Fighting Echoes (18/23)
Author: 
serafina19
Title: Fighting Echoes
Summary: As identities and affiliations are exposed, the Justice League begins to form. But once an old foe re-emerges and raises the stakes, Evie is forced to determine how much she is willing to sacrifice to protect everyone she cares about. Sequel to “Notbroken,” and the final multi-chapter in the "Calendar Girl" verse.
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: Coarse language, violence and adult content.
Special thanks to:
552158 for the amazing banners that I couldn’t stop admiring when you sent them to me. Also, big love to
slytherinpunk, without you, I probably wouldn’t have the guts to try this.
August p.1 August p.2 September p.1 September p.2 October p.1 October p.2 October p.3 November p.1 November p.2 December p.1 December p.2 January p.1 January p.2 February p.1 February p.2 March April
May
May 2
Victor paced back and forth, knowing that it wasn't likely that she knew anything, but they were running out of leads. Looking up, he noticed a familiar face, not the one he wanted, but maybe something had come up in the police investigation. “Anything?” he asked optimistically when she gets close.
Lois shook her head, who had only stopped by the cafe for her fill-up on caffiene. “A few calls on the tip line, but nothing legit. You?”
About to shake his head, Victor heard his name being called out to him, causing him to turn around. “Maybe,” he whispered to Lois, before moving quickly towards the other woman.
She was a regular person, with no clue as to who Evie really was, but she talked to Angie at Metro and Victor was hoping she was the break that he was waiting for.
“You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”
“This is about Evie isn’t it?” Angie asked, as she had seen the news, the missing person report. She had gone away from the city for a few weeks, but she never expected this when she got back.
Victor nodded. “Do you know anything?”
“I’m not sure,” she replied calmly, looking around her before speaking. Angie had actually considered coming forward, but she had hoped it was nothing. “This guy came into the shop about a month ago and it really shook Evie up.” In fact, she had never seen her co-worker like that, not even after the bank robbery. “A guy from her past was all that she said about him.”
Knowing Victor would want a description, Angie continued, “6 feet tall, slightly-long dark brown hair, mid-to-late 20s. Ordered a half-fat latte if it helps.” One look at Victor’s face and she knew it did. “Who is he?”
All this time, everyone considered the possibility of Scott coming back into her life, including Chloe who was the only one who knew about John’s visit, but the fact that Scott had visited Metropolis, possibly days before she disappeared, could answer a lot of questions. “Someone... he can help me find her.” He wanted to say more, but Angie knew too much as it was. “Thank you.”
He had turned around and started to walk away, when he heard Angie ask in response, “Wait a second. Should I report this to the police if it helps?”
Stopping in his place, Victor shook his head. Normally, that would be the thing to do, but they couldn’t risk this information going public. They had to find a way to get to Evie without relying too much on the police investigation. Besides, there was the fact that, “They won’t know what to do with it.”
When Victor turned to her once more, Angie took in his expression and understood the seriousness of his words. “Okay, just... bring her home.”
“I plan on it,” he replied. “Really, thank you Angie.” Once again, he turned around and found Lois standing still standing where he left her. He approached her, knowing he would need her help for this lead, but within seconds of seeing him, Lois got off the phone.
“Evie’s brother’s names... now.”
Victor blinked, surprised by the question, but quickly replied, “Will and Jason. Why?”
Lois smiled as she stuffed her phone in his purse and began walking down the street. This wasn’t something she was going to let sit for very long. “The former may have called into the station.”
It didn’t take Victor long to pick up his pace and follow her, even before Lois had spoken. “How?”
“I don’t know,” Lois replied, and honestly she didn’t care. “But they have a recording with my name on it at the station." They were always afraid of the chance her two worlds were colliding, and now it definitely felt like that was the case. "My contact said it was a guy from Michigan claiming Evie was his long-lost sister. Gave out some interesting details we didn’t disclose in the report.”
Lois knew Evie’s story down to a tee and when her contact said that the brother mentioned that she never came home from soccer practice to say goodbye, Lois knew this was something she had to hear. They would have to tread carefully, but Lois needed that recording before it got into the wrong hands. “Coming?”
“Absolutely.” There was no way that Victor wasn’t coming with her. Not only because he knew what her brother sounded like, but also because things were finally going their way, and he had to know if it there was even the slightest chance that things were too good to be true.
~0~
Oliver nodded as Victor filled him in. It wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but at least they were solid leads in the right direction. However, telling his girlfriend was another thing. Chloe had been working solid hours, falling asleep at the console, just barely getting by on coffee. If he told her this now, it would only push her harder and Oliver was concerned as it was.
Stepping into Watchtower, the sight in front of him felt familiar. He stepped towards her carefully, eventually wrapping his arms around her chest when he got close enough. “Chloe, how about you take a rest for a bit?”
“I can sleep when I know she’s safe.” Chloe wasn’t a fool, she knew Victor was standing right behind her and that Oliver wanted him to take over. “Everyone says that I can’t handle things, but I can do this.”
But then it hit her as he continued to stand there. “You know something.” Chloe pushed Oliver off her as she walked away from him. She had heard Victor’s name announced over five minutes ago, and with the luck they have been having lately, updates were thirty seconds tops. “I can’t believe you expect me to walk away when you know something. Spill or I swear to -”
“We have a lead,” Oliver interjected before dipping his head slightly. “But you’re not going to like it.”
“Try me.”
Oliver looked to Victor this time, who had been standing quietly throughout the exchange. Sighing, he uncrossed his arms and pushed past the blondes, not caring about either’s reaction. “Oliver’s right, so I’m only showing you if you promise to take an hour’s rest in Watchtower and I personally promise to keep you informed.”
“You’re kidding me right?” Chloe asked, shocked that Victor would make such an offer.
Dropping the flash drive on the console, Victor turned around to make his point. “We all want to find Evie, but when we’re tired, we get careless. In doing so, we may miss our chance in getting her back and I’m not making that risk.”
Chloe huffed, knowing the rational point Victor was making, but she didn’t want to rest, not now. However, each minute they wasted arguing was a minute not spent finding her, and Chloe knew she could trust Victor in keeping up her search. “One hour, fine.”
Victor stared at her intently, and then seemed satisfied by her answer before turning back to the computers, inserting the drive into the system. “The whole time, it confused me as to why she wanted us to give up. The high road was her fallback card, but why now?” Clicking to the footage he needed, Victor paused as he remembered what he saw the first time. “When we escaped 33.1... I made a sacrifice to protect everyone else. Now she’s returning the favour.”
“Victor, what are you talking about?” Chloe nervously looked to Oliver, who just shrugged, as Victor hadn’t disclosed this part in their earlier conversation.
Victor brought the mouse over the play button, but paused once more. “I finally was able to get the right person at Metro, and she said Evie started feeling weird at the beginning of the month, right after she was approached by, and I quote, ‘a guy from her past.’”
Chloe immediately gasped. “That can’t be right.”
Seeing the shock in Chloe’s eyes, Oliver placed his hand on her back, silently confirming who she was thinking of, even if Victor hadn't nodded. “That was the only conclusion I could come up with, so I tracked Scott’s recent activities. He was in Metropolis, staying at a nearby hotel, only when I called the hotel, they said that he was supposed to leave two weeks ago, but he never checked out.”
He took a hard, shaky breath as the pointer hovered over the play button. “With some help from Lois, who is still running this on the streets, we convinced them to let us see their camera footage.” Finally, Victor played the button and turned to gauge the blondes’ reaction, not being able to watch the footage a second time. Then again, what he had seen had practically engrained in his mind when he watched the first time.
The elevator door opening, Lex coming out, and the prolonged pause before Evie stepped out herself, wiping her eyes before disappearing from the camera’s range. There was no audio, so instead, he could only watch as Chloe covered her mouth, shaking her head at the footage.
“He knows,” she finally whispered, as the situation upon which Evie disappeared was finally clear. Everyone had hoped it wasn’t going to be the worst case scenario, but it appeared that Lex had found his way to Evie, with enough leverage to give herself up.
“And I think there’s a very high chance that he knows at least one of your identities. Bart and I are already compromised, so I asked him to come here.” Being the fastest man alive and getting benched wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but he knew it had to be done. “We’ll stay underground, but you two be careful.”
AC and Dinah weren’t in town long enough and Victor sincerely doubted that Lex could catch on to Clark based on his part-time status. That left the blondes in front of him, as there had to be a reason she didn’t tell Chloe anything about her encountering Lex. It’s why she didn’t want them to follow her, why she said goodbye. They were already compromised.
Only that wasn’t going to stop them, not in Chloe’s mind. If they had nothing to lose, then they were going to fight and find her. But the guys were right... she was more tired than she thought.
“Okay, a deal’s a deal,” she said, before turning away from the console, Oliver right behind her as she approached the stairs.
~0~
Bart hadn’t heard much of the intervention to get Chloe to rest and watching the footage wasn’t what he wanted to see, but once Chloe and Oliver left, there was something he had to get across to his friend. “You’re not one to talk.”
Victor took a second to turn over his shoulder before quickly working through Watchtower’s database. Bart could lecture him all he wanted, but he wasn’t going to sit back now, because this was all his fault. “We have to find her.”
Bart shook his head as he fired back, “I know that, but you don’t think I see it?” The implication of the question was initially lost on Victor, but based on the volume of Bart’s tone, Victor swallowed hard, realizing what the other man meant. He turned to explain to Bart that he was misguided, but he had already expected as much.
He was family, the only family Evie held onto, and being protective of each other was almost second nature. There had been something brewing for months, even if they were too stupid to admit it. “It’s more personal for you than it is for Chloe.”
