Chapter 6✔

"Elle? Ella? Can you hear me?" Someone spoke up.

"Come on, Cinderella, it's time to wake up." I heard someone else speak up. I cracked my eyes open slowly, the bright light of the room seeping between my lashes as I tried to focus my vision. Tony Stark and a man I didn't know looking at me. "Welcome back, Sleeping Beauty." Tony said, a small smile spreading on his face. "You gave us quite a scare back there. Had to lock the others out to keep them from freaking out." I stared at him, confused. How did I get here? I glanced around. Were we back at the tower? How did they get me out?

I thought about it for a minute, remembering a man had broken me free. The sound of gunshots and screaming echoing throughout my mind.

"My name is Bruce Banner." The man next to Tony introduced. My eyes snapped over to him. "Can you tell me what Hydra did to you during your stay?" He asked, his eyes were concern but also nervous. Why was he nervous? I opened my mouth to speak, shocked when I could actually move my lips. My hand jolted up to my mouth where I felt the small scabs forming like a connect the dot game around my mouth. Tony frowned, following my fingers as I felt tears in my eyes forming.

"Hey." I looked at Tony as he spoke, grabbing my hand. "It's okay. We've got you now. You're safe. So are your sisters. They're with Clint, Natasha and Peter in the living room. Everyone is really worried about you. Especially, Bucky. I dunno what happened between you two before you left, but he is on edge." Bucky... I frowned at his name. Why did I sleep with him? It only makes running harder. "You slept with him?!" Tony snapped, releasing my hand. I froze.

"Wh-what?" I questioned. I said that in my head, not out loud. Tony stared at me shocked.

"Just now. It was like you were speaking to me in my head. How did you do that?"

"I-I didn't- I-" I stammered out, my voice was raspy from the lack of use. I only used it to fight back the few times they let me in Hydra.

"You asked why you slept with him." Tony said, his brown aged eyes staring at me in thought.

"Th-they injected me with stuff.." I explained, Bruce stared at me wide eyed. "May-maybe they did something to me.."

"Do you know what they injected you with?" He asked. Tony was just staring, confused. He was trying to figure out how he heard my one thought.

"They never said. There was glowing liquid, various colors, greens, blues, reds." Bruce walked to the computer and started to type, taking notes I assumed. Tony grabbed my hand.

"Show me." He said. I looked at him confused. "Think about it. What they did, the injections. Just think about it. Try to remember it." I took a breath and tried to think about the injections. Flashes of being stabbed, cut ran past my mind, then the shootings, the people Scar tried to get me to kill with my power and shot when I disobeyed. The injections and eye drops were next. The feeling of my blood boiling and freezing. It felt real again. I let a whimper out as my blood reacted to the memories. My veins turning black, then blue and then red. Reacting just as they did for each injection like I was being reinjected with the liquids. I heard a grunt from next to me.

"He-hey! Ella- Calm down- Tony!" I heard Bruce shout as I let out a scream of pain. Tony's hand left my hand. A thud sounded next to me and Bruce kept repeating Tony's name. "Fr-Friday get Bucky, Steve and Mr. Regner in here! Now!" He yelled. My body jolted as I felt the burning and then freezing of my blood. It was like acid running through me. Was it acid? Their was a door slamming open and shouts.

"What happened?!" I heard someone shout. Hands grabbed my face, a shushing noise hitting my ears as it felt like someone was pulling me towards them into a cradle position. My body calmed down as I let out a final whimper and my mind went blank.

"Tony had her think about the things they did to her-"

"What?! Why would you do that?? Do you realize how Hydra leaves a mark on their experiments?!" I heard, it sounded like Bucky. Was it him holding me? I could feel a metal hand. It had to be Bucky. "I'm here, Doll." He whispered to me. Did he hear me? Was Tony right? "I can hear you. Why can I hear her?" He asked out loud. "It's like she's in my head.."

