Zoom had been all smiles with her after what had happened with Barry at Jitters. He no longer had her handcuffed, knowing full well that she wouldn't leave. And if she did, it would be easy for him to get her back. He had been so busy, no doubt preparing for his master plan. A part of her wanted to find out the plan, see if she could stop it. She doubted she could do anything, he may not have had her handcuffed but she had been locked in the captain's office. The one time she had tried to peek out the blinds, Zoom had been there to stop her.
"Why can't I look outside?" asked Caitlin, pulling her hand away from his. "Afraid I will see the destruction you have caused?" she added, and Zoom pulled his mask off, a scowl on his face.
"Tonight, you and I will be having a talk, I promise you that," he said, racing to her, and pulling her close. He pressed his lips to her forehead, something that was clearly meant as a romantic, but innocent, gesture. He smiled down at her, before racing out of the room, locking her into the room on the way. Caitlin fell to the ground. She wasn't sure how much more of Zoom she could take. She wondered how hard it would be to jump out that window, just get it over with. And if Zoom would catch her before she hit the ground.
After Ronnie had died, Caitlin had been depressed. She had left STAR labs and her friends, because everything reminded her on him. He had died a hero, but that didn't change the fact that he had died. The only thing that had kept her going was the fact that she knew Ronnie would want her to continue on, want her to try to live her life. Looking back, she had realised that leaving her friends hadn't helped the matter. They could have helped her, helped fill that loneliness.
She felt more helpless now than she had then. Zoom knew how to play a psychological game, by playing the role of Jay he had manipulated everyone around him. Now he was torturing her, keeping her a prisoner with the illusion of freedom in small doses. Taking every chance to assert dominance over her, all the while reminding her he loved her. It was almost enough to drive her out that window. But in a way, he would win if she did that. And she was going to beat him, even if it was in small victories. Caitlin would not give into Zoom.
Awhile later, Zoom came back, rushing in to see her. He kept the mask on as he stared at her, his eyes still black.
"What do you want?" she asked, almost wanting him to keep the mask on this time. With the mask on, she knew he was a monster. The face underneath it, it still held a bit of Jay for her. She still couldn't help but care for him. It was smaller than the part of her that despised him, and it would never win, but it was there.
"I have some good news for us," he replied, pulling his mask off and moving to stand beside her. Caitlin started to inch away, but he quickly grabbed her, pulling her towards him. "This will be hard for you to hear, so I am going to be here to support you," he whispered, pressing his lips to her cheek.
"What is it?" asked Caitlin, trying to get away.
"Barry is dead," he said, a large smile on his face.
"No." stuttered Caitlin. "You're lying," she continued, fighting to get the tears to stop. Zoom had to be lying, he had to be. Barry couldn't be dead, he couldn't be!
"He died trying to recreate the particle accelerator explosion. He disintegrated, all because he was trying to get his powers back," he replied. Caitlin broke free from him, running back, hitting the desk. She fell to the ground, folding her head into her arms, trying to stop the tears. This was a feeling that she had suffered so many times. She had lost Ronnie, twice. Then thought she had lost Jay. And now Barry.
"No," she muttered, feeling everything good inside her vanish. "No!" Caitlin screamed, looking straight at Zoom, who had a smile on his face.
"I understand that this is hard for you," he said, walking over to her, kneeling down beside her. Caitlin tried to move, but her body had given up control, her grief was overcoming her sense of repulsion for Zoom.
"You're lying," she whispered, even though a large part of her knew he wasn't. Barry would have done anything to stop this monster, and if that included trying to regain his powers, he would do it. But Barry couldn't be dead, she couldn't lose another person. "You have to be," Caitlin muttered between tears. "You're lying!" she screamed, throwing a fist towards Zoom. He caught it without a problem, and he pulled her close to him, holding her tight against his chest.
It was comforting.
She hated that having Zoom hold her made her feel better. She hated that it helped. And she hated that she wasn't pulling away. But right now, she just needed someone to hold her, and Hunter was the only one there.
"I know this is hard for you," repeated Hunter, running his hand through her hair. "But now, there is no one to come between us," he whispered, smiling at Caitlin. She snapped, breaking free of his hold, sliding backwards.
"You don't understand," she replied, wiping the tears from her face. "You don't. Because if you did, you would let me go, let me grieve!" she screamed.
"You are too caught up in the moment right now," said Hunter, sighing as he stood up. "I will be back for you soon, I have to do something," he said. Before he left he picked her up, racing her to a different room on the upper level of the precinct. She sat down in one of the chairs, letting the tears consume her once more. She knew what the first step was, shock. Zoom had managed to get her out of that stage pretty quick. Now came denial, and Caitlin was willing to stay in this stage forever. If it meant believing Barry was alive, she was completely okay with that. She could suddenly hear more footsteps throughout the precinct, the number seemed to increase as the sky got darker. She heard the voices gathering in the room below her, and she would go see what was happening except Zoom had jammed the door shut. There was nothing in the room to help her escape. She had no choice but to give up.
"Have you calmed down?" asked Hunter, darting into the room and taking his mask off. Caitlin stayed silent. "I know Barry's death is hard for you to accept, but now you and I can be together," he said, kneeling down in front of her chair. "Cait, please," he said.
