Chapter 3
Lena wakes up with a start. She jolts up from her position and whips her head around as if there is a threat nearby. She must’ve been dreaming, but she can’t remember what it was. After she rubs her eyes a bit, she takes in her surroundings. She finds Alex’s eyes boring into her. She nods slightly in greeting before turning her attention to Kara. Part of her hoped to find her awake, but she knew that would be too good to be true.
“How’d you sleep?” Alex asks quietly.
Lena groans. “Fine. How long have I been out?”
“A few hours at least.”
Lena looks up to make sure her drone was still functioning after all the time. The lamp seems to be a bit dimmer, but it’s still going strong. “Any change?”
“Her heartbeat seems stronger. The doctor already came in to check in on her again. It’s just a waiting game now.”
“You should have woken me up for that.”
Alex tsks. “We both know that you are going to barely sleep as she recovers. I was not about to squander away the little you were getting now.”
Lena leans back and spends time stretching. That position had not been very comfortable. “Any guesses on how long it’ll be?”
“Probably a couple days at least. She was without oxygen for much longer than any of us were hoping for.”
Lena sighs. “I hate this part.”
“I know. So do I. As much of a pain as she is when she is nursing wounds, at least I know she’s okay… that she’s recovering.”
Lena eyes Alex’s tablet.
“I put one on the counter behind you. I figure you would want to work while we wait.”
“Thank you, Alex.” Lena snatches it up and is quick to connect to the LCorp servers.
“Can you share the plans for your drone? I want to see what else you have going on in there.”
Lena bites her lip as she slows her tapping. “I will share them with you, Alex. But I will not give them to the DEO.”
“Still on the thought pattern that the government could turn on her?”
Lena starts working again at her usual pace. “You know what I think. Take it or leave it.”
“Alright. Send them to the private server you set us up with,” Alex relents.
It was something Lena did the moment she figured out Kara was Supergirl and that Alex worked for some clandestine government agency that tracked, monitored, and dealt with aliens. A secure server that bounced off of several proxies across the globe was set up to hold all sensitive information regarding Kryptonians and any project relating to them. Lena knows Lex has friends in powerful places, and she did not trust him to not turn that information against Supergirl. Alex just thinks she’s paranoid, but Lena knows better. Lex will stop at nothing to get rid of aliens.
“Any updates on Lex?” Lena changes the subject.
“The agents brought back a couple of his goons alive for questioning. They don’t know much of anything. They did lead us to the bunker that they organized in, but it had been cleared out. An old shell company owned the property. It was a dead end.”
“Lex isn’t one to make things easy,” Lena grumbled.
“What I don’t get is why Lex left her behind. Kara was incapacitated. He could have taken her or fired a fatal shot, but instead, he just left her there where we could reach her. It was his best chance.”
Lena’s eyes tear up at the thought. “My best guess is that Kara got a major blow in herself. One where he needed immediate attention or risked dying. But like you said, only Kara and Lex know what really happened.”
“Hmmm.”
“You don’t buy it?”
“Lex is rarely on his own. He could have had one of his henchmen take care of her even if he was wounded. This was his closest attempt. It just doesn’t track.”
Lena contemplates this. She can list dozens of other scenarios, but none of them make sense. This is the one that made the most sense because while Lex is on a vendetta, he also doesn’t want to die doing it. The entire purpose of killing Kryptonians is so he can take their place as the savior of Earth.
“Let’s just hope Kara wakes up soon to tell us herself. Lex is notorious for spilling all his evil plans to gloat instead of keeping the element of surprise.”
“I know your family is known for their ridiculously high levels of intelligence, but Lex is idiotic for doing that.”
Lena chuckles at that. “He’s always had the flare for the dramatic. Whatever his plan is, we know we can count on Kryptonite being part of it. Did your agents analyze the samples found at the warehouse?”
Alex pulls up the results and mirrors them onto Lena’s tablet. “Yes, it appears to be the same formula he used with Metallo. He’s still using his version that is more unstable.”
Lena goes over the results and hums to herself in contemplation. “Kara’s suit is going to need to protect her from both Lex’s formula and the real stuff. I’ll have to add that into the design.”
