Chapter 62

Oliver was pretty sure he had his anger under control before he portaled to STAR labs. By now he knew the route from the Breach room to the Cortex by heart. His feet walked on their own, fast and determined. It was quiet. He passed Winn and Cisco on the way. They were both working on something very important by how dedicated they both looked. But Oliver didn't pause to ask what they were working on. No, his mind was somewhere else. He heard Caitlin's voice coming out from another lab. He didn't stop this time either. Instead, he marched straight to the Cortex.

He was greeted by a version of Wells. Oliver wouldn't swear that he kept track of how many Harrison Wells' in the Multiverse team Flash were friends with. Oliver's eyes lingered on the man a little longer and then fell on the young woman next to him. Earth-2 Harrison Wells, he realized. The Speedster's suit the girl was wearing was a giveaway. He greeted them with nothing more than a slight nod and continued marching to the medical bay.

And then his breath was caught in his throat. The sight of Kara lying on the medical bed, passed out, unmoving, with only the EKG as an indication that she was still alive was a very unfamiliar scene. And unnerving. Oliver didn't do unnerving, he despised it. Mon-El sat by her side holding one of her hands in his. Even by the first look, Oliver could tell than the man had been crying. There were dried tear-lines on his cheeks and his eyes were red. What more was there to look for.

Oliver stopped at the edge of the bed.

"Hey!" his voice was barely a whisper.

Mon-El raised his head and gave him a nod. "Hey."

Dead: that's how his voice sounded like.

"How is she?"

Oliver knew how Kara was but still…He needed to start the conversation somehow. He needed to show that he cared.

"The same." Mon-El explained with the same dead voice.

"Did Alex and Caitlin figure out why she is like this?"

Oliver hated asking the Daxamite. He knew how much it hurt the man, but neither doctor was there.

"She's pregnant."

The shock was even worse than when Felicity told him he had another sister. For the first few seconds, Oliver thought that Mon-El was speaking gibberish.

"What?" he asked in denial. But Mon-El nodded his head in confirmation that, no, he had not heard wrong. "How does Kara being pregnant puts her in a coma?"

Mon-El sighed tiredly and shrugged. "They said that it's self-inflicted." He explained. "Kara was hurt, then she healed. We thought she healed but Caitlin and Alex found out that she was pregnant and that the fetus was hurt or something and that her body shut down to protect the baby."

Oliver stared at Kara's sleeping form mind-blown. "Wow!" there were no other words to describe how he was feeling that moment. "I don't really understand what you said, but still, wow."

Mon-El shrugged again. "I don't understand either. I just want Kara to wake up and be okay again."

"She will be." Oliver promised firmly. "She is the toughest person I know."

"Uggg, my brain is gonna explode!" Cisco moaned as he entered the Cortex. "I told Winn we should've gone on a break an hour ago. Oh, hey, Oliver." He greeted as soon as he saw the man. Then his eyes fell on Kara and his expression saddened. "Hey, I'm texting Barry to bring me a snowball or two on his way here, want anything?"

"No, I'm good." Harry replied immediately.

Cisco eyed Jesse next. "Well, I wouldn't say no to some Big Belly Burger."

Cisco grinned. "Nice. How about you two?" he asked Oliver and Mon-El.

"I'm good."

"I can't get anything down." Mon-El declined too.

Cisco sighed. He felt bad for the guy. He knew first-hand what it felt like to see the woman he loved on her death-bed. Clearly Kara was not dying any time soon, but the wait and the unknown possibilities didn't make this situation and less crapy than it was. Cisco checked the monitors before returning his gaze on the sleeping Kryptonian.

"I guess she needs than new suit after all." he mumbled to himself remembering how torn up the old suit was.

Oliver didn't ask and neither did Mon-El. They were all destructed by the loud whoosh that echoed in the Cortex. And then Barry's voice rang out.

"Hey, guys, I'm here. Cisco, I got you your order."

Oliver's face was unreadable as his blue eyes fell on the Speedster. Barry's cheery smile fell at the sight of the Emerald Archer. A deadly silence fell in the Cortex. Oliver felt his rage boiling inside his vein wanting to burst out. Oliver was happy to comply with that need. He was a person who gave in easily when he saw red. So he didn't fight it when the urge to smash Barry's head came. He was right in front of him ready to punch the other man's face over and over and over again until the Speedster decided to speed out of Oliver's range of rage. But as Oliver fisted Barry's navy blue shirt, his other fist up and ready to strike, Oliver found himself immobilized. No, it was not Barry who stopped him. And it was neither Cisco nor Mon-El. It was his own traitorous body refusing to comply.

