Chapter 12: The Long Night
Thea squinted. The words on the screen in front of her blurred and she rubbed at her eyes. She looked again and the words seemed clearer, but her head throbbed with the increased focus on the blue-lit screen. Thea closed her eyes for a moment, waiting for the most intense pain to abate. When she opened them, she pushed away from the table and turned instead to look at the board behind her.
She took in the perp board. Five names in bold letters – Paul Smith, Nathan Petty, Alex Neuman, Seth Aubrey, and Tyler Schuler - were pinned in separate zones of the large corkboard which took up an entire wall of Lance's deputy mayor's office in City Hall. Lance had arranged for the corkboard to be placed behind the original wall paneling. When the board wasn't in use, the panels went back up, leaving visitors none the wiser.
Under each name was a list of dates of birth and current addresses of men with names matching their perps living within a 60-mile radius of Star City. Pinned nearby were manila envelopes containing driver's license photos of those who seemed most likely to fit the information about their perpetrator.
After using the same process to identify Vincent Magalore, the man whose name Cisco had given Thea on her first trip to Central City, Thea knew what she had to do. She needed to start with those men whose characteristics most likely matched their perp. But trying to concentrate on just one man when she had five separate names to track was dividing her focus.
Thea leaned forward and unpinned the folder for Seth Aubrey. Out of the five names, "Seth Aubrey" had the fewest owners with the name in their region. Just two. Unlike Paul Smith, a name shared by over 70 men just within the greater Star City region.
Thea took a deep breath and pulled out the two full-page driver's license photos of both Seth Aubreys. Thea began to inspect the first one. This Seth was fifty-one, meaning he would have been in his early forties if he had … spent time … with Thea. Thea did her best to recollect the image of Seth from Cisco's vibe. No, Seth was younger. He seemed like a man in his twenties – thirties at the latest.
Thea set the first picture aside and picked up the second. As soon as she looked at it, the eyes of the man in the photo arrested her. Suddenly Thea was seeing those same eyes looking down at her from above in a dimly lit room. The eyes gleamed with excitement and an eerie smile widened the man's face -
"Pizza's here!"
Thea jumped. The photo floated to the ground out of her hand. Thea's heart pounded and she laid a hand over her chest, willing her heartrate to slow. She spun her office chair around to see an apologetic Quentin Lance.
"Sorry," he said sheepishly. He slid a single cardboard box onto his desk. He repeated, this time in a speaking tone, "Pizza's here."
"Uh-huh. Thanks," Thea said, reaching down to pick the photo up off the ground. Thea looked back at the photo, pulled out of the memory, but still with a creeping, tingly feeling along her spine. She knew this man. This was one of them. This was her Seth Aubrey. In a low voice she said, "I found one."
Quentin, who already had the box open and was pulling two slices together onto a paper plate, stopped. He turned and said slowly, "Oh."
Thea held the photo up and Lance shifted his plate from his right hand to his left so that he could accept the picture. He inspected the man and then looked up at Thea. He asked slowly, "How do you know -"
"It's him," Thea interjected before Quentin could finish. "I remember his eyes. I remember … I remember him."
Quentin seemed to think for a moment. He set his plate down and strode over to the perp board. Picking up a new pin, he posted the photo under the name "Seth Aubrey".
"Okay," he said authoritatively. "Looks like we got our next case." He turned back to Thea. "Let's find this son of a bitch."
Thea nodded slightly. Even as she did, her head throbbed. Thea blinked her eyes, feeling the heaviness in them. It was so stupid to be feeling so worn out when it wasn't even 7 pm.
"Look," Quentin said gently, and Thea turned towards him. His brow was furrowed with concern. "Let's take a break before we dive into Aubrey. Grab some pizza and just relax."
Thea wanted to decline, not because she wanted to continue working, but because the pizza sounded absolutely awful to her at the moment. She looked on with distaste, stomach rebelling at the grease pooling on top of the pepperoni on Quentin's plate. Her throat had been bothering her all day and the thought of eating anything, much less something other than a smoothie, sounded painful. Just as she was about to say she would pass, her eyes were drawn back to Quentin. He hadn't stopped studying her.
Desperately wanting to roll her eyes, Thea instead said pleasantly, "Sounds good," and stood up to fill a plate.
Any pretense of being well fled as the world spun. Thea reached out behind her to grab the chair, but instead she felt a steady hand gripping onto her upper arm. Once the ground stabilized beneath her, Thea straightened up and the hand loosened but didn't vanish.
"Kiddo, you okay?" Quentin's alarmed eyes greeted Thea.
