Chapter 12

Thanagar; September 6th, 11:44 EST

A variety of food was spread out on the small table in John and Shayera's hotel room, waiting for the arrival of the other two guests. Last night, the four of them had decided to go home and get a good night's sleep, meeting up today over lunch to go over everything that they had related to Samara's passing.

Erick had arrived first this morning, appearing somewhat nervous. Having Kantar involved now had not eased his nerves in the least. It had only made things worse in his eyes. He wasn't certain how much they could trust Kantar who still believed that Samara had passed away from a drug overdose. Changing his mind was going to be a massive undertaking.

An unexpected hand on his shoulder had Erick nearly jumping out of his skin. "Hey, it'll be all right," Shayera attempted to soothe him. "John and I will keep a close eye on Kantar to make sure he isn't up to anything sneaky."

"I know," Erick relayed with a sigh. "I'm just worried that Kantar isn't going to listen to anything we have to say. He'll just brush it all off and not believe us that Samara was murdered."

"We won't stop until we get to the bottom of this," John confirmed. "That's why we came all this way…why Shayera is risking her life. We're not leaving Thanagar without answers."

A faint smile formed on Erick's face. "I'm so glad you two are here," he said with an air of relief. "I was beginning to lose my mind before you arrived. I thought I was the only one who believed in Samara."

"You're not alone now," Shay comforted him. "She won't be shoved aside as just another relapsed druggie, falling by the wayside. She's going to get the justice that she deserves."

A soft knock at the door had Erick stiffening as John answered it to find Kantar waiting on the other side. "Come in," John said as he stepped aside to allow him entry.

"Nice buffet," Kantar muttered with a nod at the food spread out on the table. "Does John even know half the stuff he's eating?"

"No, and I'd like to keep it that way," John dryly responded with a frown.

Shayera couldn't help but grin at her husband, amused by his aversion to the food she'd eaten her whole life. "I'll tell him when we get home."

"Okay, let's get down to business," Kantar began, taking a chair. "Tell me everything you've uncovered so far. We'll compare it to what I know about the case and see if anything stands out."

"Samara," Erick icily corrected him, catching everyone off guard. "It's Samara, not a case."

"Sorry…Samara Hol," Kanta murmured, pulling out his notebook. "Start at the beginning."

"We've already searched her apartment," Shay told him as she made a plate of food for herself. "While we were there, I found a picture she had hidden in the back of a drawer."

Shayera handed Kantar the picture for him to appraise. "It doesn't appear the picture was taken that long ago… maybe sometime before Samara died."

"That's how we ended up at the pond," Erick added.

"And that's where we found this," John said, handing Kantar a gold ring and bracelet.

Kantar frowned as he took the jewelry, immediately inspecting it for any unusual markings that could indicate who they had belonged to or the maker. "Did these belong to Samara?"

Erick shook his head. "Samara couldn't afford jewelry like this," he insisted. "She was working on getting her life back on track, catching up on bills, and bettering herself. That jewelry is too expensive."

"Maybe another boyfriend gave them to her," Kantar suggested. "If they were given to her by another man, she wouldn't want you to know about it."

"I'm telling you they're not hers," Erick bit out, growing angry with the insinuation.

"Erick, do you think they could've belonged to a friend of hers?" Shay asked him, trying to calm him. "Maybe she was holding them for someone, and they were taken?"

"I guess they could have," he agreed with a shrug of his shoulders. "I didn't actually know anyone in her circle of friends when she was doing drugs. We weren't exactly speaking at that time."

Kantar flipped back through his notebook, checking on something that had abruptly sprung to his mind. "If I remember right, I arrested Samara and a couple of her friends about a year before Samara died. Let me see…here. It was Elowen and Romi. Do you know either of these girls?"

"Wait," Erick said, sitting up a little straighter. "That name Romi sounds familiar."

"Did Samara talk about Romi?" John asked.

"Yes, I think she did," Erick replied with a nod. "Samara once said that if it weren't for Romi she would've been dead a long time ago. I didn't know what she meant by that. She refused to talk about it anymore after that. I thought maybe she'd had a bad drug reaction or something. A few days later Samara was gone. Do you think it could be related?"

