A/N: Sorry for the wait. Thank you to everyone still reading despite the LONG wait in between chapters.

All mistakes are my own. Hopefully, there aren't too many.

"Felicity?" Oliver frowned as he saw her body tense up as if she was expecting a blow at a moments notice. "Is everything okay?"

"No." she turned around slowly, her hand holding her cell dropping to her side. "No, everything is not okay."

Diggle frowned at the familiar look in her eye. It was a look he had seen once before. When he first met her, and she had been running for her life.

Diggle moved forward instantly. "It's about him, isn't it?"

Felicity nodded, struggling to speak through her shock.

Oliver looked between them. Diggle and Felicity's almost silent communication had him feeling like he was missing something, and he didn't like that feeling all too much.

He stepped forward and watched as John pivot immediately, moving like he was ready to attack anyone who got too close. "What's wrong?" Oliver questioned, looking between the two.

"Cooper." The idea of keeping this from Oliver didn't even occur to Felicity. "Cooper escaped, and it's a high chance he is going to come for me."

That had the power to incite rage in Oliver like nothing had before, he moved toward her instantly brushing past Digg and reaching for her hand. He felt small tremors through her hand, he took her phone and slipped it into his pocket then tightened his grip around her hand protectively. "What all do you know? When did he escape?"

Felicity shook her head. "I don't know anything," her voice cracked with an edge of fear, and she closed her eyes tightly and pressed her other hand directly over her heart, breathing deeply and counting backward, controlling her emotions the best she could.

She lowered her hand when she felt she had control over her emotions. "Cooper escaped 5 days ago. Detective Miller believes that Cooper will try and make contact with me. Before I hung up, he suggested I go into witness protection until he is apprehended."

"You don't have to do that." Oliver shook his head. "We can protect you. I will protect you."

Felicity nodded even as her mind worked. Cooper had escaped 5 days ago, and there was no telling what he did in that time.

Was he on the run for his freedom, or was he coming for her?

Could Cooper already be in Starling? If so, where was he? What was Cooper doing? What was he planning?

She had so many questions with no answers. Too many unknowns.

Her stomach rolled, her chest tightening, her heart raced, and her skin felt tight all of a sudden.

"I need some air." She tugged her hand out of Oliver's warm one.

She left the training room and walked quickly to her office, locking the door behind her.

Felicity took a seat on the couch in her office, slipping off her shoes and brought her knees up to her chest, burying her face in her hands.

She shut her eyes tightly, but the second she did she could see Cooper, holding a gun on her, his hand shaking with a crazed look in his eye.

Her eyes snapped open, and she sucked in a sharp breath as fear lodged in her throat.

"Cooper's not here. I'm safe. He can't hurt me." She muttered under her breath. "Cooper can't hurt me anymore."

It was a mantra all too familiar to her.

Felicity breathed out deeply counting down from 10. When she felt like she wasn't on the brink of a panic attack, she lifted her head and just breathed slow and deep.

She heard her office door rattle, someone trying to come in. A knock followed the sound. "Felicity?"

Oliver.

She slid her legs back to the floor and slipped her shoes back on before unlocking her office door and swinging it open.

"You left your phone," Oliver held it out to her.

Felicity grabbed her cell, her fingers brushing his skin. "Thank you, I just needed a moment to gather myself."

Felicity hadn't wanted John or Oliver to see her moment of weakness. She didn't want anyone to see her being weak.

She was meant to be stronger than this. She couldn't afford to fall apart.

"Lance called your cell, said he had another girl for you to take in," Oliver informed her.

Felicity nodded, already placing her phone against her ear, calling Lance back. "Detective Lance, I'm sorry I missed your call."

"No, that's okay, I'm sure you have a lot going on," Lance replied.

"Oliver said you have a girl in need of help." Felicity brushed off his concern.

"Yes, I was hoping you could come by the station."

"Sure, I will be there in half an hour," Felicity answered and quickly said her goodbyes.

"Are you sure you're up for meeting with him?" Oliver asked, stepping closer to her. "Maybe, you should take the day off."

