~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~A Shot in the Dark~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter Two
To Serve and Protect
"Good afternoon, Miss Gordon. I know this is normally your class, but since I'm the one with the firepower, I decided I'd teach the lesson today."
Barbara tried to fight back the surprise from her features, but she couldn't. She had prepared herself for a student, for any student. Chad was her number one suspect, but she couldn't be sure. Instead, she found herself staring up into two familiar eyes, though the look was very unfamiliar. "Mark..." She whispered, disbelief clearly ringing in her voice as she spoke his name.
The man narrowed his eyes at her. "Back up, Barbara."
"Mark...don't do this." She answered softly. "You don't want to do this."
"You don't know what I want, Barbara. You don't have any idea. Everybody, back against the wall. I want you lined up in front of the windows." He glared at the frightened students, pumping his rifle. They needed no other prompting. Barbara hesitated a moment before following his instructions and backing up against the windows with the teenagers.
"Huntress, this is Oracle, do you copy?" Barbara kept her eyes fixed on Mark in the reflection of the windows, though she did not turn her chair to face him when she reached the spot he'd assigned to her. "Huntress, I need you. Talk to me." She sighed. Of all the times for Helena to go off line...
"She turned it off, didn't she?" Dinah asked softly, her blue eyes full of a fear she was trying desperately to hide.
Barbara nodded. "I'll keep trying to raise her when I get a chance...but it may be a while." It may be too late.
Dinah took a deep breath and squared her slender shoulders. "I can take him."
"No, you can't." Barbara commanded firmly. "You won't engage that man in any form of combat, do you understand? He's dangerous. If anyone is going to take him on...it'll be me."
"Barbara...who is he?"
The older woman pushed her glasses up on her head to regard her ward carefully. "His name is Mark Foster. He's..."
"Did I give you permission to chit chat during my class, ladies?" Mark patronized from the front of the room. He was seated on the edge of Barbara's desk, watching the students with hatred burning in his eyes. "You can talk after class...if you're all still alive, that is." He stood and circled the desk to write on the chalkboard. "Today we're going to learn about J-U-S-T-I-C-E. Justice."
"Justice? Is this what you call justice? Killing the same innocent children you were sworn to protect?" Barbara spat, spinning her chair to face her assailant.
"Innocent! You call these little vampires innocent? They feed off the innocent. They're guilty as Hell." He leveled the rifle at Barbara. "You all are."
"Of what?" She asked, meeting his gaze with a confidence that actually calmed several sobbing students.
"Of harming Chad...You're all guilty. Every last one of you. If you didn't throw the stones, you watched everyone else do it and never once tried to stop them. You...You're the worst. Chad loves you, Barbara. You're his favorite teacher. He looks up to you...but you just let them pick on him. You don't care about him. He's just a face in a sea of students. You'd sooner see him drown than risk your neck by standing up to these bullies. You make me sick!"
Barbara remained silent for several moments. What do you say to an insane man whose crazed ramblings don't sound all that crazy? "I'm sorry." She managed finally. "You're right. We should have done more. I should have done more. But, if you're going to take this out on anyone...take it out on me. You said I was the worst. These children are nothing. Let them go. Let them all go...and you can take out your anger on me. I'll be an example for your cause, just let the rest of them go."
"No!" Dinah shouted, stepping out of her place in front of the window. "I'm not leaving. If she stays, so do I."
Mark raised an eyebrow, glancing between the two women. "Well...what do we have here?"
***
Detective Jesse Reese pushed his way through the crowd of people gathering just in front of the police tape. He sprinted across the open ground and stopped just behind a row of police cars. The call had come in only minutes before. Every parent's worst nightmare...every cop's, too. "What's going on, Captain?"
The Captain looked up from the school blue prints spread out on the hood of a squad car. "What does it look like, Reese? A damn car washing fundraiser? We don't know how many are injured...We don't know a whole Hell of a lot, to tell you the truth. One of the students that escaped was level headed enough to call us. Gabby something or other. Says there was only one shooter...older man, over six feet, big, dark..."
