An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Their eyes meet across the tower. They’re surrounded by the ragtag family they’ve built over the years, but their eyes are firmly fixed on each other. They weren’t exactly on speaking terms when Kara was sent to the Phantom Zone. Working together, sure, but friends again? Not even close. Most days, Lena felt like she was mostly tolerated.
There are so many words left unsaid, so many things unresolved. Now that Kara’s back, Lena isn’t sure what to say or do. She’s served her purpose, she brought the hero back. Her presence here is no longer needed and likely no longer wanted. Kara needs to spend time with her family, get to know her father again.
Lena should go. She doesn’t belong here. Did she ever? She should definitely go.
Veridian eyes are the first to look away. Seeing the disappointment that is probably swimming in ocean blue isn’t something she can handle at the moment. She waits until the others swarm the superhero before she quietly gathers her things and makes her exit. Getting Kara back is what she promised Alex and she’s fulfilled it. It’s time for her to figure out what her future looks like. She’s on her own, starting over again.
But first, she needs to grieve. Lena’s lost everything. Again. Kara’s betrayal broke her in a way nothing or no one ever has. She’s lost the only person that ever actually believed in her. Yet again, she is mourning someone that is still alive. First Lex, then Andrea, and now Kara. Sure, she played a role in the rift with Kara, but any time she lets her guard down, someone rips her heart out.
As she enters the cab, she thanks her past self for removing all of her things from Kara’s apartment before the rescue mission. Getting a hotel room was a good idea. At least she doesn’t have to see the inside of the apartment again, doesn’t have to face those otherworldly blue eyes in the only place that ever felt like home.
She can grieve in peace. Eventually she will find her own place again. At this point, she’s not even sure she’s staying in National City. What’s the point? There’s nothing here for her anymore. She’s got more money than she will ever spend, maybe she’ll head to Ireland. Back to the place her mother’s memories live.
The beep of the door unlocking startles her from her thoughts. The lifeless, sterile room matches the way her soul currently feels. Empty and achingly lonely. Now she needs to find something to numb the ache in her chest. Her legs automatically take her to the dining table in her suite. Her past self made sure to stock up on her preferred poison, Macallan double cask single malt scotch – a tried and true method of numbing what ails her.
Her current emotional state causes her to bypass the tumbler in favor of drinking directly from the bottle. Not that it matters, there’s no one to care anyway. She opens the bottle and makes her way onto the balcony. Kara won’t be flying around anytime soon, it will be at least a few hours before she has her powers back fully so she feels safe sitting outside.
Besides, as soon as she is a few drinks in, she’ll activate the lead shield she created. Then her favorite Kryptonian won’t be able to hear her heartbeat. It’ll be better for both of them. Kara deserves better than she will ever be and she’s pretty sure the hero doesn’t want anything to do with Lena anymore. She releases a humorless laugh before taking a swig from the bottle. Swallowing and feeling the burn promptly turns into body wracking sobs.
She ends up sitting on the balcony for longer than anticipated. Between sobs, she manages to drink about half of the bottle of scotch. Pushing herself up from the chair, she stumbles her way inside to activate the shield. At least now she can drown her sorrow without the risk of the woman she loves more than life finding her in such a chaotic, sad state.
The next two days pass in a blur. She manages to eat just enough to sustain her mostly liquid diet. A pretty steady drunkenness propels her into a numbness that prevents the stark emptiness from being front and center. Unfortunately, it does nothing to quell the loneliness and grief. Every inch of her body is engulfed with loss. No matter how much she tries, the love she feels for Kara remains threaded into every fiber of her being. So she drinks more.
When the third day rolls around, her luck runs out. She knew it wouldn’t be long before Kara figured out where she was. It’s not hard when her suite is the only one in the city with a lead shield. As she anticipated, around noon on the third day a tentative knock sounds on her door. First she ignores it, just like she has her phone. All of them have tried to call and text. Unfortunately, she can’t ignore the now insistent knock on her door. Still, she tries.
A tired voice penetrates the threshold between them. “Lena, please open the door. Please.” Kara’s weary words drift into the silence around her. “I’m not going to leave until I see you. I need to, Lena. Please.”
The last word cracks with emotion and breaks what little resolve the youngest Luthor has. She staggers to the door, engaging the swing bar lock to crack the door enough for Kara to see her. “T-There. Nowsh’you see’shmme.” Lena slurs, leaning against the door to hold herself up.
The hero’s shoulders slump and the already welling tears cascade down her face. A shaky whisper of “Lena” escapes her lips before she reaches her hand out as if to touch the porcelain skin peeking around the barely open door. “Please let me in. I’ll sit out here in the hallway until you do. I’m not going away, Lena.”
The sound that escapes her throat is something between a groan and a resigned laugh. She is weak to the woman standing in the hallway, always has been. Closing the door and disengaging the swing lock, she reopens it before staggering back to her third bottle of scotch. With the bottle in hand, she plops herself onto the couch without looking at the hero.
Kara just stands at the edge of the room watching the raven haired genius swallow the last dregs of what appears to be her final bottle of scotch. She’s never seen the woman in such a state. In the five years of their friendship, she’s seen Lena tipsy and even drunk, but never like this. Her usually stoic facade is nowhere in sight. Kara has never seen her this disheveled and out of sorts. Immediately, her stomach drops and she feels some sense of responsibility for it.
Their friendship wasn’t anywhere near mended before her unplanned trip to the Phantom Zone. It was a tentative truce at best. Her time with the phantoms was riddled with “what ifs” and “should haves” related to her relationship with Lena. Seeing the state of her best friend (ex-best friend?) now makes her want to vomit. The fact she felt the need to run from the tower after their shared moment of eye contact twists the proverbial knife in her heart.
Kara’s selfish behavior and lies ruined everything they built. After Lena told her countless times she’d been betrayed and lied to by the people she loved most, Kara continued to keep her secret. How is she ever going to get back into her good graces?
Here she is standing at the edge of the room while the woman she loves drinks herself into oblivion. Standing and staring, saying nothing. In truth, she has no idea what to say. How do you tell the person that means the most to you that you didn’t mean to break their heart when deep down you knew it would happen? She has no words. She’s paralyzed by the possibility of losing Lena for good. So, she watches as the most beautiful woman she’s ever seen fades into unconsciousness.
Saying nothing.
Lena wakes up at noon the following day, head throbbing and stomach roiling. She’s confused because she distinctly remembers being on the couch, but she’s in bed with the curtains drawn. Her eyes squint at the glass of water and ibuprofen sitting on the bedside table. That’s when she realizes what she thought was a dream must have been real. Kara was here. A sigh escapes her lungs and she rolls over to push herself up. Sitting on the side of the bed, she gingerly grabs the glass of water and pills to swallow them down. Of course Kara would take care of her.
Forcing herself to sit still for a minute, she listens for any sign of the blonde in the suite. When she doesn’t hear anything, she grabs a change of clothes and heads to the bathroom. Thankfully, the cool shower tempers the hangover a bit. As she opens the door to the bathroom, she is greeted by Kara sitting at the table surrounded by food. The sight stops her in her tracks. She didn’t expect the Kryptonian to still be here, much less sitting at the table waiting with food.
They make brief eye contact before Lena moves again. Neither of them say anything, the silence filling the space with their internal shame. Each harboring guilt and blame for the current situation. She makes it a point to sit at the opposite end of the table from Kara, knowing she can’t share close quarters with her without shattering. Not right now, maybe not ever. The meal is spent in a deafening quietude that makes them both squirm, but neither is willing to speak.
Or maybe they just don’t know what to say. Is it too late to salvage what they had? Can they wash away the mistakes and talk about how they feel? The doubt swims across the air between them like sharks circling an injured seal. How can they possibly rebuild their relationship on such damaged ground? They’re both frozen in place, paralyzed with fear and indecision.
Lena finishes what little she manages to eat, grabs her sunglasses, a bottle of water, and steps out onto the balcony. She spent three days trying to wash away her mistakes, erase her pain, and all she did was make herself feel worse. Now she can feel every pulse of heartache, every ounce of remorse and guilt. She’s no closer to knowing what to do than she was before. There’s a part of her that wishes she wouldn’t have survived the phantoms. Maybe that would have been easier than whatever this is.
Her whole body stiffens when she hears the balcony door open and close. The presence of the hero appears in her periphery. Close enough to see, but far enough away they don’t run the risk of an accidental touch. Kara is close enough to pull her into a hug, but she won’t. She can’t.
They both stand there, saying nothing.
Lena chances a glance to her right and immediately regrets her decision. There is a deep, profound sadness in the blue eyes that meet hers. Glittering tears flow down unusually pale cheeks and it further guts her. They’ve both spent so much time bottling up their feelings to save themselves from pain only to cut their own throats with the knife of their lies.
Here they are, two women who spent most of their lives trying to please others by hiding behind walls and facades. Now they're broken and damaged standing in front of each other afraid to speak. They need to talk, to tell each other how they feel, expel their pain, but they stand there and say nothing. Lost in the stare of regret.
Neither of them are sure which one of them moves, but they drift together, inches apart. Stormy blue eyes are focused on churning sea green. There is a question asked in their intense gaze, each seeking permission to pull the other close. With silent permission granted, they bridge the divide and wrap their arms around the other. It’s a step, toward what, who knows, but it’s a step.
Lena stands there.
Kara stands there.
For now, that’s all they need. Arms wrapped around their world.
It’s been months since Lex and Nxyly were defeated, since Lillian died. Months since the loss of the only family Lena’s known for a majority of her life. At first, she felt completely lost. Where she thought she would feel a sense of freedom, a sense of relief, she instead feels utterly lost. In fact, Lena feels more lost than she did on her first day at Luthor Manor as a tiny four year old.
She’s not lonely anymore. Not in any sense of the word, not really. She spends her days splitting time between the newly formed Lena Luthor Foundation and The Tower. As a fully integrated member of the team, she works alongside the rest of her friends to keep the city safe. Most of her evenings are spent at the apartment she now shares with Kara.
It happens organically. Neither woman wants to live alone, they talked extensively about it. The problem is, neither really trust anyone to share their space. Well, outside of each other, anyway. That’s how they end up living in Kara’s loft. The idea of finding a bigger two bedroom space gets kicked around for a while. When neither of them bring it up again, the subject gets dropped and they fall into a routine.
The fact there is only one bed and they’re sharing it isn’t strange. Best friends do that, right? It’s not an issue. The fact Lena hasn’t mentioned it to her therapist doesn’t mean anything. She just hasn’t gotten to it. Yet.
It’s fine.
That’s the other new thing. Lena Luthor is seeing a therapist.
When Kelly recommends she go to therapy, she scoffs. She’s a Luthor, after all. Luthors don’t go to therapy. However, after a little time passes, she begins to question her reactions to things. Is she scoffing at therapy because that’s actually how she feels about it or because that’s how the Luthors taught her to feel? This line of thinking bleeds over into every aspect of her life making her question her beliefs and reactions to everything. Needless to say, it’s very eye opening.
This revelation sends her on a journey of discovery and self-care. She starts eating regularly, figuring out what she likes and doesn’t like in all aspects of her life. It’s like rediscovering the world around her. Unfortunately, along with the good comes the bad. Finally seeing how truly horrible she was treated by her supposed family and the damage it caused is a whiplash of trauma. Talking about things helps her in ways she never imagined. It’s the deep seated wounds to her psyche, all of the things she lost or missed out on that are harder to reconcile.
The past few weeks have been full of introspection and realization. She’s starting to understand more and more, the little girl inside her hasn’t healed. That little girl wasn’t allowed to exist so she never got to grow and learn. At first it was a hard pill to swallow for the last Luthor, now she is trying to figure out what to do about it. Can she do anything? Is it too late?
These questions consume her thoughts most evenings and she knows Kara has noticed. It’s a random Tuesday when the hero finally asks.
Kara can tell there is something weighing on Lena’s mind. They’ve just finished a late dinner, both having worked later than usual. Plates, flatware, and glasses still strewn on the coffee table and one of their guilty pleasure shows streaming in the background. The blonde doesn’t want to pry, but she knows Lena has a propensity to compartmentalize and stifle her emotions so she tries to gently push her friend to open up.
Kara sighs internally. Calling the woman next to her friend, even in her head, doesn’t feel right. Lena is her friend, the best even, but it’s always been more. It has been for a long time. She knows it and she’s pretty sure her sister knows, too. Now though, it’s getting harder and harder to keep it at bay. They’re living together. Sleeping in the same bed. Not just that, they are always wrapped around each other in bed. She’s never had a friend like that. Not in all of her Earth years. So yeah, it’s getting harder to keep her feelings tamped down.
But, that’s for another day, right now she needs to focus on her best friend.
“Penny for your thoughts?” Kara slides closer to the woman and softly pats the jogger clad thigh now pressed against her own. “You barely ate your dinner and it was your favorite. Plus, you’ve been essentially staring through the TV all evening. Are you okay?”
The gentle voice jars Lena from her thoughts, her viridian eyes settle on her best friend’s concerned sapphire ones. She shifts her eyes away and runs her fingers through her ebony locks before releasing a defeated sigh. “I just…I don’t know how to explain it. When I started therapy, it was on the premise of processing my grief. It has turned into so much more.” Another sigh escapes her lips as she turns toward the blonde. “Going to therapy, actually talking about the things I experienced in that house growing up, it’s making me realize how traumatic my childhood really was.”
A humorless laugh floats into the space between them, Lena shakes her head and drops her chin in disbelief at admitting that out loud. “The Luthors didn’t show or allow emotion. I entered the manor as a scared, grieving four year old.” She can feel her lip quiver and tears sting her already tired eyes. This time, instead of holding them back, she lets them fall freely. “In a lot of ways, Kara, I am still that scared, grieving little girl and I’m not sure what to do about it. Or if I can do anything about it.”
Kara’s heart breaks. She’s always known Lena didn’t live a happy childhood, that her best friend was starved for the love and support Kara herself had in droves. Lena was never allowed to feel or express normal human emotions. The stoic woman was never given the space to explore childhood and experience the joys of true freedom before adulthood settled in. She was always suppressed under the thumb of the Luthor moniker, forced to endure the strict regime of elite classes and standards that would make grown men falter. It’s something Kara wishes she could fix.
Warm, strong arms wrap around her shoulders. Lena leans into her best friend’s chest and breathes in the familiar scent that has come to mean safety and shelter. Her Kara. Always Kara. The blonde smiles and pulls the smaller woman closer, placing a soft kiss to her forehead and pressing her cheek against silky, raven locks.
“I’m so proud of you, Lena.” She runs her left hand up and down the exposed skin of Lena’s arm, the sleeve of her faded Star Wars t-shirt leaving most of the pale skin on display. A soft hum escapes the woman’s pouty lips, eliciting a smile from Kara. “You have avoided a lot of self-care because Lionel and Lillian made you believe it was a weakness. You steered clear of therapy because Lex made you believe it was for people who were of lesser intelligence. Deep down, you’ve always known it wasn’t true, but you knew if any of them found out, they would use it against you in every way possible.”
“You’re so strong, Lena. Even in the face of such adversity, you are a kind-hearted, beautiful soul.” Another soft squeeze of reassurance. “You’ve always been the best Luthor. You always will be.”
They sit in the comfortable, but heavy silence for a few moments. Neither of them make a move to pull away from the other. Kara breaks the silence, finding this is a perfect time to ask some questions she’s been curious about for years and move the conversation in a new direction. She also has an ulterior motive. The blonde wants her best friend to experience all the things she was starved of as a kid. She just needs to know some of those things Lena missed out on and this might be the chance she’s been looking for.
“Over the years, you’ve mentioned never watching movies or playing board games like most of us did. Are there other things you were deprived of as a child?” Kara lightly squeezes her closer before continuing to caress the pale skin of the arm now wrapped around her waist. “Toys you wish you had or places you wish you could have gone? What are some things Lena Luthor wanted as a child and teen?”
A soft chuckle passes across Lena’s lips, the warm breath ghosting against Kara’s neck and causing a shiver the blonde hopes goes unnoticed. The CEO hums. “You’ve helped with the movies and board games. I am sure there are more of both I still need to experience, but you’ve checked off most of them.” Her mind drifts back to the first months at Luthor Manor, recalling how many times she asked to play outside or go to the playground only to be scoffed at or reprimanded. Thoughts of the stuffed bear her mother gave her the Christmas before she died and how Lillian took it from her two days after she arrived.
