Chapter 7 – Lyla Michaels

An: I do not own Arrow. To the guests that reviewed. Thank you for your comments. I'm very sorry I couldn't update last week. I tried! I ended up with a massive headache that day too, couldn't even look at the story.


They returned to the apartment in silence. Well Oliver was silent and Isabel was glaring daggers at Felicity as she made it a point to count how much money she had won at the Blackjack table. Isabel had lost quite a fair amount so that added to Felicity's happiness. Oliver sat stiff as a board between them in the car. She knew he wanted her to stop antagonising the Russian woman but Felicity was just having too much fun to stop. It wasn't often that Felicity got to gloat.

She had yet to find out what happened with Lyla but she did notice when Diggle left the casino. He played on the slot machine for about ten minutes before he left. He was pulling that handle so violently she thought for sure it was going to come off in his hand. Their car came to a halt in front of the apartment building and Felicity happily exited the car.

She managed to catch Oliver's curt goodbye to Isabel before he joined her on the sidewalk.

"What time tomorrow Oliver?" Isabel drawled.

"I really don't need the supervision Isabel," Oliver said exasperated. "It's not like I'm going to create an international incident."

She arched her eyebrow, "Are you forgetting about that time..."

"That was not my fault!" Oliver snapped."Listen Isabel, I'm not spending the day with you anywhere near me tomorrow. Go to work," he said.

His hand dropped to the small of Felicity's back and he guided her into the warmth of the building. He nodded at the security downstairs and they went to the elevator. Oliver pressed the button.

"So you caused an international incident?" Felicity questioned looking up at him innocently. The elevator arrived and they both stepped into it.

"It wasn't my fault. Tommy and I were in the East. We crossed the border between two countries and the immigration officer forgot to stamp my passport when I entered. When I tried to leave, I got pulled aside because I didn't have the entry stamp. They pulled me into a back room to interrogate me. Tommy called my mom and she called the State Department. The US ambassador arrived and after some negotiations I was eventually allowed to cross back over. No big deal," Oliver said leaning against the back of the elevator and crossing his arms over his chest.

"That isn't an international incident. It's not like you started the next world war!" Felicity agreed with him.

"The way Isabel behaves you would think I had done that," he quipped.

The door opened and they stepped out onto their floor. Oliver walked to the apartment and opened the door Digg had left unlocked for them. They found Digg seated on the sofa opposite a slim man with brown hair and an eye patch over one eye. It looked like the same man from the bar. She hadn't seen his face, only his side profile but she was going to hazard a guess that this was Lyla's partner. Oliver closed the door behind them and asked for a situation report.

"We're reviewing our options," the stranger said.

Felicity looked between Oliver and Digg and when neither of them said a word she spoke up.

"Hi, I'm Felicity," she said holding out her hand to the man.

He smiled at her, "I know, I happened to stumble upon Lyla when she was pulling your file for John. I'm Lyla's partner, Floyd Lawton, but I'm better known as Deadshot."

Felicity nodded her she was obviously the only one that did not know what happened and they weren't being very chatty at the moment she demanded to know what had occurred at the casino.

Digg dropped his head into his hands, "She wasn't there. There were other people there but I couldn't help them. It would have put the entire mission in jeopardy."

She could tell he was beating himself up for not being able to do something about it. She sat down beside him and squeezed his hand. "Hey when we get Lyla back she might have some information that will take down Kovar."

Digg looked up from his hands and he squeezed her hand back in thanks for the reassurance.

"If Lyla wasn't there, where is she?" Oliver asked looking at Floyd.

"Kovar has several businesses," Floyd started.

"Best guess," Oliver interrupted the man.

"His mansion outside the city would probably be the next logical place to hold Lyla captive. Even if she isn't there we might still be able to get a beat on her location by talking to Taiana Venediktov," Floyd suggested thoughtfully.

"Who's Taiana Ven something?" Felicity asked curiously.

"Venediktov, currently she's a maid in his house but she used to bea diver on his yacht. She and her brother Vlad, up until his death three months ago, would accompany Kovar as he dove around the is a bit of an adrenaline junky and he likes to push 's done the Diver's Cemetery in Egypt twice. They were diving off of Coco's Island when Kovar surfaced by himself. He boarded the yacht and gave instructions to the Captain to leave. Taiana was ready to dive into the water to find her brother but he had his men hold her back. When they returned he reassigned her to his mansion."