“How long have you been working on this?”
Lena sighs and rubs her brow. “After I gave her and Superman the shields, but before they broke from Metallo. I should have already finished this…”
“Lena,” Alex states softly. “This wasn’t your fault. To build an entire suit is impressive, especially in such a small package. This would take the DEO years to develop.”
“I’m not the DEO, Alex. If I had dedicated more time to-”
“If you had dedicated more time, then LCorp wouldn’t be in the position it is to root out Lex’s hidden money stashes. I know what you think, but we need LCorp functionally. The tech you produce is used here and the money you make is vital to these side projects of yours.”
Lena grinds her teeth. “Money means nothing if Kara dies when I could have protected her.”
Alex sighs, “Lena, you know that isn’t what I meant. There is a balance to everything, and you know that LCorp is part of that balance. Not just in protecting Kara but also as part of your relationship. Your identity is more than just being Kara’s keeper.”
“Shall I point out how your life seems to have been all about being your sister’s keeper?”
Alex huffs at the dig. A heavy tension fills the space. Both women poke at their screens a little more forcefully, frustration rising in them both. It only takes a few minutes for Lena to take a deep, centering breath.
“I’m sorry, Alex. I- I didn’t mean-”
Alex deflates as her anger melts with the sincerity of the CEO. “I know. Nothing to forgive. I’m sorry for trying to tell you how to feel. Your emotions are valid even if I disagree with the reasoning behind them.”
Lena smirks at this. “Sounds like Kelly has gotten into your head.”
“I know, right?” Alex groans. “Don’t get me wrong, I’ve learned so much from her. Sometimes I open my mouth, and it feels like I’ve merged with her completely.”
Lena chuckles quietly. “Take it as a good sign. You’re growing. Kara and I have had similar experiences.”
“Oh really? Do tell. What have you said recently?”
“Mine is less of adopting what she says and more of what she does. Kara’s always been the tactile one, being as close as possible whenever we are in the same space. When she comes home late, she will sit right next to me on the couch or stand hip to hip in the kitchen.” Lena blushes and smiles shyly to herself, just thinking of Kara. “When I come home late, I would go find her but sit on the opposite chair or stand across the table from her. More recently, I’ve been doing what she does. I come home and suddenly, I’m next to her. It was healthy growth for me.”
Alex smiles softly at her unconscious sister. She knows exactly what Lena is talking about. Kara always had that effect on people.
“I miss her,” Lena says quietly. “I know she’s right here, and she’s going to be okay. And yet, I can’t help but miss her dearly.”
“I know what you mean,” Alex replies just as softly. “Just a day or two.”
Just then, the doctor returned to do another check over the hero. Lena has to grit her teeth as the doctor has to expose Kara to check on her wounds. Logically, Lena knows that it is absolutely necessary; yet, she knows from late night talks that it bothers Kara whenever she is like this. She doesn’t like people poking and prodding when she isn’t awake. It reminds her too much of Cadmus. Since that confession, Lena has always tried to be present at any and all examinations when the woman is unconscious. While it helps Kara’s peace of mind when she wakes up, it still bothers Lena to know that it makes Kara uncomfortable.
“Well, everything is looking okay. Normally, she would be healing faster than this, but I think it’s safe to assume she has solar flared in addition to the Kryptonite poisoning. We will keep her on antibiotics until her powers return. I’d say we are out of the danger zone. Her heart is beating strong, lungs functioning.”
“Thank you so much, doctor. If it’s alright with you, I can save you and your staff from the routine exams. I can enter all the data into the DEO database for you all to track remotely,” Lena kindly suggests.
“Of course, Ms. Luthor. I figured as much. Don’t hesitate to call for help if anything comes up.”
“Thank you, doctor,” Alex adds in. After the doctor leaves, Alex turns to Lena. “Are you going to be okay for a little bit? J’onn sent me a message that one of the goons wants to talk.”
“Can I patch into the interview?” Lena says while pointing at the tablet.
Alex rolls her eyes and sighs, “If I said ‘no,’ would you listen?”
Lena smirks in response. “Go on. We will be okay.”