Chapter 11
Happy New Year, and thank you so much to everyone for the amazingly positive reviews, as well as those who are following or have set this story as a favorite. It makes me giddy to know you are enjoying the stuff spouting from my brain with these incredible characters. None of it would be possible, of course, without the beauty and talent of Stephen Amell and Emily Bett Rickards!
We get to see neurotic Oliver in this chapter, and the new relationship with Felicity is truly tested!
Oliver approached Isabel and Slade, his eyes darting around nervously in anticipation of some masked soldier attacking at a moment's notice. His heart was racing and his stomach was doing flip flops at the sight of his old friend, but there was nothing happy about this reunion.
He knew Felicity was angry about being ushered away by Diggle, especially after Oliver's ominous remark about having killed Slade, and then not explaining anything to either of his partners about the details. This was one of those times when they just needed to trust that he knew what was best for both of them, no matter how much it irritated them. He would rather they be angry with him than harmed in any way.
Coming up to stand next to Isabel, he stood at the ready for whatever Slade had planned, his body anticipating stepping in front of Isabel to protect her and anyone else who may be put in harm's way.
At the sight of Oliver, Isabel smiled, and then turned to Slade. "Mr. Wilson, this is the co-CEO of Queen Consolidated, Oliver Queen, who I'm sure you have heard of in the news on various occasions," she remarked, giving Oliver a smug grin.
Slade perused Oliver from head to foot, and then stepped forward.
Oliver braced himself, ready to deflect whatever weapon Slade was concealing. It came as a complete shock when Slade gave him a huge bear hug, patting him soundly on the back and smiling as he pulled away. At Isabel's questioning look Slade finally said, "Oliver and I were roommates for a time, so to speak, on that damn island that kept both of us away from home."
Looking at Oliver, Isabel couldn't help but question, "I thought the news reports said you were found on the island alone, Oliver."
"I thought so too," he said quietly, still suspicious of Slade's motives for showing up like this, especially given their horrific parting of ways.
"I don't want to go into the gory details," Slade quickly responded, "but both of us thought the other had been killed due to some very bad people who had stumbled across us while we were there." He looked at Oliver, clapping him on the shoulder. "I was utterly relieved to see you surface shortly after I had recovered from the coma I was in for six months." He looked Oliver straight in the eye, ensuring he had his full attention for his next comment. "Had I known you were still there, my friend, I would have sent the entire Australian military to recover you, I swear."
Oliver felt his chest tighten at Slade's tone, which was the one he had used so many times when they had been working together to survive their enemies while on the island. The turn of events following Shado's death had sent both of them into a spiral that had resulted in multiple deaths and a battle between the two men that had left one man seemingly dead and the other barely alive. Oliver was sure it had not been his imagination if the patch over Slade's eye was any indication.
At the touching moment between the two men, Isabel placed her hand on Oliver's arm, making him start. "Maybe you two should spend some time catching up," she said, the sympathy for their plight obvious in her face.
"I think we've both lived enough in that past, wouldn't you agree Oliver?" Slade asked. Oliver just nodded, confusion filling his head at the man standing before him. This was not the man who he had fought to the death back on the island, who had every intention of killing Oliver for the death of the woman that they had both loved. "I'd like to talk business and see how I can help QC expand their Australian operations."
Slade and Isabel exchanged ideas on business, with Oliver distractedly listening, fighting off the flashbacks of the blows that had been exchanged between him and Slade that fateful day on the island. After a short while he felt his phone vibrating, excusing himself from the discussion and stepping out of the main room.
He let out a deep sigh at the sound of Felicity's voice, asking him if he was all right.
"I'm fine," he said. He wondered if she knew he was lying.
"Digg and I are here at Verdant. We didn't know if there would be any police reports about an attack at the Hilton, or if there would be some threat leaked to the tabloids. What's going on there?" Felicity asked, concern obvious in her voice.
"It's…it's like he's the old Slade I knew, the one who helped me survive on the island," Oliver responded.
"But I thought you said he was behind the super soldier serum we've been tracking?" Diggle interjected over the speaker phone in their secret lair. He gave Felicity an uneasy look.
"I don't know anymore," Oliver answered breathlessly, his emotions still reeling at the sight of Slade and the barrage of images that were hitting him from his time on the island. His brain was on overload and he felt as though he was ready to explode at a moment's notice. He knew he had to get away from the Hilton as soon as possible and somewhere secluded to work through this. He felt the same way he had after losing Tommy, but the last place that would bring him any solitude was the island, especially given the thoughts running through his head. Last time it had been the aftermath of the Undertaking; this time it was like he was reliving all of those awful moments from the island. He was used to getting a periodic flashback, something triggered by a word or action from someone else. However, this time there was too much to process, and he literally felt like he would explode.
Oliver turned toward the entrance to the room full of people, noting Laurel advancing toward him. "I've got to go. I want both of you to go home for now. I'll contact you later."
