Oliver was tracking drug pushers selling Vertigo, because Thea had gotten some, and that was why she had gotten into the accident, because she was under the influence of Vertigo, so she got arrested.

I was in the hideout.

Oliver walked downstairs, suited up.

"Find what you looking for?" I asked.

"Took down three Vertigo pushers tonight, Jill," Oliver told me. "Last one finally knew a name. The Count."

"The Count?" I repeated skeptically. "That's worse than the hood and the girl in blue." I walked closer. "Are you going back out there?"

"I'm not done for the night," Oliver told me. "Whoever this Count is, he has a lot of blood on his hands, and it is long past time he started paying."

"Well, slow down," I told him. "I think you're missing the point here."

"What?" Oliver asked. I gave him a look. Oliver sighed, nodding. "Thea."

"Her hearing's in a few hours," I told him. "You think she cares more about some drug lord getting his just desserts, or you being by her side when she needs you the most?"

Oliver knew I was right, nodding.

⚔ 

The next morning, Moira and Oliver took Thea to her hearing.

We were walking upstairs of the court house.

News reporters were clamoring around. "Miss Queen. Thea, over here. Can we get a comment? Just one comment. Thea, are you going into rehab? Miss Queen, are you being expelled from Balliou Prep?" We pushed through the crowd to get inside. "Are you worried about the outcome?"

⚔ 

The hearing was in progress.

Judge Brackett was leading the trial. "Docket ending 1-10-5-6, people vs. Thea Dearden Queen. Possession of a controlled substance, driving under the influence of a controlled substance. Counselors, I understand you've reached a plea agreement."

Thea's lawyer,Alex Salese, stood. "We have, your honor. Given that my client is a juvenile, the people have generously agreed to probation."

"Juvenile?" Brackett repeated. "Says right here she's 18."

Laurel walked in from the back of the room.

"She is 18 now, your honor, but at the time of arrest, she was still two days shy of her 18th birthday," Alex told him. "Miss Queen has no priors."

"Well, just because Miss Queen's family sweeps her priors under the rug, doesn't mean they don't exist," Brackett told him. "You get your client off, and you help your boss avoid dealing with the drug that's sweeping across our city like the plague. Everyone wins, except us, the people of Starling City."

"Your honor, with all due respect--" Alex started.

Brackett ignored him, looking at Thea. "Miss Queen, like it or not, you are now the poster child for this menace. Maybe if people see that the Queen family can't get away with using Vertigo, they'll think twice before using it themselves. The plea arrangement is denied. This case will proceed to trial."

Thea looked at us worriedly, nervously.

⚔ 

Moira, Thea, Oliver and I walked into the Queen mansion's living room.

Alex was with us.

"They can't do this," Moira told us. "That man cannot send my daughter to prison."

"What are our options?" Oliver asked.

"An interlocutory appeal," Alex answered. "But trial judges have discretion to reject plea agreements. I think you might want to prepare yourself for the possibility that this isn't going to go our way." Thea looked nervous. "I'm sorry, Miss Queen. I'll get to work on the appeal."

"Well, so much for the best criminal defense attorney in the city," Moira told us. Oliver put a hand on her arm. "Thea, we will handle this, I promise."

"Like you promised Walter you'd always stay faithful to him?" Thea asked. "I feel better already."

I frowned in confusion.

"That's enough," Moira told her.

"Don't worry," Thea told her. "Sounds like you won't have to be putting up with me much longer."

Thea walked out, leaving.

"What, does she not realize how serious this is?" Moira asked. "She took drugs. She drove. She could have killed someone, or herself."

"I know," Oliver told her.

"All that judge is looking for is someone to make an example of," Moira told us. "Why does it have to be her?"

"Maybe it doesn't," I told them. Moira and Oliver looked at me. "Listen, I have to go do something. Give you guys a little privacy. Mrs. Queen, are you okay?"

"I'm not the one facing prison," Moira told us.

