A/N: A/N: Update changes. So due to my summer job I will be moving my update day to Saturday, ugh.
But with that being said, we are halfway there! There might be a short break between this chapter and the next because of said job (trust me I'm not happy about it either), and hope we'll be able to continue on schedule, keep your fingers crossed. Thanks for reading and please feel free to let me know what you thing the good, bad, and ugly. And a special thanks to my amazingly awesome Beta!
Chapter 13
Felicity had just started the coffee maker when pounding at her front door startled her, almost making her drop the coffee pot. Glancing at her watch she saw that it was just after 5:30 am, the pounding sounded again, this time more urgent. Cursing whoever was at the door, she strode to open it vowing to make them pay if they woke Olivia before she could have her first cup of coffee. To her surprise she saw a disheveled and aggravated looking Tommy standing there when she opened the door. His suit was torn and rumpled and she could see that a bandage had been wrapped around his wrist.
"Did you know?" He demanded before walking in and collapsing onto a chair in her small dining room.
Closing the door she pulled her robe tighter around her and rubbed her forehead sighing, "Tommy it's way too early in the morning for this. I haven't even had my first cup of coffee. Did I know what?"
He looked at her with his red rimmed eyes, "Did you know about Oliver?"
Felicity was still confused and was starting to get irritated, "If you don't start making sense soon, I'm going to…" She tried to think of a good threat, but one wasn't coming to her. Then Tommy's question hit her; he was asking if she knew that Oliver was the Hood. When Tommy didn't respond she turned around and poured two mugs of coffee doctoring them the way that they both preferred. Then she sat down heavily in front of him and looking at him said, "Are you asking if I knew that Oliver is the Hood?"
"You did know!" He shouted, his eyes flashing with anger.
"Keep your voice down because if you wake up Olivia before I've finished my morning coffee, I'm leaving and letting you deal with her. And you know what a bear she can be in the morning." Felicity said evenly.
"Sorry," Tommy said looking chastened, but still upset.
"Yes, I know that Oliver is the Hood. Honestly, he needs a better vigilante name." Felicity said shaking her head as she took a drink of her delicious, life affirming coffee.
"How can you be so calm about this? I just found out that my so-called best friend is a murderer and that you are keeping his secret!" Tommy couldn't keep still and jumped up from where he was sitting and started pacing.
"So called best friend?" Felicity asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Yes! How can you be so calm about this? Do you not know what he does?" Tommy worried, his voice getting louder and louder.
"Sit down!" Felicity used her firm "Mom" voice, the one that she hated using unless it was absolutely necessary, which right now it was. Tommy quickly obeyed and was soon back sitting at the table with her. "Let me guess this isn't just about finding out that Oliver's been keeping a secret from you. This is also about him not being the same person he was before he was stranded on that island." Tommy didn't say anything, but his expression said that she had hit the nail on the head. Sighing, she took another drink of her coffee letting its warmth sooth her and energize her for this conversation.
"I had the fortune of not really having a pre-island Oliver to compare to a post-island Oliver. I mean a few hours in a hotel room and a dinner don't really count in the grand scheme of things. So, when he came back, I didn't have anything to compare the Oliver I've gotten to know against. You, however, are comparing the boy who got on a boat with his dad, to the man that survived five horrible years away."
"But Felicity you've seen what he's done!" Tommy cried out.
"Let me finish," Felicity stated using her 'mom' voice again. Tommy again looked chastened and finally took a sip of his coffee. "You knew that the Vigilante had 'attacked' Moira, and that she shot him." Tommy nodded his agreement as she spoke, horror showing on his face as he realized what Felicity was going to say. "Yes, his own mother shot him, and that was the night that I found out that Oliver was the Hood. I found him bleeding out in the back seat of my car and he had me take him back to his secret hideout, where he was just lucky that he didn't die." Felicity hated that her voice gave out, and she took a moment to gather her emotions. "And before you ask, yes, I have been helping him for the past several weeks. That's the reason why I've been having Moira and Thea watch Olivia more often lately. I've been spending my evenings with Oliver. When I first started helping him, I may have hacked into the police station's records to do some clean up work on his file. That's when I found out that Detective Lance had pulled his medical records. Have you seen him shirtless since he's been back?"
Tommy looked down at the table and mumbled, "Not since he's come back, he always makes sure that he's covered up."
