"How dare you?"
Using the authority granted by Alexander Pierce, Sitwell temporarily blocked the surveillance feed to the detention cell for a few minutes.
Furious and with a trace of panic, he glared at the bewildered Stern in front of him and demanded, "Are you tired of living? Do you want to drag all of us down with you?"
"You damn bastard! Do you have any idea how many people in HYDRA have worked tirelessly for decades? Our great 'Hole Killing' plan could fail because of you!"
"Damn it! How could you admit to being HYDRA in front of Natasha Romanoff and Maria Hill? And even reveal the location of the HYDRA base in Sokovia?"
"Do you know how much we'll lose because of your stupidity?"
As Sitwell's accusations rained down, the orange glint in Stern's eyes gradually faded, and clarity returned to his gaze.
"What... what happened?"
It was as if he had just woken up. Seeing a familiar face, Senator Stern was about to speak when Sitwell's angry tirade triggered a flood of memories.
In an instant, the interrogation by Natasha Romanoff and Maria Hill, including everything he had said during it, came rushing back to his mind.
Senator Stern was instantly stunned, as if struck by lightning.
"Damn it, why are you just standing there? Stern, what the hell were you thinking, you bastard? Do you want to bury us all?" Sitwell slammed the table in front of Stern and growled in a low voice.
"I…" Stern looked at the furious, panicked Sitwell, opening and closing his mouth in confusion, unable to form a coherent sentence for a long time.
A moment later, Stern suddenly broke down, smashing his head against the table in despair.
Damn it! What did I say back there? How could I expose myself as HYDRA right inside S.H.I.E.L.D.!
No... wait! That wasn't me! The person who said those things wasn't me!
"Talk! What were you trying to accomplish?" Seeing Senator Stern's emotional collapse, a cold glint flashed in Sitwell's eyes.
"I don't know... I'm sorry, Mr. Sitwell. I don't know why I said those things," Stern said, clutching Sitwell's sleeve like a drowning man grasping at a straw. "Damn it, it must have been those two who interrogated me!"
"Mr. Sitwell, please believe me! I would never dare to betray HYDRA! I truly wouldn't dare! Everything I have now was given to me by HYDRA. Even if I kept quiet, HYDRA might have rescued me once this blew over. So how could I possibly betray HYDRA?"
"Mr. Sitwell, it must be their doing! It has to be! You have to believe me! I did not betray HYDRA!"
Watching Senator Stern clutching his sleeve and pleading hysterically, Sitwell's anger and fear of being implicated began to waver.
Stern's current expression didn't seem feigned. And logically, he had no reason to betray HYDRA.
Although the evidence against him was solid, and he had been arrested by S.H.I.E.L.D., once public attention faded, HYDRA could find a way to rescue him—perhaps even fake his death. This wasn't the first time HYDRA had done something like that; anyone high-ranking in HYDRA knew this.
So, logically, Stern wouldn't have been so disheartened as to blow his own cover and reveal the Sokovia base.
Could it really have been the work of Natasha Romanoff and Maria Hill during the interrogation?
But according to Mr. Pierce, who had watched the interrogation feed from outside, Natasha and Maria hadn't even asked any pressing questions—Stern had just confessed everything voluntarily.
Yet now...
Sitwell pulled his sleeve free from Stern's grasp. The surveillance blackout time was almost up. Even though the guards here were HYDRA agents, to avoid raising suspicions from someone like Nick Fury, it was better not to stay too long.
"Remember, don't say anything you shouldn't say again!" Sitwell shot Stern a stern warning, then turned and left.
Damn it! If we kill this fool now, Nick Fury will definitely suspect there are HYDRA moles within S.H.I.E.L.D. He might already be suspicious.
Sigh! This time, we'll probably have to sacrifice a lot of pawns to quell Fury's doubts.
Damn you, Stern!
"Mr. Sitwell! You must believe me! This was definitely those two women's doing! I have always been loyal..." As the detention room door closed, Stern's desperate cries were cut off.
Sitwell's face was grim. He nodded to the guards and left.
A few seconds after Sitwell departed, the surveillance feed was restored. Everything returned to normal, as if nothing had happened.
Inside Alexander Pierce's Office
"What did you say?" Frowning, Alexander Pierce listened to Sitwell's report of his conversation with Stern. "You mean Stern seemed... mentally unstable?"
"Yes, sir. It was as if he had split into another personality," Sitwell speculated. "Otherwise, it doesn't make sense. He's a veteran of HYDRA; he knows our methods. No one in their right mind would foolishly blow their own cover and commit suicide."
"From the moment I entered the room until he 'woke up,' his demeanor was completely different. He begged me for help and was on the verge of an emotional collapse when he recalled 'truthfully' exposing himself. It didn't seem acted."
"As for the interrogation by Romanoff and Hill, you watched the feed yourself. That rules out the possibility of them forcing it out of him."
At this point, Sitwell hesitated before adding, "So, sir, other than this theory, I can't think of any other reasonable explanation."
After listening to Sitwell's report, Alexander Pierce was momentarily dumbfounded.
"So, you're telling me we were betrayed by a guy with a split personality?"
"Damn it! Why did he have to develop a second personality now, of all times?"
As ridiculous as the reason sounded, Alexander Pierce found himself unable to come up with a more plausible explanation.
Why would that idiot Stern blow his own cover inside a S.H.I.E.L.D. teeming with HYDRA agents?
Damn it! As a top HYDRA leader, Alexander Pierce refused to believe that Stern was unaware S.H.I.E.L.D. was infested with HYDRA—it was practically called the "HYDRA Shield Bureau" for a reason!
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(TL : More Chapters @)[1]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/c/Gooberilla