Thea said, "Yes, sorry – just stood up too fast."
His nearness and hold on her arm must have given Quentin the opportunity to observe Thea more closely. He noted, "You feel warm – are you comin' down with something?"
Thea shrugged noncommittally. Quentin was likely onto something, though. Thea had been really tired the night before, foregoing patrol with Sin and falling asleep for the night by 8 pm. When she had woken up that morning, her throat had felt scratchy and as the day wore on, Thea could feel each of her joints in a way that left her longing for a heating pad. It felt like she had to pull just a little harder than normal to get air into her lungs. And then there was this headache from hell.
"Thea," Quentin chided. "You shouldn't be working on this if you're sick. You should be at home resting."
"I'm fine," Thea said quickly, taking a step towards the pizza box. Quentin's hand stayed her and Thea didn't pull away.
"Just sit down," Quentin said kindly. "I'll grab it for you."
Thea sank gratefully into her seat. A wave of exhaustion swept over her and it took all of Thea's power to draw in air. With a little groan, Thea dropped her head down to the desk, burying her face into her crossed arms.
Thea's ears caught the sound of voices and through an encompassing fog, Thea realized she must have fallen asleep at Quentin's desk.
"I'm sorry I interrupted your evening. I just didn't know what to do. I couldn't send her home like this," Quentin said in a low, serious voice.
The fatigue was so deep that Thea had lost the ability to raise her head. Even the thought of sitting up made her head spin and stomach turn.
Laurel's comforting voice rose, "You did the right thing, Dad."
"We wouldn't leave Thea hanging," Josh added. Even with the discomfort Thea currently felt, hearing Josh so firmly accept Thea warmed her.
Laurel noted to her dad, "I told her that her room at our place was always hers to crash at and so far she hasn't taken me up on the offer. It's about time she stayed over." Thea heard soft footsteps against Quentin's carpeted office floor. A gentle hand felt her forehead. Laurel said, "She's burning up!"
"I know it," Quentin said. "And she seemed okay when we started working at 5! It's like it hit all at once."
Laurel made a considering "hmm". Then, "Hey Speedy," Laurel said gently, pushing hair away from Thea's forehead.
While Thea was feeling incredibly uncomfortable in her position leaning against Quentin's desk, she was also aware that any kind of movement would feel far worse. Oh, how Thea wished she could just close her eyes and be in her bed. Her warm, soft bed. Thea let out a grumble to let Laurel know she heard her but had no intention of moving.
Laurel seemed to interpret Thea's grunt for the rejection it was and began to softly scritch her fingers against Thea's scalp. "Hey, Thee," Laurel tried again. "I know you don't feel good. But you'll feel so much better once you're in bed."
Josh asked quietly, "Should we take her to the hospital?"
Laurel responded, "I can call the nurse's line once we're in the car. See what they say."
"No hospital," Thea groused, still not moving her face from the dark safety of her arms.
A second set of footsteps approached her. Josh said in a warm voice, "Okay, Speedy," and Thea felt strong arms grasp under her legs. She felt herself being raised into the air and yelped at the sudden light that forced its way into her sensitive eyes even with her eyes squeezed shut. The arms adjusted her until she was cradled against Josh's chest. Thea buried her face into his shirt, desperately seeking relief from the penetrating light.
Thea felt a light hand on her back, as Laurel soothed her. "Sorry, sweetie," Laurel apologized for Thea's discomfort.
Thea may have drifted off, because she was roused by cooler air, darkness, and her body being shifted into a car. Thea felt the cushioned rear-seat against her back and a set of delicate hands guiding her head to lay on Laurel's lap.
"Got her?" Josh asked in a low tone.
"Yes, thank you," Laurel said, stroking Thea's hair.
The car came to life under Thea. Oh, she was so painfully tired. Her body was absolutely screaming for rest. She felt tears of exhaustion squeeze out of her eyes. Even in the darkness, Laurel must have noticed them, because she wiped them away with a light touch.
Just as Thea thought she had fallen back to sleep, she heard Laurel on the phone. "I'm sorry, I don't have a thermometer with me to check – we weren't at home when she started feeling sick. Okay. Yes. Yeah, she's still waking up when we ask her to. Umhm. Yes, my dad said she was acting dizzy earlier. Okay." The voice was better than a lullaby and Thea felt the warm call of sleep pulling her away.
