Chapter Text
“I really appreciate that you’ve agreed to see me on such short notice,” the man said with a sincere earnestness. He sat in the upholstered chair across from her with barely leashed urgency tensing his wide shoulders. “I know that you said you weren’t taking new clients, but I am in desperate need of your help.”
The woman’s expression betrayed no emotion, but her tone was laced with censure when she replied, “Yes, well, I wasn’t exactly given much choice in the matter, was I? When the Inhuman Liaison from S.H.I.E.L.D. calls and says she wants me to take a meeting, then I’m expected to fall in line.”
The thickly-muscled man flinched at the accusation in her tone, and he rushed to assure her, “I’m sorry if I’m making you feel like you don’t have a choice in the matter of helping me, but I promise you that you will be well-compensated for your time and skill.”
The woman’s lips thinned and her dark brown eyes glittered with undisguised hostility, but her tone was carefully controlled when she replied, “If I thought differently, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now. I assume it was Maria Hill that gave you my name and told you what I can do?” When he nodded his head in agreement, she scoffed, “I knew it would only be a matter of time before she tried to drag me into the Sokovia bullshit, and here we are. Apparently, my privacy is no longer a concern and my personal wishes are meaningless now that you need something from me. I will tell you like I’ve told Daisy Johnson and the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., I have no interest in playing the role of superhero. I am not an Agent, a Hell’s Kitchen vigilante, or an Avenger. I may be an Inhuman, but I am only a psychiatrist, and I very much enjoy living a normal life off the radar.” Her nostrils flared, and her spine straightened, but her legs remained crossed and her arms remained by her sides where they rested leisurely on the arms of her chair. “The only reason I agreed to meet with you is that you refused to sign the Sokovia Accords, too. Well, that and the fact that you’re Captain Freaking America.”
Steve Rogers ducked his head and leaned forward to brace his veined forearms against his knees. “Thank you, Dr. Stoica. I know that what I’m asking of you may not even be possible, but if there’s even a ghost of a chance that you can help my friend, then I will do whatever it takes to make that happen, even if it means standing between you and the Accords.”
Dr. Stoica considered the famous Avenger carefully, but she didn’t even have to try to attempt to crack into his thoughts. Steve Rogers’ mind was not only an open book, it was an audible one, too. His thoughts and emotions washed over her with refreshing honesty and brilliance, and she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was sincere in his offer. “If I agree to help you, then that is the least of what it will cost in order for me to use my gift on another enhanced individual. The last time I used my abilities on someone not strictly human, I ended up in a coma for two weeks.”
Steve nodded and his eyebrows furrowed with concern. “I understand your reluctance, but my friend is a ticking nuclear bomb that could be launched by anyone who knows the code. You’re the only one who can go inside his head and clip the wires that will disarm that deadly weapon. I’m sure you’ve seen him in the news, but James Buchanan Barnes is more than just the Winter Soldier. He’s my best friend, and he deserves the chance to live his life on his own terms just like you want to do.”
His well-aimed barb struck home, and the young woman’s posture relaxed marginally. “I won’t deny that his case intrigues me, but I am not confident that there’s enough of your friend’s mind left for me to repair. Discounting even that, how am I to trust that Mr. Barnes even wants my help?”
Steve ran an agitated hand through his All-American haircut and sighed heavily. “At this point, we don’t have any other choice. The place where he’s staying right now isn’t stable. The leadership is new, and my friend’s presence there will not remain a secret for long if things go south. Basically, he can’t stay where he is much longer, and he can’t leave until he is no longer a danger to himself or to others.”
Dr. Stoica’s fingertips tapped out an agitated rhythm on the armrest of her chair, but her dark gaze didn’t waver from meeting the superhero’s earnest blue eyes. “Fine, I will agree to meet with Mr. Barnes, but I make no further promises. In exchange, you will ensure that my name stays off any reports and that S.H.I.E.L.D. stays off my back. I will not be controlled, manipulated, or used by them or their Director. If I determine that your friend can be helped, then we can discuss my fees.”
Steve’s face lit up with a boyish smile and he nodded eagerly. “Of course, Dr. Stoica. I’ll do my best, but I don’t have as many friends as I used to have, especially inside the newly revamped S.H.I.E.L.D. Most of the agents I worked with there are either dead or in hiding. I’ve never even met the new Director, Jeffrey Mace.”
Dr. Stoica tucked a stray brunette curl behind her ear and offered the handsome superhero a patronizing smile. “Come now, Mr. Rogers. We both know that Jeffrey Mace isn’t the one who calls the shots there. All it will take is one phone call from you to the real Director, and all my info will be scrubbed from their databases. Phil Coulson’s hero worship of you borders on the fanatical. He’ll bend over backwards to do anything you ask of him, even if it means breaking international law.”
Steve was both visibly and verbally confused when he replied, “I think you must be mistaken. Agent Coulson is dead. He was killed before the Battle of New York by Loki three years ago.”
The doctor snorted indelicately. “Oh, I may be confused, but not about Phil Coulson. He is indeed alive and mostly well, and he is the real power behind the throne at S.H.I.E.L.D. I happen to know this for a fact, because he was the one that put me in the coma for two weeks after I tried to remove all memories of me from inside his mind. Believe me, I’ve seen enough of his thoughts to know that he will listen to you. Make the phone call and secure my freedom from the Index and the Accords, and I will do my best to cure your friend.”
Steve was thunderstruck by the revelation that Phil Coulson was not only still alive, but also active with the secret agency, but he didn’t let them deter him from his goal. “Of course, doctor. You have my word on it. Now, how soon can you leave?”
Dr. Stoica stood to her feet and brushed away an imaginary speck of lint from her dress skirt. “Just as soon as you make that phone call, Mr. Rogers, I am all yours. Will we be traveling far? I’ll need to make some arrangements.”
Steve joined her in standing and he enveloped her small hand within both of his own for a warm handshake. “There’s no need to do anything other than pack a suitcase and grab your passport. I already have a Quinjet fueled up and waiting on us at a private airfield.” As her eyebrows flew up with surprise, he grinned and added, “Pack for warm weather, Dr. Stoica. We’re headed to the nation of Wakanda.”