Chapter 1: New Beginnings
Chapter Text
“I’ve worked at three other stores around the city since moving here a few years back, one of which I was the Manager of. I have a lot of experience in this field, and I will take as many hours as you need me to.”
Your voice was confident, your words concise, your façade working overtime to convince the man before you that you were confident in your abilities. You couldn’t let him see that you were worried, desperate even. You needed this job, your last employer closing his store a few months ago, leaving you practically penniless. This was the fourth interview you had stumbled upon this week alone, and you were certain that you couldn’t get through another week without a job. The other interviews were busts, it was either ‘you’re not the right fit’ or ‘we’re looking for someone with more experience’. It was astounding to you that the years you had put into your former jobs had little impact on the ones you were applying for now. The expectations had risen in the job market, and no one valued experience anymore unless it was over 5 years, at least. All for lousy cashier jobs in dead end towns, you were convinced that it would be easier resorting to a life of crime then it would be finding even the most basic of jobs at this rate.
“I understand you have experience, Y/N is it?” You nodded at his words, sending him a frail smile as he spoke, a part of you already knowing what was to come next, he was going to tell you that you needed more experience, that you needed to have a degree, that you didn’t look the part. The list goes on and on. Angry thoughts were swirling around your mind; you didn’t know how much more rejection you could take before you would finally crack.
“I’m actually looking for someone, more suitable, for this kind of area.” He worded his sentence cautiously, almost as if he was walking upon eggshells. Your head dropped slightly in defeat. You knew that this area was known for its high crime rate, there wasn’t a day that went by without someone being mugged in the street, a store being robbed in broad daylight, someone showing up dead after being missing for months. More reason for you to get out of this place. But you couldn’t do that without money, and you wouldn’t have any money without a job. The cycle was vicious. You needed to escape. After composing yourself, you decided to play dumb, you would allow him to back himself into a corner.
“This… area?” You questioned, your brows furrowing. You feigned confusion now; you needed to do anything in your power to secure this job.
“You see, Y/N. This area… It isn’t the nicest. Lots of bad people, dangerous situations. I wouldn’t want to be held responsible for putting you at risk of any of that. I’m looking for someone who can handle tough situations.”
Got you
You shook your head, staring directly into his eyes now.
“Someone who can… handle tough situations?” Your eyes narrowed now, the man before you letting out a chuckle and holding his hands up in the air.
“Now, now. I didn’t mean to insult you.”
He wanted a man for this job, that much was obvious. Rough area, lots of robberies, he wanted a ‘big strong man’ to keep this place afloat. Deep down you knew that you couldn’t blame him, you knew what you would be getting yourself into if you were to get this job. It was the highest paying cashier job that you had found, ridiculously overpaid in fact. You would be a fool to let this slip through your fingers, but you knew that such a large amount of money was only being offered due to the dangers that lurked in this area.
“Mr Wilson, I-“
“Sam.”
He cut you off before you could continue, causing you to momentarily fumble over your words. The two of you became locked in a staring battle, silence consuming the room around you before he spoke again.
“Please, call me Sam. The formalities… They make me feel older than I am.” He chuckled once more, the action dissipating the tension that had started to swell. You joined in with his laughs, allowing yourself to relax slightly. The way in which Sam spoke confused you, one second you were worried that he was going to shout at you and tell you to get out, and the other you were expecting him to crack jokes and laugh with you. He was a hard man to read.
“Sam.” You corrected yourself, allowing only a few mere seconds to pass before you marched on. You had him right where you wanted him. “I understand that you are looking for a man to run this store. But I assure you, I am very much capable of handling this job. I wouldn’t have applied if I didn’t think so. I’ve lived here for years now, I’ve seen it all, and yet here I am. Unscathed, unharmed. Why do you think that is?”
Sam tilted his head, he was intrigued. You could see invisible cogs turning in his mind, almost as if he was weighing up his options. You decided to continue before he could think too much about your words.
“Because I know how to defend myself. I have a firearm licence. I own my own gun, there have been plenty of times that someone has tried to rob me, to hurt me. Yet they have never been successful. Because I defend myself. They think I’m an easy target, yet they panic when I fight back. That is why I am still here, that is why I know I am more than capable of taking this job.”
Silence consumed the room once more, it felt like an eternity before Sam let out a loud laugh, one of his hands slamming down upon the table as he cackled. You were taken aback momentarily. You instantly assumed that he was laughing at you, mocking you. Your façade was beginning to falter, and you felt yourself grow close to screaming in his face. But before you could, the atmosphere shifted when Sam recovered and began to speak again.
“I should have known a lady like you would have something up her sleeves!” As his chuckles subsided you realised that he wasn’t laughing at you. No. It seemed as if he was trying to laugh with you, as if he was almost proud, in a way. “You need this job huh?” He asked once he had managed to control himself once more. You dropped your head in response, holding back a sigh as best as you could. You composed yourself before you raised your head once more to allow you to meet Sam's gaze.
“Sam… Please. I will be able to keep the store under control. I know I can.”
Sam pondered your statement for a moment, staring at you until he eventually began to nod his head. You couldn’t figure out if he was nodding to you or to himself. But eventually, when he rose from the chair and extended his hand across the table to you, you quickly realised that you had done it. You had the job.
You quickly rose from the chair, reaching out and grasping his hand tightly in your own, the two of you sharing a firm handshake. “Thank you, Sam, thank you.” You let out a shaky breath, your heart thumping loudly in your chest as you finally allowed yourself to relax. He eventually let go of your hand, smiling your way before his serious demeaner returned once more.
“Don’t be thanking me yet, It’s not always smooth sailing around here, and it’s not an easy job, lots of heavy lifting, difficult situations. I really need you to step up to the plate.” You nodded your head furiously, agreeing with everything he said.
