This chapter, I dedicate to the 200+ readers who are still with me, still coming every Monday and reading the progression. I know you've all waited a long time for this chapter, and my friends; it has finally arrived.
In other news; Paul Walker is dead. R.I.P. I adore the F&F franchise and all its movies and the news pretty much shattered me. So I ended up in my duvet on the sofa watching a F&F marathon with my housemate, alcohol and chocolate. Why does this have to happen? Why can't we all be immortal? (and possibly sterilized to prevent over population issues). So yeah... been an interesting yesterday.
Previously; Chloe rang an old contact to find Oliver had never left Metropolis. Naturally, this led to her snooping around his apartment, cracking his password 'Justice' and seeing he was chatting to other people about Nexus plans over a secure server. She decided to come back again and get IP addresses and locate these people. Oliver finally found his post-RL freedom and went to see Chloe. Only dear Chloe had been plagued by nightmares of her past with Lionel and ended up drinking on the roof and saying ALL the wrong things to dear Ollie.
Now; Everything comes undone.
Note: Lex is waiting to catch Green Arrow with Chloe. So he can confront her about her lies and him for his identity. It's all about timing darlings. Arrow wasn't captured after dropping Chloe into her bed, because Lex wants to catch them lovely dovey, not fighting. He's biding his time...
Chapter Thirty-Four; Curiosity's Reward
'Montaigne said; obsession was the wellspring of genius and madness.' – Lex Luthor (Season Two, Episode Visitor)
Chloe woke with a pounding in her head she wished would cease immediately.
Something shrill was making a noise. It had woken her up. She cursed at it, then cursed a lot quieter and stumbled her way through the bright kitchen, squinting to calm the explosion behind her eyes.
She pulled down the tablets, tugging down a new jar of coffee and sugar as she did. The coffee jar smashed, the floor and her legs dusted with brown powder, the noise splitting her head. The sugar followed, hitting her foot and shooting more pain up her.
Her stomach swirled, her head thumped, but the tablets were taken back to her bedroom and she tossed two back with some water. The music was back again, her phone. And jesus it was making a hell of a racket. She stumbled across the room, well aware of the coffee she was printing onto the carpet and dropped herself to the floor next to her phone as she answered it and cut off the infuriating noise.
"Hello?" she managed to speak, her voice raw.
"Rough night?" But this was Lex's voice and she wanted to grumble.
"Lionel came." she dutifully informed him.
"I saw." he replied, mercifully lowering the volume of his voice by the slightest amount. "What about?"
"Just wanted me to know he knew where I was. What I was doing." she replied, holding the phone further from her ear to try and stop each pounding that came with listening to noise.
"I see." And she heard Lex's chair squeak as he leant back. She narrowed her eyes at the phone. "I thought I'd let you know Nexus was a failure."
"What?" she asked, genuinely confused. Nexus was what? Oh, the lab. "Why?"
"They all escaped. Unharmed." Lex lied, unbeknownst to Chloe.
"When?"
"Last night." he lied again.
"Oh. What happened?" she asked, trying to keep a focus on the topic though her brain felt far too big for her head.
"The same as usual." he simply replied. "Not an entire bust. The blur cannot cross the meteor rocks it seems."
"That's good news." she tried for enthusiasm, but failed.
"The only piece." Lex snapped. "We need a new plan." he began again. "I need all you have on Green Arrow."
"I'm almost finished sorting through what I already have to present for you." she answered, trying to please him. Again, she failed.
"I'll call when I need you. And you better have something worthwhile." And then the line was dead. Chloe looked back at the dead phone. Then to the coffee on her bare legs.
She groaned and flopped herself onto her back. Today was not a good day.
By the time Chloe could see straight again, the apartment was clean, she was showered and her coffee intake was shockingly high. She'd compiled Lex's list and was calling for the driver, pulling on her coat and stuffed bag of electronics. She was going to crack the Oliver mystery wide open, and she had all the tools she needed right there with her this time. She'd copy his hard drive if necessary, but something was wrong about him. She was going to find out what, by tonight.
She was quick in the flats, fast walking in the black slacks and light blue blouse. The cream coat hung open over her, no time for fastening it in her rush. The driver opened her door and sped to the address in record time.
No car outside, no Oliver. Still.
She watched her car drive off and inputted the code into the elevator, again, it sped her up without more bother than a few shakes and she was back in Oliver's study in her chair within minutes. She unpacked her software and started the IP trace.