Felicity nodded, "That's because according to the files he has scars and scar tissue from burns on over twenty percent of his body, and it looks like they mainly come from him being tortured." Tommy's head jerked up in surprise. "Tommy, don't you see how that could change a person? I've seen some of those scars and I honestly don't know how he survived receiving them." The mental image of his scarred torso just reaffirmed in her mind what a survivor Oliver Queen was.
"Are they really that bad?" Tommy asked quietly.
"Yes," Felicity said gently. "I know that he has to have PTSD from his experience, even if it hasn't been officially diagnosed." She paused not wanting to give away all of Oliver's secrets but she needed Tommy to understand what was happening with him. "He's trying to work through his trauma and granted his methods sometimes leave a lot to be desired but look at the results. Crime is way down in the city and he is having a positive impact on Starling."
Tommy sat there and stared at the table, "I didn't think of it like that." He said quietly, sighing, he took a drink of his coffee. "I've been up all-night thinking about it non-stop."
"How did you find out?" Felicity asked. She knew what Oliver had told both her and Dig after he got back to the Lair, but she wanted to hear Tommy's side of the story.
"You remember that stupid award that Dad was being given?"
"The one he that he broke up your birthday dinner about?" Felicity asked. She had accompanied Oliver to Tommy's birthday dinner at Laurel's apartment and they had had a good time until Mr. Merlyn had arrived and dampened their spirits.
"Oliver urged me to go, and somebody tried to kill Dad." Tommy had to set down his coffee mug as his hand had started shaking badly, "When the Hood swooped in, I thought he was there to finish the job. Oliver had to pull the hood back to get me to trust that he really was trying to help me." When she didn't react, Tommy narrowed his eyes. "You already knew."
"Yep," Felicity said as she finished off her coffee.
Then it dawned on him. "You were working with him tonight!"
"That I was." She got up to refill her mug, it was at least a three-coffee type of morning.
"How can you help him? He's killing people!" Tommy exclaimed, getting riled up again. "When he first got back and we were kidnapped, I only remember bits of what happened, but the kidnappers were killed, so he must have killed them! And he had to have done it right in front of me!"
"Okay. Just playing devil's advocate here. Say that Oliver didn't kill the kidnappers, what would have happened to you both then?" Felicity asked calmly, taking a sip of coffee from her cup.
Tommy thought for a few minutes, idly playing with his mug, before he finally admitted quietly. "I don't know."
"Exactly, we don't know what would have happened. I can't change anything that Oliver did before I got involved, but now that I'm a part of the group I can urge him to try not to kill people and to use other methods. You have noticed that not as many bad guys have been dying, right?"
Sighing Tommy took another sip from his mug, "It can't be that simple."
"It's not," Felicity agreed. "Oliver is extremely stubborn, but I have to try. And you should too." At Tommy's quizzical look Felicity clarified, "Instead of treating him like a pariah, encourage him to make better choices."
Nodding Tommy stood up, "So all those times that you've been in the Club lately getting our 'internet' up and running you were really doing Hood stuff?"
"Yes, but I was also getting your internet working and your network set-up. You guys now have the most secure network that I can create" She shrugged, "I can multi-task."
"So, who else knows?" Tommy asked, running his hand through his hair as he began looking a bit calmer.
"You, me, Diggle, and Sara." Felicity told him as she finished her coffee. She took both cups and brought them over to the sink where she rinsed Tommy's out and refilled hers.
"Thanks for letting me panic and talking me down," Tommy said before he made his way to the door.
"Just keep in mind what I said. He is just as stubborn as his daughter, and you know that you can catch more bees with honey than with vinegar. Now are you staying to help get your niece ready for school or…"
Tommy gave her a thoughtful look and then headed out the door. Felicity grabbed her last cup of coffee and went to the living room hoping to grab a few minutes of quiet to process what had happened before the hustle of getting ready for school and work started.
***ARROW***
Felicity stood in the Lair studying the arrows and feeling nothing but guilt about not being able to lead Oliver to John Nicol in time to save his life. Yes, the man was a slumlord, but no one deserved to be murdered in cold blood and have it broadcast live on the internet. Oliver, sensing her guilt, tried to tell her that she had done her best, but she didn't believe it, she should have been able to do more. Sighing he pulled her into a tight hug, and she relaxed into the comfort of it, and started to feel a little bit better about what had happened. She had tried her best, but if there was a next time she wouldn't screw up.
