Keep Them Guessing
Part 1: In Equal Measures
I'm getting far too old for this shit. Thought the tired and annoyed Commissioner of Gotham City's Police Department. His messy brown hair–that was beginning to turn much too gray–had a hand pushed roughly though it as Jim attempted to think of a way out of the situation he had found himself in.
The day had started off rather normally for Jim. In other words? Rather terribly. He was still shacked up in the one room apartment that he had needed to rent after he had split up with his wife, Barbara. It was small, smelly, and he missed waking up next to the woman he had loved for years. But he had made mistakes, and he would have to live with them.
More like live alone with them...Jim thought bitterly as he trekked the dark alleys of the city that he loved and hated in equal measure. Gotham is to Gordon, what an abusive husband is to an abused wife: an object of love and affection. Even though most of the time he wanted to slip a knife under its throat in the middle of the night.
Truthfully, Jim has always been completely lost on just why he fights so hard for Gotham. He says that it's because he wants to restore it to former glory, but he has a hard time believing it had any. He says that it's for justice, but how just is he? A man that cheated on his beautiful wife for a woman that he couldn't even stand?
At the time it had seemed so simple, her name was Janice Porter. She was the woman that replaced Harvey Dent as Gotham's District Attorney, she replaced a man that at one time; had been Jim's best friend. He's never really forgiven her for that.
But even back then, when he had been so hell-bent on disliking the woman, he could tell that she knew her stuff. A Harvard Law, top of her class. She even came with experience under her belt, six years as Boston's District Attorney. She was the whole package. Porter knew her books, and her protocol.
But Porter didn't know Gotham.
Porter never understood the inherent criminal element that thrived in Gotham city. She had never understood how easy it was to go mad in this hell on Earth, even though her predecessor had been transformed into one of the most deranged men to ever live. Porter never understood why the criminal families couldn't be taken down one at a time, because doing so would turn Gotham into a war zone.
If you remove a king from power, all the soldiers attempt to draw the sword from the stone.
Porter was too innocent, too young to understand Gotham. Porter didn't understand why Batman was a necessary evil in this war on crime. She spoke of how he was dangerous, and how he undermined Jim's authority, she didn't seem to understand that he never had any. Porter didn't see Gotham at it's very worst, which was just how Jim first met this ugly city.
Though Jim hasn't accomplished much, he can at least say that he's cleaned up his department. Porter never needed to worry about being assaulted by the very people she had to trust her life with. Jim did, he had almost been beaten to a bloody pulp in his fist week!
Porter constantly berated Batman and did her best to shut the man down; fighting for the so called 'rights' of the criminal's that the man had brought down. She spoke the same way the judges in the judicial system did, with complete ignorance. It is easy to claim what Batman did as a miscarriage of justice, when you're tucked safely away from the horror that dwells in the streets Jim now walks. The same streets he's pledged his life too. The same streets he loves and hates.
But still, even though her ideals and attitude infuriated him, he felt so drawn to her. At first he just thought it was because of their jobs. It was only natural that he, as the Commissioner and she, as the District Attorney, were expected to work together. There were many long nights on the job shared between the two of them; of course they would get to know each other. But that was a lie.
Later still, he told himself that it was a ruse. That he was getting close to the woman in order to influence her, turn her over to the right side. There was nothing wrong with Janice, just wasn't used to the way things were run in his city. So many nights they worked side-by-side that he didn't even notice when he had started calling her 'Janice' instead of 'Porter'.
But his wife did, she noticed. The woman he had given his heart to noticed his attraction to Janice before Jim had even admitted it to himself. Barbara had attempted to save him, to give him a way out. She brought up their son, Jimmy more often; she told him of their daughter's increasing isolation. She tried so hard to speak to him, to get him to open up to her.
But he was too busy working long nights with Janice to worry about his little boy, and their daughter was just getting to 'that age'. She was smart; she wouldn't do drugs or join a gang. Of that he was sure; he did raise her after all. He would know if his little girl spent her nights fighting with some hooligans.