Kara patiently waits for an answer, fully aware of how often Lena can get lost trying to navigate the treacherous memories of her childhood. She knows how full of landmines those moments can be for her best friend. So, she pulls the woman closer to place a soft kiss on the crown of her head. Her patience pays off when Lena continues.
“I never got to play on the playground, being outside was frowned upon. Dirt was for heathens and unbecoming of a Luthor.” She rolls her eyes. “I think I stopped asking to go outside to play when I was six. It could have been sooner. I had to grow up so quickly. Shedding tears would elicit the wrath of Lillian. Lionel was never really around so I learned early on I needed to hide things from Lillian.” Lena clears her throat, not wanting to dwell too long on that train of thought.
“There was this teddy bear I had, it was the only thing I brought with me to Luthor Manor. Her name was Miss Pizzley. I got her for Christmas from my mother.” She smiles thinking about Miss Pizzley and how much she loved that bear. “It was the last thing I got from my mother and Lillian took it from me. I wish I still had her.” She lets out a long sigh, nuzzling further into Kara’s neck.
“Outside of the teddy bear, there weren’t many things I asked for. I knew better.” She chuckles, leaning back to look up at her best friend.
“I asked for three things from the time I arrived at Luthor Manor until they sent me off to boarding school.” She shook her head, briefly closing her eyes in recollection of the memory before gazing back at her hero. “For Christmas when I was five, I asked for a Princess Leia figurine and a Furby. The only two things I asked for and I got neither. Instead, I got piano lessons and a chess set.” She rolls her eyes as she remembers that Christmas.
Kara watches her carefully, tilting her head in awe of this amazing woman. Still so incredibly kind and caring, even after the abuse and neglect she suffered. “Wow. I can’t imagine. My holidays with the Danvers were so different. Oh, you said three things. What was the third thing?” She pulls the CEO back into her arms and they settle against the backrest of the couch.
Lena hums against the soft tan skin of Kara’s neck, a warmth and security that has quickly become her favorite place. Cuddled on the couch with the woman she’s been unequivocally and irrefutably in love with for years. At this moment, there is nowhere else she’d rather be.
“The third thing came much later. It was the last Christmas I spent at Luthor Manor before they shipped me off to boarding school. I asked for an iPod. I wanted a way to listen to music in the dorm without disturbing others. Instead, I was allowed to enroll in fencing classes at my new school.” She rolls her eyes, thinking of the smug look on Lillian’s face that Christmas when Lena unwrapped the “gift” she was handed. The look is forever etched into her mind. The box contained her updated schedule for Mount St. Helena. Instead of the robotics class she had chosen and enrolled in, fencing sat in its place.
“Meanwhile, Lex was being showered with gifts. The first edition of the Motorola Razr cell phone, a brand new Rolex, and a top of the line Porsche 911.” Lena scoffs. The disparity between the two of them had never been as evident as it was that Christmas. “As much as I hated the idea of going to boarding school, at least I knew I wouldn’t have to deal with seeing Lillian and worrying about Lionel’s drunken tirades. At that point, I still adored and idolized Lex. Plus, he was still a decent big brother. In fact, he gifted me the iPod I asked for when he dropped me off at the boarding school. Our parents couldn’t be bothered with taking me so he did.”
Silence engulfs them. Kara is mulling over the information she learned and Lena is immersed in a swirl of painful recollections. Strong arms are still wrapped around the youngest Luthor. Neither of them speak for several minutes, both lost in the haunting memories of a little girl lost.
They don’t talk much after that. Kara’s mind is devising a plan to give Lena the things she missed out on as a kid. It’s something she’s given a lot of thought to since the woman first opened up to her. Lena is still swimming in the memories of the Luthors ghosts and a past she’s still trying to reconcile. It isn’t until a few months later that the subject comes up again.
Kara smiles as she thinks about her best friend. The woman who has been her ride or die since they were barely teens. Lena Luthor. The most phenomenal woman she knows. She remembers it like it was yesterday, a brisk fall day during seventh grade. The unforgettable day the ebony haired goddess walked into her English class. Kara was enamored from the beginning. Back then, Lena wasn’t as brash and confident as she is now, but she was still a force of nature. One that definitely blew Kara off her feet.
In one swift motion, the quiet, porcelain skinned beauty waltzed into the classroom and made a home inside Kara’s heart. Lena sat next to her that day and the rest, as the saying goes, is history. They shared almost all of their classes together that year, most years thereafter as well. Even better? Lena lived two houses down in the same neighborhood. The two of them became inseparable and spent all of their free time together. You would rarely find one of them without the other.
She can recall so many of those moments, so many recollections, and so much fondness. Thousands of milestones and memories woven into the fabric of her being, into the foundation of her life. Almost as if the fibers of their souls are intertwined for eternity. At least, that’s what it feels like to Kara.
Throughout their lives, she has always harbored an intense, bone deep love for her best friend. It’s something she is only now, as an adult, pondering and questioning. They certainly crossed quite a few boundaries of any standard friendship over the years, but neither of them ever batted an eye at anything when it came to their friendship. Things have just always been that way.
Kara and Lena have so many firsts together. Heartaches they helped each other through, the emotional roller coasters they weathered, and all the proverbial shit a hormonal teenager can experience – they did it together. Not to mention the experimentation of young adults out on their own for the first time, a plethora of moments, situations, and actions that should have clued both of them in back then. Unfortunately, Kara’s always been a little oblivious, especially when it comes to Lena.
Her mind drifts back to more memories and flashbacks of years past. Thoughts of the first time they fought – Kara was jealous of the new girl in their freshman English class. Taylor Benmark. The girl was making incessant heart eyes at Lena for the entire class period. At the time, Kara didn’t understand why her gut was roiling and her heart dropped. It wasn’t until she noticed Lena’s blushing cheeks and continuous giggling that it dawned on her. She was jealous.
By the time she and Lena left campus that afternoon, Kara was being incredibly snippy and outright bitchy. Later, as they were working on their homework together, waiting on Eliza to let them know dinner was ready, Kara pushed her nasty little attitude too far. They ended up screaming at each other causing Lena to pack up her backpack and leave, refusing to speak to Kara for three days. When they eventually sorted everything out, Lena was already dating Taylor. That’s how Kara found out Lena was bisexual and also the first time Kara considered she might be as well.
Those were trying months for their friendship, but just like they always do, they figured it out. She chuckles to herself when she recalls the conversations and heated arguments the two of them weathered over the years. Regardless of how mad they got at one another, everything always worked out. Both of them know, no matter what happens, they can always rely on and trust each other. Ride or die. You jump, I jump. Always. That’s them.
Like the time they discussed kissing. Kara thought for sure Lena’s first kiss would be with Taylor, they were dating during that conversation after all. She was pretty sure Lena hadn’t kissed anyone before, but since things had been so tense between them after their fight, she wasn’t sure Lena would tell her. In hindsight, she should have known better. One Wednesday after school as they laid across Lena’s bed doing their biology homework, Kara’s world shifted on its axis.
Lena paused in the middle of creating her Punnett square, her curious green eyes shifting between concerned blue before she tilted her head to look at Kara and asked her if she’d ever kissed anyone. The conversation bloomed into them talking about how neither of them had ever been kissed and weren’t sure what to do or how to even go about it. Both of them were terrified of making a fool of themselves when it did happen, but knew they felt safe with each other. So, that night, they shared their first kiss as they both lay across Lena’s bed, biology homework and Punnett squares forgotten.
It was the summer before their junior year when Kara started dating Kenny. Lena definitely wasn’t happy about it. She and Taylor had long since broken up. The teens were pretty sure Lillian had something to do with it, but couldn’t prove it. Regardless, Lena didn’t like Kara spending so much time with Kenny and their friendship was stressed because of it. There was always a line of jealousy laced into their relationship when one of them was dating someone.
The latter years of high school were interesting. If it so happened that neither of them were dating anyone, they made out with each other. A lot. It was always in secret, behind closed doors, but something they always fell back into when they were both single. Of course, it was never more than experimentation for either of them, but the jealousy was blatant when one of them started dating someone and their make out sessions came to an end. The fact it never occurred to either of them to question what that could mean is mind-boggling, but to them, things have just always been that way.
Kara and Kenny broke up at the end of their junior year. The summer that followed, she and Lena spent every possible moment together. It was the last summer of their high school career, the summer before their senior year. A lot of discussion took place across those three months. They talked about starting college, what they wanted to do, what degree programs they wanted to study, and how both of them were still virgins. It definitely wasn’t a subtle shift in conversation and it was something they frequently chatted about.
Both of them had multiple opportunities to have sex, but things never felt right. According to the things that surfaced in their conversations, neither of them felt safe enough to take the leap with anyone. With Taylor, Lena felt like she was far too young and, to be honest, she was always too scared. When she met Veronica at a chess competition and they started dating during her sophomore year, she knew without question it was never going to be her. Veronica was always too pushy, immediately causing Lena to clam up and eventually walk away completely. For Kara, Kenny was always a polite and considerate gentleman. She respected that about him. In the end, things with him never progressed beyond light make outs and some over-the-clothes touching.
As it turns out, they were both single for the entirety of their senior year. When they weren’t focused on schoolwork and their extracurriculars on campus, they were in one of their bedrooms making out like the hormonal teenagers they were. Sneaking in sessions whenever they could to feed their hormones and sate their curiosity. The closer they got to graduation, the more intense their desire for more became. Kara is still not sure what held them back from going further.
Kara remembers them talking a lot about sex after she and Kenny broke up. That previous summer the two of them decided they didn’t want to start college as virgins and made a pact. If they hadn’t met someone by the summer after graduation, they would have sex with each other. As Kara looks back now, it makes zero sense that it didn’t happen sooner. For whatever reason, they still hadn’t progressed beyond making out and heavy petting. She chuckles as she thinks about how they let their clothes continue to be a barrier while they were in high school.
After graduation though, all bets were off. They spent their last summer before college at the Luthor’s beach house an hour up the coast from National City. Occasionally, some of their friends would stop by, but a bulk of their time was spent alone. They’d been at the house for two weeks before Lena brought up their pact. Since the two of them spent most of their nights in the same bed after their make out sessions, it was surprising it hadn’t already come up.
The minute Lena brought it up, Kara knew they’d be having sex that night. It was something they had both wanted for a long time, but never knew how to ask for in the heat of the moment. So, on a balmy summer night two weeks after graduation, Kara and Lena lost their virginity to each other. She now knows it was inevitable. Like so many other things between them, they were always oblivious to it. Their first time lit the match to many more nights together and helped write the roadmap to a wild, roller coaster of a time through college.
College was indeed a wild ride. They were roommates, sharing an off campus apartment in Cambridge while they attended MIT. The first year was relatively quiet as they adjusted to life outside of their parents houses and across the country from any prying eyes. Most weekends were spent together in the solitude of their apartment focused on homework and de-stressing in the form of make outs and sex marathons. It wasn’t until their second year that things changed.
That’s when Kara met Mike and Lena met Jack. Things were platonic and just for fun at first, especially for Lena. She and Jack had become friends when they were assigned as lab partners in one of her chemistry classes. The two of them got along well and occasionally hung out at the library to study. Additionally, they both belonged to the Solar Electric Vehicle Team. They spent a good bit of time together related to and surrounding projects and events for the SEV team. Still, for Lena, their relationship was purely platonic.
In the same vein, Kara joined an intramural field hockey team because she was bored and wanted to be more active. That’s where she met Mike. Initially, she had zero interest in him outside of being friends and having fun together. She’s not sure when the shift happened, but sometime during their sophomore year in college, Mike asked her out. When he first asked, she turned him down. As fun and charming as he could be, she knew he was a womanizer, a player, and most importantly, an asshole.
It wasn’t until Lena came home from a late night with the SEV team that things changed. Kara was up watching reruns of one of her favorite shows when a knock sounded. Opening the apartment door revealed Jack holding Lena up, both of them looking a bit disheveled. Her best friend was tipsy, that much was evident. Kara noticed Lena’s lipstick was smeared and Jack’s jacket was wrapped around her shoulders. Instead of letting Kara take over and get Lena into bed, Jack carried her into her bedroom. When Kara asked about it the next morning at breakfast, Lena just shrugged and told her that she and Jack made out after the event.
After that incident, Kara decided to give Mike a chance. If Lena was going to be spending more time with Jack, she may as well find someone to spend her time with as well. That’s how she ended up dating Mike for a little over a year. It turned out, Lena and Jack were better off as friends. They dated for around three months and then transitioned into a friends with benefits situation once Kara started dating Mike.
Midway through their junior year at MIT, their lives were rocked by several things at once. First, Lena’s brother, his girlfriend, and two others were killed in a car accident. Lex was behind the wheel. Toxicology reports showed he was driving with a BAL of 0.23% and also had traces of ketamine in his system. Not only was she devastated, but because the others killed were from prominent families, Lena was shunned on campus and her family was sued.
Second, during a drunken night at a party with the field hockey team, Mike not only punched Kara in the face during a drunken rage, but he also attempted to sexually assault her when she refused to give in to his advances. The two obviously broke-up afterward and the resulting fallout was rough for the blonde. Kara reported the incident to campus police, but nothing came of it and Mike was never disciplined.
After those two life-altering events, Kara and Lena went back to the reclusive ways of their freshman year, sticking to their apartment and each other. They quietly finished both undergrad and grad school together before Kara moved back to National City. Lena stayed in Cambridge to get her PhD before moving to New York City with Jack. The two of them co-founded LS MedTech shortly after their PhD graduation.
During the first year of living on opposite costs, they made sure to visit whenever Lena got breaks from classes. Usually, the dark haired woman would fly to National City to hang out with her best friend for a few days before heading back to the East coast. They did their best to make time for each other and keep their friendship alive. Gradually, they saw less and less of one another. Especially once Lena graduated and started working on her start-up with Jack. By then, Kara had met a man named James Olsen, the VP of sales for Edge Global, and they had been dating for a while.
Lena had met someone as well, a woman named Andrea Rojas. They met at one of the events Lena was always attending for work. The two of them have been in an off and on sort of relationship for about as long as Kara has been with James. It’s always seemed to be somewhat of a relationship of convenience to anyone that knows Lena well. Regardless of time and distance, the two best friends always kept in touch. Unfortunately, they saw each other less and less as their lives got busier.
Kara sighs as she stumbles from memories of the numerous years with her best friend. Her eyes drift toward the picture frame staring back at her from the bookshelf in her living room. It’s a photo of the two of them during the summer they spent in the Luthor beach house before they started MIT. The summer they slept together for the first time. She was so afraid things would change between them after that, but they only got closer. Sometimes, she wishes she had stayed in Cambridge instead of coming back to National City. She’s pretty sure her life would look a lot different than it does now.
She drops her head onto her chest before releasing a groan and forcing herself up from the couch. James will be home from work soon and she doesn’t want a repeat of last week. Her ribs and bottom lip still haven’t completely healed from the beating she took for not having dinner ready when he got home. The last thing she wants to do is set off his volatile temper again. These days, she doesn’t even know what will trigger his violence. It could be something as simple as not greeting him soon enough. No matter, she doesn’t want to endure another beating so she forces herself to her feet and heads to the kitchen.
James was so different when they first met. Even for the first year they were together, things were great. It took a while for him to show his true colors and peel back the mask. The only person who has always seen right through him is Lena. The first time she introduced them, things seemed to go pretty well. She could tell Lena was suspicious of him, but it didn’t seem to be more than her usual skepticism. That was until the next time they all hung out, Lena’s intuition and distrust of him seemed to increase. To Kara though, he was still her prince charming.
It wasn’t until they moved in together after dating for almost two years that things changed. The third week of them living together exposed a deep-seated anger and violence inside her boyfriend she had never seen before, at least not directed at her. She’d seen him angry, of course she had, but never violent. That version of him surfaced exactly twenty days after she moved into his apartment.
It was a Thursday. Kara had to work late so she called James to let him know she wouldn’t be home until around 8:00 p.m. Over the phone, everything seemed fine. He was understanding and sweet, but when she walked into the apartment that night, he was a different person. As soon as she got her purse and messenger bag off her shoulder, he grabbed her by the collar before wrapping a hand around her throat. She was so caught off guard, she didn’t even have a chance to defend herself. He was so quick that he had her pressed against the wall within seconds and she almost passed out from lack of oxygen before he finally let go.
