Bucky nodded and went to finish getting ready. Because he'd be damned if he wasn't going to be armed when he left to get Liz.

"I'm fine," Hillary said. "Go wait for Barnes. I'll contact Steve and see if we can't get a plan together."

"Alright," Liz said, picking up her bag. "Let me know what ends up happening, okay? I'll sleep easier if I know he's around."

Steve watched Bucky go and then let out a breath, picking up his phone to text Hillary.

Bucky's heading over to take Liz somewhere safe. Do you need somewhere to go too? I can do that.

"I will," Hillary promised. She grabbed for her phone when it buzzed at her.

I would rather not leave my apartment for a couple more days. If I have to, then it has to be when nobody can see me. She paused, and then sent another message. Though I would feel better if you were around.

I can be there. I can hang out at the apartment, or outside. Whatever you're comfortable with. Steve was quick to assure her. He knew when Bucky left because Jarvis alerted him. Just let me know what you want, I can be ready to go soon.

I'd like it if you were here. Besides, it's probably about time you see me like this anyways. Hillary curled up a bit more on the couch, setting her phone on top of one of her coils and waiting for him.

I can be there in twenty minutes. Steve offered, already going to get some things thrown together so he could go.

The door will be locked. Text me when you get here. That way, Hillary could be reasonably sure it wasn't reporters or anyone else trying to get in.

Will do. Steve finished putting together his bag and left, knowing he'd get there shortly after Bucky.

Liz was ready to go, just waiting on Bucky. "Steve coming over?" she asked, looking at Hillary.

"Yeah," Hillary said. "He'll be here soon. If you leave before he gets here, lock the door behind you?"

"I will. Bucky should be here any minute, so I'll lock the door." Liz looked at her. "You sure you'll be okay?"

"I'll be fine," Hillary said firmly. "Let me know once you're safe."

Bucky got there right about then and pounded on the door once with his fist.

"Liz," he called through the door. "Come on. Let's go."

"I will." Liz gave her a quick hug before she picked up her bag and left, locking the door behind her. She was still anxious, but not as distressed as earlier.

Hillary returned the hug and let Liz leave. Then she settled in to wait for Steve to arrive.

Bucky gave Liz a once-over as soon as she was out the door. He was relieved to see that she was alright.

"Come on," he said. "You can stay with me until we find you a good safe house."

"Won't take long, I'm sure," Liz said with a little shrug. "Not the first time I've had to move like this." Not that she liked it, but she was at least kind of used to it.

Bucky nodded. He would make sure to find her a safe place. He ignored the little voice in his head that whispered to just keep her close. She would be safer out of the public eye, and the tower was not good for staying out of sight.

He led her outside, making sure to check for any sort of threats as they went. He couldn't be too paranoid, after all.

They had gotten a dozen blocks or so when the back of Liz's neck tingled with the feeling of being watched. And that was all the warning she got before three sharp cracks split the air, and three spots of blood stained her back; her chest, her stomach, and one stray shot that had gotten her hip instead of its intended target.

People around them screamed at the gunshots and moved, and Liz went down, gasping.

Bucky was whipping around as soon as the first shot rang out. He had his handgun out and was returning fire before he even knew what he was doing, but his attention was grabbed again when Liz went down. Spots of white-hot pain bloomed across his own back, but years of pain conditioning let him ignore them for the moment.

"Liz!" He caught her just before she hit the ground. The two spots on her back were the most worrying, and he immediately picked her up and got them out of the open. He needed a safe spot right the fuck now. Instantly, he was the Winter Soldier, and he was analyzing their surroundings to find the best route out and away.

Liz kept her eyes open, watched the shift from Bucky to Winter Soldier, but she didn't protest. Not now. Instead she watched the rifle from the now-dead assassin fall to the ground, and didn't feel bad about that at all.

Instead she focused on keeping as still and as quiet as she could, her Extremis working overtime to keep her alive with the bullets still in her. Too close, they were too close to vital organs, and they needed to be safe before they could dig the bullets out.

It didn't take the Winter Soldier long to figure out a route, and he headed off to the safest place in the area he could think of. A few minutes later, he was carrying her up the fire escape of Steve's old apartment and opening the window.

Liz finally made a quiet, pained little noise once they were in the apartment. Fortunately, it didn't look like anyone was living there currently, so at least they didn't have to worry about that. Her face was white and she had a death grip on her own bunched-up shirt.

The Winter Soldier settled her on the couch and disappeared for a moment. He reappeared with what looked like a professional-grade medical kit.

"Stay still," he said, opening the kit and carefully moving her so he could see her back. He lifted her shirt to get a look at the gunshots. The wounds were half-closed already. "This will hurt."

"Go for it." Liz knew what he had to do, and she grabbed a pillow to bite on. Hard. Because this was going to hurt a lot, since her Extremis was closing the wounds around the bullets.

But hey, at least someone wouldn't have to go digging later on.

The Winter Soldier nodded and went to work. He clung to the cold, deadened personality as long as he could; it allowed him to do what needed to be done to get the bullets out of Liz, and the Winter Soldier was conditioned to ignore pain, so he could keep working even as fresh agony lit up across his back again. Finally, he got all three bullets out and bandaged her up.

Liz was even paler by then, but she stayed still as he stitched and dressed her wounds, not making a sound. Okay, that had been bad, even with Extremis healing. Maybe because of Extremis healing. She carefully shifted so she was laying on her stomach once he was done, turning her head to look at him.

He methodically cleaned up and packed up the medical kit. By the time it was put away, he had thawed back into Barnes, if not all the way back to Bucky.

"Doing alright?" he asked as he grabbed some blankets out of a closet and carefully put one over her.