.:18:.

Cadence glanced at the screen of her cell phone. Ignoring the texts that came in from her parents, she looked at the time then shook her head. She rested her back against the mirror behind her and smiled, watching as Brady danced across the hardwood floor to the music that came out of the boom box by her side. She hadn't noticed how much he had picked up from watching some of her Zumba classes until he had started to mimic her moves at times. He was starting to get pretty good at the hip-hop style.

"Good job, bud," Cadence called as the music stopped.

"Thank you." Brady smiled and walked over to her. He dropped to his knees and looked at the door curiously. "Is no one coming?"

"Yeah, my class got cancelled," Cadence said with a light sigh. "I'm sorry I had to wake you up so early and bring you here for nothing."

"That's okay, I like watching you dance. I can tell you really like it." He squinted his eyes. "Is that why you were a cheerleader?"

"Yeah, I guess." Chuckling, Cadence shook her head. Actually, if she remembered correctly, her mother gave her the choice of doing cheerleading or starting in the pageant circuit. And pageantry wasn't really anything she was particularly interested in. As much as she loved dressing up and wearing pretty dresses and cute clothes, the idea of having to put on all of that make-up and fake a smile in front of people who were judging her by how cute she looked—which was exactly how her mother put it—didn't fly with her. So she opted for cheerleading. One of the best decisions she had ever made, really. "Speaking of, how were things with Ryder after we left the game?"

Brady shrugged, turning his attention to his shoelaces, tugging at them. "It was okay," he said. "We played some more soccer. He taught me how to do the flip throw in." Brady shrugged again. "I can't really do it right, but he taught me how."

"That's nice."

"He told me that once he's done on his project he'll move onto some of the other buildings in Central City to reinforce them."

So he's going to be around a little bit longer. Cadence twisted her mouth to the side. That seemed a bit fishy. He had said before he was only working on the office building that had been blown apart when Bette had come through, but now his work had been extended. Isn't that what you wanted? For him to be a father to Brady? Cadence sighed, tilting her head back. That was the part that confused her the most; she was getting what she wanted in the first place of him being around to do that, but at the same time she had worked just fine on her own. It wasn't like she didn't still care about Ryder, she didn't love him, but she still cared.

"And that he's excited for my birthday because he missed so many of them." Brady blew his hair out of his face and looked away from his shoes. "It was fun. I like him."

"Good. That's good to hear." Cadence reached out and ran her fingers through Brady's hair.

"What happened with that call?" Brady asked in turn. He shifted so that he sat Indian style on the floor. "You and Barry had to leave really fast. So did Cisco, Caitlin, and…" he paused and Cadence could see as he struggled to figure out how to refer to his newly found grandfather. "Dr. Wells."

"There are these guys called Leonard Snart and Mick Rory," Cadence explained. "Apparently they're big time criminals that have taken some of the most expensive things from around Central City. Like, they've been in and out of jail a long time." She sighed, realizing how easily she could've ended up like them due to her work with the Assassination Bureau. Now that she thought of it, she wouldn't be surprised if a photo of her was back with the Smallville PD because of that one fire she was framed for. She was equally surprised she didn't end up in the Pipeline the moment she met Barry due to her methods of trying to get his attention for the criminal organization. "And they have these things called a Cold Gun and a Hear Gun." Brady's eyebrows lowered. "Yeah, apparently when Barry had been struck by lightning, Cisco created the Cold Gun as a way to take Barry down in case he turned out to be evil or something. And then the last time Felicity was here in Central City Snart got a hold of it and things went downhill from there."

"So there're people running around with guns that shoot ice and fire?"

"Pretty much."

"And those were the guys that you were going after?"

"Yeah."

"Oh." Brady nodded. "Well, if anyone can beat them you and Barry can do it. You have the power of fire; maybe that can help."

"I was thinking the same thing." Cadence looked at her phone again and started to gather her things. "Okay, so I have someone I need to go see at the hospital. And then I can take you over to Connor's house. I want to meet his Mom anyway."

"She's nice," Brady said. "I think you'd like her."

"Why? Because she lets you and Connor eat whatever you want? Which of course just means a lot of sugar which doesn't bode well for me when you get back home because you're constantly bouncing off the walls." Brady grinned then laughed when his mother tried to give him a stern look, wrapping his arms around himself and falling to his side. She couldn't help but notice the mischievous glint in his eye that she realized had come from Ryder. He normally had that look whenever he was about to tell her something stupid he and his friends had done or were about to do. "You know it's moments like these make me realize when you're a teenager you're either going to be very easy to get along with or a pain in the butt."