She even got up to make herself a coffee. She had no thought, no niggle that he might come back and catch her, no worry. It was strange how comfortable she felt, but her comfort came from the abandoned apartment, and the fact his jet wasn't meant to return until tomorrow. She was positive he'd be MIA until at least then. So she drank from the mug of coffee while the tracker pinged several locations.
She ran the locations through tenant registry and as she sorted through them, she found the identity of the five communications Oliver was file sharing with. Arthur Curry and Victor Stone were the easiest to pin, their identities barely changed from Driver's License to functioning vigilantes. Next, she found the location of Bart Allen, the third in the team of heroes. And as she crossed images with names of tenants in the building, one popped up that rang a bell. Dinah Lance. Her problem employee for Queen. Or… Black Canary.
Her she was, sitting atop a gold mine. Lex would pay generously for these names.
Chloe smiled, fishing for the last IP address, it would be Green Arrow, and she would find her mark. But the last address was in Smallville, at a residence she had loved; the Kent farm. There was no way Clark Kent was anything more than a farm boy, so what the hell was he doing accessing the nexus plans? And where was Green Arrow on this list. Chloe ran her fingers through her hair. But, as she sat in silence, working her brain through this mess, she heard the definitive sound of the elevator.
What the fuck?!
He wasn't meant to be back!
Chloe scrambled from the chair. Closing all programmes and removing all hardware. But the elevator opened while she was still in the doorway of the office, her eyes peering around the barely open door.
There he was; Queen. Perfectly fine and healthy, cell phone in hand.
She wanted to punch him. So fucking badly.
"Hey." he began, talking on the phone softly. "No, don't worry Clark." Kent? Clark Kent?! What the hell was going on here? "But I've got a breakthrough in my hands. One you'll want to see." Oliver looked down at the manila envelope in his grasp. Chloe leant closer to the door, wanting to see the breakthrough. "Yeah. Alright." And he hung up, but the very same second, the elevator kicked up the noise again, and Oliver stood by it, pulling images from the package he held.
The doors opened and he held out the documents for the man that stepped through. The man… wait, no. That was Clark Kent. But he'd only just hung up the phone to him…
Chloe's brain was speeding a mile a minute, what the hell was happening?
"What is it?" Clark asked, taking the evidence. His voice was a wave of nostalgia, it had been so long since she'd heard that warm tone.
"Recognise her?" Oliver asked, smug.
"Yeah." he answered. Chloe couldn't believe she was seeing Clark again. Here, of all places. He was taller, more muscled, but most definitely Clark. "She's the one in the alley when Lex's guys were on you." Chloe's happiness at seeing Clark again skidded and did a 180. Who was where in what alley and why was Lex on Oliver? What the hell was going on? She'd never been more confused in her life.
"How about here?" Oliver asked again, taking off the top photo. Chloe strained, but there was no way she could see what they were looking at.
"Seriously?" Clark's smile faltered, those crinkles above his brow coming back like his teenage self would find when having difficulty with something. Before, it was math, now, it was that photo. "There's no way." Who was on the photo?!
"There is." Oliver replied, leaning against the wall. "She goes missing for years, then suddenly this girl just pops back up in a contract to the Luthors." Her? Was it her? It had to be… But, how did Oliver know about her contract with Lionel?! Had Arrow told him?
"I can't believe she's alive." Clark spoke, his voice filled with hope. "Lois is going to go insane." Chloe put herself back against the wall, her mind was sitting on a carousel of the word shit. She'd been made, her cover blown. Everything was ruined. The shit had hit the fan big style. There was no undoing this. She was well and truly ruined. Fucking Oliver! He couldn't just be satisfied with ruining her romantic relations, no, he had to fuck with her life and future as well. Oh, she wanted to ram her fist through his skull so fucking much. "Where is she now?" she heard Clark ask and peered back through the gap, her breathing harsh and angry.
"Apartment. I dropped by last night." Oh great, so now Oliver was stalking her, dropping by while she was knocked out on an alcohol binge. How the fuck did he even get in?!
"We should go." Clark insisted, already turning back to the elevator, but Oliver grabbed his arm quickly.
"And do what?" Oliver challenged. "Break down the door, steal the girl and force her to her old life? There's a reason she still shut out Lois and her family. We need to find out what."
"Lex probably has something over her." Clark sighed, disheartened. Chloe stood silence, mouth agape without a comprehensive thought in her head.