Shayera sat forward in her chair, pondering this new information. "It could be."

"Can you find Elowen and Romi's location?" John asked Kantar. "We need to talk to both of them."

"I can go talk to Elowen while you talk to Romi," Kantar suggested. "It'll be better to talk to them at the same time, so they can't contact each other to compare stories. We can meet up here tonight to see what we found out and compare notes."

"I like it," Shayera agreed.

"I'll make sure you get Romi's last known location," Kantar said as he stood to his feet.

"I'm going to go back through Samara's apartment to see if there's anything we missed," Erick decided. "I have to do something to help."

"Let me know if you find anything with either girl's name on it," Shay instructed him.

Erick nodded as he left with Kantar, leaving John and Shayera alone once more. "We should check in on the kids before looking for Romi," John suggested.

"Poor Wally and Linda are probably pulling their hair out by now," Shay said as she flopped back in her chair. "We're going to owe them big time."

"They may never have children after this week," John agreed.

Diana's Mind; September 6th, 14:34 EST

Diana swept into the monitor room with a certain person in mind and a look of determination fixed on her face. She was going to get answers one way or another and there was no better person…or Martian…to help her get those answers.

She found J'onn talking to a civilian crew member, discussing the upgrades to the Watchtower's security. She attempted to wait patiently, but she couldn't help fidgeting anxiously for him to finish. Something was wrong and she needed to find out what it was. She wasn't going to rest until she got to the bottom of it. The life that she had built with Bruce was in danger and it was a price too high for her to pay.

Sensing Diana's restlessness, J'onn turned to face his friend. "Diana, what can I do for you?"

"I don't want to interrupt," she replied, unconsciously wringing her hands. "I can come back later if you're too busy. I'll just come back—"

"It is quite all right," he assured her, grasping her hand. "We're finished here."

"Do you have a moment to talk in private?" she softly asked.

"Of course," he told her, nodding to another crew member to take over running the monitor womb. "Let's go to a conference room where we can speak in private."

Diana nodded, silently following him to a nearby room. She waited until the door slid closed before turning to face her friend, the walls she had built up around her emotions suddenly crumbling at that moment. "J'onn something is wrong with me," she abruptly revealed. "I need your help."

A slight smile adorned his face as he sat down on the edge of the table. "I know you're not pregnant again," he lightly teased. "I'm only sensing one heartbeat."

"No, no," she adamantly replied as she began to pace, her fingers knotted together. "This is difficult to explain. I don't even fully understand it myself…and Bruce…he's worried."

J'onn's brow furrowed as he folded his arms. "Tell me what you're experiencing, Diana."

"Time jumps," she began. "I don't know how else to explain it than time jumps. One moment I'm pregnant with Gracie and the next she's training to go on patrol with Bruce. Kaia and Nicholas are in grade school and before I know it, they're out of college."

"Does Bruce notice any of these time jumps too?"

"No, no one around me notices it but me," she informed him as she shook her head. She paused to look at him. "He's been patient with me about these feelings that something is off, but I'm not sure he completely believes that something is going on. He wonders if something happened to me on a mission that I don't remember, maybe a head injury of some kind or magical spell."

"Well, I can scan your mind to see if—"

Diana came to a stop before him. "Do it, please."

"Diana, if there are things about your life that you don't want me to know…"

"No, I have no secrets, J'onn," she confirmed. "Besides, this is far too important to worry about you seeing intimate moments between Bruce and myself."

"I'll be as brief and careful as I can," he assured her. "I won't probe into your relationship with Bruce."

"Whatever you need to do, J'onn," she pleaded with him, tears beginning to reflect in her eyes. "I feel like my life is slipping through my fingers. I can't let that happen. I've worked too hard to build this life with Bruce, to make a family together. I can't lose what I love most."

J'onn nodded his head, his eyes glowing as he began to probe her mind for any anomalies or suspicious magic that could be interfering with Diana's life. It was very strange for her to be experiencing such time jumps. He could easily sense how upset and frightened she was because of it, so he knew whatever was happening was real to her.