Barbara accused him of not raising their son.
Jim cheated on her with a woman he barely tolerates.
As Jim Gordon hurried down the another alleyway before turning a corner at Tom's Tonic and Spirit's and eventually passing a movie theater, he asked himself once more why he continued to fight for a city that had cost him so much? Was it for the golden days? For the Justice that he can't even hold himself to? For the innocents that he doesn't have to time to appreciate anymore?
For Batman? A man he calls a friend, even when he pretends that he doesn't know who he is under that mask. Oh, Jim isn't sure exactly who is under that cowl, but he has a damn good idea that it starts with a 'W' and ends in 'money'. His isn't an idiot in any way shape or form outside of his romantic entanglements.
However, as Jim suddenly found himself swimming within a throng of citizens, police officers, and reporters he resolves to keep the Bat out of his mind. A crime scene isn't the time or place to dwell on your personal life, and Jim has an example to set. But as Jim's gets a look at the poor bastard that's been iced by some idiot thug...
Batman comes to the forefront of his mind.
-ooO0Ooo-
"Alright, alright!" Jim hollered to everyone surrounding him, making sure that his men, the civilians and the reporters heard him. "This isn't a goddamn zoo people! Get the hell back to your jobs! It's only five in the afternoon for chrissakes! Allen!" An older African-American officer with dark, closely cropped hair looked up. "Get these hooligans outta here!" A sharp nod followed the order and Allen was doing his best to wave people out of the area, even though he and Jim knew it wouldn't work anytime soon.
"Uhhh, Boss?" Montoya interjected quietly. "It's six, not five." Jim figured that he must have given her one hell of a 'do I look like I care?' look, because she quieted down. That in itself was a miracle; Renee Montoya had a motor mouth that could power a Ford Truck. Not that it wasn't amusing at times, but still...
Jim opened his mouth to fire off his orders, but was jostled by some idiot reporter; the man was firing off his camera so fast that it looked like one continuous bright light. It didn't help that every man, woman, and child with a phone or camera was doing the exact same thing. None of this improved the Commissioner's already horrible mood.
"THAT'S IT!" He shouted, terrifying the hell out of some woman's kid (just who the hell brings their son to a crime scene?) and shutting up everyone else. The dome of noise that covered Gordon shut up for several moments and he couldn't be more thankful, his headache was worse enough without help. "YOU ARE ALL INTERFERING WITH A CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION! GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE AND I BETTER NOT SEE ANY OF THIS IN TOMMOROW'S PAPER!"
This declaration was followed by a number of groans from the civilians, curses from the reporters, and winces from Gordon's own team. One photographer in particular seemed to feel the need to speak his mind and make Jim's day just that much more annoying. "The people have a right to knowledge!" He shot back, and Jim had to fight the urge to backhand him. "We deserve the right to free pr–"
"Jackson!" Jim cut in loudly, "Arrest that moron!" Of course, Jackson wouldn't be able to do anything but hold him in custody for a couple of hours, but it did the trick. Reporters always tend to run when the cuffs are brought out, and this time was no different.
It took all off two minutes for the area to be clear of unwanteds after Jackson followed through, and soon Gordon was tempted to call them all back. The crowd's rioting, noise, and general lack of direction had been able to take his mind off of what was on the ground near his feet. It was a boy that Jim recognized, if only in the most bizarre way possible.
The tunic was red, of course. That never changed. Neither did the sharp 'R' that was encircled and printed on the right side of the chest. The pants were black, just like the hair. His gloves and boots were black too, even if they had started out green. His sleeves were still short and his mask was still black and white and stuck to his young face.
But his face was wrong.
There was nothing wrong with it in general, it just wasn't right. It was far too rounded, and the jaw wasn't as defined. His mouth seemed too big and his brow wasn't furrowed in thought, and he wasn't frowning or grinning, the only two emotions he had even seen on the kid.