“Of course, of course I will.” Sam chuckled at your eagerness before reaching down towards the table, he picked up a pen and a scrap piece of paper from the desk before scribbling his number down and handing it to you. He grabbed another piece of paper, passing it to you along with the pen, gesturing for you to do the same. You wasted no time, writing your number down, trying your hardest to stop your hands from shaking as you did so, your excitement causing your body to vibrate. You couldn’t believe that you had finally managed to get a job, your bad luck had finally ended.
“I’ll message you your shifts.” You nodded, thanking him once more as you collected your things, making your way towards the office door as the two of you shared goodbyes. Just as you were about to leave, you were stopped in your tracks by Sam's next words.
“Oh, and, that gun you own. Bring it with you. Just in case.” You could only nod in response as you left, too excited to focus on the implications his words held.
-
Now, during your interview, you hadn’t necessarily lied to Sam about your abilities. You were indeed experienced within this field, putting in several years at other stores during your time in the city, and yes, you did in fact own a gun. It was essential living in an area as shady as the one you were in to carry around something to defend yourself with. However, you had never actually had to use the weapon before, it was more of a deterrent than anything. You had never been in a situation where you had to pull the trigger. There was however, one occasion, when you had been walking home from your old job.
It was getting late, and the sun had set hours before. Someone had lunged out of a dark alley as you were walking past, brandishing a blade. They demanded your purse, hissing threats towards you as you attempted to back away. The adrenaline had started to course through your veins, sending your mind into overdrive. You could either give him what he wanted, handing over your purse, your money, everything that you had worked so hard for. Or you could fight, refuse to give the man what he wanted. But that would come with its own consequences if you chose to do so. During the commotion, you had managed to shakily reach your hand into your purse, grasping the gun tightly before pulling it out as quickly as you could manage. The safety wasn’t off; the gun didn’t even have any bullets in it. But the man before you was not aware of this, all he could see was a weapon that beat his own. In an instant, he was sprinting away, darting back down the alley from whence he came. You had gotten lucky, incredibly lucky. Anyone with even the slightest bit of experience would have been able to see pass your confident façade, they would have seen the tremble of your lips, the stutter in your grip. Luckily, this man wasn’t one of those experienced people.
You knew that you couldn’t just pretend anymore, you were going to have to train yourself so you would know how to use your weapon, especially after taking this job. Sam himself had warned you of the dangers, but you couldn’t turn down the money, even if you knew that there would be risks involved. You were going to practice, ensure that you could hold the weapon with confidence. If you could do this, you wouldn’t even have to worry about pulling the trigger, anyone would be a fool to throw themselves at someone with a loaded gun, especially if they looked as if they knew what they were doing. Or so you hoped. But that was a bridge to cross another day, more than likely the only bad situations you would find yourself in would be from meth heads and alcoholics that would be far too inebriated to get close to you anyways. You would be able to deal with that. You shook that thought out of your mind, you didn’t want to think about that right now, you wanted to start your new job, save money and get out of this hell hole. That was the only thing that mattered, nothing else.
Chapter 2: When Things Go Wrong
Summary:
The days began to blend into one another, your job becoming mundane and repetitive. Your comfort had grown, the worry you once had now fading. It was only a matter of time before things would start to unravel, you should have known this.
Chapter Text
Despite what Sam had told you, the new job was incredibly easy to begin with, if not boring. Each day was the same as the last. You would get to work bright and early, put out new stock, rotate old stock, clean the store, take a few customers that wandered in during the day, then rinse and repeat. The job seemed mundane at times, despite it being in such a rundown area, you were still surprised at the lack of customers. You found yourself frequently completing all the tasks that were required of you early in the afternoon. This left you with nothing to do for the rest of your shift.
Sometimes, you would pass the time by browsing through the new selection of magazines that had been delivered. Other times you would dare to read the newspapers, seeing what horrible events had occurred during the night in the city. Other times you just browsed on your phone. Sam never had an issue with you doing this, if all the jobs were done, and they always were, he was happy for you to lounge around, awaiting any customers that might walk through the door.
You never had any difficult situations thrown your way, the most you had to deal with was the occasional drunk stumbling into the store around closing time, but they were quick to leave when you raised your voice. The drunks were more annoying than threatening, but at least when they came in, they made your shift a little more eventful.
Now, the nights when you were leaving the store were the most nerve-racking for you, although the shift was mundane and you barely had any trouble, leaving the safety of the store and wandering into the pitch-black darkness always managed to form a knot in your stomach. Especially for the first few months. You would always leave when it had grown late, the sun long since settled over the horizon as you closed shop. Your mind was always hazy and groggy after the long and slow days. But your senses were on high alert. You found yourself whipping your head around constantly as you locked the doors, afraid that someone would slither out from the darkness behind you. But no one ever did.
Despite this, you couldn’t shake the feeling that if you were to not check behind you, someone would approach. This caused you to check every night as you were locking up. Paranoia getting the best of you. However, after a few months, you found yourself growing accustomed to the darkness, no longer were you frantically staring into the streets, straining your eyes, attempting to catch someone lurking nearby. You told yourself that you were finally becoming confident in your abilities, you were finally brave enough to convince yourself that even if someone were to come from the darkness, you would be able to handle it.
You knew deep down that this wasn’t the case. You knew that you had grown too comfortable, nothing had ever happened to you whilst you were working, so you started to believe that nothing ever would. You had started to let your guard down.