"How do you know all this? None of this was in Lyla's reports," Felicity pointed out with narrowed eyes.

Floyd chuckled, "We don't always report everything, particularly when it comes to innocents. Amanda Waller has a unique talent that turns innocent people into monsters. She'll force anyone she views as having a useful skill into ARGUS. If we had reported the information about Taiana she would have instructed us to use Taiana and then either toss her aside or make her an ARGUS agent. Lyla isn't like that."

"No she isn't," Diggle agreed with a wry smile. "She vehemently objected when I thought about joining ARGUS."

"What makes you think Taiana would even help us?" Oliver asked.

"Lyla met her and her mother at the casino. When Kovar has his private business parties in the back room, he brings his staff from his mansion to serve. He never uses the casino staff. Lyla befriended her at the club and was trying to make Taiana an informant. She told Lyla that Kovar had Vlad's dive tank and she believed the Kovar killed Vlad underwater and took his tank. His dive computer showed some sudden ascension in the water before levelling off was devastated by the loss and she hoped Lyla could help her and her mother get away from Kovar."

"Could Taiana have betrayed her?" Oliver asked.

"Maybe but I don't think it was her. She had been working on Taiana for weeks. She only disappeared a few days ago. Someone else must have tipped Kovar off," Floyd concluded.

"Ok so we are going to break into the mansion to find Lyla and if we don't find her, then we find Taiana?" Felicity asked for clarification.

"We don't need to break into the mansion to talk Taiana. Her mother goes to the market once a week for fresh ingredients for the kitchen. Taiana goes with her to assist her since arthritis has started affecting her mother's mobility. Kovar also sends at least two guards to accompany them in the market. If we can distract the guards, one of us could probably get close enough to talk with Taiana," Floyd stated.

"When is market day?" Diggle asked.

"Two days from now," Floyd answered.

Diggle sent the crystal vase that was on the end table next to the sofa into the wall sending shards scattering across the ground.

"I cannot wait another day!" Diggle said frustrated. "I have to do something to get her back now!"

"We can plan Diggle. We can plan how to get her out of every building Kovar owns starting with the mansion. That way when we get the confirmation of her location we can move right away. No more waiting," Oliver said reasonably. "You know if we move too early and tip him off, Lyla could be lost to us forever."

"I know Oliver I just can't stand the thought that she's being held against her will in an unknown location with people doing things to her," Diggle said clenching his fists.

"Lyla is a survivor," Floyd said to him. "I don't think Kovar has any idea how tough Lyla is."

Felicity walked across to the table and brought her laptop back to the couch, "How many buildings are we talking about?"

"In Moscow, 72," Floyd responded.

Felicity's jaw dropped open.

"But don't worry, Lyla and I had an incursion plan for 65 of the buildings. We can easily use those," he offered.

"What about the other seven?" Oliver asked.

"They were more heavily protected and impossible for two people to infiltrate," Floyd explained.

"We focus on those seven then. There are three of us," Oliver said.

"Four," Felicity corrected. If they thought they were doing this without her, they needed to think again.


Felicity was waiting in the same bar while Oliver, Diggle and Floyd were meeting with an arms dealer to purchase weapons to infiltrate the Mansion or any of the other buildings that Kovar owned. They were in the back somewhere and Felicity refused to sit at a table by herself so she hopped up on a bar stool by the bar and ordered a glass of red wine from the bartender who actually spoke English. She was halfway through her glass when a tall man with blonde hair and green eyes entered and sat next to her. He spoke to her in Russian and she stared at him blankly. She needed a translator. She looked at the bartender for help.

"He asked if he could buy you another drink," he explained in his Russian accented English.

"Oh," she turned to the man, "No thank you, I'm good," she said with a smile.

"You have a very beautiful smile," he said in an Irish accent.

She tilted her head to the side, "Are you Irish?"

"Half Irish. My father is Irish, my mother is Russian," he explained with a smile. Felicity noted the dimples on his cheeks when he smiled. It was cute. He spoke to the bartender in Russian and a glass of amber liquid, probably whiskey, was placed in front of him.