"No, I'm not going to disrupt my life. I'm not about to give him that power over me again." Felicity shook her head as she clenched her jaw. "I'm going to continue doing what I do, and if Cooper does come for me, then I'll be ready for him. I am not the girl he knew. I'm different now."

Oliver nodded slowly. "Okay, I'm here for you if you need anything."

Felicity's lips pulled into a small smile. "I know, and I'm grateful."

Another knock sounded on her door and John appeared in the doorway. "We need to talk about this new development."

"It's going to have to wait. I'm meeting with Lance bringing another girl in, but when I get back, we'll talk." Felicity assured him.

"I'm going with you," Digg said, he didn't feel good about leaving her alone right now.

"That's not necessary, I have Oliver coming with me," Felicity replied, pulling her jacket on.

"I know that, but I still feel like I need to go. I want to talk to Lance about this new development." John insisted. "For all, we know he's the one who threw the brick through your window. We thought that it was Andrew Evans, but what if they're working together. We need to figure this out."

Felicity nodded, agreeing with his logic. "Alright, get me, Sara and Nyssa. I'll be leaving them in charge while we deal with this. Normally, I would ask Slade, but he's on the Amelia situation."

John nodded, leaving her office.

"My apartment window is going to be fixed in two days, and I'm having a better security program installed, I had planned on going back to my apartment when it was done but now I.." Felicity trailed off, looking up at Oliver who was listening intently. "Would it be alright if I stayed with you until Cooper is back where he belongs rotting in a cell?"

Oliver felt warmth spread in his chest when her home was broken into he had a hard time convincing Felicity to let him do his job, and it had been a struggle getting her to open up, and now here she was seeking out his help.

He knew she was probably just being practical and smart, but he couldn't help but hope it was also because she felt safe with him.

"If you went back to your place, I would be right there with you. With everything's that's going on, I can't imagine leaving you on your own." Oliver reached for her hand, his hand wrapping around her smaller one. "You are welcome to stay as long as you need."

"Thank you," Felicity murmured quietly.

Felicity bit her lip looking away from Oliver, her thoughts elsewhere, Digg's words resonating with her.

If all of this was Cooper than why didn't he attack her that night he broke into her home? What game was he trying to play?

The fear she could feel slowly building inside of her was an ugly reminder of the fear she felt every day when she had been with Cooper. She was trying to push it down, but it was hard.

She didn't know what Cooper was going to do. She didn't know what he was planning. All she knew was he was out there, and he could come for her at any time.

The amount of fear that he instilled in her she hadn't felt in a long time. Years. She hated having that feeling back.

Oliver had a way of making her feel safe, but she was frustrated that she had depended on his presence to feel safe but more than that Felicity hated that she was having trouble feeling safe, to begin with.

She was supposed to be stronger than this. How the hell was she supposed to help the women who came to her for a safe place if she was being weak? If she was looking over her shoulder every 5 minutes?

How was she supposed to make them feel safe if she couldn't even do that for herself?

She wasn't this weak. She had to be stronger than this. She couldn't let fear take over her life.

She was stronger than that. Damn it.

She was stronger than Cooper, and every other man who had to lay a hand on a woman just to feel strong and in control.

"Hey,"

Felicity felt Oliver's steady hand on her shoulder, and she turned back to him, noting how he watched her with concern.

"You know I would never let anything happen to you, don't you?"

Felicity paused to take him in, the set of his shoulders, the stubborn set of his jaw, the obvious concern in his eyes. "Yeah, I know."

Oliver didn't believe Felicity truly knew the lengths he was willing to go to for her, to keep her safe.

If he ever laid eyes on Cooper, he was going to beat him into an inch of his life. He would take great pleasure in making Cooper suffer even a fraction of what Felicity had suffered at his hands.

Protecting her while it was his job, it wasn't what any of this was about. He wanted, no, he needed to protect her because he cared about her.

He cared about her more than he cared about someone in a very long time who was not his family.

"And if you ever want to talk. I'm here." Oliver tightened his grip around her hand in a show of support.

