Bella MacLeod's Twilight Fanfiction

The Wayne Legacy: Knightmare

By BetterInTexas

Chapter 09:

Wayne Manor

“You aren’t happy.” Diana said, stating the obvious.

After she had delivered the news about Tatsu, Dig began pacing in the parlor, definitely showing signs of distress, concern and possible anger, while Bruce and Diana sat in comfortable armchairs nursing their drinks.

“Let me get this straight in my head because I must be missing something.” Dig said, his words coming out in an irritated tone. “A woman comes to kill Bruce because she thinks he helped this ex of his steal Soultaker, the same katana that scared the hell out of Hecate. She is good enough that she nearly succeeds. You find out that her husband’s soul is trapped inside it, and she is taking care of some teenage orphan she rescued from a European cult, and then you give her the damn thing, because she must be a good person. You gave her the sword that even a goddess of black magic…”

“Sorcery, among other things…” Diana corrected and closed her eyes, wishing she didn’t feel an overwhelming urge to correct everyone all the time.

“… is afraid of.” Dig continued as if she hadn’t interrupted. “You then have Athena follow them to a slum motel and offer her a job as your personal bodyguard. Am I getting this right so far?”

“Your talent at recall is impeccable as always.” Diana told him carefully.

“And you were how drunk that night?”

“Fairly drunk by my standards, but I was mostly sober when I made the offer.”

“But you made this offer despite being only mostly sober, because you had a good feeling about her.”

“You know my feelings are always right.”

Dig held up a hand. “This same woman will be in the Tower, where Kara is, with a soul sucking blade.”

“She isn’t going to be right next to her, but she won’t hurt Kara. You know I wouldn’t let Tatsu near her if I felt that she was a danger.” Diana reminded him.

Dig closed his eyes. “She is a Japanese mercenary.”

“I wouldn’t call her a mercenary. More of a… I’m not sure what she did for a living. She said she took jobs. Perhaps she was a waitress or a bartender occasionally.” Diana reasoned.

“But you don’t know because you didn’t ask. You interviewed her in a parking lot where hookers and drug dealers hung out.” He pointed out.

“I admit it was a bit impulsive on my part, but I stand by my initial impression of her.”

Dig crossed his arms and finally looked at Diana. “You say she hung with Bruce in a fight. I’ve seen Bruce fight superhuman creatures. I’ve seen him split an arrow in two with a bat shaped throwing star, in midflight. I doubt many people on Earth can hang with Bruce in any kind of fight.”

“Thanks, Dig.”

“Shut up, Bruce.”

Bruce raised his hands in surrender. “What did I do? I’m usually the one who gets blamed for doing something stupid. This is all Diana.”

Dig looked him in the eye. “I can’t yell at her, so I am going to yell at you! I want to yell at her, but I can’t!”

Bruce rolled his eyes. “Because she is your boss?”

“No! Because she is an Amazon Goddess with anger issues!” Dig exclaimed pointing back at Diana who sat behind him.

Diana dropped her head, knowing Dig would have this reaction. “Dig, you can always express to me how you feel.”

Dig turned on her. “How I feel? How I feel? How should I feel, Diana? You made me Kara’s personal bodyguard as well as Head of Security for Wayne Enterprises. I have vetted every single security employee. From the men who handle the RPGs and other anti-aircraft missiles on top of the tower, to the guards at the gate of the manor. Now you are dropping a complete unknown into the mix, a mercenary ninja who no one knows anything about.”

“I understand your concern, but I need you to trust me. She can be invaluable. She has saved a child, fought for her dead husband’s soul, was ready to die for both. People with qualities like this are not easy to find, and she fell into our laps. It’s fate, Dig. I just know the two of you can be best friends.

“She will also carry a weapon capable of killing any enhanced individuals that may be an issue for us in the future, individuals like my superhuman genetic donors. Just give her a chance.” Diana asked of him. “If you don’t like her after a month, then we can let her go.”

“A month? How about a week?”

“Be careful, Dig. I am an Amazon Goddess with anger issues.” She reminded him with a sly smile.

“Demigoddess, technically.” Bruce clarified.

“Shut up, Bruce.” Diana and Dig said simultaneously.

Dig shrugged his shoulders. “If she even looks at Kara the wrong way, I am blowing her head off when she isn’t looking so she doesn’t get a chance to kill me with that creepy sword.”

Diana took a deep breath. “Dig, do you really believe I would let her near Kara if I thought for one second she was a danger?”

Dig was quiet for a moment then looked at the floor and shook his head. “No, I don’t Diana. I get that you have some pretty accurate feelings about people, but people can change quickly, can’t they?”

“Not her, Dig. Trust me, okay?”

Dig seemed to calm a bit. “Bruce, let’s go to the basement and spar.”

Bruce raised an eyebrow.

“And you are going to let me win.” Dig tacked on and left the room.

Bruce looked at Diana who shrugged. “You should probably let him win. I’m still feeling some residual anger in him.”

“You made him angry. Why do I have to suffer?” Bruce asked, a hint of a whine in the question.

