Chapter Twenty-One

Peggy wasn't surprised when Sharon and Steve arrived at her estate Sunday morning.

She even had a pretty good idea why they were there so early, their faces grim, as she answered the door herself and led them to her study.

Without preamble, something Peggy liked to think her niece had learned from her, Sharon said, "We know Trent's the one who poisoned you."

Peggy sat behind her large desk, the very one she'd helmed for many years as the head of SHIELD, and took her time as she swiveled her chair toward Sharon, then toward Steve.

"You don't seem surprised," Steve said, breaking the silence.

"No," Peggy said, her voice sad even as a small half-smile pressed at her lips. "No, I am not. Trent was always an angry little boy and he became an even angrier man. I tried not to see it, ignored it when I could, but I know I can't any longer."

She picked up a folder on her desk, its appearance and contents very similar to the one Sharon had compiled on Trent back at headquarters.

"It didn't take long once my head was clear to figure out who had given me the poison that mimicked the symptoms of Alzheimer's. I became sick shortly after Mother's Day, after receiving an unexpected delivery of flowers and my favorite truffles from Trent."

That sad smile grew wider as Peggy reminisced.

"I hadn't heard from him in years, only because he was better at avoiding my calls than his sister was. Poor Patricia, I know she didn't want to talk to me but good manners - which means I must have done something right - meant that I could count on at least one annual update about her, my grandchildren and her brother.

"Patricia told me about Trent's divorce and, in a moment of weakness, told me how devastated he was and that she was worried about him. Shortly after, I received his gift - my favorite chocolates from a small shop in England - and a card about appreciating the women in his life. I assumed his divorce had shaken him, as Patricia had said, and maybe this would be our chance to reconcile."

The sad smile faded for a moment.

"It was the last coherent thought I had for three years."

Steve leaned forward in his chair, his hand reaching across the desk to cover Peggy's in sympathy.

"We'll find him, Peggy," he said reassuringly. "We'll find him and we'll stop him."

Peggy looked at Steve and he had a moment of déjà vu as she seemed to struggle with her return to the present.

When her eyes were clear again, the sad-smile returned. "I know you will, Steve," she said. "And I won't stand in your way. But I also won't help you."

"Peggy -" Steve said, pulling his hand away.

"No, Steve," she said, that steel in her voice like the old days as she straightened in her chair. "Trent has done terrible things, I can't deny that. But he is my son and I cannot deny that either. My dedication to SHIELD over my children is the very reason he is who he is. I will not make that choice again."

"Even after what he did to you?" Sharon asked. "What he's done to us?"

Peggy shook her head. "I know you know about my investigation, and this is exactly why I didn't tell you. I can't be party to Trent's fall. I won't betray my son."

"Aunt Peggy," Sharon protested, only to stop when Steve touched her shoulder with the hand he'd only moments ago tried to comfort Peggy with. Sharon had worried it would come to this, Peggy choosing to protect her son despite the horrible things he was involved in, but it didn't make the hurt any less. Peggy had been the one who'd taught her to fight for what was right, no matter the cost, and now...

"Let's go," she whispered to Steve.

Peggy did not move to stop them and remained seated at her desk until long after they'd pulled away.

It was a quiet car ride back to DC, neither Sharon nor Steve willing to be the one to break the silence, to pierce the heavy veil that had descended.

Even after Steve pulled into the garage and turned off the truck, they sat in silence.

After several minutes, Steve reached over and unbuckled Sharon's seatbelt. Before she could ask what he was doing, he'd lifted her from her seat and onto his lap.

"Steve..." she said in protest.

He ignored her and instead stroked her back soothingly, giving comfort he didn't quite feel yet.

She relaxed against him, letting his solid strength seep into her, and held his free hand with her own.

"Even knowing it was a possibility, I can't believe Aunt Peggy would side with Trent," she said softly.

The gentle rhythm of Steve's caress didn't waver as he reminded her, "I sided with Bucky, even after the terrible things he did."

Sharon pulled away and scowled at him. "Bucky was brainwashed, Steve. Trent is just a brat." She closed her eyes, quoting Peggy. "'He was always an angry little boy.' What a load of crap."

"But he is her son," Steve countered. "Imagine if it was our son. Would we choose any differently?"

"Our kids aren't going to be psychopaths when they grow up," Sharon protested and then gave him a look as the meaning of his words took hold. "What do you mean 'our son'?"

"I meant..." Steve looked down at their joined hands. "I just.."

Sharon's anger faded as she touched Steve's jaw lightly, bringing his head back up and locking her eyes with his. "Steve, do you want to have children with me?"

"Of course I do," he said instantly, then clarified, "I mean, not right now but I've thought about it, our future, and...well, I don't even know if it's possible but I'd like to..."

She cut him off, pressing her lips to his.

When they separated, she couldn't help but smile...even as he blushed.

"I love you, Steve."

"I love you, Sharon, but I didn't mean..."

"Don't worry, pal," she said. "I'm not planning a wedding just yet but it is nice to know that you think about that, our future together."

"All the time," he admitted.

She smiled. "Me, too."

They kissed again, ignoring the protests from a disgusted Bucky who'd come down to see what the delay was all about.

"It's like all of the time with you two," he said, turning to go back up the stairs and signally for Rocky to follow. He was glad that the man he thought of as a brother and the woman he loved as a sister were so happy together, really, but there was only so much he could take.

"C'mon, Rocky," he said as she followed him up to his apartment and turning on the news. "Let's find some bad guys."

Author's Note: And so ends "Build It Up, Tear It Down." There will be a Christmas-themed short and others as we lead up to the (what is currently slated to be) final story in this little trilogy the muses cooked up.