I was sparring with Thea this time. I needed to make sure that I didn't leave any marks. I stopped right before hitting her in the face.
"That's variable acceleration. When your opponent is working at the same pace, you switch it up and throw your opponent off their game."
"Where'd you learn that?" She asked me.
"A man named Yao Fei." I answered.
"Did he give you those scars?" She questioned.
"Some of them." I replied.
"What I want to know is how come you won't hit her like you'll hit me." Diggle asked. There was a good reason for that.
"Because people care about what happens to my face." Thea responded. That was basically it, but I probably would have said it differently. "So, are you ever gonna tell us the full story of what happened on the island besides the getting raped?"
"I'll tell you everything." I declared before I hit her in the back, knocking her off her feet. "But it won't be today."
"You still have some pretty sweet moves." Diggle commented as Thea got back to her feet.
"Yeah, I'm going to use some on him." I declared as I pulled up something on my computer. "Scott Morgan runs water and power in the Glades. He jacks up prices later in the year and shuts them down when they can't pay, even if it's freezing outside."
"That's still a month away." Thea pointed out as she took out her iPad. "You could do something about this. This is a group of bank robbers who have been hitting several cities across the nation. The media calls them The Royal Flush Gang. They shot an off-duty cop. He's currently in a coma and it's apparently a 50-50 chance of whether or not he's going to live."
"Since he's a cop, that's probably something better suited for my dad." I pointed out.
"No disrespect to your father, but the police are overwhelmed and underfunded." Diggle stated. "I've done my research too. These guys have been known to hit two or three banks per city."
"They're planning their next job as we speak." Thea added.
"I think you two have the wrong idea about what I do." I explained.
"You take out bad guys with a bow and arrow." Diggle pointed out.
"I'm not going to bother fighting street crime." I argued as I turned and went back to the table. "It's a symptom of what's wrong with the city. I'm trying to cure the disease."
"Sara, I understand that you want to deal with these CEOs and crooked people because my dad told you to." Thea declared. "But don't you think that there's more than one way to make a difference in this city?"
"Your father died so I could live." I pointed out. "I'm not saying that I know him better than you do, but this is what he wanted me to find and I want to save this city by eliminating the threats that he left me. Every name I cross off honors his name and your brother's as well."
"Well maybe they would want you to save this city." Thea replied.
"You're the one who told me that dead people don't want things." I stated.
"It sounds like you have a narrow definition of being a hero." She stated. "Now you should take me home. I'll get my coat."
"I'm not a hero." I responded after she walked away.
On the island, I looked at the empty book as I huddled up by the fire. I could really use some more clothes. I would take pretty much anything, even bellbottoms at this point. It was at that point that I saw Oliver in front of me.
The next morning, Thea and I went downstairs for breakfast. She was talking about her mom.
"Haven't you noticed that she's been feeling down lately?" She asked. "Wait, of course you don't."
"Since when do you pay attention to what your mom is feelings?" I questioned.
"Since my stepfather decided to take a sudden business trip halfway around the world." She explained.
"I think whenever someone who makes as much as Mr. Steele takes a business trip, it's always sudden." I pointed out. "You shouldn't worry."
"Ah, guess who I just hung up with?" Mrs. Queen asked. She didn't look down. "Janice Bowen, Carter's mother."
"Carter Bowen, the perfect son." Thea declared.
"Is he perfect?" Mrs. Queen responded.
"According to you, he is." Thea pointed out. "'Carter Bowen is leading the chess team.' 'Carter Bowen is anchoring the debate team'."
"I'm sure I didn't make that much of a fuss." Mrs. Queen declared with a frown.
"Even I know you did." I replied. "Thea, Carter Bowen just got accepted into Harvard and Princeton. That's because he got a perfect score on his SATs."
"Now he did he have time to do that and cure cancer?" Thea asked.
"Okay, I get it." Mrs. Queen relented. "Well they're coming for lunch tomorrow and I expect you to be there."
"Sara, didn't we have that thing tomorrow?" Thea asked. "Looks like I can't come."
"Well you can reschedule because I expect both of you to be here." The woman relied. "As long as you're staying here, you'll do these things. I haven't seen them in years and I'm sure they would love to see the two of you."
I sighed. The house had a lot more to offer than my sister or father's one-bedroom apartments. I supposed I could.
"We'll be there." I assured her before she walked away.
"You're going to pay me back for this." Thea declared.
At that time, my phone began to ring. It was Diggle.
"Hello, Diggle." I answered.