That was until one faithful night, the day had been like that of any other, mundane, boring, uneventful. The list goes on and on. You had ended up staying later than usual on that night, even though you had managed to get all your jobs for the day done early on, you had the pleasure of a drunk man stumbling through the doors as you were getting ready to start cleaning down for the day. He didn’t say much, grumbling and moaning as he tripped over his own feet, stumbling towards the counter, his dark eyes focused upon the rows of liquor behind you.
“Woah now buddy, I think you’ve had enough for tonight.” Your voice was strong, never faltering as he grew closer, his heavy, laboured breaths caused plumes of alcohol to waft in your direction, the smell invading your nose and causing you eyes to water slightly. He reeked of booze, and there was no way you were going to give him more.
“Come on man, I’m not selling you any, go home.” You shook your head, pointing towards the door. The man didn’t stop, he just grumbled and gurgled some words under his breath, reaching his rough hands towards the counter before you to steady himself. He was swaying now, his head hung low as more noises escaped from his lips, you couldn’t make out what he was trying to say, if anything at all.
Silence momentarily consumed the store, before the man lifted his head, with great difficulty, stared straight into your eyes and proceeded to retch his guts up over the counter.
You jumped back quickly, your face contorting with disgust, the viscous liquid spilling over the sides of the once clean counter. The smell was foul; it made you wish that you were smelling the booze again.
“Come on!” You yelled, your head now in your hands as you took in the sight before you. The man tried to mumble out what sounded like a poor attempt at an apology, but he didn’t get far before you were dragging him by his arm towards the door, shoving him through it and locking the door behind him.
You wanted nothing more than to get home and get in bed, and now here you were, scrubbing sick from the tiles, a makeshift mask made from your cardigan wrapped around your face to prevent the smell from breaching your nostrils, although it didn’t work as well as you would have hoped.
It took you close to an hour to rid the store from the stench, the amount of cleaning supplies you had mixed was surely not good for you, but you didn’t care, you would do anything to get rid of that smell.
Once you were finally satisfied and could breathe freely once more, you turned your attention to the till. All you needed to do was count the till and you could go home, your bed was screaming your name from across town, you were desperate to get to it. But you composed yourself, shaking your head to wake yourself up, if there was one job you needed to do correctly, it was the tills.
You counted, and counted, and counted. Repeatedly you counted that damn till, putting all the money back in, counting it once more, putting it back in again and then counting it once more. There was over 200 dollars missing. Over 200 dollars missing from the till.
Any grogginess you had once felt had vanished, instead being replaced by a low hum of dread. Why was there so much money missing? Maybe you had counted it wrong? So, you counted it again. You lost track of how many times you counted, your resolve crumbling as you started to come to terms with the fact that the money was indeed missing. You started to feel sick; you had worked so hard to get this job and now you could possibly lose it. Surely Sam would fire you on the spot if he found out how much was missing.
You had tried repeatedly to contact Sam, sending him messages, calling him, but to no avail. He didn’t answer.
You were pacing now, your hands shaking aggressively, your heart thumping loudly in your chest. What were you going to do? Did someone manage to get into the till during the day? No, they couldn’t have, you were watching the tills, you were always watching the tills. No one could have gotten in. Maybe Sam had counted them wrong himself, maybe he had taken the money and forgotten to tell you.
No. He always tells you when he takes money from the till, always. You were having an internal argument with yourself, the panic causing you to pull at your hair, of course this would happen today, one bad thing after another.
The sudden sound of a high-pitched ring snapped you out of your panic. It was your phone, it was ringing. It took you a moment to react, your body froze as you swallowed a gulp of air, forcing yourself to calm slightly so you could focus on getting your phone. Was it Sam?
You fumbled with your pockets, finally managing to grip your phone, holding it towards your face. It was Sam, he was calling. You breathed out a sigh of relief as you answered the phone, your voice wavering slightly as you spoke.
“Sam, I’m… I’m sorry I-“
He cut you off before you could utter another word.
“Y/N, what are you doing, are you still at the store?” His voice was sharp, demanding. You flinched at the tone.
“Y-yes I’m sorry, some drunk guy, he… he threw up- then, the tills, they’re-“
You could hear Sam hiss, a quite ‘fuck’ escaping his mouth.
“Y/N, I’m sorry, I didn’t tell you, I took the money. Fuck. I had so much to do it just slipped my mind, it’s okay, it’s fine-“
It was your turn to cut him off now, the fear you had once felt now replaced with relief.
“Oh, thank God! Thank God, I thought I messed up, God the day I’ve had I don’t know what I would have done if I had lost the money.” You were close to crying tears of joy, but you suddenly started to feel silly, the panic you had just experienced long forgotten.
“Y/N it’s okay, but you need to leave. Go home.” Sam's voice forced you out of your momentary relief.
“Go home? W-what?” Your mind was racing once more, was he going to fire you? Had you bothered him by trying to contact him, maybe you had woken him up.
“Y/N, listen to me, leave the till, go home. You shouldn’t be there at this time, it’s not safe.” There was urgency in his voice, almost as if he was pleading with you.
“But, the till-“
“LEAVE THE TILL Y/N! GO HOME!”
His booming voice caused you to jump, your phone slipping from your grasp, bouncing against the floor with a loud CRACK. You could no longer hear Sam's voice; the store now left in an eery silence. His words echoed around your head, your eyes glancing towards the till, money still out on the counter. You couldn’t leave the money out like that, you would have to just put it back in the till, then head home. You reached down to grab your phone; the screen was cracked and littered with black and white splotches. It was glitching in your hands, you didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. It was comical how many things had gone wrong for you today, first the drunk, then the tills and now your phone was broken.
You didn’t dwell on it any longer than you needed to, Sam's words were still bouncing around your mind, your gut screaming at you to do as he said and leave.
