’s picture on it. Steve felt took in a deep breath trying to contain his anxiety. Bucky would be fine.
George looked increasingly worried, his usually calm disposition had been shaken. Winnie cried into her phone, she took calm and measured breaths trying to compose herself. Nat, Clint, and Sam sat huddled around their phones, typing away sending out mass texts and posting all over social media.
Steve had given his statement to the cops, they had patrols all over the roads. They were trying to obtain security footage from neighboring shops.
Steve had called his mom, she was on her way from the hospital to help look. By the time she arrived, the police were wrapping up the crime scene. The car had been dusted for prints, none were found. No DNA evidence, there was nothing.
The detective on Bucky’s case took a seat next to Steve. He was a middle-aged white guy with thinning hair and a kind smile.
“Nice to meet you I’m Detective Phil Coulson, you’re Steve Bucky’s boyfriend, correct?” he questioned, sticking his hand out for Steve to shake.
“Yeah that’s me,” Steve said roughly.
“I know we already got a statement from you, but I wanted to know more about Bucky. Did he ever seem like the type to run away?”
Steve shook his head, “Never, he has a great relationship with his parents.”
Phil nodded in understanding, “Do you know if anyone who would want to hurt Bucky?”
Steve thought for a second, there was the whole entire Pierce family. But also, “Tony Stark,” Steve grumbled out.
“Can you elaborate?” Phil said taking out his notepad and pen, scribbling down Tony’s name.
“He goes to school with us, Bucky and Tony hate each other,” Steve said, feeling a little guilty for accusing Tony. But after the boat ride from hell, Steve really know what Tony was capable of.
“Why did they hate each other?” Coulson asked, still writing.
“Tony thought Bucky was a liar, Bucky wanted Tony to stay out of his business,” Steve said ambiguously.
“What did Tony think Bucky was lying about?” Coulson asked clearly not happy with Steve’s vagueness.
“You know what? I’m not sure,” Steve lied, he acted like he was deep in thought.
Coulson shut his notepad and nodded. “Thank you, Steve, I’ll make sure to look into it.”
“No problem,” Steve said as he watched as the detective walked off.
“Hey Stevie,” his mom said from behind him. Steve stood up and wrapped himself in her arms.
“I’m scared, mama,” he whispered. His stomach was in knots and he felt nauseous and his chest was tight.
Sarah stroked his hair, “I know baby, we’ll find him. I know we will.”
Steve sniffled, blinking away the tear in his eyes. “Okay,” he nodded.
She looked at him with worry present in her eyes, “I talked to Winnie and George, we’re setting up camp at their house. We’re going over all the information we have and discussing things we can’t talk about with the police,” she told him.
---
When Steve and Sarah arrived at the Barnes’ household, there were a few unfamiliar faces. One was a woman with dark brown waist-length hair. The other was a tall man with golden blond hair shoulder-length hair and a scruffy beard. Standing next to them was Dr. Strange and King Atlas himself. This had to be serious.
Winnie ushered the pair in, “Hello Steve, it is nice to see you again,” King Atlas said with his booming voice.
“You too,” Steve said. “Hello Doctor,” Steve greeted. Dr. Strange smiled and nodded back at him.
“This is my mom, Sarah, she is a doctor too,” Steve smiled.
Sarah gave them a warm smile, “Nice to meet you,” she said.
“I’m Wanda, by the way,” the woman with dark hair said.
“Your Bucky’s tutor?” Steve questioned.
“That’s me.”
“And I’m Thor,” the blond man said.
“The God?” Steve said flabbergasted.
“The one and only,” Thor said with blinding smile.
“The Asgardians owe me a favor,” King Atlas cut in.
“Again, I would like to apologize for Loki,” Thor directed to the King.
King Atlas sighed, “all is forgiven,” he didn’t sound convincing.
The group settled in the living room, Winnie leaned against George, her eyes red from crying. George looked solemn and stressed, a far cry from the usually laid-back and happy man he was. Sarah Rogers comforted the pair.
The four teenagers sat on the floor, waiting to be told what to do. Atlas, Dr. Strange, Thor, and Wanda sat quietly whispering to each other.
King Atlas spoke up first, “Wanda has volunteered to use a tracking spell to find Bucky.”
Winnie nodded, her hair was disheveled and eyes red. “What do you need?” she asked.
“Take me to Bucky’s room,” Wanda said. Winnie stood up and Wanda followed. Steve got up to follow.
“It is better if Wanda is in there alone,” Dr. Strange spoke up.
Steve felt useless. Steve always felt useless.
---
Bucky felt hazy, he didn’t know how long it’s been since the last time he’s been awake. They keep him drugged most of the time. When he wakes up all he knows is pain and fatigue.
Today was the worst pain he’s ever felt though, it was a sharp stinging all the way down his tail. It was sore, and he couldn’t even swim. He sat on the bottom of his tank, crying out for mercy.
He looked down and felt sick. There was a line of dark black sutures running up the length of his tail. They had dissected him. The wound was healing, he could feel it. It’d be gone in a matter of days. He was just so uncomfortable.
He wanted to go home. He was hurt and scared. He felt humiliated, he was one of the strongest creatures on earth and he felt helpless.
