Chapter 2

It was because of her. Jerome thought as he continued to intently scrub the blood from his hands. He remembered the last time he saw her, getting dragged away by her father. She had looked into his eyes until she vanished from his sight. His mother had beaten him that night.

The next day he looked for her, working the games longer than he needed to, just so that he wouldn't miss her if she came back. But she never did. God, he wanted to see her again so bad.

That had been nearly four years ago. Four years that he had tolerated his mother and her ever increasing drunken episodes.

All up until that one night.

He was sitting on his bed, a bruise welting on his ribs from his mother's 'lover'. The only other noise besides the sick scraping of the bed in the next room was that coming from the outside. An old turntable he hadn't regarded until now switched tracks. He tried to focus on the soft classical noise of piano. He strained to hear it better.

A jolt went through his spine. That smooth melody recognized in an instant.

Fur Elise… For Elise… Elise…

For the only person who had ever laid a hand on him without ill intent.

His mouth twitched into a maniacal grin as he retrieved the hatchet from under his bed.

[Elise's POV]

After my first two weeks in Gotham, I had already learned that you are never truly safe. Turning an alleyway, I arrive at my current residence. That being beneath the large bridge that I shared with a handful of other people my age who life had also not been so kind to.

Before I go to my designated spot, I slink behind a dumpster and drop to my stomach, dragging out a large beanbag. More than half of the beans are missing. This is where I keep various items like my comics and sketchbooks so they stay dry. A little girl named Ivy had caught me one day so we now have an agreement that she gets to have my old comics. That was fine by me, as long as she didn't want my old, stuffed polar bear I kept stashed at the bottom.

I open the wallet that I had barely gotten away with, quickly stuffing the dollar bills away in my jacket, and promptly tossed it into the dumpster. I hear an upbeat chanting noise and see the school bus full of cheerleaders and jocks headed my way. As they passed me I catch a glimpse of my reflection. Becoming aware of my tousled hair and thin lips. I unconsciously run a hand through my hair in an attempt to comb it, but to no avail.

Shaking my head, I carry on.

It wasn't the gunfire that had first caught my attention. It was the screaming. Something was happening. Something bad.

Straight ahead of me the school bus of once giggling cheerleaders are now being held in some sort of hostage situation. Police cars whizz past me. This isn't good. I'm too close. The exit to the alleyway now blocked, my best bet is to turn around and take off, all of which I have every intention of doing. Trust me, I did. Until I heard a loud and insane, giddy laugh from the bus and the sound of a hose. What the hell is going on? This whole situation seems like some sort of sick joke. There are more gunshots. Now I'm running. Now I want as much distance as possible between me and whatever the hell was going on.

Jerome

Jerome jumped on to the truck, cackling as they sped off, doing a full 180 back down the alleyway. His heart was thumping with adrenaline. He was enjoying this, he really was.

I run the distance between there and the closest thing I had to a home. My ankle twists with a crunch but I don't let it slow me down until I slide to the place that I kept all I had.

The sudden exit these criminals has them coming my way now as the truck is now coming to speed past the spot where I am frozen, laughter echoing through the street.

It's been a week now and I'm trying to forget the little run-in that I had just witnessed days before. My mind is on more pressing matters: like what am I going to eat. I'm bent over a huge trash bin in the area where I was last week (it's mostly vacant now due to current incidents). A sudden noise causes me to be on my feet in an instant. A car screeches to a halt underneath the seemingly vacant alley. I peek over the lid of a trash bin as a pale, red haired boy in a police officer's uniform jumps down, bouncing on his feet as he lands. Just my luck.

"Well, that was a rush!" he drags a hand down his face, laughing. I squirm back and flatten myself, trying to inch underneath the dumpster. I think I'm safe until hand takes hold of my ankle, dragging me out and into the open. I'm forcefully yanked out and dropped to the hard ground. I'm on my feet in an instant, pulling out my only weapon – half of a pair of scissors.

"My, what did you find, Greenwood?" One of them lets out a sick chuckle. I make a quick dart to my side only to run straight into something tall and solid. I am grabbed by my collar of my jacket by the huge bald man and lifted as my legs dangle beneath me. This leaves my entire upper body useless as I grasp the back of my collar to prevent myself from being choked. My scissor hits the ground. A man with long, ratty hair joins the redhead and looks up at me in amusement. I give him a hard kick to the chest when his fingers graze my calf.

All of this just seems to elicit more laughter from the ginger as he grasps my chin, holding me at eye level.

"Pretty girls shouldn't be all on their own in places like this. There are some crazies around here, didn't you know?"

"Fuck you."

He cocks his head to the side, those eyes burrow deep into mine, as if he's looking for something. His eyes soften for a moment.

"How would you like to come with me, firecracker?" he asks quietly, the corners of his mouth twisted up into a smile.

"Fuck… You."

He sighs.

Something hits the back of my head and my vision turns to grey.

As I drifted in and out of consciousness, I vaguely remember someone holding me. I feel someone else's breath on my cheek before I lose consciousness entirely.

"We need her."

"Don't listen to him Mr. Galavan he just has blue balls for this chick!"

Greenwood's nose is crunched into his face, ensuring that he would not interrupt anymore.

"As much as I would love a new member, I have to be certain of her dedication to the Maniax. We're going to have to figure something out, Jerome. If she fails to cooperate this will not end well for her."

The decision had been made. Elise wasn't going anywhere. Jerome would be damned if they tried to take away the girl.

She lay in the room next to Jerome's on a small bed. He had carefully removed her jacket, thinking of how nice it had felt to have her warm body slumped against him as he carried her. He was entranced by her curves and the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed softly. No way in Hell was he going to lose her again. Pressing a kiss to her forehead, he exits, locking the door behind him.

Hi, thank you so much for reading my first fic, how do you like it so far? Look forward to more creepy horny Jerome and more on Elise! Don't forget to follow. You give me life