Oliver watched Diggle pace as they waited on word from Bruce. Before leaving his house Oliver called Diggle to meet at Verdant, and informed Lance on what was happening. Lance was expectedly upset hearing about Felicity being kidnapped, he agreed to do whatever he could to help. It was only when he arrived at the Foundry where Diggle was anxiously waiting for him, that he realized Lance's idea of helping was to contact the Arrow. The phone he used to communicate with Lance as the vigilante had several missed calls from him, and Oliver felt he had no choice but to talk to him.
"It's about time you call," Lance reprimanded when he answered his phone.
"I am not always available to answer my phone, Detective," Oliver started, "how can I help you?"
"Your friend Felicity, she's been taken… the kidnappers called Bruce Wayne for Ransom." Lance said, repeating what Oliver had told him.
"I am already working on getting her back, right now, nothing is more important."
"Well, see that you do. S-she's a good girl, she doesn't deserve any of this… so find her." He paused, his voice lowering to a whisper, "I'm sure the girl in the tower will help you, tell her. Right now you need to help each other, and uh- let me know if I can do anything" Oliver knew he should inform Sarah on what was happening but he couldn't make any moves until he dealt with Bruce.
"I will find her, I guarantee that." He said, hanging up the phone before he had a chance to get too emotional with Lance. He looked up at Diggle who had been terrifyingly silent the entire time.
"How much longer," Diggle asked, pausing in his stride and crossing his arms. He didn't like the idea of involving Bruce Wayne but he had to trust Oliver.
Oliver knew that Diggle was suspicious of Bruce, "he said he was on his way, he said he'd call when he got here." When he called Bruce after speaking to Lance as Oliver Queen, he suggested meeting him in Gotham, since that's where Felicity was last seen. Bruce, however, was adamant on meeting him in Starling stating it would be odd for the vigilante or Oliver to be seen in Gotham, but it would make sense for Bruce to be in Starling; seeing as it's where Felicity lives. He said if his appearance in the city was brought up later that he'd say he was giving a statement to the SPD.
"I still don't understand why he needed to come here. Why couldn't we meet somewhere in the middle off the highway… or I don't know… somewhere that couldn't tie you to this." He said, gesturing the room around them.
Diggle had a point but he couldn't worry about anything but Felicity right now. "I don't like this any more than you do but he went to Wayne to grab Felicity's computer. He has a way of tracking her down, right now that's all that matters. Besides, I'm sure our computer programs are better than anything he'd have. All of our programs were created by Felicity, if anyone is going to find her it'd be us."
"I tried those already, Oliver and got nothing. Her phone shows up at Gotham P.D, the tracker on her watch is still located at Wayne. You already said that the camera feed from the Wayne parking lot was compromised. What more could this guy do for us? Right now you need to be the hood, you need to be the man you were before the Glades destruction and your first target is Isabel."
"You don't think I haven't thought of that? Isabel has the motive for killing this merger and I will be paying her a visit but right now, Bruce has a way of tracking Felicity and finding her is first on my list."
Oliver's phone rang, breaking the tension in the room. "Walk down the alley, there's a side door partially concealed by a dumpster. Once you're there I'll buzz you in," Oliver said.
Diggle shook his head as he heard Oliver give the man directions, "you're going to let him inside here? Are you nuts Oliver? Why don't we just send everyone an e-mail outing you as the vigilante."
"He's not going to say anything, Diggle," he assured while looking at the video feed from the alley.
"Let me guess… you've made the same calculation with him as you did with me and Felicity."
"No," he said, looking up from the screen. "I know his secret, he won't be outing the Arrow, and if he does then he'll be ousted as the Batman."
"Bruce Wayne is Batman?" Diggle asked, stunned. At Oliver's affirmative nod, "what is it with you rich guys?"
Before Oliver could muster up an answer he noticed Bruce on his screen. "He's here," he told Diggle, while buzzing Bruce in.
"So this is headquarters," Bruce said, as he descended the stairs. Walking into the room and placing the laptop on the steel-top table.
Diggle didn't care for having someone new in their space; even if this man was Batman. "Oliver said you have a way to track Felicity, since she was a test subject for her project."
