Oliver walked into the empty nightclub. He had tried to call Laurel several times last night. Every single one of his calls went to voice mail. He made his way to the door that led to The Bunker, and entered the pin, and proceeded to walk down the stairs, to see Roy and a blood-soaked Laurel.

It felt like his heart stopped beating in his chest. His eyes scanned the basement and couldn't see their son. He couldn't see Connor. He felt his stomach drop in fear as he ran towards Laurel and held her in his arms. It was only after hearing Laurel's sobbing, and Roy pointing towards the body he had somehow missed, did he finally understand the situation.

He hadn't lost his son, but instead a close friend, Sara. She was lying lifeless on the metal gurney. Her blue eyes, glazed over. And three black arrows impaled in her stomach and chest. Her matted blonde hair was covered in a dark red congealed liquid.

He closed his eyes in an attempt to quell the tears building behind his eyes. He had lost someone close to him once again.

"I didn't know where else to put her..." Laurel sobbed almost unintelligently, she sounded so broken, so vulnerable. He had never seen Laurel look like she had lost almost everything in her life. It had devastated her when the doctors had given them the news that Quintin had died on the operating table, but this was something different.

Roy took a step towards Laurel and rubbed her shoulder as he looked at Oliver. "She called me; I took Connor and called a babysitter. After he was settled, I hightailed it back here. I couldn't—wouldn't leave them alone."

Oliver held Laurel in his arms as she sobbed. "I… I couldn't leave her, Ollie." She explained, as if it was her fault, before burrowing her head into the crook of his neck. "Ollie, It's not fair. We just got her back. It's not fair."

With one arm around his distraught fiancée, he used the other hand to close Sara's eyes for the last time. "I'm so sorry, Laurel."

"No." She whimpered, as she clutched to his shirt.

He could only apologize. He knew in his head that he's not to blame for his future sister-in-law's death, and yet in his heart, he felt he was. He let her on The Gambit. He also hated the fact that Laurel was alone, with their infant son when it happened, and when he got his hands on the person who killed Sara, he would seriously have to consider his stance on killing.

Roy patted Laurel on the shoulder gently, then did the same for Oliver. "I'll pick up Connor, and look after him. You two look after one another." He then squeezed Laurel's arm again. "I'm sorry, Laurel."

Oliver sat with Laurel on the stairs heading towards the manager's office of Verdant, he thought that they should head home, but Laurel wasn't ready to leave her sister behind. They had been sitting there for the better part of two hours, just holding each other.

He thought Laurel had fallen asleep until she spoke. Her voice was hoarse from her crying. "You, remember Sara used to have a stuffed animal." She said just above a whisper. "An old worn-out shark she got from Starling Aquarium. She loved that ratty old shark… Anytime something awful happened to her, you could always find her clutching that stupid little shark to her chest."

Laurel released a shuddered breath; she knew that Ollie wouldn't judge her for being weak. They were a team, a family. He was her family. "Now I just want to find it, rest in her arms." She then looked up at Oliver, who was rubbing her back in small circles. "Before she fell, before we parted ways for the — She gave Connor a stuffed bird… She was so excited to see Connie." She then cried again, fisting his shirt in her hand. "Ollie, Connor saw everything!"

He shushed her quietly." Roy told me how he found you over the phone, while you were in the shower." He explained gently. "You protected Conn. He's fine, Pretty Bird." He then lovingly kissed her temple. "Our baby is fine." He repeated.

She then pulled back. "I'm sorry." She sniffled and wiped her face. "How are you handling… You know?"

He wrapped his arms around her and gave her what he hoped was a reassuring, loving squeeze. "I will miss her, but I'm not the one that lost a sister." He said softly. It was his turn to look after her, not the other way around. "Hey," He said, gently pulling her chin up to look in her bloodshot eyes. "Whoever did this, I'm going to find them."

Laurel looked at him, and he saw a fire in his eyes that he hadn't seen in her eyes before. "No, we're going to." She corrected. Oliver shook his head, but she continued. "I am going to catch whoever did this."

Oliver rested his head against hers, as much as he wanted her to feel back at home, and fighting alongside him, he didn't want her first mission back to be fighting someone that got the drop on and killed Sara. Someone who was trained by the most skilled and ruthless killers in history. "Laurel, Pretty Bird. You are already helping."

