Disclaimer: Arrow is owned by The CW, Berlanti Productions, and Warner Bros. Television. The characters of the Green Arrow and the Justice League is owned by DC Comics. I own nothing; I'm just playing in their universe.
Chapter 34: State v. Queen
The new memory set loaded, and Mia chuckled. "Oh, this will be a fun one." She said dryly, glancing over at Malcolm and her mother. "Trial of the century, coming up!"
6 MONTHS AGO
Moira stood in the parlor of Queen Manor, giving the press conference that would put her in prison.
"My name is Moira Dearden Queen. I am the acting CEO of Queen Consolidated. And, God forgive me, I have failed this city." She said to the cameras and reporters amassed in the room. "I have been complicit in an undertaking with one horrible purpose- to destroy the Glades and everyone in it." Shocked gasps ran through the crowd as Thea continued to watch on in horror.
At Iron Heights, a guard in the control room watched the newscast in stunned silence. 'If you reside in the Glades, please, you need to get out now. Your lives and the lives of your children depend on it. Please.'
Another guard walked into the room. "Warden says we got to evacuate." He told his partner, opening the weapon's cabinet and withdrawing all the shotguns. "Help me get these out of here."
"What about the inmates?" the first guard asked, taking several of the guns.
"Leave 'em." The second man said coldly, and the two guards ran out of the prison.
"Well, at least they took the guns out. So when the prisoners run wild they can't shoot anybody." Laurel said in annoyance.
In the cell block, The Count lay on his cot, reading a book. He had recovered several weeks ago from his Vertigo overdose and had been moved to the high security block at Iron Heights. As he lay there, he thought he felt something but looking around he saw nothing. A few moments later, he noticed the light in his cell was swaying slightly.
Then the shaking really started.
The Count was thrown from his bed, and he rapidly scurried under it to avoid the shower of concrete and steel. By the time it was finished and he climbed out from under his bed, he was happily surprised to see his cell door was ajar. He squeezed through it, and saw something else that made him smile- the guard of the block, dead. He reached down and plucked the keys off of his belt, then started moving down the hall, waving the keys at all of the other prisoners still locked in their cells.
"Damn, he survived." Quentin said, shaking his head.
"Over here, let me out!" one yelled.
"Give me the keys!" another shouted, making a grab for the keys.
"No, no, too violent." The Count said as he moved down the cells. "Too sloppy, too stupid. Too ambitious." He paused in front of a cell and smiled wide. "You. I love your work." He handed the keys to the prisoner. "Big future." He predicted.
"Hey, be careful." Barton Mathis warned. "There's liable to be aftershocks."
Quentin seethed. That son of a bitch had let Mathis out! "I'm putting a bullet in him." He vowed.
"Dad!" Laurel said sharply. She wasn't any happier, but she wouldn't go around vowing to kill anybody.
"Oh, I'm counting on it." The Count said happily. He ran down the hall and up a set of stairs, pausing to smile at the large hole in the wall- and the visage of a flaming Starling City beyond it. Without a care, he walked out of the prison as sirens blared and concrete rained around him.
TODAY
Dig opened the door of the Mercedes, allowing Oliver to climb out in front of the courthouse. Thea followed right behind, and the trio made their way towards the entrance, pushing past the reporters as they shouted questions at them.
"Mr. Queen, what are your mother's chances?" one asked.
"Is she on suicide watch?" shouted another.
"Mr. Queen, can you give us any comment?" shouted yet another.
"It's not fair." Laurel remarked to Adam Donner as they watched the trio approach from the top of the stairs. "They're not the ones on trial."
"That won't stop Jean Loring from using them as props to drum up sympathy." Donner pointed out crassly.
"You don't seem overly concerned." Laurel noted.
Donner smirked. "She confessed to being an accomplice on live television."
"She also said that Malcolm Merlyn coerced her." Laurel looked at Donner, who was smiling. "You have something, don't you?" she said. "I thought I was your co-counsel, Adam. If you're holding a trump card, don't you think maybe you should share it with me?"
"He knows that Malcolm and I were briefly involved." Moira said with a sigh.
"And he'll probably use our working relationship to expound on that." Malcom said.
"It's going to be a good trial." Donner said confidently. "Come on, let's get inside." Donner moved to the door. Laurel turned to follow, but paused as she saw Oliver walk up the steps. Oliver looked over at her, his expression closed off.
FIVE YEARS AGO
Oliver looked at the plane, his expression closed off. His hands were bound in front of him and he was being led by a large group of men, along with Ivo, Sara, and the Pirate captain. "You don't have to do this." He pleaded wearily.
"Ivo says we do." Sara replied. "Your friends are a danger to his men."
Sara sighed. This wasn't exactly her finest hour.
"Go." The captain ordered his men. "Quick and quiet."
Oliver was having none of that. "Slade! Shado! Run!" he yelled. For his effort, he got a punch in the jaw that sent him to the ground. The pirates opened up on the plane, spraying bullets into the fuselage. After a few seconds they stopped. One of the men approached the fuselage and looked inside.
"There's no one here." He called out.
"They must have moved on from their position." Ivo deduced. He pulled a black device out of his pocket. On it was a digital clock that read 4:30. "Charges are placed. Here's the detonator." He handed it to the pirate. "Make sure they have no place to return to. Go." The man ran back to the plane and threw the device into the fuselage.
"And you." Ivo snarled at Oliver. "Now you're going to take us to the graves." He looked to the captain. "Let's go. Get him up." The black man hauled Oliver to his feet. "Let's get clear." The group walked off into the jungle.
In the fuselage, Shado quickly got out of their hiding place. She found the detonator and disarmed it with only seconds to spare.
"Huh." Sara said, surprised. "I thought they'd move to another location."
"Did you find the detonator?" Slade said, pulling himself out.
"Yes." She tossed the deactivated device down on the table. "We were lucky." She said.
"I was lucky. You were good." Slade replied, sitting down on a crate.
"Either way- they have Oliver." She said, gathering up her bow, quiver and hood. "I'm going after him."
"Not alone." Slade said.
"You can barely walk." Shado told the man.
"All the more reason not to stay here." Slade countered. "Give them another chance at blowing me up." He limped out of the plane, leaving Shado to follow.
PRESENT
"Are you two ok?" Diggle asked Oliver, his voice raspy.
"I should be asking you that question." Oliver replied, noting how much the man was sweating.
"I'll be fine." Diggle protested.
"You look like you have the flu." Oliver said as he and Thea followed the man up the stairs as reporters continued to swarm around them.
"If that's true, I shouldn't have wasted my time getting vaccinated." Dig replied.
"Most times when I get vaccinated, I end up getting the flu, like, the next day." Thea said.
Felicity shuddered. "I hate flu shots."
