Disclaimer: See chapter 1

Please see my A/N below for further information.

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Chapter 17 – More than One Cure

Felicity put the phone down on her desk and buried her hands for a minute – no matter the fact that she really did not like the unnameable Lance (her rule), she was glad that at least she still had some feelings for the Queen family. (She had also not missed the fact that even though Oliver had been the one to approach the other girl, he had made sure to keep a respectful distance between them and had avoided any attempt from the elder Lance girl to come closer).

"Oliver?" Diggle asked from where he was next to her, leaning his head on his hand as his vertigo-induced headache played with his psyche.

"He's staying with his mother and his sister." She raised her head and turned back to the screen (but for some reason, the timing of Moira Queen's affair with Malcolm Merlyn rang a bell at the back of her mind and she filed it away for future look at). "Can I just say how much I hate the Count for making me be here and not there for him at this point in time?"

"They'll be fine Felicity." He said reassuringly. "Now, have you got anywhere in working out how people are being contaminated."

"No." She shook her head. "The map of people with symptoms isn't helping because it's just so random. I need another denominator."

Diggle ran his hand over his face and did his best to think more outside the box. "What if people weren't dosed at home but were exposed at work? Can you pull up their work addresses?"

"I'm really beginning to wonder what it will take to impress you guys!" Felicity replied as she merely pressed a few buttons to put up the map Diggle had just suggested. As the dots flashed up on screen, her eyes widened. "It's... it's a trail, a path through the city. Any place you've been?"

Diggle pointed to a spot on the map. "There, it's where I got my flu shot. Are you saying that I got addicted from one injection?"

"That's all it takes." Felicity said almost absently as she played with a few other records. "And so did ADA Adam Donner and the truck is down town right now and there's no way I'm telling Oliver, he needs to stay with his mother and Thea."

"I don't like the way this conversation is going Felicity." Diggle tried to get up. "I'll go."

"I really don't think so," She replied as she caught him and pushed him back into his chair. "I'll go. If there's trouble, I'll call."

"He's not going to like this."

"He doesn't have a choice." The tone was not one he had really heard before but Diggle realised as she left the foundry that he had just been addressed by the Amazon, rather than just his friend Felicity.

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Felicity looked around the area in which the medical truck was stationed and found herself just a little surprised at just how much it was in the open. Instincts literally shouted at her that there was something wrong with the whole situation and much as her elder sister was wont to do on occasion, she told them to shut up and continued on.

There were times when it was more important to go into the unknown, especially when the life of one of your closest friends was at risk if you didn't. (Of course she would have preferred it if a certain man in green was with her but as she was prone to say - mainly because it drove him up the wall - it's her life, her choice! She should have known it would come back to kick her in the butt one day!)

Stepping forward, she pressed the door and when it sprang open, the sudden thought that she should perhaps phone Diggle or Oliver did cross her mind for brief moment but was dismissed as 'Once more unto the breach...' immediately followed.

(Apparently being an Amazon also meant being rather reckless on occasion as well!)

Calling out hello (although why she thought that would be of any use in what was clearly going to turn out to be a trap, hello genius, of course she realised what she was doing), she stepped in and started searching for the vertigo drug posing as a flu jab.

Sliding open the door she stared at the yellow serum, "Vertigo, gotcha!"

"Funny, I was just going to say the same thing." A slimy toned voice said from behind her and she swung round to find the Count standing behind her, "Hello there Blondie, welcome to my world."

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Watching his mother's lawyer walking away, it was not for the first time that Oliver found himself wishing that he had listened to Felicity and brought her with him to the courthouse. He needed her ability to keep him calm no matter the situation.

So when his phone started to ring and he saw her name on the screen, he was filled with a sudden sense of calm. What greeted him however had that changing faster than he really ever wanted.

His mind went almost blank – if there was one thing in the world that Oliver Queen was sure of, no-one but no-one threatened his Felicity without facing the consequences of that decision, preferably at the end of an arrow.

There was no-one more important to him, not even his own mother – especially when it was clear that her life was at stake.

With that one thought in mind, he walked away from his sister. "Ollie, where are you going?"

"I have to go, there's a problem at the office."

"But Ollie, the jury... they could come back at any minute."

"I have to go. I have no choice."

"OLLIE!"

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Hood down, Oliver walked slowly out of the elevator on to the executive floor of Queen Consolidated, his bow at the ready at his side. He had taken the journey up to the top floor to calm himself down, knowing that his ability to think on his feet might be all that was between Felicity and whatever the Count had planned for her.