"We need to find out what." Oliver summed. "I'll go there tonight, she'll talk to me." Chloe felt the rage boil. If he thought she was even going to open the fucking door for him he was sourly mistaken.
"Go now." Clark corrected. "I'll get Bart to keep an eye on her." Bart? What was he doing in this?
"Probably best. She'll bolt if she thinks anything is wrong." Oliver agreed and walked from view. Clark picked up his phone. Chloe heard something metal click in the direction Oliver went, but she couldn't see. She listened to Clark, his voice oddly soothing to her confused mind.
"Impulse, Chloe needs surveillance." Impulse? Why was Clark calling him the codename? "I gotta be back at Smallville in-" Clark spun his watch up. "4 minutes." he finished. Chloe stared at Clark, answers were stepping from the fog… very slowly. "Yeah, Lois will kill me if I'm late again." Clark chuckled, but without a worry. "She'd find a way." The IP address to the farm, the codenames. But… Clark couldn't be a team member right. Other than Arrow… there was only… the blur.
Chloe's eyes went wide, the way they did when you finally found out a secret that had been teasing you. But… there was no way, right?
Right?!
"Boyscout. Tell him look but not touch!" Oliver's voice came across the area. Boyscout? Boyscout?
Oh god… Clark was the blur. Her heart was battering her chest, racing like mad as her mind was whizzing a mile a minute.
Clark chuckled, relaying the message to the phone, wrapping up and finishing. Oliver's voice came again, closer this time. "Sullivan huh?" he started, his form still out of view. "Her dad's Gabe right?"
"He died in a car accident." Clark supplied, but Chloe felt the tears sting and blood boil. He was killed, he didn't just die! Her temperature was burning, her fists were tightening, her heart pounding and her mind throwing around the new information with a vigour she'd never had.
"Yeah, she didn't seem too happy to have me see her at his gravestone." Oliver spoke again, with a chuckle. "Told me he was a friend." Wait… No… she told Arrow that. Oliver wasn't even on her radar at that point.
But then Oliver came back into view, his hands on a bow, his fingers stroking Arrows with green fletching, green leather covering him head to toe, the hood flipped down and sunglasses in his hand.
Chloe felt the last piece of her puzzle click, her heart sinking to her stomach. She felt sick as the reality hit her.
"Sure she'll talk to you?" Clark asked.
"Yeah. She'll talk." Chloe felt the chill rocket through her as the voice distorter she knew so well covered the vocal chords, sending the words like a threat through to her bone. She stayed in her hiding place, shaking like a leaf as she watched the doors of the elevator close around the both of them. Seconds later she was dropping to the floor of the office, her hand over her mouth, tearless sobs raking from her throat.
Oliver was Green Arrow.
Her anger chilled, Goosebumps over her skin.
Every inch of her shook. Her stomach swirled with hungry sharks. What had she done? Oliver was Arrow…
Her hand went to her stomach as she felt the sweep of an ill feeling wash over her.
Every touch, every kiss… oh god…
Chloe sprinted from the office to the bathroom next to her, slamming the door against the wall and throwing up her lunch into the toilet bowl, tears stinging at her eyes all the time. But the heaves relented, her throat's pain dulled and she felt the cold clamour of sweat cover her body.
No… this was wrong.
He couldn't be.
But she'd seen it herself, she'd pretty much proven it electronically… and now… now she was faced with a reality she couldn't comprehend.
Why?
Why the hell did Queen bother with this vigilante crap? Why couldn't he have just been satisfied with him money and his women.
But more things were sliding into place.
The jaw. The fucking jawline! How had she be so stupid to not even think of the logical reasoning?! How had she deluded herself into thinking otherwise?!
She was so stupid.
So damn stupid!
Chloe ran her fingers through her hair, tugging on the strands in despair.
What the hell had Queen done to fuck with her mind so much?!
He'd clearly hired a decoy to pretend to play Green Arrow for her.
But as memories came, an avalanche of truth followed.
Arrow saving her from thugs in the alley… That was Oliver.
Arrow breaking into Lex's office at night… Arrow kissing her. That was… Oliver.
Riding the back of Arrow's bike. Lex's hired hands beating Oliver within an inch of his life because of her. He… Oliver got her off in an alley. The same Oliver that had this stupid dating rule had already tasted her, had already heard her scream, already played her body up and down.
