Chapter Ten: Interrogations are Just Interviews at Gunpoint

Cassandra stared out at her trap from the office set twenty feet up from the warehouse floor. It was probably where an overseer was supposed to sit and make sure the peons down below did what they were supposed to. It made the perfect spot to sit and watch. Sadly, she wouldn't be able to get this nice of a vantage point for long. Someone had to lure League through the maze, and it sure as hell wasn't going to be Kovac.

Everything was laid out nicely, and Cassandra was fairly confident she knew how things would go down. Kovac would enter first and she'd take him out from the balcony office with a tranquilizer. From there, she would have about ninety seconds to climb down on a rope and secure him before League entered. From there she'd hit the main lights and enter the maze.

Using her last couple of minutes and some nervous energy, Cassandra did one last run through the maze with the main lights off. Once League entered, she'd cut the main lights and there would just be the intermittent, dark lighting of the decorations inside the maze. It wasn't really enough to see by, but she wouldn't need it. The paint was working beautifully with her glasses.

Satisfied with herself, Cassandra resumed her position. It was only about three minutes now. Three minutes until she took out League, three minutes until she had her answers. Three minutes until she got the last pieces to the shittiest puzzle she had ever seen. A Chevy Malibu was ready outside with a full tank of gas and enough trunk space to fit two if necessary. Everything she needed was piled in the front seat.

Her fingers twitched nervously over the trigger as she counted down the seconds on the clock. Taking a deep breath, she heard a car pull up out front. Kovac. It felt like an eternity as she listened for the telltale sign of crunching gravel getting closer and closer to the door. She cursed him all over again for taking this long. The door slowly squeaked open, and in Kovac stepped. He was much taller in person than Cassandra accounted for.

Taking a deep, unsteady breath, Cassandra aimed and fired. The dart sailed through the air sure and true, until Kovac turned his head. It barely grazed his neck, which seemed to still do the trick. Within seconds he was on the ground. Cassandra hurried over to the rope and swung herself down. Feet firmly on the ground, she quickly found out why Kovac got distracted. Another car had pulled up next to Kovac's. The lights were off, but she could see the faint glow of the dashboard outlining a driver. League was early.

Fucking hell, Cassandra cursed in her head. Leave it to League to screw her over at every possible turn. She made a mad dash for the lights and hit them just as League threw open the door. She figured he had just enough time to make out her flipping him off before she hit them. It wasn't quite pitch black, but it would be difficult. Slipping the glasses on, she followed her trail as fast as she dared towards the maze.

League's footsteps were right behind her. Picking up speed, Cassandra barreled through the entrance to the maze and took the first couple of turns. Thankfully, it was designed to twist and turn around a lot in the beginning which ensured she could get a good head start. She didn't want to stop and check, but it sounded like he fell back quite a bit. Grinning, she kept her pace up until she reached the cage.

Cassandra pushed aside a fake wall and swung around the side of the room. Her timing here was critical. If League could see her on top it was game over. It seemed like the dark wasn't slowing him down anymore; he ran into the room at almost full force. Seeing her chance, Cassandra jumped onto the top and kicked the bolt loose, sending the door crashing down and locking into place. Taking her time to walk across the roof and to the back, she reveled in the sound of muffled gunshots from beneath her. Since she wasn't riddled with bullets, her reinforced walls seemed to have worked.

Jumping down, she flipped the switch for inside the room. An old computer monitor showed a live feed inside the box. The monitor screen was muted down, but Cassandra knew how bright it was inside that room, particularly with the mirrors reflecting every trace of light. She leaned down and flicked the switch on her microphone.

"Hi, I think we've met before," Cassandra said. She was sure her tone gave away the shit eating grin she was wearing. "Now, you know who I am, but never bothered to introduce yourself. That's just rude."

She could see League on the monitor, pacing back and forth through the room like a tiger in captivity. If he heard her, he ignored it. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about trying to get out. You won't be in there long anyway. I just wanted to have a nice chat. So let's talk."

