Chapter 2

Three weeks later:

Since being broken out of his ice prison, life had been turned upside down for Ed Nygma. He had struggled to find his other persona, the Riddler was back now but no matter what company he kept, he felt like there was a gaping hole in his life. Maybe it was because Oswald had killed Isabella – perhaps he had loved her, it had felt that way at the time, but as his reflection often stated when he looked into the mirror and his personality split, as the Riddler searched his face for answers, Ed Nygma would glare back at him, stronger, as if tormenting him and shaking his belief in his Riddler self, as he said, "Oswald tampered with her car to get her out of the way. He didn't know she would die when she lost control at the wheel. Maybe she'd break every bone in her body, maybe she'd wind up in a coma. But murder? Look at your own hands, those hands killed Kristen Kringle! You only dated Isabella because she looked like her! So who really killed her? Need a riddle to answer that one, you idiot?"

He had wanted to put his fist into the mirror, but it was odd enough to be quarrelling with himself in someone else's bathroom mirror with the door locked. Ed was currently staying at the apartment of a woman called Toni Gardner, he had met her in a bar, picked her up easily – and she was a definite distraction from his troubles, albeit temporarily. She had long, dark hair and wore clothing that clung in all the right places. She had an hour glass figure and she kept him warm at night. But he didn't love her and thankfully, she looked nothing like Kristen.

For the past few weeks, she had served her purpose and given him a place to lie low and make his plans. But his plans would not come together, and it had nothing to do with the fact that being encased in ice had messed with his brilliance at riddle making – that aching emptiness was still nagging at him, sometimes it came out as cold rage, other times as pain that he could not define. If he closed his eyes he recalled that moment he had put a bullet in Oswald, the sound of the gun, the look of shock on his face, the splash that sounded as he fell into the water.

When he had later realised he wasn't dead, anger had been his first emotion, along with the notion that at least he had the chance to hurt him all over again – and this time, do a better job of it.

But lately that anger had cooled to an odd kind of under the surface simmering irritation that heaped more misery on top of that which he already felt – he had heard some news, it was now common knowledge around town:

Three weeks had passed since Penguin had met a woman named Rose Reynolds in the Iceberg Lounge. Since then, he had been seen about town with her on lunch dates, and the two of them seemed very close... Oswald was dating this woman? What right did he have to any kind of happiness after killing Isabella?

That was a thought he tried to think quietly, before Ed Nygma spoke back to him, or worse, he became Ed once more and the Riddler changed places, tormenting him from the mirror. He wanted to cover up every reflective surface in the apartment...

He leaned closer to the mirror, peering through his glasses at the reflection of his plain, ordinary clothing, as he masqueraded as Ed, hiding the Riddler from Toni, who had no clue of his alter ego nor of the crimes he had committed.

She tapped on the bathroom door.

"Are you okay in there, Ed?" she called out.

He looked into his own eyes, coldness reflecting as he mimicked fondness in his response.

"Yes, I'm fine, I'll be out in a minute."

His reflection took on a life of its own.

"Liar!" it said aggressively, "Here's one even you can solve... I am filled with anger and failure, I crave love yet I kill it, what am I?"

He sucked in angry breath. Riddler was looking back at him through the mirror, reflecting all the strength and power he could not reach, yet he knew the answer and as he spoke it aloud, his fist screwed up tight as he wished he could shatter the mirror - but could give Toni no explanation for doing it. He had told her he was crazy. She had laughed and told him he worried too much. She just didn't know...

"What am I?" taunted the reflection again.

"I am Ed Nygma!" Ed said bitterly, then he turned from the mirror, went over to the door and tugged back the lock, opening the door sharply to see Toni on the other side, her mascara coated eyes wide with alarm as she looked at his face and saw an expression that sent a shiver down her back, although she had no clue why.

"What's the matter?" she asked, "Were you talking to someone in there?"

"I was taking a phone call," Ed replied, "And I'm going out. I'll be back later."

"Where are you going?" she wondered, turning to watch as he walked away, but Ed gave no reply, he was off down the hallway and then she heard the front door close heavily behind him as she stood alone, wondering what was wrong with the strange man who spent way too much time locked in the bathroom having quarrels on the phone...


The day had started gloomy with rain and grey skies, typical of Gotham, but then the sun had come out and although clouds still lingered, there was a warmth to the usually grey waters of the river and the pale skyline as sunlight and streaks of blue escaped through to brighten the place as Oswald strolled towards the end of the pier with his new friend, a friend who had grown close to him over many lunch and dinner meetings, now Rose was growing fond of him, he could tell – and she was about to become even fonder as he gave her a big surprise.