He spent several long moments scanning her mind, carefully picking through memories and emotions as he searched for any type of irregularity. "Hmmm…" he hummed softly as the glow in his eyes subsided.

"Well?" Diana anxiously asked. "What did you find?"

"I'm not certain," he answered with a frown.

"What do you mean?" Diana demanded to know.

"I believe there is something wrong, but I can't seem to pinpoint what it could be," he attempted to clarify. "I want to run some tests to see if we can get to the bottom of this."

"J'onn, you must have some idea of what is going on with me."

"I can tell you it does not appear to be a physical ailment such as a brain tumor or head bleed," he further explained. "I did not find any magical spells or any outside influence that could point to who is behind what you're experiencing."

"So, you didn't find anything?"

"No, I didn't find anything," he confirmed, "but I believe you, Diana. If you say something is wrong, then something is wrong."

Diana wiped away a stray tear. "You do?"

"I do," he maintained. "I know you, Diana. If you feel something is happening to you, then I believe it to be true."

"Thank you, J'onn," she murmured, trying to regain control over her emotions once more.

J'onn placed a reassuring hand on her forearm. "No need for gratitude, my friend. We'll find out what is occurring and put a stop to it."

The confidence in his voice gave Diana a sense of comfort that she had needed in that moment. She felt her resolve strengthening with J'onn's assurance. Whatever was going on…whoever was behind it…was going to be uncovered one way or another.

And when she found out who it was, she was going to make sure they paid dearly for intruding in her life.

Batcave; September 6th, 19:03 EST

Bruce entered the information that they had learned so far into his computer system, hoping that they could narrow things down more. Cronus created Devastation to kill Diana, but neither was behind the curse put on her as an infant.

Part of the mystery had been solved, but there were still so many questions that were left unanswered. He rubbed his forehead as he sat back in his chair, wondering how they were going to survive another confrontation with Deva.

She had already been able to see through Donna's disguise as Wonder Woman, and Donna was the closest thing to Diana besides the Amazon Princess herself. Bruce did not doubt that Devastation would not be fooled by J'onn taking the form of Wonder Woman.

Devastation had incredible abilities that he knew they had only just scratched the surface of, causing him to fear what more she could do. He knew in his heart the only one capable of truly handling Deva would be Diana. Unfortunately, his wife was in no condition to take on anyone right now.

Bruce glanced at the Amazon beauty lying peacefully on the medical bed beside him. To look at her, one would never know that there was a devastating curse that had been placed on her. He missed her, his heart aching deeply in his chest.

Kaia and Nicholas longed for their mother to return, growing more lonesome every day. It hurt him that he had to keep the truth from them, but they were far too young to understand all of this. He didn't even truly understand what was happening to his wife himself.

He was reminded once more how much he hated magic.

"Bruce!" Zatanna called as she and Constantine appeared in the cave.

Bruce turned to see the pair approaching, anxious to hear what they had learned. "What did you find out from Mount Olympus?"

"Some good…some not so good," Constantine replied as he dropped into a nearby chair. "It was frustrating, to say the least."

"Diana has one messed up family," Zatanna confirmed.

"We already knew that," Bruce flatly stated.

"You're not allowed to go to Mount Olympus by the way," John informed him with a grin. "Aphrodite told us to keep you away."

"Why?" Bruce asked, taken aback by the warning.

"Let's just say you'll be fried to a crisp by Zeus if you do," Zee told him. "Your temper and your tongue will no doubt get you killed."

Bruce frowned as his blue eyes narrowed. "We'll see about that. Go on."

"Aphrodite said few in Diana's family tree can be trusted," Zee continued. "They may appear to be friendly but will turn on you when you're not looking and stab you in the back."

"Or put a curse on you," Bruce said. "That doesn't really help us."

"Well, Hermes said Hera put a gag order on him," John revealed. "It makes me think that maybe Hera is more involved in this than we all first believed. She seems pretty bent on keeping everyone from talking to us."