He put on his best smile, trying not to let the turmoil going on in his head show. "Laurel, where's your date?"
The frown on her face made it clear she wasn't there to talk about Sebastian. "Oliver, I don't mean to pry, but I noticed the look on your face when you were talking to Slade Wilson. It was like you had seen a ghost." She took a step closer to him as he tried to look off into the distance, obviously avoiding eye contact with her. "Ollie," she said softly, placing her hand on his upper arm and giving it a gentle squeeze, "is it true that you knew Mr. Wilson from the island?"
The look of anguish and naked pain on his face was evidence enough that the rumor going around the group of socialites in the other room was completely valid. Without thinking, Laurel stepped forward and took him into her arms. There were times when she wondered if her decision to end things with Oliver was a mistake or not, but right now all she cared about was comforting a friend.
It was just at that moment that Felicity successfully hacked into the security cameras at the Hilton. She heard Diggle's sharp intake of breath at the sight of Laurel in Oliver's arms, and ignored the sideway glance he was giving her. She quickly pulled up the feed from the main ball room, scanning for the location of Slade Wilson, swallowing down the large lump in her throat at what she had just seen, focusing on the resurrection of Oliver's ghost from the past.
"Is that Sebastian Blood walking out with Slade?" Diggle asked, noting the two men trying to inconspicuously exit the room on the far side from the exit where Oliver and Laurel were located.
Felicity quickly typed on the keyboard, pulling up a number of images in rapid succession, causing Diggle to shake his head at their speed. "Let me see if there's a camera for where those two are going," she stated, finally pulling up a feed of the room that they had just entered.
There was no sound, but both Diggle and Felicity could see that there was a bit of a heated exchange going on between the two. Suddenly, Slade grabbed Blood by the neck, putting the Councilman up against the wall about six inches off the ground, his hands clawing at the vice that was clearly hindering his breathing.
"What the hell?" Diggle exclaimed, trying to make sense of the scene unfolding before them.
Just as suddenly as Slade had pinned Sebastian, he let go of the smaller man, letting him collapse against the wall he had just been pinned to. Slade then lifted Blood to his feet, straightening the collar that he had just ruffled, and then giving him a light open-handed tap on the check. From the lack of color on Blood's face, he was clearly shaken by the incident, but fixed his tie, then followed the other man back into the ball room.
Diggle and Felicity looked at each other, both confused by what had just happened. "Oliver needs to know about this," Digg said, grabbing his phone and trying to call Oliver. Felicity watched on the video feed as Oliver and Laurel separated at the sound of his phone. Her heart sank as she saw him ignore the call. He said something to Laurel, then walked away from the main room. Felicity knew she should be tracking his movement, but couldn't take her eyes off of Laurel as the woman stood there, watching after Oliver. Just then Sebastian came up behind Laurel, causing the woman to turn and smile at her date. Felicity was amazed at how calm Blood appeared given the exchange he had moments earlier with Slade. She decided it was time to learn more about Slade Wilson and SW International, and figure out just what he was doing in Starling City.
As Felicity started typing away at her computer, Diggle sent Oliver a text message with what they had witnessed, telling him they needed to regroup at Verdant. He noted what Felicity was looking up on her monitors and they worked together, Diggle acting more as a cheerleader than anything else, giving encouragement as Felicity would uncover something new about Slade or his corporation.
When Felicity heard Oliver arrive she spun around in her chair, taking in his haggard look. She immediately went to him, taking him into her arms, trying not to think about the fact that Laurel had been doing this same thing just within the last hour. As she pulled back from him she noted he did not want to make eye contact with her. Not sure what he was thinking, she finally asked, "what can I do?"
When he finally brought his eyes up to meet hers, she had to fight back the lump in her throat at the raw pain she saw there. "I don't know," he replied quietly. She put her arms around him again, squeezing him as hard as she could, heartbroken for him for what he was feeling, whether he could articulate it or not.
He pulled back slowly, trying to let himself go numb versus dealing with the multitude of flashbacks going through his brain. "What have you found?" he asked, trying to get his head back on straight to prepare himself for whatever was coming.
Felicity and Digg first showed him the video feed with the exchange between Slade and Sebastian, then Felicity showed him what she had pulled up on the background of SW International. There wasn't anything odd about their financial records, but she did note that there were some very large gaps in information about Slade since his return from the island.
"What does this all mean," Oliver asked, more to himself than anyone else. Felicity and Diggle looked at each other, the concern in their eyes for their friend mirroring each other.
"I can start watching him, tracking his moves and finding out who he's been in contact with since coming to Starling City," Felicity stated.
Diggle nodded his agreement, adding, "I can start shadowing him until we have more solid information."
"NO," Oliver shouted, "I don't want either of you to be physically near Slade until we know more. The virtual surveillance will have to be enough for now," he added, rubbing the back of his neck in obvious frustration.