I looked at them sympathetically, walking out of the living room, into the foyer, toward the door.

Oliver followed me. "Jill."

I turned to face him in confusion. "What was that about? What Thea said about Moira being unfaithful to Walter?"

Oliver sighed. "Thea thinks that our mother's having an affair with Malcolm Merlyn."

"Tommy's dad?" I asked.

"Yeah," Oliver answered. "My mom assured me that she's not. She told me that my dad was the one with loyalty issues. But Thea's pretty convinced."

"Then talk to her," I told him. "Your family needs you, Oliver. I'll do what I can on my own."

"I need to be out there, searching for a way to help my sister," Oliver told me. 

"You are helping her, by staying here when she needs you," I told him. "I care about Thea, too, so I will go out there and help her anyway I can."

Oliver sighed. 'Fine. I'll talk to Thea. But I need to talk to Laurel, too. See if she can get help from her dad."

I  nodded in agreement. I turned around, walking out, leaving.

⚔ 

Flashback

It was after dark on the island.

Oliver was still in his cage.

Yao Fei brought a struggling Jill to another cage, opening the door.

"You working for them now?" Jill asked. "Why are you doing this? I thought we were friends... or something. I mean, why'd you brother keeping Oliver safe, or helping him rescue me if you were just going to hand us over to them? Just get us out of here."

"I can't," Yao Fei told her, closing the cell door, turning around, walking away.

Oliver stood from within his cage. "Hey! Don't leave us here! We came back for you! Do you hear me? We came back for you!"

Oliver gave up, leaning back against the cage bars.

Jill looked through hers, hopelessly confused.

⚔ 

Now

John and I walked into the warehouse that I had met with Bratva member Alexi Leonov before.

I was holding bags.

"I've seen a fair amount of Cyrillic back in Afghanistan, left over by the Soviets," John told me. "Is this Russian owned?"

"This is the not-so-hidden headquarters for the Starling City chapter of the Bratva," I answered. "Dig..." John looked at me."Whatever I say, whatever goes down, just go with it."

Alexi walked toward me, speaking in Russian. "Good to see you again."

"Good to see you, too," I told him.

"Long time," Alexi told me. "Particularly for Bratva captain."

"I was trying to figure out where to put my interests," I told him. "I decided on pharmaceuticals." I tossed my bag to the floor. "I don't mean Aspirin."

"Wise choice," Alexi told me. "Mepheodrone would be a good investment for you. It's the newest thing."

"I was thinking Vertigo," I told him. "Newer thing."

"Tough market, Vertigo," Alexi told me. "Only one seller."

"I know," I told him. "I was hoping you could do me a favor and arrange a meeting."

Alexi tsked. "He's difficult man. And does not like new friends."

John handed me the file that Oliver had gotten from Laurel on the Count.

I showed the file to Alexi. "This is everything the police have on him. Tell him it's a gift."

Alexi took the file from me. "I will see what I can do. Provided you do favor for me."

I nodded, speaking in Russian. "Anything."

Alexi turned to his man behind him.

The man walked away.

Alexi looked at me. "It is unusual for an Latina-American to hold such a position of esteem in our organization. Miss Wright." I raised my eyebrows slightly. "Anatoli Knyazey. He speaks very highly of you."

"He should," I told him. "I saved his life." John looked between us in confusion. Alexi's man brought over another man. The man was slightly beaten and bleeding. "What did he do?"

"Something I told him not to," Alexi answered. "Now the favor. Kill this man for me, and I will believe your interest in our organization is genuine. And then I will arrange a meeting with the Count."

I hesitated, not wanting to.

Alexi's man pushed the man into my arms.

"Jill..." John trailed off.

"Shut up," I told him. 

I held the man in a chokehold, hiding my hand behind his head, nicking him with a ring I had on my finger without them noticing. 

The man started to go limp.

John looked away.

I let the man fall to the floor.

Alexi's man knelt next to him, feeling for a pulse. He looked at Alexi, nodding.