Laurel looked up at him with a disbelieving look. "Truly." He assured her. "You already told us where to look. And you need to be with Connor, for both of your sakes." Didn't she tell him something to that effect after Slade had killed his mother? To let Roy and Diggle take point. To allow him and Thea to mourn.

"So I'm supposed to sit here and wait?" She shook her head. "She's my sister! If the roles were reversed..."

"Then you would do the same thing for me. You would tell me to look after myself, and Connor. And after the roller coaster you have endured over the last few years, and everyone you have lost…"

"I can handle it." She replied curtly.

"Perhaps, but I know what it's like to have anger bubbling beneath the surface, and when you find the person who did this, you are going to explode. I have experienced that firsthand. Remember how I told you that I worked for ARGUS?"

Laurel's jaw tightened as she nodded in lieu of a verbal response. "I worked with a man named Maseo, he had a wife and a small boy named Akio. Akio was killed by a biological weapon. I tortured the bastard who released the virus and killed so many people including the innocent little boy. I was never the same after that."

And he would never want to see Laurel suffer through that ordeal, that darkness. She was a beacon of hope, not a remorseless assassin or a weapon to be pointed at a target. Not like he was for Waller during his five years in hell.

"The person has to face justice, Ollie."

"They will. I promise." He assured her, before sighing, "Just promise me, that you won't be reckless?"

Laurel closed her eyes. "I trust you, Ollie. I don't like being forced to the bench, but I won't make a move unless the situation demands it." She then untangled herself from Oliver and soon regretting leaving his warm embrace.

"Where are you going?" Oliver asked, reaching out to gently grasp her wrists.

"I don't know. I… I just need to process everything on my own." She then walked out, not looking back. He could only watch as she slowly descended the stairs while she wiped her eyes.

Oliver sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose, before pulling out his phone and calling his sister, after the fifth ring, she answered.

"Ollie, I heard about Sara, is Laurel coping?"

His sister sounded just as distraught and worried about Laurel as much as he was. His heart broke for the two most important women in his life, both had lost too much in the past few years.

He squeezed his eyes shut, praying for strength. "I don't know where she is going… but she needs her baby sister to lean on." Perhaps having someone she considers a sister would help Laurel vent, to mourn Sara's death without going on a rage-induced crusade, to take down her sister's killer.

It was silent on the other end for a few beats, until he heard his sister speak to Roy. "I know where she went, or at least, have a good idea. Roy seems adamant that he should look after Connor, for the day while you and Laurel mourn for Sara."

"You look after Laurel, and I will start investigating the crime scene."

It was all he could do for Laurel. He may not be able to help her grieve, but he could certainly do his utmost to provide her closure and solace. To know that whoever did this will be punished, and will never hurt anyone again.

Thea walked slowly into the gym that had been a safe haven for Laurel, ever since she had come back to Starling, all those years ago. And she was doing the same thing that she had always done when she felt like things were not going her way, or were spiraling out of control.

She was always throwing jabs and punches at the hard bags.

"Laurel?" Thea asked, which made Laurel stop throwing punches and ran into her youngest sister's arms. Thea returned the embrace. "I'm sorry that I didn't answer your calls. If I had known…"

"It's not your fault." Laurel whispered. "You weren't the one who killed Sara."

Thea held her sister tightly in her arms. "I promise, Laurel. I will hunt for the bastard that killed your sister, and I will bring them to justice."

"I want to give them what they gave Sara," Laurel said almost inaudibly.

Thea froze. She had never heard Laurel speak like this before. "Remember what Ted taught us. Anger hinders before it helps. A double-edged sword is what he said." She then pulled back slightly to look at her. "Do you trust me, Ollie, Roy and the others?" Laurel nodded, blinking away the tears. "Then I promise you, that we will bring the bastard in, and if I have anything to say about it, they will be receiving at the very least; a concussion and several broken bones."

It would be the least she could do for Laurel, and for the girl that she had known since forever. Sara deserved justice.

Thea then looked at her sister, who was being consumed by vengeance. Her sister had been continually stripped of her ideals, to the point that she was considering becoming what Ollie had moved away from.

Was this how Ollie became The Hood? She wondered. "Promise me that you won't suit up?" Thea pled, the last time she each time Thea had seen Laurel go off half-cocked she had almost died.