"You hate needles." Sara countered with a grin. Felicity nodded in agreement.
"Diggle, whatever it is, just go home." Oliver told his friend.
"Oliver, listen, I can take care of things." Dig argued.
"No, we'll be fine, all right? Go rest." He told Dig. "And don't make me call a cop. There are a few of them around here." Oliver threatened.
Diggle looked on in confusion. "Man, I NEVER get the flu." He said.
A short time later, Moira Queen was led into the courtroom and escorted over to the defendants table. She looked at the front row that contained Oliver, Thea and Roy- in a suit, no less- and allowed the officer to remove the cuffs. Donner smirked at the display as Moira sat down and turned to face her family, smiling reassuringly before the trial began.
"I forgot how good you looked in a suit." Mia commented.
"Yeah, I make that look good." He said.
"Not that good." Thea argued with a smirk.
'-have been complicit in an undertaking with one horrible purpose- to destroy the Glades and everyone in it.' Donner stood next to the flat screen TV as Moira's televised confession played. He paused the playback and turned to the jury. "And it worked." He began. "The Glades were destroyed. Homes and lives were lost. All because of her actions. True, she had second thoughts; Remorse which compelled her to deliver this statement." He offered, then turned to face Moira. "But on behalf of the 503 lives that were extinguished that day, I say, Moira Queen, your remorse comes too late." He said dramatically.
Quentin rolled his eyes. "Who does he think he is, Perry Mason?"
Thea looked at the cop, confused. "Who's Perry Mason?"
Quentin sighed. "God, I feel old." he lamented as Moira gave him a friendly pat on the knee.
'For the last five years, under the threat for my life and the lives of my family—' "Why wouldn't those threats silence her?" Jean asked as she paused the playback. "Why wouldn't Moira Queen be terrified? Malcolm Merlyn killed her first husband, abducted her second." She pointed out. "Why wouldn't she be in fear for her life? For the lives of her children? What would you do? If it were your children in the crosshairs of a mad man's rage?" she asked the jury.
Thea glanced over at Malcolm who was watching the statements with a calculating look.
The scene changed to Queen Consolidated. Felicity was watching the news broadcast as she worked to cover for Oliver. '-S.T.A.R. Lab's particle accelerator will be turned on right on schedule.' The news broadcast was saying.
"You get the feeling something's going to happen with that particle accelerator?" Tommy asked.
Mia and Roy exchanged an amused look.
'In other news, we have just received word that both sides have now completed their opening statements in the Moira Queen trial.' She looked up to see Diggle practically stagger into the office. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you look disgusting." She said worriedly.
"Yeah, why would I take that the wrong way?" Dig teased. He shook his head. "Seriously, I NEVER get sick."
"Yeah, well, I don't feel great, Felicity." Dig said, walking to her desk and picking up some documents. He paused and looked at her. "Is there a right way to take that?"
"You should go home." She said as she rose from her seat.
"I am going." Dig said, loosening his tie. "I just need to make arrangements for a replacement bodyguard."
"Did you get the flu shot?" she asked as she walked past an into Oliver's office. "Personally, I never do. I know that I should. I just, I have this thing about needles." She continued, setting the papers down on his desk. "All pointy things, really. Which is ironic, considering who we work with." She finished, coming back into the lobby.
Felicity snorted in amusement as Sara grinned at her.
"Yeah, it's not the flu, Felicity, it's more like…" he trailed off as he collapsed; Felicity tried to catch him, but was only successful in guiding him to the floor on his back instead of his face.
"Dig!" she yelled as he gasped on the floor.
The scene changed to an empty warehouse. A well-dressed man entered the building and looked around. "Hello?" he called out. "Are you here?"
"Here, there- everywhere." The Count said, coming into view. He held up a silver briefcase. "So. How goes our little science project?" he asked.
"Working like you said it would." The man replied, eyeing the briefcase.
"How wonderful." The Count said.
"Ah, so listen." The man said after a moment. "Doing the thing was $50,000. Keeping quiet about it, I'm thinking it should be 50 more." He said greedily.
"Well, he's dead." Quentin said dryly.
The Count smiled at him. "Hmm." He said thoughtfully. "Oh, I want word to spread." He said, setting the case down on the ground. He started circling the greedy man. "It's kind of the whole objective, actually. You see my point?" standing behind him, he withdrew his trademark double syringe and stuck it into the mans' arm, injecting him with a lethal dose of Vertigo. "You should know, I find post hoc negotiation distasteful." He remarked. The man gasped in pain, then dropped to the ground, dead.
"A blind man could have seen that coming." Tommy noted.
"Ahh. Such a shame you won't get to see what your works have wrought, doctor." The Count said, kneeling besides the corpse. "But soon, everyone else will. And they'll beg for it to end."
The scene changed to the Lair. Diggle was on the exam table, writhing in pain when Oliver walked in.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Diggle gasped from the bed.
"I heard you passed out." Oliver replied.
"I told Felicity not to call you." Dig argued.
"Yeah, but before that, you said 'gaw' and 'thud,' so I didn't take it very seriously." Felicity said as she leaned over him.
Thea and Tommy snickered.
"She was right to call me." Oliver said. "Diggle, you need medical attention."
"He needs more than that." Felicity said. "When Dig passed out, I sent a sample of his blood to a chemist I know at QC. The guy owes me a favor. Long story, I fixed his parking ticket." She paused. "Huh. I guess it's not that long."
Quentin looked at Felicity with a raised eyebrow. "I'm too amused to be upset by that."
"You know, I've got a few tickets…" Tommy started.
"But I would be upset about that." Quentin added. Felicity just shrugged her shoulders at Tommy.
"Felicity." Oliver said, bringing her back on track.
"The blood sample. It came back positive- for trace amounts of Vertigo."
"I never used Vertigo before in my life." Dig said defensively.
"You were exposed to it somehow." Felicity told the bodyguard.
"Vertigo's in play again?" Oliver said with dread.
"When the Count recovered from his OD on Vertigo, he was sent to Iron Heights." Felicity explained. "That got hit in the quake." Felicity moved over to her computer and started typing.
"He got out the same way the Doll Maker did?" Oliver guessed.
She sighed as she pulled up the sealed and confidential report from Iron Heights. "And just like with the Doll Maker, prison officials worked overtime to keep the lid on the escape." She informed him.
"Our tax dollars at work." Tommy said darkly.
Oliver growled and walked over to the weapons case and withdrew an arrow.
"I know what you're thinking." Felicity started.
"No, you don't." Oliver cut her off. "I made a choice not to put an arrow in this guy. And it was the right choice." He said. "There's no more killing." He handed her the arrow- it was an injection arrow filled with a green liquid. "I worked this up to counteract the effects of Vertigo. Give it to Diggle." He looked at his watch and sighed in frustration. "I… I need to get back to court. While I'm gone, just work up whatever you can and figure out how Diggle got Vertigo in his system without his knowledge." He ordered.
