A/N: Hope I didn't worry everyone into thinking I wouldn't update. I ended up writing a very long section to insert that I'm not even totally done with. It's now up to ten pages while my original story including the last chapter is up to twenty six. Thank you for everyone's reviews, and I hope this was worth the wait.
Gordon had departed by time she had left the rooftop. She left a note under his door saying they needed to talk tomorrow. Her ride home was quick and uneventful, but exhaustion was setting in. Off work she wasn't as wired and lost her determination, that push to keep fighting. Merla would probably get compensation for her overtime, but nothing could repay the loss of sleep. The worst part was she had begun to slowly grow adapt to getting less and less of it now. Only on long nights like this did it show; her skin more pallid than usual and her eyes rimmed with heavy shadows. It wasn't until she got closer to her apartment that any relief started to seep into her body.
She locked her car and took her lab kit in for safe keeping. It wasn't long until her feet managed to drag her to her apartment door to unlock, slip in with surprising speed, close and relock. Gotham was too dangerous to leave your guard down for any amount of time. Once in she left the silver case of her lab kit near the door and she pulled out of her brown jacket. She tried to place it on a chair in her small, pseudo-living room but it collapsed in crumpled pile. Every movement for Merla was slow and almost lethargic, so exhausted even her skin tingled with numbness.
She shambled into her bedroom and started to remove her personal effects. Her ID, her gun inside its holster, her wallet and keys were deposited on the dresser. Merla staggered close to the bed and sat down. The faint sinking sensation the mattress gave her was comforting and she savored it. Squirming and tugging at the laces of her boots, Merla slipped out of them and kicked them across the room to collide with the door to her closet. She crawled up the mattress and flipped onto her back, not bothering to get any further undressed. Moving was difficult anyway.
Her watch dug into her wrist uncomfortably, so she managed the fine manipulation of unclasping it and dropped it on her dresser. She set her cell phone to wake her at 9 am, a few hours later than she normally would. Her hours today would more than make up for it. Merla's cell phone was placed next to her watch on the nightstand, followed by her glasses. She tugged the scrunchie out of her hair and loosened the long dark strands with her hand. It was strange, but somehow if she washed her hair then tied it back for most of the day, when she would untie it her hair was the way she wanted it to be. Normally frizzy brown hair that wanted to puff out and behave erratically was now for the most part straight and smooth with a hint of a curl at the bottom.
Merla combed her hair with her fingers a bit more, having always found it a strange, soothing compulsion. She tried to go over the day behind closed eyes. Another bank robbery was interesting, yet a terrible pain to deal with. Whoever was behind them was smart, and horribly crafty. It was a difficult puzzle, and if she had indeed gotten a step closer to tracking him down it was worth giving up a day off. And meeting Batman, twice in one day no less. Or night, whatever. Merla was far too exhausted to be clinical right now.
She still didn't understand how she had offered to give him more evidence when they were finished with it. They allowed prosecutors and defenders access to the information, but it was still an on going investigation and not something to be lightly handed out. And how did Gordon know Batman so well? Merla always had a suspicion there was more that went on that mad night that started with all those criminals escaping Arkham Asylum, especially where it concerned Gordon. But between the criminals and this strange toxin in the water getting released into the air in the Narrows, she knew something worse had been prevented. Gordon and Batman had both done something important, leaving Gordon promoted to Lieutenant and over to MCU. Batman was looked on more favorably by the public in general now. And to top it all off, even though she had done nothing, Gordon brought Merla along to work at MCU.
Now she was helping the Batman as well, but Merla couldn't help but wonder if she was getting in as deep as Gordon. She didn't want to be used at all, especially not someone she even knew. The Lieutenant trusted her and worked with her, while with Batman she just passed off information to him. Merla didn't like it one bit, and the thought caused her hand to still from its repetitive action.