Her father's grave. Lex's labs. Warning Oliver about Nexus. Him breaking into her room. Oh God, she called the guards on Oliver. Lex could have had him that night. Could have shot him, unmasked him… she could have finished his life because of her stupid actions.
The memories swarmed again, playing out.
The next time… the next time she saw Arrow it was after meeting Queen again, when she'd agreed to date him, then… he must have followed her back to the mansion, because as soon as she got there, he was watching her swim the lengths of the Luthor pool. Then, breaking into the tailors with him, almost fucking him on the shop floor.
Chloe ran her fingers through her hair yet again, the shakes of her hand still not stopped yet. Her mind was spinning, nothing safe footing for her thoughts.
The reason why Arrow couldn't save her the night of their first date. This kisses, the fighting, the damn jaw. She'd been so close that night, and then his decoy had de-railed her entirely. Oliver's bruises from the poker match, he must have covered them while playing Arrow.
Then… the next time, he had been fucking with Lex's system and taken her night from her while she fixed it. Was it all just a plan of Oliver's to ensure she was kept busy? No. When she told Oliver, he looked guilty. The date more than enough to make up for his crimes as Arrow that night. He felt for her.
Did that make what he did worse? Or better? She didn't know.
The money Oliver had put into Arrow's summer home. There was no job, there was just a money trail he hadn't had time to eradicate yet.
The way he'd been out on a 'business emergency' late at night when she'd called for him. Dinah throwing her further from his trail, protecting her leader.
She'd played poker with Oliver. No wonder he slapped his cards to the table each hand. But… then…
Again, reality bled bright red in a way she didn't want to see. Oliver's business trip, the Nexus plans, Green Arrow running from their match… Oliver standing her up.
He'd been bruised or something. Maybe he was taking care of an injured teammate. Maybe he was the injured teammate.
Last night… sat on the roof with him. His anger.
He'd used RL-65 she'd bet.
Oh God.
What had she stumbled across?
Chloe felt the ache in her stomach return and she turned to the toilet again. But this time… she mercifully held whatever was left in her stomach.
Why? Why did Oliver have to be Arrow?!
Why him?
But what had she expected, she questioned herself. Did she expect some low life criminal with a bigger conscience? A street vender with a vengeance? A banker with a grudge?
Who else fit the profile, but the bored billionaire?
Chloe sat against the sink, her back hitting the cold surface and not caring. Oliver.
He hadn't left her in that restaurant… he hadn't forgotten about her.
The tears dripped freely.
But what was she going to do?
Chloe had taken her escape as soon as the sickness passed, leaving everything as exact as it once was when she entered. But Arrow was at her apartment… no, not Arrow. Oliver was at her apartment. She couldn't deal with that. She'd decided against calling the car to take her home and walked from the apartment, numbly following her feet in whichever direction they wanted.
She stumbled, she almost tripped on the uneven pavements that littered the city and she must have accidentally walked into the path of over 20 pedestrians, not to mention 5 cars. But, she offered nothing more than a muttered apology then stumbled on her way. She must have looked drunk, or zombified to the passing audience, but that was the beauty of Metropolis; there were so many people, it didn't matter about the one rare person walking past in a daze.
Chloe found her exhaustion crash through her numbness as she walked the park, past dog walkers and happy couples. She took a turn out of view and sat under the shade of a great oak.
She couldn't go back to Oliver. Not without telling him she knew about his alter ego.
And… she couldn't know about his alter ego… it brought too many problems.
But it came down to an important decision for her. Did she tell Lex and win her freedom? Or did she keep quiet, and stay shackled forever?
But something Lionel said was building at the back of her mind… Lex would grow into him. He had to. Men like Lex craved power, and staying the same only kept you at the same level. While there was still power to claim, Lex would keep selling his soul to have it… and yes, he would end up like Lionel. She needed to act before this happened.
So, no, she couldn't stay with Lex for the rest of her life. And she certainly wasn't taking the easy way out and killing herself. So… she had to get out.
Surely when Lex found out, things wouldn't be that bad for Oliver.
He wouldn't chain him up… right?
I mean, they were business men. Lex was expecting a street runt like she'd once been. Arrow being Oliver turned the tables a lot.
Lex… he would probably keep it under his hat, use the knowledge to blackmail Queen.
Right?
