Chapter Twenty-Four

Natasha opened her eyes and instantly knew that something was wrong. There wasn’t any visible evidence around her — no sounds or smells of fire. All she had to go on was a feeling in the pit of her stomach, where everything seemed to be drawing in against itself, pinching her gut tighter and tighter. The sensation was enough to make her want to throw up.

It was the feeling of being alone in the house.

Tossing on a robe and heading downstairs, Natasha began doing a room-by-room inspection. Since the amazing experience she’d had with Fury a few nights ago, he had made leaving the house at night a regular habit. Natasha couldn’t deny him his freedom any longer. She had kept him in the house like a caged animal.

At least he was leaving when most people were still in bed. He could use the darkness of the night to hide him, and for now, that had to be enough protection. The cyborg didn’t tell her what happened during his nocturnal excursions. Natasha was determined to let him have a little privacy.

Fury wasn’t in the guest bedroom. Even though she thought it was impossible for the cyborg to be in the basement, she checked down there as well. He had come downstairs and fallen asleep on the couch once before, but the cushions weren’t supporting his sleeping body today. Fury wasn’t in the kitchen making breakfast or watching television. He simply wasn’t in the house.

Natasha stood in the middle of the kitchen and slowly spun in a circle, imagining every nook and cranny of the house where the soldier might be. Had she heard the door shut when Fury returned last night? Had he even come home? The hour of his return always varied, but somehow when she awoke in the middle of the night, she could always sense his presence.

With nerves making her anxious, Natasha decided to brew a pot of coffee. It was still early. With luck, Fury was on his way home. He didn’t keep a routine, preferring to leave and return at seemingly random hours. She suspected Fury was exploring the city, and that wasn’t something that could be done in thirty minutes each night.

When the sun had risen completely, and Natasha had showered and dressed, she decided to expand the search to outside the house. She got in her car and began cruising up and down the streets. The search pattern started in circles going out from her house. Natasha checked side streets she hadn’t been on since childhood and drove slowly past the park. She turned each corner with hope rising in her chest that she would see him if she could only be in the right place at the right time.

As she headed back home to see if Fury had returned while she was gone, Natasha spotted a large man on the corner. He wore jogging clothes and was waiting for the early morning traffic to slow enough for him to cross. The man’s enormous physique made him stand out among the crowd of people in business casual clothing who were heading to work.

Stomping on the brakes and lowering her passenger side window, Natasha leaned over and shouted out of her car. “Fury!” Traffic was beginning to back up behind her, but she didn’t care. “Fury!”

Finally, the man turned around. The body might have fit the cyborg’s description, but the face was completely different. She hadn’t found him after all.

“I’m sorry,” she called as the stranger looked at her in confusion. “I thought you were someone else.” Natasha pressed on the gas pedal and roared off down the road. She grabbed the phone and called the only person she thought might be able to help her.

“Hello?” John answered sleepily.

“It’s Natasha. I’m sorry to wake you; I know it’s your day off. This is a little embarrassing, but I seem to have lost Fury.” Her heart began pounding in her chest a second time as she had to tell the story to someone else.

“This doesn’t sound good.” John seemed much more alert. She could hear shuffling noises in the background as he put on his clothes. “When did he leave your house?”

“I don’t know. Fury’s not under constant surveillance. It was sometime after I went to bed, but he never says where he’s going or how long he’ll be gone. For all I know, he isn’t even missing. But he’s never been out past sunrise before.” Natasha pulled into a parking lot so she could talk on the phone more easily. “I’ve driven around looking for him, and I don’t know what else to do.”

“We’ll find him,” John assured her. “He can’t have gone too far.” The chime of a seatbelt reminder sounded over the phone. “I’m getting in my car right now. We’ll have better luck if two people are looking for him.”

Natasha nodded, even though John couldn’t see the motion over the phone. “What am I going to do if I don’t find him?” She was losing control and starting to cry.

“I think the better question is what you’re going to do with him once you find him. Natasha, there’s a reason we created Cyborg Sector and the rehabilitation center. He can’t keep staying with you covertly like this.” John’s voice sounded grave but broken up by the clicking of his turn signal.

“There isn’t another option.” Natasha pulled back onto the street, ready to start looking again. “I can’t lock him out of the house. Without any of the proper paperwork, he’ll never be able to get a home or a job.” Natasha was understandably reluctant to reveal the rest of the truth. She wanted Fury to stay with her. They had not spoken about their relationship. Fury said he would do what was best, and she believed him.

“I did say that,” John agreed, breaking into her thoughts. “I’ve been doing some research. I should be able to get some documentation for him. It won’t be official, but there will be a matching file in the national cyborg database.”

“Really?” Natasha squealed. “You can do that?”

“Yes. Well, a friend of a friend can do it. It will be expensive, but from his description, it shouldn’t be too difficult. The cyborg database isn’t the kind of system that gets hacked very often. You’re either a cyborg or you aren’t, and I don’t think anybody tries to pretend they are. The security is weak for a government program.” John always sounded confident when he talked about anything related to technology.

“That sounds perfect. Now we just have to find Fury so we can share the good news.”