Felicity wasn't sure, but lately it seemed like Oliver had been paying more attention to both her and Olivia and being more open with them both. When his old friend Det. Mackenna Hall had come into town and back into his life, she was sure that Mackenna and Oliver would start dating, but they just remained friends. Deciding that it was the wrong time to look too deeply into things she just soaked in the comfort that he was providing. She let him hug her for a while before she realized the time and gently reminded him that it was his turn to pick up Olivia from school.
A few hours later Oliver hurried down the stairs to the Lair to tell her that another person had been kidnapped from the Glades and that he was a friend of his sister, Felicity gasped. "The new victim is Roy?"
Oliver quirked a questioning eyebrow at her knowing his name. "Thea talks about him all the time, you would know that he's her boyfriend if you paid attention to what she says about him." Felicity said with exasperation. "He may be a little rough around the edges, but I'm pretty sure that he's helping to keep her on the straight and narrow."
"That and her CNRI community service," Dig added. At their surprised looks, Diggle added, "What? I'm literally paid to pay attention."
That night as she left the Lair Felicity felt that victory was a bit sweeter since they had saved someone that they knew, even though Oliver did have to kill the perpetrator.
***ARROW***
When Felicity had first heard about Tommy's plan to have him, Laurel, and Taylor Moore, the child that that was in protective custody after his parents were murdered, come and stay at the Queen mansion because of the increased security there, she thought that it was a great idea. She thought that she would be able to give the drama that was currently happening with Tommy, Laurel, and Oliver a wide berth by staying at her house with Olivia instead of having their normal weekend sleep over. However, Moira thought that having another child at the mansion would help Taylor to adjust. Felicity gave in once she realized that that it would also provide more babysitters for Olivia while she was down in the lair helping Oliver to take out Rasmus, the one who had put out the hit out on the parents and Taylor.
Once Rasmus had been taken into custody, Felicity briefly thought about taking Olivia and going home even if the others were all staying. She was getting tired of seeing Tommy glare at Oliver because of him being the Hood and Laurel was making heart eyes at him, and well, to be honest, she wasn't sure where Oliver was at and what he felt in all of this. The man kept his emotions as close to him as a cardshark keeps his cards close to his chest. She knew that Oliver no longer loved Laurel like that despite what Tommy was thinking, but she also knew that Laurel hadn't yet figured out and dealt with her feelings for Oliver, even though she was totally in love with Tommy. Sighing in frustration, Felicity just wanted to yell at all of them, but at Moira's request she reluctantly agreed to stay.
Later in the evening when the power went out, Felicity immediately knew that something was horribly wrong. She quickly slipped from her room and into Olivia's running into Oliver in the hallway, who was checking to make sure that they were both okay.
"Stay there until I tell you, make sure you lock and barricade the door." Oliver commanded quietly, pointing to their daughter's room. Felicity nodded and quickly slipped into the room, locking the door as soon as it closed and putting a chair beneath the knob. It felt like an eternity before a sharp knock sounded and Oliver's voice came through the door, telling her that the situation was over and that he needed her help. She opened the door and he entered, checking to make sure that both of them were fine. After seeing that they were fine and Olivia was still asleep he quietly asked Felicity to come and help him, stage the scene before calling Detective Lance and reporting the attack.
Later the next day, after everyone had left to recover from the excitement of the night before, Felicity received a call from an inconsolable Laurel, "Tommy broke up with me." She said sounding so sad and heartbroken that it made tears well in Felicity's eyes as well. "He thinks that Oliver is still in love with me and that I love him."
"Do you think that he is?" Felicity asked softly.
"No, we've been done for a long time." she said quietly.
Knowing something was still bothering her and had been left out of what was said Felicity asked the next logical question, "Are you still in love with Oliver?"
"I don't know," She answered softly. She sniffled, "My feelings for Oliver are just so jumbled."
"Laurel, you need to do yourself and Tommy a favor. You need to figure out who it is that you really love and then let them know." Felicity said. She knew how feelings could change and twist and she desperately wanted to add that since Oliver had come back and she had started working with him every day that she herself was falling halfway in love with him and she had the added complication of having a child with the man.