"What's a lovely lady like you doing in this rat hole?" he asked turning to her.

"You mean this isn't the local 'it' spot?" she asked sarcastically her arm scanning the mostly empty bar.

The bartender interrupted their conversation, "I would appreciate it if you didn't disrespect my bar."

The Irish man turned to the bartender, "Anatoly, it is what it is."

"It is a bar and a great bar it is," Anatoly responded slightly peeved.

The stranger shrugged and lifted the tumbler to his mouth. He took a sip before he turned back to Felicity. "How did you find this place? It's not exactly on the tourist maps."

"A friend recommended it. Something about the vodka," she lied smoothly.

"Yet you're not drinking vodka," he pointed out nodding to the glass of red wine she was slowly sipping at.

"I had one shot and that was more than enough," she responded.

"Lightweight," he teased lightheartedly.

"I am not!" she protested. "Let's just say vodka is not my vintage."

He nodded in understanding. "I'm Caleb."

"Gail," Felicity lied smoothly.

"Please don't say your last name is Force because I studied meteorology and I had to do a whole paper about gale force winds," he said to her, his green eyes full of amusement.

Felicity laughed, "I can assure you it is not."

"Have you tried the local restaurant down the street? It has the best food in the neighbourhood. I can take you, my treat," he offered with a charming smile.

Felicity hadn't been asked out in ages and she was flattered but before she could answer a familiar arm snaked around her waist.

"Everything ok?" Oliver's concerned voice asked. The question was directed at her but he was staring at Caleb.

"Everything is fine. Are we ready to go?" she asked trying to redirect his attention to her.

"Yes," he responded curtly, his voice dropping lower, closer to the tone he used when he was The Arrow. His gaze hadn't moved from Caleb yet.

Felicity reached into her purse to pull out a few Rubels to pay her bill when Caleb offered to pay for her drink. Oliver's hands moved from her waist and returned to the bar so fast with Rubels in it she wondered if he was a magician of some sort as well. His hand immediately returned to her lower back and started applying pressure for her to get off the stool.

She jumped down. "It was nice meeting you Caleb." For spite, Felicity leaned forward and pecked him on the cheek. "Thank you for the offer but I'm going to have to decline," she whispered in his ear.

Oliver practically tugged her out of the bar. Diggle and Floyd were already in Floyd's car outside. She didn't realise they had passed her.

"Who was that?" Oliver demanded.

"A cute guy in a bar," Felicity replied innocently.

"Fel-ic-ity," he said warningly, "He could have been a threat."

"I know threats and he wasn't a threat but I was still careful. I didn't give him my real name," Felicity said walking to the car and sliding into the back seat. Oliver slid in next to her.

"You're not here to pick up men," Oliver retorted angrily essentially accusing her of something he would do. Well he would do it with women not men.

She glared at him, "I know that. You know what's funny though. Something tells me that if you had the chance to you would probably pick up a woman on a mission to maintain your weekly girlfriends."

"I have not picked anyone up on any missions," Oliver defended himself.

A cough that sounded suspiciously like Helena emerged from Diggle in the front seat. Oliver glared at his bodyguard and Diggle coughed again. This time it sounded like McKenna.

"Hypocrite!" Felicity cried slapping his forearm lightly.


When Floyd said market Felicity had pictured something completely different to the market she was currently standing in. This market was outdoors along a few back streets, not in a large building with heating. To make matters worse, since they were going undercover, Felicity couldn't wear her nice coat, no she had to blend in with a normal coat that the average Russian could afford. The market was far more colourful than she imagined with a wide assortment of goods. The other thing Felicity hadn't expected was the various smells, some good and some vomit worthy.

Along the streets vendors put up makeshift wooden structures to sell their merchandise. Since Taiana and her mother were shopping for the kitchen they were in an area dedicated to fresh produce. Felicity wasn't a culinary mastermind, in fact, she wasn't a culinary anything but she liked to think she knew the difference between a carrot and a celery. That was apparently all she knew because she couldn't identify 95% of the produce on sale. She couldn't even believe some of them were edible, they were so strange looking.