"That's what Tony was figuring out. Apparently when she touches someone, they can hear her thoughts. It must have been from something they injected her with." Bruce explained. I felt Bucky grip me tighter to his chest. "That's why Tony had her think about the injections. He wanted to see if he figure out what they were. But she started seizing and then he did as well. It was like he was going through what she was." I heard Bruce say. Did I really cause Tony pain? No.. Bucky held me closer, stroking my hair.

"He's okay, Elle. You didn't mean to. It's okay." Bucky kept repeating into my ear as I opened my eyes somewhat. Bucky had my head on his chest, his fleshy hand stroking my hair to calm me. I pulled back from him some, looking up to meet his steel eyes that held so much concern. "Hey there, Princess." He mumbled with a small smile. He leaned down and pressed his lips to my forehead. When he pulled back, I tilted my head.

"How did you find me?" I asked in a low whisper.

"That would be because of me." Someone spoke. I turned my head to see the man that looked so familiar. I stared at him, his face looked like a man from my past. Could it be? I thought hard, remembering him calling himself my father when he was carrying me out of the building. Was he really my father? I stared at him.

"Dad?" I whispered out so softly that normal people wouldn't have heard me. But I was in a room with super soldiers and a Hulk.

"Hey, Pumpkin." He spoke so calmly. Like he didn't leave me to a life of misery. Like he didn't abandon me and my mother. Like he didn't leave us to die.

"What are you doing here? How did you find me?" I questioned, my voice was intense. I was prepared to run if need be. Bucky held me tighter. Damn it. He heard me.

"You're not running again." He whispered into my ear, his warm breath tickling my skin.

"The night your mother died-"

"Don't you dare bring her up. You abandoned her." I snapped at him, trying not to focus on Bucky breathing against my ear still. He knew what he was doing to me. I needed to be angry. I had every right to be angry at this man. And here I was having issues focusing because of this man holding me back. I heard Bucky chuckle against me. It was low so only I heard him and probably Steve, who looked over here confused. Tony was waking up, his body slumped against Steve.

"I didn't abandon her. I was always there. Just hiding-"

"Hiding? What were you hiding from?! You left us. She died. You left us. I was stuck with Alex. You left me with that man." I held back the tears. The images of so many years ago flashing through my mind.

8 years ago-

Alex stepped into my room. I was still awake since I still had nightmares.

"Need help relaxing, little Ella-bear?" He asked, his voice slimy and sending chills through my body. "You should be asleep. You have many chores in the morning before school." He said as he stepped towards me.

I pulled my knees to my chest, the flimsy blanket I was given was held close to my body as I shivered. Alex smirked at me.

"Let me help you-"

Present-

Flashes of Alex holding me down, his smirk imprinted into my mind. Bucky held me tighter, if that was possible. Tears pushing past my tear ducts.

"Why did you leave me with him.." I asked in a small voice. Tears streaming down my cheeks. Dad stared at me. His face broke, he knew what happened. He might of not known, but from the look of my face and the sound of my small voice. He knew.

"Ell..." He reached out to me, but I pushed myself closer to Bucky, shaking my head.

"N-No." I stammered. "You're a coward. Hiding in the shadows while your family needed you. Mom needed you." Taking a deep breath I looked at him. "I needed you." Tears were streaming down my face. His eyes looked like he was broken. He tried to take a step towards me but I shook my head at him, "It's too late." I told him.

"I think you should leave now, Mr. Regner." Steve spoke up. He was helping Tony up, who was glaring at my father. My dad nodded and backed away, watching me intently, before walking out of the lab. Everyone was quiet for a moment. "You okay, Ella?" Steve asked. I looked over to him and nodded slowly. Bucky was stroking my hair as I leaned against him. Listening to his heartbeat. It was keeping me calm. I couldn't decided what I wanted to do more. Run. Or go rumor my father to forget about me for good. I needed a distraction from my life. Running was always what I did when I needed to forget.

Bucky scooped me up, interrupting my thoughts.

"Where are you going, Buck?" Steve asked, confused. I looked up at Bucky as he stopped walking. Looking down at me, he smiled a ghost of a smile at me.

"Going to distract Ella." He simply said, then we left the room together. Tony smirking while the others were a bit confused.

Word Count- 1,620

Final Word Count- 1,739