"Ok." She said. "Go."
Tommy smiled at his friend, glad to know that he was still honoring his vow.
The scene changed to the courthouse. Oliver was back in the visitors' gallery, watching as his sister gave her testimony to Adam Donner.
"When was the first time you heard about this so-called Undertaking?" Donner asked Thea.
She leaned in close to the microphone. "When everyone else did, when my mother gave the press conference." She replied nervously.
"Doesn't seem like you took it too well." Donner noted.
"I was surprised." Thea replied. "Who wouldn't be?" she looked at him, expecting his next question right away. Instead Donner looked-flustered.
Donner cleared his throat. "Uh, your mother was, um, immediately taken into custody, but I assume you went down to the precinct to see her?" he asked, hesitantly at first then building up strength.
"Um, actually I didn't see her until she was moved." Thea admitted.
"To the prison." Donner clarified. "Do you remember when you visited her?" he asked.
"Uh, not the exact date." She hedged.
"It's ok, I have the visitor log here." Donner picked the log up from his table and looked at the marked page. "October ninth." He said loudly. "Five months later." Donner set the book back down on the table, but suddenly his strength wavered. He leaned heavily against the table. "Why so long?" he asked in a halting voice.
Thea's anger at the prosecutor abated as she observed how he was behaving. "What's wrong with him?" she wondered.
"Um, I—I…" Thea looked at the D.A., concerned despite what he was doing. "Are you ok?" she asked as murmurs started from the visitors.
"An answer, please." Donner said loudly, forcing himself back up and turning to face Thea. "Why did it take you five months to visit your mother?" he asked forcefully.
"Your Honor, if I—" Jean started to object.
The judge held up his hand to stop her. "No. I want to hear this." He said.
"I needed time." Thea finally said. "I was angry."
"So angry, perhaps, that it took you five months to forgive her?" Donner supposed.
"It was complicated." Thea argued.
"No. It's very simple." Donner countered. "You blamed your mother for what she had done." He looked to the jury. "So why shouldn't the jury?" Donner moved back to his table. "Your Honor, we have no further questions for the…witness." Suddenly, Donner leaned heavily against the table as the world around him started going in and out of focus. Laurel looked up at him in concern. Then he dropped to the floor and started convulsing.
"Adam!" Laurel shouted, jumping up from her chair as worried murmurs started growing louder in the audience. Oliver jumped up to check on him, concerned as well- it was the same thing that Felicity had said happened to Diggle only a short time before .
"He got dosed with Vertigo!" Thea realized.
"To a nicer guy, it couldn't have happened." Tommy noted.
"Why is this trial happening in Starling City?" Laurel asked suddenly. "Why didn't Jean file a change of venue?"
"What"? Moira asked, startled.
"The Undertaking happened about twenty blocks from the courthouse." Laurel said. "Even if you were convicted, any higher appellate court would overturn the conviction because there was no possible way you could have an impartial jury." Her brow furrowed in confusion. "It's like this trial was set up to fail."
A small smirk appeared on Malcolm's face as he considered teh implications of that statement.
FIVE YEARS AGO
Oliver led the small party into the cave, and Ivo immediately dropped to the ground and started looking through the skeletons of the soldiers.
"Where is it?" he demanded to no one as he searched the skeletons. "Come on, where is it?!" Ivo rounded on Oliver. "The Hosen, where is it?" he demanded.
"What?" Oliver asked in confusion.
"The arrowhead." He explained hotly. "Every report said it was with these bodies. You said you and your friends were here. Now, where is it?" Oliver said nothing. "Take him outside." He told the captain. "Make him show you where his friends are hiding."
"He already did, and you tried to blow it up." Felicity noted.
"And if he had, he would have destroyed the Hosen as well." Thea realized.
The captain dragged Oliver outside the cave and threw him a good five feet to the ground, where he landed hard. "Take us to them." The Captain demanded.
"I don't know where they are!" Oliver argued.
The captain growled and withdrew his Luger, pressing it to Oliver's hand. "Tell me, or you lose your hand."
"Let us suggest another option." Everyone looked up to see Shado and Slade standing there. Shado had her bow primed and aimed right at the captain, while Slade trained his MP5 on the others.
"You hand the kid over to us, and we don't kill you all." Slade threatened. A moment later Ivo exited the cave, and Slade moved his submachine gun onto him.
Slade shook his head. "I should have just shot them all." he growled.
"Believe it or not, agree with you." Sara said.
Slade shot her a sour glance. "I was talking about you as well."
"I know."
PRESENT
Donner was being wheeled out of the courtroom on a gurney. He was confused and fiddling with his I.V. line as the paramedic tried to keep him still as they made their way to the ambulance.
Oliver watched him go, and then moved over to his sister. "Hey, are you ok?" he asked her.
"Don't worry about me. I can take it." She said with false confidence.
Out in the ambulance, the D.A. was loaded and the doors were closed. Up in the driver's seat, The Count looked back at the confused attorney, before driving off with a grin.
"And strangely, I can't bring myself to care." Thea said crossly.
Back in the courthouse, Moira followed Jean into a side chamber to confer.
"Was that as bad as it seemed?" Moira asked.
"Thea's testimony?" Jean asked to clarify. She nodded. "It was a set-back. We were counting on her to-"
"Humanize me."
Jean looked back at Moira. "Frankly, yes." She admitted. "And now we're going to have to go another way."
"No." Moira said at once. "No, I told you, I won't testify."
"I know you did." Jean said. "But now you have to."
"She's right, Mom." They looked up to see Oliver standing in the door. "Jean, can you give us a minute?" he asked.
"Yeah." She agreed, walking out of the room.
"I know what you're going to say." Moira said. "But if I testify, it will destroy our family."
"And if your lawyer's right, you don't have a choice." Oliver countered. "Mom, secrets are what put you in this situation. Secrets and lies." He sighed. "And now it is time to give the truth its day."
Mia chuckled at that.
The scene changed to the Lair. Dig was seated on the exam table, still shaking from Vertigo withdrawal as the news played on Felicity's computer.
'Now, I don't want us to lose sight of the other major event in court today.' The anchor was saying. 'Was there any indication of Adam Donner being ill?'
'No, there was very little warning before Mr. Donner collapsed to the ground.' The correspondent replied. 'I've spoken to several people that were in the courtroom with me…'
"How are you feeling?" Oliver asked as he walked in.
"Fine." Diggle lied.
"You have a lousy poker face, Diggle." Oliver said with a grin." He looked over to Felicity. "Did he take the antidote?" he asked.
"Didn't work." She said. "The Count must have futzed with his recipe."