"Maybe," Brady said. He brushed his hair from his eyes. "I haven't decided yet."

"Thanks for the warning." Cadence pushed his hair back and studied his face. "You need a haircut." She grabbed onto his hands and stood up, pulling him at the same time so he popped to his feet. "Let's go." She turned and kneeled down so that Brady climbed up onto her back, wrapping his arms around her neck. She picked up the boom box and her gym bag and walked out of the empty dance studio. "Hey, Lydia, here's the boom box and my keys."

"Thanks Cadence," Lydia replied as she took the items and placed them behind the receptionist desk. "I'm sorry your class was cancelled last minute. We didn't want to waste your time with a class of about two or three."

"Don't worry about it, I got some time to hang out with Brady for a while so he could see what I do," Cadence replied. She gave a stiff smile. "Did I mention he's off of school until after New Year's?"

"Yeah, I think you mentioned it once or twice." Lydia laughed, sitting back in her seat. "Don't forget that we're having our dance competition soon, coming up in March or so. So there's that to look forward to, too."

"Alright, thanks for letting me know. I've got a few people in mind already. There's this girl, Sage, who is one of the other classes I take and she's pretty good." Cadence looked at Brady, who smiled back at her so dimples appeared in his cheeks, and she turned back to Lydia. "We'll see you later." She gave a short wave then left the gym. She walked around the corner and found a nearby alley to duck down into. She looked back and forth for a moment before looking up at Brady. "I don't expect you'd want to try and phase us there do you?"

Brady pressed his lips together. "I'm scared," he said honestly.

"About what? Your powers?"

He shook his head. "No, that's cool," he lowered his voice to a mumble. The same kind of mumble little kids used when they felt they were in trouble for something and didn't want to admit they were wrong. "I don't want to get stuck somewhere."

"And that's why Harrison and Cisco and Caitlin are going to help you. They're already working hard with me and Barry, especially making sure that Barry's getting faster now that the Reverse Flash has shown its face again. They're not going to let you fall by the wayside." She tilted her head. "No matter how much I don't want them to, they're not going to let your powers control you."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't want you to get hurt. The point of being your Mom is to protect you. Having that control taken away is a hard thing to get used to. Especially since I've had to fight for that for a while."

"With Gramma and PaPa?"

"Exactly."

"Oh." Brady tightened his grip around his mother's neck. "Maybe it's my turn to protect you."

"Maybe," Cadence agreed. She patted Brady on the leg then looked around once more before teleporting to the hospital. She walked inside and signed herself in, walking to the fourth floor of the hospital. "Alright, I need to talk to someone for a few minutes. So you stay here and don't. Move."

Brady twisted his mouth to the side. "What if I need to go to the bathroom?"

"Then go to the bathroom. Play a game on my phone if you want." She pulled the object out of her pocket and handed it over to him. "Read a magazine. Just don't go wandering around here. It's too easy to get lost and I don't want security to call me again." Brady rolled his eyes and Cadence knew he was thinking of his statement to defend himself; I was three. Yes, at three years old while she had been in a class Brady had slipped out of the classroom and wandered off nearly setting her off into a full blown panic before campus security had walked him back to her with a disapproving look. Brady, otherwise unaware of his faux pas toddled over to her and hugged her leg, his free hand clutching tightly to the lollipop he had been given.

"Fine," he said. "But are we still going to Connor's after this?"

"Yes, we are. I promise." Cadence kissed him on the forehead and reached into her gym bag to grab her ID badge. She clipped it to the front of her shirt and walked through a pair of double doors with a confident stride that took her to the room she was looking for. She knocked on the door frame before walking inside.

Michael Bloom turned to her and gave a half smile then ran his hands over his face. A weary smile escaped his lips and he dropped his hands. "You have to stop. There's nothing you can do or say that will keep them from keeping me in here."

"I can if I can figure out a way to get people to understand you don't deserve to be considered a mental patient," Cadence replied. "Especially considering you were doing it against your own will."

"I still don't know how you know that."

Cadence sighed heavily, tilting her head back. She had contemplated time and time again to tell him about her powers, her identity as Flash Fire—of which she noticed she finally was mentioned on Iris's blog, not that she cared that much—and explain everything the Assassination Bureau wanted and why they needed him. But she couldn't risk that and risk the rest of STAR Labs and Barry's identity and Harrison's, Caitlin's, and Cisco's jobs and her own privacy and….well she didn't know if he would believe her.