“Because I’m an Amazon Goddess with anger issues.” She cocked her head to the side, a huge smile on her face. “I like the sound of it. I may have business cards printed with that title. ‘Diana Wayne, Owner of Wayne Enterprises and Amazon Goddess with Anger Issues ‘. Catchy, don’t you think?”

Bruce shook his head and walked out of the room. Diana dialed Tatsu and told her a work visa would be delivered in the morning, to bring her sword to work and be prepared to spend at least an hour in human resources filling out paperwork.

---

Wayne Tower, the next afternoon

“Come on, Dig. I kind of like her.” Kara said earnestly as the two sat in her office.

Dig’s stared at her dubiously, then shook his head. “General Lane has already called and asked what the hell is going on. I let Steve explain it to him. You can’t tell me she isn’t creepy, Kara. She hardly talks, she just stands outside Diana’s office with this blank look. Terry and Cathy asked if they could bring her back lunch and she told them she had conditioned herself to go without food, water and sleep while remaining alert for five days. What kind of response is that?”

“Uh, a badass one. She smiled at me when I said good morning.” Kara argued.

“Everybody smiles at you. You are impossible not to smile at.” Dig retorted.

“Remember that. I have some good news for you. You won’t have to see her for a few days. Four days to be exact.” Kara smirked. “I’ve been thinking about taking a trip out of town. If we leave Thursday morning, we can make it there before evening if we use a chopper from the airport. I’m going incognito so we will have to use the unmarked jet. That gives us Friday, Saturday, and Sunday to hike, and we can return on Monday to Gotham.”

Dig felt a bit of relief, knowing he could crash whatever plans Kara had by blaming it on Diana. “Diana has a meeting she can’t reschedule on Friday. She is having a conference call with every top division executive that afternoon to introduce Sam and explain exactly what she wants in the next quarterly reports and performance evaluations.”

Kara sighed, shaking her head. “I thought she was going to stop micromanaging. Do you have any idea how many divisions we have?”

“Two hundred and forty-six. It’s my job to know everything about Wayne Enterprises.” Dig replied.

“Exactly. She is going to speak to two hundred and forty-six people and explain what she wants at the same time. There is no way she can get that many people on the line at the same time.”

Dig raised an eyebrow. “Who is going to turn her down? She has been planning the call for a while, that’s why whatever long weekend trip you have planned isn’t going to happen.”

Kara smiled mischievously, a smile Dig hated on her. “I’m not asking Diana to go. It’s a private trip for me and Tommy. I convinced him to take off. We haven’t had any alone time recently. I’m careful about what we do in the manor because Diana can hear everything.

“I also don’t want to ask you stay over in his store and hang out with your teams while staying up all night.

“I want to hike and make a new campsite every night and be alone with him. I’m sure you and whatever army unit you have planned to follow us discretely can take turns sleeping during the night like us.”

Dig crossed his arms and closed his eyes, feeling a tension headache coming on and wondering if this was the week the Wayne girls met secretly and decided to make his life hell.

“And where is this hiking spot you are interested in traveling to?” He finally asked, opening his eyes to see her staring intently at him.

“Blood Mountain on the Appalachian Trail, North of Helen, Georgia. We are going to take the Vogal State Park trail which is eight and a half miles of the most difficult terrain to reach the summit. It’s going to be awesome.” She replied with a big grin.

“Blood Mountain.” Dig repeated. ‘You chose this place because of the name, didn’t you?”

Kara nodded. “I’ve never been camping or hiking but I always wanted to. I looked at websites a lot growing up and thought that one sounds the coolest. I want a t-shirt that reads ‘I climbed Blood Mountain’ .”

Dig took a deep breath and thought of arguments against this. Difficult terrain, for someone who has never hiked. “Kara, I see you exercise every morning. I have no doubt you are strong and durable enough to hike this trail. But is Tommy? He doesn’t strike me as the outdoor type.”

“Tommy is in great shape.” She told him, mostly ignoring his probably valid argument in favor of doing what she wanted to do. “Look Dig, I was supposed to go camping once. Babs and her Dad invited me and Alex to hike a trail in Pennsylvania. I was eleven-years-old and so excited. Diana agreed to take time away from class and Eliza was going to come with us if I needed her. Diana hardly ever let me go anywhere, much less out of state.”

Dig had a feeling where this was going. “You got sick before you got to go, didn’t you?”

Kara nodded, the smile gone from her face as she remembered that time. “I had a cold. It wasn’t major, but it took me a few days to get over and colds always hit me harder than a normal person. Jim offered to reschedule the trip, but I knew they had already made plans and reservations… I wasn’t going to stop them. So I acted like it wasn’t a big deal and pushed them to go.

“Then I cried for four days in my room. I wouldn’t come out, I wouldn’t even pick up a screw driver. I just sat by my window and watched the world outside pass me by.”

Dig felt a lump in his throat. The sadness, even a decade later, was obvious and still strong. Kara had many of these moments since he had first met her. She would remember something from her past, some hurtful or sad moment, then shake it off and plant a smile back on her face. He was becoming more aware of the difference between when she was genuinely happy or hiding pain behind those smiles.