"Aphrodite did say that Hera is closely watching what is happening with Diana and this whole situation," Zee added.

"I hate this," Bruce spat out with a venomous tone. "Her gods always think they can interfere in our lives, meddling where they don't belong and aren't wanted."

"Unfortunately, you married into it, my friend," John pointed out.

"I'd do it all over again just to make her mine," Bruce softly admitted.

"Aphrodite did tell us that we are correct in suspecting someone in the family tree," Zee told him.

Constantine laughed. "So, I guess we are barking up the right tree, so to speak."

"So, not funny," Zee said with a groan, shaking her head.

"Thank you for all you've done for Diana," Bruce replied.

Zee snorted in frustration. "I'm afraid we haven't done much of anything. We've been able to rule out a few magic wielders, but that's about it."

"You have, though," Bruce insisted. "At least we've excluded outside sources for the curse. It's an internal family matter now."

"Yes, but now, we just have to figure out which one of your in-laws is behind it and find out how to get them to remove the curse," Zatanna decided.

"I wish it were as easy as you make it sound," Bruce sighed heavily.

Constantine stood to his feet, shoving his hands into his coat pockets. "We aren't about to give up, Bruce. We'll keep digging."

"I'm beginning to think that a visit to Doctor Fate might be in order," Zatanna thoughtfully murmured.

"Oh no," Constantine groaned out. "That guy is unstable."

"If you have any other ideas, I'd sure love to hear them," Zee stated, her hands finding her hips as she glared at her on-again, off-again boyfriend.

Constantine glanced at Bruce who only shook his head. "Don't look at me," Bruce told him. "You never argue with Zatanna."

Themyscira; September 6th, 22:01 EST

"Getting out of the Underworld took a lot less time than getting through it," Jason uttered with absolute relief as they stepped out of the passageway and onto Themyscirian soil.

"That's because Persephone had Cerberus give us a ride," Phillipus pointed out.

"Never again," Jason adamantly stated. "I'm never going back there. I don't care who is in trouble. Next time, Tim and Dick can go."

Artemis chuckled softly at her husband. "We got information that could help Diana."

"What did you find out?" Queen Hippolyta demanded to know as she rushed into the cave.

"Hades seems to think that Hera could be behind it all," Artemis revealed.

"Hera?" Hippolyta gasped in shock. "Why would Hera want to hurt Diana?"

"I don't know, but Hades said to tell you that you owe him," Jason added. "Not sure what that's about. Do you?"

Hippolyta's face grew ashen as she considered Hades' words. Phillipus noticed the abrupt change in the queen's expression. "I'm sure he was just trying to stir up trouble as always," she assured her.

"Come, let's return to the palace," Hippolyta suggested. "I'm sure you're all hungry and exhausted after your travels."

"I'm starving," Jason agreed.

"You can clean up while I have a meal prepared for you," Hippolyta said as she turned her back to them, trying to tamp down on the tears that threatened to form in her eyes.

"I feel like I smell like that big dog we rode for hours," Jason complained, hoping to get some alone time with his wife. He hadn't kissed her in forever let alone made love with her.

Artemis must have been thinking the same thing as her hand slipped into his, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips. Jason smiled back at her, anxious to get back to the palace. He had never been so happy to be back in the land of the living.

Maybe Diana was cured by now and life could get back to normal for once.

XXX

Jason couldn't stop kissing his wife, knowing that they needed to meet with the others to discuss what they had learned from Hades. The taste of her lips was proving to be far too tempting to resist, the feel of her body pressed against his pure intoxication.

Making love twice while getting washed up had already delayed them. Letting go of her now didn't seem to be something Jason was prepared to do any time soon. "They can go on without us," he murmured between kisses.

"We need to go," Artemis replied, reluctantly pulling away from her husband. "Diana's life is hanging in the balance."

"I hate it when you make sense," he grumbled as he followed her out of their room.

"I always make sense," she commented.

"Did you notice the look on Hippolyta's face when we mentioned that Hades said she owed him one?" Jason asked her. "It was as if she'd seen a ghost."