"I just know," she finally said. "Trust me, I've studied as a doctor for a long time, I may be finishing up my residency as a pediatrician but that doesn't mean I didn't get an education in knowing the human body in general. You don't show the same signs as what one would consider a 'typical' mental patient." She used air quotes around the words. "Especially as your medical history doesn't inflate the statement." She picked up his clipboard and looked it over. "Says here you're supposed to go up to the observation floor so that you can get some counseling."

"I'm going to be admitted soon I'm sure," Michael commented. The man rubbed is forehead. "I haven't been able to see my kid since I've been here."

"She didn't want to come?"

"I don't want her to see me here. I don't want her to visit me and thinking that her father is completely…" he trailed off. "Thanks for trying to help me, Cadence. But it's not your responsibility."

It is when I'm part of the reason you're here, Cadence thought. But she understood what he meant. She couldn't take on the brunt of his problems because Mindboggler had successfully taken over his mind and pushed him to kidnapping Brady and doing whatever else he was told to do. She gave Michael a small smile and replaced his medical chart. "I hope things work out for you. If you don't want me to come see you again, that's fine."

"I'm sorry for everything that happened with Brady. If I had known that would happen, I would've turned down the money I was offered. I didn't mean any harm to your son."

"That's alright. I know you didn't. You didn't really have a choice." Cadence waved to Michael before slipping out of the room. She carefully closed the door behind her before walking back down the hallway. She passed by an adjoining hall and recognized a familiar face. Her blood ran cold and she ducked her head, increasing her speed. For a moment she cursed the fact she decided to go to the hospital where she had little to no chance of being able to teleport and the thought alone increased her speed.

"Miss. Nash?"

And yet she was still caught.

Cadence sucked a sharp breath of air through her teeth then turned to face Professor Lepek. His stern expression let her know he wasn't happy to see her as he had been many times before. "I've been trying to reach you but it seems I've never called at a good time or I was sent straight to your voicemail."

"Right." Cadence lowered her gaze. "I've been really, really busy. Some things had come up that I didn't anticipate and I've been dealing with that."

"Yes, well, I couldn't help but notice the increasing frequency of your disappearances when you are to be doing your rounds or other duties as assigned," Professor Lepek said. He looked at a chart in his hand. "As it happens, you missed a scheduled shift recently." Cadence winced, knowing it was during the soccer game when she gotten a phone call she ignored. But dealing with the meathumans—or Snart and Rory—was more important.

Or was it?

She had struggled a lot in terms of what held the most importance in her life. Dealing with the metahumans and her working life, when she was trying hard to be a good example not only to Brady, but to herself, was difficult. She knew from the beginning, before meeting Barry and the others that a career in the medical field was going to be hard and take up a lot of her time. But this was even harder than she thought.

"I know, I just—"

"-Was it an emergency?"

Did she think having two crazed people wielding an ice and cold gun and emergency? Yes, she did. But she couldn't say that. Instead, she lowered her head and chewed her lower lip. She looked up when Professor Lepek let out a long sigh. He gazed at her, hands clasped together in front of him.

"You have a lot of promise in the medical field, Cadence, and I had a great time working with you."

"Had?" Cadence repeated meekly.

"But as it is, not only have your shirked your duties but we have wasted a lot of man power to cover your missed shifts as well as you haven't given me a good reason as to why you should remain in this program. I'm sorry Cadence, but I have to ask you to leave."

Cadence's jaw dropped no matter how hard she tried to keep it closed. She knew it was coming due to the influx of messages she had received. She just hadn't expected it to hurt so much. Everything she worked hard for was ripped out from underneath her within a few moments. Cadence brought her hand to her stomach thinking Professor Lepek had actually punched her. The wind was certainly knocked out of her, she wasn't even sure she wasn't crying.

"I'm sorry."

Professor Lepek stepped around her and walked down the hallway without a backwards glance. It wasn't hard for him; she and the others in the residency program had been told there was usually about two or three people over the course of the program that didn't make it all the way. She didn't think it would be her.

A tear trickled out the corner of Cadence's eye and she hastily wiped it away as doctors and nurses continued to steam by. But others continued to fall before she could stop them. She wiped her eyes as quickly as she could, finally turning on her heel and walked back to where Brady was waiting for her. He looked up as she arrived, holding out her phone. "Roy keeps calling you," he said and then frowned as if deeply offended when he saw her face. "What's wrong? Mom, why are you crying?"

"It's nothing, bud, I'm okay." Cadence reached out and stroked his cheek before taking his phone. She sniffed loudly and glanced at the five missed calls. Must be serious. She nearly jumped as her phone started to ring again, showing Roy's name. Cadence brought the phone to her ear and tried to steady her voice. "Hey Roy, what's up? Did you need a break from Starling City?"