“Anyway, Diana finally coaxed me out. She sat in my bedroom for days. She never said anything, never spoke. She just sat on my bed, made sure I took my meds, and stayed quiet. I’m not sure how many days it was before I finally decided to talk. When I did, she held me for so long…” Kara seemed to lose focus before taking a breath. “I’ve always tried to stay positive and not pity myself, but that time was hard. I never did find out how the trip went. I couldn’t bring myself to ask and Alex and Babs never mentioned it.”

Dig crossed his arms. “I guess if Diana is good with it.”

“No!” Kara said emphatically. “I’m going. I don’t need permission. I don’t, do I? I’m an adult and she gave up her immortality so I could have a normal life. I want to go on a trip with my boyfriend. It shouldn’t be an issue. I’ll tell her of course… after the meeting. Speaking of, I suppose we should get moving.”

Kara and Dig traveled to the conference room on the eighty-sixth floor and surprisingly, saw Tatsu outside the door, unmoving. Her dark hair hanging just above her shoulders, her black leather pants and knee-high boots, along with the white shirt and the long coat concealing the katana blade underneath, made her an imposing figure.

They entered the conference room where Steve, Diana and Sam were already sitting. Dig took up his normal position standing close to the wall directly behind Kara, the blonde’s imposing shadow.

After a few moments, the Central City contingent of five men and two women walked into the conference room, having been led from the lobby by Wayne Security.

Diana greeted the group which included the mayor, deputy mayor and some high ranking civic leaders.

The meeting began with Mayor Lindsee speaking of the highlights of Central City. He spoke of the Granite Peak National Park, the man-made lake in the east quadrant of the city and the shops and restaurants in the trendier areas. He spoke of the potential S.T.A.R. Labs extension sure to be built in the city in the next year in the Westminster Area and the large International Airport near Mounds View area.

Diana raised a hand to stop the man before he talked about the sports stadiums.

“Mayor Lindsee, it sounds as if you have a lovely city but there must be some confusion.” She stated, her tone dripping with boredom. “Were you under the impression that we are the Olympic Committee? You are selling your city as a tourist destination. I do not care how lovely Central City is. I am considering your city for a plant that will hire no less than a thousand employees.

“Sam, could you explain to them what we are looking for. I am afraid my nerves may be frayed due to the time that was just wasted.”

Sam was seated on Diana’s left while Kara was on her right. Steve sat next to Kara, and the Central City contingent were seated across from them at the oval-shaped conference table.

Sam nodded and addressed the room. “We want to know what kind of potential workforce you have available. What is your unemployment rate? How educated are your current workers? What percentage have college degrees? What is your supply chain infrastructure?”

The Mayor cleared his throat. “Of course, we have that information. If you could give me a moment to pull up the… um… the data on my laptop.”

“While you are on your laptop, could you tell us the corporate and statewide tax rate?” Sam asked.

The deputy Mayor cleared his throat. “What… umm… are you at liberty to say what this manufacturing facility would be… manufacturing?”

Sam looked at Steve and Diana.

It was Steve that answered. “Tires.”

“Tires? I understood this was a plant that would be serving the military.” The man said, confused but obviously a little displeased.

Steve smirked. “What do you think the military runs on? SUVs, Armored ATVs, jets, transport planes, even helicopters… all of which will need tires. The range of tires needed is in the hundreds. Kara, what else did you say you needed?”

“I need a testing ground. Somewhere remote but not too far away. We are making tires that do not flatten or fall off when they roll over an IED. That means I need a place where my technicians can plant bombs and see if the tires hold up to the blast. It will be quite loud.”

Steve picked up from there. “Meaning it can’t be near three miles of a residential area or farther depending on local noise ordinances.

Sam picked up from there with another round of questions, continuing the barrage. “We also need to talk incentives. By that, I mean financial incentives, not tourist incentives. Do you have labor union laws in the city? What are the indirect costs? How strong are Wi-Fi services for instance? How much will the increased bandwidth cost or will we need to put up our own towers and reappropriate satellites for our own needs?”

“I would like to know the average pay scale of area companies.” Diana finally jumped in. “We want the best and plan to pay well, but we will not overpay.” Diana added. “I want to know the cost of living for employees. I want a rundown of schools employees will be sending their children and their ratings. I need to know what degrees are offered at Central City University and can graduates benefit my company.

“Tires may not seem exciting, but tire technology is important, it is a complex process. My sister has tire designs that can roll over bombs and not stop so she will need quality and process engineers. If she cannot find them locally, we will have to relocate engineers or begin a recruitment drive from colleges nationwide.”

Sam jumped back in after checking her notes. “We also need to know what construction costs will be and if any local steel mills serve the greater area or if building materials will be shipped in or possibly made locally. For instance, is there a wood supply business nearby?” She asked. “I would like to say money is not an issue, but this is business and money is always an issue.”

The contingency from Central City were sweating now.

Diana realized she would get no information today, so she addressed the individuals from the potential city.

“Judging by the sweat on your brows, I am taking an educated guess that none of you have any of these answers. I will reschedule this meeting for next Monday…”

“Tuesday.” Kara cut in.