In fact, his mouth was open. It was shaped in that particular screaming fashion, when someone is scared out of their mind and all they can do is yell in terror. If Jim ripped of that mask, he'd bet that the eyes would've been wide and blank. The same way every dead, scared person looked when Jim found them on the ground.
But that wasn't right either. The kid didn't get scared. Or at least if he did, he hid it pretty damn well. The Boy Wonder wouldn't be caught dead with that type of expression on his face, he'd never let fear control him to that extent. There was just no way. This wasn't him, of that Jim was certain.
The broken body on the ground blow him, with a dark, red circle in his forehead was not him; was not Robin, the Boy Wonder. It just wasn't, Jim had seen the kid far too much to be mistaken.
Others however, had not.
"Holy shit." Parkers breathed, he must have just gotten here, Jim mused to himself. "Holy shit." It seemed that the whole situation was spooking the man pretty badly, not that many of the others on the force looked any better.
But, they have jobs to do. "Alright. Everyone." All heads swiveled away from the body to look at Gordon, and many faces looked like they were just waiting for a chance to get the hell out of here. Not that Jim blamed them, "Montoya, report now. Parkers, shut up. Don't rookie out on us."
"Y-yes sir. Umm, well...we have what looks to be Gotham's first and most famous sidekick: Robin. Uhh, he's uh, he's the sidekick of the Batman, who is a known vigilante that the force has been 'officially' after for more than a few years. He fight's so called 'villains', which are criminals with some type of genetic or chemical superpower or have some dangerous type of weapon."
"Yes, yes Montoya. I'm sure we all know this." Gordon cut in; hoping to cut the girl off before she really started to get in her flow, the girl could talk for months. "But I was talking about this scene in particular, not a running history of the victim."
Montoya colored red in embarrassment; she seemed to get what Jim had implied. "Uh, yes sir." She began. "What we have found sir, is that R-Robin was shot." Montoya pointed at the horrible bullet hole that sat in the middle of the boy's forehead. "There doesn't seem to be an exit wound however sir, so it may have been at a distance."
Allen chose this moment to interject himself into the briefing; he'd probably gotten tired of Montoya stumble and ramble over herself. Gordon couldn't blame him; sometimes listening to rookies was painful. "Sir, as procedure dictates, he haven't yet moved his body, so there may be an exit would even if it is unlikely. We don't know for sure if the shot has been fired from a distance, the wound leaves that suspect."
Gordon nodded, seeing what his colleague getting to. Landing a shot on someone's forehead from a distance was a very difficult thing to do, especially if said person was moving. "I'm guessing that you believe that it was a weaker caliber of firearm."
Allen nodded. "Yes sir. It could be that, the bullet wound seems to be on the smaller side, but I'm not an expert on these things. The lack of an exit wound means that the bullet's still stuck in the kid's head. That could be because the handgun that fired the round was damaged, or just not taken proper care of."
"Also sir, as you can see, his body is pretty mangled" It was easy to see that the boy had several broken bones in his arms and legs. "It seems that he fell of a nearby building after he was shot, the back his head bashed against the ground on impact. That is why it's so hard to tell if there is an exit wound."
Gordon nodded. "I understand. Get this kid chalked and sent to the lab. Do not let anyone unmasked him at this point in time, make sure that is done in a secure location." Allen nodded, and Gordon knew he could count on him. "This boy may or may not have a family; we have to protect them and their wishes in this matter. Too many cameras caught this already, if a criminal finds out about the family of a suspected Robin he or she might go to extreme lengths to get to them."
The Commissioner of Gotham City's Police Department paused in his giving of orders and took a deep breath; He then looked each and every one of his subordinates in the eye before he spoke again. "I swear on your mother's grave..." He began gravely "If someone unmasks this boy and leaks his identity to the press for any reason what so ever, not only will I have your badge, you'll be charged with multiple felonies. Am I clear?"
Several nods and nervous "yes sirs" were given and Gordon nodded in grim satisfaction. "Crike, you'll be leading the body to the lab, can I count on you?"