Victor hated to admit it, but he didn’t have an answer for Bart. All he could do was turn back to his work, not wanting to waste another second. “If it wasn’t for me, she would have left. I convinced her to fight, and now...”
“She made a choice, to save all of us.” Bart sighed, hating having to be the one giving anyone a lecture, but someone had to. “That means we have to be ready when we find her, not running on adrenaline. AC lands in Metropolis tonight, and I can’t leave here anyway, so let the foot shoulders take the night shift.”
It was like hearing the words he told Chloe echoed right back at him, and with that, Victor knew that he was right. “Fine, but the moment anything pops up, get Chloe.” After all, he did promise her. When Bart nodded, Victor headed upstairs. But as he reached the top, he noticed Oliver exiting one of the bedrooms, eyes narrowing upon seeing Victor.
Before Oliver had a chance to ask, Victor said, “I’ve missed my eight hours too and Bart of all people called me on it.” Looking downstairs, at the persistence of Bart behind the console was reassuring, but there were things that Victor trusted Oliver with more. “Lois is en route, but could you keep an eye on things?”
Oliver nodded, but he recognized the particular expression on his friend’s face. “How are you?”
The real question underneath wasn’t lost on Victor. He had kept his feelings to himself, but after Evie disappeared, he cracked and Oliver noticed. “I keep thinking back to that night, thinking I should have been able to stop her.”
Reaching out to place a hand on Victor’s shoulder, Oliver said what he could. “I get what you’re feeling, I really do, but we’ll bring her back.” At this point, he couldn’t promise more.
Victor let out a small smile, knowing the sincerity behind his words. “You did come back from an island, so I believe anything’s possible, but that doesn’t reduce the guilt.”
“Well, I’m here if you need to talk.”
“Thank you,” Victor replied, but as he reached into his pocket, he was quickly reminded of another lead that came to their attention. “There’s something I need to speak to Chloe about first.”
He walked around Oliver and towards the room he had left. Knocking lightly, he opened the door. Chloe was as far from sleep as a person could be, not that he blamed her. Her eyes were staring straight at the ceiling and her mind was clearly active. So it didn’t take long for her to notice his presence in the doorway. “Hey, what’s up?”
Walking into the room fully, Victor handed a piece of paper to Chloe. “Evie’s brother, he called the tip line.” He entrusted the recording to Lois, because when it came to Lex’s radar, she was much lower than he was. But this was something that Chloe needed to know about right away, so they agreed that Victor would give the number and go from there.
“How would he ...?”
“Apparently Scott visited the Hopkins residence a week before he came to Metropolis. This is his number... something tells me that this call should come from you.”
After that, Victor got up from the bed, but Chloe called out to him before he left, “For what it’s worth, thanks.”
It was a stretch at best in his mind, but Victor would take anything he could get. “No problem. I know it's probably not much, but I know that I can at least push on knowing that she’s still okay.”
Chloe’s eyebrows narrowed as the confidence of his words sunk in. “How do you know?”
Turning back around, Victor smiled slightly, “Lex wants her alive... and speaking from experience, Evie’s not the most cooperative captive.” She had built plenty of strength the first time behind bars and the time that passed would only build her resolve. “She may have given into his game, but before they have to a chance to realize it, she’ll have them playing by her rules.”
~0~
No matter how many years had passed, she never forgot how this felt. Cold metal against her wrists, keeping her inches from the wall. The blindfold over her eyes, in case she got any ideas. The chill in the air that almost made her grateful that they kept her body parts close to each other, keeping her warm. This was captivity, but also her home from here on.
She heard the door open and hearing the steps come in, Evie knew the time of solitude was over. After she walked into the Luthor mansion, they didn’t waste much time before they drugged her and since she’d woken up, she had been alone. Not that she minded. Sure, Lex may have figured that it would drive her nuts, but she could handle the silence because she knew what was coming and it no longer scared her. If she had to get more battle scars to keep the world safe, then that is exactly what she would do.
“A little overkill don’t you think?” Evie asked, clanking her restraints for effect.
She had expected silence, or at least one of the goons to give her a sarcastic response, but instead, she heard from Lex himself. “I want to ensure you don’t run this time.”
The funny thing about ‘running’ was that there were restraints last time, and they didn’t just run, they escaped from that hell hole. But this time was different and Evie couldn’t run. “Don’t you get it Lex? Running only destroys the people I care about.” She let out a chuckle before adding, “You won.”
Feeling his hands on her blindfold, Evie’s eyes struggled to adjust to the light before noticing Lex kneeling in front of her. “I haven’t won anything yet.” Lex moved to stand up again, strategically pacing in the room. “There are too many consequences to this ability, so let’s see how much we can test it.”
Evie looked between Lex and the other men and she couldn’t help but shake her head. No matter the first name, Luthors would never understand. “Your father did for years, heck, I’ve been testing it.” She knew that her powers would make her a target, but it was never exactly what they wanted. If nothing else, the price would be too high. “What makes you think that you’ll have any more luck?”
Lex smirked, as technology had much advanced in the past few years, and leverage wasn’t something his father had the courtesy of. Back then, Emily was a girl with nothing to lose, but now, Evie had created roots and Lex had every intention of using them to their full advantage. “Motivation is a tricky thing, pushes people to their limits, limits they didn’t even know they had.”
What he was talking about wasn’t motivation, but Evie could cut through his comment to tell Lex what he needed to hear. “It won’t matter what you do to him. I’ve stopped bullets Lex, I’ve saved people out of desperation before. My little display at the bank robbery, that’s the best I have.”
Lex smiled, glad to hear the confirmation from her own lips regarding the bank robbery. “Do you enjoy underestimating yourself?”
“It’s called being a realist Lex,” Evie replied as she attempted to shrug a shoulder, “and you’ll soon find that you’ve been chasing the wrong girl.”
May 9
Evie had lost track of the mornings she woke up like this, groggy and disoriented. For what felt like days, Lex was true to his word, making her test her ability, controlling people for long periods of time in an attempt to stretch her limits. The physical torture wasn’t high on his list, aside from tasering her awake and a couple of beatings, so the main source of pain was her mental state.
She wanted to say no, in fact, she did once, but the result was her being dragged to another room, and despite being the girl could practically control everything, she could only watch over a television screen as Scott’s ribs were bruised or broken through repeated beatings. However, that wasn’t enough, as instead of the screen going black, there was footage of Victor, Bart, Oliver, the threat, Lex’s side of the so-called bargain still very real.
So she complied, albeit reluctantly, almost relieved when her consciousness ran out. This whole thing was sick. It didn’t bother Lex that people were being killed every day, or potentially every hour, as time was lost on her. It never bothered him that each time she blacked out, Evie lay unconscious somewhere, completely dead to anyone else who didn’t know the truth.
Because of that, Lex kept pushing, wanting Evie to do more, expecting something more than what she gave him, but Evie wouldn’t give him that satisfaction. She had added maybe a couple new tricks to her repertoire, but even that wouldn’t be enough for Lex, To Lex, the duration of time was still too short, too dependent on energy and not strong enough, and that suited Evie just fine.
However, the defiance had apparently gotten to Lex, as he had threatened one day of transferring her to a so-called 'safe place' if she didn’t ‘cooperate,’ and that day seemed to be today, as this time she woke up in a trunk of a car, with fresh restraints, not that it really mattered to her. Even if she could see anything in the trunk, freedom was the furthest thing from her grasp now.
Feeling the car stop, Evie prepared herself for the worst, not knowing what was ahead. The trunk door was opened, but all she could see was the light. Soon after, she couldn’t see anything as a blindfold was tied over her eyes.
Within seconds, the hands moved to her body as she was lifted from the trunk, her feet banging hard against the car before landing on what Evie could only imagine was a lackey’s body, her body resting on his shoulder. Time continued to tick by slowly as he turned corners, went down steps, walked down corridors, without even losing a step or a breath. This clearly wasn’t his first rodeo when it came to 33.1, a fact that scared Evie, but she was just ready to be alone. It was only when she was alone that she felt even a hint of peace within herself. At least a couple ribs were cracked, her lip swollen from a couple beatings, but Lex always insisted that they take it easy on her.
Unfortunately, her world wasn’t easy anymore, as a reminder came in the form of a familiar voice before she was slammed onto the ground.
“I'm not telling you anything, so you might as well kill me now.”
Cursing internally at the pain, Evie grimaced upon hearing his voice. It was hard enough that she took his dad from him, but now she was responsible for taking Scott’s own freedom away from him. Seeing him firsthand like this was never going to be easy.
“I could,” Lex’s irritatingly sly voice interjected, “but that would disappoint our special guest, and you wouldn’t want to do that... especially on her birthday.”
So that’s how long it had been, she thought to herself, feeling her arms being grabbed by two different guards, dragging her through a doorway before stopping far enough for Evie to sense light in the room. Her blindfold was taken off and Evie found Scott’s eyes within seconds.
“Evie?” He couldn’t believe what he was seeing, but he knew it was her. Seeing the blood that stained her clothes, he felt his anger build up, but no words would come out, much to Lex’s delight.
“Right now you’re probably realizing that not only did you lead me right to her, despite your defiance here, but you also gave me the leverage that I needed to get her for myself.”
Closing his eyes, Scott let the words sink in, realizing how much of a fool he had been. They had been right all along, and he should have just let sleeping dogs lie.
Seeing that he had rattled the other man, Lex turned to Evie. “Then there’s you... lying to this innocent man all this time.” Kneeling in front of her, he ripped the tape from her mouth. “Kind of twisted to fall for your handler’s son, don’t you think?”