However, if it did yield results for the investigation, it might just be worth it. That thought was comforting for Merla as she rolled to her side and curled up to try and recover her energy. Gordon wouldn't mind her coming in an hour or so late tomorrow, or would probably yell at her to go back home. The thought was enough to make a faint smile tug at her lips before she succumbed to the darkness of her dreams.
When the first few hints of light started to stain the inky sky blue in the east, Batman returned to the freight yard. Away in the bunker, a makeshift hideout until the manor was rebuilt, he could discard his alter ego and resume being Bruce Wayne again. It was the same nearly every night. However tonight had been interesting, to say the least, for both the caped crusader and the billionaire.
Batman's work still wasn't finished, even with the suit gone. After donning a more practical outfit of black slacks and a t-shirt, Bruce sat at the computer terminal he had set up and deposited a manila folder. He flipped it open to read through the report more thoroughly. The first page was very neatly written notes, just as the woman had said. Her name was signed at the bottom for most of the evidence reports, but Bruce didn't need to read it to know who she was. Both times they had met he had caught a good glace of her ID dangling around her neck.
Merla Reinard. She was a strange one. Distrusting Batman when they first met, and giving him an illegal copy of evidence the second time. Hell, she had almost pulled her gun on him in the vault when he had spoken up. Then she had complimented him; or Batman at least. After that she was the one who had summoned him with the searchlight. She even had the audacity to not release the promised information at first until she could say what she wanted to.
'And her eyes.' Bruce mused while running his fingers through his hair. 'Intense. Like a challenge or she needed to prove something.' He left the folder open and started to do a search on her through his database. 'Gordon says he trusts her, and she only calmed down when he had talked to her. What did she call him again? Boss?'
Bruce glanced between the computer and the open report. He leafed through it slowly. 'Still… she seems smart. Very smart. Not sure if I can trust her… but she did offer more information on the bank robbery.' A chuckle escaped when he recalled her reaction after Batman asked for the rest of the evidence information that wasn't ready.
"Well I'm glad you enjoyed yourself last night, Master Wayne." an elderly and familiar voice stated from the lowering platform behind him.
Not turning from the console as he started skimming through the results the computer had spewed up on his recent encounter, Bruce spoke up. "You could say that, Alfred. Came across something… different."
Alfred stood behind him and deposited a stainless steel coffee thermos on the desk. "Different, Master Wayne? I guess this," he squinted and read the name on various documents the screen had open. "Miss Reinard wouldn't happen to be a prospective date?" Bruce had almost spat out the coffee back into the thermos that he had started to sip from when Alfred said that. But the old man continued. "You know doing full background checks isn't what some might call romantic, sir."
"She's an information contact. Of sorts." The younger man tried to look through Merla's credit card history while his brain wrapped around his butler's words. 'Merla Reinard dating Bruce Wayne. Right. Can't say I can picture her in a ballroom gown, giggling over champagne at some gala. Maybe glaring at a fund raiser and intimidating the wealthy class of Gotham into donating more.' Bruce tried not to chuckle again and shook the thoughts from his head. "I just need to know if she's legitimate."
"Ah. Of course, sir. I was worried that chocolates and flowers had grown out of fashion." The wise butler chose not to divulge further, especially since his master's reaction was so noteworthy. His eyes looked over the screen again. "Looks like very little information in Gotham about her until a few years ago."
"Everyone comes from somewhere, Alfred. I'll have to expand the search nationally. She didn't have a local accent, but I can't place it." Bruce mused while typing away at the console. The bills were tagged and sent into a folder with his quarry's name on it before beginning a more expanded search.
Alfred lifted the folder off the desk while Bruce was occupied. "These wouldn't happen to be on the recent bank robbery, would they?" The other man just nodded as he examined the contents slowly. "Master Wayne, please tell me you didn't steal this information from the police."
"No, she gave them to me, and offered more information as well. That's why I need to see if Batman can trust her." A program skimmed through national newspapers in the background and Bruce leaned back in his chair. He took another long sip of coffee before opening a new file for his search on Roland Edelstein.