"I know," she agreed. "It was very strange."

"I think she's hiding something."

"Why would she hide something when Diana's life is at stake?"

"I don't know, but something is wrong and Hippolyt knows what it is."

Reaching the great dining hall, they found Queen Hippolyta and Phillipus waiting for them, a large spread of food on the table. "I was just filling Queen Hippolyta in on our adventures in the Underworld," Phillipus informed them as they took their seats.

Jason quickly began filling his plate, famished from their trip. "I'm just glad to be out of there."

Artemis began from the beginning, relaying their visit with Persephone and Hades with Phillipus adding details she felt important. Hippolyta sat stone-faced as she listened, making them wonder if she was paying attention. It was as if she were lost to her thoughts and memories of the past.

"What are you thinking?" Phillipus finally questioned her, puzzled by Hippolyta's reaction.

"I believe I know who is behind Diana's curse," Hippolyta said barely above a whisper. Her throat was dry, constricting with fear. She could feel a wave of dread washing through her as she stood, the legs of her chair scraping against the tiled floor. "I need to speak to Bruce immediately."

With that she was gone, leaving the trio to wonder what was going on.

Batcave; September 7th, 01:13 EST

Bruce rubbed his weary eyes, trying to erase the burning that refused to diminish. He needed more sleep. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to happen any time soon. He'd gotten little sleep since Diana fell into a coma, finding it difficult to do anything else except to focus on his wife.

Even when he did close his eyes, all he could think about was how he could lose her at any moment. Nightmares plagued what little sleep he did get, leaving him on edge and filled with despair. They were making some progress, but it was slow and miniscule. He needed a big break, and he needed it now.

As if on cue, a message alert came across his laptop. It was Hippolyta.

He immediately accepted the message, his mother-in-law's image appearing on the screen. "Hippolyta," he greeted her, hoping she had some important information that could help Diana. "I'm afraid there hasn't been much of a change in Diana's condition."

"I know," she softly said. "We need to talk."

Bruce's eyebrows knitted together, wondering what was going on. He could tell by her expression that it was serious. He couldn't imagine things becoming much worse than they already were. "What's going on? Is everything all right there? Are Artemis and Jason all right?"

"Yes, everyone is fine," she began. Phillipus, Artemis, and Jason made it back safely from seeing Hades. This is about Diana's condition. I believe I know who may be behind it."

Bruce's entire body grew tense in anticipation, his stomach balling into a tight knot of dread. "Who is it, Hippolyta? Who did this to her?" he demanded to know.

"Hera," she revealed.

"Hera?" he repeated, stunned. "Why would Hera put a curse on her champion?"

"It's my fault, Bruce," she confessed as a tear slipped down her cheek. "This is all my fault."

"What are you talking about?" he asked, shaking his head in confusion. "Do you think she did this to get revenge on you? What could possibly be the reason? Hera is supposed to be the protector of the Amazons."

"There is something that I never told anyone about…in fact, no one knows," she confessed, clearly upset about what she was about to reveal. "Hades isn't Diana's father."

Bruce sat in stunned silence, completely blindsided by the revelation. All this time, Diana had been struggling with the fact that she was the daughter of the god of the Underworld, a god who had done unspeakable things. She'd finally come to terms with it and had accepted what was and what could not be changed.

"What are you saying?" Bruce demanded, his heart beginning to pound in his ears as realization sunk in. "Who is Diana's father, Hippolyta?"

"Zeus…it's Zeus," she admitted.

"Oh my—"

"I know," she interrupted him. "It's not something I'm proud of, but Zeus was the one who helped me form Diana out of clay, not Hades. Zeus and I had a brief fling."

"Why?" he questioned her with a growling edge to his voice. "Why would you lie about that?"

Hippolyta averted her eyes as she drew a shuttering breath. "It's not something I'm proud of, Bruce," she softly replied, obviously emotionally torn by her past choices. "I had a short affair with Zeus before Hades. I asked Hades to claim that he was Diana's father in order to protect her from the wrath of Hera.

