It took hours but Jimmy was finally able to receive visitors in the holding cell. The FBI had formally charged him half an hour ago with the crimes of the Reckoning. He was afraid it would come to that, but he continued to have faith his friends would prove his innocence. He was transferred to a concrete room where two police officers were stationed outside, his handcuffs undone to release his aching wrists in time for Kara, Alex and Kelly to be lead into the room. "You've got five minutes" the police officer announced before stepping outside to give them some privacy.
Kelly ran to her brother wrapping her arms around him. "I've been so worried" she told him. "they kept asking all these questions, asking about you and those Children of Liberty, the bombings, the murders…I tried to be honest without…" she stared at him with tears in her eyes. She was afraid. "They have to know you would never do anything like this, don't they? They can't charge you without evidence!"
"They have evidence" he told her gently, wishing there was something he could say to ease her concerns. But he'd seen what the police are working with. Maggie was courteous to reveal more in her interview then she needed to, give James an idea what he's up against. The suit, the burner phone, the murder weapon, it was all pretty damning.
"But you didn't do this! You're not the reckoning!" she said.
"I know, we know. But they have to do their job. So I need you to do something" he asked her. "Call our lawyer, he'll know what to do. But don't call anyone from our family. They don't need to know about this."
"Are you serious? I can't keep this from them! You're in prison for a crime you didn't commit!" she yelled. James may not want to worry them with this, but this was the exact moment he needed his family to support him. But of course her brother had to be too stubborn to realise that. She glanced out of the door, leaning closer asking in a hushed whisper "what if you told them who you are? Tell them you're Guardian, then you can explain how that monster set you up."
"I can't" he replied. Before she could argue with him he insisted "I can't. If I tell them I'll be looking at charges for being a vigilante. And what about when the world finds out. I tell them, they'll have to tell the courts, and they'll revealing it to everyone. I won't you or our family at risk. I'm innocent. We have to trust they'll prove it."
"Who? Supergirl? She's the reason you're wrapped up in this in the first place!" Kelly growled.
James shushed her, catching Kara's eye over her shoulder who averted her gaze shamefully. "Have faith Sis, please" he begged, hugging Kelly again tightly. He had to believe they'll get through this. "Call my lawyer" he repeated.
"I will. And I'm calling mom, and aunt VI" she said. She cut him off before he could protest. "They need to know, so I'm calling them. You need family now." she turned to look at his other visitors, refusing to meet Alex's gaze as she reluctantly gave them a moment alone when he requested it. "We'll get through this" she said.
James nodded, waiting until she left the room before turning to the Danvers sisters. Kara glumly stepped forward quietly agreeing with Kelly. "She's right. This is all my fault…"
"No! This is not on you" Olsen told her, grabbing her shoulders fixing his eyes onto hers. "This is not your fault. This is his. He did this."
"We will fix it" Alex said.
"I know you will" he smiled, hopeful and optimistic. He had no regrets about the choices he'd made, being their friend, becoming a superhero, putting himself in danger. This wasn't the first brush with the law he'd had, but it wasn't as dire as it seemed. But right now he didn't want to worry about himself. "Let's talk about something else. Tell me about Nia, Brainy, and J'onn. How are they doing?"
"Brainy's recovering" Kara answered, a little reluctantly. "Lena's transferred him to L-Corp so he can get more specialist care. Nia wanted to stay with him. She sends her love. J'onn's out there talking to your neighbours, looking for any signs that Jake broke into your home."
Olsen nodded, glad to hear everyone else was alright and alive. "Cacto will need someone to cover me" he realised. "There was a meeting I was meant to take…"
"It's okay" she said. "Stamens has sorted the layout for the website and Francine cancelled your meeting. They're worried about you. But they don't believe for a moment you're guilty."
Somehow hearing his colleagues keeping their faith in him made Olsen feel much better. And it made him realise how efficient the network was now. They could handle a few days without him. And there was contingencies in place in case someone needed to step in. "I should mention, should the worst happen…" he told them.
"Nothing's going to happen" Alex insisted. "We'll prove you're innocent. We will get Jake behind bars and we will clear your name."