"I'm really going to enjoy killing you," League responded. His voice was every bit as gravelly and deep as she thought it would be. If he was on the other end of the line, she had no doubt Liam Neeson would hang up the phone.

"I would say likewise, but since I'm not a psychotic serial killer- no, wait, I'm gonna enjoy it," Cassandra replied. "So let's play a game, sort of like a word association game. It's okay if you don't wanna play, you will anyway."

"Ceban," Cassandra said in a flat tone. League paused, but that was it. The name was familiar to him obviously, but it didn't mean much. "Sokolov."

At that, League threw his head back and laughed. His dark hood moved a fraction of an inch, exposing a bad case of 5 o clock shadow. "You think you have it all figured out, don't you girlie? Read too many Nancy Drew books as a child?"

"I preferred Scooby Doo. A little kitschy, but in the end the monsters were always some sad old guy who had nothing better to do than chase around some teens. Ringing a bell," Cassandra asked sarcastically.

"I'll hand it to you, you've got a lot of spunk left for someone who's been to hell and back. I can't wait to watch the light die in your eyes," he said.

"Yeah, back to Sokolov. He's your sugar daddy, right? Let me make one thing clear," Cassandra said in a deadly tone when it looked like he would cut her off. "You're nothing more than a glorified security guard working for a man past his prime."

"Oh, I'm so much more. Trust me," he threatened.

"You ever lived out in the country," Cassandra asked, her tone suddenly much lighter. "The best part was walking through the fields. I used to hop the neighbor's fences and walk around in their fields with the horses and cows. Of course, you can't help stepping in shit. You wipe off your shoes, but you can't get rid of it all. That's what Sokolov is. The shit at the bottom of the shoe."

"If that's the case, you're not getting rid of him," League sneered.

"I'll burn the whole God damned shoe," Cassandra whispered loud enough for him to hear through the microphone. It was time for them to wrap things up and say goodbye. Cassandra gathered up any last traces that she was there and grabbed a pistol from the table; League must have sensed something by how quiet it had gotten. She could hear him pounding against the walls.

Smiling, Cassandra was about to taunt him when a loud bang echoed through the warehouse. Her heart froze, thinking League actually managed to escape. Unfortunately, she saw a figure swooping around overhead on mechanical wings. Cursing, she ducked behind a wall of the maze to try to buy a few more seconds.

Her luck had apparently run out. Cassandra had waited too long before shooting League and he managed to kick one of the panels out. If she had to pinpoint a time when all hell broke loose, it would probably be the next few seconds. She lined up her shot and had her finger on the trigger before League could defend himself. In the split second it took her to squeeze the trigger down somebody hit the overhead lights. Blinded, the shot went wide.

Cassandra screamed in rage and ran after League while trying to get another shot. Rather than retrace their steps, he ran into the back half of the maze and snaked his way around the corners. She had only been this way a few times, meaning she lost her advantage. Voices and footsteps echoed around the warehouse like thunder. She could tell the other Avengers were in the building as well. How far behind, she didn't know.

She was so focused on the voices behind her that she failed to notice they were out of the maze until she saw League bolt for the back door. Cursing, she aimed once again and the bullet whizzed past his head as he lunged through the door and into the night. Falcon dropped in front of the door within four feet of her, effectively blocking her route.

"Sorry to interrupt," he said to her before speaking into his earpiece. "I've got the girl. League took off from the south east exit. Circle around and try to track him. He's on foot."

"You've got to let me get him," Cassandra said while looking over his shoulder.

"How about your name instead," Falcon said in a 'no bullshit' kind of way. She couldn't make out his exact gear, but it looked like his wings had built in guns…aimed at her.

"Look, he's an assassin working for HYDRA, I don't have time for this. If he's gone, he's in the wind," she said urgently.