He had not missed the sound of the slight sobs that had come from the woman he loved over the phone, and knowing his Amazon as well as he did, hoped and prayed that it had partly been to make the madman underestimate her.

He did not miss the sight of the Count playing with her ponytail as he walked past the glass wall that separated his personal conference room from the rest of the floor nor the way her hand were fixed to the arm of the chair or the way she was shaking.

But just for a moment, their eyes fixed on each other and a conversation without words carried on underneath the spoken words.

"Pretty swanky offices."

'Are you alright?'

"You can see all the destruction that your mom caused from up here."

'I'm fine, just hurry, and get me out of here. Do what you need to do.'

Only slightly reassured, Oliver finally focused his full attention on the Count and growled. "What do you want?"

"World peace and personal satisfaction and all that," The slimy growl of a man that was so impressed with himself responded as he caressed Felicity's neck, making her tense (and Oliver doing his best not to). "I hate you, you know, you poisoned me and put me in a hole but there's a man that hates you even more than I do."

"Who?"

"Oh you're going to be surprised when you find out. He's a man of means; he set me up with my new operation so I could draw you out." He ran his hand over Felicity's shoulder almost absently this time.

"To do what?" Oliver growled before he found himself flying for the floor as the Count pulled out his gun and started firing at him. Seconds past before he found himself facing what he realised was always the Count's real plan. Needles were paused at Felicity's neck as the Count pulled it back with her hair; his intention to poison her with vertigo clear.

What the Count could not see even as he ordered the Arrow to drop the bow was the look that crossed his hostage's face and because he was not capable of seeing the look that passed between the Amazon and her Arrow, he didn't realise that he was already dead.

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Half an hour later, Oliver walked back into the courthouse, Felicity's hand tight in his. He had been unable to let her out of his sight after what had just happened. And seeing her, Thea's face had almost lit up. She jumped off the bench, launching herself at the blonde (who was decidedly thankful that Oliver was standing behind her to steady her) as she caught her.

"Felicity," The younger woman stepped back and caught tell-tale signs of red indicating tears. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." She replied even as she entwined her fingers in Thea's, looking back over her shoulder at Oliver. "There was a situation at the office..."

"It will be on the news later, don't worry about it." Oliver added as he wrapped his arm around Felicity's waist, holding up his hand to stop her asking any more questions. Ten minutes later, the couple found themselves swapping disbelieving looks at the verdict was read out. "This can't be happening, what's going on."

(Felicity also did not miss the look of disappointment on a certain lawyer's face either at seeing her with Oliver and if she had been of a more childish nature, she would have stuck her tongue out at her. She also did not miss the look on Moira Queen's face either.)

Over an hour later, still somewhat shocked by the fact that Moira Queen had been acquitted by the courts, they walked into the Foundry to find Diggle still waiting for them. "I didn't expect to see you two back here tonight."

"I..." A dig in his wounded arm (deliberately aimed) had him changing that quickly, "We wanted to check in on you to see how you were doing."

"I'm feeling better," Diggle replied as he reached out to gently punch Felicity's shoulder. "On hearing that it was our girl here that had been threatened, QC's Applied Sciences Division put everything into finding a non-addictive treatment and it seems to be working."

"Good." Oliver replied as he pulled Felicity closer to his side, her head resting on his shoulder. "I need to see Felicity home before I join the rest of my family, so why don't you go home now."

"I'll do that. Look after our girl, Oliver, she been through a lot tonight."

"I know." Oliver waited until he could no longer hear Diggle's footsteps on the stairs before he turned to the girl in his arms. Unable to help himself, he lowered his head and kissed her as hard as he could just to reassure himself once more that she was safe.

She pulled back slightly and ran her hand over his arm where he had been shot. "Oliver, I am sorry though, I never meant to be the reason that you broke your promise to Tommy, you know."

He pulled her back, cupping her cheek. "Felicity, he had you and he was going to hurt you, there was no choice to make." He kissed her again and then drew back. "You will always come first with me and I think even Tommy would have understood that there was only one road to take tonight and I took it. Okay?"

She closed her eyes for a moment, sighed and then nodded. "Okay."

If only they had known the horror that was about to be unleashed on Starling City.

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Okay I give up, I should never word-limit myself - I always break so ignore yesterday's statement re chapter lengths! LOL!

And this didn't quite go the way I thought it would, Oliver kind of won the arguement to ring Felicity to the court and I couldn't talk him out of it! I still like it though so thats all that matters.

As always please review both my Arrow stories and don't worry about a certain Mr Allen, he's not going to be a threat! ;op