It was at that moment that Oliver realized how tired he was. How emotionally tired he felt. The look on Barry's face was one filled with sadness. It was clear that he was not afraid of what Oliver might do to him. And that's when his rage returned. He opened his mouth ready to take Barry's ear off – as he had done so many times in the past. Only no sound came out. Oliver tried again, but the only thing he accomplished was to look like a fish out of the water. Even words had betrayed him.

Barry's green eyes became sadder and sadder the longer he looked at them. And he hated it – he hated it because he was supposed to be furious at him, but instead….

So, Oliver let go of the Speedster's shirt and pointed at the woman in the medical bay.

"You made a bad call this time, Barry." He said defeated.

Because this was Kara -KARA- and if she was lying in there helpless, then what about them? They were doomed if the Goddess was so vulnerable. Because out of all of them, sweet, shiny, happy, powerful, adorable Kara was not supposed to be on that bed. Not ever. And Oliver hated that he had to see her in it.

Barry tightened his jaw but continued looking sad. "Maybe you are right." His voice carried out almost like a whisper. "The thing is that when I made that call I knew that she would be the only one to lie on that bed. If I had called you, you'd be lying in there with many of us as well."

"You couldn't have known that." Oliver spat.

Barry chuckled humorlessly and tapped his temple. "Speed mind, remember? The moment I pushed that Worldkiller away from her fallen body I run through every possible outcome. That was the best path I could see."

Oliver shook refusing to accept that answer. "Still-"

"And what would you have done?" Barry asked shaking too. "We were unprepared. Or would you've just barged in there guns blazing and onto your death? Would you rely on me to save you, because I don't know if I could? You made me team leader, so I had to make the best decision with the less casualties. Do I regret it? Every time I look at her. Would I do it any differently? No. If you don't like it, then make yourself team leader." He spared Oliver one last look before announcing. "I'm going to work." And then he sped away like he was never there.

#

Dinah felt as nervous as Rene was at that moment as she attended her friend's trial. As she had promised, she was the first person to show up at the courtroom to support Rene in his attempt to get custody of his daughter again. She had to admit, however, that Lucy Lane was as tough as they came. She had not been impressed when her eyes fell on the Lawyer. Tiny, short and baby-faced, Dinah couldn't see how she could pass as a tough defense attorney. She was pleasantly surprised when the time came and the trial began. Lucy Lane cut with her words as she did with her glares. Dinah was pretty sure she had most of the courtroom scared of her. Now, as the judge called for a break, Dinah tightened her hold on Diggle's hand as she simultaneously offered Rene an encouraging smile.

"Hey, I've got to make a call. Layla wants to be updated on the situation since she couldn't come." John told her before walking hurriedly out of the building.

Dinah sighed and folded her arms awkwardly in front of her chest. The waiting was the worst part. She always hated waiting for things to happen. She hated having to wait for her test results at school, for the CSI's at the precinct to give her their reports and now on this stupid case to be over.

In the distance, she saw Rene and Lucy walking out of the courtroom themselves and was immediately about to join them when her own phone rang. She quickly checked to see that it was Oliver calling. Dinah sighed and answered.

"Hey," she greeted. "Where have you been? I thought you wanted to come by and be there for Rene." she demanded.

"I don't know if I'll be able to." Oliver's voice sounded rough in her ear. "I found out about Kara." he said accusingly making Dinah cringe. "And I had a fight with Barry. Plus, Felicity found something about my family, so I'm dealing with a lot."

Dinah frowned at the information. "What did Felicity find? Are you okay?" she asked concerned.

She heard Oliver sigh. "I'm not ready to talk about it yet. I haven't wrapped my head around it myself."

Dinah nodded although he couldn't see her. "I can accept that. When you're ready, Oliver. Know that I'm here to listen if you need someone to talk to."

"Thank you, Dinah, you are a good friend. And speaking about friends, how is Rene doing?"

Dinah let her eyes travel to her other friend. Rene was talking to Lucy, but his eyes her trained on little Zoe with such longing that Dinah felt her heart hurt.

"He's hanging in there. We are on break right now, and we don't know anything for sure, but Lucy has really taken the bull by the horns." she said in awe. "I think she might win this."

"That's great news." Oliver said happily. "Keep me updated if I don't make it, okay?"

"Got it boss." she joked.

Then she hung up and joined Rene and Lucy. "That was Oliver asking for an update."