At this point, Evie was doing everything in her power to not break, so she held her expression strong, no matter how hard she bit her tongue.
“The icing on the cake... I offered her a way out, for both of you... but she refused. So get comfortable, because for you two, this is home sweet home.”
The reminder of the deal, as crippling as it was, was what it took for Evie to find her voice, and her confidence again. “The world needs its heroes to rely on... it’ll carry on without me, but I wouldn’t sleep knowing I betrayed everyone I cared about.” She looked straight into Lex’s eyes, and said, “I regret a lot of things in my life, but not that decision.”
“Fair enough,” Lex said as Evie got dragged to another wall. “Consider this a birthday present.” After the guards shoved Evie to the floor, her stomach colliding hard with the concrete, her leg was then clamped to a shackle on the floor before they men backed away. “You have five minutes alone," Lex called out from the doorway, "Use them well.”
Hearing the door shut, Evie looked up at Scott’s eyes again, a moment she had tried so hard to avoid, but knew it was inevitable since the moment she walked through the door to the Luthor mansion.
“Well,” he deadpanned with a small grin on his face, “I guess it’s still possible you never lied about your birthday.”
“How?” Evie croaked out, just barely holding back her feeling of guilt. “How did you find out?”
“Your dad gave me a picture,” Scott replied, watching as Evie’s head popped up. He had been expecting her surprise, but he pressed on, “You grew up a little, but... I’d know your smile anywhere.” Looking down at the shackles that kept his legs in place, he shook his head. “It’s probably how Lex found out too.”
“How is he? My dad, I mean.”
“It’s hard to tell, talking about the daughter that he feels he let down in every way...” Scott wanted to tell her more, but it wouldn’t make anything better. “I don’t get it Evie... why didn’t you tell me?”
“Getting tortured because I’m some sort of freak didn’t exactly fall under normal teenage drama.” Sure, her family drama was real, but that was because it was the only remotely regular thing she had experienced in the past six months. She couldn’t talk about her prom or her graduation because it never happened and she couldn’t get too specific about friends or family, because she might as well have none. “Besides, how could I tell you that your father died because of me? He may not have been around, but he was so proud of you. It almost killed me that I ruined your family.”
Her eyes shut momentarily, but what she wasn’t expecting was to hear Scott let out a chuckle. Looking at him skeptically, Scott was quick to fill in the blanks. “You’re always so quick to find something wrong in your life, and focus on other people’s strengths instead of your own. As a result, you usually belittle all you’ve done right, because the truth is you’re much stronger than most of us.”
Exhaling loudly, Evie couldn’t believe how normal this talk felt, even with restraints and the dark room around them. “How are you so calm about this?”
“I’ve been here for... a long time.” Scott thought about it, but even if he knew the amount of time he had been here, it didn’t matter. All he knew was Evie was a sight for sore eyes in these dire circumstances. “I plan on using these five minutes properly.” Because it wasn’t likely Lex would be so open to giving this much again.
“But you know who I am... what I can do. And I knew who you were and-”
“And what?” Scott said, not caring that he interrupted her. “Hiding your past doesn’t always make you a fraud. I just respected your need for privacy.”
“But-”
“Was I one of your regrets?” When he had heard Evie say to Lex that she had plenty, he couldn’t help but wonder if that was the case.
Unfortunately, that question was harder to answer than a single word. Evie thought about her answer for a minute, finding the words she needed. “I’ll never forgive myself for everything I took from you and our relationship is likely the reason you’re here.”
“But you loved me.”
“Yeah,” Evie said before she had a chance to stop it, but he deserved that much after everything. “I tried not to lie if I could help it. By the time we happened, I really thought I got past all this."
“Maybe you still can. You had to have done that once.”
Evie dipped her head, knowing things could never be that simple. “Only one of us has a hope of getting out of here alive, and it won’t be me. I made a deal with Lex and I have to live up to it.”
“I’m sure guys like Green Arrow can save themselves.”
“What if he was someone you knew? Someone you wanted to protect?” Evie bit the inside of her lip, knowing she had to tell Scott the truth. After all, Lex already knew the truth and one more person knowing wasn’t going to hurt if they were going to be captives. “Green Arrow... is Oliver.”
Scott’s expression softened once Evie finished speaking. Even in their toughest hour, he had never seen her like this. “Rock and a hard place, huh?” When Evie didn’t respond, he added, “Well, if it makes you feel any better, I can’t blame your decision. And hey, this way we get to see each other more often.”
This time, she couldn’t hold the smile on her face. “You’re insane.”
“Can’t joke with the guards... they don’t have much of a sense of humour.” His smile faded fast as he looked earnestly at her. “I missed you.”
Evie opened her mouth, not entirely sure what she was going to say, when she heard Lex call from the doorway. “Reunions... they’re so touching aren’t they?”
Next thing she knew, Evie felt a prick in her neck and her world was black once again.
May 29
Turning down the alley, Chloe knew that Oliver would likely kill her for not going without backup, but she took the chance, hoping that her friend’s faith wasn’t misplaced.
Within a few steps, the redhead was in sight. Turning in her spot, she smirked, grateful to see Chloe there. “Thanks for meeting me.”
Chloe nodded but she wasn’t about to waste time. “What is this about Tess?”
Fortunately for her, neither was Tess. She deadpanned, “I know Lex has Evelyn Chambers and I want to help.” She felt stupid for not seeing it sooner, but having a name made it easier to figure out who to trust. “The way Lex talks about you... he makes it sound like you’re the connection to the heroes in the city.”
Chloe crossed her arms, glancing around her. “Why should I believe you?”
Tess laughed at that comment. “The fact that you don’t know means that your boyfriend is a better secret keeper than I thought.” Stepping towards Chloe, Tess reached into her bag to pull out a folder. She noticed Chloe’s arm relax upon catching sight of the folder. “I approached Oliver a few months ago to help protect her, and well... no offence, but I’m hoping for better results from you.”
Knowing that didn’t answer Chloe’s question, Tess continued, “Evie saved my life,” It was amazing, knowing everything she had done, especially for Tess, who was a stranger. “Coincidentally, she’s the only person who hasn’t betrayed me in some way. When Lex said Evie was a liar, I realized I had to stop this once and for all.”
Oliver and Victor had long came clean about Tess' visit, but Chloe didn't need to mention that, not when there was one burning question she always wanted to ask her former boss. “Why did you join Lex anyway... was it just a way to screw with Oliver?”
Tess sighed, reaching inside her coat to grab a single piece of paper. This wasn’t something she wanted to admit, but it was the only way Chloe would trust her enough. “After Oliver... it was easy to feel alone in the world. Until Lex showed me this.”
Taking the folder from Tess’ hands, Chloe glanced over the individual sheet of paper on the top. She wanted to believe it was fake, that there was some way it was a lie, but it justified all of her actions and backed up Evie’s story. “You’re a Luthor?”
Tess nodded, but she wasn’t proud of the fact she was Lionel’s bastard daughter. “I thought Lex would give me something that I never had, but Evie showed me his real intentions.” Gripping her hair in her hand, Tess’ head dipped slightly. “I felt so stupid.”
“Trust me,” Chloe said with a dry chuckle, “Lex duped a lot of people before you, myself included.”
“Well, inside of that folder contains all I could find about the facility I believe Evie is being held in. It’s probably a trap... Lex has never made this kind of information accessible to me, but it’s all I can do from my end.” More than anything, Tess wanted to return the favour that Evie had showed her, maybe even appease what she’d done.
“I'll see what I can do.” Chloe packed up the folder and turned to leave, but Tess’ voice called out to her once more.
“For what it’s worth Chloe, I’d like to apologize personally to you. If circumstances were different, I think we really could have been friends.”
It seemed like a crazy idea, but the truth was that she hardly knew Tess at all. Seeing her now made Chloe realize that she was a woman who was in the wrong place at the wrong time and she was trying to redeem herself.
So she was able to reply genuinely, “Nothing says that can’t change.” Chloe smiled at the surprised expression on the other woman’s face, but it fell quickly as she was reminded of another fact. “Evie told me about the kill chip, what happens to you?”
Tess tilted her head slightly, not expecting Chloe to know about that fact, but it really didn’t matter. “If Lex decides to kill me, I at least will go down knowing that I did something to help. I can live with that.”
“You didn’t have much of a choice.”
“Doesn’t make it better Chloe. I saw the way he looked at you from day one... I should have walked away long before our conversation.” Smiling before turning her back to Chloe, Tess glanced up at the night sky, knowing she had to leave soon. “But that doesn’t matter now. I may be on the other side of things, but I’m still that person who wants to save the world. So please... bring her back.”
May 30
The first thing Evie felt was the strain on her arms. Her eyes opened again, feeling weaker than she had in her entire life. Such were her circumstances. It worked though, as at this point, Evie didn’t mind living with a death wish, after all, unconsciousness brought her more joy than consciousness did.
Arms stretched high above her head, it was like she was a side of beef hanging, her feet inches above the ground. In front of her was a sight she knew all too well.
“What did I do to deserve the new digs?” she quipped, as a sense of humour was about all she had left. As long she could help it, even if she was breaking inside, she wouldn’t let Lex see it. “Let me guess...new restraining techniques because the other ones sucked?”
The room was dark enough that it wasn’t likely she’d be able to break the hard shackles on her wrists. It didn’t help that they were behind her head enough that she couldn’t see them without craning her neck. At this point, moving at all ached every bone in her body.
Not that Lex cared, as he laughed at her sarcastic comment. “Still have that snark I see?”