You shook your head, attempting to pull yourself back to the task at hand, within seconds you were rushing towards the till, to the money that had been neatly stacked upon the counter. Put the money back and go home. You couldn’t just leave all of the money laid out, it was practically asking to be stolen, you wouldn’t be able to forgive yourself if someone were to get into the store and steal it. Sam was already clearly angry, having his money stolen would surely push him over the edge.
As you stuffed the money back into the till, you couldn’t stop dark thoughts swirling around the depths of your mind, you couldn’t brush off the feeling that there was something Sam wasn’t telling you, that there was more to you needing to go him then just his anger.
You were normally home by now, cosied up in bed, drifting off to a barely peaceful slumber, and yet here you were.
Your hands were trembling as you shoved the money back into the till, slamming it shut. You were becoming restless, panicked once more. You couldn’t shake off that feeling… The feeling that you were in danger. Alarms were echoing throughout your mind, and with every second you spent still in the store, they only grew louder.
It was time to leave, you practically sprinted to the back room to grab your bag, ready to rush out and get home. You had merely taken a few steps; bag clutched tightly in your grasp when you heard it. That distinct click of a key going into a lock.
Your entire body tensed up, goosebumps littering your skin, the hairs on the back of your neck standing to attention. Maybe it was Sam? You were desperately hoping that it was Sam, it made sense after all, why would anyone else have a key to get into the store. But there was something gnawing at your mind, deep down, you knew that this wasn’t Sam. Whoever was unlocking the door was not him.
You were quick to realise that the door that was being opened was the one behind you, the door leading into the stock room. You strained your ears, tuning in to the distinct murmur of deep voices behind the door. You knew now with the utmost certainty that it wasn’t Sam.
Just as the door started to open, you thrusted your shaking hands into your bag, grasping the gun desperately. Your body whipped around to face the intruders. You raised the gun high, holding it as firmly as you could, but you could see it shaking within your grasp, you weren’t prepared for this. That much you knew for certain. You heard his voice before you could take in his appearance.
“Woah there, little lady.”
Chapter 3: Two Wolves
Summary:
You knew that you had grown too comfortable, and for the first time since you had started working here, you finally felt true danger in your bones.
Chapter Text
“Woah there, little lady.”
His gruff voice met your ears, causing a violent shiver to run down your spine. You forced your eyes to lock into his, staring into his ice-cold orbs. His frame was huge, his dirty blonde hair slicked back, a leather jacket covering his masculine frame. When your eyes scanned down his body, you could just about make out black ink littering his skin, some on his hands and more peeking out from the neck of his tight fitted shirt.
“W-who are you?!” You demanded, your voice faltering as you did so. Movement behind the man caused the grip you had on your gun to become harsher. Another man walking into the room, his frame was just as muscular as the one before you. He donned a similar outfit, a leather jacket with a slightly baggier shirt, you couldn’t see any ink on his skin, but you could have sworn that it seemed as if he was wearing some kind of metallic glove. You raised your eyes, taking in his face. His stormy dark eyes were piercing, and unlike the man before you, his shaggy brown hair cascaded down to his shoulders in an unkempt manner. You gulped, your throat tight as you did so.
You forced your eyes to return to the man closer to you, he had raised his hands lazily in a mock surrender, a small smirk etched upon his lips. You knew that if he wanted to, he could definitely disarm you in an instant.
“Didn’t expect to see you here at this time.” He chuckled, you didn’t like the way he spoke of you as if he already knew who you were.
“What is she doing here?” The man behind him hissed, running his hand through his hair, he seemed to be frustrated, not even paying attention to the gun you had in your grasp.
“A-answer the question!” You shook the weapon in your hands in an accusatory manner. Your lips trembling as the words spluttered out of your mouth. The mans smirk grew wider, his hands starting to drop down towards his sides. Did he know you were bluffing?
“We’re not gonna hurt ya, just put the gun down and we’ll talk.” You didn’t trust him, if you were to put the gun down, who knows what would happen. The men could pounce, silence you before you even had a chance to scream. Either one of them could take the gun from you if they tried, or maybe it would be easier for them to just kill you now. No witness, no problem for them. You couldn’t stop the violent thoughts swirling around your mind. You were in danger. That much you were certain of.
“No.” You forced out, glancing frantically between the two men. The blonde man dropping his hands had filled you with dread, he wasn’t scared, neither of them were.
The man with the dark hair growled, shaking his head and beginning to pace back and forth.
“Man, I’m gonna kill Sam, he has one job!” You flinched at his yell, the man before you didn’t react to the others outburst, he instead kept his eyes glued to your frame.
“Mistakes happen Buck, I’m sure this is one big misunderstanding.” He didn’t glance at ‘Buck’ as he spoke, it didn’t even seem as if he was blinking, his unmoving figure still staring intently at you.
“Misunderstanding my ass, we’ve got shit to do Steve.”
Steve and Buck, their names. You were frustrated that they had only shared them to one another, speaking as if you weren’t even there. They didn’t even try to answer your question.
“You know Sam?” You muttered, the words struggling to pass your lips, your mouth now incredibly dry.
Steve grinned now, cocking his head to the side.
“Why else would we be here, doll?” You flinched at the nickname, the aura around him was incredibly threatening, he held himself with arrogance, with pride, as if he knew that he wasn’t in any danger here.
“Sam’s never mentioned you, E-either of you.”
“Clearly.” Buck snapped, sending a glare in your direction. Your grip on the gun was now causing your hands to pale, the sensation in your fingers fading, shooting this gun now would be near impossible.