Alexi looked at me smugly, smiling, speaking in Russian. "Thank you."

I tilted my head sarcastically. "What are friends for?" 

⚔ 

Flashback

Yao Fei had taken Jill and Oliver out of their cages, pushing them out of the gates, gun in arms.

"We're out of the gates now," Oliver told him. "What's going on? Are we getting out of here? Where are you taking us?"

Yao Fei took them toward where a crowd was standing around two wrestling men.

One of the men was the man with the orange and black mask. He kicked the man in the leg, making him fall to his knees. The man stood, trying to punch him. The masked man blocked the move, punching him in the stomach and chest repeatedly, spinning to kick him in the head, making him fall, kneeling next to him to continue punching him. He grabbed the man by his wrist, twisting it back, breaking it, making him groan a scream of pain.

Jill flinched at the sound.

The masked man looked toward where Edward was standing with the crowd.

Edward nodded.

The masked man flipped the man through the air, slashing through him with his sword, killing him.

"While I admit that bout was particularly one-sided..." Edward trailed off. Two men dragged the body away. "Would anybody else like to give it a try?" Yao Fei pushed Oliver and Jill forward. "The point of these little gladiatorial distractions is to strengthen unit cohesion. To that end, I think our newest recruits ought to be afforded the opportunity to try their hand."

Yao Fei walked into the crowd, turning to face Oliver and Jill.

Oliver and Jill were still incredibly confused.

⚔ 

Now

John carried the man's body out of the warehouse.

I led him toward a van. 

"I can't believe you just killed that guy," John told me.

I scoffed. "You really have a low opinion of me."

I opened the trunk of the car.

John placed the man inside.

I touched the man on the neck with the ring, making another cut with the other side of it to counter the effects. 

The man woke, sitting up.

"Whoa," John told me. "How did you..."

I showed him one side of the ring. "Paralytic. Makes your heartbeat nearly nonexistant." I showed him the other side of the ring. "Antidote. Cures right away."

John smirked, impressed. "That's a neat trick. You going to get me one of those rings one day?"

I punched the man in the face, knocking him out, turning to face John. "No."

I closed the trunk.

"What are you doing?" John asked.

"You need to arrange a new identity for this guy," I told him. "Get him out of the city."

I walked around the car toward the driver's seat.

John walked around the car toward the passenger seat. "Right,so your Ruskie pal draws out the Count, vigilantes take him down."

"No, John, because then the Bratva would know that I used them, and that relationship is too valuable," I told him. "I do the meet with the Count as myself, let him leave, then we follow him to his hideout."

"Just that easy, huh?" John asked sarcastically.

"Well, I will still need my trusty bodyguard," I told him, smirking, getting into the car.

John nodded sarcastically. "Fantastic. Looking forward to my new and exciting career as a drug dealer."

John got into the car.

⚔ 

Oliver was at the mansion, trying to help his family.

John and I went to the meeting building, standing outside after dark.

Alexi and his guy walked closer. 

"You know why they call him the Count?" Alexi asked. "When he was developing this drug, he experimented on the homeless. Prostitutes, runaways. The police would find their bodies, puncture marks on their neck, like a vampire." A car drove by. "You should not be in such a hurry to meet this man."

The car pulled over.

A few people got out.

A man walked closer to pat me down. 

I raised my hands to comply.

The man patted John down.

The Count walked closer, showing us the file. "Thank you for this. But I'm not overly concerned about the SCPD. Now, I understand the two of you wish to participate in the feel good business."

I nodded. "Yes."

"And why is that?" Count asked.

"Well, I am helping Oliver Queen and Tommy Merlyn open a nightclub, and I'd like customers to have a little... something extra," I told him.

"Well, as it happens, I'm looking to expand my brand," Count told me. John placed down bags of money. Count walked toward a man who was holding a briefcase. "A good wine's value is measured by its vintage. The number of years it took to ferment. Vertigo is measured in lives." He opened the briefcase to reveal several little baggies of narcotics, pulling out one. "56 people died to perfect this high." He stepped closer. "Believe me when I say that they did not die for nothing." 