"You know your friend Scott Morgan from your list. He tried to kill himself. Maybe he was afraid of getting a visit from you." He explained. What? "How fast can you get to Starling General?"
"I'm on my way." I declared as I headed for the door. However, before I was able to leave, it opened and Tommy walked into the house.
"Hey, just the girl I wanted to see." He stated. "I'm thinking we can open her up, pick up a few speeding tickets and a few ladies."
"I'm sorry. I can't right now." I replied before I left.
I headed down to the hospital and found Diggle was outside.
"You know I was thinking that Scott Morgan doesn't seem like the type to try to kill himself." I remarked.
"True, but that was the best lie I could come up with on short notice." He replied as I noticed someone being pulled out of an ambulance. At that point, a woman walked over to us.
"Mr. Diggle." She said as she shook his hand. "I can't thank you enough for arranging to move my husband from County Ward to Starling General. Now I know he's getting the best care."
"You really should be thanking this woman, Sara Lance. She's paying the bill." Diggle declared. I really hoped Mrs. Queen would be okay with this. "Janna's husband Stan is a police officer. He happened to be making a deposit at Starling Trust Bank when it was attacked."
"I was so sorry to hear about your husband." I remarked. "Is he going to be okay?"
"The doctors say that the next 24 hours are critical." She explained. "He should have just kept his head down."
"Well police officers always want to do what's right." I replied. "That's what my dad tells me."
"Thank you." She told me.
"You're welcome." I replied before she walked away. "What the fuck, Diggle?"
"Well you asked me to work with you, not for you." He explained. "You also said you know the kind of man I am. Well I'm the kind of man that doesn't walk away when there's an opportunity to make a difference and neither does Stan Washington. Where are you going?"
"To go make a difference. Let's pick Thea up and go catch some bank robbers." I declared.
We went to the lair and started to look at the footage.
"That guy sure has a temper." Thea remarked.
"He's the one who shot Officer Washington." Diggle declared. I started to look closer.
"He's got a college ring." I responded.
"More likely high school." Diggle replied. He was probably right, even though it was wrong to assume that he didn't go to college just because he was a bank robber.
"Yeah, but even with photo enhancement, it will have left an impression that would be in evidence lockout." I explained. For once, I could do something without breaking the law.
"Please tell me you're not going to break in." He said.
"No, I'm going to ask my dad if he'll let me see it." I replied.
It turned out that my dad wasn't there. However, there was a familiar face.
"Detective Bowman." I greeted her.
"What are you doing here?" She asked.
"I was looking for my dad. I talked to Stan Washington's wife and I was wondering if you had made any progress in identifying the suspects yet." I declared. "I had a suggestion. Maybe you could look to see if anyone was able to identify class rings."
"We did notice a ring. It was from Larchmont High." She explained. "Now, I don't want to tell you any more about this ongoing investigation."
"One more thing. Can I buy you dinner sometime?" I questioned. "It's the least I could do to thank you for saving my life."
Yes, I knew that dating a cop be a bad idea, but there was something about her that drew me to her.
"I'll think about it." She replied as he handed me a business card. "Don't call me about business, especially not this investigation."
I then went back to the lair.
"Why are you blushing?" Thea asked me. I didn't know I was.
"I ran into Detective Bowman and she gave me not only the name of the school but also her number." I stated. "Now let's get to work. I'm going to cross-reference the group of males from his graduating class and then look for any that are off the grid and not dead.
I did a little bit of typing and got just one.
"There's Kyle Reston." I replied. "He and his family have been off the grid for years."
"There were two others involved in this robbery." Thea said. You know she was great at observation. She could do well in school if she put effort into it. Of course, I didn't put a lot of effort into school either.
"And a woman." I added. "Aside from Stan Washington, there were 22 customers and employees that came out. The problem is that there were 23 other people in the bank. So, we're looking for a family and we can resume our search after Thea and I meet with the Bowen family."
In the morning, I wore a pink lace sleeveless dress and pink flats.
"It's so good to see you, Sara." Mrs. Bowen declared before she hugged me and kissed my cheek. "How are your father and sister?"
"They're fine." I replied. "They're just happy that I'm home."
"And you returned a celebrity." Carter replied as he shook my hand.
"What are you talking about?" I asked.
"Well you survived a trip to hell and back, There's a bidding war for your life story. At least that's what my agent says." He replied.
"Why does a neurosurgeon need an agent?" I questioned.
"It's crazy right." He stated. He then started to speak basically scientific gibberish. "…and next there's an agent trying to make me the next Dr. Oz."
"He's that guy from Oprah, right?" I asked.
