Vought International Headquarters.
Lynn nestled in the sofa, her eyes lightly closed, her fingers idly stroking the orange cat " Goose " curled up on her lap.
Tifa bent down and massaged his shoulders, her long black hair cascading down like a waterfall, a few strands almost brushing against his cheeks.
Instead of giving a formal report, she brought her warm lips close to his ear, her breath carrying a faint fragrance, her voice extremely low, like a lover's whisper.
The report presented was the latest from the Data and Technology Analysis Department.
" S.H.I.E.L.D.. internal purge progress: 67%. 2,347 people under investigation, 891 confirmed removed... Nick Fury is more ruthless than I imagined."
Lynn still didn't open her eyes.
"He was just cornered. An enraged hunter often hurts himself. The time was almost up."
Tifa straightened up, stopped the massage, and came to Lynn's side, crossing her arms over her chest. This gesture made her already impressive figure appear even more voluptuous.
Would you like to add another bit of firewood?
"Yeah, Fury's a bull with bloodshot eyes right now." Lynn opened his eyes, his gaze sweeping over Tifa. "He needs an even redder cloth to grab all his attention."
Lynn's gaze fell on another document on the desk, and she raised her chin. "Go take a look."
Tifa walked over, picked up the file, and opened it. The cover immediately caught her eye with the words: Winter Soldier.
Below is a photo of a man with a blank expression and empty eyes, wearing a red five-pointed star on his metal left arm.
[James Buchanan, Bucky Barnes ]
[Sergeant 107th Infantry Regiment United States ]
[After falling from a train in 1945, he was discovered and taken away by Hydra.]
" Bucky Barnes? That's not Captain America's..."
"A close friend, a comrade-in-arms, a brother," Lynn continued, his tone languid. " Peggy Carter's old friend. A war hero who should have died decades ago became Hydra's number one assassin."
He leaned back on the sofa.
"What do you think would happen if Fury knew the truth?"
Tifa remained silent for a moment.
He'll go crazy.
"Not just him, but also those old-timers at S.H.I.E.L.D.., those agents who experienced World War II, when they discovered that the ghost they had been hunting for decades was actually their former comrade-in-arms... tsk."
He raised his hand and tapped on the armrest.
"Contact Motoko and subtly leak this information to Maria Hill. Remember, make her believe it's the truth she painstakingly uncovered."
Tifa nodded.
Lynn continued to stroke Goose's soft fur, and the cat purred contentedly.
" Fury thinks he's purging Hydra," he muttered to himself. "He'll soon discover that his greatest enemy has always been lurking within his innermost circle."
Tifa sat down on the sofa next to him, the soft leather sinking under her weight, and the two were so close they could feel each other's body heat.
Her unique scent became increasingly clear.
"Would he suspect Pierce?"
"Won't."
Lynn was certain; he turned his head and his gaze fell on Tifa.
When people are extremely tired and angry, they instinctively rely on the people closest to them.
He looked at her and suddenly reached out his hand.
Tifa didn't flinch, not even a tremor of her eyelashes.
Lynn's fingertips didn't touch her cheek or neck, but gently pinched a button on her shirt, which was slightly taut because of her crossed arms.
He slowly and deliberately turned the small button with his thumb and forefinger, as if he were handling a work of art.
Through the thin fabric, his fingertips could feel the powerful beating of her heart, one beat after another, the rhythm gradually synchronizing with the play of his fingertips.
S.H.I.E.L.D.. Evidence Room.
2 AM.
Maria Hill pushed open the door and went inside.
She looked haggard, and her eyes were bloodshot.
I haven't had a proper night's sleep for three days in a row.
The table was piled high with evidence awaiting sorting, all of which had been seized from the arrested agents.
Cell phones, hard drives, laptops, USB flash drives—all sorts of storage devices, each one might hold a clue to Hydra.
Hill pulled out a chair, sat down, and picked up the first hard drive.
Number C-1847.
Source: Agent Marcus Wilson was arrested in his office yesterday afternoon on charges of having five recorded phone calls with a former Hydra informant.
Hill connected the hard drive to the computer.
A password input box pops up on the screen.
She sighed and brought up the cracking program.
The first layer of the password was cracked in ten minutes.
Second floor, 20 minutes.
When the third layer of password was also cracked, Hill rubbed his sore eyes and opened the folder.
There is only one video file inside.
Filename: [ Winter Soldier ]
Hill paused for a moment.
Winter Soldier?
She double-clicked to open it.
The footage is a blurry surveillance video that appears to be quite old.
A man with a metal arm stood in the Shadow, with a middle-aged man covered in blood kneeling before him.
The man was begging for mercy in Russian.
The man with the metal arm raised his hand and shot him in the head.
Clean and efficient, devoid of emotion.
Screen transition.
Another video.
The same man, in different locations, using different methods, kills different targets.
Assassination, demolition, sniping, hand-to-hand combat.
Every single time, it was perfectly accurate.
Hill's heart began to race.
Is this the legendary Ghost Slayer from Hydra?
Hill continued flipping through the documents and came across a scanned paper file.
The title is: [ Winter Soldier Program ]
Hill flipped through the pages quickly, growing increasingly alarmed with each reading.
The plan began in 1944 and was jointly executed by the Soviet Union and Hydra.
They found an American soldier who had fallen from a train; he should have died, but miraculously survived.
So they turned him into a weapon.
Brainwashing, training, cryogenic freezing.
Hill turned to the last page of the file.
There was a photo posted there.
The man in the photo doesn't have a metal arm yet, he's wearing a U. S. military uniform, and has a sunny smile on his face.
His information was captioned below the photo.
[Name: James Buchanan " Bucky " Barnes ]
[Rank: Sergeant]
[Unit: 107th Infantry Regiment ]
[Status: Missing since 1945, presumed dead]
Hill dropped the mouse to the ground with a "thud".
But she couldn't care less.
She stared intently at the photograph, her mind completely blank.
Bucky Barnes.
Captain America's best friend.
Director Carter Peggy Carter has mentioned this name countless times.
That war hero who fell into the mountains and sacrificed his life for his country.
He did not die.
He was transformed into a killing machine by Hydra.
Hill printed out the document with trembling hands, then turned off the computer, unplugged the hard drive, and stuffed it into his pocket.
She had to go find Fury right away.
Now, immediately.