Laurel bit her lip. She hesitated. Could she promise that? Laurel looked back up to see her baby sister looking at her patiently waiting for an answer. "I promise I won't go out into the field as Black Canary."

Oliver stood on the rooftop that Sara, Laurel, and Connor had reunited as the Lance family for the last time. He studied the markings and tracks on the gravel. He could see Laurel's footsteps and Sara's.

He followed Sara's final movements and noticed that she had spun on her feet. He looked in the direction she looked and saw different tracks.

He closed his eyes and forced himself to see Sara's unmoving body, with the black arrows protruding from her chest and torso. Black fletchings. A while ago, he would have suspected Malcolm Merlyn. But he was dead, Oliver he and Laurel defeated him. His body was cremated, and his remains were secretly dispersed in the wilderness just outside the city limits. Malcolm had died in the fight. But now, it could also mean that it was The League of Assassins.

If it was the League of Assassins, that meant his promise to his grieving betrothed may be impossible. Waging war on The League would be a fool's crusade. Suicide.

Oliver emulated the scene, trying to recreate the scene by himself when Diggle's voice broke the silence and his thoughts. "Felicity told me what happened." There was a slight pause before he spoke again. "Thea and Laurel are unreachable; their phones are turned off. You okay?"

Oliver nodded, struggling to control his emotions. He had to keep moving forward.

A Shark that doesn't swim drowns. He reminded himself.

He pointed at the location he believed the killer stood when he put an arrow through his friend's chest. "The killer stood there. See the displaced gravel?"

"Oliver," Diggle said, trying to get through to his grieving friend.

Oliver continued, he had to do this for Laurel, for him, for their son. For Sara. "Sara was back here. The scuff marks back to the edge." He said, avoiding looking at his friend. He would shoulder the pain, to let Laurel grieve for her murdered sister.

Oliver heard Diggle try to tell him that he didn't have to scan the scene and start locating the trail. Oliver wished he could be there for Laurel, like she was for him, and Thea when his mother was murdered by Slade. But he couldn't, no matter how much he wanted to. He may not be able to help the love of his life grieve, there was nothing he could say to make things better. However, he could provide her with closure, knowing that the person was brought to justice, and would never hurt them or anyone else ever again.

He would drive three arrows into them, just as they did to Sara. Or perhaps he would make a deal with Amanda Waller to ensure that the killer never saw the light of day. No one would hurt his family and be able to get off scot-free.

"I have to. It's the only thing that I can do."

Diggle nodded understandingly, looking around the rooftop, before looking at his friend once again. "I get it, man. Military training, stay on task. Your buddy has been shot; you keep fighting. But, Oliver..."

"I'm fine. I can't help Laurel grieve, but I can give her closure."

"Well, I'm here for you just the same." His friend said reassuringly. "Listen, Sara was my friend too. And If you think that you're going to go after this son of a bitch solo, then you are dead wrong."

Oliver walked into The Bunker, with Diggle and spotted Felicity alone, documenting and sorting out Sara's possessions that she had on her in the hopes of finding out who had killed her.

"What other archers could have done this?"

Oliver shrugged helplessly, if he knew he would have located the other archers. "There aren't that many of us. Me, Roy, Speedy and possibly Ted Grant." Even Laurel knew how to deftly wield and utilize a bow. "But the most proficient of archers belong to The League."

"Oliver you don't think…?"

Oliver immediately disagreed. Though was Sara truly one of them? Would someone who rules Nanda Par Bat like a despot think a woman who had familial loyalties beyond their guild as one of them? Oliver was doubtful of that.

She had returned home after The Undertaking and spent the better part of the last year with her sister, himself, Quintin and Connor. Not to mention suiting up every other night assisting them in the field, while Laurel was on self-imposed maternity leave.

It would be stupid to completely rule out The Demon's Head. The man would without a doubt kill a subordinate who he perceived as being a dissident. He would kill anyone whose absolute and utter loyalty was in question. It would not be a stretch to imagine that he saw Sara in this light.

It was one of the many reasons that he had kept Laurel from taking her vengeance. He had heard from Quintin and Thea of how Laurel had coped when she thought she had killed Malcolm the first time.