But then she delayed his plans as they reached the end of the pier and she looked into the cold water below, asking a question.

"Why did you bring me here?"

Oswald looked down at the water too. He had known this place, with its painful memories, and the need to talk about it and to share it with her, had been the reason for his choice. But opening up about it was more difficult than he imagined.

"I have bad memories of this pier," he replied as he leaned on his cane and turned from the water, instantly thankful to not be too close to the edge, "This is a place where someone close to me tried to kill me. He shot me. His name was Edward Nygma."

Rose saw deep pain in his eyes, as the sun was blotted out by cloud, his gaze seemed to reflect the colour of the skies, darkening down, cold as the waters of the Gotham river.

"It sounds like you were betrayed by a very dear friend, I'm sorry," she replied as compassion filled her eyes.

"I... loved him," Oswald said quietly, "I mean, really loved him... That doesn't mean I could never love again... there was a time when I thought I couldn't go through that risk again, but recently I've had a change of heart..."

He stopped right there as a look of panic came to his eyes and his face flushed, then he drew in a deep breath and shifted quickly to another subject, the haunted look in his eyes was gone, so was the sadness in his expression as his usual sparkle came back.

"Anyway, enough of my past..." he laughed nervously, speaking again quickly before she had a chance to ask questions about the shooting, " Tomorrow the papers will be full of a big local story about the Gotham Steelworks...it seems someone has stepped in with a large amount of cash and offered the company a chance to save itself... So the company your father rebuilt will not fall to ruin now, Rose!" he smiled brightly, "Someone did that for you!"

Her eyes widened in surprise. Over the past few weeks she and Oswald had shared many conversations, but he had never given a hint of his plans...

"You did that for me?"

"Yes!" he said in triumph, "All for you – for the memory of your father, I mean. I was sure it would mean a great deal to you and for me, it was a gesture that simply meant spending some money, which was no hardship - and very worthwhile to see the smile on your face."

He looked at her hopefully as they stood together on the end of the pier that held such sad memories as he hoped that today, perhaps a happy memory would be created to eclipse the rest.

She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around him as Oswald froze, stunned by her sudden physical contact, feeling awkward yet elated. As he leaned on his cane, his free hand rose cautiously, then he placed it on her waist, then slid it around her back and he gave her a squeeze as his head rested on her shoulder and he felt the warmth of her skin, took in the scent of her hair and yearned for more as he saw the view of the river that had almost claimed his life flowing over her shoulder, but now he saw a hint of sun dancing on its surface, catching its flow. It felt good to hold her. It felt even better to feel desire rising inside him, sharply, almost alarming him at the speed that it hit.

As he drew back, their eyes met and he felt caught yet the need to flee was like a fading panic as he took control of his sudden desire for her closeness.

"You've done something amazing!" she exclaimed, "My Dad would have been so happy!"

He smiled back at her, silently recalling how the men who ran the company had thanked him warmly too - until he had replied they had better show him serious profit in six months time, or they would all be in body bags...

"I consider you a very good friend," he replied, "Since we met in the club, we've got to know each other well. I think we've had some very deep and meaningful conversations and in a world where true friends are rare, you are someone I am thankful to know. In fact, I would say that you're now my closest friend – I allow very few to get this close, Rose. But I saw something in you on the night we met, I just knew I could trust you."

He leaned on his cane as he took a step closer, then caught hold of her hand.

"I would like you to come home with me today, have dinner at my house tonight...my mother is busy watching rehearsals for the live show at the club tonight – and she plans to sing there later. She won't be back until late. I've asked a member of my staff to keep an eye on her and make sure she gets home safely. What I'm saying is, I'd like some time with you, alone..."

She saw nervousness in his gaze and she smiled warmly, then gave his hand a fond squeeze.

"I think that's a great idea," she replied, "Let's go, Oswald – I've been looking forward to this for a long while!"

"That's good to know," he replied, feeling slightly uneasy as they turned back and walked away from the waters edge, leaving the pier and its memories far behind.


Once back at the Cobblepot mansion, Oswald wasted no time, getting her comfortable in a cosy front room. He called for the maid to bring tea, then when she set the tray down on the table, told her she was dismissed for the rest of the day.

"Well, here we are," he said nervously as he sat beside her on a comfortable sofa, "Alone at last..."

He smiled, his eyes sparkling as he met her gaze, but he said no more. By now Rose was used to these pauses, she found it endearing, how he seemed so forward one minute and the next, so shy and awkward, holding back.