The Count handed me the bag, closing the briefcase, handing it to me.

We heard sirens, looking around to see several police cars pull up.

"Let's get out of here!" Count's guy told him. "Go! Come on! Let's go!"

They ran away toward their cars.

Lance and Hilton got out of their car, aiming their guns.

"SCPD!" Lance told them. "Put your weapons down!"

John and I ducked behind our car when the gunfire started, between the drug dealers and the police.

The Count and his guys ran toward the building, trying to get away.

I ran after them, ducking down from the bullets.

"Jill!" John told me.

I punched one of the Count's guys, making him fall unconscious, kicking the other into the wall, making him fall, jumping down the steps toward the Count, landing next to him.

The Count stabbed me in the chest with a syringe, injecting me with a liquid. "No witnesses."

The Count ran away with the briefcase, leaving.

I felt as if I was in excruciating pain, groaning and gasping for breath. I could hear gunshots, but my vision was so blurry I could barely see. I pulled the syringe out of my chest.

John walked closer. "You okay?" My vision was swimming. "What'd he hit you with?"

"I don't know," I told him.

John wrapped my arm around his shoulders to help me along. "All right, come on. Steps. Let's go."

⚔ 

John took me back to the hideout.

I laid on the table, groaning in pain, pulling off my jacket, writhing in pain.

Oliver walked toward my wooden box.

"What the hell is happening to her?" John asked.

"I'll ask her when I cure her," Oliver told him, going through the box, looking for the herbs that cured effects like these, mixing them together in a bowl. I could barely see, gasping for breath, turning my head away. My head felt like it was lulling around aimlessly, weakly and slowly due to the pain. Oliver waked closer. "Jill." I rolled my head to look at him, but I couldn't see much of anything but a shape outline. Oliver helped me sit up, putting the bowl to my lips. "Drink."

I started to drink. The clear liquid started to spill over my chin and lips. I couldn't stand the taste of it anymore, as the pain kept getting worse, turning away from Oliver, coughing the liquid up on the table. 

Oliver took a few steps back.

I leaned back against the table, writhing in agony, screaming.

⚔ 

Flashback

It was the same night in the camp.

Yao Fei was fighting Oliver in the crowd, punching him in the face, making him fall. Oliver stood. Yao Fei kicked him in the chest, making him back away.

Jill was on the edge of the crowd, walking closer to stop the fighting in an attempt to help.

The masked man gripped Jill tightly from behind.

Jill struggled uncomfortably, angrily. 

⚔ 

Now

The pain only seemed to feel worse and get worse by 100 times over.

I was still writing on the table, unable to see anything but shapes, colors, outlines and light at this point.

"John, hold her down," Oliver told him. I could feel them trying to restrain me. "Diggle, hold her down!"

"I'm trying," John told him, trying to keep me from writhing and fighting.

Oliver tried to help him as much as he could with one arm around me while he used his other hand to tilt the bowl to my lips again and make me drink, this time, not letting the reflex to spit and cough it out take control.

⚔ 

Now

Yao Fei punched Oliver in the face twice, kicking him in the stomach and side, making him fall to his knees, punching him in the face, making him huddle over. Oliver stood. Yao Fei grabbed Oliver in behind in a headlock.

"Stop!" Jill told him.

Yao Fei held Oliver in a chokehold until he fell unconscious.

Jill thought him to be dead, looking horrified.

⚔ 

Now

I woke up in the hideout, still lying on the table. I wasn't in pain. I wasn't breathing heavily. I didn't feel anything. I was just exhausted. I opened my eyes, seeing Oliver standing next to me.

"Morning," Oliver told me. I tried to put my hand to my head, seeing that I was handcuffed to the table. "How you feeling?"

"I feel like I'm getting the worst hangover of my life," I answered. "Are the cuffs really necessary?"