“Bucky, play nice.” Steve chuckled, turning his head to send a look towards the other man that you couldn’t see. You shuddered at the fact that Steve was so willing to look away from you. He definitely knew that you didn’t know what you were doing. Steve turned back to you, slouching slightly, his hands coming to rest on his hips.
“Come on doll, we know Sam, you know Sam. We’re both just doing our jobs here, there’s no need for this.” You shook your head at his words; you couldn’t put the gun down. You couldn’t.
“I don’t know you. You could hurt me.”
“I could.” Steve's tone had an edge to it, he was too quick to answer. He knew that he could hurt you. But could you hurt him? The three of you fell into silence for a while, the only sound being your heart loudly thumping in your chest and Bucky pacing back and forth.
“What do you do for Sam? If you work for him?” Steve laughed at your questions, shaking his head as if he were mocking you.
“That’s none of your concern-“
“It is considering you’re here unannounced, I’m just doing my job. Like you are.”
Steve cocked a brow, the smirk on his face growing wider as you attempted to use his words against him.
“Didn’t realise your job involved pointing a gun at someone just trying to do theirs.” You flinched, if they really did work with Sam, they would know what this area is like, of course you would be on high alert, random men coming into the store at this hour, how could they expect you to not react like this.
“You know what it’s like around here, I find it hard to believe that you wouldn’t expect something like this to happen.” You surprised yourself with how you were able to hold your words, not stuttering once as you had previously. The adrenaline coursing through your veins forcing you to push out your words as fast as possible.
“We’ve got shit to do Steve, come on!” Bucky snapped, pushing past Steve and making his way towards you. You took a shaky step back, raising the gun slightly higher so it was aimed directly at Bucky’s head. Steve was quick to grab Bucky’s arm, shooting him a look that made you shiver.
“Don’t.” He warned, the two of them staring at one another before Bucky huffed, pulling his arm from Steve's grasp and sending you a dark look before he stormed back towards the door, leaning against the wall as he muttered angrily to himself.
“Look, doll. We’ve got a job to do here, just run along home.” You glanced towards the doorway behind you, you could back out of the room, try and get out of the store before Steve would get to you, but the door was locked. The time it would take to unlock it, they would surely be on you.
“You’re not just going to let me go.” You whispered, it sounded as if you were speaking more to yourself then to them, like you were trying to convince yourself to not let your guard down. You didn’t know why they were here, but judging from the way Sam was speaking to you earlier, it couldn’t be good.
“Look, why don’t I call Sam, I’m sure he can clear this whole thing up, you can go on your way, and we can get our job done. Easy peasy.” Steve spoke with a lightness that you could tell was supposed to be comforting, but it did the opposite, you could hear through his tone, a threat lingering behind his words. His eyes were now glued to the gun in your hands.
Your eyes widened as Steve began to reach for his back pocket, you only had a split second to react.
“Don’t!” You shouted, taking a surprising step forward, you hadn’t realised you had done it at first, the adrenaline in your body causing you to act out of character. Steve froze his movements, chuckling quietly before raising his hands once again.
“I wasn’t asking doll. Either I call him, or I’m gonna be forced to take that gun from you. Neither of us want that to happen.” It was Bucky’s turn to chuckle now, you could tell from the look glinting in his eyes that he wanted nothing more than to take the gun from you himself. He struck you as the type who revelled in conflict.
“My phone is in my pocket, can’t call him without it can I?” Steve dropped his hands slowly, one of them going back towards his pocket. Your heartbeat grew louder in your chest, the hairs on the back of your neck standing on end, your hands shaking in anticipation.
That’s when you made a mistake. Your hand dropped, ever so slightly, the gun now aimed towards Steve's stomach. His eyes seemed to light up as he watched the gun in your hands, a wide grin spreading across his face. He raised his eyes back towards you, taking in the confusion that was presenting itself on your features. His hand had stopped moving, his entire body frozen. He let out a laugh, the noise was horrifying to you, it was as if Steve knew something that you didn’t. When he spoke, your heart stopped.
“You’ve left the safety on doll.”
The adrenaline kicked into overdrive now, your body whipping around as you began to sprint out of the room, you could hear the men behind you begin to chase after you, the thundering sound of footsteps echoing loudly in your ears, accompanied by the loud thumps of your heat beating wildly in your chest.
“Don’t let her get out Steve! Bucky yelled, you could barely make out what he was saying as your ears began to ring, the door was growing closer to you, you began to fumble with your bag as it did, praying to God that you could get the door unlocked before they got to you. You had barely made it a metre from the door when you felt arms wrap around your waist, forcing a scream to escape from your throat.
You began to thrash, the gun that was once in your hands now clattering to the floor, the man behind you dragged you with a strength you had never seen, your hands desperately scratching at his arms in a desperate attempt to escape from his clutches. You could hear Steve laugh behind you as he dragged you back towards the stock room. The tears had begun now, your cries sounding out as you felt your chance to escape slipping through your fingers.
“Calm down doll, I’m not gonna hurt ya, just breathe.” His words did little to comfort you, instead, they caused you to thrash more, kicking your legs backwards aggressively, hoping to catch him off guard and cause him to fall, but it was to no avail.
“We don’t have time for this shit, just kill her and we can finish up.” You whimpered at Bucky’s words, they were going to kill you, this was it. This would be how you die, taking a job that you should have never even considered.
“Oh, yeah, and get it in the neck from Sam, are you gonna clean up that mess Buck?” Steve snarled, you didn’t think it was possible but hearing him speak made your body fight even more, you thrusted your head back, hoping to connect with his nose, but he was simply too tall, your head simply bouncing off his chest instead. Despite this, you found yourself repeating the action a few more times, achieving nothing and simply making yourself dizzy instead.