Bruce got right to business, he could sense hostility. "I do, the GPS signal should still be active," he answered, "but it's been almost four weeks since the injection, so I don't know how much longer it will last." He directed his attention to Diggle, "I'm Bruce," he said, holding out his hand.
Reluctantly shaking his hand, "John Diggle," he said.
Oliver tried to remember all the information from the meeting but he couldn't recall if Felicity stated how long the signal would work before disappearing. He walked over to Bruce, who was seated in front of the laptop and stood behind him.
Diggle joined them at the table, "how long is this going to take?"
"Just a few minutes, the program is locating the signals now," Bruce said, watching the screen, waiting for confirmation that the GPS was still active. He let out a breath of air when the two flickering green dots appeared on screen."
"It's still working," Oliver said, slightly surprised. A part of him was prepared for the signal to be dead, making his search harder.
"Is that flickering normal," Diggle asked, "and that one, I swear it just moved." He said pointing at one of the dots on the screen.
"It's flickering because the signal is weak, and that dot just did move. The coordinates just changed for it, that's Felicity," Bruce responded.
"Zoom into the camera feed like she did at the meeting. If they're in a car we'll be able to track them on the traffic cams." Oliver ordered.
Bruce ignored the command but did as asked, but the screen was just dark except for a small flicker of light. "She's not in a car," he said.
"She's flying," Oliver stated, "she's on a plane."
"Wait," Diggle started, "if this is about stopping the merger between you guys, why fly her away? Wouldn't it be easier to keep her here and make sure you comply?"
Oliver wasn't feeling very confident, "if this is Isabel's doing, it would make sense for her to take her away. What's to stop us from continuing with the merger after she's been released?"
"What's to stop us from merging if she's killed?" Bruce asked, "It doesn't add up. They could have injured her – it would have sent a message, the threat of her life being in danger would be enough to stop the merger from happening. It's easier than taking her hostage."
"But if they keep her," Diggle started, "then they can hold her over both your heads."
Oliver was slowly getting himself worked up into a rage. "Bruce, when they called you did they say they would contact you again?"
"No. All he said was stop the merger by Monday or she was dead. There was no way he knew she was injected with the GPS."
Oliver walked over to grab his bow, "Dig, I think it's time we pay Isabel a visit. Bruce, I'll let you know if I learn anything from her."
"As much as I despise Isabel, the fact that they contacted me and not you is telling. If this were simply a ploy to control Queen, don't you think they would have contacted you? There is something here that isn't adding up for me. Plus, Isabel knew that Felicity was a test subject." Bruce said, trying to help Oliver rationalize. If Isabel was innocent they'd be wasting precious time.
"I know, but we don't have time for theory, right now Isabel is the most likely suspect. She might not respect me but we'll see how well she does when she has an arrow at her head."
Bruce knew nothing he'd say would change Oliver's mind. "Keep the laptop, I have a copy of the program now. I'll track it from my home," he said before turning around to leave. He did have the program on his computer, he'd track Felicity himself. That way when Oliver came out empty handed one of them would still be able to locate her.
"I don't like him," Diggle said.
"Most of the times neither do I."
When Felicity came to, everything was dim and blurred. She realized her hands were tied to a chair when she tried to move them to rub her eyes. Her glasses were missing they must have fallen off when she was tasered. She wasn't sure how long she'd been out but remembered briefly waking and a man injecting her with something. By the pounding of her head and the crick of her neck it was safe to say she was sedated. She squinted her eyes trying to make out the room she was in. The noise around her and the pressure she felt in her ears were very telling. The seat she was strapped to was cushioned and there was a pillow supporting her head. She was on a plane, and from the little she could make out she was seated towards the back. It was a private plane, she could tell by the size and layout, it reminded her of the Queen Jet. She was able to make out a few figures at the front of the plane but without her glasses she couldn't make out details. She snapped her eyes shut when she saw one of those figures get up and move towards her. Hopefully, they'd walk right by her and assume she was still knocked out. Her eyes flew open when she felt the pressure on her wrist disappear; a pretty brunette woman around her age gave her a warm smile.