Rene frowned. "He won't make it?"

Dinah shook her head. "He had a fight with Barry about Kara." she explained.

That was all Rene needed to completely understand. "He'll be brooding for a week."

However, Lucy did not understand. "Why would he?"

Both vigilantes gave her a look. "Oliver and Barry fight like an old married couple." Rene explained.

"So they are basically moping as if they've just broken up and they're all over the place." Dinah continued. "It doesn't last more than a week before they make up."

Lucy nodded feeling weirded out. "That's a strange relationship. Anyway, we are being called back in." she informed them.

Rene and Lucy went right back through the doors of the courtroom, while Dinah stayed outside trying to locate Diggle. She prayed that everything worked out fine.

#

It took Oliver the entire day to let go of his morning encounter with Barry. He hated emotions, he was never particularly good at them. Much less now. He was angry -angry beyond belief-, but his mind kept flashing back to how clearly affected Barry was from his decision too and then he found himself sadden by this. It was almost impossible to not be sad when Barry was. And just like that, he was angry all over again. He was angry that he felt bad for being angry. Did that even make sense? No, it did not. As it also didn't make sense how confused he felt about the secret Felicity discovered. It really should not have come to any surprise that the Queen family was a tower of secrets. His father had secrets, his mother too. The two of them had secrets together. And he certainly had his own. The only Queen who didn't seem to have them is Thea -but no. Oliver shook his head as he remembered. Drugs -that had been Thea's secret at some point.

So logically speaking, Oliver should be immune to his family's ability to spur some other family secret at him. Because Oliver Queen, at 35, discovered that he had a sister. Another sister. One he didn't grow up with. One that was a stranger, but blood. It's all very confusing. More confusing was the way Felicity uncovered that particular secret in the first place. Oliver was lost on the details but the main thing he got was that she found some transfers that, after untangled from a web of transactions, led to a woman, who lived in the Glades, and had a daughter. A daughter whose medical file, after being examined by Alex because Caitlin was unavailable, showed that Robert Queen was her father.

Oliver sighed exhausted deciding to call it in for the night. His blue eyes fell on the tray with the bottle of Scotch. It seemed very appealing but pretty far away. Oliver groaned inside his head. He had to get out of this chair but he didn't want to. He felt as if a tone was weighing down on him. Fortunately, at that exact moment, e shy knock echoed on his door and his assistant's face popped inside his office.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Queen. IF you don't need me for anything else, I'm done for tonight." Emiko said politely.

Oliver felt his cheeks flush red and burn. Emiko -his assistant- he had been acting strangely around her all day. Talk about awkward. He barely managed to keep a straight face when she greeted him Good-Morning and he kept finding reasons to avoid her the rest of the day. Oliver cringed. No wonder she might think him a weirdo by now. But it was not every day that you found out that your new Secretary is your long lost sister. Because according to Felicity that's who his other sister was. Coincidence? He couldn't really tell. Generally, he didn't believe in those -or the fact that the universe had a plan on its own and everyone found their place eventually in the gram scheme of things. But how else could he explain the fact that his unknown sister started working for him merely months before he found out about her?

His eyes fell on the bottle of Scotch again. Perhaps this was the opportunity he needed. Perhaps he should stop running. Oliver cleared his throat and gave her a small smile.

"No, I was about to retire for the night too." he hesitated for a brief moment. "Actually, would you care to join me?" he pointed at the alcohol.

Emiko's dark eyes traveled to the bottle and then back at him. She gave him a skeptical look, calculating his intentions. Oliver chuckled and raised his hands in surrender.

"I'm not going to hit on you. I promise." he swore. "This is just an opportunity to get to know you better."

Emiko sent a shy smile his way. "It's just that I've been working for you for more than three months now, Mr. Queen, and you've never asked me to join you for a drink." she explained.

Oliver nodded. "I've been busy." he admitted. "And I think it's about time I changed that. I believe employers should get to know their employees if they want them to be happy at work, don't you?" he asked charmingly with one eyebrow raised in amusement.

In return, Emiko blushed and chuckled and then nodded. "If you say so, Mr. Queen."

"And another thing. When we are not working you should call me Oliver, not Mr. Queen."

At that, she made a face. "Are you sure you're not hitting on me?" she asked half-joking half-serious.

Oliver got up eventually and moved to take hold of two glasses. "Please," he pointed at the chairs in front of his desk. "I am married, you know. And I am more afraid of Felicity that any of those Super-villains out there." he joked.