The next morning when she woke up, she had bruises all over her upper body and the distinct outline of a hand around her throat. James apologized profusely and proceeded to love bomb her for the next few weeks in an attempt to make up for his actions. Things got better for a while, several months even. It didn’t last though, it never does.
Eventually, over time, the anger, abuse, and violence became commonplace. Before she knew it, they had been together for nearly four years, bought a house together, and gotten married. She knew at the time that she shouldn’t put her name on anything with him, but he has some sort of power over her and she always gives in. Kara hasn’t told anyone about the abuse. For several reasons, but mostly because she is afraid of what James will do if he finds out she said something. There’s also the biggest reason, she isn’t sure what her sister or Lena would do if they knew how often he abuses her.
At this point, she hasn’t seen Lena in almost two years. They try to have frequent video chats and talk on the phone every few months, texting often – almost daily, but neither of them have made time to visit one another. Their last visit coincided with Lena being in town for a conference. She was the keynote speaker at the National City MedTech Conference and hung out with Kara as often as she could. Unfortunately, her brilliant best friend overheard James berating her and immediately put him in his place. Since then, James hasn’t been too keen on having Lena stay with them for a visit and Lena hasn’t really made an effort to be in the same space as him.
Kara knows she could just as easily plan a trip to see Lena on the East coast, but every time she tries, James finds a way to thwart her efforts by knocking her around. Her last attempt to plan a visit landed her a punch to the gut and being held down while James proceeded to force himself on her. That was three months ago, the last time he touched her, something she is sadly grateful for. She wants to leave him, but she’s scared. Actually, terrified is more apt. She knows he watches and monitors everything she does.
Seeing her best friend is something she has wanted more and more since he assaulted her. Unfortunately, she has been feeling under the weather. Initially, she thought it was the flu or just the longer hours she has been working at the lab. Now, she isn’t so sure that’s what it is. Given the timing, it scares her more than anything has in a long time. She scheduled an appointment to see her doctor tomorrow. Tonight she is going to pray to all the gods she doesn’t believe in that her worst fears aren’t coming true.
Kara and Lena manage to sleep in on Thursday. Not only do they both need it, the added benefit is not having to deal with James. Fortunately, the tides turn in their favor. By the time they wake up and make it into the kitchen, he is long gone to work. The relief they feel is palpable. Neither of them wanted to deal with his abusive bullshit and have it hanging over them for the rest of the day.
The two of them spend most of the day lounging around and talking about anything that comes up. They also continue to devise a plan to get Kara away from James. Short-term, she is going to stay with Lena. While the CEO has extended her stay, she’s not sure how long she will be able to keep the AirBnB she’s rented. Not that she’s even stepped foot inside the place yet. Their discussion is cut short once they realize they need to get ready for Kara’s appointment. There’s still a lot more to figure out, but they’re getting there.
Just as they suspected, Kara is released for light duty starting on Monday. With her broken wrist she’ll be limited, but most of her duties aren’t heavy lifting anyway. Some of the more delicate experiments will have to be assigned to someone else, but she’s relieved to be able to get back to work. She loves her job and the people she works with.
It’s nearly 4:00 p.m. when they make it back to the house. They’re immediately greeted by Eve in the kitchen. Lena has to get ready for her meeting so Kara does what she can to keep herself distracted. She spends time chatting with Eve and playing a game on her phone. Apparently it works well because the next thing she knows, the CEO is standing in front of her wearing a three piece suit that makes the blonde’s jaw drop.
Now, Kara has known for most of her life how attractive her best friend is, it’s not even a question. However, the woman standing in front of her right now is simply a marvel to behold. Heart racing, mouth drying, and completely speechless – that about sums it up. In fact, she’s sure Lena just broke her brain.
A knowing smirk spreads across Lena’s lips. She struts over to the blonde and lightly closes her mouth with one finger under her chin. “You’ll catch flies, Darling.” She winks and gently pats her cheek before leaning down to place a soft kiss on her forehead. “I’d feel better if you leave with me. Who knows when the asshole will decide to show up. I’ll call you when I am heading back this way. I love you.”
“I’m right behind you! Love you, too.” Kara smiles before turning to Eve. “I’m heading out, Eve. You have my number if you need anything before James gets home.”
“No worries, Kara. I’ll be here a little late today. I need to do some extra meal prep since I won’t be here on Monday.” The shorter woman says with a smile. “I’ll lock up behind me. I should be gone by 8:00. Enjoy your evening!”
As soon as the front door closes, Eve sets aside a plate for James’ dinner. She knows Kara will have already eaten, at least she hopes so, but this is something specific for James. A satisfied smile spreads across her face as she prepares the plate. “Hopefully this will be a meal to die for.” She quietly mumbles to herself before sitting the plate in the warming drawer for James’ arrival.
By then, Kara and Lena have gone their separate ways. Lena has enough time to get to her dinner reservation a little early and Kara plenty of time to avoid unexpectedly running into James. With Alex and Kelly out for the evening, this will be the first time Kara is by herself since the accident. It isn’t something she is very excited about, but it’s also better than the alternative. She just wishes James would disappear altogether or at least leave her alone.
There’s never been a moment in her life where she has consciously wished someone harm or actually harbored hate. At least until now. Sure, she loved James once upon a time, but that ship sailed and sank. Now, it’s hard for her to imagine how or why she ever wanted him. The fact she carries his last name makes her skin crawl. The first thing she is going to do when she is free from him is lose that moniker for good. If she could erase every moment she spent with him, she’d do that, too.
She spends a couple of hours eating pizza, watching true crime documentaries from Alex’s Netflix queue, and throwing popcorn at the TV. The stupid shit people do leading up to, during, and after committing murder blows her mind. It makes sense if it is something that isn’t premeditated, but the ones that plan it out and then behave so conspicuously a blind person could see their guilt? Those are the ones that boggle her brain.
Not that she wants to off anyone. Hmm…well, she can’t say that with any real truth anymore. She’d certainly like to remove James from existence, but she’d never actually do it. However, there are two people in her life she has often worried about actually murdering him – her two favorite people, Lena and Alex.
They’ve always been incredibly protective of her and both have gotten their hands dirty to come to her rescue a time or two over the years. The terrifying part about the James situation is Alex has the know-how and Lena has the means. She really isn’t kidding when she says they would be homicidal. It’s slightly terrifying when she really thinks about it.
Most of her dark, twisted thoughts are strictly that though, just thoughts. In truth, if she could get away with it, she might consider it. Never anything messy though, she doesn’t have the stomach for it. She breathes out a long sigh, this train of thought is pointless. He’s not going anywhere, she’s not going to murder him, and she’s going to have to fight tooth and nail to get her life back. It sucks, but she’s resigned herself to the fact. At least Alex, Kelly, and Lena know about the violence and abuse. It makes things easier to navigate, at least.
Meanwhile, Lena’s drive to dinner is similarly spent. Her brain is cycling through ways to get James out of Kara’s life for good. It’s not something she ever thought she would consider, but the man is a menace, a real danger to her best friend. Seeing him around her and the way he views her as a possession is creepy and unnerving.
He has that ‘if I can’t have her, no one can’ vibe and it’s gross. The fact his own sister doesn’t trust him around Kara speaks volumes. She scoffs, then her thoughts veer into even darker territory. Hitmen and other nefarious means. Of course, she’s never looked into hiring a hitman before, but she knows her father had some shady dealings before his death.
An amused laugh parts her lips as she shakes her head out of the murder plot spiral. Part of her doesn’t think she could do something like that, but another part knows if it came down to James or Kara, she wouldn’t hesitate. Since she’s never liked James, she couldn’t care less if he fell off the face of the planet. He deserves to suffer far worse than what he’s done to Kara. In fact, if she thought she could get away with chopping him into tiny pieces and using him as fish bait, she would. Sadly, that isn’t something she could stomach.
By the time she arrives at the restaurant, she has managed to push her thoughts into a more productive direction for her meeting. Back onto reports and mergers instead of murder and mayhem. She parks, takes a deep breath, and confidently strides through the door. The faster she gets inside, the quicker she’s done and can get back to Kara.
On another side of town, Alex and Kelly are wining and dining with the hospital chief and some of the board members. Alex is up for a big promotion and schmoozing seems to be part of the interview process. Things like this aren’t really either of their scenes, but they both really want this promotion for Alex. Of course, they’re planning to sneak out no later than 9:00, sooner if possible. Kelly has a big meeting in the morning and Alex wants to check on Kara before calling it a night.
She knows Lena will take care of her sister, she always has. However, her big sister's brain won’t settle until she makes sure Kara is okay. Sometimes, she feels like she’s stuck between a rock and a hard place. Her brother-in-law is abusing her sister and she’d like to cut his balls off before feeding them to him.
Sadly, it is also her wife’s brother and she’s not so sure killing the man would go over well in her own marriage. Actually, it’s something she isn’t truly clear on anymore. Kelly is incredibly upset about the abuse James has been subjecting Kara to. From the conversation they had earlier in the week, Kelly might want to take him down just as much. It’s not something she wants to find out in the near future though. As much as she loves her sister, this is her wife and she’d like to remain married. She doesn’t want to do anything to lose either of them if she doesn’t have to.
Around 6:00 p.m. at the Olsen house, Eve is putting away the last of the meals she made when James comes barreling through the door. She can see right away that he is angry, but also unsettled. His eyes are darting all over the kitchen as if he is looking for something that isn’t really there. The petite woman watches him from her spot across the island. Eventually he drops into one of the bar chairs without a word.
Eve slowly walks over to the warming drawer to retrieve the meal she made for him and places it in front of him. “Here’s your dinner, Mr. Olsen. It’s one of my special recipes. I hope you enjoy it.” She smiles at him before turning to finish cleaning up in the kitchen. With the laundry still to finish, she busies herself with the remaining chores.
James stands to grab his whiskey and tumbler, a much needed addition to his meal for the day he’s had. With everything happening in his life right now, he needs a break. He’s sick of that Luthor bitch being in his house and monopolizing his wife. They have no idea he took the day off tomorrow for a private meeting at noon, but also plans to do whatever he can to show both of them who’s in charge. He sneers, Lena acts like she isn’t scared of him, but she should be. “Both of those bitches will regret ever crossing me.” James grumbles, emptying his tumbler before refilling it again.
“What was that, Mr. Olsen?” Eve asks, knowing full well what he just mumbled under his breath. Glancing at her watch, she notes it’s 6:41 p.m. She wants to have everything complete by 7:15, 7:30 at the latest. The task has to be finished before Kara and Lena return. “I thought I heard you say something.”
She’s been making note of all the little things he says when he thinks no one is listening. What she has learned is that James Olsen is a narcissistic, sadistic, and cruel man who thinks he owns any woman in his life. Additionally, she has overheard some interesting phone calls, things she knows will be his undoing.
“Oh, sorry, Eve. Nothing. I’m just talking to myself.” He half-heartedly chuckles, something he likely thinks is charming, but honestly makes her skin crawl. “This dinner is really good. I bet your husband is a happy man.”
She pauses her task and stiffens. “That’s actually none of your business, Mr. Olsen. However, my wife is indeed a happy woman.” Eve isn’t married, but she is bisexual and she knows it grates on his nerves when someone speaks to him the way she just did. Not to mention, she has heard him bad mouth Kara and others about their sexualities.
He continues to grumble a little longer about women and disrespect before he finally finishes his food. Pushing the plate away from him, he pours himself another glass of whiskey. Eve is pretty sure it’s his fourth in less than an hour. She eyes him closely, noticing he’s starting to cough a bit and he’s sweating profusely. Once she finishes the last of the laundry and puts it away, she takes his plate to the sink.
Perfect, 7:03 p.m. She’s making better time than she thought.
It’s 8:15 before Lena is able to get away from her business associates. She started trying to wrap things up nearly an hour before, but the current CEO felt the need to rehash everything they already agreed upon. It’s typical of men like him. Lena and their CFO, Donna, were rolling their eyes together. Both of them being women in a mostly male field, they’re used to it, but that doesn’t make it any easier to bear.
The minute she gets in her car, she calls Kara who picks up on the first ring. “Hi! Seems like it took longer than you anticipated.” The blonde says, a genuine grin in her voice.
Lena sighs, a frustrated growl following behind it. “Seriously! Why do these men feel the need to hear themselves talk so much? I would have been done at 7:00 if Phil hadn’t pontificated about the good old days for an hour.” She huffs, the last thing she wanted to do was listen to a grown man compare dick size with her. Without a doubt, hers is bigger and she definitely knows how to use it far better than he does.
Kara chuckles, Lena has always hated this aspect of her job. “Well, it’s over now and you don’t have to deal with it again for a while. How long will it take you to get back to the house? I don’t want to leave now because I know I’ll beat you there.”
“Mmmm, there isn’t much traffic right now so probably twenty minutes. Do you want to just meet me at the Starbucks on the corner and I’ll follow you there?” She asks, hoping Kara agrees. Lena would rather she be the first one to the house if they can’t arrive at the same time. “At least that way we can walk in together.”
“Okay, that works. I’ll see you in a few.” They end the call.
Kara pulls into the Starbucks parking lot at 8:42, Lena sees her before she can even get parked. She gestures for the CEO to follow and they start the five minute trek to the house she shares with the devil’s spawn. Oddly, when they pull into the driveway, James’ car isn’t there. She silently shrugs and mentally thanks the universe because she thought for sure he would be home. Whatever, she thinks. At least it will be a peaceful night.
She waits for Lena on the front stoop, laughing at the look on her best friend’s face as she unlocks the door. They walk through the entryway into the kitchen and both immediately freeze. The back patio door that opens into the dining room is wide open. It’s not completely odd when someone is home, especially this time of year, but with James not being there it’s certainly alarming. Kara takes a couple more steps into the kitchen and gasps, eyes wide. She immediately covers her mouth with both hands.
At first, Lena is confused by the blonde’s reaction, unable to see what has her so spooked. When she takes a few steps to stand beside Kara, it becomes crystal clear. Lying face down on the floor between the island and the french doors is James.
Neither of them move for what seems like hours, they both just stare at the prone figure on the tile floor. If he was breathing, it would look like he had just passed out. Unfortunately, it is very obvious he isn’t. The whole room is eerily quiet and there is a distinct scent of whiskey in the air.
It takes her a minute, but Lena gathers her wits and swallows her nerves. “W-We need to check his pulse.” She looks over at Kara and can tell she is still trying to process what she’s seeing. Willing the prickling sensation on her skin to stop, she forces herself to step closer to the body in front of them. Pausing and taking several deep breaths, she makes herself bend down to check for a pulse on his neck.
Immediately, she knows he’s dead. His skin is cold and there is what appears to be vomit surrounding him. There’s also a bitter almond scent hovering alongside the whiskey. She instantly backs away, her own dinner threatening to resurface.
Her mind is whirring with scenarios. Part of her mind is wondering if Kara did this. Her best friend’s current reaction would lean toward probably not, but she’s still not sure. Was it Alex? It certainly could have been, she’s a doctor and would know what to do. Lena knows she didn’t do it. Of course, she also knows James has recently gotten himself involved in things that very well could have led to this outcome.
Now, what do they do? The most obvious thing to do would be to call the police, right? She’s scared though. From what she can tell, he hasn’t been dead long and it certainly doesn’t seem to have been natural. Or maybe it was? How would they know?
She’s a goddamn genius, why is she panicking?! Well, because there’s a fucking dead body on the floor, dumbass! Her brain is not being helpful right now. She glances over at Kara and can see she’s finally starting to really take in the scene around them.
“L-Lena…he’s…James is dead. On the floor. He’s dead.” Kara stammers, her eyes bouncing from her best friend to James and back. She continues to look back and forth before she bursts into laughter. It’s so startling that Lena takes a step back, her eyes wide.
“It’s just…” The blonde takes a gasping breath before continuing, “...I’m pretty sure he tried to kill me a week ago and now he’s dead. Everyone is going to think I did it.” High-pitched laughter rockets out of Kara’s throat, it’s bordering on maniacal and quite frankly scaring the hell out of Lena.
Kara starts pacing back and forth on the opposite side of the kitchen. Her thoughts are running so fast they’re bumping into one another. The two most prominent ones are who killed James and was it Alex or Lena. She’s been worried about one of them doing it, but didn’t think they would. Now she’s not so sure and if one of them did, they have to get rid of the body. Make it look like he skipped town or ran off. Something.
