[ Near Queen Mansion, Star City ]
Thea don't know what's wrong with her father. Thea felt that her answer was in line with his expectations. After all, there are only so many ways you can phrase a few essential truths, and she had spent a month preparing her response. It should've been perfect. As for why he turned around and ran away? Maybe he just wanted to keep some mystery alive.
She called home and asked someone to come pick her up—and also collect the two bodyguards knocked out cold on the sidewalk. She would need replacements. With guards of this quality, how could she survive long enough to learn martial arts?
Thea didn't know that her words had caused at least a thousand points of emotional damage to her father. After retreating, Malcolm had pulled off his mask and gasped for breath. Memories of his youth surged back, followed by the haunting echo of a phone call from his late wife—the one he didn't answer. Tears streamed down his face uncontrollably. He had chased wealth, thinking it could buy everything. If he had been as clear-minded as Thea back then, maybe his wife would still be alive.
...
[ Merlyn Mansion, Star City ]
He stumbled back to the Merlyn house, locked himself in a room, and sat silently with his wife's photo album pressed to his chest through the night. When dawn came, he asked the housekeeper where Tommy was—only to learn he still hadn't returned. Malcolm couldn't bring himself to care just then. He let it be.
Instead, he opened the safe in his bedroom and pulled out a small box, tucking it under his arm. Then he ordered the driver to take him to Queen Consolidated.
...
[ Queen Consolidated HQ, Star City ]
He didn't ask for directions after entering company building. After a few familiar turns, he found Thea—more familiar with Queen Consolidated than his own company.
"Hey, Thea," Malcolm greeted her softly as he stepped closer.
Thea was at her desk writing a document. When she heard someone approach, she assumed it was just a staff member and didn't look up right away. But the voice was wrong. She looked up—and locked eyes with the middle-aged man staring at her with intensity.
"You... why are you here?" Even though they had just met the night before, Thea knew she had to act like she didn't know. This should be their first official meeting after the secret of her parentage came to light—at least for this particular version of their identities.
"Can you come out with me for a cup of coffee? I want to have a good chat," Malcolm asked earnestly.
Thea also wanted to talk. Maybe she could help him let go of his hatred for the slums. Maybe if she tried harder, Malcolm wouldn't have to go to war with Oliver. A father and a brother—these were her closest ties.
...
[ Café Near Queen Consolidated HQ, Star City ]
They left the building and found a nearby café. It wasn't too crowded. They ordered two coffees and settled in for a long conversation.
"Kid, you know... you're very much like my wife," Malcolm said after a sip. "Just as smart, young, and full of fire. It's funny—I sometimes wonder if you're her child, and Tommy is Moira's. You look so much like her."
Thea thought to herself: You're not entirely wrong. It must've been something she said the night before that planted this idea in his mind. Some blend of his wife's memory and her present self. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise.
He didn't say that in the original story. There, he had called her a "natural warrior." That was fatherly affection, apparently. No wonder he'd been single since his wife died—he was terrible with words.
"Can you tell me about her? I've only seen her picture... from Tommy," Thea asked gently. She figured pleasing him a little wouldn't hurt, and truthfully, she was curious.
Besides, she was too tired to go back to work today, and Moira Queen would find out soon enough. A quiet café in the middle of the day sounded perfect.
"We met on a train," Malcolm began, and once the words started, he couldn't stop. He hadn't spoken about his wife since she died. And now someone was actually listening.
"She was volunteering at a free clinic in the slums," he said. "On her way home one night, she got robbed—by a homeless man. There was no hatred, no vendetta, just desperation. A few hundred dollars, and she was gone. She fell in a pool of blood and called me three times. I didn't answer. I was sulking about some petty thing. I was supposed to pick her up that day! I hate myself for it!"
Malcolm slammed his hand on the coffee table, voice cracking.
Thea's chest tightened. Tommy's mother had been a genuinely good person—compassionate and brave. But fate had robbed her of everything. If only she'd had the strength to protect herself. Thea was even more certain now that the path she had chosen—the pursuit of power—was the right one. It was too hard to be a kind woman in a cruel world.
She gently placed her hand on Malcolm's and whispered, "She's so kind... I believe she would forgive you, Dad..."
The last word slipped out soft as a sigh. Part awkwardness, part habit. She still wasn't used to it. But the pain in his eyes made her want to comfort him.
Malcolm was stunned. The joy on his face was immediate but brief, fading into something softer. He stroked her hair.
"Child," he said, "I know you're just trying to comfort me. You don't need to call me that. You'll always be Thea Queen. You have your family, your friends, your world. I'll support and protect you silently from behind. I won't let anyone hurt you."
It was exactly what Thea had hoped for. If she changed her last name to Merlyn, she'd lose all claim to Queen Consolidated and likely spark a feud with Tommy over inheritance. Better this way. Besides, she didn't even know what her parents' secret agreement was.
Malcolm pulled out the box he'd brought and placed it in her hand.
"This belonged to my wife. I'm giving it to you now. I hope its light will guide you forward."
With that, he composed himself and left the café.
Thea opened the box and found a stunning necklace inside. A sky-blue gem dangled from a silver chain, shimmering like a lake under moonlight. There were tiny inscriptions on the inside, but Thea couldn't read any of them. It didn't look like a modern artifact at all.
Her original plan—to persuade Malcolm to let go of his obsession with the slums—had failed. He had completely avoided the topic. It was clearly a deep knot in his heart. But how could she help him untie it?
Should I ask Batman? His past was eerily similar. Parents murdered, childhood destroyed, and years spent in brooding darkness. He eventually let go—well, somewhat. But then Thea shook the idea away. Batman was too smart, too paranoid. He had contingency plans for every hero and villain, even the good ones. No way she was getting close to him.
Maybe family would do the trick. Maybe if she stayed close, she could pull Malcolm back from the edge slowly.
There were less than six years left. Right now, Malcolm wasn't a terrifying villain to her.
He was just a broken man who had lost the woman he loved—and couldn't forgive himself for it.
To Be Continued...
---xxx---
[POWER STONES AND REVIEWS PLS]