"I asked you not to call me that," replied Caitlin.
"Caitlin…." Zoom replied with a sigh. "We've been through this again and again, and we've gotten nowhere," he said, reaching for one of her hands. "Now, I need to know, are you with me, or are you against me? Don't answer that yet," he said, making sure Caitlin didn't say anything. "I'm gonna go out there, spend a moment speaking to my friends, and when I come back, you'll give me your answer. If you're still here, I'll know you've chosen to stay with me. But if you're not here, I'll know you've chosen your friends instead. And I will show you exactly as much mercy as I will show them when we next see each other. So there you have it," he said, standing, looking down at her. "I need to go," he finished, looking like he wanted to say something else but didn't. He left the room and Caitlin took a deep breath. He was willing to let her go, let her leave. Why?
It didn't matter truly. She was free. There was only one problem.
Caitlin quickly got up, looking through every draw, every box. Zoom hadn't planned on putting her in this room, he may have left a phone somewhere, in some draw, hidden away. She finally found one, pulling it out. She dialled in Cisco's number, her hand shaking. It went to voice mail, and she took a deep breath after the tone went off.
"Cisco, it's me," started Caitlin, her voice shaking. "Listen, you need to know, Zoom has an army of metahumans ready to attack, you need to protect yourselves," she continued, then took another deep breath. "He has said I can leave, Zoom is letting me go. But I can't. If I leave there is no one to stop him, stop him from hurting the people I love. So I can't," she said starting to cry. "I have to stay with him if it gives me even the smallest chance to stop him from killing all of you," she continued. "Cisco, I care about you so much, and I need you to tell everyone how much I love them all," she finished. "And I don't know if Barry is dead or not," started Caitlin. "But if he is still alive, can you please get him to listen to this?" Caitlin, said, trying to stop crying before she talked to Barry. In this moment, it didn't matter if he was alive or dead. Caitlin needed to say these things. "Barry, I need to be honest with you. I love you. I have for some time. You are so much more than the Flash, you are so kind, and caring, so intelligent and brave. You are everything that I have ever wanted to find. And I understand, that for you there will always be another person, like Iris. And I respect that. But in case I never see you again, and in case something happens to me, I want to know that I told you the truth. Barry Allen, I love you. And I am so, so sorry for everything I have put you through. I love you Barry," she said, finally wiping tears from her eyes. "Goodbye," she said, hanging up the phone. There was no way she could leave Zoom, but she needed to say that. Even if Barry never heard the message, she could pretend he had. It sounded like Zoom was finishing his speech, so she tried to wipe the tears from her eyes. She wanted to run so badly, flee away from the monster standing out there. She stayed around the corner, hidden out of sight. The door burst open, Zoom pulling off his mask. He saw the empty chair.
"No," he whispered, reaching for the chair. "No!" he screamed, picking up the chair and throwing it away.
"I suppose you will want this," said Caitlin, stepping out from the corner, holding the phone out to Zoom. He raced over to her, grabbed the phone and tossed it across the room, smashing into pieces. Then there was silence.
"You stayed," said Hunter, his face said it all. A large part of him had expected her to leave.
"I didn't stay for you," said Caitlin, leaning against the desk. Her legs felt like they might give way, they couldn't handle everything she was going through right now. "I stayed because if there is even a chance I get to help save my friends from you, I will take that," she looked up at Hunter, staring him in the eyes. "I will do whatever it takes to save my friends," she muttered. "And I think I stand the best chance of that here," Caitlin finished. Hunter remained quiet, looking at her.
"You stayed for more than that. You stayed because you feel our connection," said Hunter, lifting his hand to Caitlin's cheek. "You have just proven that, though it will take time, you and I can be together, can be in love," he whispered, as Caitlin shirked away from his hand.
"Chain me up again. Keep me your prisoner. But that is all I will be," she spat at him. "You want me to love you? Then prove you are worth me loving," she said. "Prove to me that you can be merciful and kind, that a part of you is the Jay I knew," she continued.
"I am proving my love to you. I let your friends live," said Hunter, reaching for her hands. "And when I conquer every world, you and I will be rulers, together," he whispered. Caitlin moved away from him.
"I don't want to be a ruler!" she screamed at him. Hunter shook his head.
"You do. And with time you will realise that," he promised, before picking her up and racing back to the captain's office. Out the glass she saw the hoard of metahumans, gathered outside, ready to wreak havoc on the city. Anyone who stood in their way would die, not even S.T.A.R labs could stop this many metahumans, especially without the Flash. Without Barry. "I will come back to see you as soon as I can," said Zoom, kissing her forehead. Caitlin just wanted to be alone, face the consequences of the decision she had just made. "I will leave a metahuman here to protect you. No one will lay a hand on you while you are mine," he added, just before heading out the door. She could feel the metahumans staring at her. Evidently the idea of Zoom being in love was a new concept to them. She wondered if them seeing what he was doing to her would weaken their fear of him, or make it stronger. Either way she was glad to be under his protection while here, because she was sure some people in that room would enjoy tearing her to pieces. Caitlin sat down behind one of the desk, hiding herself from the eyes outside the room.
She didn't want them to see her cry.