Diana looked at her curiously but shrugged. “Next Tuesday. That is eight days to prepare a proper presentation. In nine days, Keystone City will be here with a proposal, and I am hopeful they are more prepared. I am considering building a multimillion dollar, hi-tech, manufacturing facility in your city, not a hotel. If you are serious about our facility, please return prepared.

“Your escorts are waiting outside, and they can take you to the parking garage. A car will be ready to take you back to your hotel. Good day, everyone.”

The contingent shook hands as they nervously made their way out the door, leaving Sam, Dig, Diana, Kara and Steve alone.

“Nice work, Sam.” Diana said, smiling approvingly.

“Thanks. I felt more comfortable when I realized they were less prepared than me. I crammed on the tire business last night.” Sam admitted.

“Tires, burger patties, roller skates, aerial assault vehicles… the ‘what’ doesn’t matter. A facility is based on many factors and those you hit on.” Diana told her. It was obvious by the pleased tone in her voice she was proud of Sam’s contributions to the meeting. “You were strong, decisive, and showed no weakness. They were responsible for selling their city to us but failed due to a lack of preparation and understanding their product.”

“I can’t believe they didn’t think tires were important.” Kara mumbled.

Kara’s words caught Diana’s attention. “Why did you want the meeting moved to Tuesday? Do you have a meeting scheduled with your R & D heads? It would be good for Sam to sit in if you do.”

Kara shook her head and forced herself to meet Diana’s eyes. “No, I won’t be back till Monday afternoon. Thursday, Tommy and I are taking a hiking trip… to Georgia.”

An extremely uncomfortable silence reigned in the room, so much so, Sam obviously felt the sudden tension and quickly excused herself.

After several long moments, Diana finally opened her mouth. “We didn’t talk about this. I have a very big conference call on Friday that can’t be rescheduled.”

Kara looked at her hands folded on the table. “I meant me and Tommy… alone. I mean Dig will be around but… not at the camp site. We need some time alone. He has been working so hard lately and… we could both use the break.”

Diana was quiet for what seemed like forever to Kara to the point she was wilting under her sister’s intense stare.

“I always thought we would go camping for the first time together.” Diana finally said quietly, the undertone of hurt evident to both Steve and Kara.

Kara looked at her with pleading eyes. “We will. I mean we won’t, but we will. This is a hiking trip. Maybe we can take a camping trip soon. Go someplace and just camp for a few days in… Tommy and I need this, Diana. I want to go… I am going.”

Diana continued to stare at her, before taking a deep breath and nodding. “All right, if that’s what you want, of course you may go.”

Kara leaned over and kissed Diana on the cheek. “Thanks, Didi, I knew you would understand. I love you.”

Diana and Steve were left alone in the room.

“Diana. Look at me.” Steve said, as Diana stared off into the distance.

“She wants to go without me.” Diana said quietly, her gaze locked on nothing.

Steve stood and walked behind her, rubbing her shoulders. “She wants to take a short trip with her boyfriend. It’s not like she is going overseas.”

“I can’t be with her in Georgia.”

“Dig is probably organizing a battalion of soldiers right now. Look, you didn’t want her to know you tied your life to hers because you didn’t want her to live in fear any longer. This is what you wanted.” Steve reminded her. “She is growing up. We have got to let her do some things on her own.”

“Not this!” Diana practically growled.

Steve continued rubbing her shoulders, noticing the knots were seeming to multiply even as he worked to calm her.

“Why not this?”

Diana didn’t answer him for what most people would consider an uncomfortable length of time. One thing Steve had learned to do for Diana where Kara was concerned, was to grant her time and patience to work through her emotions.

That patience was rewarded several minutes later when she finally began to speak softly. “When she was eleven, she wanted to go camping with Jim, Barbara and Alex. Eliza and I agreed to go too. Kara had been doing so well… she was so excited about the trip. She had never been out of Gotham and never been in woods outside the manor grounds.

“Then she became sick. It was a minor cold, but it took a lot from her immune system to fight it. She recovered a few days before the trip, but Eliza suggested it wouldn’t be a good idea to expose her until her T cells were built back up. I had to tell her she couldn’t go.

“Steve, she broke down for days. She wouldn’t leave her room, she wouldn’t work on anything… I thought she was broken beyond repair. She just sat by her window, staring at a world beyond her reach. I was afraid to leave her alone, so I stayed in her room.”

Steve understood now. “It’s on that list you kept in your head… things you would do with Kara when she got better someday.”

Diana nodded, tears in her eyes. “I just never considered she would want to do something without me. It’s not her safety. Of course, I’m worried about that, but she has Dig.

“I just wanted to see it, to watch her eyes when she stares at the Earth from the summit of a mountain in Georgia, to hold her hand and bask in her smile.”

Steve bent down and wrapped his arms around her seated form. “I get it. But she is testing her limits now, seeing if her old boundaries are really gone. I’m pretty sure this isn’t as much about alone time with Tommy as it is with seeing if you trust her to be on her own.

“Let her have this. I’ll make sure Dig records the whole thing. We can take her hiking on the Hardergrat Trail in Switzerland. I saw it once on a trip there. Never felt the need to climb it but it looked pretty cool.”

