Author's Note: Set during the comic Batman: The Killing Joke. But as long as you have a vague idea of Barbara Gordon's story, you should be able to follow.
~v~
The Batmobile slides through traffic like a sleek shark through the shoals. Stoplights mean nothing. He flies past a squad car at fifty miles over, not even slowing. Off to stop a criminal, they assume, and flash their lights at him for luck. But Bruce knows the sad truth.
He's already too late.
Bruce had been patrolling when the news came. Two street punks tried to jump an old lady, and he had them dangling over a forty foot drop, ready to piss themselves in terror. Then Alfred's voice came over the tiny speaker built into his cowl.
"It's the Gordons, Bruce. Barbara's been shot. Jim's missing."
Bruce froze. "Joker?"
Alfred hesitated.
The only sound was the thump of the two kids as they banged up against the side of the fire escape, struggling feebly. Bruce ignored them, intent only on the sound of the old man's breathing in his ear.
Finally, Alfred spoke. "I don't know. The girl's still unconscious, and there's no calling card."
"Where?"
"Gotham General."
The thugs, he dumped in a heap, before plunging over the railing to the alley below. The wind caught his suit and slowed the headlong dive into a graceful glide. He hit the ground running, the wings of his suit flared out behind him.
Now, the suit is a nuisance as he drives. The cowl seems a child's contrivance as he races to the bedside of the closest thing he's got to a daughter. As Batgirl, he's trained her to follow in his footsteps. He cares deeply for her, as he does any of the young crime fighters he's taken under his wing over the years. But it's more than that. As Jim Gordon's only daughter, Barbara is part of his life in a way none of the others have ever quite been.
She's family.
He pulls into the lot of the hospital, launching himself from the driver's seat as soon as the Batmobile comes to a stop. With a command, the vehicle slides back into motion behind him, back to the mansion. Bruce is already inside. Alfred's voice in his ear tells him which floor and he's past the wide-eyed nurses and interns headed for the stairs. The suit serves him well here, for they're too startled to stop him.
It's only at the door to her room that he pauses to take a breath. Whatever villain has done this, he will hunt him down. Wherever Jim has been taken, he will find him. Whatever awaits him behind this door, Bruce will not let Barbara see his fear.
~v~