And Chloe would be far away, she'd be gone from this place. She wouldn't ever come back, besides, she had no home here anymore. No-one to hold close, nowhere to be. She would leave her old self behind and start all over again. All over again. She'd bring nothing with her but the money… and the bittersweet memories.
Her phone vibrated, stirring her from her deep thoughts.
Bart. Asking where she was. Oliver had probably realised she was not there. She stared at the message… but what was she to put? Ignoring him was no answer, he would stake out the place, anything she replied without importance would either call him to her, or her to him.
So she tapped out a reply telling him she was busy working for Lex and that she'd chat later. He responded quickly to it, but she ignored it.
But there were negatives to living in Metropolis, one was playing right before her as a couple stumbled from the path in each others embrace clearly looking for a quickie in the bushes. Chloe stood, making her escape before she ended up a voyeur and started her walking again, this time with less collisions.
Was there something else Lex wanted from her? Something else she could trade? She'd asked herself the same question for years, but now she needed to have an answer.
But Lex was a man that could access most things for himself. Chloe had very little to offer. Very little indeed. Her talents lie in computers, and logic, both Lex could hire for money. So, that left exploiting his criminal interests as her only chances. But he could handle the majority himself, it was only the time she was putting into Arrow and his band of misfits that was gaining her the freedom she desired.
Her feet walked her down the streets, heading to the docks. She knew solely because of the smell of fish, otherwise she never went down there for any purpose. But she kept walking, no reason to stop (despite the smell).
Would it be so bad to hand him over to Lex? She pondered again.
She thought it over, the ideas dark as they passed. She had a mission, a good soldier completed the mission.
Besides, Oliver was just a man, a man like all others. It was only her personal feelings that stopped her.
Those damn feelings that had brought her so much pain.
She didn't want them, and she didn't want to stay shackled to Lex. So… she'd turn them off, and she'd turn him over.
No.
No.
That was NOT the right thing. Yes, she'd done her job, but she wasn't Lex. This was no fun, this was no good deed. This was wrong.
But the idea remained, the seed planted by the Luthor vines that ensnared her. Luthors truly did bring out the worst. They brought out the demon, the evil… the devil buried deep within her.
The one that whispered ways to make the sick deeds seem acceptable. The one that rubbed her shoulders when she held a gun, urging her on. The black eyes that stared back at her when she tried to defy an order.
The devil inside her clawed its way into her thinking, it tugged the logic to the front and put feelings to the back.
'There's an easy way to finish this', it purred. 'A way where you win'.
But it was guilt, not an angel to battle the devil, that piped up. It was guilt that said it was wrong.
Chloe sighed, heading down the old factory lanes, instead of to the water. There were old mills and boatyards that littered this area. Chloe blinked, taking in her surroundings. How long had she been walking? She wondered, there was no way she had walked this far. But her mind had ran off with her again, and she was already passing by boatyards. She really could lose her mind at some points, no knowledge of anything but the thoughts. She must have been walking at least a good 25 minutes since the park, she presumed as she walked on. Her feet weren't hurting, which was a miracle in itself. She rolled her eyes to herself, wondering how she could be so absent from her own body's movements and started mentally planning a map back into the city. She'd head forward and then take the next right back towards the shopping district and the markets.
As was her luck, her walk home didn't go to plan. No, she got to the end of the street and heard shouting in the boatyard. The kind a man in pain makes.
The kind someone would phone the police for. But Chloe had curiosity, not fear. She forgot her turn to the market and kept on straight, into the mess of crates and old boats. Two people's voices.
But as she came closer, she realised her worry was entirely misplaced, there stood two men. One large and stout, the other the physical opposite with a deep purple coat hanging low on his body. Neither looked in pain, the sounds had stopped and there was no-one else in sight.
Chloe shrugged, leaving them to their business.
But whatever God that looked after Chloe wasn't happy unless there was a chance of Chloe's life getting worse and the skinny giant spun to her though no sound had been made. Chloe watched his eyes flash to the larger companion. Chloe saw the large man grow bigger still, his skin taking a red glow. But the red suddenly flared, the size bulged and before she could gain the motion of running, he was charging like a bull in a china shop towards her. Chloe ducked between crates, back into the warehouse.
She didn't make it past two crates before purple tailcoat cut her off with a sadistic grin.