Emiko seemed to relax and decided to join him. She took the offered glass of Scotch and brought it to her lips.

"So…Oliver. What would you like to know about me?"

Oliver took a moment to think about his first question. Truth be told, he really hadn't planned this and getting this far was an accomplishment. Not, though, how did he start the small talk without making it look like an interrogation? His inner impatience wanted to jump ahead and ask "Are you my sister?", but he couldn't do that. Not without scaring her off -most likely for the rest of his life. No, he had to be smooth about it. He needed to find common ground. Most people, in these kind of situations, started talking about the weather -you couldn't get more basic than the weather. But Oliver found the topic lame, not good enough.

"Are you happy with your job, Emiko?" he finally asked.

The woman blinked surprised by the question. "Yes, of course."

"Are you sure?" Oliver insisted. "Is there nothing you'd like changed? Perhaps your working hours, your salary?"

"I've only been working as your assistant for three months." she reasoned.

Oliver shrugged, in the end. "If you say so. But, if you want some adjustments or changes, in the future, you'll tell me, won't you?"

Emiko opened and closed her mouth for a few moments before settling in a tight smile. "Absolutely."

They both took another sip of alcohol while Oliver prepared the next question. "How did you come to take a job in the Mayor's office? You must have barely graduated from college. You are what?…24?…25?"

He saw as Emiko blushed for the what…20th time? "It's a lucky story actually." she chuckled. "I knew your former assistant. We did yoga together. I used to work as a waitress in this restaurant near campus so I could pay my rent and I had just graduated and looking for something better. She told me she was thinking of quitting so that she can take care of her newborn baby and asked me if I was interested. I told her yes not thinking that she would actually recommend me. But the next thing I know, someone calls me and tells me I got the job. I spend five hours thinking someone was pranking me." she chuckled.

Oliver joined her. "That was indeed a lucky story." he agreed. "But how about your parents? Couldn't they help you with the rent?"

At the mention of her parents, a dark look clouded her face. Oliver immediately cursed himself for not being more careful.

"I-I…no parents." she said quietly.

Oliver bit his lip. "I'm sorry." he said and he meant it.

Emiko shrugged but didn't look hin in the eyes. "It's okay. It's been years since my mother died and my father was never there."

"I'm still sorry that I brought it up." Oliver insisted. "Would you mind…" he hesitated. "I mean, you don't have to, but…h-how…" Oliver found that he couldn't finish the sentence.

Thankfully, Emiko spared him having to say the words. "It was um…the year that this bad guy tried to take over Starling City with his army." she tried not to choke.

And damn it if the moisture in her eyes didn't stab Oliver though the heart. But her description really didn't narrow down the list of villains that had tried to take over his city.

Oliver's upper lip curved. "Which time?" he said in a hoarse voice.

Emiko made a similar expression with her face and tucked a lock of hair behind her left ear. "Right. It was, I think, in the second year of the Vigilante becoming active."

Deathstroke!, Oliver realized. Damn it, that was his fault too. If Slade hadn't been trying to take revenge on Oliver then Emiko's mother would still be alive. Some big brother he was.

Feeling awkward, embarrassed and ashamed, Oliver cleared his throat. "Anyway…" he needed to forward the subject so he could tell her that he was her brother. "What about other family besides your mother. Do you have any siblings?"

And there it was. The bomb dropped. Well…almost. He stared at her, pleading with his eyes for a sign that she knew something. Emiko chuckled and shook her head ready to deny having any siblings at all. But then she saw how intensely Oliver was staring at her and she froze. Her face paled and she shook her head in denial.

"You know." she whispered.

Oliver nodded. "I do." he confirmed.

Emiko took a deep breath and bit her lip, her eyes looking all over the place as if wishing for the ground to open up and swallow her.

"Well…how long have you known for?" she asked uncomfortably.

"A day." Oliver said abruptly. "I didn't want to beat around the bush, but I didn't know how to tell you either. Or how you'd react." he admitted. "How long have you known that you're my sister?"

Oliver hadn't considered how it would feel to say the word "sister" out loud, but the moment the word left his lips he felt like a weight had been lifted off of him. He saw how Emiko squirmed at the word. It was clearly strange for her too.

"After my mother died." she said. "It was in her will. She wrote who my biological father was and why it was just the two of us all my life."

"I am so sorry!" Oliver apologized. "My -our- father was such a cruel bastard some times. I-I wish I had known sooner."

She shrugged in return. "It's fine. I never met the guy, so I don't really care about him."