"Those magic herbs of his didn't work?" Felicity said in surprise. "That can't be good."
"Heard what happened with Donner at the court, and with Thea." Dig said. "How is she?"
"Going to be fine." Oliver lied.
"Your poker face isn't much better than mine, Oliver." He said with a chuckle.
Suddenly the news feed faded to static, and a new signal started to air. On the screen was The Count.
'Hello, Starling City.' He said.
"Felicity!" Oliver said, getting the blonde's attention back on the screen. She started hacking at once.
'Miss me?' The Count continued. 'Many of you have noticed that you're not feeling quite like yourselves…'
"He's taken over all the local station feeds." Felicity told Oliver.
"Track his signal." He ordered.
'Like our good assistant district attorney here.' The Count continued. 'You might recognize him from his work in the ongoing Moira Queen trial.' The camera shifted from The Count onto Adam Donner, who was bound to a chair. 'Hi, Adam.' He said happily.
'What do you want?' Donner demanded.
'I want what you want.' The Count said. 'For you to feel better.'
'Go to hell!' he snarled through the pain of the withdrawal.
'I do think you want the pain to end, and I can do that- with Vertigo.' He revealed. 'It's what all of your bodies crave. Fortunately, the power of relief is right here." He pulled out his double syringe. 'And all you have to do is go to your friendly neighborhood Vertigo dealer and request the cure. Simple supply and demand at work.' He knelt besides Donner, putting himself in the same shot as the lawyer. 'Now, tell me you want this and it's yours. All the pain will just…disappear.' He said tantalizingly. Donner looked longingly at the syringe. 'Say it. Say…you want it.'
'I-I-want-I want it.' After only a moment. The Count injected him, and immediately Donner's body went lax, the pain receding.
Thea winced. "Alright, I don't like the guy, but this…"
"Is sick." Laurel finished.
'You see- a simple solution.' The Count continued, showing the relaxed Donner before putting the camera directly on himself. 'I'm Count Vertigo, and I approve this high.' The signal cut out.
"What do we do now?" Felicity asked.
"We find him- and we shut him down." Oliver said firmly. "Where did he broadcast from?" he asked her.
"He bounced the signal off of S.T.A.R. Lab's satellite." She replied. "He could have sent that transmission from Markovia."
Oliver shook his head. "He would want to stay local. Scrub the footage, frame by frame if you have to." He ordered. "There's something on here that gives us a clue to where he is."
"If he dosed the whole city, why are only some people showing symptoms?" Diggle asked.
"Maybe exposure was selective." Oliver guessed. "The Count contaminated something that only certain people, like you and Donner, consumed."
'A most dramatic turn.' The news anchor was saying. 'City officials are urging calm, hoping to avoid widespread panic. Deputy Mayor Levitz has…'
At the District Attorney's office, District Attorney Kate Spencer was watching the news with Sebastian Blood and Laurel.
"The Count has turned Starling into a city of junkies." Blood said, pacing the room. "Any leads on where he's holding ADA Donner?"
"Hmm, no. As cold as it sounds, I've got other concerns." Spencer said. She looked to the younger lawyer. "Laurel?"
"Adam's trial notes are very thorough." She told her boss.
"They better be." Spencer said. "You're lead counsel now."
Laurel looked up, alarmed. "Ms. Spencer, you're the district attorney." She pointed out.
"Yes, but you're the one that the jury knows." She countered. "You'll do fine, Laurel." She assured her, mistaking one concern for another.
Thea shot Laurel a look. "And now you're prosecuting my mother." She said sourly. "Wonderful."
"And a conflict of interest." Laurel countered. "It was bad enough I was second seat, but a good defense could destroy any work I do on appeal, even if I do nothing wrong. They would probably paint me as a scorned woman looking for payback on an ex-lover by throwing his mother int prison." She shook her head. "I'm missing something…"
Mia glanced over at her father, then rolled her eyes when she saw the smirk on his face.
"I know." She said, looking at the file. "I just found Adam's trump card."
The scene changed to Verdant. Thea was sitting at the bar of the closed club, lost in thought when Roy walked up to her. She started slightly.
"Sorry, I didn't hear you walk up." She muttered softly. "I just want to be left alone."
"Well, too bad that's not an option for you." Roy said. "But maybe I know something that is." He dropped a pair of red boxing gloves onto the bar top that Thea looked at incredulously. "Hit me."
"An idea you'll come to regret in later years." Mia noted wryly.
"What?"
Roy looked at his girlfriend. "You wonder why I used to go out at night looking to throw down with bad guys." He started. "Part of it was to help the city. And the other part was to help me."
"Getting tuned up by street thugs helped you?" she asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, well, I gave as good as I got." Roy replied, strapping her hands into the gloves. "There we go." He said as he finished. "When I would throw a punch, I'd be so angry. I'd feel this heat rising inside of me, in my jaw. In my chest. And my fists. But it needed somewhere to go. Come on." He tugged her out onto the empty dance floor. "Thea, you're angry. At your mother, the D.A., yourself, maybe." He explained. "But that anger is going to chew up your insides if you don't let it out."
"I'm not going to hit you, Roy." Thea protested.
"Try." Roy dared. "Try!" he said again, an edge to his voice. Thea took a lackadaisical swing, hitting him softly in the arm. "I said hit me, right?" he mocked. "'Cause that felt like- that didn't really feel like anything." She hit him again, this time putting more effort into it. "Better." He said. "But keep your wrists straight. Don't just use your arm. Put your entire body into it." She hit him again. "Come on, again." He stood there as she started throwing hard punches, one after the other. With each punch, the careful control of her emotions began to slip until finally she collapsed into Roy's arms, crying.
Thea wrapped her arms tightly around herself, hating to see her control slip like that. Moira pulled her in close and kissed the top of her head. "It's alright to let go every now and then." She whispered to her daughter, her mind drifting back to Thea's meltdown in her room. Moira looked over at Roy and mouthed 'Thank you'.
Roy nodded in return.
The scene shifted downstairs to the lab, where Felicity was hard at work analyzing the video. Oliver paced, casting worried looks at Diggle.
"At least let me call Lyla." He offered.
"All she could do is worry about me." Diggle rightly pointed out.
"I found something." Felicity finally said.
Oliver squinted at the screen. "I don't see anything." He said.
"Because you have to see what Donner does." She enhanced Donner's eye.
"His eye caught a reflection." Oliver realized. "Can you enhance?"
Felicity made a dismissive sound. "Please."
"It hurts me that you feel a need to ask." She said, enhancing the image. A symbol appeared in the enlarged eye.
"What are those, wings?" Dig asked.
"It's the city seal." Felicity stated. "Starling Municipal Records Department. That building's been abandoned since the city went to digital." She looked back at Oliver. "Dollars to donuts, that's where is operating out of."