"I know. But just in case" he said, taking Kara's hands looking at her confidently. "There's a letter in my desk. If the network ends up needed to replace me, I need someone to bring it to them."
"A letter?" Kara asked.
"Of recommendation" he nodded.
Kara narrowed her eyes in confusion. Unfortunately they were interrupted when the police officer came back into the room, announcing "time's up."
James nodded, hugging Kara again repeating his request. "One more thing" he said as the officer approached to handcuff him again. "Be careful. I know you think I'm the one in danger, but Jake is still out there and he's still after you. Without Henry Irons, he's on his own. That could make him vulnerable, or even more dangerous. No matter what, promise me you'll stay safe."
Kara nodded, watching the officers drag him out of the room and back to be holding cell. Kelly was standing outside, giving the man one last worried look before he was taken away. Alex stepped out to console her, but she turned on her heel and stormed away brushing her off. She sighed, turning back to her sister. "He's right. Whatever Jake's got planned, he's run out of allies. If he could get to Olsen like this…I don't think you should stay at your apartment. We should move you to a safe house."
"I don't need protecting" she rejected, but Alex insisted. "He knows where you live. He knows where we all live. We should get you somewhere more secure, a place Jake won't know about or think off. Maybe you should stay at Argo for a while, until we catch him."
"I'm not running away!" Kara snapped. "He did this to Olsen to hurt me! If I'm not here, what's to stop him going after you, or Nia, or Eliza? I need to be here."
Alex was annoyed but she couldn't say she was surprised. "Fine, safe house it is" she said, ignoring her protests about leaving her apartment. "I'm sure there's a DEO safe house I can wrangle if I pull some favours."
"Don't bother" Kara said, reluctantly relenting as she compromised. "I'll stay at the Fortress of Solitude. Even if Jake knows about it there's enough security for even him to struggle with." Alex exhaled, happy with that suggestion. "What if we don't catch him?" she asked after a moment.
"We will" she repeated. What she didn't say was that they'd either catch or imprison him, or they'll make sure he doesn't hurt anyone else ever again. She didn't want to worry Kara about the prospect of doing what her mother tried to do weeks ago.
Despite Alex's objections, Kara went for a walk on her own following her visit to Olsen. She didn't go too far, just to a former crime scene that was recently released. She wasn't sure what she was hoping to find at Jake's old apartment, but it felt important to return here. This was when it all seemed to change, when it all fell apart.
She walked in to the scorched black apartment, the windows shattered and walls open to the outside, parts of the floor and ceiling gone. The building had been deemed structurally stable following the explosion, but nearly everyone who had been living here had relocated leaving it vacated. There was a for sale sign outside, along with the notice of demolition. They were tearing it down after all of this. It made sense if the landlord couldn't afford the repairs.
Kara stepped carefully through the halls, walking past the kitchen into the bedroom, stepping over the crater that once housed the explosive that detonated under Alex's feet. She replayed that evening in her head, recalling her position by the phone only just seeing Jake out of the window on the rooftop across from them. She heard the whine, the high-pitched buzz, and then felt the pressure erupt as she leapt in to save her sister and as many people as she could. Maggie was lucky to survive. She turned her head to look at the black wall where the evidence once sat. Proof that Jake had been spying on her and her friends, the wall revealing her identity to anyone who looked. She always felt a conflicted sense of loss when she thought about that moment when she saw the wall burn into embers from the explosion. On the one hand, all the evidence that would've helped put Jake away was gone. But on the other, her secret identity and that of James and Nia was safe. How could be sad and happy about something like that? Thinking back she wondered if she'd do anything differently. Would she save the evidence and let Maggie die instead? Would she have prioritised catching Jake leaving her sister and the police to die in the explosion?
She shook her head scolding herself for considering those options. She saved her sister and the police captain. She did the right thing. She always tried to do the right thing. But whenever she did, Jake got away. How many of her villains kept getting away because she refused to go far enough to stop them? It wasn't fair, going everything the right way and still losing. Olsen was in prison. Brainy was nearly killed. And Kara almost left Alex to fall off a bridge in order to stop Jake, and still she failed.