She didn't have nightmares, as he did instead, she second-guessed every maneuver she made, every decision and she had restrained herself from using her cry. She felt the guilt bind around her tighter and didn't let go until Malcolm re-emerged from the dead.

An angry vengeance fuelled Laurel, with her enhanced powers was a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. He just hoped that if Laurel decided to go, rogue, that he was by her side, to either take the kill for her, or prevent her from having that death on her conscious.

He would take that burden on his shoulders. His oath of forsaking murder meant nothing if he could protect her, even if it was from herself.

He then noticed that Felicity had moved to the command center and started typing rapidly at the computers. "What did you find out?"

"Our new archer has killed again." She said looking up at Oliver. "It was in an abandoned warehouse on the corner of Third and Lemire. Ninth Floor."

Diggle looked at Oliver and folded his arms. "Where do you want me?"

"Will Lyla give you access to ARGUS's database?" He asked praying that they could get a lead, a dossier on their killer, anything to show Laurel that he had made an effort to find Sara's killer. Anything that might provide a beacon for her, while she was lost in the storm of her emotions. Something tangible to keep her from falling off the ledge.

Laurel embracing her emotions is what made her a resilient and fierce fighter. Her resilience and tenacity made it a privilege to have worked alongside her. He had also been at the brunt of her fists and cry. He didn't want to imagine the carnage she could bring if she lost control.

But currently, it was the same emotions that gave her the resilience, would be her Achilles tendon. It would cloud her thoughts and passions. Her anger would corrupt the woman he loves, the woman that holds her heart on her sleeve, and strives to emulate and live up to what her father preached and taught her about justice.

Diggle gave him a look that meant that he knew the answer. "She's family. Lyla will give us access to ARGUS if we asked."

Somehow, he doubted that sentiment as long as Waller was in command, but he appreciated the sentiment. "I need a list of everyone on their radar. Assassins, Mercenaries, hell, even Olympic Class Archers who have a tendency towards violence."

This bastard killed his son's aunt and Laurel's sister. His friend. He would bring them down.

Green Arrow walked through the abandoned warehouse, which was a carbon copy of almost every other warehouse in The Glades. He walked quickly and purposely, as he watched as one of the drug dealers run away. As the man fled, and attempted to pull himself up to the next floor through the hole in the scaffolding, he used the edge of his bow and slammed it into his stomach.

The man fell to the ground, clutching his stomach and wheezing. Without letting the man recover, he picked him up and shoved him hard against the steel beams. "Someone was murdered here. Tell me everything you know, and saw." He growled at the man.

The man shook his head, panting. "I saw nothing."

The archer sent a hard blow to the man's sternum, causing the drug dealer to keel over, with a loud groan. "It was a black face mask. Like…" He wheezed again, holding back his tears. "Like a hockey mask. Please, man…" Before he could beg for clemency, he was slugged across the jaw, rendering him unconscious and fell to the cement floor with a loud thump.

He pressed his comms link. "Diggle, are you at ARGUS? I've got something."

"I'm here, man. I've got the list of twenty archers that fit our parameters." Diggle responded a few seconds later, Oliver could hear papers rustling.

Oliver swore under his breath. "How many of them wear something like a hockey mask?"

"Only one known match. A mercenary. Known as Simon Lacroix, ARGUS has been calling him Komodo."

Oliver found himself exhaling a sigh of relief. He had someone, "Send everything to The Bunker."

"It's on its way home now."

A few minutes, later he heard Felicity give a short description of Lacroix, followed by his location. Oliver then heard her voice asking about who Lacroix was.

Laurel.

She was in The Bunker. He hoped that either Roy or Thea were with her to keep her calm and not to hovering over Felicity's shoulder.

There was no way their friend could physically stop Laurel from going to hunt for Lacroix, if that is what Laurel decided to do at the spur of the moment.

He started to wonder if he should invest some time into making an arrow that would be able to incapacitate Laurel's cry, as he had with Barry's speed? He hated that he was considering a way to take her down, but he needed to be prepared for Laurel going rogue.

Not even she knew how powerful her canary cry was. But he knew from her that at the very minimum, it was possible for her to shatter windows, and it had enough force to cause a semitrailer to skid and fall to its side. It also brought up a question of; if Connor could inherit his mother's powers? He would have to put these thoughts on the back burner and find Lacroix before anything happened.