"We bow to your magnificence." Tommy told Felicity with a laugh.
"Not for long." He said, going for his costume.
The scene changed to iron Heights. Moira was led into the visitor's area, but stopped cold when she saw Laurel standing there.
"You shouldn't be here." Moira told her coldly. "My attorney needs—"
"Moira." Laurel cut her off. "I know I could be disbarred for speaking with you, but this isn't something for lawyers. This is a family matter." She said significantly.
Moira reluctantly came to the table, and the two women sat. "Jean told me she's calling you to the stand tomorrow." Laurel began.
"Yes." Moira replied tersely.
"You can't testify." Laurel stated bluntly.
Moira sat back. "Well. The fact that you don't want me to, Laurel, is a good indication that I should."
"If you take the stand, I'll have to cross examine you, and I'll have to do it to the best of my ability." Laurel continued.
"Yes, I understand." Moira said off-handedly.
"No, I don't think you do." Laurel opened her folder, then turned it and slid it to Moira so she could read what was inside- Donner's trump card. "Forget about what this will do to Oliver and Thea. It also could undermine your entire case. So, Moira, please." She placed her hands on Moira's. "Please. Don't make me use this." She begged. "Everything is at stake for you. And I don't want to be the one to take it all away."
Moira pulled her hands away, a look of dread on her face.
"Donner found out about Thea." Laurel said suddenly.
"It would appear so." Moira said tiredly.
"No, everything had been moving to this- reveal in court, on the record, that Thea is the child of you and Malcolm-" Laurel's face paled and she looked to the man himself. "-Merlyn. It's you." She realized. "You're orchestrating this entire trial."
"Obviously, I don't know if that's true." Malcolm said. "But I have a suspicion that it is." He looked to Mia. "Are we right?"
Mia smiled slightly, but said nothing.
The scene changed to the Municipal Record's department. Vertigo production as in full swing, and The Count urged his people on.
"Faster, please." He called out as he walked briskly through the production room. "Faster! We have a city full of customers. And I mean this literally." He looked up at the platform at the end of the room that Donner was seated on, still bound to his chair. "I'm afraid my production apparatus is a little over-taxed with the increased demand." He continued. "I can live with it, though. I can't say the city can."
Suddenly The Arrow dropped down next to Donner. He pulled a flechette from his wrist gauntlet and cut the lawyer's bindings. "Go." He told the man, who took off.
On the floor, The Count stared up at his nemesis "Be still, my heart."
A goon ran up to the platform, but Oliver easily sent him over the edge and through a pallets of drugs. He dropped down to the floor and drew on The Count, who was hiding behind some of his workers. In front of him, two more goons flipped a table and took cover behind hit, training their guns on the vigilante.
"Step away from them." The Arrow ordered.
"Yes, I've heard you've developed an allergy to killing." The Count said mildly.
"Do it!"
"Or what?" he asked. "You'll kill me?" the Count stepped out from behind the two workers and hopped up on a crate, making himself an un-missable target. Still, The Arrow held his fire. A sound of a person struggling caused him to look behind, where Donner had got himself captured. Snarling in aggravation, Oliver shot at a small gas tank, causing it to explode. He then spun and sent a flechette into the goon's hand that held Donner causing him to release his hostage. Oliver stalked over and quickly beat the guy down before grabbing Donner and leading him out of the building.
Quentin shook his head in disappointment. "Alright, I don't want the scumbag killed. But he could have taken him down if Donner had actually managed to escape."
"He is rather useless, isn't he?" Dig noted.
"You're really on the no killing wagon?" The Count called out, taunting the vigilante as the flames started to rise. "Shame. Really letting one of life's true pleasures pass you by."
Slade shook his head. "He just made a mistake. Never show your enemy weakness."
"Not killing isn't a weakness." Felicity argued.
"It is if your enemy believes it is." Slade replied.
The scene changed to the courthouse the next day. Moira, Oliver, Thea and Jan were in chambers, where Moira was about to reveal part of a devastating truth.
"But you said you didn't want to testify." Thea said after her mother told them she was taking the stand. She sighed "But you have to. Because of me.' She dropped into her chair, dejected.
Moira shook her head. "No."
"You have to do damage control." Thea continued.
"None of this is your fault." She said to Thea sternly. "We're here because of what I did." She sighed. "Now, you both know the truth, but you don't know all of it. Laurel does."
"What does she have?" Oliver demanded, tired of the secrets.
"You shouldn't have to find this out in court." Moira said after a moment.
"Find out what?" Thea asked.
Moira paused again, summoning the courage to speak. "Years ago- it was many yes ago, your father was engaging in his- his extramarital activities." She said delicately. "And I had a moment of weakness. I cheated on him." She paused. "With Malcolm Merlyn."
Oliver looked slightly disgusted. Thea shook her head in denial. "No." she said. "No, I- I asked you about this. Last year. You said that there was nothing between you two!" she exclaimed.
"There wasn't." Moira said at once. "Sweetheart, it wasn't an affair. It was very brief, and a long time ago."
"It truly was brief, Thea." Malcolm said suddenly. "One night, before the guilt drove ME away."
The scene changed to the courtroom, where Laurel had just revealed the same thing to the jury. "And despite it, you remained friends with Mr. Merlyn." she said as she cross-examined Moira. "In fact, he frequently attended parties at your home."
"He was my husband's best friend until Malcolm killed him." Moira pointed out.
"And this is why you claimed to feel as though you were in fear for your life and the lives of your children?" Laurel asked.
"Well, I think it's a fairly compelling reason." Moira said defensively.
"Last year, your second husband, Walter Steel, was abducted by Mr. Merlyn, is that correct?" Laurel asked.
"Yes. So you see—"
"Why didn't Merlyn kill Walter, the same as your first husband?" Laurel asked at once.
Moira sighed. "I convinced Malcolm not to." She admitted.
"And Malcolm listened to you." Laurel pointed out for the jury. "Your friend spared Walter's life, and yet, you'd have this jury believing that you and your children were in danger?" she asked, her voice full of incredulity.
"We were." Moira said, again on the defensive. "I was afraid—"
"Afraid of getting caught." Laurel said, cutting her off.
"Despite whatever youthful mistakes I might have made, Malcolm Merlyn was a dangerous man." Moira tried.
"To other people." Laurel stated. "But the only person who truly posed a danger to Moira Queen and her family was Moira Queen."
"You didn't reveal it." Malcolm said; a tone of respect in his voice as he looked at Laurel. "You revealed the affair, but nothing else. Well done."
"There's no reason to destroy an innocent girl." Laurel said.
Later on, Oliver and Thea sat outside while the court was in recess. Oliver got up and started to pace, stopping when he saw Laurel emerge. The lawyer froze, then immediately turned and started walking the opposite way. Concerned, Oliver walked around, meeting her before she reached the stairs.