"I'm surprised you even noticed me when we first met," she said, "I mean, you're Mr Penguin, everyone knows who you are – and that must mean you've had quite a few women showing interest."

He laughed.

"I'm flattered, Rose – but you're wrong about that. I've had a few encounters of course, but very few serious relationships. Actually, I've been quite alone for most of my life."

"So have I," she replied, "I've had a few boyfriends but although some of those relationships went to a serious level I've never felt enough for someone to give them absolutely everything, if you see what I mean. I always waited because it never seemed like the right time. I'm glad I waited."

Her heart was racing as she made that admission, and as he looked into her eyes, she saw surprise register in his gaze.

"You're a...virgin?"

"I'm not without some experience but yes, as far as sex is concerned, I've never done that, not yet..." her gaze lingered on him.

His plans to take her upstairs after a few drinks and dare to take his pleasure had just evaporated as he looked into her eyes and saw such innocence in her gaze. This beautiful young woman was saving herself, for him? That was how it had sounded. Oswald felt a rush of warmth in his heart, a rare event for one who had long felt frozen at the thought of love. But she was different, so unlike the kind of women he was used to meeting in Gotham.

Knowing this only served to fire up plans that had been burning slowly at the back of his mind since the night they had met. He had planned to mention this later, after they had got closer. But now that closeness could wait a little longer...

What he had to say suddenly meant so much more. This woman was beautiful and she could have chosen any man in Gotham, but she had really chosen him? The very thought made him feel wanted, cherished, a feeling he craved but until now, had never truly known. He had been aware of his attraction to her from the first night they met, and over the weeks that had followed, that feeling had grown deeper in away that had made him feel nervous. He had said he would never fall in love again, but this time, it had taken him by surprise.

"Rose, I need to tell you something," Oswald said, his gaze intensifying as he took hold of her hands, "Since building my empire, I've been thinking about the future. I know it's early to say this, but I need a woman by my side who will be my friend and much more, someone who will never let me down. Someone who can give me an heir to my empire. I now know that woman is you."

Rose felt his hands tremble as he held her in his gaze, anxiously awaiting her answer. His words had surprised her, but she paused for thought before she replied, thinking on a few possible problems that would have to be considered:

Loving Oswald would be easy, she was already falling hard for him, but becoming the wife of someone as powerful as Penguin would mean giving up the record store and her old life because once she was tied to him forever, she would have to consider the safety aspect because of his gangster reputation. He had enemies and as his wife, they would be her enemies, too... Then there was his dragon of a mother who hated the sight of her. Gertrude was a possessive, smothering old woman who didn't want to share her precious only son with anyone...

"Oswald," she said, "We need to slow down. Yes, I do have feelings for you and I want that to grow but we have to take things slowly. For one thing, I have the vinyl store, I love that business – and what about your mother? I don't think she likes me!"

Oswald smiled, love shining in his eyes as he laughed off her concerns.

"You can still run the business and as for my mother, she will love you with all of her heart when you give her a grandchild!"

What he had just said made sense. Eventually, if a child did come along, the old woman would have a baby to dote on – perhaps then she would be less obsessed with trying to run her son's life for him...

"That makes sense," she replied, "Yes, I think it could work."

Oswald wanted to kiss her but froze, smiling as he struggled to find the words to respond. Then he let go of her hand, reached for his cane and stiffly got up.

"I think we need something stronger than tea," he said, and headed over to the drinks cabinet on the other side of the room.

As she watched him rest his cane against the cabinet, then lean against it to steady his balance before he took out glasses and offered her wine, she raised a question that had been touched on in a previous conversation – to begin with, Oswald had been shy but now they had reached a point where she didn't feel the need to hold back on saying anything to him. Knowing of his intentions for the future only confirmed that nothing she could say would make him uneasy now.

"Isn't there anything you can do about your leg? Sometimes you seem in so much pain with it."

"I told you about that, Rose – Fish Mooney was a violent and controlling woman, but she was my way up to success. I fell out with her and she smashed up a chair and beat me with it. I got a few bad breaks, the bones wouldn't have set right anyway."

He grabbed the drinks, leaving his cane behind and hobbled back to the sofa, placing the glasses on the table then sitting beside her once more.

"I can manage without the cane, I'm not totally crippled."

"I didn't mean to say that you were -"

"Just leave it," he replied, his tone softening as he handed her a glass then raised his own, "To us," Oswald added, and their glasses touched.