Chloe backed up against the wood. Her curiosity was getting her into more trouble. You'd think by now she would have learned. She guessed this was her greatest weakness; she never could deny herself the knowledge she craved, good or bad. Her eyes settled on the man before her. He looked like a street performer, the ones that read fortunes and performed low budget tricks, but as this man drew cards from his pocket, unwrapped satin from around them and watched them glow green, she got the impression his low budget would be no budget and entirely real magic.
Her pulse skyrocketed, slamming into her throat in warning.
"You're over your balance." The tall man spoke, an air of sophistication in the words as he shuffled the deck. "Will fate let you live?" The purple tailcoat sat a low, it gave him the mystery customers would pay for, with the believable stage act customers would want. "If they happen to smile kindly… we can always try again." And he grinned bright white teeth, definitely a street performer, she summed. But what followed chilled her bones. He followed with a laugh, a laugh that could only ever be suited to a school girl possessed by satan. It was high pitched, it was a cackle and it was nothing to suit a large man. Said large man appeared to his left, hugging an axe shyly, his skin back to its usual colour, his size as he was when she first saw.
"Shall we kill her now?" the short one asked. "Let me kill her." He was clearly the simpler of the two, but she watched fascinated as his skin changed as he spoke. From red to green to orange like a fiber optic light in a child's bedroom, but this one couldn't decide on a colour at all.
"How much does she know? We need to find out." The leader spoke and urged his partner closer with a nod of his head. The man flared up red, bright red, his size growing by the second and he came closer, scaring Chloe to cowering.
"Tell us all y' know little girl." The words came out in a thick Scottish accent that hadn't been there before. Was each colour a different person? "Or we'll gut ya, an' pull out ya insides for m' hat."
Chloe pawed behind her, looking for a weapon before fear shut her down… but to no luck.
"Maybe a little persuasion is in order." The taller man purred. With legs like a stick man he took a huge step back and whipped a hand above the desk his other palm held. Chloe watched as the cards moved with the hand, soaring upwards to float between his two hands with the same eerie green glow wrapped around each card. His hands split, sliding apart and the cards followed, forming a circle around him. They spirally, they chased, they danced around, protecting him like a sphere. "Maybe the ace of pentacles." he muttered to himself and a single card flew out of the chaos to hover stationary by his left hand. "No, no. The six of swords." The card flew back, another leaving formation to replace it.
Chloe knew enough to tell her he was playing with Tarot cards. She'd watched enough TV to know the death card wasn't bad; it meant a new beginning, not actual death. In fact, that death card was looking oddly appealing right now. "No. We'll leave it to the fates, let you choose your own future." The skinny man tugged his lips into a toothy grin that could mean nothing good. "How about it darling? Want your future read?"
"I think she does… she must… who wouldn't?" But Chloe turned to this new voice only to find it running freely from his timid yellowing partner in crime, a partner in crime who was shrinking himself into the background nervously.
"Hold out your hand." Chloe didn't comply. She knew better. Her fortune teller didn't appreciate this. "Hold out her hand!" Chloe suddenly found herself barrelled into by a glowing red man, pulling her right hand out across the distance. The grip was tight, probably going to leave bruises, it tightened still as she tried to fight herself free. The man had superhuman strength, barely able to make him wobble. Did the change of colour change him entirely? New voice, new strength, new personality… new superpower? "Now-" as the leader began to speak again Chloe lifted her eyes to him, fear creeping into her muscles. "Cards of my deck. What future awaits?"
Chloe had seen some things in her time alive, she'd seen crazy, shocking, horrific and heart breaking. This… this was straddling the fence between fascinating and terrifying. The cards slowed, ringing the man with decreasing speed. Chloe watched his hands move again and the cards lined in a perfect stack between the hand above his head, and that poised by his belt… all, but one card. One which held place between the two of them, one that faced him and caused a grin as the other cards dropping into his palm in a neat pile. "So I see." he chuckled darkly. "We shall have fun with you." With his sole free hand, he lined the palm with the card and it began to move slowly towards Chloe.
She instinctively began to squirm, but the vice-tight grip glowing blood red around her kept her in her place. She had to get free. That killer smile he wore told her nothing good would come from that card touching her. She tried to close her hand, but the red man almost broke her fingers to hold it open.
Chloe hated where her thoughts went, she hated it… but she couldn't help it. Would Arrow look for her? Would… Oliver look for her? Would he come and save her?
Could she make anything right before her life ended?
She hated the thoughts, but it didn't stop them coming. Thankfully, the present threat calling her attention did.
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Will she be saved? What will she do about Oliver?