Evie shrugged as much as she could from her position. “I think it only comes out when I’m dealing with demented sadists.”
“I’m going to ignore that for your sake to answer your question instead.” Lex began to pace the room around her again, the only sound being his shoes making contact with the hard floor. “You are partly right, but in the end, it’s all about preparation.”
Laughing, despite the pain in her ribs, Evie didn’t know what else he could possibly have prepared for her that she hadn’t seen. “I’m not just some doll you can upgrade Lex, this is what you get. Great power, great consequence.”
Lex had always seen the defiance in her eyes and considering how far her power had come since the notes he had found from last time, he had a feeling there was still more to discover. “Please Miss Chambers, I know you’re holding back. Maybe if I put Scott out of his misery, then...”
He eyed her as his voice trailed, but Evie’s eyes were serious. “You wouldn’t do that, not because of me... but because of his value. Face it Lex, I did what you asked, and now we both have to deal with the consequences.”
There it was, the constant bravado in her voice, but Lex supposed now was a good time to point out that there had been a blind sport in her choice. “I’m disappointed in you Evie… I thought you were smarter than that.”
“As I did you,” she replied with a loud scoff. “Do you really think I’m going to do anything for you if you kill him?”
“You really think he's the only leverage I have at my disposal?” Seeing her eyes widen, Lex knew that he had her full attention. “Chloe, Oliver... your cousin maybe. The options are endless.”
Evie bit the inside of her cheek to keep her emotions in check, as she did not sacrifice everything so Lex could go back on his word. “You said that you’d leave them alone.”
“I said that I wouldn’t reveal their identities,” Lex replied, pointing his finger towards Evie, knowing that she could identify the difference. “Besides, there’s no need for me to do the dirty work when they come to me.”
Walking closer towards his prisoner, Lex met her eyes and showed her just how serious he was. “I would have held up my bargain if you chose selfishly, but no, you would always choose to protect your friends, just like they’ll always protect you.” It was quite beautiful actually, the loyalty these so-called heroes had, and it was something Lex was relying on happening soon. “When they come, my days of hunting them will be over.”
May 31
It wasn’t supposed to be like this. They were supposed to leave her be. This was supposed to be her fate.
But Lex was right, they would come for her and despite her efforts, Evie couldn’t find a way out of this situation. And because she could, she listened to everything. The thuds on the floor, doors opening, the familiar voices, it was all happening.
It was a good plan as she listened in on the conversation between comms. Bart and Victor handled the computers to cover their identities, while the other three split up to find her and Scott. They had found him first and Evie wanted to feel happy, but she knew that she was next.
Fortunately, she had a plan too. They finally sent guards into her rooms, thinking she was too weak, and while she was, the severity was faked. She had heard earlier that her shackles were computer operated, so a little manipulation later and she was free from her bonds, running down the hallways of the facility. It hurt like hell, but adrenaline masked her pain enough as she rushed down the hall.
She had to explain why she was here before it was too late, and based on her hearing; she was heading the right way. And if anyone got in her way, hitched at her side was her guard’s gun, something she was more than willing to use if it kept her friends safe.
~0~
“Talk to me Tower, where is she?”
“I don’t know, there's no stationary signal in the facility,” Chloe replied. “Is it is possible that -”
“No, she’s alive,” Oliver said with a smile. “It just means that’s Echo’s as resourceful as we thought.” She was always a fighter and Oliver had no reason to believe otherwise. “Status on Black Canary and Aquaman?”
“Heading out with Scott, last I checked,” There was a momentary pause on the line before Chloe added, “Hold that thought, Arrow. I have to transfer to Canary’s feed.”
A couple of corners later, Oliver could hear a loud set of footsteps. He lined up his arrow, ready for his shot, but he wasn’t expecting Evie to round the corner instead.
Momentarily grateful that she found him, she wanted to smile, but there were more important things to attend to. Scott was safe, and that mattered, but she quickly pleaded, “You have to go.”
Putting his bow back to his side, Oliver shook his head. “I’m not leaving without you.”
He had begun to approach her, but Evie held her arms up, trying to stop him. “You don’t have a choice this-”
Her words were cut off by Evie getting pistol whipped, causing her to fall hard to the ground. Standing over her body with his gun pointed towards her, Lex laughed. “Did you think it was that easy? That my dear sister would reveal everything and you could just waltz in here?” Looking up, Lex scoffed at the sight of Oliver pointing his bow at him. “Take down the hood Queen, there’s no need to keep your secret around here.”
Oliver obliged, remembering the warning Victor had given him. It seemed like he was right, which is why they had a contingency plan in place. Taking his glasses from his eyes, he tossed them aside, watching Lex intently as he hadn’t lowered his gun yet. “If you need a bullet to level the playing field, you’re in the wrong game Lex.”
Lex smirked as he gripped the gun tighter. “But it does its job, as did you. Following all of the bread crumbs.” He was quite tempted to move his gun to shoot him after everything Oliver Queen had done, but Lex had to keep his cool. More than anything, he wanted the man to suffer.
“We knew what we were doing.” Oliver prepped his bow again, but keeping it down by his side. If Lex wanted to underestimate him, that was fine, but Oliver knew he could stop him before he fired any bullet. “That’s why I’m here. I was the one you wanted right?”
He was goading him and Lex could feel it working. Swallowing hard, he glanced down at Evie. “So how are we solving this?”
“I know you’re not shooting her. Not everything you’ve done to get her.”
Lex glanced up at Oliver. “And you’re not going to kill me, it’s not your style.”
“Yeah, but I can still kick your ass.” Smirking, Oliver quickly shot an arrow towards Lex’s hand. Before the other man could react the gun was out of his hands and Oliver’s fist collided with his face.
After the intial blow, Oliver hated to admit it, but the fight was fairly equal. It seemed like during his time away from the world, Lex actually considered the possibility that he would have to defend himself. But Oliver’s reflexes were still too much and Lex could never get a decent shot in.
Finally, Lex opened up and Oliver took his shot, punching his chest hard, causing Lex to fall hard back to the wall. Reaching up, Oliver’s hands gripped the other man’s neck and squeezed hard. It was this moment that Oliver realized that he could end the threat right here. After everything Lex had done, no one would blame him.
The other man was choking hard, but still managed to say, “Do it...I... dare you.”
Oliver wanted to, but he knew he couldn’t. It would sink him to Lex’s level, and Oliver knew that he was better than that. It took a decent amount of self restraint to loosen his grip, but Oliver knew he wouldn’t be able to live with the concept that he had killed someone. So he prepared to knock Lex out and put their contingency plan into effect, but before he had the chance, he felt something plunge into his midsection.
Coughing as he backed away, he noticed the small blade that Lex had somehow pulled off his person. Looking up again, he noticed Lex walking towards him with the biggest smile on his face. The whole time, he had been trying to reach for the knife and the grip loosening was all that he needed to pull it out and defend himself.
They began to spar again, but the wound has slowed Oliver down enough that Lex could get the upper hand. Losing his balance, Oliver fell to the floor and it didn’t take long for Lex to stand over him, leaning down to pull the knife from his body, tossing it far enough away so that Oliver couldn’t use it.
Oliver crying out was apparently enough for Lex as he stepped back. “How does it feel Oliver?” His footsteps retreated for a minute, so Oliver tried to get up, but the wound cut deep and it was hard to move. And it didn’t take long for Lex to come back. “How does it feel to be taken down by a Luthor, just like your parents?” His foot firmly on Oliver’s stomach, holding him down, Lex smirked as he held the gun above his head.
“I thought about a slow, painful death for you... but I’ll give you the easy way out.”
Oliver thought of a retort, but he didn’t get a chance to say it as Lex retracted the gun and started to move away. Confused, he tried to stand, but the wound kept him from moving too far. That’s when he looked up and noticed Evie struggling to stand up again.
He knew that look, the way that she was staring at Lex, the way that he was walking over to her. She was inside of his mind, saving Oliver’s life. Tapping into his comm, Oliver managed, “Arrow here... I’m hit,” before coughing hard once more. He didn’t hear a response, but he knew the team would come for them.
“It’s okay Evie, we’ll -” Hearing a click stopped his words...she wouldn’t. Bringing his head up, he noticed Evie’s face now full of tears.
“Victor can fix the computers,” she whispered, knowing what she had to do. She honestly didn’t know why she didn’t think of it sooner, maybe it was because she wasn’t expecting to do this after everything. But when Lex knocked her to the ground, it wasn’t enough to knock her out. She was just way too damn weak to get up right away and even now she felt herself fading, the headaches increasing by the second.
All this time, Evie knew Lex wanted her alive. Even if her mental state was fraying, she had value to him. One bullet could change everything and while she had lost her gun somewhere in her pursuit to find Oliver, Lex had one in his hand, making this at least a little easier.
“What are you-” Oliver tried to talk as he tried to get closer to her, because if she was doing what he thought, he had to stop her.
“Moira can mess with his memory,” she replied, now feeling Lex’s gun against her chest as the man unknowingly stood before her.
“This isn’t your solution,” Oliver cried, damning the pain as he tried to stand up again, but fell seconds later.
“Maybe not, but this,” she replied as she looked up at one of the cameras, hoping that neither Bart nor Victor was watching, “This is all the proof you need to bring him down."
“Evie no,” he yelled, only to close his eyes seconds later upon hearing the gunshot.