Rose sipped her wine and their eyes locked. Oswald said nothing, waiting for her to make a move, or to say something. He needed her to take the lead, she understood that.

"Now might be a good time to ask you about Edward Nygma," she said, and he tensed up as he felt all building desire slowly drain away at the thought of the man who had put a bullet in him and left him to drown in the river.

"Ed is also a criminal known by the name Riddler. He used to be encased in ice at the club. I don't know where he is now, but he's a dangerous man and our friendship is dead. He's a psychopath."

Her eyes widened.

"Do you think he might try and hurt you again?"

Oswald leaned closer to her, needing to feel the heat of her body through the fabric of her dress, the feel of her breath on his face and the scent of her perfume was enough to drive away thoughts of rejection and pain and that bullet that slammed into him right before Ed let him fall into the icy water. Being close to Rose brought him closer to life, away from Ed and the pain of the past.

"He will never harm me again," he promised her, "And you have nothing to fear. I have a lot of protection around me. I'll always keep you safe, I swear to you nothing will ever happen as long as you are by my side – no enemy of mine will ever touch you, Rose!"

She was about to reply but he leaned in closer and their lips touched, silencing her as he kissed her, it was a hard, clumsy collision at first, then as she reached for him he pulled her close, crushing her hard against him as his tongue slid into her mouth and he smothered her with a bruising kiss. As she ran her fingers through his hair he broke off from their embrace, he was breathless and breaking into a sweat that made his spiked hair damp, his eyes were dark with desire but he had no intention of taking her virginity on a sofa.

"Not here, not like this," he said.

They both got up, she resisted the urge to help him as he leaned heavily on the armrest of the chair and moved stiffly because she didn't want to remind him of a weakness at a time when he needed to feel strong and capable. She knew he was nervous, so said nothing, waiting patiently by the door as he fetched his cane, then walked easier and much quicker as he hurried to join her.

"I'm taking you upstairs," he said in a voice made husky with desire as he paused in the doorway, leaning in close, their lips almost touching. Desire burned in his eyes as he took her by the hand and led her down the hallway and towards the staircase.

As his phone rang in his pocket, Oswald wanted to ignore it but the sound had cut through the moment and with his mind and body switched on to the woman he had finally taken in his arms, the ambitious part of his mind was cancelling out Rose as priority – few had his number, there could be a serious problem somewhere, a threat to all he had built up. He took out his phone and glanced at the number, shock registered briefly on his face as he recognised it: The caller was Ed...

"Oswald?"

Rose was standing there looking impatient, her face was flushed and she was breathing hard. He still wanted her, but she would have to wait. Ed was calling him. After all that had happened between them, Edward Nygma was contacting him...

"I need to take this call – it's business. I'm sorry, my dear. Go upstairs, wait for me in my room – it's the door at the far end of the upper hall... I'll deal with this as fast as I can."

He forced a smile and then she was gone up the stairs, then his smile faded and his chest felt tight and the warmth in his eyes vanished, turning his gaze a shade of Arctic blue.

"What do you want, Ed?" he said in a low voice as he walked away from the staircase.

Ed replied without hesitation.

"I heard you have a new...friend. I hope you're going to look after her, Oswald. I'd hate for anything to happen to her – I know how that feels."

He gripped the phone tightly.

"I tampered with the car to get rid of her, to get her out of my way! I did not deliberately kill Isabel!"

"Her name was Isabella!" Ed said angrily, "Even now, you can't get her name right! I wonder how Rose Reynolds would feel about you if she knew you killed my girlfriend!"

"Not deliberately," Oswald replied, keeping his voice low as he looked up the stairs to check Rose was not in sight, "I messed with her car. I didn't put my hands around her throat and choke her to death – like you did to Kristen! Rose won't believe you anyway, she knows you're crazy. I made sure of that!"

"You should be worried," Ed replied, "I can sleep for years yet stay awake, I lie in wait watching from the shadows, what am I?"

"Revenge," Oswald said quietly.

The call ended. He was still holding the phone as a cold feeling of dread swept over him. He had wanted to take that call even when he had known it was Ed, there was a piece of his heart that couldn't entirely hate him despite the bad blood between them. But the threat he had just made had chilled him to the bone. And Rose was calling to him. He shoved the phone back in his pocket and leaned heavily on his cane, making his way up the stairs, knowing it would be a real struggle to get back in the mood to make love, even after taking his courage in both hands and revealing his feelings to her. Ed had done his best to kill the mood for him, but he wasn't going to let him win. He limped up the stairway feeling every ache so much deeper in his bones, as if suddenly made weary by Ed Nygma's words.