"Well I just think that as Starling City's more fortunate, we should help those in need." Carter suggested. "Don't you agree, Sara?"
"Yeah, so don't be mad at me, but I had that police officer from the robbery moved to Starling General." I explained.
"So, now that you're back, what are your plans?" Mrs. Bowen asked.
"I'm going to be opening a nightclub." I explained.
"Miss Lance, your liquor distributor is on the line." Diggle interrupted before whispering into my ear. "First Bank of Starling was hit two minutes ago."
"I'm so sorry, but duty calls." I declared as I noticed Thea mouthing that she hated me. She then followed me out.
"You can't just leave me here." She said.
"Look, they're attacking now and I have to go. You need to be here much more than I do." I apologized. I did feel bad that I had to leave her behind.
Diggle had explained to me that they would try to escape through some tunnels underground and I knew that I should meet them there. It was a good idea considering that there were cops everywhere. There were even some in the tunnels. A small shootout had even started. I decided to shoot the bag of money out of one of the guys' hands. I then noticed the cops had their sights on me and I shot the lights out before making my escape. It was time for me to figure how to make it up to Thea.
I needed to find more information if I was going to catch them. I had a feeling that I couldn't go back to the police, so I decided to go to Queen Consolidated.
"I should add personal internet researcher for Sara Lance to my job title." Felicity declared.
"His name is Kyle Reston." I declared. "I went out with him a few times before I went on the boat and I can't find him on Facebook, so I was wondering if you could give me anything that I can use to find him."
"Well there's nothing recent, no credit, no bills, but his dad did work at the Steel Factory." She explained. "Derek Reston worked there for 15 years before it shut in 2007. He was the factory foreman until Mr. Queen outsourced production to China. 1500 employees got laid off. The accountants even found a loophole, so they didn't have to pay severance or pensions to their employees. A lot of them lost their homes, including the Derek Reston."
Once we were outside, I began to speak.
"So, the factory workers went to a bar. I'm hoping Derek wants to take a stroll down memory lane." I told him.
"What are you going to do if he is there?" He questioned.
"I'm going to give him the chance to do the right thing." I replied.
"Sara, he already had his chance to do the right thing. It's called not being a criminal." He pointed out.
"I promised Mr. Queen that I would save the city and right the wrongs of the corrupt and I realize that includes him." I replied.
"The Restons aren't the victims." He declared.
"I'm going to give him one chance to make it right." I replied as headed out. I needed to do it the right way.
He was there and he was playing blackjack. Now I knew where the Royal Flush theme came from. Once everyone left the table, I went over.
"Mind if I have a seat?" I questioned.
"Sara Lance, the lost child returns." He remarked. "I didn't figure you for someone who would hang out in the Glades."
"Well I'm building a nightclub out here." I responded.
"You know the last time I saw your father, he was leading the charge to break up the strike and take my guys off of the premises." He explained. Okay…so it wasn't just Mr. Queen he had some ill will against.
"Mr. Queen made some mistakes. My father was just following orders. You were hurt and in trouble and I think you made the wrong choice." I replied. "Now you still the chance to make the right choices for you and your family. They don't have to define you."
"Choices don't help me get my house back." He pointed out.
"Well a job might." I replied. "I've grown close to the Queen family and I could get them to give you a job anywhere in the country, or I could even give you a job at my club."
"How about I say fuck you?" He suggested. "You think I want charity from the daughter of the man who cut off my last hope, the girl who was screwing the son of the man who took that away from me?"
"Okay, but if you change your mind, let me know." I declared. "You and I are both dealing with the consequences of Mr. Queen's actions. We can't change the past, but we can change the future."
Of course, I also planted a bug on him as I left. It would allow me to know if they were going to go to another bank and when they planned on doing it.
While I was listening, Thea walked into the lair.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"I dropped a bug on Derek Reston." I replied. "I thought it would be good to have the upper hand on them."
"I thought John said you were giving him a second chance?" She questioned.
"I am, but I'm also not an idiot." I pointed out as I turned the audio back on. I heard things that I didn't want to hear before turning it off.
"So, what are you going to do now?" She asked me.
"I'm going to take them down." I replied.
"Well let's hope they don't do anything during Tommy's benefit for your sister." She replied. "This would be a good chance to ask that detective out."
That led to us going together. I handed Diggle written instructions to contact me as soon as he heard about the Restons making a move. I wore a black floor-length evening gown and black crystal heels while my date was dashing in a red gown. Her hair was even tied up. She looked so different out of her uniform.
