Phone Call with lucytroublelane

[olliequeen]

It had taken him three days to track her down using his satellites and the computers in the Watchtower. It wouldn't have taken so long, but he didn't want Chloe to know what he was doing and keeping things from her when they lived together wasn't exactly easy. That and the fact he wasn't nearly as good with the technology as she was, kept him from finding her and the information he needed any sooner.

That afternoon, as Chloe lay in bed napping, Oliver snuck out of the room with his cell phone and headed down the stairs as he dialed the number he'd located.

He hit 'send' and waited as it began to ring.

Comments

[lucytroublelane.livejournal.com]

At the sound of the phone ringing, Lucy winced. It was a rare thing for anyone calling her to have good news. Pushing herself up from the couch, she walked over to the kitchen counter and snapped open her cell phone to look at the caller ID.

It wasn't a number she recognized, and she pondered simply letting it go to voice mail. Messages could be ignored or erased, after all. After a brief moment of indecision, she pressed the call button and lifted the phone to her ear. "Whatever it is, I didn't do it."

[dl-greenarrow.livejournal.com]

He paused for a long moment, then a faint smile touched his lips. "I guess that answers my question if this is the right number for Lucy Lane," he said wryly. Lois hadn't talked very much about her family, aside from Chloe. But he knew her dad was a General, and that her younger sister Lucy was a bit of a trouble-maker.

Although she did tell him that Lucy had stolen a car from Lex, which had amused Oliver a great deal at the time. Now, however, Lex didn't matter. He was dead.

[lucytroublelane.livejournal.com]

Lucy's eyes widened and she pulled the phone away from her ear, staring at it for a moment. Placing it back against the side of her face, she leaned against the counter and tapped her nails against the granite.

"That all depends," she said, torn between amusement and suspicion, "on who you are."

The voice was completely unfamiliar, but whoever the guy was, he hadn't opened with 'We're calling to collect a debt' or 'This is Detective So-and-so...', so she figured she'd give him a minute before hanging up.

[dl-greenarrow.livejournal.com]

"Right, apparently," he responded with a faint smirk. The girl was definitely part of the Sullivan-Lane clan. He could hear it in her attitude already. He drew in a breath. "This is Oliver Queen," he informed her, glancing toward the staircase that led to the bedroom where Chloe lay asleep.

[lucytroublelane.livejournal.com]

That gave her a bit of a pause. She did keep up on her family's life and of course she recognized the name, she simply had no clue as to why he would be calling her...unless something had happened.

"Okay, Oliver Queen. I won't bother asking how you got my number, but I am curious as to why you're calling me." Her brain went through the possibilities: Lois was hurt, but no...Chloe would have found her and called her. Okay, so Chloe was hurt? Lois would have called the General, the General would have found her, and he would have called her. Probably, he would have called her. Possibly...

'Maybe I scammed a friend of his,' she thought hopefully. That was certainly better than any other alternative coming to her mind.

[dl-greenarrow.livejournal.com]

He could only imagine the scenarios that were probably going through her mind at the moment. And of course, she was probably close on some of them. Her sister had been missing for ten months. Guilt swept over him and he moved to sit down on the sofa. He should have thought to track her down before then.

It took him a moment, but finally, he spoke again. "Things here in Metropolis aren't going very well," he admitted. "I was hoping I could convince you to let me fly you in to visit." He raked a hand through his hair and sat forward, resting his free hand on his leg.

[lucytroublelane.livejournal.com]

She hadn't scammed a friend of his... Lucy's stomach dropped and she slid down the counter wall to sit on the floor. "Things must be pretty bad if you're calling me."

'I'm the last one to call,' she thought.

Whatever she was, though, she was still Lucy Lane. After a deep breath, she cocked a leg up to rest her elbow on her knee and leaned her forehead against her palm. "It's not going to take much convincing. I can be ready to go in ten minutes." Lucky Lucy, always packed and ready to run.

[dl-greenarrow.livejournal.com]

Oliver shut his eyes, hearing the hints of fear and sadness in her voice and cursed himself inwardly again. He let out a breath. "I can have a flight booked for you in no time. Or if you'd like to wait for a few hours, I can send my personal jet. Whichever you'd prefer."

Like that was going to make up for anything. Feeling his heart squeeze painfully, he leaned back on the sofa.

[lucytroublelane.livejournal.com]

She laughed quietly, but there was no humor in it. Who would have ever thought there would be a day Lucy would turn down a personal jet? "The quicker the better, actually."

Scrambling up from the floor, the phone pressed between her shoulder and her head, she began moving around the room, grabbing her keys and her purse. Going straight to the closet, she pulled out a packed duffle bag and hoisted it up onto her shoulder.

"Just..." Tell me they're alive. Tell me anything. Lie to me so I'll stop being scared. "I want to get there quickly."

[dl-greenarrow.livejournal.com]

"Okay," he said without hesitation. "I'll make some phone calls and then I'll call you back with the information, all right?" He paused. "Lucy, take a deep breath. It's going to be okay."

How many times had he told Chloe that over the last six months? he wondered. And it still wasn't okay. He was starting to feel like he was as big a liar as Lex Luthor had once been.

[lucytroublelane.livejournal.com]

"Okay." She took a long breath and stood, looking around the room. It looked like a hotel room, devoid of any personal touches. Focusing on the front door, she nodded uselessly.

"I'll be waiting for your call." On a whim, she moved back to the closet and pulled out her violin case. It would go with her, too. "Thank you," she said quickly.

She was grateful he had called and was helping her get to Metropolis. She just wished she knew what she was going to. At the same time, she thought maybe it was better that she didn't.

[dl-greenarrow.livejournal.com]

"You're welcome," he said quietly. "I'll be in touch." He slowly hung up the phone and looked toward the stairs. He needed something, anything to help him bring Chloe out of the depression she was in, and he was running out of ideas. But now he was having second thoughts and wondering if he'd just put too much on yet another member of Chloe's family.

He shut his eyes for a few moments, then opened them again and began making arrangements for the youngest member of Chloe's family to be flown in. Then he called Lucy back, not surprised when she answered on the first ring. "It's me again. The flight will leave JFK in forty-five minutes. Does that work for you?"

[lucytroublelane.livejournal.com]

She was already walking toward the lobby when he called back. "That's perfect." Mouthing 'JFK' to the doorman, she watched as he flagged her down a taxi. "I'm on my way to the airport as we speak."

She nodded gratefully as the driver took her bag and case, loading them into the trunk, and she climbed into the back seat.

Her mouth fell open and she started to say something else, but instead she simply leaned back against the seat and sighed as the car began to pull out into moving traffic. "I'll be there soon."

[dl-greenarrow.livejournal.com]

"All right, Lucy. Call me when you land. I'll send someone to pick you up at the airport in Metropolis," he told her quietly. He paused for a long moment. "And...thanks. We'll see you soon. Have a safe flight."