Thea awoke with a start as she felt herself falling. She opened startled eyes into the dim light of her old bedroom in Laurel and Josh's apartment to find she had been laid down onto the bed. Feeling secure that all was well, Thea let her eyes close. She felt deft fingers removing her shoes and socks, then a pair of soft pajama shorts replaced her jeans. The blankets under her shifted, being tugged away. She felt herself being moved further into the bed and then the blankets tucked around her.
Thea was reawoken by Laurel's insistent coaxing. When Thea blinked unhappily at the blurring face before her, Laurel pressed two Tylenol tablets into her hand. With a tremendous amount of effort, Thea popped the pills into her mouth and leaned forward enough to grasp the cup offered and, with Laurel's guidance, took a few sips of water.
Laurel said softly, with a brush at Thea's limp hair, "I'll be back to check on you." Thea flopped back into bed and fell fast asleep.
Laurel's stomach felt twisted up seeing how sick Thea looked. She had reassured Oliver on the phone that the nurse had said Thea could rest at home and what to look for if she needed to be brought to the hospital; but even so, Laurel wasn't completely sure bringing Thea home had been the right choice. She didn't like how quickly Thea had fallen ill. Her HIV diagnosis was so new to Laurel and Laurel couldn't help but worry if she was doing the right thing.
Laurel sighed deeply. At least Thea would be happier that she was able to rest at the apartment instead of the hospital.
Josh stepped behind where Laurel was brushing her hair at the bathroom mirror, getting ready to get into bed herself. Josh's eyes rested on Laurel with concern.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
Laurel met his warm brown eyes in the mirror. She nodded. "I'm as okay as I can be. I just worry about her," Laurel admitted.
Josh wrapped his arms around her from the back and said sympathetically, "Of course you do. You're a great friend." Laurel let the brush in her hand rest on the countertop, enjoying the comfortable embrace.
Laurel noted, "You called Thea 'Speedy'."
Josh looked surprised, like he hadn't really considered it. "Oh, sorry – is that not okay?" he asked uncertainly.
Laurel felt her lips quirk up as she said, "It's a family nickname – we've called her that since she was little." Josh seemed to take this as a direction that the name was off limits and started to nod understandingly. Laurel said, "I think it's sweet that you called her 'Speedy'. Like Thea's your family."
Josh returned Laurel's look with a half-smile of his own. "Well, your family is my family," he said, leaning forward to press a kiss to her hair.
Laurel set her phone alarm for every two hours, and at midnight, then at 2 am, crept into Thea's room to check on her. At 2 am, Laurel noticed that the sheets around Thea were soggy with sweat and her skin was hot to the touch. The thermometer read 101.1 F, higher than her temperature should have been with a fever reducer. Laurel woke a cranky Thea up and gave her another dose of Tylenol and had her sip some more water. Thea looked like she couldn't stay awake for another moment and Laurel allowed her to curl back under the covers.
At 4 am, Laurel found herself back beside Thea's bed. Every breath Thea drew in, Laurel could hear a wet wheezing noise. Laurel leaned over and felt waves of heat rolling off of Thea. Laurel pressed the temporal thermometer against Thea's forehead and gasped as it registered at 104.2 F.
Laurel whispered, "Thea?" Thea gave no sign of having heard. "Thea?" Laurel said in a speaking tone as she rubbed at Thea's arm to rouse her. Thea remained still.
Laurel clicked on the bedside lamp so she could see more clearly. She grasped Thea's shoulder and gave her a rough shake. Panic began to well into her throat and she said loudly, "Thea!" She stopped to watch. Thea made no move.
Fear scratched at her voice and she called out in terror, "JOSH! Josh, help!"
Hurried footsteps made their way up the hall and Laurel turned to see Josh tugging on jeans over his boxers.
"She's not waking up!" Laurel gasped out fearfully as Josh pressed his way next to her at Thea's bedside.
"She's breathing," Josh said reassuringly. He curled his fingers and, with the knuckles on his index and middle fingers, he pressed forcefully into Thea's sternum and rubbed them up and down. Thea released a low groan at the action and made an uncoordinated jerk to try to escape the pressure from Josh's rubbing.
"Okay, that's good," Josh said, voice sounding like he was intentionally being positive to soothe Laurel. Laurel just shook her head in response, her hands trembling from adrenaline.
Taking control of the situation, Josh said, "Laurel, get the car keys. I'll meet you at the car." Josh bent over to pick up the shirt he had dropped to the floor on the way in and pulled it over his head. He pulled Thea's covers back and easily scooped Thea into his arms.
"Shoes!" Laurel called out as Josh headed to the door in bare feet. She ran and pulled a pair of slip-ons from the front closet and dropped them in front of him. Then Laurel ran into her bedroom and pulled on clothes and shoes before running out the door to catch up to Josh and Thea.