As soon as that thought circles her brain, there’s a knock on the front door. Kara and Lena freeze in place, both of them panic stricken and terrified. There’s a fucking dead body on the floor in the kitchen and somebody is knocking on the goddamn door. Perfect timing!
“Who the hell is knocking at the door after 9:00 p.m. on a weeknight?!” Lena hisses as she walks toward the door to look at the doorbell camera. “Fuck! It’s Alex. Kara, it’s your sister.”
She runs back toward the blonde, shaking her back to reality. “Okay, okay. We need to open the door. I know my sister, she won’t leave until she sees me. Is Kelly with her?” The knocking gets louder as Kara makes her way to the door.
“No, it looks like it’s just Alex.” Lena states, following Kara back to the door. They don’t quite get there before it opens and Alex peeks her head inside. The big smile on her face falls when she sees the look on both their faces. It morphs into serious concern in mere seconds.
“Woah, why do you two look like someone died?” The redhead asks, brow furrowed with worry. “No, seriously, what’s going on?” She steps inside, her heart rate increasing with every step.
Kara bursts into laughter again, but this time it’s accompanied by tears. Instead of saying anything, she just walks into the kitchen and points to James’ body lying on the floor. Alex’s mouth drops open as she rapidly looks from the body to Kara then to Lena and back.
The doctor takes a shuddering breath, steadies herself on the edge of the island, and asks, “Please explain to me why your husband is lying dead on the kitchen floor. I know he’s a piece of shit and I know all three of us have plenty of reasons to want him dead…”
“You have to help us, Alex. What are we going to do? He’s dead. I can’t go to jail. I just can’t.” Kara rambles, anxiety skyrocketing as she continues to pace around the room. “I can’t, I can’t, I can’t. Oh my god, I can’t.”
Lena and Alex helplessly watch as Kara continuously paces in a circle apparently nearing a nervous breakdown. They both already know they will do anything to keep Kara out of trouble, to keep her safe. Alex finally looks at Lena, they lock eyes and nod. It’s a silent agreement to make this go away.
Now to figure out how to do it without getting themselves caught or killed in the process.
Kara is sound asleep on the couch when Alex opens the patio doors. From the looks of things, she has been out for some time. She and Lena share a smile, both glad the blonde is getting some rest. Kara has been through a lot in the last week, longer if you include all of the past abuse. Who knows what all James subjected her to over the years. Alex has a feeling her sister has only scratched the surface of what that monster did to her. In truth, she’s glad he’s dead. At least now he can’t lay a finger on Kara ever again.
As quietly as possible, they close and lock the door. Stepping into the kitchen, they both collectively breathe a sigh of relief. Lena immediately heads to the liquor cabinet. She doesn’t give a damn if it’s barely after 6:00 a.m. They’ve been through some traumatic shit, she’s having a bit of scotch to dull the edges. What little she had earlier is long gone and it’s been one hell of a ride since then. Sipping from her glass, she turns to Alex holding the bottle up in offer. The redhead gladly accepts, grabbing her own glass.
“I guess we need to figure out what story we are going to tell.” Lena finally states, green eyes distant and drifting toward the figure asleep on the couch. “Whatever it is, Kara will have to fill in more details. I know she’s reluctant, but we have to know about his behavior leading up to finding him dead.”
Alex nods in agreement, sipping her scotch and considering Lena’s words. She’s grateful she doesn’t have to work today, trying to function at the hospital would be a near impossibility. Obviously, she’d do what needed to be done, but she’s grateful her next shift isn’t until Sunday. She hopes to eventually get some sleep. That’s when she remembers. “Shit! I am supposed to call Kelly by six. What time is it?”
The two of them look at the time as Alex fumbles for her phone on the counter. It’s 6:22 a.m. When she picks it up, her stomach drops. “Fuck, Two missed calls. I need to call my wife.” She mumbles, mostly to herself.
Lena watches the now pale-faced doctor step out onto the patio while she finishes her drink and then the rest of Alex’s. After rinsing both glasses, she drops them into the dishwasher and decides it’s time to shower. She feels dirty on so many levels and desperately needs to wash this whole experience off. Grabbing her phone before checking on Kara one more time, she makes her way up the stairs. Time to wash away the night, she thinks to herself.
Washing away the night ends up meaning a forty minute shower. Standing under the steaming hot stream of water is transportive. For a few minutes, she allows herself to exist in those moments when it was just her and Kara, moments when life wasn’t so complicated. An existence before careers, adult responsibilities, and murder cover up. Reluctantly, she finishes her shower and dresses in something comfortable. She has no plans of leaving this house today.
By the time she gets to the bottom of the stairs, she can see Kara is awake and standing in the kitchen with Alex. Both pairs of eyes land on her as she makes her way to the refrigerator. It’s been almost twelve hours since she last ate and she didn’t realize how famished she was until she was standing in the shower. Knowing how much her best friend loves food, she’s certain there will be something to satiate her hunger.
Just as she is about to plunder around, Kara’s voice comes across the kitchen. “We were just thinking about ordering breakfast. We have stuff we could cook, but given how exhausted everyone is, we decided DoorDash would be easier.” She wraps her arms around Lena, pulling her away from the fridge and the shorter woman melts into the embrace.
Alex eyes them as she pulls the DoorDash app up on her phone. Before focusing back on the app, she thinks about her sister and Lena when they were kids. She always thought the two of them would end up together. They used to sneak around all the time when they were teenagers. Of course, those two thought no one knew about it, but Alex caught them on several occasions. There was never any reason to tell them, so she didn’t. Besides, it was cute to see them together when they thought no one was looking. Even now they gravitate toward each other.
There’s no doubt in her mind James figured it out, too. Sure, he was an asshole regardless, but the way he hated Lena? It would make sense if he saw how they really feel about each other and it would lend credibility to him desperately trying to keep them apart. At this point, she’s not even sure her sister or Lena actually realize how they feel about each other. For some reason, they always seemed to think they couldn't be together. It’s something she’s never understood.
“Alright you two, let’s order food so we can start laying out our story and the lead up to James going missing.” She grins at the two women still wrapped around each other. They haven’t been in the same place in two years. It’s seriously adorable to watch them trying to adjust to being back in each other’s orbit. After figuring out her order, she hands the phone to her sister. “Add your order so we can get this show on the road. I’m going to shower.”
Kara and Lena thoughtfully select their food and place the order while Alex showers. They make their way over to the couch, taking their usual cuddle positions when it’s just the two of them. Kara in the corner of the sofa with her feet on the ottoman, Lena leaning against her with her feet curled underneath and Kara’s arm around her shoulders. It’s the same way they always snuggled together on the Danvers’ couch as teens. For them, it’s just always been that way.
When Alex resurfaces, the food is sitting on the coffee table and Lena is laying with her head in Kara’s lap sound asleep. She chuckles at the scene when she rounds the corner of the couch. It’s a scenario she’s seen a thousand times over her lifetime, but hasn’t seen in years. Groaning in pure exhaustion, she drops onto the loveseat across from them. “You need to wake her up so she can eat and we can iron out some details.”
“I know, but she’s so cute right now. Plus, she’s exhausted. I want to let her rest as long as I can.” She practically whispers with a pout hanging on her lips. “She hasn’t been asleep long, maybe ten minutes? She laid down after grabbing the food from the delivery guy.”
“Listen, I get it. I haven’t been to sleep either. Actually, I think I might have fallen asleep for a few minutes while standing in the shower.” Alex laughs, she’s incredibly tired, but they still have too much to do before she can rest. With another chuckle and a smile, she stands and heads to the kitchen. “I’m going to make us some coffee while you wake up sleeping beauty. We gotta get to work.”
Kara just stares at her best friend sleeping soundly in her lap and smiles. She’s missed this woman more than she ever thought possible. Unfortunately, her brief moment of bliss is ruined when she remembers why she needs to wake Lena and what they need to discuss. She should probably feel guilty that she is basking in the affection of her best friend and isn’t sad about James’ death, but she just really doesn’t. Not one single smidge. Regardless of whether it was Lena or Alex that killed him, she is glad he is gone and refuses to feel bad about it.
“Lena. Wake up, sweetheart. We need to eat and get back to planning.” She gently whispers, brushing ebony locks away from the CEO’s porcelain skin and sharp features. Lena stirs, but doesn’t open her eyes. Another smile spreads across Kara’s face. “Come on, sleepy head. You gotta wake up and eat.”
With a soft caress of her cheek and little nudge of her shoulder, Lena finally wakes up. Hazy viridian eyes peer up at Kara laced with confusion before she remembers where she is and what’s happening. After a yawn and a long stretch, she sits up and rubs her face. She really wants to go back to sleep, she almost feels worse after her micro-nap.
By the time she is fully awake and helping pass out the food, Alex is returning with three cups of coffee and three bottles of water. All three burst into laughter at Alex’s appearance. She has three mugs in her hands, one water bottle under her arm, and two in each pocket of her sweatpants. Well, Kara’s sweatpants.
Once everyone has their food and drinks, they sit in silence. Whether it’s because they don’t know where to start or are dreading the topic, no one is taking the lead. It isn’t until they are nearly through their meal that Lena finally breaks the ice.
“I think the first thing we need to figure out is when we report him missing.” She proposes, taking another bite of her veggie breakfast burrito. “From what you’ve told me, it wasn’t abnormal for him to be gone for days at a time without contact, right?” She looks at Kara for a response.
Swallowing her food, she takes a sip of her coffee to delay answering, “Yes, especially recently. I guess it really started after I found out I was pregnant or at least that’s when it got worse. He would be gone for a day or so occasionally before then, but it became a regular thing after I stopped sleeping in the same room with him.” She takes another bite of her food, offering no further explanation or elaboration.
Alex and Lena share a look, there’s something Kara isn’t saying. They can both see it. It’s obvious she isn’t comfortable talking about whatever it is, but there’s definitely something she isn’t saying. “Okay, well, how long would he stay gone? Are we talking two days, three, more?” Alex asks, concern etched into her words.
“It varied and usually depended on whether we had an argument or a fight before he left. Sometimes what day of the week mattered.” Kara pauses, clearly lost in thought or a memory. She shakes her head as if trying to chase something away. “He was typically back home on Sunday nights. He liked to be here to get ready for work on Monday morning. Outside of that, it always varied. At times he would be gone in the middle of the week. For the past few weeks, he would leave here on Friday morning and I wouldn’t see him again until Sunday night.”
Lena watches Kara closely, she can plainly see the anxious tells her best friend is trying to mask. She won’t push things right now, but it’s something she is filing in the back of her mind for later. “Alright then, it seems that we will need to report him missing on Monday then, right? Technically, the last time we saw him alive was Wednesday night.”
She keeps her eyes on her best friend, she’s still incredibly nervous or uneasy. Lena presses on, “We know Eve was here on Thursday afternoon, so she was probably the last one to see him. So, maybe you try to call her on Monday to find out what time she saw him last. Didn’t she say she wouldn’t be here on Monday?”
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s what she said Thursday. I’m not sure if she’s out of town or what, but Siobhan will be here Monday and Eve should be back on Thursday.” Kara responds, her leg now bouncing in conjunction with biting the inside of her cheek, two major tells that her anxiety is spiking.
Lena reaches out to place her hand on the bouncing leg. “Darling, what is making you so anxious? It’s just me and Alex, you’re safe now. He can’t hurt you anymore.” She gently rubs her thumb back and forth across Kara’s jogger clad thigh. “We have to talk about all of this so our stories match. Is there something specific that’s worrying you?”
Alex watches with keen interest. It’s been a while since she has seen her sister this twitchy. Kara has been acting distant and secretive for a while, but once she found out about the abuse, she chalked it up to that. With the way she is behaving right now, she isn’t sure that’s all it is. The blonde definitely seems like she’s hiding something. Finding out what might have to wait though, she’s just worried whatever it is might affect the narrative they are trying to create.
“It’s just that…I think James…was involved in things and I am afraid he might have owed them money.” She stammers, her leg bouncing even faster. “I don’t know for sure, but the money he was flaunting didn’t make sense with the salary he was making. When Kelly mentioned a side hustle, it clicked. I think he might have been stealing from whoever he was involved with. I’m not even sure that makes sense.”
Taking a deep breath, Lena makes a decision. She was going to wait to say anything about the information Wilson sent her, but now might be the best time to lay it out. “Oh it makes sense, James was absolutely involved in something. Outside of his job at Edge Global, he was running drugs, guns, and prostitutes for The Oath Brokers.”
Pulling her laptop from the coffee table and onto her lap, she opens the files from her P.I. Motioning Alex over, the three of them sit on the couch to parse through all of the photos and details Kipling and Kipling compiled. There’s a lot and it’s damning. Alex and Kara are speechless. It’s one thing to suspect someone of something and think you have an idea of what they are up to, but to have it laid out in front of you as proof? That’s another thing entirely.
“H-How d-do you have all t-this, Lena?” Kara stutters, her eyes wide as they flip through photo after photo. “All of these pictures are dated before you even got here. Where did you get these?”
Shifting in her seat, the CEO clears her throat, rolls her shoulders back, and explains, “I called my family’s P.I. the night you told me about the pregnancy and implied James was abusing you. They spent the two weeks before my arrival tailing him and gathering information. Obviously, I didn’t get the files until after I got here. Then I didn’t get a chance to look through them until we got you home from the hospital.”
Lena turns to look at Kara, “I told you that night we would find a way to get you away from him and I meant it, Darling. I wanted to have enough leverage to make him go away. I just had no idea he'd end up dead in the meantime.”
“Seriously, Luthor? Your own person P.I.? I’ll say it again, you’re scary when you need to be.” Alex chuckles, repeating what she said to Lena the night before during their negotiation with Grimme. “At least we know he was an all-around piece of shit. I feel even less inclined to care if the asshole is dead. Seems like there might have been a long list of people potentially wanting him dead.”
“At least we know I won’t be the only one on the suspect list. If your P.I. can find this, surely the National City Police Department can.” Kara rushes out, pointing at the computer with her leg still bouncing. “We’re getting ahead of ourselves though. Right now, he’s just missing, not dead. At least according to everyone else. So, will we report him missing on Monday when I get home from work? Or should we do it Monday morning?”
Lena tilts her head in thought, they need to play this strategically. One wrong move could unravel everything. “I think we should wait until Monday when you get home from work. However, you should try to call James’ cell phone when you get to work. When you can’t reach him, contact Kelly first, and then Eve to find out when she last saw him.”
She grabs a USB drive out of her laptop bag and starts copying all the pictures onto it. Whenever the police show up, she doesn’t want to have this on her computer. They’ll eventually look at her, she’s sure of that. “From what you said, Siobhan will be here Monday to clean since Eve is unavailable, right?” Kara nods her head in answer so Lena continues, “I probably shouldn’t be here when she gets here. I’ll pack up my things and work from the AirBnB that day.”
“Good idea. You being here while she was off work recovering makes sense, but if Kara is released to go back to work on Monday, leaving you here would be suspicious.” Alex agrees, remembering something before continuing, “At least we won’t have to lie about knowing about his car, phone, and laptop. We genuinely have no idea where any of that disappeared to. His wallet either.”
“Which is odd given the circumstances.” Kara pointedly says, sapphire eyes bouncing from Lena to Alex and back. “Someone either took his car or he was dropped off, which raises other questions.”
Kara considers this, her eyes scanning the room before dropping onto her own fidgeting hands. “He wouldn’t be without his phone or wallet. Someone took both of them, there’s no question. There’s also the question of the open patio doors. Did we interrupt someone or was it done purposely?”
Lena reaches out for Kara’s hands, hoping it will help settle her anxiety. “Alright, let’s not get too far off track. He’s simply missing right now. So back to that, we report him missing Monday when you get home. You call Eve from work when you can’t reach James that morning. Make sure you leave him a message for good measure, too.” She rolls her eyes and continues, “You have to seem truly concerned. We also need to decide how much we reveal about his behavior leading up to him going missing.”
“W-What do you mean?” Kara questions, her shoulders tensing and eyes widening. “I don’t…why would we need to talk about all of that?”
Alex reaches across Lena to add her own hand to the pile in an effort to comfort her sister. “Kara, the cops are going to ask you all sorts of things. You need to be prepared for it. The more honest you are about the lead up, the better off you will be in the long run.” She assures. Hoping to get her point across, she persists, “Tell them you were sleeping in separate rooms, tell them about the abuse, and his regular absences. You should also tell them about the pregnancy and miscarriage. They’ll find out anyway. If you hide it, it’s going to make it look like you’re guilty of something.”