For this mission, Felicity was assigned to be the point person to contact Taiana and as such she was given a comm. Diggle was forced to go without one. With the information that Floyd provided, Felicity knew Taiana and her mother would enter the market from the south side and slowly make their way north. Felicity would be on the North end slowly making her way south.

Floyd was the first one to spot their targets entering the market with two guards tagging along behind them. Taiana's mother stopped at one vendor that had an assortment of fruit with one guard and Taiana continued on down the street with a basket and a list, the other guard following behind her. Every so often she would stop at a vendor, talk and then purchase something. It looked like she was negotiating how much she paid for each item. With the amount of money Kovar had, why would you even bother to negotiate?

Taiana's mother was still bargaining with the fruit vendor and that guard was focused entirely on her. They might get lucky and not have to distract him. Felicity stationed herself by a vendor selling something she had no idea what it was but Floyd was positive Taiana would stop by that vendor. Three vendors up Oliver walked up to the guard and started talking to him in Russian. Taiana didn't stop and continued walking down the street with her basket, stopping right next to Felicity. She hoped Oliver was able to distract the guard long enough.

"Hello," Felicity said as Taiana inspected the brown produce in front of them. It was long like a carrot but definitely not orange.

Taiana looked at her and then over he shoulder at her guard. Felicity decided to dispense with formalities and take a leap of faith.

"We do not have much time," Felicity continued quickly, "We are looking for our friend Lyla. Does Kovar have her on his compound?"

Taiana remained silent as she started picking through the pile of the mysterious brown item. She would turn it over in her hand and squeeze it to check its firmness. Felicity decided to mimic her actions. The vendor started talking to them in Russian but both women ignored him.

"Please help us. We know Kovar killed your older brother and you want to get out. We can help you," Felicity pleaded with her.

"How can you help me?" Taiana said looking at Felicity for the first time.

"We can get you and your mother out to safety," Felicity answered.

"Can you take me to America?" the Russian woman asked.

"No but we can get you set up somewhere in Russia where you will be comfortable for the rest of your life," Felicity promised.

"No,Kovar will find me. He has Bratva connections,"Taiana said shaking her head. She picked up one of the unknown items and spoke to the vendor in Russian. He said something she didn't like and she put the item back down.

"Please we need to get our friend back," Felicity pleaded again.

"Then kill him that is the only other way we'll be free,"Taiana requested in a serious tone.

Felicity was hesitant to agree but she knew Diggle was willing to do anything to get Lyla back. She knew if she refused, Diggle would blow a fuse. She knew Diggle was a solider, he had served multiple tours in Afghanistan. He had killed people before. Oliver too had killed bad people. There were just some people that law could not bring to justice. She was seeing that first hand with Tobias Church who was being held in a special cell in Iron Heights but his business was still running.

"We'll kill him for you," Felicity confirmed. "Where is Lyla?"

Taiana glanced over her shoulder to see the guard was still occupied with Oliver. "She is in the Mansion," the woman finally confirmed.

"When you get back to the Mansion, open the east gate. We'll take care of everything else from there," Felicity instructed her.

"I cannot open the gate during the day. We are monitored. It was my mother that informed Kovar about your friend. She thought it would protect us but they watch us all day now. It will have to be night when they think we are asleep,"Taiana advised.

"But Lyla…" Felicity started to protest knowing that Diggle would want to go immediately.

"Is still alive. He has no intention of killing her anytime soon. She will still be alive tonight," Taiana assured her. "The guards change shift at 11:00pm. I will open the gate at 11:30pm. I have to go now before they get suspicious."

"Wait just one more question," Felicity held up the brown thing in her hand, "What is this?"

"Turnip," Taiana said with a shrug before moving on.

Felicity stared at the turnip in her this was what a turnip looked like,no wonder she never liked turnips. Oliver left the guard alone and he moved quickly to catch up with Taiana. As he walked passed Felicity he scrutinised her carefully. She started to pull some rubels out of her purse to buy the turnip. She gave the vendor some money and he demanded more. Of course she realised that she had no idea how much the fruit was worth but she didn't want to cause a scene so she gave the vendor more money.

"That turnip is not worth that much money," Floyd commented in her ear.