"We're working on it," Falcon said. "But as far as people I don't trust, you're one of them. Shooting people, blowing things up, causing mayhem. What makes you different from him?"

"Technically he killed the first two people on my list, so he's probably worse," Cassandra replied.

Falcon raised his eyebrows. "You got a list?"

"Probably not the best thing to start the conversation with," Cassandra said.

"You think," Falcon asked.

His radio beeped twice before a feminine voice came through the comms system. "The building's cleared. No one besides us."

Something within that statement clicked in Cassandra's mind. "Shit!"

"Expecting the pizza guy to stick around," Falcon asked, but she had already blocked his voice out. Ignoring him and every basic instinct, she closed her eyes and tried to focus on Kovac. She should have hit him with another dart while she had a chance. Eyes moving rapidly behind her closed lids, it took her barely three seconds to see him running along the docks a block and a half away.

Moving quickly before she could regret her decisions, she felt for the emotions swirling around Falcon. Cassandra had only done this a handful of times and was unsure about the outcome, but she grabbed onto the emotions and tugged firmly. It was sort of like pulling a rug out from underneath someone, it pulled all their energy out and hopefully knocked them unconscious. Opening her eyes, she watched as Falcon started to wobble and was out the door before he hit the ground.

Cassandra knew what she was doing was stupid, but at the same time there wasn't much else she could do. If Kovac disappeared, that was it. He'd be gone in the wind and she was positive there would be no getting him back. She pushed every other thought aside and focused on weaving in and out of the shadows of different warehouses, trying to get closer to the water.

A boat sounded in the distance and she followed it, grateful to have a better sense of direction. Skidding to a stop in front of a long stretch of docks, Cassandra debated internally which way to go. She shut her eyes to search, but the sound of footsteps echoing behind her cut her train of thought off. Winging it, she turned left and sped along the old wooden boards lining the docks.

Cassandra could still hear footsteps behind her and she had no doubt they would catch up soon. A super soldier, government assassin, or genetic experiment surely had better cardio than someone who only used their gym card to break into locked doors. Not to mention bird boy. She was so close, so intent on looking ahead of her for Kovac's tall figure running out to a boat that she completely missed what was in front of her. Suddenly she was falling to the ground, tripping over something. Cassandra managed to roll in a very undignified manner into a sitting position.

She had assumed the Avengers were the reason she tripped, but they still appeared to be a couple hundred feet away. Cassandra put her hands out to heave herself up when she realized she stuck them right into a pool of something warm. Blood. Looking over for the first time at what she tripped on, she stared into the glassy, dead eyes of Kovac.

"God damn it," she muttered to herself, looking around for somewhere to wipe her hands off. Rubbing her hands all over some dead guy seemed disgusting, but so did wiping it off on her pants. They were getting even closer, and she half smirked at literally being caught red handed. She settled for wiping her hands on the docks, getting at least some of the blood off.

"He was like that when I got here," Cassandra said with her hands in the air as bird boy himself landed in front of her. Captain America wasn't far behind, and neither was the red head.

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The next couple of hours were spent in the back of an armored van with her hands cuffed together in some high tech contraption. Whatever it was made of, the handcuffs managed to block her powers. Cassandra's head felt blurry from trying to make sense of it, which resulted in a massive headache. She compensated by closing her eyes and blocking everything out, trying desperately to sleep.

It seemed like ages before the van stopped. The doors slid open and two men wearing bland camouflage uniforms escorted her out. The Avengers were nowhere in sight, and they were definitely not at the Avengers tower in New York City. This looked more like a high tech military base.

"Did you two miss the casting call for G.I. Joe, or is this it," Cassandra asked. She wasn't doing herself any favors, but she had been bored in the back of the van. One of them turned to glare at her, but otherwise they continued walking her along the cement path into the building, one on either side of her.