This seems to cause Kara to blanch and grow more tense. Alex immediately moves to Kara’s other side on the floor next to the couch. The longer the silence simmers between the three of them, the more anxious the blonde gets. Neither Alex nor Lena are sure what to do to ease Kara’s anxiety, but if they don’t figure it out this could go very wrong. So wrong that all three of them end up in prison for disposing of James’s body.
“Kara, you have to talk to us or we can’t help relieve whatever is causing you so much uneasiness. Regardless of the narrative we build, the police are going to ask questions about your relationship with James.” Lena assures, knowing the cops are going to be far more invasive than Kara realizes. “They’re going to poke and prod into every facet of your life. The more you tell us, the better prepared we’ll be. We have to have a solid, ironclad story going into this. As much as your instinct is to hide things from us about this, now is not the time, Darling.”
With Lena’s words, Kara’s posture sags in defeat. She knows they’re right and she’s frankly not sure why she is being so hesitant. It isn’t like James can hurt her anymore. Plus, she’s pretty sure one of the two women sitting here killed him so that ship already sailed. Her truth will come out eventually, she may as well spill it now. So that’s what she does, starting from the beginning she tells them everything.
“Holy shit, Kara! I really wish you had told me sooner. You know Kelly and I would have helped get you out of here.” Alex declares, wiping a rogue tear from her eye. “Yes, I know my wife is his sister, but she grew up with him. She understands and has experienced what he is like. She wouldn’t hesitate to take your side and help you.”
Lena’s arms are wrapped around her best friend in such a tight embrace it’s almost painful. She can recognize and comprehend why Kara didn’t tell her, but it also breaks her heart to know how much she was suffering at the hands of that fucking monster. Every fiber in her being is glad that motherfucker is dead. Whether it was Alex, Kara, or someone else entirely who killed him, her entire soul is celebrating his demise.
She looks at the Danvers sisters, hands down two of the most important people in her life. Being with them again is a harsh reminder of how much she misses them both, Kara especially. Unfortunately, now is not the time for reminiscing. Shaking her head, she dives right into what matters right now. “Okay, now that we have more background, here is what I think we should do…”
True to her word, Kelly has people there within the hour. Imra calls for them to open the back gate and backs a van onto the drive. Two other familiar faces are standing next to her on the back patio when Kelly opens the door. Mike Matthews and Siobhan Smythe. When they all step inside, Kelly turns to Kara and says, “I figured it would be best if it was people you were at least familiar with, people that have been here before.”
Kara nods, watching as the three of them stand in the kitchen. She grabs the briefcase from the coffee table and passes it along to Imra. “This is all of the drugs, photos, flash drives, documents, and voice recorders. The guns are upstairs, it’ll likely take several trips to get them all.”
Lena steps up next to Kara, nodding at Siobhan in greeting before wrapping her hand around her best friend’s bicep. “We’ll show you upstairs to the arsenal.”
With that, Siobhan, Mike, and Imra follow the two of them upstairs. The only conversation between them is directly related to the removal of the guns. When they enter the closet, Imra lets out a whistle of disbelief and Mike a quiet ‘damn’ before everyone grabs two long guns each.
On the second trip, Alex and Kelly join them. With the extra hands, they’re able to remove all the long guns in two trips. It doesn’t take long for the group to clear the handguns, still very little conversation between anyone. Imra, Mike, Siobhan, and Kelly talk amongst themselves, but Alex, Kara, and Lena remain silent. Within an hour and a half, Imra, Mike, and Siobhan are gone along with all the shit James left behind.
The four of them stand on the patio watching the van drive away, Kara waiting to close the gate behind them. They stare in silence as the blonde activates the lock when Alex speaks. “You know, I realize this means everything should be over, but I still feel like the other shoe is going to drop at any minute.”
Kelly and Lena hum in agreement as Kara rejoins them and everyone steps back inside. All four of them stand in awkward silence for a solid thirty seconds before Lena speaks up. “I’ve had far too much scotch to stand in the middle of the kitchen when I can sit comfortably on the couch.” Without another word, she strolls back to her place on the couch and drops onto the cushion.
When all of them are back in their previous positions, Kara breaks the ice. “I’m not sure this is really over. The fact we know the inner workings of The Oath Brokers makes us a liability to them. Sure, we gave them the information back, but they have to know we’ve seen it.”
“Agreed.” Lena nods, leaning closer to Kara on the couch. “You two may not have seen the actual contents of the case or heard any of the recordings, but they don’t know that. As far as they know, all four of us are aware.”
Kelly sighs, running her hands down her jean clad thighs. “I trust Imra and Siobhan not to disclose anything. The wild card is Mike. He’s gotten in trouble a few times for going rogue. There’s a reason he and James were such good friends.” She shakes her head as if she remembers something. “Mike and Imra have a history, he’s slightly terrified of her so I think she will keep him in line. If not, he’ll end up on the same list James did. Edge and his men don’t fuck around when it comes to their business.”
“See, that’s what worries me. Do you think they’ll come after any of us for what they think we know?” Alex inquires, her legs bouncing in defiance of her calm countenance. “How the hell did you get involved with them, anyway?”
A resigned groan crawls from Kelly’s throat. “Long story short, my father got mixed up with them right after our parents got married. Like James, he was a bit arrogant and acted like he was invincible. The Oath Brokers caught him skimming profits and attempting to do his own thing one too many times.”
She pauses as her eyes drift to the wall before she continues, “They slit his throat when I was eleven and James was thirteen. The only way they would leave our mother out of it was by requiring both James and I to ‘enlist’ with them to repay the debt. James was all in, but I avoided it like the plague. For the most part, they left me alone unless they needed me to wrangle my brother in.”
“Has he ever pushed them as far as he did this time?” Lena asks, snuggling further into Kara’s side as the blonde wraps an arm around her.
“He’s come close. I’ve had to get involved at least two other times and cash in some favors to keep him alive. He would always promise it was the last time. Blah blah blah.” She lifts her hand to her face to wipe away errant tears. “I knew the moment I found out what he was doing to you there was no going back, Kara. He would never leave you alone. Plus, his greed and arrogance would never allow him to stop his side hustle. It was always going to end this way.”
Kara glances at Lena before she chimes in, “You’re not wrong, you know. When we were going through the house to make sure we found everything he stashed, there was a lock box with fake identities. Two for each of us and a bunch of cash. My gut tells me he planned to force me on the run with him.” A shiver runs down her spine at the thought. “When I…umm, when I told him about the pregnancy, his first response was anger. After that, it was possession. He told me he owned me since I was carrying his baby.”
The room is eerily silent when Kara finishes speaking. She hadn’t planned to say any of that, but it feels good to get it off her chest. There’s one more thing she needs to say out loud, one more thing she hasn’t spoken outside her own mind. Not even to her best friend. Now that James is gone, maybe it’s time to speak her truth out loud.
“What I am about to say might seem horrible, it might be something you never thought I would say. Just know I don’t say it lightly.” The blonde says, a shaky breath accompanying her fidgeting hand. “When I woke up in the hospital and found out I lost the baby, I was glad. I wasn’t upset. I wasn’t sad. I was elated. Not just because I didn’t want to be tied to him, but also because…”
A broken sob rockets from her chest as she collapses into Lena. Alex and Kelly practically bolt over to her as well. By the time Kara is calm enough to speak again, Alex, Kelly, and Lena have tears in their eyes as well. All of them readjust on the couch. Kara and Lena in the middle with Alex next to Kara and Kelly on the other side of Lena.
Alex hands her sister a tissue from the box on the coffee table before asking, “Do you need to take a break? You don’t have to tell us anything you aren’t ready to, Kara. You’ve been through a lot in the last few months, years even. It’s okay if you need to wait.”
Blowing her nose into the tissue, she shakes her head. With a sniffle and a small nod to herself, she lays her head on Lena’s shoulder. “I know, Alex, but I need to say it out loud. I’ve avoided it for months because it makes it real. You guys are right, James is gone and he can’t hurt me anymore. I need to say this for myself. ”
Another sniffle and a shaky exhale, then the words she’s been waiting to confess, “The night I got pregnant was during one of his tirades. He, um, he forced himself on me after he beat me pretty badly. It was one of the worst beatings in a while. It started as him punching and choking me then got progressively worse. I honestly don’t remember what set him off that night, but I’ll never forget how it ended.”
When her voice trails off, the silence around her is deafening. She’s not sure what she expected after a confession like that, but the quiet is making her uneasy. Just as she is about to fill the silence, Lena speaks.
“Darling, I hope you know and understand none of this was your fault. Not a single part of it. What you’re feeling, how you felt in the hospital, all of it is valid.” She pulls the blonde closer, pressing a gentle kiss to her temple. “None of us will judge you or think differently of you for feeling relieved about losing the baby. Even though James is gone, the scars from the trauma are still there. We’re here to help you heal.”
Kelly reaches across Lena to place a hand on top of Kara’s knee. Tears are streaming down her face, misplaced guilt swimming in her eyes. “If I could take it all away from you, Kara, I would. My brother never deserved you. I promise I will do whatever I can to make things better from her on out. I’m so sorry.”
“No, Kelly. You have nothing to apologize for. James made his own choices, forged his own path. He was never going to listen to anyone else no matter what consequences he suffered.” Kara wearily says, her hand sitting on top of her sister-in-law’s. “In the end, you’re the reason I’m free from him. That’s something I couldn’t do on my own. Without you, Alex, and Lena, it scares me to think about what would have happened.”
Alex leans forward, adding her own hand to the top of the pile. “That’s what we’re here for, Kara. We all protect each other. I think we’ve proven as much in the last couple of weeks.” A humorless laugh escapes her mouth as she rests her head against her sister’s back. “On that note, I think Kelly and I are going to take our leave. We obviously have a lot of things we need to sort out ourselves. I just found out my wife is an associate of The Oath Brokers and we both committed crimes. Not your average Saturday night conversation.”
The four of them chuckle. It’s a weak sound, but it breaks the tension as they all stand. Kara and Lena walk them to the door where they all exchange hugs and agree to dinner at Alex and Kelly’s place the following evening. Once the door is closed and locked, the two of them mosey into the kitchen to warm up something for dinner.
They move around one another in peaceful quietude, like they’ve done thousands of times before. It seems no matter where they are or what they are doing, the two of them gravitate toward one other. Shoulder-to-shoulder and hip-to-hip, they share the task of making their plates. Leftover zuppa toscana soup Siobhan made, it’s the last of the meals and it makes Kara wonder if she or Eve will ever be back.
Moving to the other side of the island, they each relax onto a bar stool to eat in comfortable silence. It’s nothing new for them, they’ve eaten next to each other without speaking countless times. For them, it’s a calm companionship. Almost as if every single molecule in their souls vibrates at the same frequency. They understand what’s being said without words, speaking a soundless language their hearts learned ages ago.
Once their food is finished and the dishes are done, they clean up the remnants of the intense and draining confessional with Alex and Kelly. It seems Lena is the only one that didn’t share a secret. Locking up and shutting off lights, they ascend the stairs side-by-side. The past two days have been one hell of a rollercoaster ride. The two of them want nothing more than to shower and crawl into bed. So, that’s what they do.
It’s nearing 11:00 p.m. by the time they’re both underneath the covers and snuggled into one another. As exhausted as they are, their minds are running laps around their skulls. Neither of them will be able to sleep anytime soon, there is still so much to do and so much to discuss. The lingering question is, where do they start?
With the cover of darkness in her favor, Lena rolls onto her side so she and Kara are face to face. They’re close enough that Lena can feel Kara’s breath against her face and see the faint outline of her jawline. Their bodies are so close their legs are intertwined, Kara’s casted hand resting on Lena’s hip like it belongs there. The truth is, Lena thinks it does. She always has.
Maybe it’s time for her own confession.
The two of them lay there in the stillness of the bedroom, eyes focused on each other. Gathering all the inner strength she can muster, she raises her hand to gently tuck a stray blonde lock behind Kara’s ear before resting her palm against her cheek. She can feel the tears stinging her eyes and the nervousness building in her gut. Whether this ends up being the best decision of her life or the second worst (she did help dispose of a body for fuck sakes), she has to do it now.
“Kara…” It comes out as a soft whisper. She doesn’t mean for it to, but she’s terrified. Her best friend nuzzles into her palm, almost silently encouraging her to continue. “You’re so beautiful. Oh so beautiful, Darling. I just…I love you so much. With every single ounce of my being, I have loved you for most of my life. I think I spent so many years with other people because the idea of being with you and then losing you terrified me. Honestly, it still does. However, being here with you these past two weeks, going through the things we have, it’s made me realize I don’t want to be away from you anymore, Kara.”
Lena shifts closer, pressing their foreheads together. “Maybe the timing is inappropriate, maybe I should have waited. I don’t know. What I do know is that I have been in love with you since we were barely teenagers and I’m tired of pretending with other people. Nothing will work with them because they aren’t you. You’re it for me, you always have been. I’ve just been too scared to say it out loud.”
The warm silence that cocoons them is soft and safe. It’s much like the way they spent so many nights throughout their childhood and college years. They bask in it for a while until Lena realizes Kara hasn’t responded to her pouring her heart out. She slowly begins to panic, but the moment she starts to pull her hand away, she feels dampness on Kara’s cheek. For a second her panic increases, has she ruined the best thing in her life? Fortunately, that's when Kara pulls her closer, halting her movement as her panic ebbs into realization.
“Oh Lena, I love you, too. So, so very much. From the very moment you walked into my English class that day, I was enamored with you. Regardless of who I was with or for how long, I’ve always wished it was you.” She pauses, a slight sniffle sounding between them before touching their noses together like she’s always done when they are talking quietly in bed. Lena lightly wipes away her best friend's tears, grateful she feels the same.
With another sniffle and a light chuckle, she continues, “You know, I’ve been waiting for you to acknowledge this since our sophomore year in college. Before Jack, before Mike, back when you were the center of my world. When you showed up with Jack that night, I figured I was alone in the way I felt so I pushed those feelings as far down as I could.”
“I always regretted that, you know? Being with Jack…I always knew he and I would never be more than friends. You and I were so close and everything was so perfect that I did what I always do. I tried to ignore the scary emotional things. I think a small part of me thought maybe you would break things off with Mike when I split with Jack. When you didn’t? Well, I figured I lost my chance.” A single tear slides down Lena’s cheek, a lone drop of grief for what might have been.
Kara sighs, there are so many moments over the years where they could have taken the steps needed to bring what they both wanted to life. If only one of them had been brave enough back then. “On the day of my wedding, there was this little part of me that wished you would beg me not to do it so we could run away together. I felt so guilty because back then, I genuinely cared about James. Regardless, it’s always been you for me, Lena. Always.”
Without preamble, as if pulled together like magnets, their bodies draw even closer. Lena’s hand slides from Kara’s cheek to the back of her neck while Kara’s hand wraps around her waist pulling their bodies flush. Slowly and with the utmost care, their lips meet for the first time in seven years. Each of them releases a soft sigh followed by a gentle moan, flocks of butterflies perform gymnastics in their stomachs. It feels like coming home, like the first rain after a long drought. For the first time in years, their souls find peace.
Getting lost in kissing each other is something they’ve always done. Being late to countless plans and events was prevalent during their college years. They don’t have anywhere to be at the moment, but Lena wants to make sure they do this right. She doesn’t want to go into this lightly and wants it to be clear this isn’t like all the times in the past. Sure, she just professed her undying love for the blonde, but there is no room for misinterpretation this time.
Just as things are really getting heated, the CEO taps the brakes. “Wait, Kara! Pause for a second, Darling.” She presses her hand against her best friend’s chest to put some space between them. Panting, she does her best to think through the haze of arousal thrumming through her body. She’s dreamed about this very moment countless times, but the stakes are real now.
“What is it? Did I hurt you? Is something wrong?” Kara questions, concern shining from the crinkle between her brows that Lena can feel more than see. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
“Nothing is wrong, my love. I just don’t want to rush this and I need to be clear about where we stand.” Lena states, vulnerability wafting from her like steam. “I love you, but it’s more than that. I want a future with you. It will take time, but I am working toward opening a branch of LS MedTech here in National City.”
