❛Not anywhere new ❜

The smell of mold lingered in the back of Annabelle's nose and she sniffled once before lightly opening her eyes. Sitting in front of her was the Count with his foot tapping repeatedly on the concrete floor below him. Once he saw his hostage was awake, he brightly smiled and leaned forward on his knees. "Good morning," he happily said. His loud voice brought a sting to Anna's headache caused by the many drugs her captor tried on her and she shut her eyes and dropped her head. "Did you know we've been together for two weeks?" he asked to try and get attention from the girl. "Should I feel honored to be your longest relationship?" Anna asked with a strained voice and a groan once she tried once more to tug on her restraints. 

"I've had girlfriends," the man said angrily. Anna allowed her head to roll back and stared helplessly at the ceiling. "Imagination does not count," she whispered. Once the words left her mouth, her hair was grabbed and she was forced upright. A cry left her lips and she found herself staring into the bloodshot eyes of the Count. "Go to hell," Anna spat.

Anger filled the man's eyes and he pulled yet another vile of drugs from his inside pocket of his coat, "I all want right now, Ms. Carter, he hissed in the woman's ear, "is your pathetic boyfriend."

As his words slithered through Anna's ear, the needle pierced into her neck and pain filled her body. She lurched back in her chair and her hands pulled tirelessly at her cuffs as her screams filled the entire warehouse and the Count sat watching with a smirk. 

•••

"What do we got, Dig?" Oliver asked as he bounced down the steps of the basement of the club while buttoning his coat. "Nothing on the Count. How's Thea?"

"She's fine now. Used to court. Felicity get anywhere with the Vertigo?"

Diggle sighed, "Not anywhere new. The meeting with the Count just made matters worse."

Oliver tossed his keys on the table, "Once Felicity comes through we can take him down. I crossed a name off the list yesterday, in cuffs today," Oliver said with a small smile at his accomplishment. Diggle narrowed his eyes and lifted a picture of Anna from Oliver's desk, "What about Anna?"

Oliver glanced over at the man and took the picture from his hand and placed it carefully back on the desk as if it were going to break and her picture was his last keepsake, "She left a note, Dig."

"A note that didn't make sense. She said she would be back at the hospital with Thea's pajamas within the hour and then she just vanishes? What really gets me is that you haven't even questioned it."

Oliver shrugged and sat in his chair while spinning around once, "I talked to her assistant and he said she was at a conference in Central City. She'll be home soon and can help with Thea's trial. Jordan says it was only two weeks so I bet we'll see her in a day or two."

Diggle shook his head and placed a hand on the bow sitting beside Oliver's. "Anna never leaves her phone, get Felicity to track it."

Oliver glanced up and looked at his friend who seemed genuinely worried about Anna's wellbeing despite the fact that she was a businesswoman and was simply at a conference in another city. "I already did, Diggle. Six days ago. Traced it to her car with Thea's clothes and the note."

"And that doesn't seem suspicious to you?"

"Let it go, Dig," Oliver simply said while standing up and shoving his phone into his pocket and flipping Anna's picture over so it lay face down at the desk. "Where are we going?" Diggle asked once he noticed Oliver put his coat on. Oliver smirked, "The Provision."

It took only twenty minutes before the dynamic duo had reached the Carter Provision and together they entered the tall building that was filled with crisp clean air and the scampering of people all about. "She runs a tight ship, huh?" Diggle grinned as he observed the lobby of the building he escorted Annabelle in almost every day. "That she does," Oliver nodded in agreement as he nodded to the receptionist at the front desk. The woman smiled and lifted the phone before her to her ear while tapping a few numbers and hearing a voice on the other end. 

Diggle and Oliver wandered into the elevator and Diggle hit the button for the fourth to last floor - as Anna preferred not to be on the very top floor like cliche business owners - and soon the two were silently making their way to Anna's empty office. "So," Diggle said aloud to break the tension in the air. Oliver glanced at him through the side of his eyes and clasped his hands behind his back, "Good cop - bad cop?"

Oliver smirked and once the elevator dinged, the two stepped off and were immediately met by none other than Jordan Mitchell - Anna's prized assistant. He smiled at the two, "Welcome in, gentlemen. I haven't seen you in a while," he nervously said.

"I want to see Anna's office," Oliver spoke abruptly as he wandered off past Jordan toward the glass doors that looked into Anna's large office bordering Jordan's. "I actually would have to ask Ms. Carter but - "

However, no matter the efforts of Jordan, Oliver moved past him and after trying to push open the door he actually saw it locked. "Unlock this," he demanded.

"Mr. Queen, Ms. Carter left me strict instructions to - "

"I don't think she left you anything," Diggle interrupted with a shake of the head. Jordan pursed his lips and glanced between the large man before him and the impatient man beside him that still had a hand on Anna's office door handle. "I don't know what to say," he softly responded to the harsh demands of the two. "Ms. Carter is at a conference in Central City, uh, sirs."

Oliver dryly chuckled and slammed his hand against Anna's door once more, "Open this, now."

Jordan fearfully looked between the two and after a death stare from Oliver bore into his eyes, he looked up with a sigh, "One moment."

The boy disappeared behind his desk and grabbed his set of office keys from his desk drawer before tramping over to the door where Oliver's hand still rested in utter defeat. He looked pleadingly at the man who only gave a curt nod before hesitantly unlocking the door and stepping out of the way.

Oliver walked right over to the desk of the suspiciously missing woman and pulled on a drawer only to find it locked as well. "I don't have a key for her desk," Jordan spoke from in front of her desk where Diggle stood right next to him in case he tried to hide anything in the room. "I do," Oliver said with a hint of annoyance as he dug through his coat pocket before pulling out a set of five keys. He lifted the silver one and stuck it in the keyhole to twist it and yank open the drawer. Inside laid evidence.

