Part 19

Roy slowly climbed out of bed and began to move stealthily towards the bedroom door, careful not to wake Rachael who was sleeping soundly. It was the third night in a row that he hadn't been able to sleep properly, the incident with Cheshire playing constantly on his mind. He reached out to open the door and gently turned the handle.

"And where do you think you're going?" Rachael's sleepy, but indignant voice drifted over to him.

He turned to look at her, even in the dark he could clearly see her propped up on one elbow staring at him.

"Shhh, go back to sleep, I didn't mean to wake you. " Roy whispered.

"Don't you shush me Roy Harper, how can I sleep knowing your sitting up worrying again?"

"I'm not worrying, I just couldn't sleep."

"Don't stand there telling me lies..get back over here." she scolded playfully.

"It's not a lie...Well ok, it might have been a little one." Roy replied sheepishly as he walked back over to the bed and climbed back under the blankets.

Rachael pushed him onto his back and propped herself up to look into his eye's. "You can't keep this up Roy..this worrying, not sleeping. It's not going to help you know." she said as she reached up and ran her fingers through his hair.

"I know..I can't help it." he whispered wrapping her in his arms.

She lay her head on his chest and sighed. "Your so worried about Cheshire doing something that's going to destroy the life you have, that your tearing that same life apart worrying..." she murmured as she ran her hands gently up and down his chest, feeling the ridges of his muscles rise and fall under her finger tips.

"You don't know what Chesh is capable of..."

"No I don't, I'll admit that. But I do know that she is a mother, and being a mother myself, I can't believe she would do anything that would hurt Lian..that includes hurting those she loves." Rachael said as she continued tracing patterns on his chest, smiling to her self as she felt him tense as she ran a finger nail lightly around his nipple.

"Don't bet on it..she's tried to take me out more than once." he replied, his voice taking on a huskier tone.

"Yes, but she hasn't, and from what I've heard, if she really wanted you dead I wouldn't be talking to you now. Something has stopped her from taking that step, and that something is that precious little girl in the next room." she said softly as she shifted her position and began to feather little kisses over his neck and chest,moving down to gently run her tongue around the other nipple.

He moaned softly, and slid his hands under her pyjamas top and began to rub them softly over her back. "I just think..."

"Stop thinking." she whispered as she moved lower.

"I can't..I've tried." he said softly, his voice breaking as his breathing became erratic."

"Then think about something else." she murmured breathlessly against his skin.

"I...Oh shit..what are you..."

"Shh...stop it." she murmured, as she set about making sure that what he was feeling, left no room for anymore thinking.

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"No Ollie."

"C'mon kid, it'll be just like old times..you and me against the forces of injustice."

"I said no...Some other time maybe."

"I've only got a couple of days here, then I have to go back...C'mon get your fancy PJ's on and we'll go crack some heads."

"No!"

"Roy, go with Ollie you haven't been out as Arsenal for ages..It'll get your mind off things." Rachael tried to reason.

"I'm not leaving you, not until we know what Cheshire's up to." Roy said impatiently, he was beginning to wish Ollie hadn't turned up that afternoon to visit. Now the kids had been put to bed he was wanting Roy to go out with him as Green Arrow and Arsenal, and there was no way in hell Roy was leaving Rachael alone.

"I'll be fine...She may not ever do anything..You can't put your life onhold forever." Rachael pleaded.

"Look I said no..stop asking me..Can't you see I'm doing what I have to do?" Roy yelled, finally snapping under the pressure. He jumped to his feet and stalked off to the bedroom slamming the door behind him.

Rachael sat in stunned silence, as she stared at the closed door.

"Always was a stubborn ass." Ollie said as he leaned back in the armchair and put his hands behind his head.

"He's tired...I haven't seen him react like this before." Rachael murmured.

"Don't worry about it kid...He gets his back up occasionally over stuff he thinks is important, but he gets over it." Ollie said.

The phone rang and Rachael stood up to go answer it, just as she reached for it, it stopped. "Roy's picked up the extension in the bedroom." she said. "Do you want a cup of coffee?"

"Nah I'm good."

"He worries too much." Rachael said softly.

"Not too much...He's knows Cheshire only too..." Ollie stopped talking as Roy walked back out of the room.

He looked at Rachael, his expression seemingly more relaxed than it had been in weeks. "Ryan's dead." he blurted.

Rachael looked stunned as Roy's words slowly sank in..Feeling a little guilty that she felt relief at his words. "What?...How?"

"That was Dick on the phone, he's been monitoring whats been happening with that sicko pretty closely for me...Apparently they transferred him from the institution they've been keeping him at temporarily, to a more permanent prison...Cut a long story short, something happened on the way from one place to the other, they found his guards unconscious, and him dead." Roy walked over and pulled Rachael into a hug, then looking at Ollie he added."The only marks on him were some scratches on his face...he was poisoned."

"Cheshire?" Ollie asked.

"Apparently the poison is one she's been known to use before." Roy looked down into Rachael's eye's. "It's over...We don't have to worry about Ryan...or Cheshire any more." he said, his body feeling weak with relief.

"But why don't we have to worry about Cheshire? She's still around isn't she?" Rachael asked confused.

"Kid.. her bumping off Ryan was her way of giving you the thumbs up, she's not gonna waste him if she wanted to go after you. It was a message, one that's loud and clear." Ollie said. "So now junior here can get of his ass and come kick some low life butts with me." he added happily.

end 19