She takes a deep breath, steeling herself to say the next words. Gesturing between the two of them, she says, “This…you and I, I want it more than anything. This isn’t like our MIT days, Kara. I want you, for the long haul. Marriage, a dog, and maybe even kids someday. All of it. I know we have a lot to deal with in light of James’ antics, but I’m here to stay, Darling. If you need time, I understand, but I’m all in.”
“God, Lena. You have no idea how long I’ve wanted this. I’ve been in love with you since I was twelve. That’s nineteen years! If I could have married you instead of James, I would have. In fact, I should have.” She shakes her head to rid herself of the memories trying to creep through. “My biggest regret is leaving Cambridge and coming here. I wish I had stayed there while you were finishing your PhD. No matter, we are here now. I want this, I want you. We can go as slow as you need to, I’m not going anywhere.”
Kara pulls Lena into her arms and they lay in bed just breathing in each other’s presence. With her head on Kara’s chest, she lets herself dream of what a future with her best friend would look like. That’s when it occurs to her, to the world, James is just missing and not dead. Kara is still married as long as he is deemed missing. In most cases, he will have to be missing for seven years to be declared dead. She groans at this thought.
Her groan makes Kara laugh before she asks, “What’s going on in that head of yours? I know that noise. That’s the ‘I just thought about something and I’m annoyed’ noise. So spill it.”
“It’s nothing. I just remembered that since James is considered missing and not dead, you’re still legally married. In most cases, you have to wait until they have been missing for seven years to have them declared legally dead. There’s no magic we can muster to make a body appear. On the plus side, you can still file for divorce.” Lena huffs, of course the man is still a pain in the ass, even in death.
Kara is quiet for a minute before she responds, “You’re not wrong, but also, we know someone that can do something about it. Hear me out. Imra is on the case and she knows he’s dead. Maybe we can get Kelly to talk to her and have The Oath Brokers work their criminal magic to help. We returned all their shit and they know we disposed of the body. At this point it’s mutual incrimination.”
“Ummm, about that…” The CEO sheepishly says. “I may have a duplicate copy of the hierarchy and prominent figure information. I don’t trust them, Kara. I want something to protect us in case they come back. If they find out we kept the money, it might bite us in the ass. This gives us insurance.”
A deep, low chuckle resonates from Kara’s chest. It continues for almost a full minute before she collects her composure. “I should have known you would keep something to protect us. Seems like we need to rent a safety deposit box to keep some things hidden. We need to burn those passports, too. How are you going to get the money into your offshore account?”
“We can get a safety deposit box one day this coming week. I need to think about looking for an apartment or house soon anyway. As for the money, Wilson is sending one of his boys to pick up the briefcase with the money. They’re going to set-up an international wire transfer from New York. For a fee, of course.” Lena grins, curling further into Kara’s warmth. “Now, let’s get some sleep. I’m exhausted and we still have a lot to do before we meet up with Alex and Kelly tomorrow.”
With one final slow and tender kiss, they drift off to sleep in each other’s arms. It’s the best, most restful sleep either of them have gotten in years. They still have a lot to figure out and quite a few obstacles to hurdle, but with each other, they’re confident they’ll make it through.
Waking the next morning, neither of them want to get out of bed or leave the comfort of the other’s warmth. It isn’t until the sun is making itself known through the window and Kara’s stomach growls that they finally leave the bed. It’s nearing noon when they scour the kitchen for something to eat. Suddenly, Lena remembers to ask Kara about Eve and Siobhan.
“Hey, I forgot to ask about Eve or Siobhan not showing up on Thursday when the detectives were here. Did you call them beforehand?” Lena inquires, curiosity clear in her tone.
Kara smiles, leaning down to kiss Lena on the lips. “Yes, I called to tell them not to come because there was something going on at the house. I was vague about it because I didn’t know at the time they were involved.” She shrugs and closes the fridge for the third time.
“I guess we should get ready to grab some lunch and get groceries while we are out. We can pretty much bank on not seeing Eve or Siobhan again.” Lena laughs, heading toward the stairs to shower for the outing. “Oh, we should also pick up some more cameras. If we are going to stay here for a while, we need to have eyes on this place.”
“Agreed.” With that, they take the stairs to get their day started.
It’s nearing 4:30 p.m. when they return from their lunch and shopping. They jointly decide to ask Alex and Kelly to come over there instead of meeting at their place. Having Alex to help install the new cameras will be better than Kara trying to help with a cast.
An hour later, Alex and Kelly are ringing the doorbell with bags of food in hand. With the change of location, they decided to order from their favorite Italian place instead of cooking. Alex immediately clocks the cameras sitting on the coffee table and makes a beeline for them, followed closely by Lena. The CEO already knew the elder Danvers would want to install them and Lena is happy to have the help.
“Do they meet your approval, protective big sister?” Lena asks, a smirk on her face since she knows they are top of the line. She purposely bought the best ones available. Sleek, low-profile, night vision, sound, all the bells and whistles. Not to mention she bought the equipment to set-up an internal server inside the house that also backs up to her private cloud for built in redundancy. If someone sets foot on the property, they will know who and when complete with notifications to their phones.
“This is nice equipment, Luthor. It definitely has your signature all over it. Kara is brilliant, but she doesn’t know engineering like you do.” The redhead eyes the stash with bemused respect. “Knowing you, I’m guessing you’ve already installed and set-up the internal network, too. Shall we start on the external ones before it gets dark?”
As the two of them head outside, Kara helps Kelly put together the ingredients for the chocolate pecan pie Alex asked for. At first, they work in companionable silence. Before long, Kara’s curiosity gets the best of her and she has to ask. “How are things between you and Alex?”
Kelly pauses her mixing and tilts her head toward the ceiling, eyes closed. After taking a couple of deep breaths, she turns to look at Kara before responding, “We’re…okay. She’s still pretty angry with me and I don’t blame her. Truthfully, I deserve worse, but I think she feels pretty guilty about James so it’s somewhat of a counterbalance. It will take time, but I think we’ll get there.”
“I hope so. You two are good together and I’d hate to see it ruined because of all this. Besides, I think we’re far more bonded now than we ever were before.” Kara chuckles, they all share a secret that will go with them to their graves. “Nothing like a little murder and accessory to murder to bind a family together.”
An uninhibited laugh rockets from Kelly’s mouth, the first one in what seems like ages. She shakes her head in disbelief at Kara saying something like that. “Kara Danvers, I didn’t know you had it in you! Such morbid humor, I’m here for it.” The laughter trails off as they focus back on their task, the tension finally eased.
Outside, Alex and Lena are having their own conversation. “How’re you holding up, Alex? Yesterday was a lot and I can’t imagine it was easy to swallow the information you learned.” Lena queries, her eyes not leaving Alex’s movement on the ladder.
“Well, we talked, if that’s what you’re asking. It went about as well as you can imagine until I calmed down. The whole thing kind of turned my world upside down. Once I took a step back and added my own baggage into the mix, we were able to talk things through.” She finishes the final camera on the house and descends the ladder. “We still have a lot of things to work out, but we’ll get there. Alright, gate cameras and then we can eat.”
Lena laughs as they walk toward the back gate to install the last two outdoor cameras, one facing the gate and one facing the house. She and Kara can install the cameras inside the house later, these are the ones that matter right now. The last two cameras don’t take long, but Alex catches her off guard when they’re putting the ladder and tools away.
“There’s something different with you and my sister today. You look more relaxed than I have seen you the entire time you’ve been here and she’s practically giddy.” Alex grins at the now squirming Lena. “The only time you two ever look or act like this is when you are sleeping together.”
First she splutters, something she hasn’t done since she was in middle school. Second, she nearly trips over her own feet. Finally, she forms words and hurls them at Alex. “Wh-What are you talking about, Alex? How did…what did…” She pauses in an attempt to compose herself before speaking again, “I’m not sure what you are talking about, Danvers, please elaborate.”
With a big belly laugh, Alex shoves Lena toward the patio door. “You act like I don’t know you two were each other’s first or that you two made out like the horny teenagers you were when we were younger. I saw you guys more than once, Luthor. Not to mention I know you did the whole friends with benefits thing in college. However, I’ve always known it was more than that for both of you, even if neither of you admitted it.”
Lena is stunned, she probably shouldn’t be, but she is. Alex has always been perceptive and intuitive. Plus, she knows the two of them better than anyone else outside of each other. She sighs, resigned to the fact that Alex has picked up on the shift between them. “We talked last night, traded some confessions, and we’re taking things slow. I love her, Alex. I always have. I just don’t want to fuck it up.”
“You won’t, Lena. The two of you…you’re inevitable. Regardless of the road to get here, it was always going to be you and Kara.” She slings her arm around the shorter woman and they make their way inside to find Kara and Kelly laughing over a cooling pie.
Maybe she’s right, maybe it was always going to be the two of them. The road has been bumpy and long, but she can finally see a future that includes more nights like this. More cozy nights on the couch, more lazy mornings in bed, just more time together. There are still things to figure out and more talks to be had, but this is a good start. Right now, at this moment, she’s finally where she’s supposed to be.
As the four of them sit down to dinner, they don’t notice the figure lurking at the edge of the hedges. The figure watches them for a while, murmuring about unfinished business and getting what’s theirs. Unfortunately for them, the newly installed cameras capture it all.
When the work day ends and Friday evening rolls around, Kara and Lena are both downright exhausted. Reporting James missing on Monday, working all week, the meeting with the detectives the night before, and adjusting to the knowledge they got rid of a body, this week has been pure hell and a lot to digest. The two of them are looking forward to a relaxing night in and time to unwind.
By dinnertime, Lena is packed, checked out of the AirBnB, and moved back to Kara’s place for the foreseeable future. Fortunately, her conversation with Jack goes much better than she anticipated and also veers into an area she didn’t expect. The company they acquired last week recently merged with another smaller company giving LS MedTech a chance to really establish their presence on the West coast.
With her foot in the door on this side of the country, Lena already has her eye on another company. If she can secure that one, it will give them the foundation they need to cultivate and strengthen their brand presence in National City. Jack and Sam both have been pushing her to expand for a while. Apparently, the current weird and unorthodox circumstances have sparked the fire to actually do it.
LS MedTech is already well known around the world, but they only have offices in New York and Germany. Having something on both coasts in the U.S. would certainly benefit them, but Lena never put much stock in it before. Being in the same city with Kara has always been a draw, but sharing the same air as James was never appealing. With that roadblock removed, maybe it’s time for a change?
Kara’s very loud plundering in the pantry yanks Lena out of her meandering thoughts. From her seat at the kitchen island, her eyes immediately snap to her best friend who is apparently pulling almost everything off the shelves in the pantry. “Kara, what exactly are you doing? Has the snack shelf somehow offended you?”
She pauses in her movements and looks at Lena before bursting into laughter. After a few seconds, she gathers her wits and with a very somber tone, she says, “Lena, this is serious. My favorite snacks are missing. So, yes, I am offended!”
“Are you sure you didn’t just eat them all?” Lena inquires, a smirk on her face. “Did you forget we lived together for six years in college? I have firsthand experience, I know you tend to eat them all and then forget to add them to the shopping list.”
A long groan sounds from deep inside the pantry as Kara comes stomping out with an empty box of her favorite cookies. The enormous pout on her best friend’s lips causes Lena to lose her already waning composure. “Hey, you better put that pout away or you’re going trip over your bottom lip.”
They both dissolve into giggles. The whole situation is incredibly reminiscent of their college days when life was simpler and they spent everyday together. When their laughter finally subsides, something on the top shelf catches Lena’s eye. She’s not sure what it is or why it catches her eye, but she plans to find out.
“Hey, what’s that on the top shelf? Do you see it?” She says, standing to point at the object that now has all of her attention. “It looks like something metal, maybe a case or box. Can you reach it?”
Kara eyes the shelf for a bit before opting for a step stool instead. When she is level with the shelf, she’s surprised to find not one, but two metal briefcases with dial locks on them. She’s never seen either of them before, not that she would really know what James was bringing in and out of their house. Which now that she’s thinking about it is a bit worrisome. Fuck, she and Lena need to do a thorough search of the entire place now that he’s gone. Who knows what else is stashed right under their noses.
Whatever is in them, James didn’t want to be found. Both of them are pushed back against the wall and covered. She’s still not sure how Lena spotted them since they are covered with a cloth that mostly blends in with the wall. The briefcases are just heavy enough that she can only remove one at a time and has to ask Lena to come over to grab one so she doesn’t lose balance on the stool.
Sitting both cases on the dining table, the two women stare at them in shock. With what they’ve already learned about James and his shady dealings, it’s completely within the realm of possibilities that he would hide shit here. However, neither of them had given much thought to the fact James could be keeping anything in the house. Apparently, his arrogance knew no bounds.
It’s Kara that finally breaks the quietude. “How the hell are we going to open these things? It’s not like the combination is written on it somewhere and I have no idea what he would use.” She groans, running both hands down her face.
Lena grins, she already knows how to bypass locks like this. Her curiosity used to get her in all sorts of trouble as a child. She learned how to get into her father’s briefcases by the time she was ten. With more practice, she was a pro by the time her father died. From the looks of these two briefcases, she will be able to get into them relatively easily.
“Easy. I’ve been getting into cases like these since I was a kid. Lionel had several similar to these.” She pulls one of them toward her with a sparkle in her eyes. “I need a small piece of cardstock or a business card.”
Kara regards her for a moment before opening the proverbial junk drawer in the kitchen to pull out a random business card, handing it over to the CEO. She’s very curious to see how Lena plans to figure out the combination and open the cases. It won’t surprise her in the least if she can do it, but she doesn’t know how it’s possible without breaking the locks or prying off the latches. She should know, she’s had to do it before.
Curious blue eyes observe as Lena gets to work. The first thing she does is run the corner of the business card back and forth along the left side of the first numeric dial. With each number she turns toward herself, she runs the card alongside it. She must find what she is looking for because she stops on the number two and moves on to the second dial to do the same thing. After finishing with the third dial, the numbers read two-six-zero.
When she is finished she nods. Turning each dial once toward herself, she tries the latch. After each failed attempt, she turns all three dials again. This process continues until the right combination is reached and it opens. Lena laughs in triumph and Kara stares at her best friend with mouth agape and eyes wide. Twinkling green eyes verify the combination on the open case before moving on to the next one. She immediately tries the same combination and it pops right open.
Pleased with herself, she does a little shimmy before smacking Kara on the arm in celebration. “I’ve still got it! It’s been years since I have done that, I forgot how much fun it is.” She laughs, her smile wide and her excitement evident. “Ahhh, the memories of all those times I got into my dad’s briefcase. Good to know my skills are still honed.”
“How? I really don’t get it.” Kara breathes out in disbelief. “You basically just rubbed a business card next to it. Are you a sorcerer of some sort and you’ve never told me?”
Lena smiles at her adorable best friend. “Kara, magic isn’t real. I’m just that good.” She smirks before continuing, “The card is to help find the notch next to each dial. When the card slides smoothly and you can see a visible gap next to each dial, it means you have it aligned correctly. Then, it’s just a matter of finding the right combination of numbers. I’m sure there’s a YouTube video out there about it. I just figured it out by sheer determination and trial and error.”
Laughter bubbles up from Kara’s throat as she shakes her head at the shorter woman next to her. Lena has never ceased to amaze her, she’s always been an unfathomable genius. She shouldn’t be surprised at the breadth of Lena’s knowledge and capability, yet somehow she is. “You’re something else, Lena Luthor. I should have known you would know how to get into a locked briefcase. You want to do the honors?”
She points at the still unopened cases in front of them. Quietly, inside her head, she wishes Lena would have opened them right away instead of just unlocking them. She really does not want to be the one to do it. Partly because she has no desire to get a deeper glimpse into what James was up to and also because she’s terrified of what might be in her house. Seeing it will make it far too real and she’s had plenty of ‘far too real’ in the last week to last a lifetime.
Lena’s smile instantly fades as she steps toward the cases and takes a deep breath. The two share a look before pale, shaky hands lift the first lid. A simultaneous gasp rockets from both of them as their jaws drop. There is easily $750,000 dollars taking up half the case and bundles of pills, powder, and small vials comprise the other half.
It’s certainly more money than Kara has ever seen in one place and she’s definitely never seen so many drugs. In fact, she’s not even sure what some of it is. Her wide eyes settle on her best friend as she does her best not to panic. Knowing this stuff is in her house causes her anxiety to soar through the roof.