She turned back to the apartment, casting her eyes over the walls and floor, using her x-ray and enhanced vision to see if there was anything the police might've missed. It was unlikely. Thought she caught a glimpse of something caught in the floorboards, kneeling down to pry it out of the floor. It was a scrap of a photograph, half burnt by the fire. It was a photo of her on her way to work, a coffee in her hand. An example of Jake following her. Easily explained away considering they were dating at the time.
Something else that made her blood boil. How could I have been so blind she thought, recalling how she'd been charmed and seduced? She thought she was falling for him. He was an amazing person, an amazing boyfriend. When they broke up it really hurt, her heart broke. But it was all an act. Everything was a lie. He used her, manipulated his way into her life to get close to her. What once made her feel joy now made her feel sick? Every memory of their time together seemed so fake, like watching a TV show with bad acting. She spent hours every day reanalysing those dates, those nights, looking for signs and clues, the hints she missed or ignored.
"It seems like so long ago, doesn't it" Jake's voice lamented, spurring Kara out of her thoughts. She spun around and found him standing in the apartment with her, his leather jacket open to reveal the jeans and t-shirt. She immediately tensed as she stood up, glaring at the young man as he casually cast an eye around the apartment. "Relax, I'm not here for a fight" he said.
She flexed her fingers, surprised to discover her powers were still active. She scanned his body. With her x-ray vision. He wasn't armed. He wasn't wearing his red sun belt. She could grab him and drag him to the police station if she chose to. But she realised he knew that, and knew she wouldn't. It wouldn't help Jimmy. And given the public perception with her and him right now, it would likely make things worse. "What do you want?" she asked cautiously.
"Would it surprise you to learn I didn't expect to see you here?" he chuckled. She looked at him sceptically. "I was signing forms with the insurance company downstairs when I figured I'll take one last look" he explained. "Take it or leave it, this place was quite the homestead. Used to have a hell of a view too" he said, walking to the open wall looking out at the city as the afternoon sun dipped lower to the horizon.
Kara kept her distance from him, just in case he had a few surprises she didn't know about. She watched the man carefully, his hands in his pockets as he looked out of the broken window. She wasn't sure if she could believe anything he said, figuring it was smarter to just turn around and walk out of the building. But she felt compelled to stay. They need to talk. "Was this always your plan?" she asked him. "Framing James for the crimes you committed?"
"Are you asking on record, Kara Zor'El?" he queried, turning back to face her. She was a little proud to see the bruising on the side of his jaw from where she threw him across the room last night. She showed him her hands, how they were empty. No phone, no microphone. He chose to believe her, sighing softly as he explained "I liked Olsen. I really did. I had the…contingency in mind, just in case. A part of me hoped I wouldn't have needed to use it. I guess last night got a little out of hand for all of us."
"You killed Henry Irons" she said. "I thought he was your friend?"
His expression darkened into sorrow. "He was" he said. "He was my mentor. He was there when I had nobody else. He took me under his wing. I owe him everything."
"But you killed him" she growled.
"I didn't want to" he snapped, stepping towards her angrily. She stepped back but managed to hold her nerve as he glared at her. "I didn't want to, but I had to" he said.
She scowled back. "I attacked a convoy and killed a dozen police officers and FBI agents, just to keep us from talking to him."
Jake grimaced, pointedly informing her "you think I did this to stop henry from exposing me? I didn't care about that. That was about the only time I wasn't concerned about getting caught. What you don't understand is he was never going to talk. As soon as he was put in a cell, somebody was going to get to him. Whether it was an assassin, a corrupt cop, a political figure, it won't matter. The Blacksmith had more than enough clients around the world, in this country, in your goddamn government no less that would've made sure he wouldn't last the night just to ensure their dealings with him weren't exposed. I was trying to save him, until in the end I couldn't." he turned away furious, shaking his head holding back the tears Kara was surprised to witness. "It was the last thing he asked me to do. He lived his life on his terms. He wanted to die by his choice too."