"Thanks," Felicity squeezed his hand back and tug her hand out of his. "C' mon, we have to meet Lance."

Felicity shook her head as she looked over a picture of a young girl, no older than twenty. Her nose was busted, split lip, busted jaw and a hairline fracture of her wrist and dark bruises along her collarbone and neck. "Any injuries that can't be seen in this photo?"

"Two broken ribs. Possible sexual assault. Chloe refused an exam, but she insists she wasn't assaulted; however, she's very uncomfortable when a man is too close." Lance answered. They were seated in one of the interrogation rooms so they could talk privately.

Felicity nodded, grimacing. "Any family she can contact?"

"No, parent's died in a car crash when she was eight, no blood family, Chloe bounced around in the system until she was 18, she went off on her own after that and managed stayed off the radar until she was found last night in an alley, barely conscious," Lance informed.

"Where is Chloe, now?" Oliver asked, standing behind Felicity.

"At the hospital, I have two deputies keeping an eye on her, in case her college boyfriend decides to come back and finish the job he started." Lance opened a note pad and wrote quickly on it before tearing the note from the pad and sliding it across to Felicity. "She's at Starling General. This is her floor and room number. My deputies know to expect you."

Felicity nodded. "I will handle it."

Lance stood to leave, but Felicity put her hand out to stop him. "One more moment, Detective Lance. I have another name to add to the list of enemies who might have targeted my home."

Lance leaned forward. "I've been working on all the other names, but I'm getting nowhere, maybe with a new one I might actually make some progress."

"Cooper Seldon." Felicity folded her hands in front of her.

"Cooper Seldon," Lance repeated, he remembered arresting Cooper when he showed up on the scene when John Diggle had saved her life.

John stepped forward. "He escaped prison almost a week ago, and as far as we know, he could be in Starling City. There's every chance, he's the one who broke into her apartment, and he could be the one who has been sending her threats."

"Wait a minute, Cooper escaped a week ago. Why are you just telling me this now?" Lance demanded.

"We just found out earlier this morning," John answered. "Apparently, they were hoping to keep things quiet until they caught him again, but they're finding the task more difficult than they anticipated."

"Since their struggling to find his whereabouts they thought it best to inform me in case he decided to come after me again," Felicity replied dryly.

"Telling you should've been their first priority," Lance said gruffly, his eyes softening in concern on Felicity. "Are you okay?"

"To be honest, I've been better," Felicity confessed.

"You know if you need anything I'm here."

Felicity nodded. "I just wanted you to make you aware of the situation."

"I'll bring up his picture on my database and circle it around the station have the other officers help keep an eye out for him."

"Thank you," Felicity stood. "I appreciate it."

Lance stood and pulled the door open as she moved around the table. "Do me a favor and stay safe."

Felicity smiled faintly and glanced back over her shoulder at Oliver and John who were keeping close to her, hovering over her, she turned her gaze back to Lance. "I don't think that would be a problem."

Lance looked behind her. "Yeah, I don't think it will."

Sweat slid down Felicity's back, perspiration glistening her skin, her fist slammed into the punching bag again and again. Her arms burned with exhaustion but she ignored it, pushing herself to go on.

"I thought we agreed to a fifteen-minute break?" John asked, stepping back into the training room.

"We did, but after the first five minutes, I needed to be doing something." Felicity panted, executing a three-punch combo on the punching bag.

John moved behind the bag, grabbing hold of it while Felicity continued to hail punches onto the bag. He understood that Felicity needed to be doing something, but he worried that she was going to exhaust herself. "Felicity, they're going to catch Cooper."

"I know that, but it doesn't change the way I feel knowing he's out there." She slammed her right fist into the bag so hard she felt the bones in her hand rattle, pain radiated up her arm, but she didn't care. "I feel helpless and like there's a ticking time bomb hanging over my head."

"Time bomb for what?" Digg questioned.

Felicity slammed her leg into the bag in frustration, before turning away running a hand over her ponytail. "Before Cooper finds me. It's irrational. I know that. I have you, and I have Oliver. Hell, I have a place full of people to protect women, but there's this voice constantly in the back of my head telling me he's going to get me and he's finally going to keep his promise and put a bullet in my chest."

