Note: Someone requested Malcolm's reaction to Tommy being onboard the Queen's Gambit, so here you are! Side-note: I don't know if the school Oliver dropped out of/got kicked out of right before the Gambit was Princeton or not, but it's usually what I hear from this time of Oliver's life, so that's what I'm going with. Correct me if I'm wrong and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own any recognizable characters or plotlines. The main plotline belongs to the CW channel and DC universe.

Malcolm Merlyn growled as he completed his signatures on the last of the stacks on his desk. He'd been prepared to return home hours ago, but his assistant had procured yet another mess of papers for him to return to.

He needed to return home, to ensure that the Gambit had truly gone down "with the storm". With Tommy still living in the same house, he was sure to receive a heart-broken boy, begging for his best friend back, as soon as he returned home.

Scoffing at his son's utter lack of competence in every area of his life, Malcolm returned his pen to its proper drawer and rose from his seat. He hurriedly placed each of the stack of papers into their correct files within the filing cabinet.

The former assassin stalked out of the room, pausing only to give a quick nod to his assistant, indicating that his presence was no longer needed in the office. His assistant began scrambling for his personal items, even as Malcolm stepped out into the corridor that led to the elevator.

Without waiting for his assistant, given that the man usually found reasons to remain at the office until quite late, even if Malcolm himself was no longer there, Malcolm stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the ground level.

Leaning back against the cold metal of the elevator, he gave a large sigh. He called his personal driver on the way down to the ground level of Merlyn Global. Getting out of the office as quickly as possibly was necessary, to ensure the fate of the Gambit. So, he rushed outside without preamble, once he'd reached the ground floor.

As he was driven home, he called Frank Chen, who told him that the bomb had been placed in a position where the Gambit was least structurally sound. Satisfied, he hung up before he had to listen to anymore of Frank's uncertainty. The man didn't want to kill Robert Queen, but he would have to if he wished for himself and his family to be safe from Malcolm's associate.

The car reached the heart of the city just as he received an alert from Moira. It was an incoming call from the Queen matriarch.

"Malcolm," she greeted as soon as he'd picked up her call.

"To what do I owe the please, Moira?" Malcolm asked.

"The boys both went with Robert on his trip with the Gambit. Oliver told Robert and I that he'd been kicked out of Princeton. I just wanted to inquire whether Tommy had similar issues? He was looking rather guilty when he boarded with Robert, but both the boys told Robert and I that Tommy had your permission to go with Oliver. I'm sure the boys didn't lie about your permission! Any idea why Tommy would look guilty?"

As soon as Malcolm heard that his son had boarded the Gambit, he froze. His son, no… His last connection to Rebecca, he had to call Frank, he had to—

"Malcolm? Moira asked, concerned, "Are you still there?"

Malcolm cleared his throat loudly, "No, I'm not aware of any educational issues with Tommy. Nor does he have my permission to accompany Oliver and Robert on the Gambit."

Moira gave a small gasp. "Are you all right, Malcolm? You sound a bit anxious. I'm sure the boys will be just fine. They'll arrive in China within days and you can return Tommy to Starling as soon as they cast anchor. I apologize for assuming he had your permission, they both just looked so eager to be away from Starling that I—"

"No, he's—they're going to be fine, Moira. I have to go." Malcolm replied, cutting Moira off. He hung up before the matriarch could get in another word.

Immediately, he called Frank back.

"Malcolm? I was just about to inform you. It's done, the bombs have been detonated. The Gambit is going down." Frank's trembling voice answered the phone before Malcolm could get a word in.

"No," Malcolm whispered, searching for his second phone, which held the data of the bomb he'd had Frank place on the Gambit. Opening the data, he saw it read, DETONATED.

"Oh, God no, Tommy. This is the Queens' fault. They never should've let—" Malcolm began muttering under his breath, before cutting himself off and telling his driver to step on it. He had to charter a jet. He had to get to the coordinates where the Gambit was sinking at that very moment. His son depended on it.

"Malcolm?" Came the irritating voice of Frank Chen once again, "Are you all r—" Malcolm promptly hung up on him, already dialing the number of a friend in the Coast Guard before the echo of Frank's voice had faded from the backseat of the car.

All it took was a, "Hello? Malcolm?" before the Merlyn patriarch began ordering his friend to set up a search of the area surrounding the coordinates. He no longer cared that Robert didn't want any part of the Undertaking, he was getting his son back. Even if it took giving away his part in the sinking of the Gambit.

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Several hours later, Malcolm was going out of his mind. His SON, his Tommy, was out there, somewhere. Maybe dead. And it would be all because of the Undertaking. God, why didn't Frank stop him before he attempted to MURDER his best friend.

It was—it was all the Queens' faults. Robert had forced his hand. He'd been forced into killing his own best friend before Robert betrayed him. And Oliver, Robert's degenerate son… he had corrupted Tommy. He had been corrupting his son for years, and Malcolm had done nothing to stop it. Tommy never would've been in harm's way if not for the Queens.

His son would still be with Malcolm if he'd never befriended Oliver Queen. He would surely be alive, Malcolm would know exactly where his son was. Now, he had no idea how to continue the search.

His friend in the Coast Guard had been helpful in everything except finding the exact location of his son's whereabouts. All he'd told Malcolm was what Malcolm already knew. There had been a storm, an easy explanation for why the Gambit would've shipwrecked. But the storm had passed, and now Malcolm had no idea where the Gambit would've gone down.

For all his resources, his money, his infamy, he couldn't find one twenty-two-year-old lost at sea. His only son was still missing, even presumed dead, according to the Queens, because Malcolm couldn't FIND him.

The Queens had been informed by a different contact in the Coast Guard, a lawful one, that their world would be changed forever. Moira had called him minutes ago, sobbing that her husband and son were gone. That Tommy was gone, and she was sorry. As though sorry meant anything in the world of the elite. He would never forgive the Queens. He couldn't.

His boy was gone—Tommy was gone. Malcolm didn't care about the Queens' loses, his son was dead because Robert had felt he'd known best and planned to betray Malcolm. It was disgraceful.

His son deserved a better death than cannon fodder in Malcolm's plan for the Glades. His son had deserved to live. And now he wouldn't, because of the Queens.

Note: Hi all! Hope you enjoyed the second installment of these fic! Just know that Malcolm's train of thought here is NOT my opinion. I wrote Malcolm as a parent but one who thinks he is blameless. Malcolm accepting that Tommy sinking with the Gambit is his fault is extremely OOC for him, so I wrote him in a different way. Review if you'd like!