The inside of the building was brightly lit from all the windows, and very bare. The only decorative touch was the large "A" symbol on the opposite wall. "Oooh, super secret base. A little upset it's not under the ocean, but this could work." Suddenly, her vision was swept over, replaced by an image of a base under water, but this one looked more like a prison full of cells. It didn't last more than a second or two before it was gone.

Cassandra shook her head, wondering what the hell that was. It must have been a vision, so she supposed that while the handcuffs kept her from using her empathy or actively seeking out visions, she might still be able to receive some. Still, she had no clue what that vision meant. A glimpse of her future, maybe? It wasn't particularly optimistic if it was.

While debating internally over the vision, Cassandra realized she must have been dragged down several hallways and into an elevator. The buttons on the wall lit up with each level they passed, and she realized they must be going several stories underground. The last button lit up as the doors slid open, and the men guided her out along a darkly lit hall to a door near the end.

The room inside was simple: concrete floor and walls, concrete table with a metal ring and chain attached to it, two chairs, and very poor lighting. One of the walls was a long mirror, meaning a two way mirror for people in another room to view her. She watched enough Law and Order to know that much. They sat her down in one of the chairs, attached her handcuffs to the ring, and made their way out.

"You guys should really think about hiring Martha Stewart to redecorate in here. She's been doing a lot of good since she got out of prison, I think she'd help," she called before the door swung shut. The chain was just long enough to reach her hands to her face without stooping over awkwardly. Cassandra propped her head in her hands and waited.

With no concept of time down here, Cassandra started counting the seconds to get a decent measure. Each minute that ticked by made her realize they were waiting her out and she imagined someone behind the glass, watching her. At first she was content to wait with them but soon boredom kicked in. She was so used to constant movement that sitting in silence and semi darkness was getting to her more than she liked to admit.

"I'm at least 85% sure someone is behind that glass watching me right now, and unless you also get great cable reception down here, you're getting just as bored as I am. At least come in here so we can have some witty banter," she said while watching the two way mirror. Seconds ticked by into minutes without response. "Okay, now I'm 60% percent sure."

A minute later the door to her room opened and the red head walked inside. Not her ideal pick for witty banter, but she wasn't being too picky right then. The red head went past her and sat in the opposite chair, tossing a file of papers onto the table in front of her.

"Nice to meet you in person, Cassandra," she said. "Sorry I haven't kept you entertained; I've been busy reading up on you."

"It's always wonderful to meet my adoring fans," Cassandra replied, not overly surprised they found her name. "Sorry, but I can't remember your name. They don't sell a lot of merchandise with you on it."

"Natasha," she replied with a neutral expression.

"Oooh, first name basis. How exciting," Cassandra said.

"We could go by nicknames, Cassie," Natasha responded with a raised eyebrow, gauging her reaction.

Cassandra's expression darkened. "Don't call me that."

The two locked eyes for a second before Natasha gestured to the file in front of her. "Go ahead, look through. I'm sure you're curious."

Hesitantly Cassandra reached out for the file. It looked like they had a meticulous record of her life before...well, before. Everything from her birth record to school pictures to printed out screen shots of her old facebook account were in there. Towards the back were police records, newspaper clippings, and security camera stills of various crimes, including the bombing at the lab.

She flipped through the last part quickly, taking in the damage and death before flipping the file closed and pushing it away. Cassandra stared at the tabletop, wishing she had the ability to school her face as well as Natasha.

"Not proud of your work," Natasha asked.

"I asked for witty banter," Cassandra replied.

A sudden knock on the door interrupted further conversation. The door slid open and Falcon walked in. "Cap needs you upstairs, Nat. I'll take over."

Natasha stood up and gestured to her chair before leaving the room and locking the door shut. Falcon walked over slowly before flipping the chair around and taking a seat. Instead of saying anything, the room was filled with a long, awkward silence.

"Whoops," Cassandra started off. Her tone wasn't exactly remorseful as she kept from making direct eye contact.