Merla awoke uncomfortably and terribly disoriented in her bed as her cell phone blared its wakeup call. It didn't interrupt any pleasant dreams; years had past from the last time she could recall actually dreaming. She just never was very organized when she first stirred in the morning. Grabbing the offensive device and deactivating the alarm brought some satisfaction and clarity of mind. But she was still in her work clothes. And they were starting to get a little ripe. Merla wrinkled her nose, crawled out of bed and slipped out of the offensive articles in an autonomic fashion. Dumping the previous night's clothes into her hamper that resided in the bathroom, she yawned and started to run water in the shower. Her muscles relaxed under the hot water and Merla took her time enjoying the sensation. It was a small indulgence she could afford today. Once every knot insider her body which was willing to unwind gave in she did her usual speedy scrubbing.
After toweling off and pulling on a fresh set of work clothes she glanced at her wall clock. 9:26. More than enough time. She wouldn't be surprised if Gordon had her clocked to start work at some point past noon. Merla hated not working since so much needed to be done in the city. Every hour she worked was one step closer to slowing the seeping corruption rampant in Gotham. And honestly, she wouldn't have it any other way.
Consuming a bowl of oatmeal and a glass of orange juice for breakfast she gathered her belongings for work and left her apartment. After locking her door securely she took the stairs to the ground floor. She passed a few fellow tenants she didn't recognize on the way and gripped her metal lab kit tighter. A few of her neighbors on her floor had seen her with it before and gave strange looks each time. Merla didn't look like business woman type, especially not in jeans and a beat up brown jacket. Or maybe they thought at first glance she was a hitman or a drug dealer. It was plausible in Gotham. When they found out she was in law enforcement it seemed to be a source of relief. After all, they had spent half a year thinking who knows what about her before hand.
Once at the lobby she made for the residential parking. Merla wouldn't call where she resided the best of neighborhoods or the classiest of apartment buildings, but not having to park on the street was a wonderful perk to her living environment. Not that she had a terribly impressive vehicle to her name, but she was still dependant on having a car. After leaving the brick and concrete apartment building behind her next destination was MCU.
Traffic was light since she had a later start than usual today, but she called her Boss just to check in with him. At a red light she plugged in the headpiece she kept in the glove compartment. Merla pressed for the only programmed speed dial on her phone and let it sit open in a nearby cup holder.
After a few rings she heard his familiar voice. "Gordon here."
"Tell me you at least got to have breakfast with your family today." Merla interrogated while switching on her left turn signal.
A soft chuckle. "Yes I did, Reinard. I asked them to push your schedule back a bit to compensate for yesterday, but I didn't have you pegged for a few more hours."
"Don't worry about moving it, I'll just check in early."
"You know it's nearly mid-month and you're already almost booked for allotted overtime."
Swerving slightly to avoid getting hit by a brash driver that cut her off, making Merla suddenly wished she could have the usual black and white of marked police cars instead of her less intimidating vehicle. "I'll see what we can do so I don't get an earful from HR. Maybe pop in a few more off days to balance it." She sounded her car horn in displeasure at the impudent man who almost caused an accident. City driving as per usual. "Speaking of which, I might need to stay a bit later tonight. I'll need to talk to you in private about why."
"Sure. I'll be here in the office."
"Be in shortly, Boss." The cell phone was flipped shut from its resting place as Merla continued her drive uninterrupted.
Twenty minutes later she had parked and signed in at the log book. The desk sergeant for today, a man named Jacobs, just shook his head and frowned at her slightly. He always was gently chastising her for working so much for someone her age. Merla shrugged a bit and gave a faint smile as she walked past and headed up to Gordon's office. Thankfully, he wasn't on the phone as of yet.
The lieutenant stood over his desk and motioned with his hand to shut the door when she peeked inside. As the door audibly closed behind her he spoke up.