"Hey." He said.
"Ok, if you want to attack me, go right ahead." Laurel said in a rush. "But you should know that you're not going to say anything that I haven't already said to myself."
"Whoa." Oliver said, cutting her rant short. "I know that that was difficult for you, and I just want to make sure that you're ok." He reached out to her, but she jumped back as if hit.
"No, no. I don't understand how you can forgive me after what I just did in there." She said, confused. "I don't understand how anyone could." She walked rapidly away, leaving Oliver standing alone.
Laurel sighed. "Well, guess who's getting blitzed." She said tiredly.
FIVE YEARS AGO
Ivo looked at the new arrivals in frustration. "So, obviously you three took the Hosen out of this cave." He deduced. He looked to the captain. "Lift him up." He ordered. The pirate did so. "Now I know he doesn't have it, which means one of you two does. Give it to me, and we'll discuss an exchange." He offered.
"We don't know what you're talking about." Shado said. "Give us Oliver, and we'll leave you alone to look for it."
One of the pirates went to make a move, only to be shot in the foot by Slade "Anybody else want to be stupid?" he asked as the pirate cried out in pain.
"Hey. Hey!" Ivo shouted. He huffed in annoyance. "Fine. Take 'em. Cut him loose." He said to the captain. The black man pulled out a knife and cut his bonds, and Oliver stood there for a moment, rubbing his wrists.
Then he belted the captain hard in the jaw, sending him to the ground. As the pirates started to react, Oliver grabbed Sara's hand and pulled her along with him as he began to run.
"HA!" Tommy said, pumping his fist in the air. "Nice shot!"
"What are you doing?!" she asked in confusion as they ran, Slade laying down covering fire.
"We have to keep moving, they're following us!" Oliver yelled as the four castaways ran out of the thick jungle into a small clearing. As they crossed it, Shado took out the detonator and re-activated it.
"Not for long." she said, tossing it on the ground as she ran. A few moments later the Captain and one of his men ran into the clearing- just as the detonator exploded, sending both men flying.
Slade laughed. "That's my girl!"
"You're pretty spy yourself for a half-burned guy." Tommy noted.
"That was discipline. And necessity." Slade replied.
PRESENT
The scene changed back to the Foundry. Felicity was still trying to find a pattern for The Count's victims as Diggle watched the news.
'Obviously we're continuing to monitor both of these major stories in what has become a significant news day here in Starling. What can you tell us about…'
"Oliver's going to be pretty wrapped up with his mother." Dig noted. "You making any process on how The Count's getting Vertigo into people's systems?"
"Not much." She admitted, pulling up a map of the city marked with Vertigo victims. "Each dot is the home of somebody with withdrawal symptoms."
"That seems pretty random." Diggle said sourly.
"That's because it's very random." She replied.
Dig sighed. "Ok. What if people weren't exposed at home; what if they got dosed at work?" he supposed. "Can you do this by their employment addresses?"
Felicity gave him a look before she started rapidly typing. "I'm really starting to wonder what it would take to impress you guys." She finished and the dots on the map reformed "It's a trail." She said in surprise. "A path through the city. Any place you've been?" she asked,
Dig pointed to a dot on the map. "59th and Dale. I got my flu shot."
"You got your vaccination from one of those trucks, right? One of those roving flu trucks?" she realized. She pulled up the information about the Flu vaccine trucks. "The route." She said. "It's a flu vaccination tour. A truck sent out by Starling City Mobile Care."
"That's rather clever." Slade noted. "It's surprising that no one else has tried something like that before."
"I got addicted after one injection?" Dig said in disbelief. "That can happen?"
"Sure. Try heroin some time." She said offhandedly. Then she realized what she just said. "Not try-try."
Thea's eyebrows rose. "Speaking from experience?" she said.
"I grew up in Vegas." Felicity said off-hand. At Thea's incredulous look, she smiled sadly. "I wasn't always a happy shiny person, remember?"
"All right, where's the truck now?" Dig asked.
"Downtown." she said. "What do you think? Call Oliver?"
"No, no, he's busy with his family." Dig said. "I'll go." He started to rise, but then immediately started to fall back into his seat.
"Yeah, no." Felicity said, helping him back down. "That's not happening. I'll go." She decided.
"I got a bad feeling about this." Laurel said.
"Yeah." Felicity agreed. "Me, too."
"Felicity, it's too dangerous." Dig argued.
"It could turn out to be nothing." Felicity said confidently. "If it's not, I'll call."
'…courtroom drama you've just witnessed? Bethany, no one expected the turn that testimony took. A revelation that Moira Queen once had an affair with Malcolm Merlyn became the sole focus of the prosecution's cross.'
The scene changed to downtown. Felicity walked towards the vaccination truck, parked on a dark, deserted street as a light rain fell. Hesitantly she reached up to touch the door-
Which opened compliantly for her.
"Have you never watched a horror movie?" Laurel asked.
"Not a big 'Nightmare on Elm Street ' fan." She replied, a lump of worry in her throat.
"Hello?" she called out. She stepped into the van. "Anybody home?" she called out, looking around. Seeing no one, she began searching through the lower drawers. Finding nothing of note, she stood and slid the door open on a high cabinet. Inside were rows of plastic injection tubes, all containing- "Vertigo." She said happily. "Got ya."
"Funny." Felicity yelped in alarm as she spun to see The Count standing behind her. "You took the words right out of my mouth." He said.
"Well, I guess it was your turn to be kidnapped." Thea told the hacker.
"Why couldn't Diggle get kidnapped?" Felicity groused.
"Hey, I got dosed with Vertigo!" he complained.
The scene changed to the court house. Oliver and Thea were standing at the rail at the top floor, leaning against it and waiting for news.
"Thea?" the two looked over to see Jean walking towards them.
"Can we call it a night?" Thea asked.
"The jury just signaled that they could have a verdict." Jean told them. "The judge will not send them home. He wants to get this over with."
"Line forms behind me." Thea said sarcastically.
"A verdict that quickly is bad, isn't it?" Oliver said in dread.
Jean sighed. "I think the two of you should prepare for the worst."
Jean walked off, and then Oliver's phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and saw Felicity's name on the screen. "Excuse me." He told his sister, moving off before picking up the call. "Felicity—"
"Oliver." Oliver froze, hearing a horribly familiar voice.
At Queen Consolidated, The Count sat at his desk, a glass of brandy in hand. "Is it ok if I call you Oliver?" he continued. "Surprised to hear from me, right? Not as surprised as I was."
Back at the courthouse, Oliver's hand tightened around the phone and his frown became a scowl.
