Chapter Fourteen : Life After Death

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     It had been a while since Valencia cried like that and she wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. What made it hurt even more was that her father was a firm believer in the afterlife and in his last moments, he probably thought he was gonna see her again after believing she was dead. But after that, Daniel started asking her what happened the day of the accident. She did tell them that the accident was actually planned and her death was staged. Their mother had sent Jaden back upstairs since she already knew that the story wasn't going to be pretty and he didn't need to hear the details.

     "They told me if I didn't comply, they would go after all of you," Valencia said while running her hands through her hair.

     The three of them sat at the dining room table and Valencia had her elbows on the surface while holding her head in her hands.

     "What did they do to you?" her mother asked and Valencia bit her bottom lip in nervousness.

     "A lot of things. And it hurt. A lot," she said, wondering if she should tell them about her powers.

     Probably best if I leave that part out.

     "But what did they want you to do?" Daniel asked.

     "If I tell you about all the things I had to do to keep you guys safe, you would never look at me the same ever again," Valencia replied. "None of you would be able to understand."

     "We may not understand but we can try," her mother said while grabbing her hand.

     "Mom, you don't get it. I hurt people. I killed people. And if I refused, they would've killed you all," Valencia said. She refused to look her mother and her brother in the eye after admitting what she did for HYDRA. How she kept them safe but at the expense of other people. "I failed this one mission and they were ready to send out someone after you but I told them to give me a second chance."

     She felt her mother rubbing her thumb over her hand as she kept her eyes glued to the table. She wasn't the same person they said goodbye to when she was driving to her interview. She had changed so much in three years and it was clear how much. As weird as it sounded, home didn't even feel like home anymore. After everything she went through, it felt like she didn't belong in her old house.

     "I can only imagine how hard it was to make those choices and face the aftermath. But now you're here and you don't have to do anything for them anymore," her mother said and all Valencia could do was nod, even though it didn't make her feel any less horrible about it.

     "I love you guys so much, but I can't stay," she said and her mother and brother looked at her.

     "Where are you gonna stay?" Daniel asked.

     "I'll be staying with a friend. Don't worry about me," Valencia said as she stood up. "I love you guys."

     Her brother stood up as well and hugged her tightly before pulling away. "I'll miss you," he said and Valencia chuckled.

     "I'll miss you too, you goober. Tell Jaden I love him and I'll see you guys again someday," she said right before Daniel went upstairs.

     She walked over to the door and her mother stood there with her arms crossed. It was clear that she was upset to see her daughter leave again and not know what was going to happen to her.

     "Valencia, I love you and I want you to do what you think is best, but why do you have to leave?" her mother asked.

     "I stayed away for a whole year to keep you guys safe from any former HYDRA agents who may have decided to follow me here. One of them did find me but I managed to lose him and I don't know where he is or what he's up to right now. Just being here is a risk but I wanted to face you guys before I go," Valencia explained and her mother nodded.

     "This friend of yours, are they taking you out of the city?" she asked.

     "I'll still be in New York but I can't tell you where. And before you ask, I can't tell you who this friend is either. It's better that you know as little as possible," Valencia said and her mother sighed sadly.

     "If your father were here right now, he would be beyond happy to see you," she said and Valencia played with her sleeves. "Please come back soon."

     "I will, Mom," Valencia said as she hugged her mother one more time.

     After a while, the two separated and Valencia walked out of the house. It was dark outside and the sky was black and it made her realize how long she had been there. She got inside the car and put her seat belt on while Steve started the engine.

     "How did it go in there?" he asked as he started driving back to the tower.

     Valencia sighed as she looked out the window. "My mom is okay and so are my brothers," she said.

     "What about your father?" Steve asked and Valencia bit the inside of her cheek.

     "He, uh . . . he died six months ago," she said as she blinked her tears away. "Carjacking."

     Steve sighed when he heard the crack in her voice. "I am so sorry," he said and Valencia shook her head.

     "My dad always believed in life after death. That day of the accident, he thought I was dead and then spent the next two years and a half still believing I was dead. I was back in New York for six months and he never knew. Nobody did. And the day he died, he probably thought he was going to see me again but he didn't because I was never dead. But HYDRA made him think I was dead. And six months later, he's dead," Valencia said as she looked down at her folded hands. "I crossed so many lines to keep them all safe but I still lost someone."

     "You did what you could and that was enough. Your mother and your brothers are still alive and if your father were still here, he would still love you after everything you did," Steve said and Valencia scoffed.

     "I guess I'll never know, will I?" she asked as she turned her head away from Steve to look out the window.