"Drop off the file without problems last night?" Straight to business it was.
"Yes sir. I included a copy of the same notes I made for you as well." Merla paused and pursed her lips slightly before continuing. "He wanted to see the evidence that hadn't been finished with processing. I figured you wanted him in the loop so I told him I would deliver the rest of the findings when it was ready."
Gordon nodded and slipped his hands into pockets. "That's fine. Anything he can find on logged evidence after we get a look can still be used."
Merla glanced at her watch. It was 10:23. "Better get to the grind, Boss. Who knows what we'll get today."
His face wore a grim expression. "Don't remind me. Commissioner's still on my back." The Lieutenant's eyes brightened as the young woman stood. "But don't let that be a reason to rush, kid. Better to get it done right than fast and wrong."
Merla put her hands on her hips and jokingly stuck out her chin. "Just who do you think you're talking to? Some rookie who's all thumbs? Nuh uh." The two shared a grin as she stalked to the door in faux anger. When she swung open the door she stole a glance back to Gordon. "And don't call me kid. Even my folks know better."
The older man chuckled. His protégé left swiftly before he could query about her parents, but he had grown used to such behavior. Merla didn't talk much about her past, and Gordon was too respectful to pry. His instincts that had developed over the years as a cop told him the young woman hadn't done anything unethical prior to coming to Gotham. Besides, Merla's actions spoke volumes more about her character than anything she would willingly communicate verbally. She felt comfortable enough with Gordon to joke around and let her guard down. The veteran cop would talk about his family sometimes, and Merla would smile and ask how they were. Beyond that, her life prior to arriving in Gotham was never really spoken of.
Merla made her way for MCU's lab which resided on the fourth floor of the building. After the event dubbed the Narrows Attack it was evident that a unit with authority over multiple departments was needed in Gotham. Their main goal was to prevent and counter any attack on Gotham of such a massive scale, as well as the removal of organized crime. Anything that had an effect on the population of Gotham on a whole fell under their jurisdiction. Lofty aspirations to be certain, but complex crimes needed to be handled without the red tape that usually accompanied inter-department handling. Of course, if something did go wrong the new unit would most likely be blamed.
Never the less, Merla was thankful for the opportunity. She hated the department she was at last with a passion. Most of the other crime scene investigators weren't as thorough either out of laziness or they knew the charges wouldn't stick. There were even a few instances of "misplaced" evidence that got lost forever. It was obvious someone was on the take, and it only served to enrage Merla further. It was a corrupt city and a corrupt department.
Only having Gordon around made it bearable. It left her full of hope that there actually were decent people in the city. People who never fell to corruption, people who fought even when things were darkest. People she could believe in. So when Gordon got his promotion and offered a position to Merla at the newly formed MCU, her smile was the brightest she had ever given to Gotham.
Today she didn't feel like smiling. Before where the mob had been bold and brash, now they were slowly getting quieter. Between the efforts of MCU and a certain masked vigilante deterring their efforts they had grown wise to the new threat to their power. One daunting aspect was the gap that an insane Falcone left. Maroni took over, but still had to fight for that position against the Chechen. Hell, a months or so ago they had exchanged bullets in a gunfight that Allen and Ramirez had somehow gotten caught in the middle of. Between the fire damage and collecting all of the bullets and shell casing it only left Merla with a pain in her back and a sour disposition.
That was the past, however. Today she was focused on the bank robbery and any other cases that got passed over to her. Evidence processing took time, time they didn't always have. Commissioner Loeb breathing down their necks didn't make machines run faster, didn't make running comparisons any simpler, and sure as hell didn't make crime scene investigators happy. They were strapped as it is with people and equipment, but managed to make do with what they had. It left people like Merla and Gordon stretched out thin in the end.