Felicity rolled her eyes. She didn't really care as long as the vendor didn't make a fuss and draw attention to her. She took the turnip and moved on to the craft section of the market, in case she sparked the interest of any of the security guards. She purchased a few items and made her way back to the car. She was aware of Oliver following slowly behind her to ensure she made it to the car safely. No one would join her in the car in case she did in fact have a tail.

She drove back to the apartment, the long way, stopping in several stores before she finally arrived. She hadn't detected any tails. She expected to be the last to arrive but she found that she was first. She found that quite strange. She activated her comm unit.

"Oliver?" she asked.

"Are you ok?" came Oliver's concerned voice right away.

"Yeah I'm back at the apartment but none of you are here," she stated confused looking around the empty apartment to verify that there were no Olivers, or Diggles or Floyds around.

"We needed some extra gear for the mission tonight. We'll be back in a few hours. Get some rest." The line then terminated.

Get some rest! How did he expect her to rest when they were MIA and their planned needed to be tweaked to take out couldn't tweak the plan by herself so she needed to find something else to do since she was positive her over active imagination would come up with all sorts of scenarios if she tried to rest.

She decided to follow up on the news of Hannah's hit and run since she hadn't had a chance since they went into planning mode. According to her searches, Hannah had been arrested on charges of vehicular manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident but before they could take her into the precinct, she had been committed to a mental institution. The gossip sites claimed she had gone mad and when officers came to arrest her she stripped naked and ran through the house screaming she was set up. Felicity decided she didn't want to know any more about the event. The important point was that Oliver was no longer wanted by the police. There was an official statement form Captain Lance apologising to Oliver for the statements made against him. The Captain looked like he ate sour lemons during the entire apology. She made a mental note to share the video with Oliver when they were safe on the plane.

After looking at the press conference she clicked on Susan William's webpage that was dedicated to The Hood. She wondered what the woman would make of The Hood's recent absence from the streets. She was surprised to find that there were reports that the Red Hood had been seen every night. Red Hood had stopped three muggings and one attempted armed robbery at Big Belly Burger. Oliver was going to kill Roy when they got back. He was not supposed to go out on the streets without back up. That was Oliver's number one rule. You always needed backup except of course if it came to him. He magically didn't need backup.

Felicity found an article on the webpage that speculated that The Hood had been injured and that was why his sidekick had been out every night by were wild theories circulating that he had been seriously injured or maybe even killed during the take down of Tobias Church. Fans were scanning the obituary pages looking for the possible identity of The Hood.

It was four hours later when Oliver and Diggle came through the door with a suitcase.

"I thought I told youto rest," was the first thing Oliver said to her. "We have a very long night ahead of us."

She rolled her eyes. She was beginning to become intimately familiar with his frowny face. "You expected me to sleep when I had no idea where you guys were."

"Yes. I told you we went for extra supplies. We will be able to complete our part of the deal with Taiana."

"How?"

Diggle sighed, "The 'How' doesn't matter. Your part of the plan doesn't change and timing of the plan doesn't change. Drop us off at the East Gate and pick us up half an hour later at the West Gate. You'll have a comm. If things go awry we will let you know."

"I don't like not knowing, I'm a part of this team too," Felicity stated upset.

Oliver placed both his hands on her shoulders, "You are a very important part of the team Felicity but sometimes you have to trust us to handle things. The new addition isn't set in stone. It could change on location. We don't know where in the mansion Kovar will be. Just trust us to get it done."

"Oliver's right Felicity. You need to focus on the drop off and pick up and not being spotted," Diggle said supporting Oliver.

"Ok," Felicity huffed, "But for the record, I don't like this."


At 11:30pm on the dot, Felicity approached the east gate of Kovar's mansion estate with her lights off. The lighting around the mansion was poor and it was easy for her to go unnoticed. Oliver, Digg, and Floyd jumped out of the car and headed to the gate. The gate opened and Felicity saw them conversing with Taiana before the gate closed. Her first part of the mission was complete. She had to drive away from the mansion, turn on her lights and drive around the small town close by before returning to the west gate to collect them. She had her route memorised. Drive into the centre of town, stop and look at the church, which was the tourist attraction there and then drive back to the mansion.

