The eighty-third card: Hill said, "This trick never fails."

“Hey, Jarvis, what does this thing mean?”

“Uh, sir, I’m in the same situation as you. My current computational capacity isn’t enough to process your question, but when communicating with an unusual life form, it’s necessary to maintain a friendly attitude.”

Tony glanced at Wiccan, only to find the other equally baffled.

“Don’t look at me, this is my first time in such a scenario, too.”

Even as he spoke, Wiccan established a psychic link with Kel’Thuzad.

Meanwhile, in the SHIELD prison—

Maria Hill was interrogating Barton.

Three weeks had passed since the calamity at Manhattan. With the combined pressure from the military and Hill, and Pierce quietly exploiting every gap in SHIELD’s organizational structure, Nick Fury had become unusually calm.

He led his personally selected agents in a relentless hunt for Hydra, seeking to recruit every street hero he’d previously marked for observation. After Hill assumed command of the Helicarrier, she promptly brought it down to SHIELD’s Trident headquarters in Washington.

Likewise, Maria Hill worked to recruit everyone she deemed worthy.

Elsewhere, through the light of Barton’s soul, Roald observed the resolute acting director, as the influence of the Mind Stone gradually spread from Barton to Hill and the agents in the room.

“Mr. Barton, are you a Hydra agent?”

“No.”

“Then are you still a SHIELD agent?”

“Yes.”

“You must have other hidden identities.”

“I won’t deny it.”

Hill looked at Barton’s file, clearly frustrated—the information was so scant she had little interest in reading it, yet its sparseness was suspicious in itself.

The possibility of Barton being Hydra was under consideration. If she wanted to recruit him, Hill also sought to determine whether he was a member and thereby deduce secrets about the organization behind him.

Just as her own identity wasn’t straightforward, neither was Barton’s.

Despite the interrogation, Hill continually observed Barton’s micro-expressions, using casual questions to gauge his state. Yet Barton, with his tangled allegiances, was so cooperative from the outset that it struck her as odd.

“Agent Barton, I’ve reviewed your file, so let’s cut to the chase. If you aren’t Hydra, why did you steal the Tesseract? You saved Rogers, but does that prove you have no connection to Hydra?”

“I know nothing about Hydra. I was controlled by Natasha, and most importantly, what is the Tesseract?!”

While Barton spoke, Roald, through the Mind Stone, made sure every agent in the room heard Barton whisper,

“Hail Hydra.”

Soon, Barton was compelled to make several subtle hand gestures; the Mind Stone’s suggestion quickly began to sway the agents present.

“Exposure, cover, secrecy!”

The Hydra agents in the room saw and heard it.

Though Hill was intelligent and composed, aware that Pierce was Hydra’s kingpin within SHIELD, she was still new to her role as acting director, standing in for Nick Fury, and as a senior agent, she had no real grasp of the extent of Hydra’s infiltration.

Even with her keen mind, she couldn’t have guessed that the pilot flying her daily jet, the technicians running the Helicarrier’s systems, the janitors scrubbing the floors, and over eighty percent of those standing in this room were Hydra.

After all, Pierce had spent years cultivating Hydra within SHIELD, and Hill had only recently taken over. Her ignorance was understandable.

Hill and Nick Fury alike were lone operatives embedded deep within Hydra’s upper echelons.

The agents in the room saw Barton’s hand signals and exchanged quick, meaningful glances.

These Hydra agents actually hoped Barton was one of them—a Hawkeye in Hydra, plus Stark, plus Natasha. What a dream team! Their missions would become much easier.

With heavyweights leading the charge, the small fry would no longer be cannon fodder.

Wonderful.

For now, their priority was to ensure Barton’s Hydra identity remained hidden.

His hand signals indicated he was on a secret mission on the Helicarrier, needing cover.

The Hydra agents exchanged satisfied looks, their gaze toward Barton now filled with a congenial warmth.

Hill sensed the atmosphere had shifted—what had been a tense interrogation now felt almost familial. She felt like an outsider at someone else’s family gathering, an uninvited guest intruding on a private celebration.

She grew wary.

At first, she thought she might glean something from Barton. Even though she suspected some connection between him and Hydra, after considering Pierce, she realized Barton’s return must have a purpose—either a task from Pierce or another organization.

With this realization, Hill felt more at ease. Barton was likely affiliated with multiple intelligence agencies; otherwise, as an ordinary person, no matter how skilled an archer, he couldn’t have entered SHIELD so easily. There had to be some backroom deals.

Hill decided her focus shouldn’t be on Barton’s identity, but on demonstrating her own sincerity.

Thinking of how she’d report back and spar with Pierce, she decided to let Barton act freely for now—it would be easier to unearth his motives and the organization behind him. Tossing Barton’s file into the shredder, she took a seat beside him.

“Agent Barton, I believe we have some things to discuss.”

Hill’s face broke into a smile.

“Please, go ahead.”

Barton smiled as well.

The agents in the room smiled, too.

“Let me be straightforward. I don’t care what your identity is. I’ll find proof for everything you claim myself, because I don’t believe your identity matters much to me!”

“Yes, Ms. Hill, identity isn’t really that important.”

“Excellent. I’ve just disabled every possible communication device in this room. From now on, no one will know what we’re discussing. I have a proposal.”

“What do you mean?”

Barton looked at Hill, and the others watched her as well.

“I’ve discussed some matters with Pierce regarding your infiltration plan.”

Hill’s words were, of course, a gambit.

“Rest assured, Mr. Barton. I know your identity is top-secret and that you’re backed by multiple organizations, just like Director Pierce. So whoever contacts you must be high-level. Nick Fury is outside, unaware of what’s happening here, so I’ll do everything I can to help you escape your current predicament. You needn’t pretend with me. And if you ask why—”

Hill paused to glance around. The Hydra agents instinctively looked at her.

She quickly sized up her subordinates, discerning their affiliations.

Then, she walked over to Barton and, so everyone could hear, declared,

“Hail Hydra!”

Not only Barton, but all the agents in the room were stunned.

“???”

Roald, on the other side, was equally bewildered.

This was Hill’s probing counterattack.