"So, when do I let him see me?"

"You don't," Sharon answered sharply. "This bar is full of people who wouldn't need to think for longer than a second about killing any one of you for the right price, and from the looks of it that price wouldn't be much. You asked me to get you in, so you're in. Beyond that, you're on your own."

"I know," you groaned softly with a frustrated shake of your head, "and I also know that you took a huge risk helping me, so I appreciate that. It's just hard for me to stand here and act like I can't see what this is doing to Buck. Whatever Zemo's making him do, it's messing with his head. He left the Soldier behind a long time ago."

"I thought you refused to connect anymore?"

"I don't have to. It's the look in his eyes."

"And you're sure he hasn't seen you?" she asked under her breath. A man passed by your table, a bit too close for comfort, but before she could react, he was already gone. You both followed him with your eyes, keeping as still as possible to not draw any attention. "What the hell are they up to?"

You could feel the hair on the back of your neck react and tingle with a nervous anticipation as you watched, glancing to Sam as he seemed to be feeling the same as you. "No idea," you finally replied, "but trust me, you'll know right away if he sees me."

"So, stay back," Sharon commanded, "I've gotta go. I can't be here when things take off. Meet me back at my place in High Town in an hour. I can hide you until your flight out. We need to limit the chances of them seeing you."

"I have to talk to Sam-"

"(Y/N). One hour."

"Fine," you smiled curtly. "One hour."

But you wouldn't honor that promise, and your direction to stay out of sight was quickly ignored when you couldn't hold yourself back. As soon as Zemo gave Bucky the directive to act, to play the Soldier one more time, you feared the worst, and that maybe Shuri and Ayo hadn't been as successful as they had thought. Bucky played it too well, too convincing, and far too terrifying. As the final body thrown in his assault hit the bar top, the crowd parted just enough so that your eyes met across the room, and he was frozen in place. Sam felt the shift and grabbed Bucky's arm to hold him steady, grounding him in a reminder of the plan to stay in character no matter what.

"You good?" he asked quietly, affording a small glance your way.

All Bucky would offer him was a firm nod and a huff under his breath, looking at Sam with a wordless dare to say another word as they both turned and walked away as if they had never even seen you.

