Beyond Heart's Borders
Written By
PupofPower
I do not own Batman and I am not making any money from this fiction.
Friday, pay day, the day when everyone went in to do his or her banking. In a place like Gotham, Mob bosses were more than happy to come out of the woodwork deposit their illegal earnings and swindle customers standing in line. For those who lived day to day, week to week, on their earnings, Friday was a day bittersweet. A day where they could feed their families, but pay insurmountable living expenses that never gave up.
Audrina Grace, a pixie modern day Audrey Hepburn, walked into Gotham City Bank, groaning lightly at the length of the line. The bank was gaudy, cream marble pillars and tiles, gold trimmings and dark woods, showing exactly the kind of revenue it received. Audrey felt underdressed in her denim skinny jeans, plaid red top and black flats. Joining the line, she found herself behind a well-dressed elder man and, beside him; a much younger man in what she thought was a designer suit.
It fitted him to a tee, showing off his large muscular body with sharp pressed lines. Although unable to see the front of him, Audrey had to admit, the back view was quite impressive. A small business manager stumbled over to them, his eyes on the man before her.
"Mr. Wayne," he squeaked nervously, "Please, come into my office and assist you straight away."
He turned, revealing his profile. A square chiseled jaw spoke of unparalleled power, a large nose gave him a sense of regal-ness, thin lips pursed in thought as dark eyes swooped the bank's lobby.
"Is everyone else getting served immediately?" He asked lowly. The manager before him spluttered to come up with a reply.
"Forgive me, Mr. Wayne, but not everyone here is as valued a client as you."
"So you're saying the millions you get each day from the combined effort of these fine people isn't as good as my money?" The man frowned and turned to her. "Do you think the bank would set up an entire private office with a coffee and spa for me?" he added dryly, bitingly sarcastic, and then shook his head at the manager. "I'll wait, like your apparently valueless other customers, thank you."
Audrey stared at him in surprise. The man in front of her was Bruce Wayne, the Billion-Dollar Playboy, and he had actually said something to her. Fighting a blush, she leaned up and tapped his shoulder softly, marveling at the hardness underneath the soft cloth. "Mr. Wayne?" she asked quietly, waiting for him to turn and face her. He looked down at her with polite interest. "I just want to say thank you for sticking up for the rest of us, I don't know about them, but I sure as hell appreciate it." A lazy smile graced his thin lips. Opening his mouth, he began to speak, just as the bank doors burst open.
A gunshot sounded. For a beat, it was quiet. A second shot sounded, and people started screaming, lunging for the ground. Audrey stared at the masked robbers in shock, barely registering Bruce grabbing her arm, pushing her under the deposit desk, and situating himself in front of her, blocking the criminals' view. The elder man sat at his side, before leaning over a whispering.
"I hope the next robbery we are in, you protect me like that, Master Bruce." The younger male tossed him a grin as a third shot went off.
"Everybody on the ground! NOW!" one of the masked men yelled, walking over to the tellers and yanking one of the women from behind it. Pulling her up against his body, he held a pistol to her temple. "This is a robbery," he sneered.
Slowly, Audrey shifted on to her knees and peeked over Bruce's shoulder, balancing herself against his back. "Stay back," he hissed at her, reaching behind him and pushing her back into the dark space.
"Now, as the usual manual goes, give us what we want, and no-one will get hurt…well, maybe we'll deviate from that. What do you say boys?" The other masked men twittered and the leader shot the teller. Audrey let out a shocked gasp, pressing her face into Bruce's back as the body fell to the floor with a solid thump. The man pulled up a pregnant woman, his hands caressing her stomach in a sick mockery of concern. "We want ten million out of the vault, immediately."
The woman screamed and pleaded, begging them to spare her and her unborn child. Audrey was horrified, Bruce tense and dangerously coiled in front of her. "Oh, god, he's going to kill her, isn't he?" she whispered, sickened.
"Stay down and stay hidden," Bruce ordered again, tossing his companion a glance. The other teller rushed towards the back, several moneybags in hand.
"You have thirty seconds before Mama and Baby meets their end," The leader called out cheerfully, ignoring the panicked cries of the woman in his arms. Audrey muttered denials under her breath, staring at the woman, unable to take her eyes from her as the count down started. Agonized cries poured down both their faces as the count got closer and closer to zero.
The other teller burst into the room, running, sweat pouring down his red face, as the masked leader reached zero and pulled the trigger. Audrey wasn't the only one who cried out as the woman fell to the ground, her sightless eyes boring into hers. She struggled to hold in her sobs as the robbers picked up the bags and ran out of the bank, laughing and whooping as distant sirens surged closer. It was all over in under two minutes. The dead woman continued to stare into her eyes, unable to look in any other direction as blood pooled around her.