John released his grip on the bag and followed her movements. "Cooper is not gonna get that close to you. I won't let that happen. None of us will."

"I know that, but it doesn't stop that voice in my head to just shut up," Felicity stated. "The only thing I can do right now to push that nagging voice away is to stay busy."

Her phone pinged on the table, and she moved toward it, a reminder about a freelance computer job that she had to be at in an hour.

"I have a meeting in an hour at a small start-up company downtown. I'm gonna hit the shower. Oliver supposed to be back in half an hour from his family thing with Thea when he gets here, meet with me in my office."

Felicity stepped into her office and found Oliver and John waiting for her. "I'm just going to grab my bag, and then we can head out, Nyssa and Sara are going to keep an eye on things. We should be gone a few hours at the most."

"Are you sure you should be running your freelance work right now?" Oliver questioned, standing up from where he was seated with John in the two chairs in front of her desk. "We should be limiting the opportunities for Cooper to find you."

"Hiding away is not gonna keep Cooper from finding me. He's an abusive bastard, but he's smart. If he wants to find me, he will. I said it before, and I will say it again until it gets across I am not going to disrupt my life because some asshole is threatening me, even if that asshole is my abusive ex-boyfriend." Felicity grabbed her, pulling it on and grabbed her bag. "Besides the money from my freelance work is how I keep this place running."

Oliver wanted to argue further, but he knew Felicity made valid points. Felicity should not disrupt her life, she would be handling control over her life back to Cooper, and that scumbag didn't have the right, and it was important that the shelter kept running. The women who had suffered at the hands of someone they cared about, someone they loved were counting on this place. Each and every one of them was relying on Felicity. She was a symbol of strength and hope that their lives could get better.

"Alright, just let me take all the precautions I can." he insisted instead.

Felicity nodded. "I promise if you say there's immediate danger I'll do whatever you need me to do to stay safe. I trust your judgment."

"Oliver will be with you inside while you do your work, and I will be keeping a lookout outside of the building for anything suspicious." Digg straightened his jacket.

"Sounds good," Felicity said in approval. She trusted John's calls. "Let's go."

Oliver leaned in the doorway after getting back from a late dinner with Thea, watching Felicity.

For the past week, she had engrossed herself in her work. Oliver had always thought Felicity was a hard worker from the moment he met her, but she was burying herself in her work. It wasn't hard to see that she was exhausting herself to keep busy.

He knew she was stressed, and it was, but he worried, burning fuel, working day and night the way Felicity was, she was bound to make herself sick.

Oliver believed he needed to just take a moment and just let herself breathe. She spent all her time taking care of others, but she needed to take care of herself too.

He knocked lightly on her open door.

Felicity's head snapped up. "Hey, um, how long have you been there?"

"A few minutes. I just got back. How's work going here?"

"Good. I'm making some real progress on this new security program I've been working on. I think it will help us to keep this place safe and secure. Speaking of, this place is getting pretty packed. We barely have any room to take in any more girls. I think we need to start searching for a larger place. However, it needs to be fortified for security purposes, and it needs to be anonymous."

"How about we put the search for that on hold for a night, and we head out for the night? I already convince John to go home to his family under the strict promise that I would take care of you and for me, that includes not letting you work or stress yourself into a coma." Oliver moved toward her. "C' mon, Felicity, it's late, and you really look like you need to take a moment to take care of yourself. Maybe get a drink to relax and let your mind shut down for a little bit."

"I could use a drink," Felicity admitted. Or a few, she could feel a headache forming, and she knew it was the constant stress she was currently under. "Let me just grab my jacket, and we can head out for the night."

Felicity looked around at the bar Oliver had taken her to, it was small and quaint and surprisingly enough a jazz bar.

"Queen," an older gentleman greeted from behind the bar as she slid into one of the stools. "What can I get for you tonight?"

"Two scotches, one for me and one for my friend, here." Oliver took the seat next to her.