"I noticed you woke up, I'm assuming you probably need to use the facilities and you must be hungry."
She looked familiar but Felicity couldn't place where she'd seen her before. Rubbing the feeling back into her wrist, she wondered how she should go about this. The woman didn't seem very threatening but after meeting Sarah she knew looks could be deceiving. "Um… yeah, the restroom would be nice," she uttered, not knowing what else to say.
The woman smiled at her, "follow me."
Felicity did as instructed, her muscles protesting. The woman pointed to the bathroom door and leaned against the wall; apparently she wouldn't be left alone.
Splashing some cold water on her face hoping it would help the grogginess go away, she wondered how she'd get out of this situation. She walked out of the bathroom and followed the woman back to her seat. She expected to be strapped down again, instead she was surprised when her captor took the seat across her. Shortly after a man came by, unfolded a table from the wall and set down a tray of food.
She looked down at the muffins and fruit, hesitant to eat anything.
"Don't worry," the woman said, "there are no nuts."
Felicity wasn't even thinking of her allergy but now that it was mentioned she couldn't help but wonder. "How do you know I'm allergic to nuts?''
"I know a lot of things about you, in fact I know things you don't." She said, helping herself to some of the fruit.
Felicity couldn't help but think this was an odd kidnapping. "Who are you… what do you want from me?"
The brunette took a moment to answer her, as if she were searching for the best reply. "Would you believe me if I told you I just wanted to keep you safe?''
Felicity fought the urge to yell how crazy she was. "No, because tasing, drugging, and kidnapping me is not my idea of safe."
The woman had the nerve to look contrite for a moment. "It was the only way. See, I know enough about you to know that you're stubborn and obstinate. I did what I had to and while it may have been unpleasant it was necessary."
"What exactly are you keeping me safe from?" She asked, grabbing some fruit. She assumed if it was safe enough for the woman to eat than she'd be okay. She needed something in her system.
"Starling City is a dangerous place. When the Glades were destroyed it attracted every low-life looking for power and if that wasn't enough, your connection to the vigilante just made you more of a target."
Felicity tried to hide her surprise that these people connected her to the Arrow. So many questions were running through her mind, these people obviously did their homework. "Why do you even care? Why does it matter whether or not if I'm safe? I don't know you… have you been stalking me? How do you know I'm connected to the Arrow?"
"Is that what you're calling him now?" She asked, scoffing at the nickname. "He's a poorly trained assassin, nothing more than that."
Felicity bristled at that description, to her Oliver would always be a hero. "You don't know what you're talking about.''
"But I do. You manage to part from one dangerous man whose life is filled with secrets, only to fall into the trap of another. Oliver Queen and Bruce Wayne are both men that could get you killed." She said with certainty.
Could this woman really know that Oliver was the vigilante and what did Bruce have to do with it? "Bruce Wayne and Oliver Queen are rich playboys, I think they're hardly dangerous."
"How many rich playboys run around in a hood shooting arrows into people? How many dress up as a bat? I know all about them Felicity, so stop protecting them."
"B-Bruce Wayne is batman?" she asked, not believing it.
"Ah… so you didn't know about Bruce. Well, I'm sure he would have let you in on his secret eventually, seeing as he was grooming you to join his team."
"Grooming me? I've see that man a handful of times." She said incredulously, the only time Bruce showed any interest in her was when he was either checking her out or when he was talking about the money she was going to make him.
"Perhaps, but how many times have you seen Lucius Fox? Bruce much like Oliver has a team and I'm positive that he was looking to add you into the fray."
Not wanting the conversation to turn to Oliver and his nighttime activities, she tried changing the subject. "You still haven't told me why it matters. Why do you care what happens to me?"
"You're important Felicity, you have skills that can't be taught. We can't afford anything happening to you. Apart from those skills you're important to me," she said sincerely.
Her declaration made a shiver run down her spine, "Who are you?" She asked hoping that this woman wasn't in love with her, just the thought was preposterous.
"You can call me Lysa," she started. "Now that introductions are out of the way I'm curious about something… why do you dye your hair?"
The question took her by surprise, not only because she kept that fact to herself, but she didn't understand why it would matter. "Excuse me? You kidnap me, throw me on a plane, claim it's for my own good and you want to know why I dye my hair?''
