Chapter 7 - Making Plans
Lucy escorted Cat back to the medical bay, stopping before they entered to look at Cat, who sported an impressive mask that she finally managed to build back up during the quiet walk.
Exhaling heavily, Cat nodded and they entered.
Not exactly surprising, they found Alex sitting by Kara, holding her hand as Dr. Hamilton and Eliza did their periodic check of Kara's vital signs.
"I thought Alex was resting," Cat said with a frown.
"She was . . . until she wasn't," Eliza sighed heavily.
"Kara's eyelids fluttered open again," Dr. Hamilton explained. "She seems to be fighting the sedatives. We've taken her off of them and will let her wake in her own time, then assess her condition. Brain activity is unchanged, still below normal."
"Is there a chance . . . of permanent brain damage?" Cat asked what no one wanted to think about. But if bringing brutal possibilities to the table was her role in all this, so be it. The article about her heroics took a distant second to taking care of Kara.
"Yes," Dr. Hamilton offered bluntly. "But as you've . . . reminded us, we don't have any experience with this situation."
"Well, in spite of the slight improvement with her tan," Cat said flippantly, vaguely motioned to the sun lamps, "shouldn't you start thinking about the contingencies if she has brain damage?" She said uncomfortably. "What recovery protocol will you need? What should we do to help an alien with superhuman powers that is mentally . . . hindered?"
Cat sighed when Eliza, Alex, Lucy, and Dr. Hamilton look at each other at a clear loss.
"You need to start thinking about contingencies for possible scenarios now," Cat said firmly, then noticed Alex's ashen face. Idiot.
"Alex! So help me, if you think for a minute that you could have prevented this, I will kick your ass," Cat blurted with irritation.
Eliza blinked, surprised. Though she shouldn't be, she considered. Alex had already said Cat yelled at her for her misplaced guilt.
Alex looked at Cat. "Y . . . you wouldn't stand a chance," she said, mildly defensive.
"Well, with all that unwarranted guilt weighing you down, I think my chances are pretty good," Cat sassed.
Eliza bit her lip to preventing a grin, feeling oddly comforted by Cat scolding Alex, clearly looking out for her daughter. Both her daughters, she amended and looked to Kara. She sighed worriedly, knowing Cat's point was valid about preparations. "Prepare for the worst, hope for the best," Eliza tossed out.
"Exactly! Now, I need to talk with my son and CATCO, and you need to think about the possible scenarios and develop a damn plan!" Cat spat and walked out of the room, grabbing her iPhone out of her blazer pocket.
"She still has her phone?!" Lucy said incredulously, glaring at Alex, who blinked. "Of course she does!" she moaned at the security violation. "Goddamnit!" Lucy growled, before chasing after Cat.
Eliza took a breath and offered, "Cat's right. We should be thinking about contingency plans," she said, noting her daughter's anguish. "And Alex, she was right about you too," she added. Before Alex could protest, Eliza added, "Don't make me let her kick your ass."
SGSG
"You won't get a good signal here," Lucy announced as she caught up to Cat, who stared at her phone with an impatient growl as a few agents walked passed them.
"Then I'll need a land line," Cat responded firmly, staring at Lucy expectantly.
Lucy looked indecisive.
"For God's sake, Lucy. I need to talk with my son and CATCO to let them know I will be tied up for a few days and, apparently, hard to reach," Cat said with frustration. "As I am sure you will be listening in, you can make sure I'm not revealing any of your secrets. And I did sign your NDA's," she added, looking at her pointedly.
"You mean your NDAs," Lucy grumbled. "Fine! We'll go back to J'onn's office, it's closer than mine," Lucy said and pointed the way.
Once in the office, Cat made a beeline to the telephone.
"Wait a sec," Lucy said, getting an annoyed look from Cat, who crossed her arms in an impatient huff.
Lucy picked up the receiver and dialed to get an outside line. When she put the phone on speaker, the dial tone loudly filled the room. Lucy motioned for Cat to proceed as she sat on the desk's edge.
Cat rolled her eyes and sat down regally in J'onn's chair, prompting Lucy to shake her head. She dialed her son, who was at his father's getting ready for their camping trip.
