It was almost midnight, as a young woman, who had fled Sterling City's police custody, came to Central City and met with a former scientist in his apartment downtown. From the window, she observed the darkened street with her bow at the ready.
"Are you sure this poison is going to work?" she questioned the man, who stood behind her.
"Give it a go and watch." He told her, with a sneer.
She dipped one of her arrows into the jar that contained a distinct-looking red chemical and she loaded her bow. She lined up a target, a shady looking man. She took aim and fired.
She watched as her victim fell to the floor. A random woman with a husband checked to see that the man was ok.
He instantly admired the random woman. But it wasn't love, it was pure obsession. He began to bash her husband senseless. Until he was curled up on the floor cringing.
The woman pulled out her phone and started to call the cops.
"Baby! I love you! Don't call the cops!" The stranger told her. She attempted to flee to safety with the man close at heel, out of the bow wielder's sight.
A smile formed across the face of the one holding the bow. She turned to the scientist behind her. "This chemical is perfect." She told him.
"It should be. It's been tested on meta-humans too. So the concentration is worth it's weight in gold. It's yours if you have the cash, miss...? You never gave your name." He replied.
She aimed an arrow to his head. "Call me, Cupid! Stupid! Oh, wait you can't!" she said, letting her arrow loose, right into the middle of the man's forehead, killing him where he stood.
The next morning, Barry ran on his cosmic treadmill, attempting to test out the limits of his speed. The past two weeks had proven that he and Cisco could take charge of everything, without a hitch when it came to protecting the city and running a large corporation, while Caitlin was on her honeymoon and Astrid… if the news reports were correct… got married to Oliver Queen.
He was shocked that Astrid had not told either one of them that she was getting married. But he figured that she would have had her reasons.
Barry had also managed to patch things up with Iris and his brother, Eddie Thawne. Who, as of a week ago, had moved in together. The thought that Iris and Eddie had become this serious, distracted Barry, making him trip over his own feet and fly backwards, into the wall behind him.
"Oh my god! Barry! You just ran 400,000 k's in only two minutes!" Cisco exclaimed excitedly, as he assisted Barry to his feet. "That's amazing! A new record! And you didn't even break a sweat, my hombre!" He gave Barry a high five.
The two of them walked back towards Cisco's computer to log in the data. "If you keep that up, you'll be travelling to alternate worlds, in no time!" Cisco said excitedly.
"Cisco, for the last time, it is impossible to run so fast that I cause a breach to some alternate dimension. But something tells me that this is less about me, and more about you... You're distracting yourself over that news report, the other day. You will have to speak to her sooner or later. She gets back today." Barry told him.
"I have no idea what you are talking about!" Cisco replied, as he flicked his dark hair behind his ear and continued typing.
"Do you know that you're not a great liar? But I will let it slide this time." Barry replied.
"Thank you. That's all I ask. Anyway, have you heard back from our other girl, Caitlin? Isn't she supposed to get back today too?"
"No I haven't. But like I said before, she is on her honeymoon. I don't expect her to call us. Or for that matter even come in early on her first day back." Barry said.
"It's Caitlin. The girl lives to work. She hasn't had a day off since she had that stomach bug seven years ago. And she hasn't been late to work since… actually I don't think she has ever come in late! Barry, do you want a coffee? I'm going to Jitters." Cisco finished.
Barry checked his phone, one missed call and a message from Joe.
'Come to Wright St, Downtown. Now!'
"I would love to take you up on your offer, Cisco. But I'm heading downtown. Gotta work!" Barry said. He left ahead of Cisco, knowing full well that he was running late again. He swore that this time Singh might actually kill him for being late.
"Joe, Eddie... Captain Singh. What's the sitch?" he asked them.
"Sitch, Barry?" Singh asked, "We have no time for your hip lingo right, now. We are trying to work. And now that you are… wow, ten minutes late… I would like for you to do your job!"
He held up a large arrow and examined the tip. "The story was that a man was struck by this and then attacked a young couple that came to help. I think Sterling City's vigilante is in town."
Barry raised his eyebrows. Surely, he would have known if Oliver had come to town. But he couldn't rule it out. "Any information on the attacker?" Barry asked Singh.
But Joe answered him, instead. "Reports say that he chased the woman after beating her husband to death. Both of them have gone missing and we suspect a kidnapping."
"So Barry, I need you to do your job and identify the DNA on this arrow." Singh added, "If we can find out who he is, we may be able to work out why the Arrow was after him. Joe, we need you to call Sterling City. Get them to send over any reports that they may have on their Robin Hood vigilante. I want him out of my city immediately!"
As Joe drove Barry and Eddie to CCPD, he turned up the car radio. "…Sterling City's officers are on the hunt for an escaped criminal who calls herself Cupid. They ask everyone to be on the lookout for a woman aged in her mid-twenties, with dark red hair and carrying a bow and arrow…This woman is considered highly unstable and dangerous..."
"I think that rules out the Arrow." Joe told them.
Barry agreed, and knew the perfect place to get answers, "Joe, do you mind taking me to STAR Labs?" he asked.
"Why STAR Labs?" Eddie asked him. "We have the same equipment at the station."
"They have an extensive database on meta-human DNA." Barry lied. "The DNA could belong to a meta. I want to rule out that option."
Joe agreed, and drove him to the facility.