Laurel was fiddling with her engagement ring on her finger when she heard Oliver fire an arrow at presumably Lacroix, followed by her fiancé confirming her assumption as if he had read her mind.

She looked at the computer screens to see if Felicity had any feeds up. But she didn't, there was some sort of computer code or computer language on one monitor, the next screen had the dossier of Lacroix, that she had skimmed, while Felicity was multitasking.

"I need to see what is happening." As much as she didn't agree with Oliver sidelining her, she needed to make sure that he was alright. That Ollie was as safe as he could be while in the field. This bastard had killed her sister, who was trained with some of the most ruthless killers known to man. If he could kill Sara, what would he do with Ollie? A man who was trained by a Chinese general, an Australian spy, ARGUS and The Bratva?

Even last year, Ted had warned her about aligning with The League of Assassins to take down Slade. If Ted feared these people, that was enough for her, but they had saved Sara. And she and Nyssa were in command of the forces in Starling, and for that, she and Oliver gave them the benefit of the doubt. But if this man had killed her League trained sister… What did that say about Ollie, and the others stopping them?

Felicity nodded, hesitatingly. "Okay. I will pull the CCTV footage." She then started tapping on the keyboard and brought up several street camera's as well as storefront feeds to find the best feed to show the skirmish between the two archers.

Usually, Laurel didn't like the team utilizing CCTV or other security footages, despite its evident advantages. She supposed it was a mixture of Ted's old school training and her belief in the law. It didn't sit well with her how nonchalantly the team had utilized this technique with little regard to other's rights.

But this was different. Lacroix killed her sister and was fighting the father of her child, the man she loved. She would put aside her ideals if it meant that she could ensure her family was safe, and so Sara could finally rest in peace.

She watched as Oliver chased after Komodo before they were at either end of a small street. It reminded her of when her father had taken her and Sara to a medieval festival when they were girls, where knights would line up for a joust.

Only instead of lances, they were wielding bow and arrows. And in place of horses, they were on motorcycles. They darted down the street at each other, with Komodo firing volley after volley of arrows, at Ollie who dodged all of the missiles.

She held her breath, as she watched Oliver as fired a flashbang arrow, that caused Lacroix to almost fall off his bike, but he had somehow retained his balance and fired an arrow and it hit Ollie in the chest, sending him to the ground.

She clenched her fists, as Oliver struggled to snap out of his daze, as Lacroix revved his bike before speeding off. "Come on, Ollie. Get Up!" After Oliver regained his surroundings, he said that Komodo got away.

Laurel slammed her fists on the bench, causing the monitors and some of Felicity's personal trinkets to topple over onto the hard metal surface. If Oliver couldn't get the information or find Lacroix. She would, and she would keep her promise to Oliver, and Thea that she wouldn't go out as Black Canary.

Laurel walked the halls of Starling City Memorial Hospital and walked past the room that once held her father before he gave up to the ghost. She closed her eyes, and knew that her father would want justice as much as her.

She walked up to the two police officers who were guarding the room of Erlich Kelso, the man this Komodo had tried to kill. One of them spoke to her as she approached. "Who are you?"

"Dinah Laurel Lance. An attorney here to speak with my potential client."

Both of them looked at each other before looking back at her. The higher-ranked officer scowled. Erlich Kelso already has legal counsel. So, unless you have asked the public defender for permission to speak to his client, you are in violation of Starling City's legal ethics."

Laurel glared at the two officers. "It is within Mr. Kelso's right to have the option of a different attorney. And it would be you who would be violating Mr. Kelso's rights. I wonder what your Captain and Commissioner would think when they get a formal letter to them explaining to them how their officers conduct themselves?"

"Miss Lance was it? Quentin Lance's daughter?"

"Yeah. a pleasure to meet you." She said, gracing a faux smile.

The lieutenant hummed, looking at her with disappointment. "You have a reputation for being a smart woman, Miss Lance. And since you seem unable to understand the hornets' nest that you are kicking, let me say this as bluntly as possible; Leave this ward, leave this man alone, leave this entire case behind before you wake up six feet under the ash that was your reputation and promising legal career. I am giving you this chance out of the respect that I held for your father."

She looked at the man undaunted, "And yet, I have a right to a private conversation with a prospective client." With that, she walked past the officers and walked into the room to see the bed-bound, and chained Kelso at the opposite end of the room.