June
Sera’s Scribbles: Apologies on the delay, but I haven’t been able to do much writing/editing lately. I blame hockey coming back... and the fact that action scenes are probably the hardest thing to write besides NC-17 for me. So to make up for it, I decided to make this one parts instead of two. More to come...
serafina19
Title: Fighting Echoes
Summary: As identities and affiliations are exposed, the Justice League begins to form. But once an old foe re-emerges and raises the stakes, Evie is forced to determine how much she is willing to sacrifice to protect everyone she cares about. Sequel to “Notbroken,” and the final multi-chapter in the "Calendar Girl" verse.
Rating: NC-17
Warnings: Coarse language, violence and adult content.
Special thanks to:
552158 for the amazing banners that I couldn’t stop admiring when you sent them to me. Also, big love to
slytherinpunk, without you, I probably wouldn’t have the guts to try this.
August p.1 August p.2 September p.1 September p.2 October p.1 October p.2 October p.3 November p.1 November p.2 December p.1 December p.2 January p.1 January p.2 February p.1 February p.2 March April
May
May 2
Victor paced back and forth, knowing that it wasn't likely that she knew anything, but they were running out of leads. Looking up, he noticed a familiar face, not the one he wanted, but maybe something had come up in the police investigation. “Anything?” he asked optimistically when she gets close.
Lois shook her head, who had only stopped by the cafe for her fill-up on caffiene. “A few calls on the tip line, but nothing legit. You?”
About to shake his head, Victor heard his name being called out to him, causing him to turn around. “Maybe,” he whispered to Lois, before moving quickly towards the other woman.
She was a regular person, with no clue as to who Evie really was, but she talked to Angie at Metro and Victor was hoping she was the break that he was waiting for.
“You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”
“This is about Evie isn’t it?” Angie asked, as she had seen the news, the missing person report. She had gone away from the city for a few weeks, but she never expected this when she got back.
Victor nodded. “Do you know anything?”
“I’m not sure,” she replied calmly, looking around her before speaking. Angie had actually considered coming forward, but she had hoped it was nothing. “This guy came into the shop about a month ago and it really shook Evie up.” In fact, she had never seen her co-worker like that, not even after the bank robbery. “A guy from her past was all that she said about him.”
Knowing Victor would want a description, Angie continued, “6 feet tall, slightly-long dark brown hair, mid-to-late 20s. Ordered a half-fat latte if it helps.” One look at Victor’s face and she knew it did. “Who is he?”
All this time, everyone considered the possibility of Scott coming back into her life, including Chloe who was the only one who knew about John’s visit, but the fact that Scott had visited Metropolis, possibly days before she disappeared, could answer a lot of questions. “Someone... he can help me find her.” He wanted to say more, but Angie knew too much as it was. “Thank you.”
He had turned around and started to walk away, when he heard Angie ask in response, “Wait a second. Should I report this to the police if it helps?”
Stopping in his place, Victor shook his head. Normally, that would be the thing to do, but they couldn’t risk this information going public. They had to find a way to get to Evie without relying too much on the police investigation. Besides, there was the fact that, “They won’t know what to do with it.”
When Victor turned to her once more, Angie took in his expression and understood the seriousness of his words. “Okay, just... bring her home.”
“I plan on it,” he replied. “Really, thank you Angie.” Once again, he turned around and found Lois standing still standing where he left her. He approached her, knowing he would need her help for this lead, but within seconds of seeing him, Lois got off the phone.
“Evie’s brother’s names... now.”
Victor blinked, surprised by the question, but quickly replied, “Will and Jason. Why?”
Lois smiled as she stuffed her phone in his purse and began walking down the street. This wasn’t something she was going to let sit for very long. “The former may have called into the station.”
It didn’t take Victor long to pick up his pace and follow her, even before Lois had spoken. “How?”
“I don’t know,” Lois replied, and honestly she didn’t care. “But they have a recording with my name on it at the station." They were always afraid of the chance her two worlds were colliding, and now it definitely felt like that was the case. "My contact said it was a guy from Michigan claiming Evie was his long-lost sister. Gave out some interesting details we didn’t disclose in the report.”
Lois knew Evie’s story down to a tee and when her contact said that the brother mentioned that she never came home from soccer practice to say goodbye, Lois knew this was something she had to hear. They would have to tread carefully, but Lois needed that recording before it got into the wrong hands. “Coming?”
“Absolutely.” There was no way that Victor wasn’t coming with her. Not only because he knew what her brother sounded like, but also because things were finally going their way, and he had to know if it there was even the slightest chance that things were too good to be true.
~0~
Oliver nodded as Victor filled him in. It wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but at least they were solid leads in the right direction. However, telling his girlfriend was another thing. Chloe had been working solid hours, falling asleep at the console, just barely getting by on coffee. If he told her this now, it would only push her harder and Oliver was concerned as it was.
Stepping into Watchtower, the sight in front of him felt familiar. He stepped towards her carefully, eventually wrapping his arms around her chest when he got close enough. “Chloe, how about you take a rest for a bit?”
“I can sleep when I know she’s safe.” Chloe wasn’t a fool, she knew Victor was standing right behind her and that Oliver wanted him to take over. “Everyone says that I can’t handle things, but I can do this.”
But then it hit her as he continued to stand there. “You know something.” Chloe pushed Oliver off her as she walked away from him. She had heard Victor’s name announced over five minutes ago, and with the luck they have been having lately, updates were thirty seconds tops. “I can’t believe you expect me to walk away when you know something. Spill or I swear to -”
“We have a lead,” Oliver interjected before dipping his head slightly. “But you’re not going to like it.”
“Try me.”
Oliver looked to Victor this time, who had been standing quietly throughout the exchange. Sighing, he uncrossed his arms and pushed past the blondes, not caring about either’s reaction. “Oliver’s right, so I’m only showing you if you promise to take an hour’s rest in Watchtower and I personally promise to keep you informed.”
“You’re kidding me right?” Chloe asked, shocked that Victor would make such an offer.
Dropping the flash drive on the console, Victor turned around to make his point. “We all want to find Evie, but when we’re tired, we get careless. In doing so, we may miss our chance in getting her back and I’m not making that risk.”
Chloe huffed, knowing the rational point Victor was making, but she didn’t want to rest, not now. However, each minute they wasted arguing was a minute not spent finding her, and Chloe knew she could trust Victor in keeping up her search. “One hour, fine.”
Victor stared at her intently, and then seemed satisfied by her answer before turning back to the computers, inserting the drive into the system. “The whole time, it confused me as to why she wanted us to give up. The high road was her fallback card, but why now?” Clicking to the footage he needed, Victor paused as he remembered what he saw the first time. “When we escaped 33.1... I made a sacrifice to protect everyone else. Now she’s returning the favour.”
“Victor, what are you talking about?” Chloe nervously looked to Oliver, who just shrugged, as Victor hadn’t disclosed this part in their earlier conversation.
Victor brought the mouse over the play button, but paused once more. “I finally was able to get the right person at Metro, and she said Evie started feeling weird at the beginning of the month, right after she was approached by, and I quote, ‘a guy from her past.’”
Chloe immediately gasped. “That can’t be right.”
Seeing the shock in Chloe’s eyes, Oliver placed his hand on her back, silently confirming who she was thinking of, even if Victor hadn't nodded. “That was the only conclusion I could come up with, so I tracked Scott’s recent activities. He was in Metropolis, staying at a nearby hotel, only when I called the hotel, they said that he was supposed to leave two weeks ago, but he never checked out.”
He took a hard, shaky breath as the pointer hovered over the play button. “With some help from Lois, who is still running this on the streets, we convinced them to let us see their camera footage.” Finally, Victor played the button and turned to gauge the blondes’ reaction, not being able to watch the footage a second time. Then again, what he had seen had practically engrained in his mind when he watched the first time.
The elevator door opening, Lex coming out, and the prolonged pause before Evie stepped out herself, wiping her eyes before disappearing from the camera’s range. There was no audio, so instead, he could only watch as Chloe covered her mouth, shaking her head at the footage.
“He knows,” she finally whispered, as the situation upon which Evie disappeared was finally clear. Everyone had hoped it wasn’t going to be the worst case scenario, but it appeared that Lex had found his way to Evie, with enough leverage to give herself up.
“And I think there’s a very high chance that he knows at least one of your identities. Bart and I are already compromised, so I asked him to come here.” Being the fastest man alive and getting benched wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but he knew it had to be done. “We’ll stay underground, but you two be careful.”
AC and Dinah weren’t in town long enough and Victor sincerely doubted that Lex could catch on to Clark based on his part-time status. That left the blondes in front of him, as there had to be a reason she didn’t tell Chloe anything about her encountering Lex. It’s why she didn’t want them to follow her, why she said goodbye. They were already compromised.
Only that wasn’t going to stop them, not in Chloe’s mind. If they had nothing to lose, then they were going to fight and find her. But the guys were right... she was more tired than she thought.
“Okay, a deal’s a deal,” she said, before turning away from the console, Oliver right behind her as she approached the stairs.
~0~
Bart hadn’t heard much of the intervention to get Chloe to rest and watching the footage wasn’t what he wanted to see, but once Chloe and Oliver left, there was something he had to get across to his friend. “You’re not one to talk.”
Victor took a second to turn over his shoulder before quickly working through Watchtower’s database. Bart could lecture him all he wanted, but he wasn’t going to sit back now, because this was all his fault. “We have to find her.”
Bart shook his head as he fired back, “I know that, but you don’t think I see it?” The implication of the question was initially lost on Victor, but based on the volume of Bart’s tone, Victor swallowed hard, realizing what the other man meant. He turned to explain to Bart that he was misguided, but he had already expected as much.
He was family, the only family Evie held onto, and being protective of each other was almost second nature. There had been something brewing for months, even if they were too stupid to admit it. “It’s more personal for you than it is for Chloe.”