She parked near the church but never got out of her car. She was too busy going through everything that could possibly go wrong in her head. A group of women passed her car and headed up the steps of the church. They entered the building and disappeared behind the safety of the church's doors. They were probably there for midnight mass. It was one of the few churches that still offered that service.

As the clock struck 11:50pm, Felicity put her car in gear and started the trip back to the mansion. Her route required her to go in the opposite direction first and then swing back towards the Mansion. Everything was going smoothly until she saw a police vehicle that had pulled aside another car. The police men were interrogating the persons in the car. She was hoping to drive passed without being stopped but a policeman stepped in front of her car and indicated for her to stop. She complied and he approached her driver's side window.

As she wound down the window her heart was hammering in her chest. She fought to keep the panic at bay. She needed to remain calm and act as if she wasn't part of a team there to kill the local millionaire. When the policeman arrived at her window, he started speaking to her in Russian.

"English please," she asked politely. She may have sounded a bit scared but she supposed if she was a tourist who didn't speak Russian and the police stopped her in the middle of the night, she should be a little scared.

He spoke to her in Russian again.

"I cannot understand what you're telling me. I don't speak Russian," she reiterated.

He spoke to her in Russian again and she remained silent. He turned to his comrade and called him over.

"You don't speak Russian?" the new policeman asked when he arrived. The car with the men they were interrogating was still parked at the side of the road.

"No I don't," she responded.

"What are you doing in the area?" he asked.

"I came here to see the church," she replied.

"Most people come during the day," the policeman pointed out.

"Which is why I came at night. Churches are more serene when it's just you and God," she responded.

The man seemed to accept the answer and she was thankful he seemed to be religious. "You didn't stay for midnight mass?"

"No, I prefer to speak directly to God rather than through his messenger or at least I hope it works that way. If it doesn't I might be going to hell," she answered.

The policeman cracked a smile, "You may go."

Felicity counted to ten in her head before pulling off. She didn't want to appear too eager. She glanced at her clock and it was one minute passed midnight. She was late! Oliver's voice started speaking in her ear, "Felicity we need a few more minutes."

"Roger," she responded. She wasn't about to admit to him that she wasn't there yet. She had one task to do and she was late.

She arrived just in time to see the gate open and Oliver's head pop out. Felicity jumped from the vehicle to open the back door. Digg and Oliver emerged from the gate with a shape slumped between them, Floyd trailing behind them with a large gun in each hand. Felicity slid into the back seat and helped them lower the form into the seat. Diggle Jumped in with her as Oliver took the driver's seat and Floyd the front passenger seat. It seemed like they were moving before Oliver even closed his door.

Felicity had seen a picture of Lyla in her file and the woman slumped against Diggle looked nothing like her. Her face was a combination of deep purple bruises and green and yellow spots from bruises that had started to heal. Both eyes were swollen shut and her hair looked like it was caked with blood. She wondered how they knew it was Lyla.

"Johnny," the form mumbled softly. Ok she supposed that confirmed it was Lyla.

"Lyla, baby, I'm right here. Talk to me," Digg said linking his hand through hers. Felicity noted the dark marks on her arms that contrasted sharply with her pale white skin.

"I knew you would come for me," she said weakly.

"I told you Lyla. Wherever you are, I will find you," the love he held for her was very much present in his voice.

Felicity felt she was intruding on an intimate moment and she looked away.

"Where did they hurt you?" Diggle asked his voice cracking at the end. You could hear the torment in it.

"Side," she said trying to move her hand to her side to pull at her shirt there.

Felicity scooted closer to her and started lifting her shirt very carefully for her. She noted the shirt was wet and upon closer inspection she realised it was blood. She found a large deep gash across her side and on the other side an area that had been sewn up. Some of her abdomen was purple and Felicity wondered if she was bleeding internally.

Lyla's hand moved over the stitched area, "Tracker," she said weakly.

"Tracker? They put a tracker in you?" Diggle asked concerned.

"Yes," she managed to answer before she slipped into unconsciousness.

"Oliver," Diggle said urgently. "We need to get to a Doctor."

"The plane is scheduled to leave soon," Oliver replied.