***ARROW***
"Felicity, you don't have to do this." Oliver said, once again trying to convince Felicity that she shouldn't go undercover in the illegal gambling establishment that they were trying to infiltrate. "Think about Olivia."
"I am always thinking about our child." She said squaring her shoulders and facing Oliver, making sure to emphasize the our part. "Since Mr. Diggle is not with us currently and you need someone to go undercover in an underground gambling establishment then, I'm your girl. Don't forget who grew up in Vegas." She pointed both of her thumbs at herself. "You know that I only signed up to help you in order to find Walter and this is the only lead that we've had in a while, so we need to do this."
"You're right." He said, stopping in the alleyway near the fire escape that he was going to be set up on, his eyes roved over her outfit and he smiled at her softly. "You look beautiful tonight."
Felicity blushed slightly, getting one of Oliver's rare smiles and a compliment made today quite a good day. Taking a deep breath she declared, "Let's get this show on the road and get Walter home."
Later, as they stood in Dominic Alonzo's office, the head of the illegal casino, they tried to process what he had just told them. Neither of them could believe that Walter was dead. Sniffing back tears, Felicity stepped into Oliver's arms, and he just held her. Walter may have been Oliver's stepfather, but over the years Felicity had come to see him as a father figure and she was devastated and wouldn't believe what Alonzo had told them.
With Felicity's belief that Walter wasn't dead she dove into finding out for sure what had happened to Walter. She hit paydirt and was thrilled to find out that Walter was in fact alive and being held captive. Oliver's relief was evident. They then discovered that Malcolm Merlyn had been the one to orchestrate Walter's kidnapping and that knowledge floored them both. As the Hood, Oliver mounted a successful rescue mission and dropped his stepfather off at the hospital with Sara for treatment.
Felicity had brought a bouquet of brightly colored flowers with her that Olivia had insisted that Walter needed in order to feel better when she and Oliver went to visit him in the hospital. The family was gathered around his hospital bed when Walter reached out for Thea's hand and said, "I'm terribly sorry to have missed your graduation ceremony."
Thea waved his concern off and gave him a hug. "Mom took enough pictures to do the paparazzi proud, and I'm just glad to have you back."
"Have you given any more thought to attending college or what you want to do?" Walter asked, trying to get caught up on everything that had happened while he had been gone.
"I'm still not going to college." Thea stated, her arms crossed in front of her as Moira and Felicity both sighed. "Ollie dropped out of five colleges; I'm trying to not follow in his footsteps." Oliver gave her a brief nod in solidarity as Walter watched them.
"I had hoped that you had reconsidered but let me know if there is anything that you are interested in that I can help you with. You could always intern at QC." Walter said, concerned on his face. They continued talking about mundane things before Felicity and Oliver left to head back to the mansion. As they were leaving the hospital they ran into Malcolm Merlynn. Felicity was impressed by how well Oliver kept it together in the face of the snide comments that Malcolm was making. Once they were clear and heading towards the parking garage she asked, "So Malcolm and your mom…"
Oliver's jaw muscle twitched. "I don't want to talk about it. Let's just go home, I need to see Olivia." Raisa was currently watching over Olivia since children weren't allowed in that section of the hospital and the rest of the family had all wanted to be with Walter.
Understanding his need to see their daughter, Felicity took Oliver's hand and they walked out to the car together. Getting in Oliver started up the car, "I do need to make one stop before we go home, if that's okay."
Felicity smiled, "It had better be to John's house."
"It is," was his terse reply.
"Good, because as much as I like having you to myself, we are much better as a threesome." As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized what she had just said, and she quickly slapped her hand over her mouth and groaned. "Why does my brain always think of the worst possible way to say things?" Looking over she could see that Oliver had a smile on his face and was trying hard not to laugh. She was glad to see him smile and to provide him with endless amusement thanks to her less than stellar brain to mouth filter.
***ARROW***
Worried Felicity placed a hand on Oliver's arm, "Are you okay?"
"My mom and my best friend's dad are involved in a conspiracy that may have dire consequences for the city and I'm pretty sure they murdered my father. I'm not planning on using the word okay again any time soon." Oliver said having just outlined his suspicions and what he had overheard his mother say to both Dig and Felicity.