Kara sensed the guilt and grief in his voice, but that didn't change what he did. "Why frame James Olsen?"
He sighed, asking "isn't it obvious? I've pulled public stunts before, but that one had way too much heat. I needed breathing room, and your friend was the only one who could provide it. The emergency contingency. I won't apologise for setting him up Supergirl, not when we're so close to finishing this."
Kara shook her head, her turn to step forward. "You did this to get at me. It's me you want to hurt, for what happened to Sarah Kelly. So hurt me. Come after me. Name a time and place and we can settle this ourselves. Leave my friends out of this."
Jake burst out laughing. "Oh, I really want to take you up on that offer" he said. "You have no idea how much I'd love that. And it will, you and me, that moment will come. But not yet."
She grabbed his arm asking "why not now?"
"Because I'm not finished with you yet!" she barked. "You're not ready. I thought you were, last night when you came to my hotel room. I'd never seen your eyes glow so hot before. Framing Olsen must've really made you mad. But not enough, I could tell."
Kara stared at him. "You're trying to make me angry?"
"I'm trying to make you understand why this is happening" he snarled. "I want you to know what I feel whenever I look at you. Do you know how many times I've killed you in my head? Do you know how many opportunities I've had to kill you since we've met? The times I wanted to run my blade across your throat, pierce your heart, impaled your pretty little skull on my trident? Do you want to know what I thought about whenever we were in the safe room? Every date I come up with a new way I might kill you. Every time we kissed I want to wrap my hands around your throat and squeeze the air from your lungs. That night we shared together, I stayed awake and watched you sleep. I was this close to taking that pillow and pressing it over your face, watching you die slowly in your own bed. Every moment with you has been hell, but it's also been mercy. Even now, considering the kryptonite weapons at my disposal and the formula I still have, every breath you take is mercy."
He stepped up to his ex-girlfriend, their glares meeting with electrified hatred as he promised her "the next time we talk face to face, I promise you, this will end. But not until you truly understand the hate I feel for you. And as for your friends…I make no promises."
Kara tensed again, staring at her ex-boyfriend intensely. Now she was imagining all her options, to protect her friends and family. "If you hurt any of them, you will pay for it" she promised.
He smiled, finally seeing what he was hoping to see in her. "Good. Keep that thought. But just for the record, I owe your family for the hit they already put on me. Assuming your dear Eliza mentioned the assassin she hired to murder me." Kara didn't react, which disappointed him. "I'll give them this, they understand a threat when they see one."
He turned around, walking towards the exit. Kara panicked momentarily. She wasn't going to get a better chance to stop him. "What's to stop me from locking you up myself?" she asked threateningly.
"Nothing" he replied without looking back. "Nothing stopping you from throwing me out of the window to my death either. But it wouldn't help Olsen in his situation. And you're still trying to bring me to justice, aren't you Supergirl?" he paused at the door, daring her to make a move. She didn't, either by choice or because she wouldn't cross that line. He sighed in disappointment. "Until we meet again, Kara Zor'El" he said, walking out of the apartment for the last time.
Kara watched him leave from the apartment window, silently fuming about letting him go. She waited until he slipped out of sight before pacing the broken room. Jake had confirmed he had plans for her, and they were going to come to pass soon. Alex was right to be worried. What Jake had said about Eliza had also shaken her, but she chose to believe he was lying. Her adoptive mother wouldn't have been crazy enough to hire an assassin to kill her boyfriend.
She had more immediate decisions to make as she reached into her inside coat pocket and pulled out the analogue recording device she'd borrowed from J'onn's office. She had been carrying it on her person since her initial run in with Jake when he got back. She hadn't anticipated Jake being here today, but when she heard his voice she was quick to reach in and switch it on to record their conversation. She was lucky Jake had become arrogant enough to believe she wouldn't try the same stunt twice. She rewound the tape and pushed play.
"I won't apologise for setting him up Supergirl, not when we're so close to finishing this."
A full confession on tape. Unfortunately, now she had it, she wasn't sure how she could use it to save Olsen.