Unexpected Song

05

BUCHAREST

Bucky and Anna were in civvies at a fruit store. He bought some plums and spoke in Romanian. Anna was looking at strawberries.

(assumed translation: How are they? Are they good? Give me six, thank you.)

In a black cap and casual jacket, Bucky walked along, scanning around, followed by Anna, also scanning around, who was in a white tank top with a red cardigan and her hair in a ponytail. Across the street, they spotted a twenty-something vender at a news-stand watching them. Bucky and Anna glanced away, then looked back at the vender who was still watching them. The vender ran from his kiosk. Bucky and Anna went over and picked up a paper. On the front page there was surveillance-photos of a man and the headline: 'Winter Soldier și Octave cautat pentru Bombardmentul din Viena'. Bucky and Anna glanced around tensely.

---

In his dark blue armored suit with his shield on his arm, Steve was in a small apartment. He looked around. There was a mattress with disheveled covers and various bits of cheap looking furniture. The kitchen and bedroom were in the same room. Steve found a couple notebooks on top of the fridge. He picked one up and opened it. There were tabs of varying colors sticking out from amongst the pages.

Sam over the radio said, "Heads up, Cap. German Special Forces, approaching from the south."

"Understood," Steve replied, turning back to the notebooks again. Bucky and Anna were standing behind him.

Steve slowly turned to face them and asked, "Do you two know me?"

Bucky stared at him as he replied, "You're Steve. I read about you in a museum."

"They've set the perimeter," Sam warned.

"I know you're both nervous," Steve said. "And you two have plenty of reason to be. But you're lying."

"I wasn't in Vienna," Bucky told him. "I don't do that anymore."

"They're entering the building," Sam informed.

"Well, the people who think you two did are coming here now," Steve warmed. "And they're not planning on taking either of you alive."

"That's smart," Bucky and Anna said. "Good strategy."

"They're on the roof," Sam informed. "I'm compromised."

Armed cops ran upstairs.

Steve shook his head and said, "This doesn't have end in a fight, Buck, Anna."

Outside the door, a cop readied a battering ram.

"It always ends in a fight," Bucky replied in a tired tone.

"Five seconds," Sam warned.

"You pulled me from the river. Why?" Steve asked.

"I don't know," Bucky answered.

"Three seconds!" Sam cried.

"Yes, you do," Steve said.

"Breach! Breach! Breach!"

A grenade crashed through the window. Bucky grabbed Anna, and kicked it to Steve who smothered it with his shield.

A GSG-9 Soldier yelled, "Schieß die Tür auf!"

(Shoot the door!)

The cop slammed the battering ram against the door. Bucky shielded himself and Anna with the mattress against an attack that came from the window. He blocked the door with a table as cops swung in on cables. Steve pulled the rug from under a policeman, sending him flying. Bucky slammed another policeman into the wall.