Oliver was working out when John arrived.
"So how did it go last night"?
Oliver continued working up a sweat. "Too early to tell. At least she didn't run out on me the minute I brought her here and she heard me out".
He stopped and grabbed a towel and a bottle of water.
"She asked for a couple of days to think it through. I hope she'll say yes, I truly think she would be an asset to the team".
John brought up Emma's file on the computer and looked at it. "I'd say. She's a portable lie-detector. And she speaks 10 languages. I'd say she's more than asset".
He turned his attention back to Oliver. "So when will you know"?
"I'm not sure. She said she'd be in touch. She's probably going to take a couple of days to think about it".
Felicity walked in. She had just returned from a weekend getaway with Robert, the guy she had been seeing for the past year.
"So what's on today's agenda. Who are we bringing down to justice"?
Oliver put on his shirt. "We've got a group of gang members who seem to have gone up a notch and are starting to terrorize and attack innocent people in the streets. I need to stop them before they do any more harm".
Felicity typed on the computer and images came up. "7 victims in the past 2 weeks and 5 just in the last week. They are definitely getting more sure of themselves".
Oliver nodded. "Either that or they are starting to enjoy the thrill of the chase. With each growing victim, they go a bit further in the attack…. I want to stop it before someone gets killed. Can you pin point on the map where each of the victims were attacked? I want to see if they are staying in the same perimeter or if they are choosing their locations randomly".
Felicity entered the different coordinates and transferred the image on the big central screen for them to look at. "Seems like they stay relatively close to a particular location".
John looked at the screen. "Their hideout must be in the area. They aren't going out too far simply because it is easier for them to go back into hiding before being caught".
Oliver nodded. "They're not taking any chances. Felicity, take a look and see what you can find in that area, abandoned warehouses, apartment buildings, office buildings".
He grabbed his jacket and started to leave.
"Where are you going"?
"I have some business I need to tend to at Queen Consolidated. I'll be back later to see what you've come up with".
Both John and Felicity nodded and returned to analyzing the perimeter surrounding the attacks.
"Mr. Murdoch, I assure that your wife is telling the truth. She's not having an affair with your brother".
Her client frowned. "You are absolutely sure"?
Emma nodded. "Yes. As you can see here on the video, when talking to your wife about your brother, there are no emotions or facial expressions that indicate, desire, guilt or even love. On the contrary, I would say she dislikes him a great deal".
"I can't believe it. All this time, I thought they were distant because they were having an affair… when in the end the probably just can't stand each other".
"Mr. Murdoch, your wife loves you. Her eyes light up and she has a huge smile when she talks about you, your marriage and the relationship you have. There is no doubt. Unfortunately, sometimes people who you are close to won't always get along, but that's all there is to it".
He stood and they shook hands.
"Well Miss Grey, thank you very much for doing this and your feedback. You've just saved my marriage.. I'm sure I would have done something quite stupid, if it weren't for you".
Emma nodded. "It's a pleasure Mr. Murdoch. All the best to you and Mrs. Murdoch".
The man turned heels and left her office. Emma smiled. She was extremely happy. Once in a while, she managed to break good news to someone and not the other way around. It was always nicer to see someone relieved leave her office rather than someone who was angry, hurt, betrayed or stricken.
It was 6 PM and she was starving but she knew that if she ate there and then she would never get back to the work she needed to finish. Being independent was great but it also meant you had to do everything on your own: administrative work, accounting, ordering supplies, answering emails, sending reports, invoices to clients… you name it, it was all on her. Of course, some of the things she could do from home, but at the price she was renting this place, she felt that every moment she spent there was worth it.
Oliver had donned his hood and was on a building rooftop scouting out the area. Felicity had found an abandoned school in the area that the gang members most probably had chosen as their headquarters but when he had gotten there, the place had been empty which meant that they were on the prowl. He therefore had to intercept them before they harmed anyone else. But for the moment all was quiet.
Emma grabbed her coat and bag and walked out of her office. She went down the two flights of stairs and arrived outside. It was late, too late, 11 PM and once again she had lost track of time. She started to walk the couple of miles that separated her office from her apartment. The streets were quiet, empty and the full moon lit the streets making her feel safe.
She turned the corner and took one of the small quiet streets when she heard a noise. She stopped walking and turned around. The street was empty. It was most probably a cat or a dog searching for food in a garbage container. She resumed walking, pep talking herself that she was fine. As she passed in front of a dark alley she was sucked into it. It was so unexpected that she screamed in shock and fear.