“Well, I can’t say this surprises me, but it definitely pisses me off.” Lena scoffs. After seeing all of the pictures from Wilson, she’s not shocked. Assuredly angry that James kept shit like this in the house with Kara, but not shocked at all. “I’m not sure what to do with the drugs. The money is the easy part, we can deposit that into my offshore account to replace what we paid Grimme. I have no qualms about taking it back from your asshole husband. The drugs? I have no idea.”
“I was going to suggest the same thing about the money, but I agree with you about the drugs. I wouldn’t know where to start.” She sighs, there’s no question now, they have to go through the rest of the house. “Want to open the other one now?”
Lena nods and pulls the second case forward to flip the lid. Instead of money and drugs, this one is filled with a few printed photos, numerous documents, several flash drives, and what appears to be at least five voice recorders. They immediately dig through the documents and photos.
From what they can decipher, the documents contain names of high dollar call girls cross-referenced with the men who pay them. The lists reveal some very high profile names. Prominent names that would very easily get someone killed if they tried to expose or blackmail them.
Curiosity getting the best of her, Kara reaches for one of the voice recorders and presses play. The first voice is easily recognizable as James. The second voice is undoubtedly a female voice and sounds familiar, but she can’t place it. The third voice though, she’d recognize that voice anywhere. James’ co-worker and best friend, Michael Matthews. Kara hates the guy, he is just as cocky and arrogant as James. Maybe worse.
She actually thinks, or thought, the two of them were on the outs since she hasn’t seen him around in six months or more. Of course, for all she knows, this recording could be from that long ago. The second voice chimes in again and there is something niggling at the back of Kara’s brain about it. She knows that voice, but she can’t figure out where it is from.
They keep listening when a fourth voice joins the fray. It’s another voice Kara knows well, James’ boss, Morgan Edge. Only this is obviously not related to Edge Global business. They are discussing shipments, lavish parties, who will be where, and what ‘goods’ will be needed.
The mystery voice chimes in again, speaking about security and protection. That’s when Mike says the woman’s name, Imra. Lena immediately realizes who the woman is, Detective Imra Ardeen. The woman who was standing in this very place just twenty-four hours ago.
“Holy shit! I can’t fucking believe this.” Lena incredulously says, her voice reflecting her surprise at the revelation. “A fucking dirty cop! We should have figured that they’d have someone on the inside working James’ case. Given he was working for The Oath Brokers, I’m not completely shocked, but this could be bad for us. Hmmm, it could also work in our favor though.”
“How so? I mean, I get how it could work against us, but how could it possibly work in our favor? Wouldn’t they want to put the disappearance on someone to keep suspicion off them?” Kara questions, her brow furrowed in thought and confusion. She gestures toward the two cases sitting on the table and says, “Also, they have to know he stole from them. This is a lot of money and merchandise to go missing.”
Lena considers the question and nods. “Exactly what you said, it would be in The Oath Brokers best interest to keep the suspicion off them. If it looks like James skipped town, it’s a case of him taking the money and drugs before splitting town. It’s clean and the case is closed.” She pauses, tilts her head in thought and continues, “It also further expands the suspect list. If Imra is dirty, it very well could have been her. She clearly knows James even though she pretended she didn’t when she was here last night.”
They spend the next two hours scouring the recordings and sorting the documents. Neither of them have the energy to deal with checking the flash drives right now, they can wait until tomorrow. The entire house needs to be searched anyway, who knows what else they’ll find. They lock the cases and store them back on the top shelf in the pantry. Grabbing a light snack for each of them, Lena hands one to Kara and grabs them both a bottle of water. Without another word, they head upstairs to get through their nighttime routines and crawl into bed.
The next morning, Lena wakes first. She pads her way downstairs into the kitchen to make coffee and figure out breakfast. As she is waiting for the coffee to brew and pulling things out of the fridge for breakfast, she realizes that neither Eve nor Siobhan showed up on Thursday. Given the typical days are Monday and Thursday, she finds it odd. Stranger still that Kara didn’t mention it. She files that in the back of her head and continues with breakfast. There is plenty enough to think about without adding to the list.
By the time she is finished with the omelettes, Kara sleepily shuffles down the stairs. Seeing the blonde in the morning has always made Lena’s chest warm and her heart flutter. It started when she was barely a teen and hasn’t stopped. Kara does what she always has and plods over to wrap her arms around the CEO from behind, nuzzling into the side of her neck. Her eyes involuntarily close as she wraps one hand around Kara’s sitting at her waist and the other latches onto the counter in front of her so her knees don’t buckle. Oh, how she’s missed these simple moments.
Lena clears her throat when a few too many seconds of silence coast by. She needs to remove herself from Kara’s embrace before she does something stupid, like kiss her. It wouldn’t be the first time, but it hasn’t happened in years and isn’t exactly an appropriate thing to be thinking at this moment.
It’s barely been a week since they disposed of James’ body. What is she supposed to say, ‘Hey Kara, I know your husband died a week ago and we incinerated his body, but do you want to make out with me?’ Jesus Christ, Lena. Get your shit together.
She shakes herself out of that winding rabbit hole and pulls away from her best friend’s warmth. “Alright, sleepy head, let’s eat. We have a lot of shit to do.” Lena grins at the adorable head tilt from the woman now standing next to her. “Grab your plate, cold eggs are gross.”
With a soft chuckle, Kara does just that. They sit next to one another at the kitchen island, neither saying much as their thighs press together under the lip of the counter. Occasionally, they catch each other’s eye and softly smile before looking away. It’s nearly identical to shared breakfasts in college. The warmth and comfort they have in one another is something that has remained constant for most of their lives, something Lena has always been able to count on.
Once again, her thoughts are interrupted when Kara stands to take both their plates to the sink. She insists on cleaning up since Lena cooked and she’s clearly not going to argue with that logic. Sea green eyes watch the lithe frame of her best friend navigate the room as if everything moves around her instead of the opposite. It’s a marvel to behold and she gets lost in it. Lena doesn’t realize how completely engulfed she is until Kara’s warm palm cups her chin.
“Hi. You okay, my little space cadet? You zoned out on me.” A warm, sunshine riddled smile shines at Lena and she is rendered speechless so she just smiles back. “I called your name several times. You had me worried.”
She swallows her heart back down into her chest where it had unceremoniously lept into her throat at the closeness of the woman still palming her chin. “I’m fine, Darling. Just thinking about everything. What’s happened, what we still have to do. You know, the usual.”
She does her best to mask her internal melting into a puddle with a smirk and wink. Slowly, she wraps her hand around Kara’s to remove it from her skin, lest she literally melt into a puddle at the gentle touch. Pushing away from the bar, she stands and stretches. A grin spreads across her lips when she notices blue eyes tracing the skin revealed by the overhead stretch. Yet another thing to file in the ‘to be examined later’ folder.
Since they have no need for the money briefcase, Kara pulls down what they have taken to calling the document briefcase, settling it onto the coffee table. Lena grabs both of their laptops so they can comb through the flash drives from the comfort of the couch.
Hours later, they are looking at the full hierarchy and inner workings of The Oath Brokers entire criminal organization. Whatever James was up to, he was treading into very dangerous territory with some outright ruthless people. In the end, it seems his arrogance may have ultimately caused his demise.
“Well, I think we can safely say he fucked with the wrong people. His irritability and paranoia the last few weeks makes a lot more sense now.” Kara states, dropping her head back onto the backrest of the couch. “At this point, his death could have been caused by anyone he’s come in contact with recently. That list is pretty long, apparently. I just hope The Oath Brokers don’t decide to come looking for all of this.”
She sits up again, her arms gesturing toward the open briefcase on the table in front of them. Just as she is about to say something else, a gasp from the woman next her makes her head whip to the side. Lena has a fairly pale complexion on a good day, but right now? It looks like someone drained all the blood from her face and her eyes seem like they might pop from her sockets they’re so wide. Instead of asking, Kara sits back and leans toward Lena’s screen.
With a pointing finger, the CEO shows her what elicited the reaction. When blue eyes see what she is pointing at, Kara gasps as well. They sit in silence for what feels like hours before Lena closes everything and removes the drive. After putting the drives back into the briefcase and placing it back on the shelf, the two of them set about making lunch. Neither of them mention the names they found amongst the troves of information on The Oath Brokers. They’ll have to talk about it, but not right now. There are more important things to tend to, like searching the house for more surprises they will need to purge.
Lunch ends up being a very quiet affair. Neither of them speak much, too focused on their food and their own thoughts. Lena is the one that shatters the stillness. “Why don’t we start down here with our search? It should be easier to sort than upstairs. There aren’t really many places to hide things down here outside of the pantry.”
The first place they start is the pantry. The likelihood of finding something else in there is slim, but for sanity’s sake, they have to look. They comb through every shelf, then through the kitchen, the home gym, the living room, and the bathroom without finding anything. The only room left on the bottom level is the room Kara uses as her home office and reading room. James typically stays out of there, but she would be remiss if she didn’t check there as well.
The minute they open the door, it is obvious someone has gone through the place. It’s not ransacked, but it’s not as tidy as Kara keeps it. The last person that would have been in the house outside of people she trusts is Siobhan. Since neither she nor Eve were here on Thursday, she’s the last person with access. Unless one of the detectives slipped in here, but both of them were in their sight the whole time.
Lena quirks a brow at Kara. “I know you wouldn’t leave your office in this kind of disarray, when was the last time you were in here?” She asks, both concern and curiosity apparent in her eyes.
“I genuinely don’t know. Before my trip down the stairs, so at least two weeks. Oh, I remember now, it was our last video chat.” She nods as if confirming the information to herself and Lena.
“Okay, so someone could have gone through this room before we found Corpse Jimmy.” Lena absently states, startled when she hears Kara laughing next to her. “What? Why are you laughing?”
“Corpse Jimmy? I mean, it’s accurate, but I haven’t heard you say that.” Kara chuckles and shakes her head. “At least you have a sense of humor about it.”
“Oh, well I was referring to him like that with Alex. I guess it just stuck.” Lena shrugs, helping Kara gather the mess and reorganize the room. They’re checking all of the nooks and crannies as they go when Kara makes a noise that captures her attention. “What is it? Did you find something?”
“Some pictures. I’m not sure why they’re in here or where they came from, though. It’s a series of photos of James with several women I’ve never seen. There sure as hell isn’t a reason I would keep them in here, this is my space away from him.” Kara says, her eyes scanning the background of the pictures to see if she recognizes the location.
Lena leans over her shoulder looking at the pictures. Sure enough, there are five polaroids of James with scantily clad women either in his lap or on his arm. “Do you recognize where they are? Looks like it could be a club or bar, maybe something exclusive for members of The Oath Brokers and their lackeys?”
Kara hums in agreement, scanning over the final picture once more before sitting them aside to finish searching and reorganizing. “I’m wondering if those photos aren’t from Club Roulette. If the rumors are true, it’s a place where a lot of The Oath Brokers do business. Plus, we already know from the information on the flash drive that Veronica Sinclair is heavily involved so it makes sense.”
“The piece of paper in James’ pocket – he was supposed to meet with Veronica at noon the day after we found his body. My guess is he was working with her or she’s one of the people he was stealing from.” Lena thinks aloud, placing the last of the office mess back onto the desk. “Which means, there’s yet another person that could have wanted the bastard dead.”
They both sigh, double checking all the places James could have hidden things. When they finish the final walk-through, Kara grabs the photos to stash with all the other shit they have to figure out what to do with. Dropping the pictures onto the coffee table, they make their way upstairs to search for more of James’ secrets.
Sorting through the guest rooms and bathrooms upstairs doesn’t take long. There aren’t really many places he could hide things in any of those rooms. The master suite is a different story. Kara knows there is a six foot wall safe in the back of the closet and she knows the combination for it. Even if James changed it, she knows where the key is hidden.
She stands next to Lena at the threshold of the bedroom she used to call her sanctuary. Kara hasn’t stepped foot inside the room since the night he forced himself on her. An involuntary shiver runs down her spine as the thought crosses her mind. That’s when she feels Lena’s hand lace with hers, a solid, comforting presence next to her. They share a reassuring smile and step inside the room.
It hasn’t changed much since she moved out. Without her things in here, it is decidedly more masculine, but everything still looks mostly the same. Her thoughts are derailed when Lena speaks. “Why don’t you start in the bathroom while I look through the dresser and nightstands?” Lena asks, already moving toward the dresser.
Kara nods, heading into the bathroom to search through the cabinets and linen closet. Her search yields a toiletry bag with eight thousand dollars and some pills inside it. The rest of the room comes up empty. She grabs the toiletry bag and drops it onto the bed.
Lena finishes her search through the dresser, finding nothing of interest. They each take a nightstand which yields another two thousand in cash. After that, Kara checks under the bed and Lena checks under the mattress. Underneath the bed is clean, but the mattress gives them another five thousand in cash and a fully loaded 9mm pistol with an extended magazine.
Dropping everything on the bed, they pause to stare. A gun, more drugs, and fifteen thousand dollars in cash. They have a lot of money to figure out what to do with when this is all over. For now, they need to search the closet and open the safe. There’s no telling what they will find inside the safe, but they can’t put it off any longer.
Searching the closet leads them to a lockbox, it gets placed on the bed and they move onto the safe. Fortunately, James never changed the combination and they were able to get right in. Inside, there is a mixture of things they expect and several they don’t. Passports, birth certificates, and legal paperwork are things they expected to see. What is unexpected is the number of long guns and the numerous life insurance policies on both James and Kara.
Kara had no idea James had taken out over two million dollars in life insurance on her. It makes the hair on the back of her neck stand on end to think about what he was planning. Shaking herself out of those dark thoughts, she leans forward to help Lena count the guns as they lean them against the wall of the walk-in closet. By the time they finish pulling everything out, the final count is twenty-two long guns and twelve hand guns.
The two of them walk out of the closet to sit on the edge of the bed. Neither of them really know what to say. They weren’t expecting to find a relative arsenal inside the walk-in closet, but here they are. Sitting in silence for a while, Kara reaches back to grab the lock box. On a whim, she enters the same combination James used for the briefcases downstairs. To her astonishment, it actually works.
Taking a deep breath, she opens the metal box. Inside she finds four passports, four driver licenses, and another five thousand in cash. What’s odd is that they’re all fake identities, two for her and two for James. It makes her skin crawl to think he might have been planning to force her to leave the country or go on the run with him.
A gentle hand on her forearm causes her to jump. She doesn’t realize she is crying, until Lena’s other hand softly wipes the tears from her cheeks and under her eyes. “He’s gone now, Darling. He can’t hurt you anymore.” She moves the metal box back to the bed and pulls Kara closer to her. “I’m even more glad the motherfucker is dead now. After finding all this shit, there’s no telling what he may have done to you. You’re safe now, sweetheart.”
With those words, Kara breaks down. She lets out all of the built up emotion she’s been sitting on. Lena’s right, she is safe in her arms, it’s always been that way. When she is finally all cried out, she sits up. Looking around the room, she is reminded again that they have so many things in this house she has no idea what to do with. Before her thoughts spiral further, Lena interrupts.
“I have a question for you…” She curiously states, her eyes bouncing between the metal box and Kara. “All three boxes with the dial locks used the combination seven-two-eight. What is the significance of those numbers?”
For some reason, the question makes Kara burst into laughter. Lena is quite confused by it, but patiently waits for the answer. When the blonde finally stops laughing, she looks at Lena with a watery smile and responds, “It’s his birthday. July twenty-eighth. His so fucking arrogant that he used his own birthday.”
Lena groans and rolls her eyes so hard she’s afraid they won’t return. “That actually makes perfect sense with him. Goddamn, he really was full of himself. At least he’s gone for good and we don’t have to worry about him anymore. Right now, I think we need to call Alex. We’re not going to be able to do all of this on our own and she needs to know since she is involved in this as much as we are.”
“Agreed. I think we need to burn these.” Kara says as she reaches back to hold up the fake passports. “I also don’t want to tell anyone about the money. You take the large sum for the offshore account. The money we found today, I am going to put it in my room until I can put it into a safety deposit box or gradually deposit it into my savings account.”
With a nod of agreement, Lena pauses before speaking. “What are we going to do about the names we saw on those flash drives? If we tell Alex –”
“I know, that’s something we have to leave up to her.” Kara interrupts, her leg bouncing with the increased anxiety. “Why is all of this so damn complicated?” She huffs as Lena stands to gather things they need to remove from the room.