“Calm down.” He snapped behind you, it didn’t work. You let out a scream, the loudest one you could muster. It took a mere second before Steve released one of his arms from your waist, slapping his hand to your mouth and muffling your shouts. Even though he was only holding you with one arm now, you still found it impossible to escape his grasp, how could someone be this strong?
Your cries were barely audible now; you had to resort to breathing heavily through your nose as your mouth was held tightly shut. Your vision was blurry from the tears, and your body was growing tired. You knew that you weren’t going to be able to get away from them like this, you had to think, you had to try something else.
Your mind started racing, trying to think of any possible way to get out of this. Your thrashing began to slow down as an idea formed in your head. Without delay, you allowed your body to go limp, your arms dropping to your side, your legs dangling in the air. Steve stumbled slightly at the sudden change, but he was quick to tighten his grip once more.
“See, there you go, just stay calm.” You were panting now, trying your hardest to calm yourself down, the fact that you had stopped fighting seemed to please Steve, he was cooing in your ear, telling you to ‘be good’.
You let him talk, allowed him to whisper to you whilst you waited. Waited for him to slip up, waited for him to drop his guard.
It felt like an eternity before he finally did, the hand that was firmly pressed against your mouth loosening ever so slightly, it wasn’t much, but it was enough. The gap that he had created between your mouth and his hand was all you needed.
You opened your mouth as wide as you could manage, leaning forwards into his hand before biting down as hard as you could. Steve let out an angry roar as your teeth pierced his skin, you could feel the tearing of flesh between your teeth, a warm metallic liquid gushing into your mouth, his body trembling at the sudden pain.
Steve dropped you in response, causing you to rip a small chunk of flesh from his hand as you fell. You spat it out, landing on your feet in with a small stumble. You jumped into action, lifting your leg and stamping down on his foot as hard as you could. Another roar, you turned now, seeing Bucky rushing towards you from the corner of your eye. But he wasn’t quick enough.
Steve was hunched over, blood dripping from his hand, he lifted his head, giving you the perfect opportunity. Your hand was up before you realised, swinging round and connecting with the side of his face, the echo of your hand connecting with his cheek was loud. Steve's head whipped to the side. You barely had time to take in the expression on his face before Bucky was on you, grabbing you by your waist and tossing you to the side as if you weighed nothing, your back collided with the wall, the wind being knocked out of your lungs as you sunk to the floor. You attempted to get up, but Bucky placed his foot against your chest, pushing you down with all his might, you gritted your teeth at the pain.
“You little bitch.” He hissed, twisting his foot from side to side, your mouth parted as a small cry escaped from your lips. Any more pressure and you were sure your ribcage would be crushed.
“Jesus Christ, what’s going on!” You heard a familiar voice shout from the doorway; you forced your eyes to look over and felt relief rush over your body when your eyes met Sam's.
Bucky turned his head, growling in Sam's direction. “I’m putting your guard dog in its place.” Bucky turned back to you, twisting his foot once more before he removed it from your chest. You gasped, gulping down air greedily, the pain still throbbing in your chest.
Sam broke into a fit of chuckles as he took in the sight before him, you glared in his direction at the noise. You heard Steve let out a hiss as he finally straightened up, shaking his hand, droplets of blood splattering everywhere as he did so. You lifted your head slightly, looking between the three men, your breathing was still laboured, and you could feel blood trickling from your mouth, you had no doubt that you looked a mess.
“Fuck, she really did a number on you Steve.” Sam laughed, patting Steve on the shoulder as he approached.
“Yeah, no kidding.” He spoke through gritted teeth, you could see as he moved the slight limp in his step, no doubt from when you had stomped on its moments earlier. Your eyes focused on Sam, watching as he laughed and joked, he was finding this situation comical. You had nearly been in a fight for your life, and yet here he was, laughing over it as if it was some kind of sick joke.
“What’s going on?” You whispered, trying to push yourself up from the floor, Bucky was about to place his foot back on your chest before Sam stopped him, placing a hand on his chest and shaking his head.
“I told you to go home, Y/N.” Sam had stopped laughing now, you could hear the disappointment in his voice. You couldn’t hold back the scoff, pushing yourself up so you were sitting upright.
“I was trying.” You hissed, the fear that you had felt was still there, not as strong as before, but still evident in your mind. You were surprised at how much venom was laced within your voice as you spoke, now the ordeal had seemed to calm down, you could feel anger swelling in your chest. If Sam would have just told you about him taking the money in the first place, none of this would have happened.
“I couldn’t help being here late, if you would have told me about the money that you took, I would have been home ages ago.” You coughed slightly once you stopped speaking, your chest was stinging and your throat burned from everything you had been through.
“You’re not wrong, I’m sorry about that.” You stared at him as he spoke, despite the apologetic expression plastered onto his face, you didn’t feel as if his words were genuine.
“At least you know your stores never gonna get robbed Sam.” Steve finally spoke again, gesturing to his still bleeding hand. You winced as he let out a laugh, finding it worrying how he seemed to be amused now.
The tension that was once in the air was now fading, you were still on edge, but Sam and Steve seemed to be finding the situation more comical now rather than serious. Bucky, however, was still brooding, his eyes dark and brows furrowed, he did strike you as the type of person to never smile.
Whilst you were staring at Bucky, you hadn’t noticed Steve making his way over to you, you flinched when his shadow casted over you, pressing yourself against the wall to get away from him. You expected him to grab you again but were shocked to see him offering his uninjured hand towards you.
You hesitated, eyeing his hand nervously, you didn’t trust him, even with Sam here you still felt as if you weren’t free from danger. If these were the type of people Sam worked with, what was Sam truly like? Why were they here at this time anyways? What were they doing? You were starting to realise that this job was overpaid for a reason, something wasn’t right.