Oliver dug his fingers under the leather bound book and held it up before slamming it hard on the desk surface. "She never goes anywhere without this, Jordan," he said loudly. "Where is she?"

Jordan bit his lower lip and looked down at his feet that he began to shuffle back and forth nervously. "Where is Annabelle?!" Oliver shouted with little patience and a little too much anger. Jordan gulped, "She, uh, I- I don't know," he admitted with tears filling the brim of his eyes. "She didn't have a conference, but this guy found me on my way home and threatened my sister if I didn't tell you she did!" he cried out with a tear slipping down his cheek. "I-I love my sister! I couldn't tell you but now since I did she's probably going to get hurt! Oh my God! Is my sister going to get hurt?" he shouted out in complete fear.

Oliver narrowed his eyes at the now trembling boy and glanced at Diggle in disbelief before drawing his attention back on Jordan. "Who threatened you?"

Jordan hesitated and looked out at the city through the window. His eyes were a surefire tell that he was trying to remember something. When he turned back to Oliver, he had an answer. "I think he had a mohawk, maybe. A-and beady eyes! I-I don't really remember, Mr. Queen!" he shouted out with the tears running down his cheeks to no end. "I care about Ms. Carter! I wouldn't be anywhere without her! I swear I didn't lie to you for no reason! I had to! Ms. Carter would want me to put my sister first and - "

Cutting off Jordan's rambling was Diggle putting his hand up to cut the boy's frantic antics off. "Your sister will be fine, I'll make sure of it."

Jorda took a large breath and nodded with a large gulp. "Yes, sir."

As the boy stood frozen, Diggle and Oliver began to walk out of the office with Anna's notebook in Oliver's hand. He was hoping that perhaps Anna's book would be able to give Oliver insight on where she was and if she was strong enough to handle it, but as someone who had only ever held the book in his hands and with no clearance to read it, Oliver didn't even know where to begin. "Run this company, Jordan," Oliver called out before he had fully left the office. "Annabelle will appreciate it."

•••

"So," Diggle trailed off while leaning against a metal desktop with his arms folded across his chest. "What now?"

Oliver briefly closed his eyes and gripped the metal firmly while trying to devise a plan in his mind. "Vertigo still on the streets, the Count threatens Anna's assistant, her phone is off, and the Provision didn't know anything about a conference," Oliver recalled the details as if they would help him. "What's the plan?" Diggle asked again.

Oliver ignored the question and glanced at his phone as it beeped in his hand. He sighed at the notification and tossed it onto the table. "Tommy wants to know why Anna hasn't called him back. He's getting worried."

"What are you gonna tell him?"

"Nothing," Oliver replied sharply. "We have to find Anna."

At the moment the words left his mouth, every single monitor in the basement of the club turned off without warning. Oliver looked up in pure confusion and Diggle stood up straight and looked behind him as if he had done something to trigger it. "What just happened?" Diggle asked aloud.

Oliver wasn't able to respond because the flashing white light on one monitor caught both men's attention. However, once they focused on the single screen, all the screens turned on with the live video feed of none other than the Count Vertigo.

"Is this thing on?" the man chuckled while tilting his head back and forth in front of the camera. "Oh, hello!"

"What the hell..." Diggle muttered under his breath while staring at the crazy man before him. "I heard you had some questions about your beloved Annabelle Carter," he grinned. "I spoke to her lovely assistant - Jordan, was it?"

"Stay away from Jordan Mitchell and his sister!" Oliver's voice boomed in protection of the man Anna cared for so much as if he were a brother. "I have no interest in Anna's assistant. I care more about you."

Oliver looked at Diggle with a question laced behind his eyes but the Count beat him to it. "You tried to stop me once before, you know, as the 'Hood.'"

"Get to the point," Diggle snapped impatiently.

"Anyways," the man huffed, "you could come try to stop me again, and for good reason this time," he winked while adjusting the camera and looking behind him. "Annabelle!" he screamed, making the girl jerk up and groan as she adjusted to the harsh light set before her. "Say hello!"

Oliver's eyes widened as he saw his girlfriend tied to a chair with cuts and bruises littering his cheek and exposed arms from her tank top. He got closer to the screen to observe more of her injuries but she was too busy shaking her head at the camera for him to get a good look. "Ollie, don't," she choked out as loud as she could which evidently wasn't very. "Please."

"Anna, baby, I'm going to get you out of there," Oliver told her which only made her shake her head harder. "Get him," she said instead.

"That's enough," the Count said while rolling his eyes. "Ugh, love makes me sick," he gagged before regaining attention on the two very angry men in front of him. "I swear to God, if you hurt her - "

"If?" the man laughed. He laughed for quite a while before taking a deep breath. "Did you hear that, Annabelle?" he called out behind him. He turned back to the camera and shook his head, "She's drugged, Mr. Queen. She's already been hurt. Where have you been?"

"You're insane," Diggle mumbled in disbelief. "You don't have very long, I advise you don't waste your time criticizing me," the Count whistled ironically. He stood up and approached Anna quickly. She looked up and began breathing heavily. She dropped her head and waited for the pain to begin. "Don't hurt her!" Oliver screamed angrily as he watched the Count pull a syringe from his coat.

"Ollie," Anna whimpered softly. Her voice made Oliver's heart shatter and he bit his trembling lower lip as she screamed at the top of her lungs. The last thing he heard before the camera went dark was his name being cried out by none other than the woman he loved.

And it broke him.