Diana wiped her eyes. “Look at you, Steve Trevor. Already planning trips to Europe. I might make a sophisticated billionaire out of you yet.”

Steve knew Diana was about to cry again. She didn’t do it often, but when she did, it was always in relation to Kara in some way

“I will never be sophisticated. I refuse.” Steve told her, trying to lighten her mood but seeing he was failing. “Look, if makes you feel better, we can fly up Friday after your call. I’m a pilot, not a soldier but I do have some ground training if I ever crashed. We get a chopper to drop us near but far away enough that they won’t see us, then follow them unseen? She can be on her own and you can watch her face the first time she sees that view from the summit.”

Diana laughed quietly, appreciating what he was trying to do for her but shook her head. “No… I’m going to give her what she wants, no matter what. She wants to be alone with her boyfriend. I’m going to let her be as alone as she can be while discretely surrounded by our own security and a team of Army Rangers. She deserves to try.”

Diana stood up and wrapped her arms around Steve, knowing just how to get her mind off the bombshell her sister had dropped on her. “Athena, close door and place conference room in lockdown.”

Diana began unbuttoning his shirt.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t ask that. Listening to you speak in meetings gets me excited.”

“Then I am definitely not going to stay quiet anymore.”

---

Georgia

Dig, Kara and Tommy had landed at the airport at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport under cover of darkness. The jet they arrived in belonged to Wayne Enterprises but was unmarked with the company logo and their names were not listed on the manifest. A shuttle met them on the runway, and they were quickly on their way.

The trip had been taken in absolute secrecy. Tommy was told to wear a ball cap and tinted glasses at all times. Kara also wore her glasses and a ball cap with only her ponytail showing. If someone were to see her, it was doubtful she would be recognized except by her most ardent fans, the type that would not usually be found on a hiking trail.

The shuttle was filled with people, surprising Tommy but not Kara. She had even waved at a few and smiled.

Dig moved to the front of the shuttle and began speaking to one man in particular after shaking hands with him and sharing a laugh.

“I would have thought Dig would have a problem with you riding sixty miles with other people in the shuttle.” Tommy mentioned to Kara.

“Look at our fellow travelers, Tommy.” She instructed. “Do they look like typical tourists?”

Tommy did take a good look and realized, though most were dressed as tourists, each one was in incredible shape and most had backpacks in their laps or between their knees. He suspected they were carrying more than canteens and energy bars.

“Special Forces.” He realized.

“Not just special forces. The guy talking to Dig is Colonel Rick Flag, head of SOCOM. Some say he is the best special forces officer the United States Military has ever had.”

“Wow, head of SOCOM. That’s… cool.” Tommy replied, not sure what to think. “His name is Flag? That has to be a nickname or something. There is no way the biggest badass the United States has is named Flag.”

“Nope, that’s his real name. His father was a legend too. I met him a few years ago and saw him again recently in a meeting. Between me and you, I had such a crush on him.”

“Wow, that’s… good to know.” Tommy said, clearly not happy given his tone.

Kara rolled her eyes. “I’m trying to share with you, not make you jealous. Don’t judge me for my crushes. After all, what were you doing before we met? I can’t remember.”

Tommy laughed, enjoying Kara’s bluntness.

“Point taken. I am not jealous by the way. Just because every guy in this shuttle can kill me with their finger in no way threatens my manhood.” He promised.

Tommy watched Colonel Flag pat Dig on the shoulder and move towards them. He gave Kara a smile and she offered her hand which he took hesitantly. Tommy wasn’t sure why he seemed nervous about touching her, then remembered that the world at large did not know of Kara’s improved health. Tommy wasn’t really sure of her health status either or how much it had improved but if Diana was comfortable, he supposed he should be as well.

The man sat next to Kara and nodded at Tommy. “Rick Flag. You are Thomas Merlyn, but you go by Tommy, right? Pleasure to meet you.”

“You as well.” Tommy replied, noticing Flag didn’t offer to shake his hand.

Rick then addressed Kara as if Tommy wasn’t there.

“Kara, we have you staying in a room at Vogul State Park. We should arrive by nine p.m. at a cottage. I realize you plan to camp but setting up a site tonight would have been a waste of time and you will need a good night’s rest before the hiking begins. Now, I understand you plan to take the Slaughter Creek Trail, which is eight point four miles from start to summit. You wish to camp Friday and Saturday, splitting the length over two days and then descend Sunday and Monday morning if needed. Do I have that correct?”

Kara nodded, happy her plan was being fulfilled.

“We are taking a trail called Slaughter Creek to the summit of Blood Mountain?” Tommy asked to be sure.

“Cool names, right?” Kara asked excitedly.

Tommy planted a fake smile and gave her a thumbs up.

“Kara,” Flag said, a little hesitantly, “would you give some consideration to the easier trails? That trail is considered the most difficult on the way to the summit and one of the longest.”

Kara shook her head. “I’ve been running four miles a day and increased my strength training. I can handle it.”