     The blonde super soldier sighed sadly as he drove them back to Avengers Tower. The whole car ride was silent and when they got back to the building, Valencia didn't even say a word as she grabbed her backpack and got out of the car. Steve was right behind her as they took the elevator to the floor where the common room was. Valencia wondered why Steve decided to take her there but she didn't bother to ask any questions. When they got there, Tony, Natasha, Sam and four other men she didn't recognize. One had dark hair and was wearing a pair of glasses, the second one had long blonde hair and was holding a huge hammer, the third one was standing there with a bow and a sheath of arrows on his back and the last one was dark skinned like Sam but with some older features. To have all the Avengers in the same room with her, three of them whom she tried to kill, made her a little uneasy but she buried that feeling.

     "Is she here to stay this time?" Tony asked and Valencia nodded.

     "She's here to stay," she said and Steve spoke up.

     "She's already a good fighter. She could fight with us instead of against us," he said.

     Sam cleared his throat and everyone turned to look at him. "This woman tried to kill three of us. Or did we suddenly forget?" he asked and Valencia smiled sarcastically.

     "I did what I had to do. Although I wasn't directly ordered to kill you, you just happened to be there," she said while looking at Sam.

     "Why does that not make me feel any better?" he asked and Valencia just laughed.

     "Three of you got your asses handed to you by this adorable little lady?" the blonde man with the hammer asked and Valencia narrowed her eyes at him while Sam looked at him like he was crazy.

     "Dude, she's not so adorable once you become her target," he said and Natasha sat up straight.

     "Try throwing your hammer at her and see what happens," she said with a smirk, challenging the man to make a move on the adorable little lady.

     The blonde scoffed as he looked at the brunette and then at Valencia who just stood there. "If you're feeling froggy, jump," she said.

     "And if you're feeling smart, don't," Sam replied.

     The blonde looked between them both and the corners of his mouth twitched until he was smirking. "Ribbit," he said before charging at Valencia with his hammer raised.

     She dropped her bag on the floor and charged at him as well with her right arm bent at the elbow as she lifted it. Just as the blonde man was about to strike her with his hammer, Valencia stretched her arm forward and created a force field that blocked it. The impact of the hammer against her shield created a loud but deep vibrating sound and the force was enough to knock him to the ground. Valencia dropped the shield and she didn't miss the smirk on Natasha's face when she saw the tall blonde man on the floor.

     "I thought you were supposed to be the almighty Thor, God of Thunder," the man with the bow and arrows teased the blonde man while he got up and looked at Valencia.

     "To be fair, Sam warned you," Steve said while holding back his own laugh.

     "How did you do that?" the man with the glasses asked.

     All Valencia could do was shrug her shoulders as everyone looked at her waiting for an answer. "I just think about it and it happens," she simply said.

     "So, you just create these psionic force fields with your mind?" he asked.

     "Yeah, pretty much," Valencia said.

     "What else can you do?" the man with the archery gear questioned with his arms crossed.

     "Do I look like a circus monkey to you?" Valencia asked.

     "She can make herself invisible," Natasha said and Valencia just rolled her eyes.

     "Yeah, that," she replied. "I'll just be heading out now."

     Valencia grabbed her backpack from the floor and rushed to the elevator before anyone could say another word. She sighed in relief once she was inside and pressed the button for the floor where her room was. If she was going to be staying at the Tower, she was going to have to get used to sleeping in the room Tony gave her. Once the elevator stopped and the doors opened, she headed over to her room and closed the door. Just like before, she left it open by three inches and put her bag down on the floor by the foot of the bed. After a while of just pacing around the room deep in thought, there was a knock on the door and Natasha was pushing it open further with one hand while carrying a pile of clothes in the other.

     "Tony figured you could use another pair of clothes. Actually, these are a few of my old clothes so they should fit you just fine. Also, those sweats look like they might have blood on them," the redhead said while pointing to the red stains around the waistband of Valencia's sweatpants.

     "It's actually red spray paint. Bird Brain sprayed me with it when he and Cap chased me down the streets," Valencia said as she stood there awkwardly with her hands in her pockets.

     "Were you invisible?" Natasha asked and Valencia nodded.

     "Thanks for the clothes, Romanoff. I know you're not really happy to have me here after everything I've done," she said.

     "I have no right to judge you. I did some pretty horrible things too but I don't like to talk about it. What I'm trying to say is that if anyone here knows what you're going through, it's me and I shouldn't have reacted the way I did when I saw you at the elevator today," Natasha said but Valencia shook her head.

     "I can't say I blame you. I mean, I was ordered to kill you for crying out loud," she said with a humourless chuckle but all Natasha could do was nod slowly. "Sorry, that was in poor taste."

     "Yeah, it was, but don't stress. Give it some time and everyone will forget all about it," she said while Valencia bit the inside of her cheek.

     She doubted that anybody was going to forget what she did, especially Sam. He still seemed pretty upset with her and it was completely justified. She figured that he was gonna hold that grudge against her for a long time now.