Felicity could see how devastated Oliver was by all this. She had long suspected that back before he had become a castaway, he had been a momma's boy, so to see his mother in this new light was killing him inside. She had voiced her opinion and reluctant approval of their harebrained scheme to stage a kidnapping of Oliver and Moira and then having Dig beat Oliver until Moira confessed her role in everything.
While the two women had had a rocky start, Felicity had come to both respect and love Moira, so the fact that she was involved was affecting her as well. Like Oliver, Felicity had come to realize that something was going on and the interrogation had the best chance of working since the other times they had tried to get information hadn't worked out so well.
Seeing Oliver's beat up face and pronounced limp after Moira's questioning made Felicity's heart skip a beat in her chest. "I thought that you were going to pull your punches!" She exclaimed to Dig as she rushed over to Oliver and despite Diggle's protests that he had, she didn't believe him. "Let me go get you an ice pack for," She hesitated, looking him over. "Well, everything."
Oliver stopped her with a gentle hand to her arm, "I'm okay."
"I thought you weren't going to use that word?" Felicity teased, as she made her way back to her computers since Oliver didn't want any ice packs.
"Do you guys want anything for lunch?" Dig said as he shrugged on his jacket. "Beating up a rich white boy has worked up my appetite." Dig grinned, as Oliver groaned at his words. "Too soon?"
"Big Belly Burger?" Felicity questioned.
"Yeah, Carly's on duty so I can get a discount." Dig explained as he made his way towards the stairs.
"I'll take my usual please." Felicity said before turning back to her computers.
"I'm good," Oliver said stoically, rubbing his jaw.
"Un-huh," Diggle said, "Don't worry I'll get you something too." He eyed Oliver critically, "Maybe something soft and easy to chew, your jaw is looking kinda sore." Not looking over at John, Oliver flipped him off and Dig's laughter filled the air as he left their underground lair.
Felicity's focus was on the computer when Oliver's hand went over hers stopping her typing. "Can we talk?" he asked gently.
Spinning around in her chair she faced him. "Sure, what's up?"
"Thank you for this." He indicated the Lair and himself. "I know this isn't easy for you."
"You're right it isn't." Felicity admitted. "I still can't believe Moira would be a part of this, but if Merlyn was blackmailing her, it totally makes sense. There is nothing I wouldn't do to keep Olivia safe." She met Oliver's eyes, "Nothing."
"So, she keeps saying, but I don't want to talk about Mom right now."
Felicity frowned, "Then what do you want to talk about?"
"Us,"
"Us?" Felicity asked.
Oliver's hand started doing that weird tic that Felicity had noticed he did when he was nervous. "Since we started working down here together, I've come to care for you in ways that I didn't expect." He paused for a second before continuing, "So if we survive this, would you like to go on a real date with me?"
Felicity grinned from ear to ear. Sometime between the idiot talking to Olivia for the first time and him trying to sell vertigo as an energy drink she too had started to develop feelings and maybe even possibly fall in love with the big, bad archer. "Yes."
"Yes?" He asked.
"Yes" she agreed smiling at him nervously asking her out.
He smiled back, "Good. It's a date."
***ARROW***
Realizing his feelings for Felicity had given Oliver a purpose and a sense of what he needed to do, so he decided that it was high time that he cleared the air with Laurel. Showing up at her apartment unannounced, he knew what he wanted to tell her, and it made him feel a bit giddy and a tiny bit nervous. Once Laurel let him in he jumped right into the conversation that he wanted to have and asked, "So have you decided who it is that you're in love with? Because I have."
Laurel looked at him, stepping forward she placed her hand on his cheek, and they met for a kiss. Stepping back Laurel looked at him, "That was goodbye wasn't it."
"Yes."
Nodding Laurel said, "Good, because I chose Tommy." She appeared to be relieved to have said it. "You were my first love Oliver, and a part of me will always love you, but I'm not in love with you anymore."
"I'm glad that you are choosing him. I told him that he needs to fight for you. Treat him right, please." Oliver told her.
"And…" she prompted, nudging him with her elbow.
"And I asked Felicity out on a date." Oliver admitted with a smile on his face.
"Good! I'm glad." Laurel smiled and pulled him into a hug. "Just remember that I can and will kick your butt if you hurt her!"
Leaving Laurel's apartment Oliver felt lighter than he had since he had returned home from the island. While he was getting into his car Felicity called to let him know she had found something and to meet her at the lair.