"Always, sir. Montoya!" Allen nodded. "You're riding with me rookie, hand in your squad keys to Squall." The girl shot him a grateful look that was probably a mesh of gratitude for including her and saving her from making an idiot out of herself earlier.
"Alright people!" Gordon ordered. "Head back to your cars and stations! You don't get a free show either! If you're needed, you'll be called!" There were a few grumbles and moans but like the others, many moved back to their squad cars without a fight. Though several officers shot him dirty looks.
Gordon swiftly turned on his heel and began to walk away from the scene wishing that he had brought his own car instead of doing the 'healthy' thing, and walking from the station. "I'm working on some important leads myself; call me if anything comes up!" He called over his shoulder.
And with that, Commissioner Gordon of the Gotham City Police Department exited Crime Alley.
-ooO0Ooo-
John Parkers is exactly what his name told you, an average guy. He had only become a Police Officer in Gotham because he didn't do too well in high school and could never afford to leave Gotham. When he had first started the job he had hated every minute of it, John wasn't some type of hero. He wasn't super brave or so stupid that he didn't know what went down between Gotham Cops and Gotham Mobsters.
Still, he needed a paycheck and wasn't willing to pump gas or work at a McDonald's.
But, while Parkers wasn't a model cop he did his job well enough. He was still new, so he was allowed to screw up every now and then. He had seen some messed up stuff in his short time on the force, but he was not expecting to find a superhero dead on the sidewalk.
So yeah, Parkers may have freaked out a little when he first got to the scene. He may have cussed a few times in front of his boss, but that was forgiven. The rookie card had saved him a lot of embarrassment once again, even if he was called out on it.
As for the case itself, Parker just wanted to get the hell out of town. So when Robert Squall, a forty-something balding cop waved him over and offered him a seat in his squad car, there was no way Parker would have said no. It sure as hell beat running up to the scene! Now though, he was regretting it.
Squall must really have some problem with Gordon Parkers thought to himself as the older officer once again started on their boss for the third time. He sounds pretty jealous actually...The rookie cop turned to listen to his superior, Squall, rant about their boss.
"I mean, what the hell, right kid? I mean, why the hell is Gordon Commissioner anyway? He isn't even from Gotham!" The man seemed outraged that anyway who wasn't from Gotham had a say in running the city, and Parker could somewhat understand how he felt.
"Yeah, man. I get what you're saying." Parkers nodded along. "More pay, less work. Gordon isn't out dodging bullets like the rest of us mortals now, huh?" Which was true in a way...
"Yeah, tell me about it rookie! But..." And ugly smile sprouted from Squall, as he lifted one hand from the wheel to scratch at what was left of his hair. "He's about to try and dodge a big-ass bullet right now. Lemme tell ya."
Parkers couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at that. "What do you mean? The 'Robin' thing?" It felt a little weird speaking about it, but it wasn't like everyone won't know by tomorrow anyway. "What does that have to do with Gordon?"
Squall snorted and Parker couldn't help but feel like punching him in the face. "Please, don't tell me kids these days are really that stupid." The older cop had a look similar to that of a child who is having a hard time holding in a secret.
"I'm not a kid! I'm twenty-thr–"
"Anyway kid, Gordon's going to have a really annoying next couple of days. It's really gonna piss him off when he's kicked from the case." Parker began to ask the obvious question as Squall carried on. "He's too close to the Bat. There isn't a chance in hell that he'd be able to stay heading this thing. Everyone knows how buddy-buddy he is with Batman."
"You don't seriously think that Batman's in on this do you?" Parkers ask incredulously. "Seriously? He's Batman!"
"Oh don't be so stupid for a second rookie, and use that goddamn head of yours. If a cop winds up dead in an alley, who is the first person you investigate? His partner!" Squall looked really pleased with himself for bringing that up, Parkers was surprised that he made so much sense. "No matter what, no matter who he is, Batman is the prime suspect. Just like any other case, costume wearing freaks aside."