"So, now I can why they call you Scarlett." I joked. "You look beautiful."
"Careful with the quips. I still have my gun." She retorted.
"Excuse me, Miss Lance, can I have a word?" Diggle interrupted before he whispered the location.
At that time, I heard Scarlett's phone go away.
"Damn it." She said. It looked like we were headed to the same event.
I would have to get changed quickly. I could help but be a little annoyed that this stuff kept happening when I was in my finest dresses because they weren't the easiest to get out of. I made my entrance to the bank. It was just Derek and Kyle this time.
"Kyle Reston." I greeted him as I fired at him. Instead, he pulled out a shield.
"I came prepared." He remarked before he started shooting at me. When he wasn't looking, I shot him in the chest, not near anything vital. He seemed tough and like he was also wearing layers.
We began to brawl inside of the building as I noticed the security was awake and he had a shotgun. That seemed a little excessive if you asked me.
"Hey, I've got this under control." I remarked. At that time, Derek came out and I shot the gun out of his hand.
"Drop your weapons." The guard ordered. Kyle didn't listen and the guard fired. Derek dove in front of it, taking the hit.
"He's bleeding out. Call an ambulance now!" I told him before he ran off.
I knew that chances were he wasn't going to make it. I thought about lowering my hood, but didn't because they were cameras and I didn't want to get arrested again.
"Where is Kyle?" Derek asked.
"He's okay." I stated. "He's just knocked out."
"It wasn't his fault. I did this to my son." He declared.
On the island, the hallucination of Oliver showed the book and held it by the fire before disappearing. I decided to do the same and suddenly a bunch of names started to appear.
I made my exit. I couldn't help but feel upset. I knew I had to head home. As soon as I got there, I got a call from Scarlett. I knew she had been there because I heard her voice as I was leaving. Things were going to be complicated with her.
"Hi." I answered.
"Hey, I'm sorry I had to bail on you. Something came up at work. It looks like we caught the robbers, only one of them didn't make it." She explained. "He was shot by a security guard."
"That's too bad." I responded.
"But I have some good news." She added. "Stan Washington awoke from his coma. He is going to be okay."
"That's good to hear." I replied.
"I'd like to make it up to you sometime." She stated. "It's late. I should probably let you sleep. I'm sorry I couldn't do this in person."
At that point, a car woke up. It was Tommy and Thea was in the passenger seat.
"What happened?" I asked.
"I had a little bit too much to drink." She replied. Technically one glass was too much to drink.
"I've got it from here, Tommy." I assured him before he drove off. "So, did your night suck as much as mine did?"
"How did yours go?" She questioned.
"Well I stopped the robbery, but Derek Reston is dead. I wanted him to get out of it, but he didn't. I couldn't save him no matter how hard I tried." I explained. "So, what happened to you?"
"Not only did I make a fool of myself, but I tried to kiss Tommy." She answered. "I think I figured out why you like girls so much. Boys are too much trouble."
"Well, even if I didn't have to leave, my date would have because we were on the same case." I remarked. "Let's go inside."
"You know I think you honored my dad more than taking down any of those guys on the list tonight." She replied. "He would be proud of you. Ollie would be proud of you as well."
"You know I would have an easier time believing you if you weren't drunk." I quipped. At that point, I noticed Mrs. Queen was still up.
"I'm sorry, Mom." Thea apologized.
"You know I'm kind of used to these things happening by now." Mrs. Queen admitted. Oliver really hadn't been the best son.
"Well I'm sorry too." I declared. "I made a promise that I would be there for you with the Bowens and I couldn't live up to it. I think I have an idea to make it up to you and I think Thea could use some food so she doesn't get a bad hangover."
It led to the three of us heading to Big Belly Burger. It made me think of the times that I had been with my dad and Laurel. I wished that I could hang out with them more. I was getting closer with them. When we got our food, Mrs. Queen grabbed her fork and knife. I couldn't help but giggle a little.
"Mom, it's a burger." Thea told her. She then put the utensils down and took a bite.
"Mmm, that is a great burger." Mrs. Queen declared. "Thank you two for this."
"We wouldn't have it any other way." Thea stated.
"I bet Carter Bowen before doesn't know where to get the best burger in Starling City." Her mother replied.
"Well at least I'm not a total screwup." Thea retorted.
"You are not a screwup." Mrs. Queen assured her. I couldn't help but smile.
So, this story is back. Sara went on a date with Scarlett that did not go well. Also I had to bring Thea along at the end because it would be weird for Moira and Sara to go somewhere alone and it was also a family thing. Please don't forget to review.