The next twelve hours were not pleasant. Malcolm Merlyn had revealed himself to be the dark archer and after taking him prisoner Oliver managed to escape with the help of Diggle. He was glad to be relatively unscathed. He had arrived back at the lair just in time to make sure that Detective Lance allowed Felicity to leave after all Olivia still needed to go to school no matter how her parents had spent their night.. Lance had detained her because the police's computer tech guy had figured out that she was working with the Hood, and Lance wanted to know who he was.
As Oliver was leaving the club he ran into Tommy who was drunk and belligerent. When he saw Oliver he accused him of putting the moves on Laurel. Oliver tried to explain the discussion that he had had with Laurel, but Tommy was too drunk and angry to listen. So, Oliver decided to change tactics and warn him about Malcolm, but his friend still refused to listen. Tommy then tried to hit Oliver which he was easily able to evade and in the end Tommy ended up sprawled across the floor of the club. As he lay there Tommy said, "I wish that you had died on that island. Things were better when you were dead."
Tommy's harsh drunken words hurt Oliver more than he wanted to admit. So rather than helping his so-called best friend up from where he lying on the floor and clear the air, Oliver turned on his heel and left for the mansion. Needing a few hours of sleep, he took a shower and set his alarm. Thea was supposed to be picking Olivia up from school that day so that was one less thing that he had to worry about, but he turned the volume on his phone up anyway, just in case. When he woke from his nap Oliver decided to try one last time to get Moira to help him to stop what Malcolm was planning. Unfortunately, the only thing that he accomplished was to learn that the undertaking was going to be taking place that night. With his sense of duty clear he set out for the lair where Diggle and Felicity were already waiting.
***ARROW***
Moira sat down heavily on the chair at her vanity. Most of the other seating and flat surfaces in the room were taken up with the moving boxes for Walter's things. She was still trying to process what Oliver had revealed to her, that Robert had killed himself to make sure that their son lived so that he could right Robert's wrongs. She pulled out the bottom drawer of her vanity and retrieved the two pictures that she kept there. The first picture was one of her and Robert on their wedding day and the other was of her and Walter on their wedding day. She had loved both men with all of her heart, even though they were such different personalities.
She caressed the picture of Robert. He had been so dashing and a larger-than-life figure. Their life together had been fraught with difficulties sometimes, but she knew at the end of the day that he loved her as much as she loved him despite his having multiple affairs. Setting that picture down she then picked up the one of her and Walter.
Walter had been so different from Robert, despite them being good friends. Walter was a man who said what he meant and kept his vows and promises. She knew that their separation was her fault for lying to him and for keeping him in the dark while she tried to protect their family from Merlyn and the rest that were organizing the undertaking.
Unbidden tears rose in her eyes and coursed down her face as she took a good look at herself in the mirror. Oliver's desperate pleas for the other mother's children in the Glades and how they had a duty to protect those people, were still ringing in her ears. She once again picked up her and Robert's wedding picture and thought of his sacrifice both in trying to stop Malcolm Merlyn and in making sure that their son survived to return to them. Moira took a deep breath, composed herself and sighed. The least that she could do was to try to get a warning out to the people living in the Glades.
Stealing herself, she took another deep, calming breath and made a call to her publicist to have all of the news reporters sent to her house as she would be giving a very important press conference in thirty minutes. Then she started to make sure that she was camera ready.
When the time for the press conference arrived, Moira looked out at the reporters who were gathered and she tried not to think of what would most likely happen to her after the press conference. She took a deep breath to prepare herself and put on her CEO face and made sure that the people of the Glades were warned of the disaster that was about to befall them.
Hours later as she sat quietly in the holding cell of the Starling City Police Department listening to the chaos unfolding outside. Oliver's words once again ran through her mind, "Mom, you have to help me stop Malcolm. We need to know where the device is." And that was when the awful truth hit her like a ton of bricks. Oliver was the Vigilante and Felicity was helping him. With that truth weighing her down she did something she hadn't done since the Gambit sank. She prayed.
***ARROW***
Once they had figured out where Malcolm was going to place the device Oliver's phone rang. Digging it out of his pocket he saw that it was Thea. "Now's not a good time Speedy." He said as he answered the phone.
"Well, Mom's got a whole bunch of reporters here." Thea said, sounding worried. "What's going on Ollie?"