"Considering we couldn't feed you the cure with them because you were thrashing too much, yes," Oliver answered.

"Well, you think you can uncuff me?" I asked. "Not going to kill you. Promise."

Oliver gave me a look, unlocking the cuffs on my wrists.

I sat up, sighing, taking a moment to stand.

John walked into the room with a towel. He looked at me. "You're standing. That's pretty impressive." He tossed me the towel. I used it to wipe the sweat away. "The Count only got you with half a dose, but you still sweated out a small swimming pool coming down."

I sighed, leaning back against the table. "The Count. Any chance our friends in the SCPD took him down?"

"None at all," John answered. "But we did manage to get this." He held up two syringes. "I think we should analyze it."

I tossed the towel down, sighing, still feeling a little lightheaded, standing.

Oliver looked at me in concern. "Listen, Jill, maybe you need to give it a few hours. A near drug overdose isn't something you just walk away from."

I gave him a look for even suggesting to sit this one out. "Neither is Thea."

I turned around, walking a few steps away.

"Jill, I can handle my sister," Oliver told me. 

"Did you forget the part where I said I care about Thea, too?" I asked. "I'm not done yet."

Oliver sighed in exasperation, turning to John.

John shook his head. "Don't look at me. If you can't convince her to take the day off, I know for sure I can't."

I tilted my head at them barely, walking away.

⚔ 

John, Oliver and I walked into the living room of the Queen mansion to see Lance and Detective McKenna Hall sitting on the couch, and Moira sitting in a nearby chair.

"What's wrong?" Oliver asked. "Is everything okay with Thea?"

Lance stood. "This isn't about your family for once, Queen, it's about your house guest." He looked at me. I shrugged innocently. "Last night, we got a call from a C.I., busted up a drug sale between a big time dealer and the Russian mob."

"'We'?" Oliver repeated. He looked at Hall. "I thought you worked vice."

Hall shrugged. "Joint task force. Vertigo's got everybody holding hands."

Oliver looked at me.

I shrugged barely.

"Like I said, last night, drug deal gone south," Lance told me, walking closer. "An eyewitness put you at the scene."

"Whoever he is, he's mistaken," I told him. 

"Yeah?" Lance asked. 

I nodded. 

"I saw you, Jillian," Hall told me.

"Is this true?" Moira asked.

I sighed. "I was checking into the Count. He's the guy who sold drugs to Thea. And I figured if I could find out what he looked like, then I could give your sketch artist something to go on. So I paid a low-life with a Russian accent an obscene amount of money to arrange a meeting."

"And?" Hall asked. "Did you get eyes on him?"

I shook my head. "No."

"All right, are you pressing charges against Jill?" Oliver asked. 

Lance sighed, looking at me. "You get involved in this again, you'll see the inside of a cell."

"Understood," I told him.

Lance turned to walk toward the door.

Oliver took a few steps after him. "Detective..." Lance turned back. "Thank you for what you did for Thea."

"My daughter asked me for a favor and I did it," Lance told him. "And that's the end of it."

Lance and John walked out, leaving.

Hall turned to me. "Hope you don't think I sold you out."

I shook my head. "No. Just doing your job."

Hall walked out, leaving.

Moira stood. "What on earth were you thinking?"

"I asked her to help, Mom," Oliver told her. 

"By running around with the Russian mob and a murderous drug dealer?" Moira asked. "Are you out of your minds?"

Oliver chuckled without humor. "Mom, the real reason you're upset is because I told Thea the truth about Dad."

"She never needed to know that," Moira told him.

Thea walked in. "Yes, I did. I'm old enough to know the truth, Mom."

Moira looked away.

I looked at Oliver, pointing toward the door.

Oliver nodded.

I walked out, leaving.

⚔ 

John and I stood in the foyer of the mansion.

Oliver walked toward us.

"Now what?" John asked.

"Like you said, we analyze the Vertigo," Oliver answered, starting to walk upstairs. 