You eventually forced yourself to take his hand, allowing him to hoist you up. You winced as you rose, your chest tightening. You found yourself rubbing gentle circles on your chest, an attempt to ease your pain, although it wasn’t doing much. You glanced towards Steve, noticing the way he was staring at you, it was almost as if he was, impressed? A look of what you could only describe as adoration crossing his features. You shuddered before turning away, facing Sam once more.
“It seems as if we have a lot to talk about Y/N.” Sam spoke, breaking the silence. You didn’t react, just looked around at the three men before you, your breathing becoming heavy once more.
What had you gotten yourself into?
Chapter 4: A Deal With The Devil
Summary:
Shaken and injured after your ordeal, you found yourself awaiting Sam's verdict in the safety of his office. You needed to get out of here, but would they let you go? Would freedom be safer for you? You're left with a difficult decision to make, one which deep down, you have no say in.
Chapter Text
The tension in the air had begun to rise once more as you sat patiently in the office. Your gaze was fixed upon your trembling hands as the gruff voices outside bounced back and forth. You couldn’t tell if you were shaking, maybe it was fear, anxiety or simply the remnants of the adrenaline you had previously felt coursing through your veins. Sam had escorted you in here, told you that he would be right back. You didn’t want him to come back. You wanted to go home.
You tried to strain your ears, hoping to catch a whisper of the conversation they were having, but the sound of your own blood rushing around your head made it impossible. You knew that they were talking about your fate, whether you would live or die. Maybe they would burst into the room at any moment, finish you off before you had a chance to scream. You shuddered, trying desperately to push that thought out of your mind.
As you tried to think of anything else, you found the voices behind you fading as your mind drifted towards your life before this, the previous jobs you had, how little money you would end the day with, how strenuous the work had been, how awful the customers had treated you. You would give anything to go back to that, to go back to the stress that you had previously let control your life. That stress was nothing compared to how you felt now.
Your chest was on fire, searing hot pain flashing through your skin at the slightest movement. Your face itchy as the blood had begun to dry and flake. Your hair was no doubt tangled and knotted. You must have been a sight to behold.
Your mind was ripped from its thoughts as the door behind you opened, your eyes remained glued upon your hands as you heard footsteps approaching the desk. You braced yourself, expecting to feel hands upon you…
You let out a sigh of relief as the footsteps drifted past, your eyes raising to land upon Sam. The familiar sound of a click echoed around the room, the door behind you now shut. You turned, your eyes focusing upon the frosted window, the large frame of Steve now disappearing down the hall. At least they weren’t going to be in the room with you.
After a few moments you turned your head back towards Sam, your eyes locked with his, the expression upon his face was unreadable as he took a seat across from you.
The sudden movement of his hands had you flinching, but you were relieved to see him sliding a packet of wet wipes over to you. You made no attempt to grab them, instead staring at him expectantly, waiting for him to speak. He didn’t, instead gesturing towards his mouth. You got the message, reaching for the wipes and pulling one out shakily, your eyes never leaving Sams as you began to wipe the dried blood from your face.
You couldn’t tell if you had managed to get it all, but your face felt much lighter, less itchy and the tang of the metallic liquid was no longer invading your nostrils. You glanced at the wipe once you were satisfied with your cleanliness, scowling at the tainted material.
“So…” His voice dragged you back to reality, the two of you staring at each other once more.
“I haven’t been honest with you.” The urge to roll your eyes flashed through your mind before you quickly subdued it, instead resorting to nodding your head slightly. You didn’t know what to say, of course he hadn’t been honest with you, but were you really in a position to argue with him now? You thought you knew him; you were more than wrong.
“You know, I thought I’d take a chance on you. I always take on the same guy, someone who I know can handle themselves.” You let out a dry chuckle, he was confirming what you had already known when you had first spoken to him. His mind was already set on a ‘big, strong man’, now you found yourself thinking that he was right for wanting someone like that.
“But you convinced me. You had something in you, a spark, and you ‘knew’ how to handle a gun. Or so I thought.” You frowned now, your eye casting downwards. You thought that you did know. You had practiced handling one, focusing on being able to hold it with confidence. But practicing in the safety of your apartment and being face to face with potential death was a stark difference that had gotten the better of you.
You forgot to take the safety off.
How could you forget such a crucial part of using a gun?
“I can’t say I blame you, I know you needed the money, why else would you take a job in this part of town?” You were still struggling to respond, he was right, you were desperate for money, if you would have had another choice, you would have never taken a job here, but the money had blinded you. You wanted so desperately to escape this city that you had put yourself in this situation, you should have known that it wouldn’t be all smooth sailing.
“I should have known, it would only be a matter of time before something went wrong, I didn’t expect it to go down like this though.” His words had started to enrage you, how could he sit here and tell you that he knew something would eventually happen? How could he live with himself knowing that his actions had caused this?
“I wasn’t supposed to be here.” You finally spoke, despite the ease in which the words flowed out, you found your hands absentmindedly fiddling with the blood-stained wipe that was in your hands, an unconscious way of calming your nerves. A quite sigh escaped your lips, your head dropping back down as Sam began to respond.
“I know. I take full responsibility for that.” You nodded in response. He wasn’t apologising, but it was something.
“All things considered, I have to say, I’m impressed with how you handled it.” A sudden pain bloomed through your chest at his words, your mind flashing back to the ordeal. The fight you had just barely escaped.
“I thought I was going to die.” You whispered, your eyes glossing over slightly. You noticed Sam staring at you intently, his gaze suffocating, you cleared your throat, forcing the tears back into your eyes. You couldn’t let him see you cry; you had already been through enough already.