Victor hated to admit it, but he didn’t have an answer for Bart. All he could do was turn back to his work, not wanting to waste another second. “If it wasn’t for me, she would have left. I convinced her to fight, and now...”
“She made a choice, to save all of us.” Bart sighed, hating having to be the one giving anyone a lecture, but someone had to. “That means we have to be ready when we find her, not running on adrenaline. AC lands in Metropolis tonight, and I can’t leave here anyway, so let the foot shoulders take the night shift.”
It was like hearing the words he told Chloe echoed right back at him, and with that, Victor knew that he was right. “Fine, but the moment anything pops up, get Chloe.” After all, he did promise her. When Bart nodded, Victor headed upstairs. But as he reached the top, he noticed Oliver exiting one of the bedrooms, eyes narrowing upon seeing Victor.
Before Oliver had a chance to ask, Victor said, “I’ve missed my eight hours too and Bart of all people called me on it.” Looking downstairs, at the persistence of Bart behind the console was reassuring, but there were things that Victor trusted Oliver with more. “Lois is en route, but could you keep an eye on things?”
Oliver nodded, but he recognized the particular expression on his friend’s face. “How are you?”
The real question underneath wasn’t lost on Victor. He had kept his feelings to himself, but after Evie disappeared, he cracked and Oliver noticed. “I keep thinking back to that night, thinking I should have been able to stop her.”
Reaching out to place a hand on Victor’s shoulder, Oliver said what he could. “I get what you’re feeling, I really do, but we’ll bring her back.” At this point, he couldn’t promise more.
Victor let out a small smile, knowing the sincerity behind his words. “You did come back from an island, so I believe anything’s possible, but that doesn’t reduce the guilt.”
“Well, I’m here if you need to talk.”
“Thank you,” Victor replied, but as he reached into his pocket, he was quickly reminded of another lead that came to their attention. “There’s something I need to speak to Chloe about first.”
He walked around Oliver and towards the room he had left. Knocking lightly, he opened the door. Chloe was as far from sleep as a person could be, not that he blamed her. Her eyes were staring straight at the ceiling and her mind was clearly active. So it didn’t take long for her to notice his presence in the doorway. “Hey, what’s up?”
Walking into the room fully, Victor handed a piece of paper to Chloe. “Evie’s brother, he called the tip line.” He entrusted the recording to Lois, because when it came to Lex’s radar, she was much lower than he was. But this was something that Chloe needed to know about right away, so they agreed that Victor would give the number and go from there.
“How would he ...?”
“Apparently Scott visited the Hopkins residence a week before he came to Metropolis. This is his number... something tells me that this call should come from you.”
After that, Victor got up from the bed, but Chloe called out to him before he left, “For what it’s worth, thanks.”
It was a stretch at best in his mind, but Victor would take anything he could get. “No problem. I know it's probably not much, but I know that I can at least push on knowing that she’s still okay.”
Chloe’s eyebrows narrowed as the confidence of his words sunk in. “How do you know?”
Turning back around, Victor smiled slightly, “Lex wants her alive... and speaking from experience, Evie’s not the most cooperative captive.” She had built plenty of strength the first time behind bars and the time that passed would only build her resolve. “She may have given into his game, but before they have to a chance to realize it, she’ll have them playing by her rules.”
~0~
No matter how many years had passed, she never forgot how this felt. Cold metal against her wrists, keeping her inches from the wall. The blindfold over her eyes, in case she got any ideas. The chill in the air that almost made her grateful that they kept her body parts close to each other, keeping her warm. This was captivity, but also her home from here on.
She heard the door open and hearing the steps come in, Evie knew the time of solitude was over. After she walked into the Luthor mansion, they didn’t waste much time before they drugged her and since she’d woken up, she had been alone. Not that she minded. Sure, Lex may have figured that it would drive her nuts, but she could handle the silence because she knew what was coming and it no longer scared her. If she had to get more battle scars to keep the world safe, then that is exactly what she would do.
“A little overkill don’t you think?” Evie asked, clanking her restraints for effect.
She had expected silence, or at least one of the goons to give her a sarcastic response, but instead, she heard from Lex himself. “I want to ensure you don’t run this time.”
The funny thing about ‘running’ was that there were restraints last time, and they didn’t just run, they escaped from that hell hole. But this time was different and Evie couldn’t run. “Don’t you get it Lex? Running only destroys the people I care about.” She let out a chuckle before adding, “You won.”
Feeling his hands on her blindfold, Evie’s eyes struggled to adjust to the light before noticing Lex kneeling in front of her. “I haven’t won anything yet.” Lex moved to stand up again, strategically pacing in the room. “There are too many consequences to this ability, so let’s see how much we can test it.”
Evie looked between Lex and the other men and she couldn’t help but shake her head. No matter the first name, Luthors would never understand. “Your father did for years, heck, I’ve been testing it.” She knew that her powers would make her a target, but it was never exactly what they wanted. If nothing else, the price would be too high. “What makes you think that you’ll have any more luck?”
Lex smirked, as technology had much advanced in the past few years, and leverage wasn’t something his father had the courtesy of. Back then, Emily was a girl with nothing to lose, but now, Evie had created roots and Lex had every intention of using them to their full advantage. “Motivation is a tricky thing, pushes people to their limits, limits they didn’t even know they had.”
What he was talking about wasn’t motivation, but Evie could cut through his comment to tell Lex what he needed to hear. “It won’t matter what you do to him. I’ve stopped bullets Lex, I’ve saved people out of desperation before. My little display at the bank robbery, that’s the best I have.”
Lex smiled, glad to hear the confirmation from her own lips regarding the bank robbery. “Do you enjoy underestimating yourself?”
“It’s called being a realist Lex,” Evie replied as she attempted to shrug a shoulder, “and you’ll soon find that you’ve been chasing the wrong girl.”
May 9
Evie had lost track of the mornings she woke up like this, groggy and disoriented. For what felt like days, Lex was true to his word, making her test her ability, controlling people for long periods of time in an attempt to stretch her limits. The physical torture wasn’t high on his list, aside from tasering her awake and a couple of beatings, so the main source of pain was her mental state.
She wanted to say no, in fact, she did once, but the result was her being dragged to another room, and despite being the girl could practically control everything, she could only watch over a television screen as Scott’s ribs were bruised or broken through repeated beatings. However, that wasn’t enough, as instead of the screen going black, there was footage of Victor, Bart, Oliver, the threat, Lex’s side of the so-called bargain still very real.
So she complied, albeit reluctantly, almost relieved when her consciousness ran out. This whole thing was sick. It didn’t bother Lex that people were being killed every day, or potentially every hour, as time was lost on her. It never bothered him that each time she blacked out, Evie lay unconscious somewhere, completely dead to anyone else who didn’t know the truth.
Because of that, Lex kept pushing, wanting Evie to do more, expecting something more than what she gave him, but Evie wouldn’t give him that satisfaction. She had added maybe a couple new tricks to her repertoire, but even that wouldn’t be enough for Lex, To Lex, the duration of time was still too short, too dependent on energy and not strong enough, and that suited Evie just fine.
However, the defiance had apparently gotten to Lex, as he had threatened one day of transferring her to a so-called 'safe place' if she didn’t ‘cooperate,’ and that day seemed to be today, as this time she woke up in a trunk of a car, with fresh restraints, not that it really mattered to her. Even if she could see anything in the trunk, freedom was the furthest thing from her grasp now.
Feeling the car stop, Evie prepared herself for the worst, not knowing what was ahead. The trunk door was opened, but all she could see was the light. Soon after, she couldn’t see anything as a blindfold was tied over her eyes.
Within seconds, the hands moved to her body as she was lifted from the trunk, her feet banging hard against the car before landing on what Evie could only imagine was a lackey’s body, her body resting on his shoulder. Time continued to tick by slowly as he turned corners, went down steps, walked down corridors, without even losing a step or a breath. This clearly wasn’t his first rodeo when it came to 33.1, a fact that scared Evie, but she was just ready to be alone. It was only when she was alone that she felt even a hint of peace within herself. At least a couple ribs were cracked, her lip swollen from a couple beatings, but Lex always insisted that they take it easy on her.
Unfortunately, her world wasn’t easy anymore, as a reminder came in the form of a familiar voice before she was slammed onto the ground.
“I'm not telling you anything, so you might as well kill me now.”
Cursing internally at the pain, Evie grimaced upon hearing his voice. It was hard enough that she took his dad from him, but now she was responsible for taking Scott’s own freedom away from him. Seeing him firsthand like this was never going to be easy.
“I could,” Lex’s irritatingly sly voice interjected, “but that would disappoint our special guest, and you wouldn’t want to do that... especially on her birthday.”
So that’s how long it had been, she thought to herself, feeling her arms being grabbed by two different guards, dragging her through a doorway before stopping far enough for Evie to sense light in the room. Her blindfold was taken off and Evie found Scott’s eyes within seconds.
“Evie?” He couldn’t believe what he was seeing, but he knew it was her. Seeing the blood that stained her clothes, he felt his anger build up, but no words would come out, much to Lex’s delight.
“Right now you’re probably realizing that not only did you lead me right to her, despite your defiance here, but you also gave me the leverage that I needed to get her for myself.”
Closing his eyes, Scott let the words sink in, realizing how much of a fool he had been. They had been right all along, and he should have just let sleeping dogs lie.
Seeing that he had rattled the other man, Lex turned to Evie. “Then there’s you... lying to this innocent man all this time.” Kneeling in front of her, he ripped the tape from her mouth. “Kind of twisted to fall for your handler’s son, don’t you think?”
