"And you're sure you'll be all right?" Kara asked, her hands resting on Lena's shoulders, giving them a comforting squeeze.
Lena looked up at Kara. As soon as she'd processed the contents of the letter and felt able to speak, she'd telephoned Kara, and within minutes Kara was at her door. "I have to be," Lena said, forcing a smile. Caoimhe stood beside them, her tail thumping against the wall as she wagged it.
Kara looked at Lena's red, tear-filled eyes. She had offered a number of times to stay the night, but Lena didn't think there was any immediate threat. Kara had listened to Lena talk herself into believing she was overreacting, that Lex was bluffing, that the letter was just a good forgery, but neither of them really believed that.
"I'll call you in the morning," Kara said, pulling Lena into a hug.
Lena let herself relax into Kara's strong arms. She wanted Kara to stay. To hold her while she fell asleep, to wake up with Caoimhe lying between them. They'd laugh and shoo the dog off the bed, then cuddle before heading downstairs for breakfast.
"I want to come to London as soon as I can. I need a change of scenery. Too many secrets and conspiracies here that I only know the half of," Lena mumbled, taking in the smell of Kara's hair and perfume, holding her for as long as she could.
"I miss you already," Kara said, also not wanting to let go, but knowing that if she didn't she'd be here all night. "You'll look after Lena, won't you Caoimhe?" Kara said, bobbing down to give the dog a hug. "Yes, you're the best guard dog for your mistress. You're such a good girl."
"I'd never betray you," Lena said quietly, looking down at Kara fussing over her dog.
Kara kept her eyes on Caoimhe. She felt bad that Lena even felt she needed to say that. "I know," Kara said.
"Any of you. Or this country or - "
"I know," Kara repeated, standing up. She took Lena by the hands. "Lena, we will figure how Lex knows you're here, how legitimate the threats are - "
"He's going to use kryptonite…"
"Lena, look at me," Kara said. Lena lifted her eyes to meet Kara's. "Why tip us off if he wants to hurt us? Why not just do it? He's doing this to mess with you. To scare you. Don't let him scare you, Lena, or he already wins."
Lena nodded. "Call me before work."
"Will do. Try to get some sleep." Kara leant forward and gave Lena a peck on the lips. "Goodnight, Lena. Goodnight, Caoimhe."
"Goodnight, Kara," Lena said, but Kara was already gone, the familiar gust of wind of Kara flying out the door momentarily filling the room.
Within minutes, Kara landed in the alleyway a block away from the building where she and Alex lived, and a couple of minutes later she was unlocking the door. "Alex?" Kara called, closing the door behind her, tucking lose strands of hair behind her ears having glanced her wind-blown hair in the hall mirror.
"Where the hell have you been?" Alex asked, appearing before Kara in the entrance hall, as though she too had super-speed.
"Wh - who's here?" Kara asked, peering over Alex's shoulder.
"Agent Ava Sharpe," Alex whispered.
"Who?"
"Where have you been?" Alex repeated.
"Lena called."
"Why?"
"She got a mysterious threatening letter supposedly from Lex," Kara said. "She's all shaken up about it. Who is Agent Sharpe?"
"She's from Naval Intelligence, apparently. She knows - well, pretty much everything. All about us, about you."
"She knows I'm Supergirl?"
"When I say she knows pretty much everything…" Alex said.
"Why is she here?" Kara asked, trying to have a better look at the Agent. She was holding a cup of tea in both hands, hat sitting on the kitchen table, jacket draped over the back of the chair. Her shoulders were hunched over as though she was carrying the weight of the world. "Alex," Kara said, "What's happened?"
Alex pursed her lips and looked askance. Saying it would make it real. "Sara Lance in missing."
"I'll go find her," Kara said automatically.
Alex shook her head. "It's not that easy. Come and meet Ava."
"We're already calling her 'Ava'?"
"Agent Sharpe," Alex said, pulling Kara into their small sitting-cum-dining room, "This is my sister, Kara Danvers."
"Pleasure to meet you," Ava said, putting down her cup and standing up to shake Kara's hand.
Kara approved of Ava's firm grasp, and noticed the thinly veiled heartbreak in her face. "I get the feeling it could have been under better circumstances?" Kara said.
Alex poured them all another cup of tea.
"Alex told you about Sara?"
"That she's missing?" Kara asked, noticing that Ava's voice cracked as she said Sara's name.
Ava gave a nod and picked up her cup. She stared at the liquid without drinking. "For four days. In France. She could be just about anywhere on the continent by now. Instructions are to head south or for the Spanish border if you can, but we have no idea why she missed the rendezvous…"
"I could find her," Kara said.
Ava shook her head. "You are much too valuable, Lieutenant Danvers, and we'd never get the permission. Believe me, I've already tried."
"Call me Kara, please," Kara said, offering Ava a kind smile.