"You see, I find this not unattractive blonde, getting all up in my business." The Count continued, rising from the desk and moving around towards Felicity, who was bound in a chair. He started running his finger down her arm. "And what does she have on her? A Queen Consolidated I. D. badge." He continued as she whimpered in fear. "Now, I think to myself, why does that name ring a bell? Oliver Queen. He tried to buy off me last year, just before the hood put me in a padded cell." The Count snarled. "Ipso facto, Arrow."
Felicity closed her eyes in shame. "I gave away his identity." She said sadly.
At the court house, Olive cut the line and started storming for the exit.
Thea looked at his retreated back in disbelief. "Where are you going?!" she demanded.
"Something's come up at the office." Oliver said shortly.
"Ollie, the jury!"
"I have to go." He said, moving rapidly towards the stairs.
The scene changed to Queen Consolidated. Oliver, now dressed in full Arrow regalia minus the grease paint and with his hood down strode down the corridor on the executive level. Cautiously he made his way into his outer office, and then he saw them. Through the glass wall he could see Felicity, bound to a chair and trembling with fear, as The Count sat behind her, casually running his hand through her ponytail.
"Pretty swanky offices." He called out to the vigilante. He stood as Oliver stopped at the open doors to the conference room and casually put his hands on Felicity's shoulders. "You can see all the destruction that your mom caused from up here."
"What do you want?" Oliver demanded.
"World peace and personal satisfaction. Though not necessarily in that order." He rubbed Felicity's shoulders gently, causing her to whimper in fear. "You poisoned me and put me in a hole." The Count spat. "You have no idea how much I hated you for that. Turns out, someone else hates you, too."
Oliver blinked in surprise. "Who?" he demanded.
"Who?" The Count echoed mockingly. "Oh, you're going to be surprised when you find out. He's a man of means. Set me up with my new operation so I could draw you out."
"To do what?" Oliver asked.
"This." The Count drew his gun and started firing. Oliver ducked and rolled over a low sofa as the bullets shattered the glass around him.
"You're going to have to try harder." He called out.
"Done!" The Count fired his last two rounds, and then slammed the gun down on the conference table. He took out a knife and cut Felicity loose, then yanked her to her feet by her hair. "Come on!" he demanded, dragging her along with him.
"Ahh!" she yelled out in pain as The Count pulled another gun from his waistband and dragged her around the couch- but Olive wasn't there. The Count looked down in momentary confusion, but then Oliver dropped down from the ceiling into the conference room and drew on the drug pusher. The Count dropped his gun and moved himself behind Felicity, taking out his double syringe and placing it at her neck.
"So now we move on to plan B." he said.
"Oliver, don't! Not for me!" she pleaded.
A feeling of dread filled Felicity's stomach.
The Count yanked back on her hair hard. "Quiet, please. I'm threatening." He looked to Oliver. "Lower your bow." He ordered.
Oliver slowly lowered the bow and tossed the arrow to the ground. "Your problem is with me." He pleaded. "It's not with her."
"Well, then, consider this your penalty for making me go to plan B in the first place." The Count replied, drawing back the syringe to jam it into her neck.
Without thought, Oliver drew and fired three arrows in rapid succession. All three pierced the Count's chest. And if that didn't kill him, the momentum of the impacts drove him back into the window that had already been weakened by a bullet strike. The Count crashed through and fell 36 stories onto a taxi cab's roof on the street below.
The hacker dropped her head into her hands. "He killed again because of me." She whispered sadly.
Quentin rose and moved to sit next to Felicity. He put an arm around her shoulder and pulled her in close. "Now you listen to me," he began. "Even a cop will kill if it means saving an innocent life. And they don't come more innocent than you." He gave her a lopsided grin. "Even with the fixing parking tickets thing."
"I wouldn't hold that against him, Felicity." Tommy told her.
Oliver sighed heavily, but then moved over to Felicity who had fallen to the ground. "Hey." He said, cupping her head gently as she wept. "Hey. Hey, shh, shh. It's all right." He told her as her eyes finally found his. "You're safe."
Felicity noticed blood on Oliver's arm. "Oh, you were shot."
"Hey." He said with a small smile. "It's nothing." He rose and moved over to the broken window, looking down at the Count's body sadly as a crowd started to gather.
The scene changed to the court house. A short time later, Oliver returned, his wound dressed and back in his business suit. He walked around the waiting area, stopping as he spotted his sister.
"Any news?" he asked.
"Where have you been?" she demanded.
"Something… happened at Queen Consolidated." He said obliquely. "You will see it on the news later. Just don't worry about it."
"What would you have done if there'd been a verdict?" she asked angrily.
"Thea…" he sighed. "I don't know."
Thea looked at her brother with worry. She placed a hand on his arm- right where he had been shot- causing him to jump slightly. "Are you ok?" she asked.
Before he could answer, Jean walked up to them. "Hey. Jury's back."
"Come on." Thea told Oliver, and the three headed back in.
Moments later, the judge restarted the proceedings. "I have received a note that the jury has arrived at a verdict." He said, turning to the bailiff. "Please publish the verdict."
"In the superior court of Star county state versus Moira Queen verdict." She began. "On one count of conspiracy in the first degree, the defendant is found not guilty." Oliver's face showed surprise. "On the 503 counts of murder in the first degree, the defendant is found- Not guilty." Moira sagged in relief and she hugged Jean. Oliver looked on in shock, mouthing 'I don't believe it.' To himself as the courtroom exploded into pandemonium. Even Thea sat in shock. Finally, Moira let go of Jean and moved over to her children.
"Mom." Oliver said, rising to give his mother a hug. Soon Thea was pulled in as well.
Moira looked over at Malcolm with narrowed eyes.
"I love you both so much." She told them tearfully. Oliver looked up, still in shock, and caught Laurel's eye. Her face was blank, revealing nothing, and she calmly made her way out of the courtroom.
'A stunning result, as Moira Queen is acquitted of all charges.' The scene changed to the Lair later that night, where once again Felicity had on the news. 'In a day that's provided a week's worth of shocks and legal twists, many had pronounced this case a done deal…'
"Congratulations." She told Oliver as he walked in. She sat in her chair with a blanket over her shoulders. He had taken off his coat and was trying to get out of his dress shirt without aggravating his wound any more than it already was. "Is that appropriate?"
"She should have lost." Oliver said bluntly, taking a seat on a stool. "She should have been convicted."
"Did you want her to be?" Dig asked.
"I expected her to be." Oliver admitted. "Verdict doesn't make sense."
"I'd be insulted if he wasn't right." Moira noted.
"Still, your mom must be thrilled." Felicity said. "Beyond."
"It's more like shock, I think." Oliver replied. "They're processing her now. "I just wanted to check in on you." He looked at Diggle, then at Felicity. "And you."
"I'm feeling better." Dig told him.