Once inside the car, for the second time that evening, Josh lowered Thea onto the backseat to rest against Laurel. This time, though, Thea gave no signs of being aware that her surroundings had changed. Laurel's heart pounded in her chest and her hand shook as she dialed Oliver's number.
Felicity flew down the hallway towards the intensive care unit of Starling General, trying to keep some sort of grip on the back of Oliver's arm as he raced in front of her. Pushing through a set of double doors, Felicity could now see a pacing Laurel, while Josh sat, stony-faced, on a vinyl-covered chair. Laurel looked unkempt in a way Felicity had rarely seen her – her hair had a few odd kinks and was flatter on one side, while strands stuck out, lit by the fluorescent lights, on the other. She was in a pair of faded leggings and an over-large sweatshirt. Like someone who had woken up to find herself knees deep in a medical crisis.
Felicity's heart was still racing with adrenaline from the middle of the night phone call from Laurel. Earlier in the evening, Laurel had called Oliver to let him know Thea was sick and would be spending the night at her place. Oliver was concerned and had asked about taking her to the hospital, but Laurel reassured Oliver that she had called the nurse line and was told Thea could rest at home and be seen in clinic the next day. Laurel had promised she intended to check on Thea throughout the night. Unsure, Oliver had reluctantly agreed to Laurel's plan. Then, at 4 am Oliver's cellphone sang sharply through the quiet.
Oliver had slowly grabbed his phone, but sat up immediately upon reading the caller's ID on the screen. Felicity snapped on the light as Oliver answered, voice tense, "Laurel? What's wrong?" Felicity's stomach tumbled at the words. "Umhm. What do you mean she won't wake up? And you're going to Starling? Yes, I'm on my way."
The drive to Starling hadn't quelled the fear in Felicity's chest and now seeing her normally controlled friend in a panic wasn't helping at all.
"Laurel," Oliver called out, voice low. Laurel's pacing stopped and she turned towards them with wide, swimming eyes. "Where is she?" Oliver asked.
"They have her in a room," Laurel said, voice thick. "They asked us to wait out here."
Felicity, who had not been privy to Laurel's call and had ridden to the hospital with a stonily silent Oliver, asked, "What happened?"
Josh got up and came to stand behind Laurel. Laurel said, looking bewildered by the memory, "I don't know. It all happened so fast!" Laurel shook her head, trying to make sense of the previous hours. "I checked on her at midnight and at 2 and she woke up and drank water, and let me check her temperature. Then, when I went in at 4 -" Laurel's voice seemed to die in her throat.
Josh grabbed Laurel's hand and squeezed it, saying, "Thea wasn't waking up. Her fever had spiked and her breathing was really rough, so we rushed her here."
Oliver rubbed his hands over his face as if trying to wipe away the stress. Oliver demanded, "What are the doctors saying? Do they know what's wrong?"
Laurel said quietly, "They listened to her lungs – she was wheezing – and they think she might have pneumonia which is causing sepsis."
Felicity felt a wave of dizziness at the update. She remembered how dire sepsis was from when Thea had been dying from her unchecked bloodlust and the old wound from Ra's.
Oliver turned abruptly and walked to the desk. From across the room, Felicity could hear him firmly requesting access to Thea. The young woman behind the desk asked him to wait one minute while she communicated with Thea's medical team.
"I don't care whether they want me in there or not!" Oliver returned heatedly, voice breaking over the quiet waiting room. "That's my sister and I will not let her go through this alone!"
A second desk attendant stepped up to the front to address Oliver. This one seemed older and looked at Oliver with sympathy. She asked, "Are you Ms. Queen's medical proxy?"
Oliver said brusquely, "I'm her only living family."
"Okay, sir. I can take you back to your sister. The team is still with her, so you will need to give them space to work. I'm sorry, but I will have to ask your friends to wait here."
Oliver glanced their way apologetically and then followed the woman as she led him back through the double doors.
The next hours passed in a blur. Felicity had tried to gently assuage Laurel's guilt over not bringing Thea for medical attention sooner while Josh went out to grab breakfast sandwiches and coffee for the four of them. Felicity sent off quick texts to Digg and Lyla and to Sin so that they would see an update on Thea whenever they woke up. She spoke with Barry briefly on the phone since he was an hour ahead. She had googled sepsis and didn't feel any better by what she read. She had a brief, emotional conversation with Walter who stated he would look for the first flight out to Star City.