“I’m not worried about your fitness, Kara.” Flag looked towards her boyfriend. “Tommy, have you ever gone hiking before?”

Tommy felt his face heat up, growing red in the cheeks and was glad for the relative darkness in the shuttle. “I wouldn’t say I’m an experienced woodsman, but I have some experience. I like to think I am in relatively good shape.”

“Our intel says you have never been camping or hiked a nature trail.” Flag said bluntly.

“Don’t worry about me. I can handle whatever Kara wants to do.” Tommy replied confidently, though inwardly freaking out that the man had such specific information on him down to the fact he had never been camping or hiking. It didn’t help that the colonel was staring at him in the same, knowing way General Lane did either.

Flag looked doubtful but Kara was squeezing Tommy’s hand with a large smile on her face, so he let it go.

“As far as other hikers are concerned, the trail will be closed due to dangerous conditions. My teams here and those already on site will be running drills in the wild around you but you will not see us. We will give you as much privacy as possible. Some will take the trail ahead of you to ensure there are no nasty surprises like rattlers or copperheads but please be aware of your footing at all times.”

“There is a helicopter on standby in the park that can reach you within ten minutes at any place on the trail.” Flag said, reaching into a pocket of his camouflage tactical pants and pulling out a hi-tech military watch. “Here, take this… it’s one of your designs if I’m not mistaken. Should you push the panic button on this watch for any reason, we will descend on you, and you will be evacuated to safety.

“Do you have any questions?”

Kara shook her head, securing the watch to her wrist. “I appreciate you doing this, Colonel Flag. I am sure you and your men have better things to do.”

Flag laughed, waving off her concerns. “Wayne security is good, but nobody owns the wilderness like the Rangers I have selected. They love any chance to get out of the base and into their natural habitat. And it’s always Rick to you, Kara. I’ll leave you two alone for the ride. Try to relax and enjoy yourselves. You won’t even know we are there.”

Flag left the two alone.

Kara squeezed Tommy’s hand. “It’s a lot, huh?”

“Being followed by Army Rangers constantly. No, not really… okay, yeah I guess but it’s no big deal. I’m just excited we are taking a trip. It will be nice to get out of the manor and enjoy the country alone. Just the two of us… sort of.”

Kara nodded. “I know we haven’t had much alone time lately. We have both been so busy. I want you to know I am proud of you and what you have been doing with the deli. You have worked so hard. I love seeing the pride on your face when I visit. It’s a good look for you. You were born to blaze your own trail.”

Tommy felt pride at her words. One of the many things he loved about Kara was her belief in him. Everyone had doubted him his whole life. No one had expected anything of him. At least with Oliver, Laurel and the Queens had expected him to get his act together one day and take over Queen Consolidated. Perhaps Malcolm believed Tommy could take over Merlyn Global one day but if that was so, Malcolm never said a word about it.

Yet Kara expected greatness from him. He doubted he would ever be considered great, but if he could get to pretty good, it would be more than he dreamed of the past few years.

“Who knew my secret gift would be making sandwiches.” He joked. Seeing her look of approval and care warmed him. “I want you to know that I love…”

“You have more gifts than that, Tommy.” Kara cut him off. “Don’t sell yourself short. Speaking of the store, I’m going to have some dates for you to take off. We are going to celebrate my birthday in Paris then a few weeks after that is our end of summer trip to Dolphin Cay… our island.

“You told me when we met you would take a trip with me to Paris, see the Eiffel Tower at night, remember?”

“How could I forget. That first night we met is forever seared in my mind, even the part where Diana showed up in a ten thousand dollar dress on a large Harley to take you away from me.”

Kara laughed remembering that.

“Typical Diana.” Kara said, brushing it off.

Tommy wasn’t surprised. Diana could have gutted him, and Kara would ask if she wanted a towel to clean her knife.

The man internally chided himself. That wasn’t fair. Kara had stood up to Diana for their relationship. He remembered Steve telling him if Diana really wanted him gone, he would have been, but he knew Kara’s genuine interest in him kept her from doing so.

She didn’t always do as Diana said.

But Kara did not like her relationship dynamic with her sister to be discussed. Diana was a subject that was best avoided, so he had no plans to bring the subject up. Steve obviously accepted it, so who was he to complain?

While annoyed that his attempt to tell her he loved her had been cut off, he thought it for the best. It wasn’t the right time nor the right place, but he had been caught up in the moment. A strange moment no doubt, but when Kara spoke of him with pride in her voice, it was easy to get lost in her.

The cabin was small and rustic. They both felt a bit sad that it would only be for one night. Despite the sadness, Kara was excited for the hiking that began in the morning.

The trip had worn the two out and Kara took her pill.

“What about the rest of your meds?” Tommy asked.

Kara stilled, not having thought of that.

“I take them in the morning now.”

“Oh… yeah I should have known that. The night we fell asleep together after your illness, I noticed you didn’t take them, but I thought it was because of the recent treatment. You still have to take the sleeping pill?”

Kara nodded. “I’ll probably always need that pill. I’ve tried everything, even yoga before bed, but nothing relaxes me. I can’t stop… thinking.”