However, today looked slow for MCU. That, or Gordon had diverted cases away from Merla's grasp. She spent a large part of her morning organizing all the case work they had gathered from across departments on the mob. It was menial work that still needed to get done. The GCPD couldn't afford to hire them a clerk to handle the filing and record keeping, so all the criminalists in the lab did their part to keep the paperwork organized.
Things didn't pick up until after lunch. Everyone in the crime lab department called in an order at a nearby deli. They made a decent sub and were typically frequented by members of MCU throughout the day. Merla had finished her turkey club and went right back to carefully filing evidence reports when the phone rang.
Ron, the fingerprint technician for MCU, picked it up. "Major Crimes Unit, crime lab." He popped one of the potato chips that had accompanied his lunch while the person on the other line talked. It rudely crunched along. "Umm hmm. Sure, hold on." Ron poked the mute button with a slightly greasy finger before leaning out of the break room and shouting down the hall. "Reinard, line two. D.A. office callin' ya."
"Right" was all the recognition Merla gave that she had indeed heard him. She sat down at the small desk in the record room and picked up the receiver. "Reinard."
"Merla Reinard?" A soft, feminine voice asked over the line. "This is Assistant District Attorney Dawes. You handled evidence for the Rakov case, correct?"
Merla leaned back in the worn office chair, working through her mental catalog of cases she had worked on in MCU. Rakov. Kolzak Rakov. He had stabbed a drug dealer that had been encroaching on the "territory" of the Russian mob. She remembered having to search through a storm drain not too far from the crime to recover the bloody blade. The stench of wet sewer clung to her for half a day. Merla couldn't help her nostrils from flaring in memory.
They also found a small portion of Rakov's employer's drug stash at his apartment, but no leads to a supplier just yet. That wasn't her part of the job. Merla worked with all the evidence found, and now it was up to the detectives to pound the pavement. It did leave a sensation of helplessness, but she could only do her part when more evidence was recovered. Then she could find the next direction their case was pointing and some eventual closure.
"I collected evidence on that case, correct." She also had considered strangling Rakov a few times for making her crawl through oil runoff, wet leaves, garbage, and things far too unpleasant for her to acknowledge.
"His trial is coming up in a week and I'll be prosecuting. I need to go over the evidence with you and prep you as a witness."
Merla pushed her glasses up and pinched the bridge of her nose. She hated court appearances. Even though it was part of her job, she never felt comfortable with it. Waiting for hours. Wearing fancy, uncomfortable clothes. Having a room full of strangers staring at you, hanging on every word. Talking to the jury as though they were twelve year-olds so they could understand the science behind her work. Talking to defense attorneys like they were five. Even though the court system was another facet of the justice system she still found it a great annoyance.
She shook her head and let out a sigh. "Alright. Do you need any documentation from here?"
Rachel answered with a hint of annoyance in her voice. "That's not necessary. I have all the information here." She paused before softening her tone. "When are you available to stop by the D.A.'s office?"
Closing her eyes, Merla thought on this. By tomorrow, Sunday, the evidence on the bank robbery should be prepared and would have to be passed on to the Batman. She somehow doubted the district attorney's office would be open all day on a weekend anyway. Monday was a safe bet, and probably wouldn't take too long so she could still come in to work afterwards.
"Monday is fine. The sooner we can put the mob behind bars, the better."
There was a faint chuckle on Rachel's end. "No disagreement here. Monday. Is 9 am good?"
That would give Merla enough time to check in on MCU before having to head downtown. She nodded her head, even though the A.D.A. wouldn't see it. "I'm sure Gordon won't complain. See you on Monday, Ms. Dawes."
"Thank you, Ms. Reinard."
And with that they each hung up. Merla rolled her neck as it had chosen a fine time to stiffen up. It was most likely the prospect of having to spend work hours with lawyers in a few days as well as getting grilled on the stand. Still, she knew court appearances were part of being a forensic scientist. It didn't necessarily mean she had to enjoy it, however.