“I understand how you feel, but they wouldn’t have killed you, they’re not like that-“
“Not like that?!” You snapped, your previous sadness washed away by a harsh rage, you were glaring at Sam now, your back upright, your body tense.
“How can you sit there and tell me that they’re ‘not like that’ after everything?!”
“They aren’t. They were just trying to do their job, they couldn’t let you run out of the store Y/N, if you would have rung the police-“
“What would happen, Sam? If they were ‘just doing their job’ surely nothing would have happened if I would have rung the police.”
Sam was silenced now, you knew that there was more to this, there had to be.
“What’s going on Sam? What are you doing?”
He cleared his throat, leaning back in his chair.
“That’s not your concern, the less you know the better.” His tone was sharp; he wasn’t leaving any room for argument.
“You handled it well Y/N, Steve and Bucky are strong, not many people can take them on.”
“I barely took them on.” You mumbled, pressing your hands against your face and forcing your matted hair back. Sam took no notice.
“You did more than I’ve seen a lot of people try to do, that took guts.”
Of course it took guts, but what choice did you have? What else could you have done? Who knows what would have happened to you if you didn’t fight back, you might not have even been here having this conversation.
“Steve wasn’t lying when he said that I don’t need to worry about someone robbing the store.” Sam chuckled. You were surprised at how calm he seemed, how he was able to joke at a time like this. But his words struck you.
“You’re… You’re not firing me?” You breathed out, your heart skipping a beat. You were shocked, if anything, you were hoping that he would fire you, it would be an easy way out.
“That’s something we need to discuss… I’m not firing you, if anything, I think it would be… Beneficial, for you, if you were to stay.”
“W-what do you mean?” You were nervous, you knew that staying here wouldn’t be a good thing.
“If you’re here, you’re with me. If you leave. We wouldn’t want anyone else knowing about what happened-“
“I wouldn’t tell anyone. I swear it.” The desperation in your voice was evident, you felt yourself cringing slightly at how quick you had blurted out the words.
“I believe you. But Bucky…” He trailed off, the rest was left up to your imagination. You were quick to realise what he was insinuating. If you left, you would be in danger, Bucky could come after you, maybe even Steve. You would simply be a loose end they needed to tie up. They would be watching your every move, waiting for you to slip up, for you to say something you shouldn’t. They could follow you when you did finally move away, maybe they knew people in other cities, other countries, you would never be safe. You fell into silence, your mind whirling as you thought of all the ways they could hurt you again.
“It would be the same, as if nothing had ever happened.”
But it did happen, how could you just forget that?
“You wouldn’t be here when they are.”
Like that was supposed to make you feel any better, you may not be here, but you would know. You would know that in a few hours they would be back in the store, what if they decide to come early? Catch you off guard.
“I won’t say anything Sam, I promise, just… Let me go.” Sam sighed in response; he didn’t even ponder your words before he continued.
“You can defend yourself Y/N, honestly, having someone like you here is a bonus for me and the business.” Flattery. His words were intended to make you feel better, you knew that much. But you weren’t confident, coming back here and acting as if nothing had happened would be close to impossible.
“And I’d double your pay.” You froze at that, it was already an overpaid job, doubling it would help you get out of this town much quicker. But what was the point in having that much money if you couldn’t leave?
“When will I be able to leave?” You knew that it was bold, you knew that deep down you didn’t really have a choice, but if one day you could eventually get out of here, maybe all of this would have been worth it. Sam let out a dry chuckle.
“Prove your worth, do your job well, when Bucky eventually trusts you, you can leave.” You didn’t like that response. What if Bucky never trusted you? What if you were trapped here forever? Sam noticed the worry spread across your features.
“He will trust you eventually. I promise you that.” Despite Sam sounding confident, you weren’t too sure. He could be lying to you; you wouldn’t put it past him at this point. But what choice did you have? You let out a heavy sigh, there was still a heavy rage deep inside of you, desperate to burst out. But you quelled it, gritting your teeth and forcing yourself to speak out in as calm of a manner as you could manage.
“Triple.” Your jaw was clenched tightly, if you were going to stay here, if you had no choice, you were going to make sure that it was worth it. You would play your part, do your job, get Bucky to trust you. But you wanted more, you wanted to make sure that the second you were trusted you could get as far away from here as possible. Sam stared at you for a moment before he let out a loud laugh, the sound booming around the room.
“Haggling, Y/N you truly are full of surprises.” You knew that Sam was a dangerous man, he had to be if he was working with people like Steve and Bucky, you were surely a fool for even trying to get more out of him, but after what you had gone through, it was only fair.
“I don’t know what you’re doing. Quite frankly, I don’t want to know. But considering I’m going to be working here, after what has just happened, triple is more than fair.” You were surprised at how smoothly your words came out, the dull anger within you forcing you to be sharp.
Sam hummed to himself, stroking his chin in a cartoonish manner, you expected him to break the act with a stern ‘No’, but when he let out a lighter chuckle, you felt a small wave of relief wash over you. He rose from the chair, reaching his hand across the table, mirroring the first time you had been here, when you had gotten this job.
“Deal.”
You forced yourself to stand, reaching across and grabbing his hand as tightly as you could, the two of shaking on the terms you had just set. Sam wore a beaming smile on his face, whilst yours was monotone, devoid of all emotion. What had you done? Why did you ever take this job?
Why have you just made a deal with the Devil?
Arialily056 on Chapter 1 Mon 01 Sep 2025 08:41PM UTC
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liliths_library104 on Chapter 4 Sat 06 Sep 2025 07:39PM UTC
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PatheticProcrastinator on Chapter 4 Sun 07 Sep 2025 01:27AM UTC
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