"I just wish I had grown up knowing you."

"You have another sister."

Oliver's eyes bored into hers. "You are my sister too. If you are willing, I want to try and create a relationship with you. I know it's late, but I also think we've been given an opportunity."

He saw Emiko smile at that. "I'd love that. It's actually why I jumped so fast at accepting this job. It was my way of getting close to you. To get to know you. But every time I wanted to say something, to tell you that I'm your sister I just…froze." she gasped. "I guess I was afraid of how you'll react too."

Oliver smiled at her and set his Scotch on his desk so that he could take her hands in his. "Well, I suppose we have a lot of catching up to do. Sister."

Emiko grinned at him. "Yes, we do, brother."

#

Belle Reve Penitentiary

Lex Luthor was finishing up the latest touches in his masterpiece on the wall in his holding cell when the Warden visited him at last. Lex spared a look at the clock hung from the wall outside his cell and smirked. Just on time.

The Warden cleared his throat before addressing him. "Mr. Luthor, your wife is in the visiting quarters."

Lex's smirk widened. He could always count on Miss Teschmacher to get him what he needed. The genius criminal mind put on an innocent face and turned to the Warden.

"Then let's not keep her waiting. She bites."

The Warden gave him an unimpressed look as he denied Lex the handcuffs. "I know that your marriage to Miss Eve Teschmacher is fake, Lex." he accused.

Lex made a comedic face and stomped his foot like an eight-year-old. "But I have all the documents, the license, even the signature of the priest who performed the ceremony. Prison is lonely." he suddenly sobered up. "My last wish was to marry the only woman who ever loved me for who I really was before I was whisked away for the rest of my life."

The Warden neared his face to the iron bars of the cell. "I don't believe you for a second, Luthor. Unfortunately, I can't prove that your marriage is fake, although anyone with half a brain could see how you manipulate that poor girl."

Lex grinned at him and the Warden sighed heavily before giving the signal to unlock the door. Lex turned around and offered his hands to be cuffed.

"I hope those minutes you wasted won't be taken from my marriageable time with my wife." Lex snickered as the guards shoved him roughly to move his feet.

Being married to Eve Teschmacher had its advantages. The most important of all was that he had the privilege to have his own room when she visited. Most inmates used it to get physical with their significant others, but Lex was not starved for sex. No, Lex wanted to get marriage privileges because he could give her orders, get information and sneak things in Belle Reve without all the guards around him. So, no, he didn't marry Eve because he loved her. Actually, he didn't have the slightest interest in her. The only reason why he subjected himself to that was that it suited him better.

Miss Teschmacher was waiting for Lex sprawled out on the bed wearing only a red coat, a see-through lingerie, and high prostitute-like heels.

"Hello, Lover!" she said sensually enough to make the young guard blush.

Lex gave a tight-lipped smile at the guard and closed the door to his face. Then he turned to his assistant and his look immediately darkened.

"Enough with the charade Miss Teschmacher, please put your clothes back on."

The blonde puffed displeased but complied tied the belt of her coat tightly. "I had to sell us being really married, Lex."

The bald rolled his eyes and walked further into the room, resting in the comfortable chair provided in the small room. "I think you too it a notch too far, but I'd rather have the prison gossiping about my excessive sex life that the lack thereof." he admitted. "Do you have what I asked for?" he demanded.

Eve nodded furiously. "I do." he offered him a watch, which he immediately replaced with the one he was currently wearing.

"And what about the hologram projector?"

At this request, Eve gave him a book. Lex opened it to the marked page and saw that hanging from the edge of the bookmark was a stone. Lex smirked pleased.

"And what about the target? Have you located the girl?"

Eve nodded again. "Spencer Young is currently in Central City, unemployed and posting meaningless articles on Instagram trying to be an influencer."

Lex grimaced first and then smirked. "I love it when people are desperate when I want to use them. And the final item?"

"I have Clifford DeVoe's technology in my possession." Miss Teshmaker confirmed.

So, the list was Check! Check! Check! Aaaand Check!

Lex clapped his hands and got up. "Then what are we waiting for? I have a prison break to commit and a looser girl to corrupt under my influence. Now, before I go." he offered his cheek.

Eve had stars in her eyes at the prospect of kissing Lex Luthor. With her red lipstick smudged on the corner of his mouth, Lex knocked on the door to alert the guard outside that he was done with his marriage responsibilities.

Next: Lex Luthor and the 9th Circle take a step forward to their plan