"But isn't the fact that Gordon works with Batman kept of off the records? They don't have a reason to push him off the case."
"Yeah, it's kept off the books, but do you think everyone's blind? There is a big-ass spotlight on top of the goddamn department roof!" Squall called out, obviously disgusted by the mere thought of the Bat-signal. "Of course the DA won't just up and say 'You can't work with us, cuz Bats and you are tight'. Nah, they'll give Gordon some bullshit reason, and he'll listen if he wants to keep his job."
The next part of Squall's speech was spoken grudgingly, as if every word made him sick. "But I have to admit, Gordon isn't stupid. Allen was the best person he could've picked to send the body to the morgue. Allen is far from stupid; taking that rookie with wasn't a bad idea either."
"Montoya?" Parkers questioned, trying his best to keep up. "Why? I'm not even sure that Gordon likes her."
"That doesn't matter. What matters is that she's a rookie, and rookies slow things down. Allen is at the place to be right now," Squall reiterated. "Depending on what Gordon wants him to do, he can speed up the investigation or slow it down. He can try to finish this whole case before it hits the news, or he can have Allen gridlock it to buy some time."
"To get to Batman, oh...I get it. Duh. If Allen takes his time, he can blame it on Montoya and the Morgue. He could say she was tripping him up, and that the morgue didn't hurry on the autopsy." Now Parkers was starting to get what Squall was telling him, but one thing didn't add up to the rookie cop. "But why is Allen risking this at all? I mean, if he gets blamed he can get canned, forget just moved from the investigation."
Squall shrugged, and for a horrifying moment, Parkers thought he was going to lose control of the wheel. When he spoke again it was with that same I-know-something-you-don't look. "It happened before you got here, years ago. When Gordon first came here he got roughed up real bad by this guy, Flass. He was the Lieutenant Detective back in the day, and I guess Gordon mouthed off to him or something."
"Anyways, a couple days after that Gordon caught one of Flass' boys trying to rough up Allen in front of his kids and stepped in. Bing, bang, boom, Gordon helped Allen and Allen's been sucking up to him ever since."
"...You really hate Gordon don't you?"
"He doesn't have any right to be telling me, or anyone else how we do things in Gotham."
"I just think you're mad that after you park this in a station, you're gonna have to walk back to get Montoya's from the scene."
"...Shut the hell up rookie."
-ooO0Ooo-
The silence in Crispus Allen's police issued squad car was a heavy one, even though it wasn't truly awkward. Both Allen and Montoya had plenty to think of, Montoya was attempting to process what they had found earlier and Allen was focused on following the ambulance in front of them. It was moving 'Robin' to the morgue.
Montoya broke the silence slowly. "I...just can't believe...I mean, holy hell, huh?"
Allen frowned. "Holy hell indeed. Get ready kid, the next few days are going to be a complete and utter mess. Just to give you fair warning." The dark skinned man frowned even more. "And I mean that in the worst way possible."
"You think so?"
"Yep. The boss is going to be pulled and he's going be replaced with the biggest asshole in the city. Its how these things go." Allen let loose a rumbling sigh, "The media's gonna go nuts. The courts too."
Montoya frond and brushed her brown hair behind an ear. "Because of Robin right? What do you think everyone's going to do about Batman?" She asked, interested in Allen's answer.
"We can't worry about Batman right now." Allen countered gruffly. "We need to focus on 'Robin', or whoever this is."
"You don't think it's him."
Allen shrugged carelessly. "I'm not sure myself, I've only seen him once or twice in passing, but the boss sure doesn't think it's him, you could see it in his eyes." At his subordinates questioning glance, Crike continued. "He was shocked when he saw the body, but wasn't horrified. He would've taken it a lot worse than what he did if he really thought that was Robin on the ground."
"Then what's the problem?" She questioned. "I'm not getting what you're trying to say."
