"Right." He draws a slow, careful breath, a deliberate one, trying to remember what Shuri had told him about how to steady himself when facing the past.
It's hard. They've only been working on it for a few weeks, along with everything else.
"The words." He doesn't want to, but he makes himself look up at her anyway. He can't hide from this. He did it. He has to own it. To accept it.
"HYDRA's control words. They - everything they'd put inside my mind was still there, Sharon. It's why I hid from Steve in the first place. I knew something like that would happen if they ever got their hands on me."
He draws another breath; holds it, just for a second. It doesn't help. His ears are ringing, and he can almost hear Zemo's voice in the distance, as though through thick glass.
"Zemo knew them. He had the book. The -- the manual. To the Winter Soldier. To me. All he had to do was read them out."
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It's hard. They've only been working on it for a few weeks, along with everything else.
"The words." He doesn't want to, but he makes himself look up at her anyway. He can't hide from this. He did it. He has to own it. To accept it.
"HYDRA's control words. They - everything they'd put inside my mind was still there, Sharon. It's why I hid from Steve in the first place. I knew something like that would happen if they ever got their hands on me."
He draws another breath; holds it, just for a second. It doesn't help. His ears are ringing, and he can almost hear Zemo's voice in the distance, as though through thick glass.
"Zemo knew them. He had the book. The -- the manual. To the Winter Soldier. To me. All he had to do was read them out."