Zemo, in contrast, looked back with a slight grin, already several steps ahead in his plans that now had welcome opportunity to include you.

~~~

After their own encounter with Sharon in one of the dark alleys of Madripoor, the three men found themselves on the way to High Town under her guard and to find a few minutes of safety at her home. Maybe she had forgotten that you were going to meet her there, or maybe she couldn't have planned this better if she had tried, but they were now on the way to you for what would likely be an entertaining reunion to witness.

"Did you see her?" Bucky whispered to Sam. "You saw her, right?"

"Yeah, I did."

"What the hell is she doing here? Did you call her?"

"I talked to her," Sam admitted, "but I never said anything about where we were or what was going on. I have no idea how she tracked us down."

"Why did you talk to her?"

Sam took a long breath and steadied himself, pushing back uncomfortably in the seat with his eyes closed, as if avoiding Bucky's glare would make this easier to say. "Because Spiderling called me again, still worried about her, same as last time. Figured if I just talk to her myself then he'll leave me alone."

"Damn it, I knew this would happen."

"What do you mean?"

"This is what she does," Bucky continued, "and I tried to tell her that when he died, but she pushed me away. She thinks she's okay, but she's not, Sam. Now she's here? Why? What could she possibly have going on here? This is all going to blow up eventually and I'm scared that she won't survive it because she's buried it for too long now."

Sam sat up again, turning to face him with a crooked, half-hearted smirk, "well, would ya listen to you? Sounds like that therapy broke through that thick skull of yours, huh?"

"Shut up."

As the two continued to bicker and banter back and forth, Zemo had been listening from the front seat, acting as if he were reading something on his phone to hide the intense focus he was giving them. He didn't really know you but knew plenty about you and was growing anxious to know more about your relationship with James and how this could possibly bring forth an advantage for him. Zemo had no quarrel with you, and had no reason to cause harm, but sometimes collateral damage couldn't be avoided. When their car finally reached its destination, Sharon and the three men made their way to her apartment where you were waiting well out of sight, but he knew you were there without an eye on you at all.

"Where is she, Sharon?"

"Where's who?" she replied coyly, and not at all convincingly. She may have thought that she was a better actress than that, but she was speaking to someone who had done his own share of lying in his day, and he could see right through pretty much anyone.

"Don't," Bucky scoffed, stepping up to her nearly toe-to-toe, "nuh uh. (Y/N)'s here. I can feel this, remember?" he sneered, with a tap to his temple. "No escape."

Sam perked up at the admission, stepping into a discussion that he should have known to avoid. "You're connecting again? You told me you had nothing going on up top."

"Back off, Sam. This has nothing to do with you."

"Sounds familiar," Sam grumbled under his breath, taking a long drink from his glass before taking the seat furthest away from the action. "How come you get to use that line but I don't? Doesn't really seem fair if you ask me."

You listened as the conversation continued, finding yourself smiling at nothing other than the sounds of their voices and the familiar bickering that you used to find endearing when things were better. When things were what they were supposed to be. When the world had made sense. It was easy to close your eyes and become lost in the sounds, to take yourself back to that time, even if it wasn't real. Bucky's voice soothed something buried in your soul; somewhere you had all but forgotten and had numbed away from recognition. So many times it was that voice that calmed you from the edge of panic, had created a fear like you had never known, made you laugh with your entire body, and made you feel like things would be okay so long as you were connected. You had lost yourself in those memories now, and it felt like you were living those moments; so much so that you could feel his hands on your arms to pull you closer, until the sharp reality jarred you back to it.

"(Y/N), snap out of it, we need to move."

"Sorry," you gasped, shaking your head to clear the confusion, "right. Where are we going?"

"There's a club not too far from here," Sharon explained, "I'll send you directions. Meet me there once I'm done with my client appointments. I'm bringing them with me to keep them out of trouble."

"Do you think he'll talk to me?"

Sharon shrugged slightly, glancing back over her shoulder towards the three men who occupied her living room, engaged in their own hushed conversation. "I've seen him looking your way. He knows you're here but I'm not sure why he's not telling Sam or Bucky. Whatever the reason, it can't be good. He has to have his own agenda. It's Zemo."

~~~

Putting your plan into action was a huge risk now that Bucky was here. There was no way that he'd allow what you were going to do, not that it was his decision in any way, but he would act like it was. He would absolutely insinuate himself into it and undoubtedly ruin everything. Of course, that would be partly your own fault by not giving him any information and avoiding him at all costs, but you had given him a pretty clear warning to leave you alone, so he was the one who couldn't take a hint when it was literally slapped across his face.

Then there was Sam. He was going to give you so much shit for this. Sure, he'll be mad, but at least he'll understand once it's all said and done. Bucky will never understand. There was no way to hide what you were on your way to do. You were crossing the floor of the club, dressed to impress after raiding Sharon's closet, with one target in mind.

"You call this dancing?"

Zemo stopped and turned to face you, taking your hand from his arm before you could pull away. The look of confusion in his eyes faded quickly as they met yours, hurrying to mask his reaction even though the feeling in him continued. He had no idea why you were here. His mind had been racing since he first realized, but even his own genius had hit a wall. "Perhaps you could teach me?" he answered softly, almost too low to hear over the driving beat that filled the room.

"I'm up for a challenge," you smiled, but even he could see that it wasn't genuine. It didn't stop him from playing along, and his own expression mirrored yours as he pulled you further into the crowd. "I didn't think you'd be one for this much visibility."

"No, (Y/N), there's no better way to hide."

"From who?"

"You know who," he said flatly. "They have yet to see you and I refuse to let them until you tell me what you're doing here." His hand tightened over yours and he spun you around, pulling you close with a hard slam into his chest. "What could be of such importance that you felt you had to leave the peace and quiet of home to come to Madripoor? What could make you leave your daughter behind when you know this puts you into so much danger?"

"How do you know-"

"I know much about you, (Y/N)," Zemo continued. "Do not worry, it's merely curiosity. When I was in prison I had limitless amounts of time to occupy my thoughts. After I became aware of Tony's passing...my condolences, by the way...I felt a need to know that you were continuing on."

"Why?" you scoffed. "Why would you care at all?"