"The problem is: no one knows who Robin really is or how he looks. The boss could probably tell everyone, but no one would believe him. They know how close he works with Batman, and he'll be deemed a liability as a result. The biggest problem is that the minute he gets pushed aside, someone's gonna try to take his job."
Understanding was beginning to show in the girl's brown eyes. "So there might be a new Commissioner, and there's a good chance he'll be a Bat-hater. Which makes our jobs harder. Hell, we might even be ordered to bring Batman in."
Oh, they'll order us to alright. Allen thought, But none of us will be able to take him down, and people are only going to get hurt because of that. The older cop sighed, the aftermath of this case was going to cause a bloodbath, Allen was sure of it.
Still, Montoya was still thinking too big. The girl needed to bring her ideas down on the domestic level. Whoever is related to 'Robin' was going to have a terrible next few weeks. No one could tell if this kid is Robin, so the dead boy's family is going to be immediately accused of withholding information on Batman.
Not to mention the poor kid's father, he's probably going to be arrested and brought to a cell. Most people already think that Batman is Robin's father, so whatever man raised the kid is going to get hell from all sides: cops, criminals, and civilians.
Allen spoken once again. "I really hope this kid's parents don't know about him wearing a cape. If they do, both of them are going to be made an example of, and each of them–Batman included–will end up in prison under a mountain of child endangerment charges."
"I know..." Montoya whispered, the girl looked rather heartbroken at the thought of her hero ending up in prison. "Just think how bad Gotham would be without Batman."
Her superior just shrugged once more. "We've gotten on without Batman way before he came here. And we'll carry on way after he's gone.
-ooO0Ooo-
Okay Jimbo, Gordon thought to himself hurriedly. It's safe to assume that you're going to be chucked off this case as soon as possible. So your gonna have to bend some of the rules to make it a bit harder for them.
With this in mind, Gordon grabbed his cellphone from his inner pocket and deliberately dropped on the sidewalk and began stomping it into mechanical mush. When that was finished, he picked up as many bits and pieces as he could find and threw them into a nearby garbage bin. He just officially 'lost' his cellphone. It'd be harder to get in touch with him now, which is just what Gordon wants. As long as he isn't officially booted from the Robin case, then he can still run it as he normally would.
Even if the city does push the case off on someone else, as long as I'm not told no one can blame me for taking charge of the investigation and giving orders. Gordon thought with grim resolve. I just can't take any big, obvious risks.
Now one cellphone lighter, Gordon stalked down Gotham's many alleyways with a long powerful stride; he couldn't afford to be idle. Too many things were going to happen in the next few days, and Gordon was going to be out of the game soon anyway, so he'd have to make his last few big plays count for something.
Gordon knew that Bats and the kid could take care of themselves; he probably knew that better than anyone in Gotham. But their jobs would become a whole lot harder if they go back to being hunted vigilantes instead of police costumed support. If Batman or Robin got into any confrontation with the police force –no matter what the reason–it would be blown out of proportion.
The newspapers would print biased reports and there would be mass public outrage, which would allow cops a lot more 'leeway' when it came to dealing with Batman. All that would really add up to would be that a lot more guns would be drawn on Batman, and most of them would be about a good chunk of the force.
Usually if an officer catches Batman right after he deals with a criminal, they'll just let him go and pretend that they never saw him. That wouldn't be the case anymore, the cop would see him and respond with deadly force before asking questions. The worst part is that they'd get away with it.
And now Gordon was off as fast as he could go without running, straight to the Gotham City Police Department Headquarters, the city's main police station. It was the one place that had the easiest (and only) reliable way to summon Batman.
The Bat-Signal.
That searchlight was the symbol of understanding not only between Batman and the Gotham City Police Department, but also between Bats and Gordon himself. Having such a tool was a test of trust and patience everyday; but Gordon never regretted it. It was a symbol to victims, criminals, and villains alike. Gordon would never regret using it to help so many people, it had done so much good in Gotham.
And Gordon was going to have to ruin it.
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