For a second Cadence was bombarded by the sound of sniffling and what sounded like static. She pulled her phone from her ear and glanced at the reception before putting the phone back to her ear. Then she heard Roy talking a mile a minute, his words blending together with his mumbling. Cadence frowned, Roy already had a deep voice but his mumbling was making it harder to figure out what he was trying to say. But something in Cadence's gut let her know something had happened.

Brady moved in front of her and waved a hand in her face, trying to know what was going on. Cadence brought her finger to her lips, telling him to wait. "Roy, what's wrong?"

"It's Oliver," Roy finally replied.

"What about Oliver?"

"He's dead."

"What?" Cadence tightened her grip on her phone. "What'd you—seriously, Roy?"

"He's dead," Roy repeated. "He went to go after Ra's al Ghul back in Lian Yu. He threatened to send the League of Assassins into Starling City if he didn't reveal who killed Sara and…and he went after him himself and he didn't make it…" Cadence opened her mouth to say something but found she was at a loss for words.

Oliver, dead?

Oliver Queen?

That was the guy she never thought would be taken down. He had gone through doing incredibly dumb things; racing cars, gambling, drinking, partying, cheating on his girlfriend—or girlfriends she wasn't sure—to turning around and being the staple of hope for the reduction of corruption that plagued Starling City. He had done so many things to save everyone on a near daily basis with a team that worked below his leadership…she, in a way, grew up with the guy as a constant fixture in her life. They weren't best friends by any means but they were friendly to each other when meeting up.

And now he was gone?

"I have to go," She finally said. "I'll call you later." She hung up and started to dial Barry's number.

Brady made an impatient sound and tugged at the bottom of her shirt. "What's going on?" he demanded. Cadence shushed him again. She listened as her phone rang and Barry finally picked up.

"Hey Cadence, what's up?" She could hear the smile in his voice and sighed, suddenly feeling warm. She was not ready for this. "Are you still there?"

"Yeah, I'm still here," Cadence finally said. She braced herself. "Hey, I've got some bad news from Starling City."

"What happened? Is everything okay?"

"Not really. Barry…Oliver's dead."

Barry stared at the blank wall of STAR Labs, dangerously close to falling out of his chair. How long had he been sitting there? He wasn't sure. How long had it been since Cadence told him what happened to Oliver? He wasn't sure of that either. Time seemed to have completely stopped as soon as the words came out of her mouth. As a matter of face, he was sure he dropped his phone to the ground. His hands had become clammy and a chill slid through his body.

Oliver was dead.

Oliver Queen was dead.

Dead and gone.

Just like his mother.

How many more people was he supposed to lose in his life? How many more people around him were going to be in the same sort of danger? He couldn't imagine anything happening to Joe or Iris that would destroy him. Not even Caitlin, Cisco, Dr. Wells, Cadence, or Brady….or Captain Singh or Eddie. Anything happening to any of them…the thought alone made him want to scream. Oliver was different; yes there were times he could be standoffish and cold. As a matter of fact when Barry first met him, he didn't understand why Oliver was so distant to him. Yes, he basically crashed Starling City under false pretenses but man the guy was cold. Oliver's jealous over Barry's connection with Felicity was clearly one of his issues, but hiding his identity as the vigilante was harder.

Then he knew who Oliver was and first went to him when he got his powers and Oliver quickly filled in the role of being his hands on mentor and a sort of big brother in terms of saving the city. Then he helped save Barry from Bivolo's whammy and stopped Digger Harkness and, and, and…

Oliver continued to do everything in his power to help Barry—even shoot some goddamn arrows in his back—and now it was all gone.

It hurt. His chest hurt. His head hurt. His heart hurt. Everything feeling, every emotion he thought he had compartmentalized after his mother's death came flying back full force. Sobs rose through him but he did his best to keep them at bay. Every time he opened his mouth to breath he could feel himself start to shake, feeling his throat thickening as the emotions threatened to spill out. Still, he forced it away. He couldn't do this. But he had to.

A tear finally made its way out of Barry's eye and he hastily wiped it away. He couldn't do this. Not right now. Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Barry looked up to find Cisco standing next to him before he moved to sit in the chair opposite him. "I'm sorry man," Cisco apologized. "He was a great friend to all of us, but I know you've known him longer than the rest of us." He looked over at Caitlin as she sat down on Barry's other side.

"Do you know what happened?" She asked gently, pressing her hand over his wrist.