Zemo pulled back slightly and stared into your eyes, and you swore you saw a hint of regret within them as he studied you. "I caused a great deal of pain to the two most important men in your life. Your late husband and your soulmate. I am compelled to make amends, even if only in my own wishful thinking that you will be cared for."

"That's very touching, but please don't feel anything for me or my family. We don't need it."

"I have a great deal of resources at my disposal-"

"I said we're fine."

With that, there was a long pause in the conversation, and the brief comfort the two of you felt during it had quickly faded away. The music continued and you stayed close, if for nothing else than to not lose him in the massive crowd. During all this time his hand had never once released yours, his grip so firm that you began to lose sensation in your fingers that began to move down into your palm. Despite that, there was something disarming about him, almost charming, and you had to separate yourself from that urge to investigate it. This was Zemo. He wasn't a man to be taken lightly, and definitely not to be trusted, but dammit if he didn't have a power that you were finding yourself breaking under.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing?!" Bucky growled from behind you, grabbing your arm with a crushing force and pulling you away from your dance partner. You tried to counter him and pull back, but his hold was far too strong in his choice to use his left hand as if he actually feared that he wouldn't be strong enough to keep you there if he had used the other.

"For a guy from the 40's, you'd think you'd know that you don't ask to cut in like that," you snapped. "Rude, Buck."

"If I may-" Zemo tried, but one look from Bucky and he stopped, hands up and backing away into the anonymity of the crowd once again.

"Answer the question, (Y/N)!"

"Make me."

"Don't tempt me," he sneered. "I'm already holding back because it's you."

You tried to pull your arm away again, and the result was the same. He held steady, the force of your action not moving him so much as an inch. "Let go of...wait," you paused with a sudden realization, "do you think I'm scared of you? That's rich."

"Do you know who this is?"

"Baron Zemo," you said plainly.

"Jesus, (Y/N)!" he gasped in almost pure horror. "He had his hands on you and looked like he was gonna do a hell of a lot more if I hadn't showed up! How could you be this close to the guy who tore the Avengers apart? Who used Tony and Steve like that? Who used...me?"

"Therapy. Maybe you should give yours a better shot."

"Fuck you," he hissed between clenched teeth, finally pushing you away with a shove.

"You wish."

"You couldn't pay me enough-"

"Guys," Sharon tried to break in without success, "not the time."

"You didn't answer me," Bucky pressed, "what in the hell are you doing here?"

"You should know," you answered sharply, your voice filled with a new rage that was quickly building. "Parker and Wilson have been babysitting me for months, so I'm sure they've shared the monotony that's my life. I'm...I'm on vacation."

"Bullshit. No one vacations here. Not with the fortune you bagged after Tony-"

"I dare you to finish that sentence.," you pushed against him, rushing forward with closed fists and actually knocking him back a few steps. Seeing your opportunity, and with a new rush of power, you slammed into him again and again until you had him up against a wall with nowhere to go except through you. He didn't seem to be fighting back in the least, as if his body carried the regret of what he was so close to saying out loud. "Come on, coward. Finish it."

"No."

"Then fight your way out. Fight back."

"No."

"Wow, when did you become all talk? I'm disappointed."

"When did you become this?"

"When I had no choice," you hissed under your breath. "When you two idiots left me no choice." Bucky was about to respond but your phone alerted you with a resounding urgency, so he waited. Once you looked at the screen and let out an annoyed huff, you put it back quickly, but not so quickly that he didn't notice the name across the screen as if there was no other light in the room to draw his vision.

Shockingly, he didn't say anything, and he didn't give chase as you walked away without another word to him and completely leaving Zemo without so much as a glance of goodbye. Sharon followed quickly behind and raised a hand of warning to Sam when he looked to prepare to do what the others wouldn't, taking a single step in your direction that was immediately halted.

"Sam," she paused, "I've got her. Just get to Nagel and get the job done."

He nodded hesitantly, summoning Bucky to him with a quick tilt of his head and a few steps into a quieter space. Once both you and Sharon were well out of sight, he turned and lowered his voice to barely audible above the ongoing music around them. "Since when does (Y/N) know Sharon?"

"I'm not worried about that," Bucky groaned, rubbing both fatigue and frustration from his eyes. "What I want to know is, since when does (Y/N) know John Walker?"