“To keep life interesting? I don’t know, but I am ready for something to go in our favor. Why don’t you run downstairs to put the drugs into the other briefcase and bring the money case up to your bedroom? We can store all the money and the fake passports in there until we can take care of them. The rest of the stuff we can leave where it is until we talk to Alex.” Lena directs as she gathers up the rest of the items to take to their bedroom.
Their bedroom? It’s a thought that momentarily stops her in her tracks. Yet another thing to file in the ‘for later’ folder. Rolling her eyes at herself, she heads to the bedroom while Kara grabs the drugs and heads downstairs. A few minutes pass and Kara is back with the money case. They stuff all the cash inside it alongside the passports before locking it and placing behind some blankets on the top shelf of the closet.
They barely hit the bottom step on the stairs when the doorbell rings. It makes them both freeze, their eyes wide. They aren’t expecting company and would hope if it was the detectives, they’d call first. Lena eventually moves toward the door after the third press of the doorbell. When she looks at the camera, her heart stops. Standing on the front porch are Alex and Kelly. Both of them appear to be somber and not in the mood for anyone’s shit.
She looks back at Kara still standing at the bottom of the stairs to wave her over. “It’s Alex and Kelly. At least this saves us a phone call. Come on, looks like this is going to be a long night.” With that, Lena opens the door.
Alex looks at Kelly, then at Kara and Lena before clearing her throat and pushing through the door. As soon as they are all inside standing near the kitchen island, the redhead says, “Kelly knows. We need to talk.”
“It feels a bit surreal. Hard to believe a year has passed already.” Kara says, a disbelieving half-smile on her face. “Almost every aspect of my life has shifted in some way. No, scratch that…every aspect of my life has changed.”
A petite, dark-haired woman, not much older than Kara sits in a chair across from her making notes. Dr. Kalin Decker, PsyD – she’s been the one to help the blonde sift through and process the trauma James heaped onto her psyche over the years. It’s still a work in progress, but she’s in a much better headspace now.
“It’s tomorrow, right? One year to the day?” Dr. Decker asks, pausing to look up from her notes. “How are you feeling about it? About everything?”
Kara has grown so much over the past year. There are several reasons she is in such a good place nowadays, mostly because of therapy. Well, therapy and Lena. Of course, Alex and Kelly have been a factor as well, but Dr. Decker and Lena have made the biggest difference.
“Mmmhmm, one year tomorrow. Honestly, I’m not sure how I feel. Right now, there are several different emotions at war inside me.” She responds, eyes closed as she pictures that night nearly a year ago. “I think, mostly, I’m feeling relieved and content.”
She takes a deep breath, remembering the phone call she received six months ago. “When we finally got the news he – James – was dead, it made things a lot easier. It was the push I needed to move on from the life I was trapped in. Being able to file for his life insurance and sell the house was a huge factor. Leaving the house behind helped me close the chapter for good.”
Dr. Decker nods, head tilted toward her notebook again, making notes. “You don’t talk much about what happened when you got the phone call. Were you shocked or was it something you figured would eventually come? Regardless, it’s a lot to process.”
She lightly chuckles, eyes focused on the hands fidgeting in her lap. “I’m not sure how to answer that one, Doc. Maybe a little of both? I didn’t really expect to hear anything so soon. Six months was a relief and a bit of a shock at the same time. I think most of us expected it to be years.” She pauses the fidgeting to look out the window before continuing without looking at the doctor. “Mike’s involvement is what caught me off guard the most. I was never a fan of his, but had no idea of his…unhinged obsession.”
Her mind drifts into memories of the night they first discovered how truly disturbed Michael Matthews really was.
Both Lena and Kara’s phones are vibrating on the kitchen counter. No one is paying attention to them. Alex and Lena just finished installing the outdoor cameras and the four of them are enjoying their dinner. The phones continue to vibrate while the women enjoy their meals followed by dessert. It’s a much needed reprieve after what they’ve been through in the previous days.
Later, when Alex and Kelly are gathering their things to head home for the evening, Lena finally checks her phone. Her face goes white as her eyes dart from her phone to the patio door and back. As she is about to say something to the others, Kara looks at her own phone and nearly drops it before Alex catches it midair.
“Jesus, what’s with you two? You both look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Alex jokes, trying to lighten the mood. When neither Lena nor her sister responds, she looks at Kara’s phone herself. “Oh, what the fuck?”
Kelly peers over Alex’s shoulder and throws her own string of swear words into the mix. “What the hell is he doing here? She stomps over to the patio doors, angrily opening them before turning on her phone’s flashlight. “Mike, show your fucking face. Right now, you piece of shit! Don’t make me pull rank, Matthews. I will if I need to.”
With no response, she steps back inside before closing and locking the door. She wastes no time, immediately calling Imra. Within minutes, Imra is at the front door and combs the perimeter of the house before they determine he’s not there anymore.
“...Kara. Hey, are you okay?” Dr. Decker breaks into the vivid flashback of the night Mike inserted himself into her life like an unseemly rash or an unwanted relative. “Where’d you go?”
Shaking her head as if to will the memories away, she shrugs. “Yes, I’m fine, Doc. Just thinking about the night Mike first showed up. None of us had any idea of the insanity he would unleash.” A humorless laugh leaves her lips as her hands still fidget.
“I can’t imagine anyone could have predicted something like that, Kara.” Dr. Decker responds, uncrossing and recrossing her legs in the opposite direction. “I know we’ve touched on some of this, but you’ve never really talked through it with me. I’m sure you felt violated again. He showed up at your home and work numerous times, right?”
“He did. It was like he always knew where we were. I felt like he was an extension of James. Sometimes I feel like Mike was worse. Not sure if that makes sense, Doc.” Her eyes drift to the wall behind the psychologist before she continues. “He was captured on our home cameras twenty-two times, he left flowers at my job twelve times, and we caught him following us downtown six times.”
She finally meets Dr. Decker’s eyes. “Those are just the times we’re aware of, there could be more. Of course, there’s also the two times he actually cornered me.” She matter-of-factly states. Talking about this used to make her hands shake. Fortunately, now that he’s gone, talking about it is more cathartic. It also helps that he can no longer torment her.
Her mind wanders again. After four near misses with Mike and the one time Kara actually got hurt, Lena reached her limit. She finally had enough. That’s the night things changed.
“Kara, he’s dangerous! I’m sick of him showing up in our safe places! We shouldn’t have to constantly look over our shoulders. He’s a fucking menace.” Lena’s frustration and anger boil over into her words as she grabs her phone off the coffee table. “I’m done with this. I’m calling Kelly. This has to stop.”
Kelly’s initial conversation with Imra four months prior went well and the detective spoke with Mike herself. Unfortunately, shortly after Mike disappeared off her radar. He resurfaced a few weeks later and escalated his harassment.
Not only did he nearly run Kara and Lena off the road several times, but he cornered Kara in the bathroom at her favorite cafe. She was saved by another customer walking in to wash her hands. A few days later, he pushed her into an alley and held a knife to her throat, breaking the skin and scaring the hell out of her. He would disappear into the ether again and again only to show up in their backyard in the wee hours of the morning.
Kelly’s next conversation with Imra goes quite differently. Shortly after they hang up, Imra stakes out the house waiting for Mike to appear. It takes three days, but he finally shows up. After that, Kara and Lena don’t see or hear from him again. At least not until A phone call from Imra a month or so later.
“You’ve been through so much, Kara. Can you tell me how you felt when you got the phone call about James? You’ve told me you were speechless, that you handed the phone off to Lena.” Dr. Decker says, making more notes from the conversation. “How did you feel at that moment?”
Kara pauses, thinking about the night they got the call that James’s body was found. Her honest reaction, of course, was that’s impossible, but she can’t say that to Dr. Decker. Instead, she says, “At first I was shocked, I thought it was a joke. Then it was an overwhelming sense of relief. It was what came next that really blew my mind.”
“Walk me through that conversation.” Dr. Decker coaxes, sitting her notebook aside to watch the woman across from her.
So she does...she tells Dr. Decker the story.
“Okay, yeah. Thanks, Imra. I’ll tell her. We appreciate it.” Lena says, her eyes never leaving Kara. “Sure, I’ll let Alex and Kelly know as well. I’ll call them as soon as we hang up.”
True to her word, she immediately calls Alex and Kelly to come over then wraps her arms around Kara. By the time Alex and Kelly arrive, they’re snuggled together on the couch. Lena waits until everyone is there to tell the story.
“As you know, I just got off the phone with Imra. Two uniformed police officers found James’ car burned out at one of the old abandoned salvage yards on the edge of the city.” She pauses to check on Kara, then continues, “A short distance away, they found Mike Matthews with a self inflicted gunshot wound and a suicide note. In his note, he said he kidnapped and murdered James to get him out of the way so he could be with Kara. After numerous attempts to pursue her, he realized she didn’t want to be with him and he just couldn’t live without her or something like that.”
“That’s a lot to deal with at once, Kara. Do you feel like you’ve properly grieved all of the things you lost?” Dr. Decker asks, resuming her note taking. “In a sense, your life essentially started over that day. You took back your identity.”
Kara shrugs, her mind still stuck sifting through the rest of that night. She allows her memories to play out before she answers Dr. Decker.
Despite her best efforts to keep a straight face, Alex scoffs. Before Lena can continue, the redhead speaks, “We all know that’s bullshit, Luthor. What really happened?”
“Seriously, Alex, give me a second to finish.” Lena rolls her eyes and proceeds, “The Oath Brokers have been holding Mike in one of their warehouses trying to ‘reform’ him. Imra said he is so obsessed with taking over James’ life that he’s been skimming from some of the same places James did. Anyway, when they realized how much of a liability Mike is, they gave Imra the go ahead to orchestrate the scene and create a murder-suicide story. It solved several problems at once for multiple people.”
Kara stays silent for the remainder of the conversation. This is the second person in her vicinity who felt some sort of possession over her and is now dead. To say she’s shell-shocked and doesn’t really know how to feel is an understatement. She spends the rest of the night tightly snuggled into Lena’s arms without speaking.
“I’m not sure I will ever truly process everything that happened, Doc. Have I moved past it? I think so, for the most part.” She smiles, thinking about her new house and her new life with Lena. There are still moments when she struggles, but having her best friend, the love of her life by her side makes everything worth it.
“I finally feel like I am where I was truly meant to be, that I am with the person I was meant to be with. However, I think there will always be that fear in the back of my mind. Remnants of James, his words, still echo inside my head. I think the voice will haunt me forever.” She shivers at the thought.
She’s infinitely grateful to be through her grueling therapy session. While she is doing pretty good now, therapy day tends to leave her emotionally raw and mentally ragged. Typically, her mood instantly gets better when she finds Lena waiting for her at the curb. On therapy days, they usually have a quiet dinner at home followed by ice cream. Today is no different.
After finishing their ice cream and letting the TV drone on in the background, Lena broaches the subject. “How are you holding up? Therapy today and the one year milestone tomorrow, it’s a lot to navigate. I’m here if you want to talk.”
“Overall, I think I’m okay. Dr. Decker pushed me to talk about Mike today. That’s the part I still struggle with because it blindsided me. I always hated the guy, Lena. Like, I barely tolerated him. There was no reason he should have been so obsessed with me. It makes zero sense. Now I constantly question my interactions with people.” Kara states, frustration clear in her tone.
“Darling, it wasn’t your fault or anything you did. Both James and Mike were sick individuals who cared more about their own wants and desires than anything else. They wanted a possession, not a partner. There was nothing you could have done to change the trajectory of the choices they made.” Lena soothes, pulling the blonde’s head onto her lap to play with her hair.
Kara sighs, she knows Lena is right, her girlfriend usually is, but she still tends to second guess herself. Especially after her therapy session brings things to the surface again. “I know, I know. Today was just hard. Swimming back through those memories makes my head hurt. Anyway, is everything ready for tomorrow? Alex and Kelly are supposed to be here at 7:00, right?”
Lena doesn’t bring up the hard pivot in subject matter. Kara tends to need the shift after a rough appointment with Dr. Decker. For the most part, therapy has worked wonders for her girlfriend. Kara has regained a lot of the confidence James stripped from her, but there are still areas where she struggles. Sometimes Lena wonders if his voice still lingers in her best friend’s head.
“Yes, everything is ready. They’ll be here by 7:00 and they’re bringing the food. We’re responsible for dessert. I already made the pie and bought the cookies you asked for.” She smiles down at the cerulean eyes staring up at her, the same eyes that stole her heart so many years ago.
The rest of the night is simple and quiet. They bask in the warmth of each other until it’s time for bed. Tomorrow is Friday, one year since she and Lena found James face down in the kitchen. They both took the day off, neither wanting to be far from each other. Not for any particular reason, it’s just the day that changed their lives. Simultaneously one of the worst days of their lives and the catalyst to where they are now.
They manage to both sleep reasonably well that night and actually get to sleep-in the following morning. Without any pressing matters to tend to, they lay in bed until 9:00 before getting up for coffee and breakfast. Nowadays, lingering in the kitchen as they lean into one another is just part of their morning routine. Being able to share moments like this is something they both cherish and it’s all thanks to Imra, really.
After the call from Imra that night and the subsequent chain of events that followed, things got easier. With the missing persons case shifted into a murder case that was then quickly closed, Kara was able to get a death certificate. To this day, none of them are sure how Imra managed to pull it off, but the less they know, the better.
With the death certificate in hand, Kara collected on James’ life insurance policy and sold their house. She was fortunate she didn’t have to disclose the death in the house to the realtor since it technically never happened. Luckily, it sold pretty quickly. Shortly thereafter, Kara and Lena found a house in the same neighborhood as Alex and Kelly. They aren’t neighbors, but they do live within walking distance.
Kara’s job is another thing that changed. When Mike kept showing up at the building with flowers and generally harassing her, she continued to feel less and less safe. Finally, it got to be too much so she left Lord Technologies for good. Lena offered to get her a position with LS MedTech. At first she declined, not wanting to feel like a nepotism hire, but Lena assured her she wouldn’t have anything to do with the hiring process. She would get the job on her own merits.
She’s been working in the labs of LS MedTech for almost five months now and she loves it. Lena works in a different building, but they try to have lunch together a few times a week. The work she’s doing is more in line with what she always wanted to do and she gets more say in the lab experiments. In virtually every way, her life is far better now than it ever was with James.
“Darling, did you get lost in your head again?” Lena asks, a warm hand resting on Kara’s cheek. “Is it anything you want to talk about?”
Kara shakes her head in response. “I’m fine, sweetheart. Just got lost thinking about how much life has changed in the last year. Hell, even in the last six months.”
Lena hums in agreement, watching her girlfriend closely to make sure she’s really okay. “You’re right about that, our lives have certainly changed a lot. As wild and crazy as the ride has been, I’m not sure I would change anything. Well, maybe the accessory to murder part, but since it led us to where we are now, maybe not.”
They both laugh and finish their breakfast in soft silence. The rest of the day is spent talking about everything and nothing. Planning for a future they both weren’t sure they’d ever have, but are now completely certain of. Wrapped up in each other, the two of them lose track of time and almost end up running late for Alex and Kelly’s arrival. They rush through showers and barely make it back downstairs into the kitchen when the doorbell rings.
With the food settled onto the table and everyone in their chairs, the four of them take a moment to recognize the meaning of the day. While James’ death represents freedom for Kara, it also crossed a lot of lines for the four of them. It showed them things about themselves they never knew existed. James was a litany of things, most of them not very nice or lovable. He was a husband, a brother, and a son. Granted, horrible at all of those things, but he was still a human being.
So, they’ve decided to mark this day as a day of remembrance. A day to reflect on how far they’ve come, the things they’ve done. A time to renew their promise to each other to protect one another and carry their shared burden together. A year ago, this day was a nightmare. One they weren’t sure they would make it through unscathed. In a lot of ways, they didn’t, but they did make it through together and that is what matters.
Before they dig into their meals, Kara stands with her wine glass in hand and a message on her mind. “A year ago today, this day became a day none of us will ever forget. The reasons vary, but we’ve each learned a lasting lesson. One universal lesson we can take from this is that out of the hottest fire comes the strongest steel. The four of us, we’re far stronger together. Our bond is forged in fire.”
