CHAPTER NINE:
❝︎Control Her❞︎

TONY SAT THERE WITH HIS EYEBROWS FURROWED AND HIS LIPS PURSED AS HE LOOKED AT THE CASE THAT HAD BEEN LOCKED AWAY FOR AS LONG AS HE COULD REMEMBER. They were preparing to leave, to go and find Eloise, and he just wanted to stop by his lab and fix his suit up a little bit. But he forced himself to come to a sudden stop when he saw the silver case that now lay open and empty, a trace of blood could be found on the lock. He didn't know how long it was that he had been standing there and staring, but before he knew it Theodora was making her way into the room.

"Tony? What are you doing? We're leaving." Theodora frowned as she entered his lab. The woman's voice was a little shakier than she'd like to admit, but the woman was worried. She was scared how this mission was going to turn out. She was scared that HYDRA had done something bad to her bestfriend, and all she wanted was to be able to take Eloise from their grasp, and reverse whatever it was that they had done to her. Theodora knew better than to believe they had left her unharmed. She was an Avenger for one, and she was the girlfriend of the infamous Tony Stark. There wasn't a doubt in her mind that they were putting her through hell, and that's why she couldn't help but clench her jaw as Tony continued to simply just stand there.

Tony didn't answer her. Instead, he just shook his head as he ran a hand over the case. The case in which he'd been told to not mess with several times by Eloise. He had never known what it was that was inside of it, only that it was her parent's work. Something that Eloise herself didn't care to know about, which is why she only allowed for two people in the building to have access to. And that was Bruce Banner and Rosalynn Stone. He wanted to believe that they had been the ones to open the case, but one thing he also knew was that the only way to open this case, was Eloise's blood. Something her parents had placed in her DNA in order to keep their work protected, and that was how he knew that Rosalynn and Bruce hadn't even so much as glanced at the case.

"Tony, are you hearing me?" He finally turned his head to look at Theodora, the woman having been talking to him the entire time, and yet he hadn't heard a single word that had fallen from her lips. And she noticed that as soon as he looked at her. She let out an annoyed huff, tightly closing her eyes before letting out a breath and placing her hands on her hips as she looked at him. "What? What is it?" Tony shook his head. "Jesus, Anthony, tell me what the hell is going on and why you have that look on your face."

"I think she was here."

Theodora furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, opening and closing her mouth for a second before she crossed her arms over her chest, shaking her head. "What are you talking about? Who was here?"

"El. She was here." Tony told her. Theodora watched as his jaw clenched. For a moment, she thought that he was simply trying to convince himself that HYDRA didn't have her, but the longer that Theodora stared at him, she realized that he really believed that. She realized that there was more to his words than what he was telling her. That's when her eyes narrowed in on the opened case, along with the small blood spot that had been placed there. Her shoulders suddenly tensed as she swallowed thickly, shaking her head.

"Tony, you don't really believe. . ."

"She was here, Theodora." Tony sternly told her. He narrowed his eyes at her for a moment. "You know as well as I do what this case it. It was her parents work. She never knew what was inside of it, she never told me, and assuming by that look on your face she never told you either. The only people that have permission to access this are Bruce and Rosalynn but―︎"

"Even then, they have to have her blood." Theodora whispered, catching on. "So, what? She came in here, stole her own family's work, and walked out without anyone seeing her? That's impossible. . . right?"

"Something tells me that HYDRA's already done something to her, that's why we didn't know she had ever stepped foot in the building."

Theodora stepped closer to the case, narrowing her eyes at it for a moment before pulling a glove from one of her hands. Tony stopped her. "Theo."

"I have to know." Theodora whispered, tears in her eyes. "I need to know that it was her, that she's alive." She looked at him and nodded. "And so do you."

Tony knew how much Theodora hated her powers, and he knew how much her own powers had scarred her. But he also knew that he couldn't stop her from using them, even if there was another way. A sigh left his lips as he reluctantly let go of her wrist. Theodora pulled the glove from her hand, clutching it in her other hand before taking the ungloved hand and gently laying it ontop of the case. A gasp fell from her lips as images passed before her eyes.

Eloise grabbed onto the case, carefully looking around as she placed it gently on the table. Bring her finger up to her mouth, she bit it, allowing blood to seep through the mark. Her black and silver hair caught Theodora's eyes, and Eloise's usually dark brown eyes were an icicle blue. Her teeth were sharp, and her hair was shorter. She watched as Eloise pressed her finger against the lock, smirking as it immediately popped open. She grabbed what was inside of the case before walking away.

Theodora pulled away, a tear trickling down her cheek. Tony looked at her with worry. "What happened? Was it her?"

"It was her alright." Theodora whispered. "She looks so different. I don't know what they did to her. . . but whatever it is, she took what was in the case and left. She's bringing her parents work to them. Why would she do that?"

"Because, I don't think Eloise is in control of her mind." The voice of Liliya entered the room, grabbing their attention. "I think HYDRA's trying to do to her what they did to Bucky. I think they're trying to control her. And if you don't want that to happen, we gotta move. Now."