It was all Tony fucking Stark’s fault, he told his dad and now Bucky’s here. He’s replayed every interaction he’s had with Tony since they met. Not once did he behave in a way that made him deserve this. To be here, being experimented on by a government lab.
He wasn’t going to lose hope, he knew there were people looking for him. There had to be.
Bucky felt drowsy, he was at the edge of sleep when he was disrupted by a commotion in the lab.
Howard was trying to push somebody out of the lab. But the person ran forward and stepped towards the tank. His face was a mixture of confusion and disgust. Bucky looked up and he was face to face with Tony Stark.
Bucky curled in on himself trying to make himself look small. He didn’t want Tony to see him like this, this weak.
Tony stared at him with pity, it made Bucky angry. Howard was fuming, yelling at his son to get out.
Howard grabbed his son by the arm. As Tony was dragged away, Bucky saw him mouth ‘I didn’t know’.
---
Bucky had been missing for 4 days. Steve was a basket case, he wasn’t sleeping, he wasn’t eating. He was over at the Barnes’ house most nights. He would sleep in Bucky’s room until Wanda started her tracking spells.
Wanda would spend 10 hours at a time in Bucky’s room, she’s managed to narrow down Bucky’s location to a ten-mile radius. She still needed to narrow it down more before they made any moves.
They hadn’t heard anything from the police since the first night. Nat, Sam, and Clint visited Steve every day. They sat in the living room of Bucky’s house a movie playing in the background, attempting to keep their minds off Bucky.
Just when they were getting to the good part of Frozen, Natasha’s phone rang. She read the caller ID with a puzzled look. She stepped out of the room.
Steve, Sam, and Clint looked at each other confused. Natasha’s hushed talking could be heard from where they were. It had caught the attention of Bucky’s parents who sat in the kitchen.
“Who is she talking to?” George asked.
“No idea,” Clint responded shrugging.
They heard Nat stop talking, she had hung up the phone. She walked calmly back into the joint living room/ kitchen area.
“I know where Bucky is,” she started. “He’s at Stark—”
She was cut off by Wanda running down the hall, “Bucky’s at Stark Industries lab!” she yelled.
“Yes, I was getting to that. I just got off the phone with Tony.”
Steve felt his blood pumping in his ears, Tony’s the one who probably orchestrated the whole thing. But why the change of heart? Why would he tell Natasha?
Natasha read the room, “First I want to say Tony did not know, until a few hours ago,” she began. “He didn’t know that Bucky was missing until Detective Coulson stopped by to talk to him about his relationship with Bucky. His dad had been acting strange spending a weird number of hours in his lab. So, Tony snuck in there and Bucky was there. He’s been experimented on and he’s not in the best shape right now. Tony is on his way and said he’ll help us break Bucky out as soon as possible.”
The mood in the room shifted, they were angry but hopeful. Winnie was wrapped in George’s arms sobbing, George had tears in his eyes as well. Knowing Bucky had been tortured and experimented was rough for everyone. They didn’t know if he was going to be same when he got back. If he was even going to make it back.
Steve silently cried, he picked up the phone to call his mom.
“Steve?” she picked up. “Any news?”
“We found him, he’s at Stark Industries lab. We have to go rescue him.”
“Ok, I’m coming over,” she said quickly, she sounded like she was picking up her car keys.
“Thanks, mom,” he whispered voice breaking with emotion.
“I love you and I’ll be over as soon as I can,” she said hanging up the phone.
Winnie was on the phone with Atlas, she was talking angrily.
“We need help father, we can’t do this with just us,” she said. “It’s a top-secret government lab, what am I supposed to do!” she exclaimed.
Her face turned solemn, “wait, what’s going on at the kingdom.” She sighed breath hitching, “we’ll work with what we’ve got,” she finally conceded.
“What’s going on?” Wanda asked wide-eyed and worried.
“The Pierce family and the Reef Merpeople have decided to leave the kingdom, they have waged war on Atlantis,” she said tiredly.
Wanda covered her mouth, “We knew this was coming, but not this soon.”
Winnie looked at her with a serious look, “We have bigger things to worry about right now, we need to find Bucky.”
There was a knock on the door, George answered. Tony Stark walked into the kitchen a few moments later. Everyone’s eyes fixed on him with a glare. Except for Winnie, she focused on him with a wandering eye, she was trying to figure something out.
He looked disheveled. “I truly never meant for this to happen,” he spoke.
“Then why did you tell your father?” Steve shot back.
“I didn’t!” Tony exclaimed. “The captain of the boat told him, he saw everything unfold on the security cameras.”
“I know you,” Winnie spoke confidently.
Tony looked at her puzzled, “excuse me?” he questioned.
“Your Maria’s son,” she said.
“Um… yeah?”
“I knew your mother, we were best friends during childhood. Sam taste in books and same fascination with human men. We even got pregnant the same year, my story ended much happier than hers.”
“My mother was murdered,” Tony said.
“Yes, I know. One of the saddest days of my life, you had just been born. Bucky was two months old at the time, she was bringing you home to her island, the land of the reef mermaids. The ruler of the island, Alexander Pierce hated humans. It made him sick that she had a baby with your father.”
Tony looked at her with tears in his eyes, “So, he murdered my mother.”
Winnie nodded, “He had your mother executed and he had you stripped of your tail.”