"Curiosity. We have a few hours to kill may as well get to know each other since we'll be spending plenty of time together." Lysa said, while nibbling on her fruit.
"You know people are going to be looking for me," she assured.
Leaning forward in her seat and giving Felicity and amused smile. "Oh, they already are. I made sure of that, nothing like a little false information to lead them in the wrong direction."
"What did you do?"
"Oh, nothing much, just had one of my men give Bruce Wayne a call and told him to kill the merger or you die. Don't worry, I don't care about that stupid merger but I know Isabel Roschev does. When I heard she was searching for a way to stop it that was my opportunity to take you and set her up." She said with a slight shrug of her shoulders.
This was not what Felicity wanted to hear, "Oliver will find me, he's not stupid it won't take him long to figure it out."
"By the time he realizes that Isabel is clean we'll be touching down in another country. Even if he were to track us down, by the time he made it you, you won't want to leave."
"Oh my god… you're really crazy aren't you," She muttered, instantly regretting her words. She should know better than to anger her abductors.
Lysa just smiled at her, " You'll understand soon, Felicity. I know you're confused but eventually you'll think of me as family."
All Felicity could do was hope that the GPS tracking she was injected with would be strong enough for Oliver to find her. It was obvious to her that Lysa was not mentally stable.
Getting into Isabel's penthouse was easy. She obviously felt safe leaving her balcony doors unlocked since she was on the twentieth floor. Most of the house was dark and quiet but he could hear the television. He followed the sound and stopped right outside what seemed to be an office. Isabel was seated on a chair her back facing him. He nocked hi arrow and slowly made his way into the room.
"Isabel Roschev,"he said, startling her out of her seat and aiming his arrow straight at her heart.
Isabel was not one to be intimated easily but having the vigilante pointing his arrow at her did make her nervous. "What do you want?"
"Felicity Smaok was kidnapped today, they contacted Bruce Wayne – said if he didn't kill the merger she'd die. According to my intel you're the only on with motive. So I will ask you once, I suggest you really consider your answer. "Where is Felicity Smoak?"
Isabel took her time answering, she tried to get a better look at the vigilante but he was shrouded in the darkness. "There was a man… I don't know if he took her and I had nothing to do with her disappearance. I was searching for investors… I need more financial backing to keep my place at Queen. An acquaintance connected me to a man, his name is David Cain. He agreed to be a financial backer but he wanted information. He wanted to know about the project Wayne was working on, he was especially interested in Felicity since she was its creator. The man was curious about many things but I didn't think anything of it. What investor wouldn't want information on his venture? I don't know if he's responsible, I don't think he is. That's the only information I have, I may be relentless when it comes to my work but I am still a human being. I would not hurt Felicity for the sake of Queen, I am not a monster."
Oliver believed her, as much as he hoped it'd be her - Bruce was right, this was a dead-end. "Turn around and close your eyes," he said.
"If you're going to shoot me then have the balls to face me."
"I am not going to shoot you, don't make me change my mind. Now, I'll ask again, turn around and close your eyes."
Isabel did as instructed, when nothing happened after a couple of seconds she turned around. He was gone.
I know this is short and I'm not loving the flow but I decided to cut this chapter in half. I wanted to give you guys an update before the holidays. My boyfriend's family has been in town from England and they're staying with us through the New Year, so it's been hard to find time to write. I have the next part partially finished but I don't think it'll be up before January.
Thank you guys for the reviews, I'm so glad you're liking the story and I enjoy reading your feedback.
For the guest that said this story was similar to the Broken heart series, I went ahead and read it. It was a great read and I can see where there are some similarities, both fics have an established relationship that falls apart, but that's about it. I appreciate all sorts of constructive critique and I looked over the second chapter since you said it was riddled with misspellings, beside the boast/boost which I can't believe I overlooked, I didn't find any other. Please feel free to point them out, I will always go back and fix them. I am the only person that goes over the chapters before publishing and I know that many times I will miss certain things.
I hope you guys have a wonderful holiday! If I can squeeze in an update before 2014 I will.