I started to follow. "It's in liquid form, which means it contains water. So maybe we can trace back to where in the city the Count is...." I started to feel lightheaded again. My vision was swimming. "Cooking up... this garbage."

I nearly fell, holding onto the stairwell railing.

Oliver turned back in confusion, worried. "Jill?" I couldn't stand anymore, falling. Oliver caught me in his arms before I hit the stairs. "Jill."

⚔ 

Flashback

It was day on the island in the forest.

Oliver was lying on a boulder over a waterfall.

Edward and Yao Fei stood nearby.

A uniformed man dragged a struggling Jill toward to them.

Jill struggled angrily. "I swear to God..."

"Seeing as you're so close to Oliver, Jill, I assumed that you would like to send him off into the watery oblivion with a few words of goodbye," Edward told her.

Jill glared at him. "Go to hell."

Edward smirked. "Quite possibly."

Edward nodded to another uniformed man.

The uniformed man walked toward Oliver to push him off into the water fall.

Jill struggled angrily, desperately, tears in her eyes.

"I'll do it," Yao Fei told them. 

Edward nodded.

The uniformed man backed away from Oliver.

Yao Fei walked toward Oliver, kneeling next to him. He looked toward Jill, maintaining eye contact, looking away, pushing Oliver into the waterfall below. He stood, backing away. 

Edward turned to the uniformed man restraining Jill. "Discard of her, please." Edward and the other  uniformed man started to walk away. The uniformed man restraining Jill started to push her toward the edge of the rocks to push her down onto them. Jill backed into him hard enough to make him back into the tree behind him, making him let go and drop his gun. She caught it before it fell, turning to push him back into the others. The men ran toward her. Jill turned around, running away, jumping off of the waterfall to the river below, landing with a huge splash. Edward smirked, impressed. "Or not. She likes to do things herself."

Jill swam through the river off in the direction where Oliver's unconscious body had been carried off in, letting the current take her away.

⚔ 

Now

Oliver, John and I walked into the Queen Consolidated business building, walking off the elevator.

I was having trouble staying on my feet.

Oliver grabbed my arm to help steady me. "Hey, we need to get you to a hospital."

 "No," I told them, walking ahead of them.

Both Oliver and John were a little exasperated by my stubbornness.

"Jill, God knows what was in that drug," John told me. "It could be causing permanent damage."

I ignored them, walking up to Felicity. "Felicity, hey. They said you'd be up here."

"You look like something the cat dragged in," Felicity told me. "Not that there are cats in this building. Well, once a cat did get in, but a guard tasered it. It smelled like fur and static in here for, like, a week."

I was still having blurry vision, their voices fading in and out, looking at the windows behind Felicity, lost in thought for a moment, the light hurting my eyes, clearing my throat. "Would you mind stepping away from the window for a moment? I have a little bit of a hangover."

Felicity led us away from the window. "Sounds like you need a Bloody Mary and a pretzel. Not the I.T. department."

"Actually, our buddy Kevin is starting an energy drink company," I told her. "He says it's fantastic for curing hangovers." I pulled out the two syringes. "But I am very particular about what it is I put in my body."

Felicity nodded. "I noticed."

"I'm trying to find a secret recipe," I told her. "Could you please do a spectroanalysis of the sample and find out exactly where in the city it's made?"

Felicity took one of the syringes. "If it's an energy drink, why is it in a syringe?"

"I stole her last sports bottle, and I gave her that instead," I told her. 

John walked toward the elevators, hitting the button.

Felicity nodded. "Okay."

Felicity walked away, leaving.

I lost focus for a moment, feeling very dizzy and lightheaded.

Oliver led me to the elevator and John.

"Jill, I know you can come up with a better B.S. story than that," John told me.

"It's not her best day, Diggle," Oliver told him. The elevator door opened. We walked in. "Give her a break."

⚔ 

We were in the Queen Industrial hideout building that still had yet to be made into the nightclub, in the basement.