Hera is a very jealous goddess, not sitting back idly with Zeus's philandering ways. She is vindictive and does not take her husband's wandering lightly. I was afraid if Hera found out that Zeus helped me create Diana, she would seek revenge."

Bruce could hardly believe what he was hearing, doing his best to keep his anger from reaching his voice. "Why didn't you say something when this all first started?"

"Honestly, I didn't think it was related," she admitted. "As far as everyone knew, Hades was Diana's father. Only Zeus, Hades, and I knew the truth of it. No one else. It never occurred to me that Hera could've found out."

"Somehow, Hera must have discovered the truth," Bruce surmised. "She must be the one behind the curse placed on Diana."

"Even if Hera is behind it, we don't know who she sent to deliver the curse," Hera pointed out.

"I think you better petition Hera for answers."

"Don't you think I have?" she almost cried, distraught. "I did for weeks after Phillipus chased off the intruder in Diana's nursery and I've sent more petitions since the curse took effect. I haven't received any response from her."

"She's probably not going to tell us anyway," he muttered as he considered what he had just learned. "Diana has no idea about this?"

"None," Hippolyta confirmed with a definitive shake of her head. "You are the first person I have ever told the truth of the matter. Not even Phillipus knows about this."

"Someone must have told Hera and is working closely with her on taking revenge on Diana," Bruce decided. "Can you think of anyone who does Hera's bidding?"

"Eris is the goddess of discord, but there's no love loss between Eris and her mother Hera," Hippolyta began. "Ares loathes Diana and would love nothing more than for her to suffer and die. There are just so many that Hera could have used to put the curse on her. The choices are limitless. She could've blackmailed or conned just about any of them into doing her bidding."

"What does your gut tell you," he asked her. "If you had to pick just one, who would Hera ask to place a curse on Diana?"

Hippolyta thought for a long moment, considering the various possibilities that were too many to count. "I honestly don't know, Bruce," she finally replied. "Any one of them could be coaxed into doing Hera's bidding…that is if Hera is truly behind this."

"Right, now…she's my main suspect until I get further proof," he ultimately decided. "She makes the most sense and is doing her best to keep everyone from helping us try to get to the bottom of this curse. She must have something to hide if she's working this hard to keep Diana in this state."

"Has there been any changes?"

"Diana squeezed my hand," Bruce revealed with a faint smile. "It was weak, but I swear I felt it."

"Maybe Diana can find her own way to break this curse."

"If she even knows that she's under a curse," he told her. "Whatever is going on in her mind is completely walled off. J'onn couldn't penetrate it and Zatanna was unable to break through it with her magic."

"That's powerful magic," Hippolyta thoughtfully responded with a nod. "I'll keep trying to find more answers here. Meanwhile, I'm sending Jason and Artemis home to you."

"I'm glad they safely made it out of the Underworld," he admitted. "That is one place I never want to return to."

Hippolyta lowered her head as she spoke softly. "Bruce, I'm truly sorry for not telling you or Diana sooner," she apologized. "It was selfishness and fear on my part…afraid of what Diana would think…afraid of Hera's reaction. I can't undo the past, but I can try to make it right now."

"It'll be all right," he attempted to reassure her. "I won't stop until I have Diana back."

"Let me know if there are any changes."

"I will," he promised before ending the transmission.

Bruce sat back in his chair, trying to process everything he had just learned. While angry with Hippolyta for not revealing this when they had first learned about the curse, he could understand her reluctance. Incurring the wrath of Hera was something he'd want to avoid too, but it appeared as if that's exactly what had happened.

He glanced at Diana, wondering how she would react once she learned the truth. She had been upset to learn that Hades was her father. She had just come to terms with the fact that her father was the god of the Underworld.

How would the Princess of the Amazons react when she finds out her father was the ruler over all the gods of Olympus?

A/N: BOMBSHELL CONFESSION!

UP NEXT: Moved Batman visiting Ivy to the next chapter. Kaia and Nicholas are growing anxious for their mom to come home. The Gotham villains strike again. :)