As she closed the door, Kelso spoke, "Who are you?"

"An attorney." She answered, taking a step into the room.

"I already told the police. I don't know anything."

She graced him with a small smile that didn't reach her eyes as she spoke. "I still have to ask you a few questions."

Oliver was sitting in a chair, bouncing his leg up and down in irritation. It had been several hours since Felicity had started the computer program to narrow down Lacroix's trail, and from there establish a possible location.

All he could think of was Laurel stewing in her anger and hopelessness. And he wasn't able to help her. He couldn't help her without giving her closure by getting Komodo. He needed to know if Lacroix was hired to kill Sara because of her ties to The League, or if it was to send a message to him or target the Lance family. His family.

"Why isn't it working?" He hated feeling useless, waiting for the computer to ping something. Diggle was currently looking for Laurel, who had angrily left The Bunker after he had lost against her sister's killer. But he could at least take some form of solace knowing that currently, Roy and Thea were looking after his son.

Thea had trained under Laurel and had her skills refined by Ted Grant, while Roy was trained by Thea, and his techniques were refined by him and Digg, even Speedy had taken up some of his techniques that he had learned from various people in order to make her fighting style less predictable.

"It is." Felicity then went on to explain that it was a program created by the NSA. That it searched for connections between the victims and Lacroix. The program utilized most known government databases, she had even modified it to include some clandestine databases.

He stood from his seat. "It's taking too long. Sara's killer is out there, which means that every minute we waste down here—"

Felicity jumped glaring at her team leader. "I know! You don't need to tell me as if I don't already know!"

Oliver curtly nodded. "You're right." He granted. "But I need your A-Game right now, Felicity." He needed to find Lacroix before Laurel did. He had no doubt that Laurel could evade Diggle with or without her suit. Both he and Laurel had told each other of their training prior to becoming vigilantes. She was taught by her mentor how to utilize counter-espionage tactics and how to go dark.

"I don't have it." She petulantly said. "My friend, our friend, Oliver. Was shot full of arrows and fell off a rooftop. Her body is upstairs, right above us in a freezer, because we don't know what to do with her body." She wept, no longer trying to hide her tears.

"So I'm sorry Oliver, that I have feelings. But maybe if you did too…" Upon seeing Oliver's shocked and sullen face, she reeled back. "I'm sorry. That was mean…" But then she continued. "… But this is Sara we are talking about. A childhood friend of yours. A woman that you survived with on Lian Yu." She shook her head in disappointment, mixed with bewilderment. "How can you remain so cold and rational?"

He frowned. "She was my friend. I grew up with her. But I don't have the luxury to fall apart. I have a fiancée that has had more than her fair share of grief and has lost too many loved ones. And everyone else is looking to me to handle things. To make the right decisions. Usually, I have Laurel to catch me to help shoulder the weight of responsibility. Without her guidance, without her support, everyone is looking to me to lead. If I grieve, nobody else gets to."

He then smashed his hand on the bench. "I can't even help Laurel grieve without feeling useless!" The only way he knew how to help her was to bring the bastard that killed Sara to justice. He turned to look up at the date next to the clock on the wall. It's been two days… "I haven't seen my son in almost two days. My son, Felicity. Two days!" He growled, not necessarily at her, but at the world, all he wanted to do was keep his family safe, but he couldn't.

He watched as Felicity seemed to notice him rubbing his thumb against his middle and forefinger. He quickly shook his wrist as she spoke. "You're still human, Oliver. You're allowed to mourn and have feelings. Instead, you find it easier to hide beneath your hood. When you are angry and hurt, you lash out with violence. Laurel is the same way. It's not healthy!"

He looked back at where Laurel and Roy had Sara laying lifelessly on the steel table. Where he saw Laurel look so broken. "I was looking at Sara earlier. And I was reminded of how dangerous this life was. I had to remind myself of why I continued after The Undertaking." It was to clean up this city to ensure that it was a safer city for Connor when he grew up."

He and Laurel were talking about retiring before they had found out about their unexpected addition to their family. It was then that Oliver decided to go back out into the field to ensure that the world would be safer for their child.

He then looked back at Felicity. "I am under no delusions that the life I have chosen will probably be the end of me. Right now, right now, I just want to ensure that my family is safe.