Felicity's phone let out a low "ding", signaling something being added to Oliver's calendar at Queen Consolidated. She opened up the email invite. "Isabel just sent a note that the executive team will be meeting with Slade Monday to discuss specifics on their investment contract." She looked at Oliver. "Do you think he would try something in the office?"
"I don't think so. Tell her I'll be there, but Diggle," he said, looking at the other man, "I want you on alert in the office if I need you." John nodded his head in agreement.
The three agreed they would all be in the office, although Oliver tried to convince Felicity she should call in sick. He finally backed down when Digg pointed out she could be more exposed home alone or at Verdant by herself than in the office with the two of them. Digg and Oliver then proceeded to get a workout in. They had been going for hours when Felicity finally gave up, her shoulders aching at the tension from the day and being hunched over her keyboard for so long without a break. She looked down at her wrinkled dress, feeling like her spa day with Thea had been years ago, not just hours ago. She watched as Oliver and Diggle worked on their hand to hand combat, disappointment at the huge emotional chasm she felt existed between her and Oliver at the moment. She knew there were things he would probably never open up to her about, but she wished there was someone who could help him sort through his feelings. She hoped maybe if she left, Oliver and Digg would have a little heart-to-heart, so she went over to the two of them and made it clear she would be heading home alone for the night. Oliver gave her a quick peck on the forehead, which was a far cry from where she had hoped that evening would have led, but it was better than nothing.
Over the next two weeks Felicity continued to research Slade Wilson, not being able to turn up much. She even turned to Barry Allen for help researching, with him using some of his Central City Police Department contacts, but with no luck. She had almost hoped that spending time with Barry would provoke Oliver and make him a little jealous, but he remained at arm's length with her, any time they spent outside of the office focused on the search for anything related to the serum or Slade Wilson's past. Where they would steal quick kisses and share heated glances before, now they barely talked, let alone touch each other. It was frustrating Felicity to no end that she couldn't stop the downward spiral Oliver was in.
All had been eerily quiet in Starling City, with nothing related to the super solider serum occurring, including no thefts or attacks. The group was still monitoring Roy's blood, but so far there had been no adverse reactions to his injection, just the increase in strength and agility that they had seen with the men who had been involved with the attacks before.
Luckily Thea hadn't noticed anything different with her boyfriend, but she definitely noticed Oliver's slide into depression. When she tried to question him on it, or even corner Felicity for information, neither of them would let her in on what was going on. It was obvious both of them were hurting, and for whatever reason they refused to turn to each other for comfort. She decided enough was enough and went to Queen Consolidated to take Felicity to lunch, if not to get information from her, then to at least cheer her up. She had heard the rumors of Slade Wilson's history with Oliver on the island, and knew he wouldn't budge on opening up about his time there, so Felicity was her best bet.
She noticed Slade walking into the main lobby of QC as she approached the elevator bank. He had been talking to Sebastian Blood, and they didn't seem to be having a very happy conversation from the look on Blood's face. However, as Slade turned to approach where Thea was standing, she was taken aback by the look of pure hatred on his face. At seeing her watching him, his countenance immediately shifted into one of pure calm, making her wonder if she had imagined the earlier look.
Slade smiled as he approached Thea. "Thea Queen, correct? I'm Slade Wilson. I know your brother, Oliver," he stated smoothly, putting his hand out to take the young woman's.
Thea put her hand out to shake his, surprised when he lifted it to give her a slight bow and a faint kiss on the back of her hand. "Yes, and you must be the Slade Wilson that everyone has been talking about since your grand entrance into Starling City society," Thea responded smoothly. Slade was all charm, but she had been around enough snakes to know when someone was being less than open with her. It had become a necessity to know who your friends and enemies were after her father and brother had disappeared, leaving Thea and her mother vulnerable to every opportunist in the city.
As the elevator doors opened, Slade gestured for her to enter before him. "Ladies first, please."
They made small talk as they went up to the executive floor. When they got off, Thea questioned if Slade was there for a meeting with her brother, but he quickly corrected her and shared that he had a lunch date with Isabel Rochev. Isabel was just making her way to the elevators as Thea excused herself to leave. She heard Isabel greet Slade warmly, MUCH more warmly than a business partner actually, admonishing him for coming all the way up to get her when she could have met him downstairs. Thea tucked that exchange away in the back of her brain, more curious now than ever about Slade Wilson and his motive for wanting to work with Queen Consolidated. Although she was not part of running the business, she kept a closer tab on things than anyone in her family knew.
She entered Oliver's office suite, noting her brother on a phone call as she approached Felicity's desk. As usual, Felicity met her with a warm smile, genuinely happy to see Oliver's little sister. It took all of two minutes for Thea to convince the blonde to go to lunch with her. As the women exited the office, Thea noted her brother's forlorn gaze after Felicity. Something was seriously off with her brother, and Thea decided that if he didn't open up soon, she was going to have to do something about it.