"What channel?" He asked, getting Felicity's attention.
"All of them," Thea answered.
"Is Olivia with you?" He asked worriedly, wanting to keep Olivia as far away as possible from everything that was about to happen.
"Yeah, she's standing right here beside me, and she keeps asking why Gran has so many friends here and if she should change into a prettier dress." Thea sounded more like her normal self. "Wait, I think things are about to start."
The siblings watched in stunned silence as Moira started the press conference and told the people of the Glades to leave because of Malcolm Merlyn's diabolical plan and outed what she herself had been involved in as a member of the plan.
"Ollie, Roy lives there!" Thea said panicked, "I've got to go and get him!"
"No!" Oliver ordered, "I need you to stay at the mansion with Olivia and make sure that she's okay."
"But Ollie!" Thea cried.
"Thea, I'm at my club right now. Text me Roy's address and I'll make sure that he has a ride out, okay? Just, please, keep my daughter safe."
"Ugh," Thea groaned, "Do you know where Felicity is and when she should be here? I can get to him after that."
"Felicity is with me at the club." He hesitated for a second. "I was having internet issues, and she was helping to fix them. We'll be back as soon as it's safe. Just promise me that you won't leave the house."
"Fine. I promise I'll stay here with Livy. Mom's heading my way. Ollie, I think the cops are going to arrest her." Thea said, sounding scared.
"Hey, it's going to be okay. Call Jean Loring, she'll know what to do about Mom and the police."
"Thanks Ollie, I love you." She sounded calmer.
"Love you too, Speedy. Give Livy a hug from us." Oliver then hung up the phone and turning to Felicity and Dig he said, "At least Mom's announcemnt gave them a fighting chance." Turning to Dig he asked, "Is there anyone you can send to get Roy out of the Glades? We won't have a chance and I don't want to let Thea down."
Nodding Dig pulled his phone out of his pocket, "Yeah, I know a guy on your family's security team that can go get him. Text me the address so I can send it to him."
"Thank you, John," Oliver said as he found and sent the address.
The three of them talked it over and decided that Dig would go with Oliver to confront Malcolm, while Felicity volunteered to go and dismantle the device because somebody still needed to do it. "This whole area is ground zero." Oliver said to Felicity. "I don't want you here, I want you as far away from here as possible."
"If you're not leaving, I'm not leaving." Felicity stated firmly. "Plus who else is there that can dismantle the device if I don't do it?"
"But what about Olivia? If something happens to both of us…" Oliver didn't finish the sentence.
"You made sure that she was safe with Thea at the mansion." Felicity took a deep breath. "I wouldn't be able to look at her without knowing that I tried everything I could within my power to save those people. What kind of example would I be setting for her if I didn't do that? I'm staying."
Knowing that nothing he could say would dissuade her, Oliver growled, "Fine, but I'm getting you help." He picked up the phone that he used only for Detective Lance. After securing the detective's help he went to suit up in his Hood costume, then it was go-time.
As Oliver entered the Merlyn Global offices he was shocked to see Tommy's prone form on the ground. When he went to check on him, he saw that Tommy was bleeding from a cut on his face and was just starting to come to. Despite everything Tommy had said to him earlier at the club and the deep hurt it caused he still loved his friend. Oliver squatted beside him and helped him to sit up and asked, "Do you know where your dad went?"
Tommy shook his head in a negative and then looking his best friend in the eyes he asked, "Are you going to kill him?"
Not wanting to lie Oliver didn't say anything. Instead, he told Tommy to get to safety because there was a device that would decimate the entire area. Once Oliver was sure that Tommy was on his way out he joined Dig at the once hidden entrance that they knew that Malcolm had to be hiding inside.
During their brief skirmish with Merlyn, Diggle was stabbed twice, one in his upper chest and the other in his upper leg before Merlyn was able to slip away. When Oliver turned to help Dig, he urged Oliver to continue after Merlyn and to take care of him once and for all.