"In that case, the first two are on the house." the man grinned and extended his hand to Felicity. "Hi, I'm Ron, any friend of Oliver's is welcome in my bar anytime."

"Thank you," Felicity took his offered hand. "Felicity Smoak, it's nice to meet you."

Ron smiled, releasing her hand. "Likewise," he poured two scotches, setting the drinks down in front of them. "Enjoy."

Felicity watched him move to the end of the bar then looked at Oliver. "Come here, often?"

"You can say that." Oliver wrapped his hand around his glass. "When I first came home after my tour, I went to this Veteran's meeting." If only to get Thea to stop nagging him. "And afterward we would come here and get drinks. It was a nice way to just relax and let all the heavy stuff fall away."

"I find it hard that you willingly open up about the war," Felicity commented.

"I listen to other's open up about it," Oliver admitted. "If I need to talk to someone, it's usually John."

"I'm not John, but you can talk to me if you ever need someone just to listen." Felicity knew she wasn't John. She knew how easy it was to open up to John about the heavy stuff. John just had that quality about him.

Oliver smiled faintly. "I appreciate that. Maybe I'll take you up on it sometime."

Felicity smiled, reached for her glass, and lifting it to her lips. "Good."

"You can talk to me, too, you know." Oliver took a small sip of his drink. "About anything."

Felicity lowered her glass, setting it on the bar. "I know. I'm sorry if it seems like I don't appreciate everything you do for me. I do. Cooper being out there just has me really stressed." She lifted her glass, draining it, and motioning for another shot.

"Here." Oliver pushed his glass in front of her.

"Thanks," Felicity murmured, taking a sip. "I know I'm stubborn, and I've been stubborn a lot more lately."

"No," Oliver shook his head. "You don't have to apologize. I know your ex being back isn't easy. Deal with it any way you need to. I just want you to know you don't have to go through any of this alone."

Felicity looked at him silently for a moment before reaching out for his hand on the bar and tangling their fingers together. "Thank you."

"When I suggested we go out for drinks, I figured one or two. I didn't intend for you to get drunk." Oliver commented, catching her by the waist when she stumbled past the threshold of his apartment.

"I'm not drunk," Felicity protested, shrugging off his arm from her waist. "Just a little tipsy." she made her way to the guest bedroom she was staying in, shrugging off her jacket and kicking her heels to the floor and almost tripped on them a moment later.

Oliver caught her around the waist again. "Easy, there." he cautioned, helping her over to the bed.

Felicity immediately reached for her shirt, but Oliver stilled her hands. "You might want to wait to do that till I'm out of the room."

Felicity's face flushed. "I might be a little tipsy," she admitted.

"I know." Oliver smiled. "Just wait for a second, I'll be right back."

Felicity took her hair out of her ponytail and ran her fingers through it.

"Here," Oliver returned with one of his t-shirts. "It'll be more comfortable for you to sleep in."

Felicity took his shirt in her hands carefully, touched by the gesture. "Thank you." Felicity stood slowly, placed his shirt on the bed, and reached for his hand. "Since I found out about Cooper, honestly, I'm scared all the time, and the only time I feel safe is when I'm with you."

Oliver's heart pounded in his chest at her words. "You'll always be safe with me."

Felicity couldn't fight off the urge to wrap her arms around him. Oliver's arms came around her instinctively, holding her protectively against his body.

Felicity couldn't explain it or put it into words, but she knew instinctively there was no safer place to be than in Oliver's arms. She fisted her hands in his shirt, and Oliver tightened his arms around her, pressing a kiss into her hair.

Felicity seeking safety in his arms had such a surge of protective coursing through Oliver's veins. He was going to make damn sure no one ever hurt her. Least of all some asshole from her past who didn't know how to treat her right.

If it were up to Oliver, Felicity would never know a man's cruelty. If she'd let him, he would show her how amazing she was, and he would never let someone like her go.

Felicity Smoak was the kind of woman you loved with all your heart and never let go. She was someone to die for.

A/N: Thanks for reading. Reviews are loved.