Oliver lifted his head at the sound of the scream. Someone needed his help. He jumped from rooftop to rooftop towards where the scream had come from. He only hoped he would get there in time.
"Well, well. What have we got here"?
Emma's entire body shook as she pressed her back to the cold brick wall behind her. Surrounding her were four men and they didn't look friendly. She held on to her bag, shielding her from them as if it was a bullet-proof vest.
She stuttered as she spoke to them. "I don't have a lot of money but I can give you what I have".
One of the men sneered. "Oh we're not after your money, we just want to have some fun".
Emma tried to down talk the guy. "I'm not really any fun, trust me".
The men laughed and it made her uneasy. She shifted from one leg to the other all the while assessing the situation. They were in the middle of the alley, there was no way for her to attempt to escape, they would have caught up with her in no time.
"I'm sure our idea of fun is very different than yours… you see, we just want to see how much you can take before you die"!
Emma's face went pale, her hands started to get sweaty and she was breathing heavily. Before I die? Then she did the only thing her instinct told her to do, she screamed for help.
Within seconds a hand placed itself on her mouth, muffling the sounds of her plea for help. Two of the men grabbed her and pulled her in further into the alley, away from the light. As one of them held her in a secure position from behind, another started to slap her across the face. Another kicked her in the leg, making her moan in pain and fall to the ground. Another slap came, a punch, a kick to the ribs. She winced and tears started to flow from her eyes from the pain and desolation.
"Let her go"!
A deep voice was heard behind them. As the men stopped beating her, she slightly lifted her head and saw him. Had she had any strength left she would have been able to give a sigh of relief, but she couldn't.
The leader of the gang who was in front of her looked at his men. "Get him"!
While Oliver fought off the three men, the leader resumed his beating, harder and faster, leaving her almost no time to recuperate between the blows. With every blow she took, Oliver's blood boiled even hotter. He quickly neutralized the three men and shot from afar an arrow in the two remaining men, leaving Emma to fall to the ground like a lifeless chiffon doll. Oliver ran to her and lifted her off the ground.
"Emmaline? Emmaline can you hear me"?
But Emma could hear nothing. She was far away in a land filled with numbness and unconsciousness. Oliver cleared her hair from her face and pinched his lips. Bastards! How could they do that to her? To anyone. He grabbed his phone.
"Detective Lance".
"Detective, you need to come right away. The gang have attacked another victim. She's in the alley between Maple and Jefferson. I'll stay with her until I hear you arrive but you've got to hurry, she's in pretty bad shape".
"Got it. We're on our way"!
Oliver staid there holding Emmaline in his arms. Applying pressure to some of her wounds. He tried to move her as less as possible, not wanting to aggravate her weakened if not broken bones.
"Hang in there. Help is on the way"!
When he heard the sirens getting closer to him, too close, he delicately let go of her and jumped to reach the rooftop of the closest building nearby.
He watched as Detective Lance and his men arrived and secured the area allowing the paramedics to care for Emmaline and take her away.
Oliver retreated to his lair.
Felicity and John looked at him as he stormed in the room.
"What the hell happened? Are you hurt"?
He placed his bow aside and removed the top of his outfit.
"No, I'm fine".
Felicity looked at his hands.. "Then whose blood is that"?
"Emmaline Grey's blood".
He put on a shirt.
John looked at him. "Is she alright"?
"No. She was unconscious when I left her to be taken care of by the police and paramedics. You should have seen the hatred and lack of control from these guys. If I hadn't gotten there in time, they would have killed her".
Felicity gasped and placed a hand over her mouth in shock. She didn't know this girl, yet, but she could only imagine what it would have been like for her.
John looked as Oliver walked away. "Where are you going"?
"I'm going to the hospital. I need to make sure she's OK".
"Ok but how are you going to explain your connection to her if Lance is still there"?
"I'll find a way. Felicity, call me in five minutes".
She pivoted from her computer screen to look at him. "Why"?
"Because I want you to hack into the hospital records and give me details on her status. I want to know everything".
"you mean everything, everything? Like her blood type, the type of contraception she uses, if she's up to date in her vaccination… that sort of everything"?
Oliver rolled his eyes. "No, I just want to know everything about what her current state is".
"Of course.. sorry about that".
With that Oliver took off and headed over to the hospital.