"Lyla has a tracker in her we need to get that out before we leave," Diggle said seriously.

"There's a surgeon at the general hospital in Moscow that ARGUS uses. I'll give her a call," Floyd said pulling out his phone. "She has done plenty of work for ARGUS in the past and keeps it very quiet."

Floyd and Oliver worked out the details while Felicity opened the first aid box and started wiping and cleaning the bruises she could see.


Lyla was in surgery. The surgeon that Floyd had taken them to had conducted a basic exam and then rushed Lyla into surgery. He suspected that her spleen had ruptured and she needed emergency surgery to repair it. An X-ray revealed where the tracker had been placed and he would remove that as well. Blood was needed for the surgery and fortunately Lyla was AB positive and could receive blood from all of them so they didn't have to dip into the blood bank at the hospital which would raise questions. Diggle and Oliver each donated a pint of blood first. If she needed any additional pints, Felicity and Floyd would then donate. Felicity wasn't fond of needles so she was more than happy to be given the option to wait.

Since they were staying off the radar, they used an old operation theatre that wasn't in use. Oliver, Diggle and Floyd were the nurses and Felicity was on lookout duty. From what Floyd had explained in the car, it had taken them longer to get to Lyla without setting off the alarms. When they finally reached to her, her physical condition also slowed them down. Kovar hadn't been home but Taiana gave them his schedule for the next day and made them swear they would take care of him. Floyd said he would handle it. He wasn't called Deadshot or nothing.

Felicity noted everyone that came and went in the reception area. Two men eventually caught her attention. They looked like trouble. Felicity poked her head into the operation theatre just as the doctor was dropping the tracking device onto a metal tray next to him. That was a good sign. The doctor had finished the major part of the surgery and was finally able to focus on removing the tracker.

"I think we have company outside," Felicity stated.

"I'll deal with them," Oliver said putting some blood stained instruments on the tray.

"Actually I have another idea. Give me the tracker. I can lure them away from the hospital and give you time to stitch up Lyla," Felicity stated.

Oliver pulled off his gloves, picked up a clear plastic bag, turned it inside out and picked up the blood covered tracker. He pulled the bag over it and then sealed it.

"Digg, Floyd, you're on your own. We'll use the car. They probably already identified it anyway. I've rescheduled the plane to leave tomorrow morning at 8:00am. We'll meet you at the plane. Make sure Lyla's in a good condition to fly."

"She'll be ready," Diggle said confidently.

"Let's go," Oliver said to Felicity.

His large hand enclosed around her wrist and he pulled her towards the back entrance. They circled around to the front. Oliver kept her close as they headed to the car. Felicity saw two strange men out front watching them as they went to car. Her hair was tucked into a hat so they had no way of knowing if she was Lyla or someone else. For show she leaned heavily on Oliver. He automatically knew what she was doing and guided her to the passenger side door. He helped her onto the seat.

"Buckle up," he ordered sprinting to the other side of the car.

The men started moving towards them while they reached into their coats. Felicity knew they were drawing their weapons. Oliver jumped into the car and put it in gear right away. He crouched down in the seat as a hail of bullets was fired at them breaking the back windshield of the car as Oliver sped away from the men. When they turned the corner, a block later, Oliver sat up straight and chanced a glance behind them.

"They're following us," Oliver said.

"We do have a tracker on us," Felicity pointed out sarcastically. "Kind of makes it hard to just disappear."

"I throw it out at the next corner," Oliver said.

Felicity held on to the door for dear life. Oliver was driving faster than she thought was possible for the car they were in. After Oliver threw the tracker out he thought he would lose them easily but no matter what tactic he tried they remained behind them. They kept firing their weapons at them and Felicity was sure they lost a tire three blocks back. Their situation was further complicated when they picked up two cop cars chasing both cars.

Oliver exited the hustle and bustle of the city onto a road that ran parallel with the Moskva river, the river after which Moscow was named.

"Felicity I have an idea but you're not going to like it," he stated his eyes darting between the road and the river.

"I don't like them shooting bullets at us. It can't be worse than that," Felicity responded crouched in her seat.

"Ok get ready to open your door and move fast," he ordered.