At this point, Evie was doing everything in her power to not break, so she held her expression strong, no matter how hard she bit her tongue.
“The icing on the cake... I offered her a way out, for both of you... but she refused. So get comfortable, because for you two, this is home sweet home.”
The reminder of the deal, as crippling as it was, was what it took for Evie to find her voice, and her confidence again. “The world needs its heroes to rely on... it’ll carry on without me, but I wouldn’t sleep knowing I betrayed everyone I cared about.” She looked straight into Lex’s eyes, and said, “I regret a lot of things in my life, but not that decision.”
“Fair enough,” Lex said as Evie got dragged to another wall. “Consider this a birthday present.” After the guards shoved Evie to the floor, her stomach colliding hard with the concrete, her leg was then clamped to a shackle on the floor before they men backed away. “You have five minutes alone," Lex called out from the doorway, "Use them well.”
Hearing the door shut, Evie looked up at Scott’s eyes again, a moment she had tried so hard to avoid, but knew it was inevitable since the moment she walked through the door to the Luthor mansion.
“Well,” he deadpanned with a small grin on his face, “I guess it’s still possible you never lied about your birthday.”
“How?” Evie croaked out, just barely holding back her feeling of guilt. “How did you find out?”
“Your dad gave me a picture,” Scott replied, watching as Evie’s head popped up. He had been expecting her surprise, but he pressed on, “You grew up a little, but... I’d know your smile anywhere.” Looking down at the shackles that kept his legs in place, he shook his head. “It’s probably how Lex found out too.”
“How is he? My dad, I mean.”
“It’s hard to tell, talking about the daughter that he feels he let down in every way...” Scott wanted to tell her more, but it wouldn’t make anything better. “I don’t get it Evie... why didn’t you tell me?”
“Getting tortured because I’m some sort of freak didn’t exactly fall under normal teenage drama.” Sure, her family drama was real, but that was because it was the only remotely regular thing she had experienced in the past six months. She couldn’t talk about her prom or her graduation because it never happened and she couldn’t get too specific about friends or family, because she might as well have none. “Besides, how could I tell you that your father died because of me? He may not have been around, but he was so proud of you. It almost killed me that I ruined your family.”
Her eyes shut momentarily, but what she wasn’t expecting was to hear Scott let out a chuckle. Looking at him skeptically, Scott was quick to fill in the blanks. “You’re always so quick to find something wrong in your life, and focus on other people’s strengths instead of your own. As a result, you usually belittle all you’ve done right, because the truth is you’re much stronger than most of us.”
Exhaling loudly, Evie couldn’t believe how normal this talk felt, even with restraints and the dark room around them. “How are you so calm about this?”
“I’ve been here for... a long time.” Scott thought about it, but even if he knew the amount of time he had been here, it didn’t matter. All he knew was Evie was a sight for sore eyes in these dire circumstances. “I plan on using these five minutes properly.” Because it wasn’t likely Lex would be so open to giving this much again.
“But you know who I am... what I can do. And I knew who you were and-”
“And what?” Scott said, not caring that he interrupted her. “Hiding your past doesn’t always make you a fraud. I just respected your need for privacy.”
“But-”
“Was I one of your regrets?” When he had heard Evie say to Lex that she had plenty, he couldn’t help but wonder if that was the case.
Unfortunately, that question was harder to answer than a single word. Evie thought about her answer for a minute, finding the words she needed. “I’ll never forgive myself for everything I took from you and our relationship is likely the reason you’re here.”
“But you loved me.”
“Yeah,” Evie said before she had a chance to stop it, but he deserved that much after everything. “I tried not to lie if I could help it. By the time we happened, I really thought I got past all this."
“Maybe you still can. You had to have done that once.”
Evie dipped her head, knowing things could never be that simple. “Only one of us has a hope of getting out of here alive, and it won’t be me. I made a deal with Lex and I have to live up to it.”
“I’m sure guys like Green Arrow can save themselves.”
“What if he was someone you knew? Someone you wanted to protect?” Evie bit the inside of her lip, knowing she had to tell Scott the truth. After all, Lex already knew the truth and one more person knowing wasn’t going to hurt if they were going to be captives. “Green Arrow... is Oliver.”
Scott’s expression softened once Evie finished speaking. Even in their toughest hour, he had never seen her like this. “Rock and a hard place, huh?” When Evie didn’t respond, he added, “Well, if it makes you feel any better, I can’t blame your decision. And hey, this way we get to see each other more often.”
This time, she couldn’t hold the smile on her face. “You’re insane.”
“Can’t joke with the guards... they don’t have much of a sense of humour.” His smile faded fast as he looked earnestly at her. “I missed you.”
Evie opened her mouth, not entirely sure what she was going to say, when she heard Lex call from the doorway. “Reunions... they’re so touching aren’t they?”
Next thing she knew, Evie felt a prick in her neck and her world was black once again.
May 29
Turning down the alley, Chloe knew that Oliver would likely kill her for not going without backup, but she took the chance, hoping that her friend’s faith wasn’t misplaced.
Within a few steps, the redhead was in sight. Turning in her spot, she smirked, grateful to see Chloe there. “Thanks for meeting me.”
Chloe nodded but she wasn’t about to waste time. “What is this about Tess?”
Fortunately for her, neither was Tess. She deadpanned, “I know Lex has Evelyn Chambers and I want to help.” She felt stupid for not seeing it sooner, but having a name made it easier to figure out who to trust. “The way Lex talks about you... he makes it sound like you’re the connection to the heroes in the city.”
Chloe crossed her arms, glancing around her. “Why should I believe you?”
Tess laughed at that comment. “The fact that you don’t know means that your boyfriend is a better secret keeper than I thought.” Stepping towards Chloe, Tess reached into her bag to pull out a folder. She noticed Chloe’s arm relax upon catching sight of the folder. “I approached Oliver a few months ago to help protect her, and well... no offence, but I’m hoping for better results from you.”
Knowing that didn’t answer Chloe’s question, Tess continued, “Evie saved my life,” It was amazing, knowing everything she had done, especially for Tess, who was a stranger. “Coincidentally, she’s the only person who hasn’t betrayed me in some way. When Lex said Evie was a liar, I realized I had to stop this once and for all.”
Oliver and Victor had long came clean about Tess' visit, but Chloe didn't need to mention that, not when there was one burning question she always wanted to ask her former boss. “Why did you join Lex anyway... was it just a way to screw with Oliver?”
Tess sighed, reaching inside her coat to grab a single piece of paper. This wasn’t something she wanted to admit, but it was the only way Chloe would trust her enough. “After Oliver... it was easy to feel alone in the world. Until Lex showed me this.”
Taking the folder from Tess’ hands, Chloe glanced over the individual sheet of paper on the top. She wanted to believe it was fake, that there was some way it was a lie, but it justified all of her actions and backed up Evie’s story. “You’re a Luthor?”
Tess nodded, but she wasn’t proud of the fact she was Lionel’s bastard daughter. “I thought Lex would give me something that I never had, but Evie showed me his real intentions.” Gripping her hair in her hand, Tess’ head dipped slightly. “I felt so stupid.”
“Trust me,” Chloe said with a dry chuckle, “Lex duped a lot of people before you, myself included.”
“Well, inside of that folder contains all I could find about the facility I believe Evie is being held in. It’s probably a trap... Lex has never made this kind of information accessible to me, but it’s all I can do from my end.” More than anything, Tess wanted to return the favour that Evie had showed her, maybe even appease what she’d done.
“I'll see what I can do.” Chloe packed up the folder and turned to leave, but Tess’ voice called out to her once more.
“For what it’s worth Chloe, I’d like to apologize personally to you. If circumstances were different, I think we really could have been friends.”
It seemed like a crazy idea, but the truth was that she hardly knew Tess at all. Seeing her now made Chloe realize that she was a woman who was in the wrong place at the wrong time and she was trying to redeem herself.
So she was able to reply genuinely, “Nothing says that can’t change.” Chloe smiled at the surprised expression on the other woman’s face, but it fell quickly as she was reminded of another fact. “Evie told me about the kill chip, what happens to you?”
Tess tilted her head slightly, not expecting Chloe to know about that fact, but it really didn’t matter. “If Lex decides to kill me, I at least will go down knowing that I did something to help. I can live with that.”
“You didn’t have much of a choice.”
“Doesn’t make it better Chloe. I saw the way he looked at you from day one... I should have walked away long before our conversation.” Smiling before turning her back to Chloe, Tess glanced up at the night sky, knowing she had to leave soon. “But that doesn’t matter now. I may be on the other side of things, but I’m still that person who wants to save the world. So please... bring her back.”
May 30
The first thing Evie felt was the strain on her arms. Her eyes opened again, feeling weaker than she had in her entire life. Such were her circumstances. It worked though, as at this point, Evie didn’t mind living with a death wish, after all, unconsciousness brought her more joy than consciousness did.
Arms stretched high above her head, it was like she was a side of beef hanging, her feet inches above the ground. In front of her was a sight she knew all too well.
“What did I do to deserve the new digs?” she quipped, as a sense of humour was about all she had left. As long she could help it, even if she was breaking inside, she wouldn’t let Lex see it. “Let me guess...new restraining techniques because the other ones sucked?”
The room was dark enough that it wasn’t likely she’d be able to break the hard shackles on her wrists. It didn’t help that they were behind her head enough that she couldn’t see them without craning her neck. At this point, moving at all ached every bone in her body.
Not that Lex cared, as he laughed at her sarcastic comment. “Still have that snark I see?”