"And, with the Vertigo tainted vaccine, Queen Consolidated's Applied Sciences Division was able to formulate a non-addictive treatment." Felicity informed him.
"Good." Oliver said, and then glanced at his watch. "I need to meet my family at home. So you guys go home, get rest." He said, rising from his seat. Diggle patted him on the shoulder before heading out. Oliver smiled softly at Felicity. "Good night."
"Good night." She replied. He turned to leave. "Oliver." She called out, stopping him. He turned back. "I, uh… I just wanted to say thank you."
"Yeah." He replied.
"And I'm sorry." She added, on the verge of tears.
"For what?"
"I got myself into trouble again, and you killed him." She said sadly. "You killed again, and I am sorry that I was the one to put you in a position where you had to make that kind of choice."
"Felicity." He took her hand in his and squeezed gently. "He had you, and he was going to hurt you. There was no choice to make." He told her honestly. They shared a smile, and then he turned and walked out.
"See?" Quentin told Felicity. "Even he doesn't blame you. So don't go blaming yourself."
FIVE YEARS AGO
After what seemed like eternity, the four castaways stopped running to catch their breath.
"Why did you do that?!" Sara demanded.
"Because you stopped the captain from killing me." Oliver replied. He looked up at Shado. "Thank you for coming. Shado," he looked over at Slade, who was gasping for breath harder than the rest of them combined. "He doesn't look too good."
"He's not." She admitted. She looked at the blonde. "Who's this?"
"It's…. complicated." Oliver dodged. "That Hosen thing they're looking for is back on the plane."
"No, I've got it." Shado said, puling it out from under her shirt where it had hung from her neck. "It has a Buddhist inscription on one side. It reminded me of my father."
"I'm pretty sure they aren't interested in Buddhism." Slade gasped.
"What's on the other side?" Oliver asked.
Shado turned it over. "30-30-147-12."
"Ok, numbers, what…" Oliver wondered helplessly.
"Coordinates." Shado realized. "To what?"
"A Kairyu-class Japanese submarine which ran aground here during World War II." Sara revealed.
"What do these guys want with a 70 year old sub?" Slade asked.
"The sub isn't important, but what's on it-" she looked up at Oliver. "It'll save the human race."
"You really were coo-coo for cocoa puffs, weren't you?" Mia asked Sara teasingly.
"He had a year to turn me into a believer." Sara pointed out crossly. "And I did believe. Until I saw what it could do." She turned her gaze on Slade.
Oliver looked at the grievously injured Slade. "Will it save him?" he asked.
At the clearing, the captain was crawling away from the blast site when Ivo and another pirate walked up.
"Well, you survived your own stupidity, congratulations." Ivo said sarcastically. He knelt down and yanked the captain's gun from its holster. "You know I needed you to deal with any resistance that I encountered on the island." He stood and pointed the gun at the captain's head. "I got to say, you've done a fairly lousy job of that." He fired once, killing the man. He then handed the pistol to his companion. "Congratulations. You're the new captain." He said dryly before stalking off, leaving the stunned Captain behind.
"Well, I won't shed any tears over that." Sara said.
"Amen to that." Thea agreed.
The scene changed to Alderman Blood's office. He was watching the news with a scowl on his face when Officer Daley walked in.
"I arranged for The Count to take out the Arrow, and all I accomplish is reigniting the vigilante's killing spree." He spat.
"Sir, there's been a development." The cop said. Blood went to an ornate wooden cabinet behind his desk and opened it to reveal the leather skull mask.
"Man, that thing was creepy." Roy said with a shudder.
Minutes later he walked into his lab. A line of men sat bound to chairs, all with bloody tears, all dead- all except the last.
"Brother Cyrus How do you feel?" blood asked the man.
"Stronger." Cyrus replied.
"Good. Then you're ready." Brother Blood said.
Slade watched with keen interest.
The scene changed to the court house, where Moira was being released. She moved through the crowd of reporters with Jean at her side, heading towards a waiting limo.
"Mrs. Queen, how does it feel to get away with murder?" a reporter called out.
"Once you go out back, there's a car waiting for you." Jean told her client softly as they pushed through the reporters.
"Did you kill your first husband?" another reporter shouted.
"Just keep going." Jean told her, then spun back to the reporters. "Obviously Mrs. Queen is overjoyed that the jury has ruled that she was acting under terrible duress."
"Can you give us anything else?"
"This way, Mrs. Queen." The driver said, opening the door to the limo. Moira climbed in and sighed in relief as the door closed, dimming the sound of the vultures outside. She sat in the back, looking out at the city for the first time in months as it streamed past the windows. "The freeway will be quicker." She told the driver when he turned onto a side street.
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Queen. I was instructed not to take you home." The driver informed her. "Not yet." Moira looked on in increasing alarm as the driver pulled into an abandoned parking lot on the outskirts of downtown. He climbed out, then opened the door for Moira.
"Where are we?" she asked nervously. "I-I don't know this place."
The driver stepped back and looked over her shoulder. "I've got her, sir." He said. Almost at once he was struck in the heart by a black arrow.
There were startled gasps from the viewers.
Moira cried out as the driver fell back against the car and slid to the ground, dead. Spinning around, she saw her worst nightmare come back to life.
Malcolm Merlyn strode confidently towards her, his compound bow in his hand.
"Jesus, Dad!" Tommy cried. "You just can't help yourself, can you?!"
"Hello, Moira." Malcolm said, stopping a respectful distance from the frightened woman.
"They said you were dead!" she exclaimed.
"There are parts of the world where death is an illusion." Malcolm told her. "I've been to one. I learned to be very convincing. But I returned because you needed my help."
"Help?" she asked, baffled.
"With your trial." He explained to her growing horror. "You didn't think that jury acquitted you without a little persuasion?"
"Dear God." She breathed. "What do you want, Malcolm?"
"I still have resources in Starling. Associates. Including one in the D.A.'s office. " he revealed. "I followed Mr. Donner's investigation of you with interest." He moved closer. "The ease with which you lied about us for years, it made me wonder whether you lied to me." He seethed.
Moira backed up against the car, terrified. "No. No" she stammered out.
"It was a matter of a simple surreptitious genetics test to confirm my suspicion." Malcolm continued.
"Don't." Moira protested weakly.
"Imagine my joy at learning that Thea is my daughter." Malcolm stated, confirming her fears- he knew.
"Laurel was right!" Thea breathed. "You did all of that so that I would be revealed to be your daughter!"
"Yup." It was Mia who answered instead of Malcolm. "Although- as you'll soon see- it kind of backfired."
"How did he survive…. He was stabbed in the heart!" Tommy said.
"Well, that's an interesting story…" Mia began.
TBC
A/N: I honestly had no recollection whatsoever of the 'secrets and lies' line Oliver said to Moira when I started writing this story.