Tommy was intrigued. He knew she had this problem, but they had never discussed it in length. “What are you thinking about right now?”

“A project I’m working on. It’s top secret but I am on the edge of a breakthrough. I’ve had these equations running through my head all day. I am so close. I can feel my mind on the tip of discovery, like it’s just out of reach. It’s the project I’m working with Emily on.”

Tommy felt for her, wondering how hard it would be to function normally while also having complex mathematical formulas in his mind.

“You and Emily spend a lot of time together. I guess the two of you are still getting along.”

Kara smiled widely. “I’ve never had so much fun working with someone. Sometimes it’s like we share a mind. She is so brilliant, and I feel… this connection to her I can’t explain. I feel like I did in college when I met so many new people. I think I was so starved for companionship growing up, meeting new people is like an addiction. Babs and Alex always took time out for me to visit and chat online but… I always felt like I was holding them back from their real lives.”

Tommy raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know you felt that way.”

“They didn’t either.” Kara admitted. “I’ve never told anyone. I don’t believe that anymore, but I guess a part of me will always remember that feeling. I think it comes with being sick, needing to be taken care of all the time. It’s easy to feel like you are a burden to everyone who loves you.”

Instead of disagreeing, Tommy sat on the bed against the headboard and pulled her into his arms.

“Did you know Diana hardly goes on any business trips?” Kara asked rhetorically. “She usually conducts business meetings by phone or online but sometimes she can’t get out of face-to-face meetings. She’ll fly in, attend the meeting, sign documents and go straight back to the airport to come home. She never sightsees, telling me if she ever did, she wanted it to be with me.”

Tommy was surprised. He had never thought about Diana’s lack of traveling. Being the owner and CEO of the largest company in the world, he had just assumed she had traveled all over the world.

“I can understand why you would feel you are a burden, but I’ve seen you around your friends and Diana. I promise you, no one sees you as a burden. They light up around you.” He told her.

“I know that now.” Kara said. She was quiet for a moment then asked, ”Do you ever miss your past? It has to be annoying now, right?”

“What do you mean?” he asked carefully. Kara never brought up his past.

“You must miss being able to have a girlfriend you can pick up for a date and stay at your place or who could hop on a jet and fly across the world at a moment’s notice. Don’t tell me you don’t. I know it isn’t easy with me.”

Tommy held her tighter. “You are worth it.”

“Of course, you would tell me that, but that’s not what I asked.” She said, then asked him directly, “You must miss sex, right? You probably miss girls that don’t have my hang-ups. I wouldn’t blame you. I appreciate you waiting until I’m ready. It’s not like I‘m a virgin but I promised myself when I did it again, it would be… I don’t know why we haven’t. I’m just not ready and it annoys me. If it annoys me, I’m sure it annoys you.”

“Kara…”

“Don’t answer that. Forget I asked. It isn’t fair to you. I’m going to step outside for some air.”

Kara moved to get up, but Tommy held her by her waist. “You sure that’s a good idea? You took your pill a few minutes ago. Anytime now, it is going to kick in.”

Kara thought of arguing but admitted her head was feeling light. She sat back down and leaned into him, getting comfortable in his embrace. When she opened her eyes again, she was still in Tommy’s arms and the sun was peeking through the cottage blinds.

Their day started and by noon, Tommy felt like dying would be better than carrying on. He realized Flag was correct. He hadn’t been to the gym since he started working at six a.m.. Sit-ups and push-ups in the morning were the extent of his exercise now. He had never walked over tough, rocky terrain. He and Kara wore matching beige cargo pants over snake-proof hiking boots. His feet weren’t used to the footwear, and he could practically feel blisters forming.

Kara wasn’t finding it as easy as she hoped but was in much better shape and much more excited. She would stop every ten minutes it seemed to take multiple pictures and selfies with the two of them or herself. She would have Tommy pose on his own as well.

Despite her excitement, Kara also felt trepidation throughout the day and caught herself trembling at times. She started checking the phone app that showed where Diana was anywhere in the world to try and calm herself. Diana had the same app for Kara. Both had small, built‑in GPS trackers in all of their earrings.

Only Dig, Alfred and Diana had access to her location. It made her feel more secure, knowing someone would always be near, looking out for her. Her app also gave her Dig’s location. She knew he was very near throughout the day but no matter how much she looked, she could not see him or any of the Rangers.

“Are you okay?” Tommy asked. “You seem nervous. Are you having trouble texting your friends?”

Kara shook her head, a bit embarrassed he had noticed. “I’m not texting anyone. I have an app I can use to find Diana. I’m having some separation anxiety and it helps me to look at it. It’s happened before on those few occasions she has left Gotham and had to leave me behind. I don’t remember it being this bad before, but it’s been awhile since we’ve been apart for any length of time. Seeing where she is on the app makes it better.”

“Let me guess, she is in Gotham City.” He said chuckling.

“Yes, on the eighty-ninth floor of the Tower. She just walked into the conference room for the call. That room has the best acoustics, and we usually use it for large group calls.”

Tommy stared at her for a moment. “Your tracker can tell you all that?”