Suddenly, Oliver changed lanes and slammed on the breaks stopping the car at the entrance to a bridge that spanned the river. Their car stopped all traffic from going and coming. Cars that were trying to exit the bridge started honking at them.

"Out," instructed.

Felicity unbuckled herself quickly and jumped out the door. Oliver's side of the car faced the men and the police so he jumped over the gear stick and exited on her side. They kept their heads low as the men tried to shoot at them but then the police engaged the men and it was a shootout. Oliver guided them to the cars that were stopped on the bridge.

"Do you trust me?" Oliver asked suddenly.

"I think it's fair to say that I trust you with my life Oliver," she replied.

"Good then save the questions for later," he said.

He reached down and picked her up bridal style and turned towards the railing of the bridge. She didn't know how he did it but he jumped over the railing with both of them. Felicity closed her eyes and inhaled prepared to meet ice cold water but instead there was a loud thud and she was somehow on top of Oliver. When she opened her eyes, he was on his back and she was on top of him. Furthermore they were moving above the water. He had timed their jump to land on the roof of a river tour boat. She looked back up at the bridge that was quickly receding into the distance behind them. Wow!

She heard a chuckle and looked back at him.

"I thought there would be questions?" he teased.

"I'm still trying to process the fact that we jumped off a bridge and that we landed on a boat and I'm still alive," Felicity said. Her eyes went wide in horror, "Oh my God I landed on you Oliver. Are you ok? How did I even land on you?"

"I'm fine. I turned so that I would take the impact. Let's just focus on getting off this boat and back to the airport. There's a dock up ahead. I'll talk to the Captain to drop us off there. It might take some rubels though," he said putting his hand out.

A crowd of tourists were beginning to gather below them. They were pointing at them and the crew of the boat didn't look pleased.

"Why Mr. Queen are you asking your date to pay?" she teased. She had stuffed the last of the rubels she won at the casino in her jean's pockets in case she needed it. She had been looking forward to changing it into US$ at the airport. Guess she could kiss that dream goodbye.

"I thought you were a modern woman?" he quipped.

"Next time you pay" she said cheekily.

He took the money and helped her onto the deck of the boat. While he spoke to the Captain she avoided everyone. She hoped no one recognised Oliver that was the last thing they needed. The Captain did indeed drop them at the next dock and then they walked to the nearest entrance to the Mosco Metro. Oliver had kept just enough rubels to purchase their tickets back to the apartment.


Felicity collapsed into the seat on the plane. She was exhausted. Diggle and Lyla were in the bedroom and she had an IV hooked up. Oliver hired a doctor to travel with them back to the States to ensure that Lyla survived the journey. That meant that Felicity would have to sleep in her seat but that was ok. She had learned to sleep on a plane long ago.

She woke up several times during the flight to check on Lyla. The woman was holding up very well and the doctor had no cause for concern. During her last check Felicity realised she had an hour left before they landed and Felicity decided to stay awake. She needed to come up with a story for her mother. Perhaps she could say prince charming swept her off her feet and took her on his golden chariot to his castle but then her mother would want details, no that wouldn't work.

Oliver had actually fallen asleep on the seat opposite her and she couldn't help but stare at him. He looked at peace. The slight frown that marred his features was gone. His eyes suddenly opened and he looked straight at her. She chose to hold his gaze but her mouth just had to fill the silence.

"I was supposed to tell you your name was cleared and show you the video of Captain Lance apologising," she told him.

He smiled. "I never had a doubt you would get my name cleared."

Warmth flooded Felicity. It made her very happy to know that he had such faith in her.

"Get some more rest. I'm sure you'll have a long line of clients banging on your door when you get back." The frown returned to his features and she knew exactly what he was going to ask next. "Speaking of your door, despite the fact that I sent three locksmiths to fix the lock on your door, the original thing that passes for a lock is still there."

Felicity rolled her eyes, "All three locksmiths would have informed you that the door frame could not accommodate a deadbolt and the landlord doesn't want to drill in to the drywall. Plus if its dry wall it's not like it's going to be that effective. I'm sure you could kick it open easily."

Oliver grumbled, "I'll figure something out," and then he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.


An: Thanks for reading. I'm looking forward to the next chapter. It has my favourite scene in the entire story.