She glanced at her watch to check the time. It was getting close to two o'clock and she still hadn't been called to a crime scene yet. Working at MCU meant only crimes linked to the mob or other massive attacks against Gotham were her business. Other crimes that happened every day, from a kid holding up a liquor store at gunpoint to violent rapes, were handled by the appropriate department that fell under the location's jurisdiction. Sometimes another station would respond to a crime and find out the mob was involved. Usually unless it was high profile, excessively important, or relevant to a case MCU was already working, they usually allowed that station to handle the crime.
And right now, Merla had a string of bank robberies to solve. It seemed that some of the evidence was still being processed. This was mainly due to the amount of effort it took to reconstruct such a massive as well as devastated crime scene. She chose to resume her efforts in finding Roland Edelstein, and hopefully how his gun ended up being used in a bank robbery. There was no direct connection between the dead suspect found with said gun and Edelstein himself. The only logical explanations were either the gun was stolen, which was possible but unlikely, or Edelstein sold the gun. Of course, a pawn shop was a very stupid option that even a small time crook wouldn't make. That left the local illegal arms market, which anyone could access if they knew the right people.
Heading for one of the lab's computer's, Merla pulled up Edelstein's information and printed out a copy. It was doubtful, but maybe one of the detectives could be assigned to tracking him down. Only Gordon could okay that, but she wanted to continue working on the bank robbery case before that. She slid the papers into an empty folder and set it aside for later. Her fight to protect Gotham was an endless task, and Merla showed no sign of relenting to the cruelness humanity could muster.
Evening came swiftly, and soon Gotham was blanketed in darkness. A bit after half past seven one of the members of the crime lab had deemed Merla in charge of dropping off paperwork to Gordon's office today. In truth, she never had a problem with visiting the Lieutenant and needed a break from staring at lab reports. However this didn't stop her from glaring at her co-worker and clearly stating she wasn't an intern that did the office's menial work. None the less she took the small pile of papers and went straight to Gordon's office on the second floor.
Merla had to pass through the aptly named bullpen where all of MCU's detectives resided. It always felt like the heart of MCU, usually with its own flow and rhythm that fell into different tempos. When the mob was quiet in Gotham the bullpen filled with a slow, smooth drumming as detective planned themselves in a careful weariness. Other times a frantic pace swept through the room as policemen raced in time to counter the growing violence between criminal organizations. The Lieutenant's office was the only closed, private space off to the side with windows facing the bullpen. Gordon was the just lord of this domain.
The door was closed, but the blinds on the windows were pulled up. Merla could see her Boss sitting behind his desk, coffee mug in hand. The sight made her grin. She knocked on the door just under the plaque that stated "Lieutenant Gordon" in bold letters.
"Come in."
Gordon's face was set in concentration when she opened the door. He was carefully studying another report that consumed most of his attention. When Merla's Boss looked up to see his visitor his face relaxed slightly. He even started to smile, that is, until he spotted the handful of papers in his protégé carried with her. This fact elicited a groan from the older man.
"Damn it, if it wasn't for the pay raise I wouldn't have accepted this damned position." Gordon grumbled and sank into his worn leather chair.
Merla chuckled and moved to the front of his desk, holding out the dreaded paper to him. "Sorry Boss. Usual office paperwork. Only your signature will be acceptable." As her Boss took it begrudgingly, Merla shifted uncomfortably. Now wasn't a good time to bring up Edelstein, but she had hit a wall and needed help.
"Boss… about the latest bank robbery…" This got his attention as he set down the new attention to his growing stack of paperwork. Merla continued, "I know it's not a big lead but I really feel that tracking down Edelstein would help us out. Not only would it lead to this Joker guy but we could find some of the illegal arms dealers in Gotham."