"Detective Foster? You don't think..."
"It's a possibility."
Reese exhaled slowly. "Shit. A cop shooting up a school. It can't get much worse than that."
The Captain glanced up at the young detective again. "Wanna bet on that, Reese? One of the hostages is a teacher, Barbara Gordon."
"Gordon? Any relation to..."
"She's his daughter."
***
"Who are you, kid? You don't look like you belong here."
Dinah squared her shoulders, threw her head back and answered him with her best impression of Barbara's confidence. "Dinah Redmond." Despite her attempt at bravery, she was trembling.
Mark raised an eyebrow. "You're Barbara's little brat. C'mere."
"Don't you touch her." Barbara hissed, moving foward.
Mark cocked his head at her. "What are you going to do about it, run over my foot?" The man snickered and grabbed Dinah's
wrist. She pulled back, her eyes seeking out her guardian. Barbara shook her head. If Dinah fought back, there was a good chance she or someone else would get shot. If this were student, it would be one thing...but Mark was an ex-Marine turned Detective, and there was no way a teenager could over power him. Even Dinah. "Put this on." He commanded, handing her a lightweight NGHS Letter Jacket.
"Mark...I swear, if you hurt one hair on her head...I'll kill you." Barbara declared coldly, the look in her eyes was proof that she meant what she said.
Mark hesitated before holding the jacket out to Dinah, again. "I'm only trying to be nice, Babs. The girl's shaking. She must be cold."
Dinah looked between the article of clothing and the gunman for a moment before taking it from him and slipping her arms inside the holes. She frowned. It felt wrong...almost, heavy.
Mark smiled, a wide, toothy, saddistic grin. "Good. Now, I expect everyone's full cooperation." He pulled Dinah closer, showing the inside lining of her coat to the class. Then, with a smug smile he zipped it closed.
Plastique. C-4. Barbara hung her head. Things had just gone from bad to worse. He'd just fitted her foster daughter with a 'Bomb'er's jacket.
Chapter Two
To Serve and Protect
"Good afternoon, Miss Gordon. I know this is normally your class, but since I'm the one with the firepower, I decided I'd teach the lesson today."
Barbara tried to fight back the surprise from her features, but she couldn't. She had prepared herself for a student, for any student. Chad was her number one suspect, but she couldn't be sure. Instead, she found herself staring up into two familiar eyes, though the look was very unfamiliar. "Mark..." She whispered, disbelief clearly ringing in her voice as she spoke his name.
The man narrowed his eyes at her. "Back up, Barbara."
"Mark...don't do this." She answered softly. "You don't want to do this."
"You don't know what I want, Barbara. You don't have any idea. Everybody, back against the wall. I want you lined up in front of the windows." He glared at the frightened students, pumping his rifle. They needed no other prompting. Barbara hesitated a moment before following his instructions and backing up against the windows with the teenagers.
"Huntress, this is Oracle, do you copy?" Barbara kept her eyes fixed on Mark in the reflection of the windows, though she did not turn her chair to face him when she reached the spot he'd assigned to her. "Huntress, I need you. Talk to me." She sighed. Of all the times for Helena to go off line...
"She turned it off, didn't she?" Dinah asked softly, her blue eyes full of a fear she was trying desperately to hide.
Barbara nodded. "I'll keep trying to raise her when I get a chance...but it may be a while." It may be too late.
Dinah took a deep breath and squared her slender shoulders. "I can take him."
"No, you can't." Barbara commanded firmly. "You won't engage that man in any form of combat, do you understand? He's dangerous. If anyone is going to take him on...it'll be me."
"Barbara...who is he?"
The older woman pushed her glasses up on her head to regard her ward carefully. "His name is Mark Foster. He's..."
"Did I give you permission to chit chat during my class, ladies?" Mark patronized from the front of the room. He was seated on the edge of Barbara's desk, watching the students with hatred burning in his eyes. "You can talk after class...if you're all still alive, that is." He stood and circled the desk to write on the chalkboard. "Today we're going to learn about J-U-S-T-I-C-E. Justice."