When Oliver caught back up with Merlyn a battle ensued between the two men, with Malcolm ending it by grabbing Oliver in a headlock. He was telling Oliver that his family would be joining him in death very soon when Oliver heard his father's last words to him run through his mind; he needed to live and save the city. With his vision fading as he slowly lost consciousness Oliver saw an arrow lying on the ground where it had fallen after Merlyn had stopped it when he had shot at him. A crazy plan formed in his mind, one that his mentor, Slade Wilson, would have approved of. His vision was darkening even further, so he desperately grabbed the arrow and with all of his strength he stabbed it through himself and into Malcolm. Oliver just hoped that he had gotten the correct angle so it would pierce Malcolm's heart and kill him. Merlyn's arm dropped from around Oliver's throat and after pulling in a deep breath and clearing his mind he grabbed the end of the arrow that attached him to Merlyn and snapped off the fletching. Once the feathers had been removed the shaft easily slid through Oliver's body leaving him in pain but still standing while Malcom lay on the ground with the arrow embedded in his chest.
As Oliver stood over Malcolm, Felicity's voice came over their comms reporting that the device had been deactivated. Oliver sighed in relief but his joy at hearing the news was short lived.
Seeing Oliver's relief and surmising that they had successfully deactivated the device, Malcolm coughed sounding horrible, "The one thing that I learned as a successful businessman is, redundancy."
Oliver had just enough time to warn Felicity that there was a second device before the Glades started to shake as if there was a massive earthquake. Oliver returned to where Diggle was laying and helped him up. The two men made their way to the edge of the roof where they watched in horror as destruction moved across the Glades.
"Oliver?" Came Felicity's shaken voice from their comms once the initial shake had subsided.
"We're here. Are you okay?" Oliver asked, keeping his voice calm, not wanting to betray his worry.
"Yeah," Felicity answered tearfully. Pulling herself together she sniffed and said, "The damage seems to be contained to on the East side, past Wells Street."
Oliver realized that was where CNRI was located, and he knew that Laurel wouldn't listen to any warning and would most certainly be there. "Laurel", he breathed, turning to Diggle he asked, "Will you be okay?"
Digg nodded, "I'll be fine. Go Oliver!"
Ignoring the stabbing pain in shoulder Oliver shot an arrow and swung down to the ground sprinting to his bike. He quickly sped off towards the CNRI building hoping that when he got there that everyone had evacuated and that Laurel would be outside, and nobody would need rescuing. Coming to a stop at the side entrance he felt a measure of relief when he saw Laurel and Detective Lance standing in front of the building. His relief was short lived, however, when he heard her screaming for Tommy. A pain that had nothing to do with his injury shot through his heart. Of course, his lovesick best friend would come down to the Glades to save Laurel. Not hesitating for a moment Oliver rushed into the fallen and burning building intent on reaching Tommy and rescuing him.
Oliver moved through the debris looking for his friend. Seeing a pair of dress shoes sticking out from a pile of debris he called out, "Tommy?"
"Oliver?" Came the quavering reply.
"You're going to be okay." Oliver said firmly, trying to reassure his best friend while making his way over to where he lay pinned under debris.
"That's another thing that we're going to have to disagree on." Tommy forced out as Oliver started to move the debris off of him. When Oliver lifted off a large piece of concrete, he saw that there was rebar poking through his friend's side.
"Is Laurel safe?" Tommy asked, his voice barely a whisper. "I tried to get her out."
Oliver smiled at his friend's determination and focus. "She's safe, you saved her. Now, I'm gonna get you out of here." Then he added as a reassurance, "You'll be fine."
"Oliver stop!" Tommy gasped.
"No! I'm not going to let you die like this!" Oliver growled at him, he didn't want Tommy to give up. He looked at where the rebar was attached to the concrete under Tommy and realized that with one good blow it should come loose.
Tommy grabbed Oliver's arm. "Stop and listen to me. I'm not going to make it."
"Shut up! We don't have much time. I can save you." Oliver roared at his friend and then he paused and wincing, he said, "This might hurt." With that Oliver picked up another large piece of rebar and giving it every ounce of strength he had, he brought it down on the piece that was sticking out of Tommy's back.
Tommy howled in pain then lost consciousness and went limp, most importantly though he was free. Leaving the piece of rebar that was inside Tommy in place, Oliver quickly scooped up his friend and went as fast as he could out the door. He could hear every creak and moan the building was making and knew it was only a matter of time before the rest of the building collapsed. Oliver had just gotten seated on his bike with Tommy precariously sitting in front of him when the building went down throwing dirt and debris everywhere.
Using his arms to brace Tommy and to hold him in place Oliver revved up the engine and headed for the hospital praying that he wasn't too late.