Kara could hear her heart thrumming in her ears. It blocked out the world around her, she couldn't hear anything except her erratic pulse. She flexed her fingers, they rubbed against cool metal which stung her fingertips as they traced over an engraving lining the edge. Her eyes fogged over and her head started to feel heavy, it felt as though she was going to pass out.
Hard gravel and rock dug into her bare knees, she tried to focus on the pain to keep her awake. Kara's body shook as she tried to bite back the wave of nausea she felt when she pulled a little too hard on her restraints.
Faintly she heard voices coming her way, heavy footsteps drowning out most of what they were saying. She fought back the wave of dizziness she was feeling at trying to open her eyes. Kara knew that fighting was no longer an option, but giving up was out of the equation.
She slowly lifted her head and tried to show no fear to her captors. Kara drew from the strength of Supergirl, she set her shoulders back and let her eyes turn cold and distant. Her jaw flexed as a piece of hair dropped in front of her face, she tried to look as fierce as possible.
"Look at her, trying to act tough when she can't even move." One of the men standing in front of her chuckled and shook his head, "I bet we can get a pretty penny for some photos of her like this. But first we gotta do the video."
"You sure this will get her to send the money?" A smaller man stepped into Kara's sight, he was shaking and kept glancing towards her with a little fear in his eyes. She knew instantly that this was their weak link.
"Lena Luthor would do anything to save her precious little hero. Too bad she won't ever see her again." The bulkier of the two started to walk away, throwing a small camcorder to the other man. "Don't forget anything, we can't afford to fuck this up."
"Of-of course." His hands shook as he tried to open up the screen and not drop it. Who we have, what we want-the money, where we will pick it up, and no police. Kara could hear him mumbling over and over again.
"I take it you want me to stay silent during this whole speech of yours?" Kara bit back a smile as she could tell that her question through him off. "Am I suppose to look broken?"
"Would you shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" He gripped the recorder tighter and hit his hand against his thigh with each word.
Kara watched this man spiral out of control in front of her eyes, she almost felt sorry for him. She wondered if he was part of their crew, or if her was like her-an unwilling participant. From the few minutes she had spent with him, Kara had learned close to nothing about him, except that he was not the one in charge.
"Don't say anything," Kara looked up to see him staring directly at her. "If you start talking, I will have to start all over again. The longer this takes, the angrier he will get. So stay quiet."
His hands had stopped shaking and his voice was steadier than before. He appeared to be more in control now. Fear finally started to creep in as Kara realized that she wasn't going to be able to talk her way out of this with him.
"You may have realized by now, that your precious Supergirl has gone missing. I have some great news for you Ms. Luthor. I have her," He faced the camera towards her, "in some-what perfect health. She can stay alive and well, as long as you do as I say. Simple really. The basic no police rule, and this includes the oh so respectable DEO. Only you are to handle any and all exchanges, not even an assistant will be able to know about our little deal."
He kept the camera focused on her, a smile started to spread across his face, "So, Lena Luthor, will you save your hero? Your best friend? Your fiancé? Kara Danvers."
Kara tried to hide the panic that came over her. Her head started spinning and questions raced through her mind. Blackness clouded her vision and her mouth became dry. Kara couldn't stop herself from passing out from the pain and shock. A head of blonde hair lulled to the side covering most of her face.
The man slid the disc that contained proof that they did indeed have Supergirl in their possession as well as a letter containing the amount they want and where to drop the money off at. He took his time carefully writing out LENA LUTHOR on the front of the envelope. The only thing left to do was get it into the hands of the CEO.
They left it on her desk, right on top of all of her files, demanding to be opened. That is where Lena found it the next morning, standing out against the stacks of white paper covering her desk. It felt as though the letters were screaming at her. She kept glancing over to it throughout the entire morning meeting, something was telling her that the contents were nothing but darkness.
She toyed with the seal, debating if she was willing to open it herself or not. Lena knew that it was potentially the most foolish thing she had ever done, but she slid her nail underneath the flap and opened the envelop up anyways. She held her breath waiting to see what doom waited for her that day. Lena titled the envelop upside down and out slid the container holding the video and the folded letter. She eyed both with caution, afraid of the damage they could cause to either her or any of her systems.
Lena disconnected her laptop from the building wifi and made sure there was enough firewalls up to protect any and all data on her computer. The disc slid in smoothly. Her screen was nothing but blackness for the first five seconds, followed by a man's face too close to the camera. Her breath started to catch the more he talked, when he showed Supergirl on her knees completely defeated her heart broke.
"So, Lena Luthor, will you save your hero? Your best friend? Your fiancé? Kara Danvers."
Her eyes snapped back up to the screen at his words, she had to rewind it to make sure she had heard correctly. When she had listened it for the ninth time, she knew there was no mistaking what he had said. Lena had her suspicious that Kara and Supergirl were one in the same, but she never had confirmation. Now though it was undeniable.
She felt betrayed. Lena had put all her trust into Kara, and yet there they were. Kara's secret being revealed on someone else's terms. She couldn't tell if she was more angry with Kara or with the people holding her.
Lena closed the lid to her laptop and sighed as she weighed her options. On one hand she could tell Alex that she knew and what was happening, or she could do as they asked and pretend she was none the wiser. Both were not ideal, yet she had to choose one.
She had to get Kara back. Not only for her own sanity, or for Kara's safety, but because in that moment-the world could not survive without Supergirl.