"Something about the League of Assassins," Barry mumbled in reply. He looked over at Cadence, who sat nearby, Brady's head resting in her lap, absentmindedly stroking his hair. "I don't…I'm not sure I understand…"

"I don't get it either," Cadence said. "Roy said he was trying to stop the League of Assassins from infiltrating the city and he went to take on Ra's al Ghul."

Barry brought his hands up and covered his face. He knew about Ra's al Ghul and the League of Assassins, Oliver had explained it to him the last time they had all been in Starling City. He knew about Sara's death, that Thea was behind it because of Malcolm Merlyn, how much Sara meant to Oliver and her background with him and her sister Laurel, how dangerous the League of Assassins were, their modes of operation, and what it meant for Starling City. If Oliver went after him, that meant Starling City was in grave danger where Oliver knew he had no choice but to put his life on the line in the best way possible.

"Oh God," he murmured. Oliver, you did what you had to do. But why did you do it alone. I could've helped you. He pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes, sniffling loudly.

"I'm sorry, Barry," Caitlin whispered.

"Yeah," Cisco agreed. "Sorry, man."

"Sorry, Barry," Brady whispered.

Barry nodded, continuing to hold his head down. But his mind was whirling a mile a minute. There had to be something he could do. He couldn't just sit in Central City and be told Oliver was dead. No. He had to go see for himself. He had to find him. There was no way Oliver would give up that easily, no way he would be taken down. He had to still be alive. He knew it. Oliver was still alive.

"I have to find him," Barry declared. He stood up. "I need to find Oliver."

"Where are you going to go?" Caitlin asked. "Barry, you don't even know where to start looking."

"I'll start in Starling," Barry insisted.

"We don't even know if his body is going to be sent back or if there's even a body left," Cisco pointed out. "You could be running around and around with no ideas of where he could be."

"I'll take that chance." Barry started to pace back and forth.

"What about the League of Assassins?" Cadence pointed out. She grabbed his wrist as he moved by her, holding him still. Her skin burned into his and Barry looked at her. He could see the pain reflected in her eyes. A different kind of pain, there was something else bothering her. Something Oliver's death was overshadowing. "If they managed to kill Oliver, they may kill you too."

"I need to take that risk," Barry said. He placed his hand over hers. "I can't live with myself if I don't."

"Do you plan on doing the same for the Reverse Flash?" Harrison's voice grabbed Barry's attention and he turned around to see the man in the wheelchair sitting quietly behind him. He had been silent since he broke the news to everyone in STAR Labs. Barry wasn't entirely surprised. Harrison hadn't approved of the vigilante in the first place, only having turned around when Oliver helped Barry with Bivolo. "I'm sorry about what happened to Oliver, but you can't let that take away your focus at the moment. Not even Snart and Rory."

"…What?" The word escaped Barry's lips in a surprised whisper.

"I can't have you turn your attention to another city and the problems there when there is so much more at stake over here," Harrison continued. "The Reverse Flash…there's more to him than we've thought. You've already seen that the last time you fought against him. He's made quick work of you and Cadence. We need to focus on taking him down, on furthering yours, Cadence's, and Brady's powers. If there's going to be something to stop the Reverse Flash you're the key to it and we can't have your head somewhere else."

"Dr. Wells," Caitlin said slowly.

He held up his hand, keeping her from saying any more, eyes on Barry. Barry's mouth dropped open. Did he hear correctly? He was expected to give up on Oliver for….for something that was just as important? He had never been so conflicted in his entire life. Save his friend or save his city with his mother's memory and his father's future attached?

Barry turned back to his friends and they watched him, to see what he would say. He ran his hands over his face and into his hair, scrubbing his scalp. His head was telling him one thing but his heart was telling him another. Unfortunately he knew which one he had to listen to.

"Alright," he finally said. "I'll stay here."

Harrison nodded, crossing his arms. "Right now we have to work on your speed," Harrison said. "We need you to get faster. And there's only one way we can do that."

Cisco turned his gaze to Harrison. "We get to use the drones?"

"Yes, Cisco," Harrison said with a smile. "We get to use the drones."

A/N: Well, now we get an idea of what Barry's feeling with the news of Oliver's death. I was hoping we'd get something like this for the show but since we didn't, I put it here. Coupled with Cade's being kicked out of residency it's not a good time for Team Flash. Especially with the Reverse Flash and Snart and Mick around.

But don't worry; I have some lighthearted moments coming in as well. I am working on bringing in Iris and Eddie more, as well as a surprise character to be thrown in the mix at some point. As well as I have to show more of Cade's family and her time back in Metropolis.

What'd you guys think of the chapter? And is there any characters you'd want to see a bit more of?

Cheers,

-Riles