"Hello?" Carter answered curiously, his caller ID only saying "Private Number."
"Carter, it's your mother."
"Mom? Where are you?"
"I'm where Kara is," Cat said.
"How is she?" he immediately asked.
"She is . . . still ill from Myriad, sweetheart," Cat said cautiously.
"She'll be ok, right?" Carter asked worriedly.
"She's getting the best possible care," Cat hedged.
"What happened to her?"
"I don't have time to go into the details at the moment, but Kara just needs some help to recover right now. And I'll ensure that she keeps getting the best of care. You know I can't tolerate my assistant being out of action any longer than absolutely necessary," Cat said briskly, getting a soft chuckle.
"Right, Mom. Work's the only reason," Carter said sarcastically.
"What other reason could there possibly be?" Cat asked defensively, glancing uncomfortably at Lucy, who was studiously inspecting a paperweight on the desk.
"I'll be fine with Dad," he said instead of answering. "You have to help Kara get better so we can have a rematch."
"I'll let her know you are anxious to beat her at Settlers again," Cat said warmly.
After a long pause, Carter responded softly. "I'd be happy to lose every game to her just as long as she's ok."
Cat sucked in an emotional breath and forced a calm response. "I know, honey," she said. "I'll let her know you are thinking of her," she added.
"Good."
"I may be difficult to reach for a bit, as the cell reception is horrible here. But I'll try and keep you updated when I can, as I promised."
"I understand," Carter said seriously.
Cat had to smirk at Lucy's suspicious look when Carter didn't pepper her with more questions. "Don't worry about anything, Carter, and have a good time with your father," Cat said.
"I will."
"Watch out for the bears," Cat said helpfully, quickly adding, "And the wolves. And the snakes. Carter, how did you ever convince me this trip was a good idea?" she demanded with faux irritation.
"Moooom," Carter groaned with amusement. "I love you," he said warmly.
"Love you too, sweetheart," she said with a smile and waited for him to hang up.
Hearing the dial tone, Lucy asked flatly "Do I need to get him to sign an NDA?"
"Well, we've never actually discussed Kara being Supergirl," Cat mentioned with a satisfied smile. "Though, I'm pretty sure he knows."
"Goddamnit!" Lucy spewed as she got up from the desk, nearly vibrating with irritation.
"Lucy, he would never do anything to harm Kara. And he is a very smart boy - he knows not to openly discuss it," Cat said calmly, prompting Lucy to sharply look at her. "Not even with me."
"Goddamnit, Cat."
"The immediate issue you should be worrying about is Kara's health," Cat countered tersely, then took a calming breath. "But, if you are determined to craft an NDA for Carter to sign, I will allow him to sign it," she offered.
Lucy laughed derisively. "Without your editing?"
"I will review whatever you require him to sign because my son is a minor. And we'll see about whatever edits are needed."
Lucy sighed in resignation as Cat smiled and dialed her Art Director.
"James Olsen."
"James, this is Cat. I'll be working away from the office for a while, on a special project," Cat said and glanced at Lucy, who was now absently tossing the paperweight in her hand, vaguely wondering if she should be concerned.
"Okay," he said hesitantly.
"While away, I need you to act for me and make sure things run smoothly," Cat announced.
"Of course," he said confidently.
Before he could say anything else, Cat quickly warned, "No one should even contemplate that there is any flexibility with their respective deadlines in my absence. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Cat," James smiled. "I'll make sure the departments meets their deadlines. So . . . I take it you got ahold of Supergirl for your . . . special project?" He asked uncomfortably.
"I haven't spoken with her."
"But . . . you know what happened?" James probed curiously.
"Some," she said truthfully. "But as I've mentioned, I'm still interested in writing about the cause of that attack and, of course, how it was thwarted, but I'll need Supergirl's help . . . when she's available," Cat hedged.
"When she's available?"
"James, I don't have time to discuss more . . . other than she did save us all, as I suspected. Now, you have deadlines to meet. Make sure you do," she said crisply. "Oh, and unless you or Willy want to answer the phones and personally manage my schedule, you should see if you can get a competent person from the temp pool to fill in for my assistant while she's recovering."
"Recovering?" James blurted.