Gordon frowned a bit, making his mustache dip further downwards. "I'm sorry Reinard, but I just don't have the men for it. MCU's stretched thin enough trying to find where the mob's money is going in addition to handling all their dirty dealings in Gotham." The young woman sighed and allowed her shoulders to slump, a vulnerable sign of defeat she only allowed the Lieutenant to see. He noticed this while taking a sip of coffee to deter the slight sting of guilt he felt. Gordon set down his mug and teased a bit to cheer her up. "Besides… at this rate I'll be forced into early retirement from carpal tunnel and you can badger the next guy the Commissioner hires for this job."
"Don't say that, Boss. You're the only one who could actually start some change inside the police force." Merla said this forcefully, but then slipped into a soft smile. "Besides, what do you expect? You spent over twenty years on your feet working the streets. You weren't made for desk work."
Gordon smirked and sat up straight in his office chair, hands folded gently over the stack of paperwork on his desk. "You know, suddenly I feel terribly flattered. My ego certainly feels bolstered…" The criminalist chuckled and shook her head as he continued. "Maybe just enough to let you leave early."
Merla's smile sunk. "That's not necessary, Boss. If I push I can get the bank robbery wrapped up by-"
"If you push." He interrupted. "But I'm not going to let you. You're too young to push yourself in this line of work. Yesterday was supposed to be your day off and you almost pulled an all-nighter. And yes, I know I was the one to call you in. I also remember saying that you wouldn't work long today. Go home, have a nice meal," Gordon paused for a moment, eyeing her. "A real meal. Get some rest."
The forensic scientist suddenly got very quiet and uncomfortable. Her right hand started to fidget with her left and she couldn't keep eye contact for very long. When she spoke again her voice was soft and uncertain. "What about you, Boss?"
Gordon smiled brightly, making blue eyes sparkle behind tortoise frames. It wasn't often he truly smiled at work, but Merla always seemed to being it out from him. "I'll try and make it home for dinner with everyone." He then tilted his head and added in a teasing note, "That is, if you leave now."
Merla smirked a bit and held up her hands allowing the older man victory. "Alright. Alright. You win boss. Just let me grab my stuff, okay?"
"You have ten minutes before I renege." The Lieutenant held up his wrist to examine his watch.
"Fine!" The young woman threw up her hands dramatically and left his office. As she went to close the office door behind her, she paused and poked her head back in with a grin on her face. "Think you could give a little extra time so I could use the restroom?"
"Eight minutes! Out!"
Gordon could hear Merla chuckling as she closed the door behind her. He shook his head at her behavior, a smile unable to depart from his face. Tilting back in his office chair, Gordon looked over his desk. Over the past hour the contents overflowing inside his inbox had been working its way into his outbox, but more reports and papers still waited patiently for his attention. Only a small amount remained, but that was before Merla had dropped off additional paperwork from the crime lab. His gaze wandered to the other end of his desk where a lamp and a few picture frames rested. A particular photo he held in regard right now was of him with Barbara and the kids on their last vacation. Everyone was laughing and smiling on a sandy beach with waves cresting in the background.
Picking up the phone from his desk, Gordon punched in a familiar series of numbers before holding the receiver to his ear. It rang twice before someone picked up on the other end.
"Hello?"
Another genuine smile spread over the Lieutenant's face.
"Hey Barb? Think you could find room for me at dinner tonight?"
A/N: Now we have some Bruce, some Alfred, and Rachel making appearances. Hmmm!! Sorry this chapter is a bit shorter, but this seemed like a better spot to stop then the next part since things will shift gears slightly. And yes, evidence work takes a while and I thought it would be too soon to have a massive crime scene like one of the Joker's bank jobs ready after one day. I mean, c'mon, he leaves such a mess!! Also, I actually got some information off the site ! You might notice the nod to Gotham Knight as well, which I highly recommend for at the least a rental. For those action fans out there, Batman is going to show up more, don't worry. Please do review, because I wanted to make sure the addional writings that I slipped into my story work well. Thanks again for your support!