Evie shrugged as much as she could from her position. “I think it only comes out when I’m dealing with demented sadists.”
“I’m going to ignore that for your sake to answer your question instead.” Lex began to pace the room around her again, the only sound being his shoes making contact with the hard floor. “You are partly right, but in the end, it’s all about preparation.”
Laughing, despite the pain in her ribs, Evie didn’t know what else he could possibly have prepared for her that she hadn’t seen. “I’m not just some doll you can upgrade Lex, this is what you get. Great power, great consequence.”
Lex had always seen the defiance in her eyes and considering how far her power had come since the notes he had found from last time, he had a feeling there was still more to discover. “Please Miss Chambers, I know you’re holding back. Maybe if I put Scott out of his misery, then...”
He eyed her as his voice trailed, but Evie’s eyes were serious. “You wouldn’t do that, not because of me... but because of his value. Face it Lex, I did what you asked, and now we both have to deal with the consequences.”
There it was, the constant bravado in her voice, but Lex supposed now was a good time to point out that there had been a blind sport in her choice. “I’m disappointed in you Evie… I thought you were smarter than that.”
“As I did you,” she replied with a loud scoff. “Do you really think I’m going to do anything for you if you kill him?”
“You really think he's the only leverage I have at my disposal?” Seeing her eyes widen, Lex knew that he had her full attention. “Chloe, Oliver... your cousin maybe. The options are endless.”
Evie bit the inside of her cheek to keep her emotions in check, as she did not sacrifice everything so Lex could go back on his word. “You said that you’d leave them alone.”
“I said that I wouldn’t reveal their identities,” Lex replied, pointing his finger towards Evie, knowing that she could identify the difference. “Besides, there’s no need for me to do the dirty work when they come to me.”
Walking closer towards his prisoner, Lex met her eyes and showed her just how serious he was. “I would have held up my bargain if you chose selfishly, but no, you would always choose to protect your friends, just like they’ll always protect you.” It was quite beautiful actually, the loyalty these so-called heroes had, and it was something Lex was relying on happening soon. “When they come, my days of hunting them will be over.”
May 31
It wasn’t supposed to be like this. They were supposed to leave her be. This was supposed to be her fate.
But Lex was right, they would come for her and despite her efforts, Evie couldn’t find a way out of this situation. And because she could, she listened to everything. The thuds on the floor, doors opening, the familiar voices, it was all happening.
It was a good plan as she listened in on the conversation between comms. Bart and Victor handled the computers to cover their identities, while the other three split up to find her and Scott. They had found him first and Evie wanted to feel happy, but she knew that she was next.
Fortunately, she had a plan too. They finally sent guards into her rooms, thinking she was too weak, and while she was, the severity was faked. She had heard earlier that her shackles were computer operated, so a little manipulation later and she was free from her bonds, running down the hallways of the facility. It hurt like hell, but adrenaline masked her pain enough as she rushed down the hall.
She had to explain why she was here before it was too late, and based on her hearing; she was heading the right way. And if anyone got in her way, hitched at her side was her guard’s gun, something she was more than willing to use if it kept her friends safe.
~0~
“Talk to me Tower, where is she?”
“I don’t know, there's no stationary signal in the facility,” Chloe replied. “Is it is possible that -”
“No, she’s alive,” Oliver said with a smile. “It just means that’s Echo’s as resourceful as we thought.” She was always a fighter and Oliver had no reason to believe otherwise. “Status on Black Canary and Aquaman?”
“Heading out with Scott, last I checked,” There was a momentary pause on the line before Chloe added, “Hold that thought, Arrow. I have to transfer to Canary’s feed.”
A couple of corners later, Oliver could hear a loud set of footsteps. He lined up his arrow, ready for his shot, but he wasn’t expecting Evie to round the corner instead.
Momentarily grateful that she found him, she wanted to smile, but there were more important things to attend to. Scott was safe, and that mattered, but she quickly pleaded, “You have to go.”
Putting his bow back to his side, Oliver shook his head. “I’m not leaving without you.”
He had begun to approach her, but Evie held her arms up, trying to stop him. “You don’t have a choice this-”
Her words were cut off by Evie getting pistol whipped, causing her to fall hard to the ground. Standing over her body with his gun pointed towards her, Lex laughed. “Did you think it was that easy? That my dear sister would reveal everything and you could just waltz in here?” Looking up, Lex scoffed at the sight of Oliver pointing his bow at him. “Take down the hood Queen, there’s no need to keep your secret around here.”
Oliver obliged, remembering the warning Victor had given him. It seemed like he was right, which is why they had a contingency plan in place. Taking his glasses from his eyes, he tossed them aside, watching Lex intently as he hadn’t lowered his gun yet. “If you need a bullet to level the playing field, you’re in the wrong game Lex.”
Lex smirked as he gripped the gun tighter. “But it does its job, as did you. Following all of the bread crumbs.” He was quite tempted to move his gun to shoot him after everything Oliver Queen had done, but Lex had to keep his cool. More than anything, he wanted the man to suffer.
“We knew what we were doing.” Oliver prepped his bow again, but keeping it down by his side. If Lex wanted to underestimate him, that was fine, but Oliver knew he could stop him before he fired any bullet. “That’s why I’m here. I was the one you wanted right?”
He was goading him and Lex could feel it working. Swallowing hard, he glanced down at Evie. “So how are we solving this?”
“I know you’re not shooting her. Not everything you’ve done to get her.”
Lex glanced up at Oliver. “And you’re not going to kill me, it’s not your style.”
“Yeah, but I can still kick your ass.” Smirking, Oliver quickly shot an arrow towards Lex’s hand. Before the other man could react the gun was out of his hands and Oliver’s fist collided with his face.
After the intial blow, Oliver hated to admit it, but the fight was fairly equal. It seemed like during his time away from the world, Lex actually considered the possibility that he would have to defend himself. But Oliver’s reflexes were still too much and Lex could never get a decent shot in.
Finally, Lex opened up and Oliver took his shot, punching his chest hard, causing Lex to fall hard back to the wall. Reaching up, Oliver’s hands gripped the other man’s neck and squeezed hard. It was this moment that Oliver realized that he could end the threat right here. After everything Lex had done, no one would blame him.
The other man was choking hard, but still managed to say, “Do it...I... dare you.”
Oliver wanted to, but he knew he couldn’t. It would sink him to Lex’s level, and Oliver knew that he was better than that. It took a decent amount of self restraint to loosen his grip, but Oliver knew he wouldn’t be able to live with the concept that he had killed someone. So he prepared to knock Lex out and put their contingency plan into effect, but before he had the chance, he felt something plunge into his midsection.
Coughing as he backed away, he noticed the small blade that Lex had somehow pulled off his person. Looking up again, he noticed Lex walking towards him with the biggest smile on his face. The whole time, he had been trying to reach for the knife and the grip loosening was all that he needed to pull it out and defend himself.
They began to spar again, but the wound has slowed Oliver down enough that Lex could get the upper hand. Losing his balance, Oliver fell to the floor and it didn’t take long for Lex to stand over him, leaning down to pull the knife from his body, tossing it far enough away so that Oliver couldn’t use it.
Oliver crying out was apparently enough for Lex as he stepped back. “How does it feel Oliver?” His footsteps retreated for a minute, so Oliver tried to get up, but the wound cut deep and it was hard to move. And it didn’t take long for Lex to come back. “How does it feel to be taken down by a Luthor, just like your parents?” His foot firmly on Oliver’s stomach, holding him down, Lex smirked as he held the gun above his head.
“I thought about a slow, painful death for you... but I’ll give you the easy way out.”
Oliver thought of a retort, but he didn’t get a chance to say it as Lex retracted the gun and started to move away. Confused, he tried to stand, but the wound kept him from moving too far. That’s when he looked up and noticed Evie struggling to stand up again.
He knew that look, the way that she was staring at Lex, the way that he was walking over to her. She was inside of his mind, saving Oliver’s life. Tapping into his comm, Oliver managed, “Arrow here... I’m hit,” before coughing hard once more. He didn’t hear a response, but he knew the team would come for them.
“It’s okay Evie, we’ll -” Hearing a click stopped his words...she wouldn’t. Bringing his head up, he noticed Evie’s face now full of tears.
“Victor can fix the computers,” she whispered, knowing what she had to do. She honestly didn’t know why she didn’t think of it sooner, maybe it was because she wasn’t expecting to do this after everything. But when Lex knocked her to the ground, it wasn’t enough to knock her out. She was just way too damn weak to get up right away and even now she felt herself fading, the headaches increasing by the second.
All this time, Evie knew Lex wanted her alive. Even if her mental state was fraying, she had value to him. One bullet could change everything and while she had lost her gun somewhere in her pursuit to find Oliver, Lex had one in his hand, making this at least a little easier.
“What are you-” Oliver tried to talk as he tried to get closer to her, because if she was doing what he thought, he had to stop her.
“Moira can mess with his memory,” she replied, now feeling Lex’s gun against her chest as the man unknowingly stood before her.
“This isn’t your solution,” Oliver cried, damning the pain as he tried to stand up again, but fell seconds later.
“Maybe not, but this,” she replied as she looked up at one of the cameras, hoping that neither Bart nor Victor was watching, “This is all the proof you need to bring him down."
“Evie no,” he yelled, only to close his eyes seconds later upon hearing the gunshot.
June
Sera’s Scribbles: Apologies on the delay, but I haven’t been able to do much writing/editing lately. I blame hockey coming back... and the fact that action scenes are probably the hardest thing to write besides NC-17 for me. So to make up for it, I decided to make this one parts instead of two. More to come...