"Do keep up, James. Weren't you and Wilson just recently telling me she's under the weather? She's not better yet, but you should be relieved to know her sister and mother are looking after her, so she's in very good hands."
"You spoke with Alex . . . and Eliza?" he asked with surprise.
"Indeed I have, hence my recommendation on a using a temp while she's recovering. Enough chit chat, James. You have deadlines to meet. Chop chop," Cat said and hung up.
SGSG
"James, do you still need help with your computer?" Winn asked, entering James' office without knocking, his head buried in his tablet. Finally looking up, he found James just staring at his cellphone in his hand.
"What's wrong? Is everything ok?" Winn quickly asked.
"It was Cat," he said and slowly put the phone down on his desk.
"Okaaaay," Winn said, then frowned. "Do you still have a job?" he suddenly asked, then immediately followed with a concerned squeak "Do I still have a job?"
"She put me in charge," James said, glancing at his phone.
"That's good, right?" Winn asked with a relieved smile. His smile faded as James continued to act oddly. "That's . . . not good?"
"Cat knows," James said, looking at Winn, who blinked in confusion before his eyes widened in understanding. "She asked me to get a temp to fill in for Kara while she recovers and told me Kara's in good hands with Alex and Eliza."
"She spoke with Alex and Eliza?" Winn asked weakly.
"Yep," James said. "And I'm pretty sure the special assignment she's away for is at the DEO."
"How did the she get into the DEO when we couldn't?!" Winn complained with a pout.
"Maybe it was bias against Costco members," James offered with a thin smile.
"It had a picture!" Winn argued, shooting him an annoyed look before turning to leave.
"Hey, where are you going?" James asked.
"To get my résumé in order," he grumbled with a sigh.
"What about my computer?"
"Fine! I'll fix it, then get my résumé in order," he grumbled.
SGSG
After she hung up, Cat asked with a raised brow, "I don't suppose you got James to sign any NDA's?"
"Actually, I did," Lucy countered.
"So why did he fail so spectacularly when I asked him to find out what happened to Kara?" Cat asked curiously.
Lucy frowned. "Well James did not have the requisite clearance for access to DEO facilities or need-to-know about DEO business. And Kara is DEO business. And even if he did have that information, he'd technically be unable to disclose it to you."
"I see. And his super friend? Was he bound by a gag order too?" Cat challenged.
"No. But Superman was incapacitated for several days because of the Myriad signal. He was finally well enough to go back to Metropolis yesterday," Lucy explained tiredly, rubbing her eyes.
"I knew he was affected by the mind control signal but . . . was he in physical danger like we were?" Cat asked with surprise.
"I don't know," Lucy said with a shrug. "To be honest, I don't think the Doctors know either. And he doesn't trust the government enough to let the DEO test him to find out."
"Hmmm." Cat murmured with dissatisfaction. "Any article highlighting Supergirl's triumph will likely prompt questions about Superman's whereabouts. And that is certainly a sensitive topic we'll have to be careful to work around," she offered, surprising Lucy, who was relieved by Cat's sincere caution. "Though, regardless of anything I might write, I will be mentioning his weakness to Lois, of course," she added with a satisfied grin.
"Of course you will," Lucy said flatly.
"But that is not a problem for right now," Cat said firmly.
Reinforcing Cat's declaration, a thunderous bang shook the facility. A blaring klaxon sounded, accompanied by flashing red lights that flooded the corridors.
"What the hell's going on?!" Cat shouted to be heard over the klaxon.
"Sounds like the prisoners are escaping. Follow me and I'll get you to a more secure location!"
"What about Kara?!" Cat asked worriedly.
"That's where I'm taking you!" Lucy barked.
Cat nodded with relief and promptly followed Lucy out of the office, weaving through the gaggle of agents, who were rushing about, getting to their emergency stations. From her brief war-correspondent days, she knew to keep her head down and try to ignore the disturbing sounds, which now included gunfire and additional violent explosions.
When they finally reached the Medbay, Lucy firmly grabbed Cat's arm. "Stay here!" She shouted over the klaxon, eyeing her pointedly. After receiving a firm nod from Cat, she rushed off to her emergency station.
