Up until now, Steve couldn't think of a time when Fury's intel had ever been so wrong. They'd had missions with faulty intel before, but it was never this wrong. While he trusted Fury to not intentionally send them into a death trap, he was starting to wonder how the man could have possibly given them such bad intel.

"Did you give Tony our location?" Natasha asked from across the room.

"He knows we're east of Berlin," Steve told her, "but I didn't give him exact coordinates. I thought you said you had a tracker."

Steve raised an eyebrow at her and Natasha pursed her lips.

"It's jammed," she said. "I activated it as soon as you left for the hotel, but nothing's come through. We're on our own."

"Nat," Steve groaned. This mission wasn't certainly not going as well as it should have.

"It's not my fault," she snapped. Steve sent her an irritated look and she rolled her eyes. "It's never jammed before. I thought it would work."

"You thought Hydra wouldn't have a signal jammer?" Steve retorted, narrowing his eyes.

"Shut up," she hissed. "Next time, you can call for help and I'll just blow the place up. Maybe things will go better."

Steve rolled his eyes and the room fell silent.

Across the room, Natasha adjusted the makeshift bandage around her leg and eventually dozed off. Her sleep was fitful and she never did fall asleep, but what little rest she was able to get was sure to help.

Steve, however, couldn't have dozed off even if he wanted to. He was just waiting for Schmidt to return and as time passed, the anxiety in his chest only grew.

While Natasha attempted to sleep, he fiddled with the chains around his wrists and tried to find a way to unlock them. After several unsuccessful tries, he slumped against the wall in defeat. Minutes later, the door to their cell opened and three men walked in. Even though Schmidt wasn't with them, Steve doubted the three men were there to be their friends. 

Stopping in front of Steve, the first man hummed. "What is America's Golden Boy doing with Russia's Best Assassin? You were forced into it, yes?"

The only answer Steve gave the man was a hard stare.

The man glanced at one of the agents who had come in with him and the agent moved forward. As Steve looked up to face him, he was met with a knife and groaned as it sliced across his cheek. The agent stepped back and the first man stepped forward, grabbing Steve's face and pressing his thumb into the fresh cut.

"Let me make one thing clear," the man said softly. "I am not here to play games. I am here to get answers and for every one you do not answer, we'll make your stay a little less enjoyable. Understand?"

"Yes, sir," Steve replied mockingly. The man's eyes narrowed but he stepped back and released his hold on Steve's face which he was grateful for.

"Let me ask again," the man said, "how did America's Golden Boy become partners with Russia's Greatest Assassin?"

"The Avengers," Steve answered, "She introduced me to saving the world."

The man barked. He turned away from Steve to look at Natasha on the other side of the room. Beside her, the second agent stood with a knife at his side. Natasha seemed much less bothered by it than Steve was.

"Saving the world now, Romanova?" the man taunted. He laughed under his breath. "I never pegged you for the compassionate type."

"I never pegged you for someone's goon," Natasha replied.

The agent's reaction was immediate. Without so much as a nod from the man questioning them, he dragged the knife across her arm and Natasha inhaled sharply. From where he sat opposite her, Steve could see blood colour her shirt sleeve and trickle down her arm.

"Save the smart comments," the man snarled and this time Natasha did. "How did you find us?"

"Hydra has never been able to hide from us," Natasha replied shortly. "You aren't stronger even with the KGB's aid."

The man sighed and motioned at the agent beside her. Bringing his foot up, he slammed his boot into Natasha's chest and she choked back a cry of pain as her back hit the wall.

Turning back to Steve, the man asked, "What are you doing here, Mr. Rogers?"

On the other side of the room, the agent rammed his boot into Natasha's chest again and she grit her teeth painfully. 

"Stop hurting her." Steve glared up at the man in front of him, but the man didn't call off his soldier. "I won't answer until you call him off."

"We both know that isn't true," the man said, shaking his head patronizingly. "I'll call off my man when you give me an answer. What are you two doing here?"

When Steve refused to answer, the man crossed his arms and barked out a command to his soldier. While the man didn't turn to make sure his order was followed, the agent beside Natasha moved without hesitation.

Crouching down beside Natasha, the agent found the bullet wound in her thigh and pulled out his knife. Steve's eyes widened, but his cry of protest was muffled by Natasha's scream as the agent's knife was buried in the old wound.

"Stop," Steve gasped, looking up at the man.

"Answer the question," the man prompted, "and he will."

Steve faltered. His eyes flickered over to Natasha, but her eyes were closed tightly and she was breathing heavily. The agent's knife was still in her leg and he didn't seem eager to remove it. At a muttered command from the man, however, the agent pulled out his knife only to plunge it right back into the wound.

This time when Natasha screamed, Steve didn't bite his tongue.

"We came to gather information," Steve rushed to say, "and to see if Hydra really was working with the KGB."

Natasha looked up and glared fiercely at Steve. Even as the knife was withdrawn and the agent stood back up, she looked furious with him for having answered.

"Where did you get your information?" the man demanded. "Only those high up know about the alliance. How did you discover it?"

"It was just a hint," Steve lied easily. "Someone gave us the tip. We thought it was just a small operation."

The man clicked his tongue and shook his head. "You are a liar, Steve Rogers. Hydra does not favour liars."

Turning away from Steve, the man first addressed the agent beside Natasha and then the one beside Steve. To Steve's relief, the agent beside Natasha moved to follow the man towards the door. The agent beside Steve, however, did not.

"Emile will show you what Hydra does to liars," the man told him. He knocked twice on the door and gave Steve a vicious smile. "When I return, I expect more cooperation."