"Oh really, that's what you gotta say? 'Whoops'," Falcon asked.

"Sorry," Cassandra ventured, but it came out sounding more like a question.

Falcon shifted in his seat with his arms crossed. "You want to apologize, start talking."

"I've got nothing to say, Bird Boy" Cassandra replied while shaking her head.

"Seems like you've got an awful lot to say. Let's start with the trail of bodies you left behind," he said.

"Okay, that wasn't technically me," Cassandra started out.

"The lab," Falcon interrupted.

"…ninety percent of it wasn't me," Cassandra said. The benefit of having an underground interrogation room was the lack of noise; unfortunately, it made every silence an awkward one. "Look, none of those people were good people."

"And you get to be the one to decide that?"

Cassandra suddenly felt tired, the sort of tired that seeps into your bones and drags you down. The sort of tired that comes from carrying too much mentally, the kind that comes from deep within your soul. Her eyelids sagged shut for a moment before she could find the words to answer.

"When I was six, I got bit by the neighbor's dog. It was a German Shepherd mix. I was kicking a soccer ball when it rolled over into their yard. The dog was eating and when I got too close, it bit me. It wasn't bad, but I had to get shots for it. They put the dog down after that."

Cassandra looked Falcon in the eye, but he didn't respond. He just motioned his hand for her to continue.

"The dog wasn't bad. I remember he was normally pretty nice; listened well and never had a problem with the old couple that owned him, but under the right circumstances, he snapped. Sometimes, you have to make the hard decision," she said. "There was no right call. Not then, not now. I made the decisions I thought I could live with."

Falcon uncrossed his arms and rested his hands on the table. "What were they working on in that lab?"

"You've seen the things I can do," Cassandra said, so quiet it was barely a whisper. "Take a guess."

"They made you enhanced, came up with their own serum," Falcon said.

Cassandra shook her head in response. Slowly, she rolled up one of her sleeves. The scars were faint, but they still trailed along the length of her forearm as a testament to prolonged torture. "I was the serum."

Falcon's eyes were glued to her arms, his mouth a thin line. Cassandra shifted in her chair uncomfortably. She didn't like the reminder they gave her of her past.

"We were in the car together, my parents and I, before the 'accident'. A cop pulled my dad over, said we had a busted tail light. He made everyone get out of the car. I remember how weird it sounded. When the second car pulled up the cop injected something in my neck. I started scratching, kicking, but it didn't matter. I was unconscious fast," Cassandra's eyes were on the table in front of her, but her mind was running through the murky images she still remembered.

"When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed somewhere. They tried to tell me it was a car accident; I don't think they planned on me remembering. I was still out of it, I kept insisting to the nurse what really happened. They brought a team in and they restrained me, explained everything. That was back before SHIELD came out as HYDRA. The doctor said they got my DNA sample when I donated at a blood drive. They noticed some bullshit in my system, saw the potential of it. I spent a lot of time after that restrained to a hospital bed."

"It was hell…," she trailed off, unwilling to continue. "Then SHIELD fell, and HYDRA with it. I spent three years of my life trapped. It was hard to walk away, to try to start over."

"It's hard to come back sometimes," Falcon finally said. "Letting the past go isn't easy. Is that why you started this?"

Cassandra shook her head. "You don't get it. Project New Life, it's not over. Someone's continuing it, and I think they've finally figured it out. They can finally replicate it."

"So if this goes down…," he trailed off.

"We're looking at a potential army of enhanced," Cassandra finished.

"Damn," Falcon said. "I need everything you've got on this Project, who's behind it, and League."

Cassandra sat forward. "One condition: I'm not sitting on the sidelines. Before you interrupt, I've spent over a year tracking them down. This is the only thing that matters to me. I know who they are, I can find them better than anyone else. Without me, you've got nothing."

Falcon raised an eyebrow. "Fine, but you call me 'Bird Boy' one more time and we're gonna have a rematch."