A little after 6 am, a weary-looking Oliver pushed back through the waiting room doors. Felicity stood to greet him, stepping forward and sensing Laurel and Josh behind her.
Voice low, Oliver said, "It's pneumonia. The doctor says that it seemed to strike so fast because it did – she doesn't have a lot of immunity to withstand infections." He looked over at Laurel and said, "He said you did everything right – if you had brought her to the hospital earlier tonight, they would have just sent her home with some antibiotics. You would have been right back here later." Laurel's eyes began to water at Oliver's words.
Oliver continued, "They have her stable for now on oxygen and antibiotics. She is still septic. It's serious, but they said if you had gotten her here even a few hours later, she could have already been in septic shock, so -" Oliver looked between Josh and Laurel. "Thank you. For looking after her. For getting her help."
"Can we see her?" Laurel asked, tears in her voice.
"She still hasn't woken up," Oliver warned, "But yeah. You can follow me back."
Josh spoke softly to Laurel and gave her a quick side hug and kiss before he took his leave so he could still make it to work. Felicity and Laurel followed Oliver through the main ICU hallway. The space was far too familiar to all of them. Felicity remembered the hours by Thea's bedside while she slowly faded from bloodlust and the panic as she ran through these same halls to get to Laurel's side after her stabbing at Damien Darhk's hands. She was certain that Oliver and Laurel had similar memories walking these halls following Felicity's shooting and resulting paraplegia.
Oliver held the door open to Thea's room and Laurel was immediately at Thea's side, stroking her hair. Felicity took in the now all-too-familiar nasal cannula and dripping IV hanging next to the bed. Felicity was startled to see that, instead of the tubing ending in Thea's arm, the IV connected to a plastic circle on Thea's chest. Felicity remembered Thea telling her about her port catheter, but this was the first time she had seen it.
Thea's skin was pale and, as Felicity got closer, she could see that Thea was damp with sweat. Felicity could hear an uncomfortable wet rasp every time Thea breathed in.
As Laurel drew up a chair to sit next to Thea, Felicity noticed there was only one more chair in the room. Oliver must have too, and said softly to Felicity, "I'll find another. I'll be back."
As the door clicked shut behind him, Laurel turned shining eyes towards Felicity. "I honestly thought she was dead," Laurel said faintly. "When she wouldn't wake up. It's stupid, I know – I could hear her breathing, but – it was like my brain stopped working."
Felicity nodded sympathetically. "But she wasn't. She's still here." Laurel blinked as her eyes filled and she looked down quickly. Felicity added firmly, "You did everything right, Laurel. You got her the help she needed."
Laurel drew in a sniffling breath.
Oliver returned and the three sat in silent vigil. As minutes became hours without change, Laurel played a crossword game on her phone while Felicity flipped through some trashy gossip magazine from the waiting room. Oliver stared at the wall.
Just as sunlight began to peak through the room's window, there was a light knock at the door. A handsome, middle-aged man in a white medical coat walked through. Oliver stood immediately, and the man stepped forward to shake Oliver's hand in greeting.
"Oliver," the man said.
"Dr. Henson," Oliver said, sounding a little confused. Remembering himself, Oliver quickly introduced, "This is my wife Felicity and family friend Laurel." He tilted his head. "What brings you here?"
"I was made aware by Thea's doctor, Dr. Nash, that she was admitted this morning for pneumonia. I thought Thea may want to talk."
Oliver said quickly, "She hasn't regained consciousness since we brought her in. Dr. Nash said she might not until she is no longer septic." Oliver's brow furrowed. "Why would Thea want to speak to you?"
Dr. Henson looked first at Oliver, then glanced at Felicity and Laurel. He asked, "Were you aware Thea had pneumonia in August?"
Oliver looked completely floored at the information and glanced back at Laurel for an explanation. Laurel looked equally as confused and said, "I don't remember that!"
Dr. Henson said, "We admitted her for IVs overnight."
Laurel's eyes went wide and she said, "Thea – she called me and told me she was staying with friends! When she came back she looked really rough. I … I thought she had maybe gone on a bender. I was worried about her."
Dr. Henson said, "This is Thea's second bout of pneumonia this year. I knew Thea would have questions."
Oliver turned back to look at Dr. Henson. "Why would she have questions?"
Dr. Henson looked apologetic. "Two occurrences of pneumonia is considered 'recurrent pneumonia' – an AIDs-defining condition."
Felicity's voice shook as she asked, "Are you saying -?"
Dr. Henson nodded slowly, "I'm so sorry - Thea has met criteria for AIDs."