Ava sighed heavily, forcing back tears.
"If you don't think we can help," Alex asked cautiously, "Why did you find me?"
"Because I had to tell someone," Ava confessed. "I am out of ideas and I can't keep doing this alone. Sara has told me so much about you two, and - and I didn't know what else to do."
Kara reached out and put her hand on Ava's, a quick glance and nod from Alex confirming what she suspected. "We will do anything we can to help. Sara is an wonderful friend and - "
"She's an idiot. Utter moron," Ava said, her voice thick as she fought back tears. "Reckless, self-destructive, abrasive, selfish, refuses to follow orders. Whoever died and decided to commission her I don't know but - I really am much too fond of her. I want her home, as safely as possible. I just - there's not many people like her, and people like me…"
"You're not alone," Kara said as Ava trailed off.
"Doesn't Sara have her own team at the SOE?" Alex asked. "I've met Doctor Palmer. He's a lovely gentleman. Sergeant Rory leaves a bit to be desired though."
"Sara has gathered up or had forced upon her the most inept band of people imaginable," Ava said. "Doctor Palmer is a gentleman, knows everything is his field and has a charming wife, but lives in fairytale land. Sergeant Rory is a pyromaniac and thief. Professor Heywood is as interesting as his flat feet which disclude him from active service. Mr Constantine is positively certifiable. Section Officer Tomaz might be a brilliant engineer pinched from the WAAFs, but she's completely lacking in courtesy, charm and manners."
"They don't make great first impressions, but Sara seems to make the team work," Kara said, who had met Sara's team a number times over the past few months.
"Do they know about you and Sara?" Alex asked gently.
"Sara is not nearly as subtle as she should be," Ava said by way of reply.
"Oh, I know," Alex said, taking a sip of tea.
"Do they know she's missing?" Kara asked.
Ava shrugged. "If so, they're keeping quiet. I've been trying catch any chatter, anything from the Free French codes, Vichy codes, German codes, but there's been nothing. We know the Gestapo have a price on Sara's head, so I think we'd know if they got her."
"What's her codename?" Kara asked, thinking she could ask Lena to look into this at Bletchley.
"White Canary," Ava answered.
"Kara?" Alex said, looking at her sister, who suddenly looked very pale.
"I know who your friends are and I know what they do," Kara recited, her stomach tight.
"What?" Alex asked.
"The letter," Kara said, looking intently at Alex. "Lena's letter. What if…"
Alex shook her head. "Kara, please…"
Ava looked between the sisters. "What letter?"
"Kara, it's a coincidence. It has to be."
"Lena's not going to see it like that. She needs to know."
"Is this Lena Luthor you're talking about?" Ava asked.
"I'll talk to Lena, and to H. See if he know's anything," Kara said. They had no idea what Lex was planning or exactly what he was capable of, but targeting Sara seemed within reason.
"I'm sorry Agent Sharpe, it's getting late and we all have to work in the morning," Alex said.
Ava put down her cup and stood up. "I'm sorry if I've overstayed my welcome," she said, putting on her hat and jacket.
"No, it's not - there's a reason I was home so late," Kara said, "But I - we'll be in touch, you have my word. Sara's tough. She's a fighter. Wherever she is, whatever's happened, you have to believe that she's fighting and doing everything she can to get back."
"If she gets back, I'll kill her myself," Ava mumbled, fastening the buttons on her jacket. "Thank-you for the tea, Doctor Danvers. Lieutenant. I can see myself out."
The sisters stood awkwardly side-by-side as Ava left their flat.
"What do we do?" Kara asked.
Alex sighed and sat back down. "I don't know. She said earlier that Sara's been living with her for a couple of weeks. The building behind Sara's was bombed back in April, and they've finally got around to checking the structural integrity of Sara's building, and Ava had a spare room."
"But I'd bet that's where Sara's keeping her things, not where she'd sleeping," Kara smirked, sitting down beside Alex. "I thought Sara had seemed rather happy about something for the past month or so. And Ava seems to really like her. She's tightly wound at the moment, but I think she really does care."
Alex nodded. "It does seem that the good Captain is a kept woman."
"A kept woman who regularly runs off to France on extremely dangerous missions."
"Nothing will stop Sara from doing what she does. She's a perfect fit at the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare."
"Is that a good thing?"
Alex raised her eyebrows.
Kara sighed. "But if it is connected, Lena's letter and Sara's disappearance…"
"I think we both need to get some sleep," Alex said. "Speculating when tired isn't going to help."
"Why are you always right?" Kara yawned, standing up.
"I'm not sure I was right about sending Agent Sharpe home," Alex confessed.
"And I'm not sure I was right to leave Lena."
"She was that upset?" Alex asked.
Kara nodded. "Damn you, Lex Luthor," she muttered under her breath. "What have you done to us now?"