Kara nodded. “Of course it can… I made it. She can tell the same thing about me. She knowns my exact location, the elevation I’m at and can access a satellite with real time feeds of our location. It doesn’t matter. I’m glad we are here together, alone, besides the Ranger battalion somewhere around us.

“I guess… I just feel a bit guilty. I know I hurt her feelings, she tried to hide it, but she didn’t do a very good job of it. I should have brought her along. She missed out on so many things because of me. She gave up so much to basically become my mother. She never traveled because she wanted us to see the world together. Then I sprang this on her out of nowhere… and left her behind.”

Tommy was about to suggest Diana join them tomorrow to make Kara happy, but she put on that smile she used to hide her feelings behind and grabbed his hands, pulling him and his extremely heavy backpack along.

They stopped about four miles into the hike. Though they had spent eight hours hiking, the ascent had been slow. They both took their time, stopping at several spots and enjoying the outdoors. Despite her anxiety, Kara felt on top of the world, being surrounded by nature that didn’t belong to Wayne Manor. It was both exhilarating and frightening, a mixture she was satisfied with. They had passed through woods and rocky outcroppings that offered unfettered views of the mountains and landscape around them.

As the sun set, they made camp near the trail in an open area under the stars. Kara had set up the tent and Tommy prepared a dinner of trail mix, beef jerky and commercial MREs. The beef stew wasn’t bad in Kara’s opinion.

Tommy was exhausted. He had every plan to watch the stars with Kara but decided he would rest first. The minute his head hit the camp pillow in the small two person tent, he was out.

Kara smiled at him, hoping he would be okay in the morning. She pulled off his boots and winced at the blisters that had popped up. They weren’t too bad and, with some ointment and bandages in the morning, he should be ready to roll. If not, she could leave him to tend the camp and make the summit herself to allow him the rest. She knew the descent would be difficult, perhaps more difficult than going up due to loose rock and wet foliage in the wooded area.

Kara laid on top of a stone face and gazed at the stars above. She hadn’t taken her pill, wanting to let her mind run free, hope the breakthrough on her energy source would come to her but that wasn’t to be.

Instead, her mind’s focus was solely on her big sister.

Kara missed her.

She knew she was an adult, capable of taking care of herself now, thanks to Diana and her sacrifice. This is what Diana had wanted… for Kara to be free from the fear of her health, to be able to do things like this.

But they were supposed to do these things together. The guilt she was feeling was the lesser problem she was facing at the moment. The bigger problem was the anxiety she was feeling.

Kara never had anxiety problems growing up but always felt off when Diana was out of the city. What she was experiencing now, though, was much worse.

Today she had distracted herself with the scenery. Tonight her mind was on her big sister. She felt very far from Diana, and it was causing her to panic. Her chest felt tight, and she felt as if she couldn’t catch her breath.

“Kara.” A voice whispered her name. She looked to her right and saw John Diggle’s large form approaching her. He sat down next to her.

“What’s wrong?” he asked quietly.

“What makes you think something is wrong?” she asked, rather than answering, sitting up and hugging her arms around herself, rocking back and forth, the cooler night air burning her lungs as she forced herself to take deeper breaths to try and calm down.

“I’ve been watching you all day. I saw you shaking. Are you going to have a panic attack?”

Kara shook her head.

“It’s okay to be nervous.” He told her and wrapped his large arms around her, pulling her close to him, rubbing her shoulder comfortingly.

“No, it’s not.” She said, her whole body shuddering. “I’m twenty-one. I should be able to take a trip away from my sister and not freak out. It’s not normal.”

“Screw normal. You do what makes you happy, what you are comfortable with.” Dig told her softly. “You haven’t had a normal life, Kara. Don’t judge yourself on what you or others think you should be doing. You took a big step coming out here. Maybe it was too big a step to take right away but you know that now.

“Follow through with your plan, then we go back home, and you can revaluate when it comes to future plans. Take smaller steps, get comfortable with those, then move on to something bigger. That’s how you do it, Kara. You are starting to learn to be your own person, but it isn’t going to come overnight.”

“You sound like Diana. She’s always telling me to slow down, take baby steps… she’s right, too. So are you.” Kara said, taking comfort in his presence.

The only person who made her feel safer than Dig was Diana. Knowing he was nearby all day had kept her from breaking down.

“Call her, then turn in for the night.”

Kara nodded. “Dig?”

“Yeah?”

“You think you could hike with us tomorrow? I like watching you on the tracker and trying to see you, but I would rather you just be with us. It will be fun and maybe you can help Tommy out. You might have to carry him down the mountain.”

Dig nodded and ruffled her hair. “Call Diana. She’s probably feeling the same thing you are. Sometimes, texting isn’t good enough. Sometimes you need to hear the other’s voice.”

Kara picked up her phone. She had kept her texts to Diana short that day, wanting to fight off the urge to ask her sister to fly to her. She had sent pictures and selfies to her… but she hadn’t heard Diana’s voice.

The call was picked up immediately.

“Kara.” Diana’s voice greeted her. Diana’s voice was filled with anxiety and longing. Simply hearing her big sister say her name was enough to calm her.

“I miss you.”