I was sitting on the table, gazing off.

John was sitting at the computers. "Looks like Felicity came through." Oliver walked toward him. "The solvent used in the Vertigo sample was run off water originated within a ten block radius of where east Glades meets the bay. Nothing there except for an old juvenile detention center abandoned about three years ago. Cutbacks."

I stood, starting to walk toward my box.

Oliver knew what I was doing, walking closer, stepping in my way. "Uh-uh. You're not going out there, Jill. You're still suffering the after-affects of the Vertigo."

"You didn't hear the Count last night, Oliver," I told him. "He's taking this drug citywide. If we don't stop him now, this becomes an epidemic."

"I will deal with it personally," Oliver told me. I opened my mouth to speak. Oliver cut me off. "Alone."

"I'm fine," I told him. "And I'm going."

Oliver gave me an unconvinced look. "Okay." He picked up a tennis ball, holding it up for me to see next to his head. "Hit this and we'll see." I gave him a look, walking toward the table, picking up one of my knives, turning to Oliver, readying and taking aim. My vision was blurry and unfocusing. I would have tried to take the shot if Oliver hadn't been holding the tennis ball so close to his head, because of worry that I would miss in the state I was. I sighed in defeat, lowering my knife. Oliver nodded knowingly, putting the tennis ball. "You're not fine. You're lucky we haven't dragged you to the hospital yet." 

I turned to John.

John shook his head. "Don't look at me. I'm with Oliver on this."

I sighed, turning away. 

Oliver stepped closer. "Jill." I turned to him, tilting my head, unamused and not happy. "You've spent majority of the past five years doing everything you can to save me. Now, it's my turn."

⚔ 

It was the next morning.

I was in the hideout, working out, training.

Oliver walked in. "I take that as a sign that you're feeling better."

I turned to face him. "The Count?"

"Injected him with as much Vertigo as he hit you with, and then handed him over to the police," Oliver answered. "Then made a run for it. They charged him with everything from drug trafficking to homicide. He'll be gone for a long while."

"And Thea?" I asked.

"Since they caught this guy, the judge has no reason to make her an example, but she's not getting away with it that easily," Oliver answered. "Instead of jail time, she's doing community service up at the law house with Laurel."

I nodded. "That's good. That's great."

"Yeah," Oliver agreed. I returned to punching the bag ahead of me. Oliver held it still for me. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Talk about what?" I asked.

"The things that Vertigo made you see," Oliver answered.

I paused, looking at him. "What do you mean, like, hallucinations? I didn't have any of those."

"No," Oliver answered. "I mean, memories."

I hesitated, looking down. "How'd you know?"

"I may have nearly overdosed once or twice before the island," Oliver answered. "I know the kind of tricks it can play on your mind."

"Can we just leave it at you saved my life and kept me from getting myself killed when I was tripping out?" I asked. "You know, as repayment."

Oliver smiled a small smile. "Sure."

I sighed, nodding. After a moment, I went back to punching the bag while he held it still for me.

⚔ 

Flashback

Oliver was floating down the river.

Jill finally reached him, pulling his head above the water. "Oliver." Oliver coughed and gasped for breath. Jill helped him out of the water. Oliver laid down on the riverbank, breathing heavily. Jill fell to her knees next to him. "Oh, thank God. I thought I was gonna have to use CPR again. You know how much I suck at that."

Oliver took a few deep breaths. "What happened?"

Jill pulled out a map, unfolding it. "I have an outline mapped out. Literally." She put the map down for a moment, helping Oliver sit up. "You okay?" 

Oliver breathed heavily, nodding weakly.

Jill looked at him for a moment, picking up the map, showing him the path drawn out.

Oliver took the map in confusion. "Where did you get this?"

"Yao Fei," Jill answered. "He put it in my pocket when he dragged me out to the waterfall." 

Oliver pointed at X marks the spot on the map. "Shengeun. Survive."

Jill helped Oliver stand, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, helping him off of the riverbank.