"Justice? Is this what you call justice? Killing the same innocent children you were sworn to protect?" Barbara spat, spinning her chair to face her assailant.
"Innocent! You call these little vampires innocent? They feed off the innocent. They're guilty as Hell." He leveled the rifle at Barbara. "You all are."
"Of what?" She asked, meeting his gaze with a confidence that actually calmed several sobbing students.
"Of harming Chad...You're all guilty. Every last one of you. If you didn't throw the stones, you watched everyone else do it and never once tried to stop them. You...You're the worst. Chad loves you, Barbara. You're his favorite teacher. He looks up to you...but you just let them pick on him. You don't care about him. He's just a face in a sea of students. You'd sooner see him drown than risk your neck by standing up to these bullies. You make me sick!"
Barbara remained silent for several moments. What do you say to an insane man whose crazed ramblings don't sound all that crazy? "I'm sorry." She managed finally. "You're right. We should have done more. I should have done more. But, if you're going to take this out on anyone...take it out on me. You said I was the worst. These children are nothing. Let them go. Let them all go...and you can take out your anger on me. I'll be an example for your cause, just let the rest of them go."
"No!" Dinah shouted, stepping out of her place in front of the window. "I'm not leaving. If she stays, so do I."
Mark raised an eyebrow, glancing between the two women. "Well...what do we have here?"
***
Detective Jesse Reese pushed his way through the crowd of people gathering just in front of the police tape. He sprinted across the open ground and stopped just behind a row of police cars. The call had come in only minutes before. Every parent's worst nightmare...every cop's, too. "What's going on, Captain?"
The Captain looked up from the school blue prints spread out on the hood of a squad car. "What does it look like, Reese? A damn car washing fundraiser? We don't know how many are injured...We don't know a whole Hell of a lot, to tell you the truth. One of the students that escaped was level headed enough to call us. Gabby something or other. Says there was only one shooter...older man, over six feet, big, dark..."
"Detective Foster? You don't think..."
"It's a possibility."
Reese exhaled slowly. "Shit. A cop shooting up a school. It can't get much worse than that."
The Captain glanced up at the young detective again. "Wanna bet on that, Reese? One of the hostages is a teacher, Barbara Gordon."
"Gordon? Any relation to..."
"She's his daughter."
***
"Who are you, kid? You don't look like you belong here."
Dinah squared her shoulders, threw her head back and answered him with her best impression of Barbara's confidence. "Dinah Redmond." Despite her attempt at bravery, she was trembling.
Mark raised an eyebrow. "You're Barbara's little brat. C'mere."
"Don't you touch her." Barbara hissed, moving foward.
Mark cocked his head at her. "What are you going to do about it, run over my foot?" The man snickered and grabbed Dinah's
wrist. She pulled back, her eyes seeking out her guardian. Barbara shook her head. If Dinah fought back, there was a good chance she or someone else would get shot. If this were student, it would be one thing...but Mark was an ex-Marine turned Detective, and there was no way a teenager could over power him. Even Dinah. "Put this on." He commanded, handing her a lightweight NGHS Letter Jacket.
"Mark...I swear, if you hurt one hair on her head...I'll kill you." Barbara declared coldly, the look in her eyes was proof that she meant what she said.
Mark hesitated before holding the jacket out to Dinah, again. "I'm only trying to be nice, Babs. The girl's shaking. She must be cold."
Dinah looked between the article of clothing and the gunman for a moment before taking it from him and slipping her arms inside the holes. She frowned. It felt wrong...almost, heavy.
Mark smiled, a wide, toothy, saddistic grin. "Good. Now, I expect everyone's full cooperation." He pulled Dinah closer, showing the inside lining of her coat to the class. Then, with a smug smile he zipped it closed.
Plastique. C-4. Barbara hung her head. Things had just gone from bad to worse. He'd just fitted her foster daughter with a 'Bomb'er's jacket.