"I'm sorry to keep you waiting," he said as he entered the bedroom.

Then Oswald stopped, leaning on his cane. The door swung shut behind him and he guessed he ought to lock it just in case his mother came back early, but he couldn't take his eyes off Rose. Her dress was off, she was on his bed and waiting for him in red silk underwear.

"Are you okay, Oswald?" she asked, her look of desire switching to one of concern as she noticed he was perspiring heavily and leaning harder than usual on his cane. His face was pale, too – noticeably more than usual.

"Sweetheart, is something wrong?"

"No, it was just business,"he said, pushing aside all thoughts of the call as he wished the chill would leave his bones, "And you look beautiful!"

Desire was taking over now as he reached the bed, then sat down and was finally able to let go of his cane. He froze as she reached for him, hit by insecurity and shyness, but then she kissed him softly and pulled him down on to the bed, as he ran his hands over her body. She was slowly undressing him and he didn't care any more, she could see old scars from knife fights and old bullet wounds, he didn't even care that she would see his damaged leg and shattered ankle.

He was shaking and overtaken with desire as they lay together on top of the covers, both naked, both breathless and kissing deeply. Suddenly Rose came up for air and looked into his eyes.

"I think I knew from the first moment," she told him, "It's like no one else was in the room – I looked into your eyes and I knew."

As he lay there looking up at the woman who was on top of him, looking down as her hair trailed his chest, he felt a sudden need to possess her as desire burned in his gaze, along with something cold and dominant as he grabbed her and turned her on to her back, positioning himself between her legs.

"And you have me, " he vowed, "You have me, Rose. You're all mine."

She gave a sharp cry as he thrust into her firmly, then he slowed down, guessing it was too late to be gentle as he took her for the first time and his movements were careful for a few moments, before he slammed against her more urgently, moving in and out of her as her body jerked with the force of each thrust. He was looking deeply into her eyes as he took her, then as a rush of pleasure shot through his body he buried himself hard into her, their bodies staying joined as she gasped for air and he throbbed inside her.

As he felt his body weaken once more, his grip on her became gentle and sweat ran down his face as his heart pounded and he felt a rushing glow spread through his body.

"Maybe we should have been more careful..." she said, looking slightly worried.

Oswald smiled warmly as his gaze sparkled.

"I do apologise, but it's your fault. I was so excited I lost all control! But I'm sure you'll be just fine, and if you're not, we'll just have to bring our plans forward, won't we?"

She opened her mouth to reply but he silenced her with a kiss.

"Let's cuddle up and sleep for a while," he said, pulling her down into his arms.


She slept shortly afterwards, warm in his embrace. Oswald waited until she was sleeping deeply then he got up, grabbed his phone from his pocket and went into the en suite bathroom, locked the door and called Victor Zsasz.

"Is there a problem, boss?" asked Victor.

Oswald smiled brightly as he looked into the bathroom mirror and paused to run his fingers through his messed up hair before giving his reply. As he spoke he felt elated. Rose was his, and was staying his, he would make sure of it...

"I want you to send a couple of guys over to my girlfriend's store and shoot the place up," he whispered.

"Why are you whispering?" Victor asked.

"Because I don't want her to know!"

"She's upset you?"

"No, on the contrary, I just want to make sure I'm her priority now. So send them over to the store, let them shoot the place to pieces – don't shoot the girl who works there, she's her friend, but it's okay to scare her... then I want you to go to Rose's apartment and turn the place over, make it look like a robbery and leave an obscene message."

"Like what?"

Oswald gave a sigh.

"Use your imagination! Just make it look like a rival of mine is targeting her."

"Okay, I'm on to it," Victor replied, then he ended the call.

Now Oswald felt a real sense of elation. He wasn't happy about destroying her business – but he had matters of his own to attend to, the matter of building a family, of taking a wife and fathering an heir to his empire, that was far more important than the little store that Rose owned. He saw this as a necessary evil, once the store was smashed up and she found out her apartment had been turned over, she would surely come to him for protection – then she would be where she needed to be, at his side at all times. This would move plans along much faster...Oswald had a crafty smile on his face as he left the bathroom, placed the phone on a table next to the window, and then got back in bed, embracing his lover, who he hoped would soon be pregnant with his child.


Oswald slept deeply wrapped in the arms of his future wife. So deeply that he didn't hear the window slide up, or wake to see Ed Nygma climb through. He stood there shadowed with the moon at his back as he watched Oswald sleeping with his arm draped around the Reynolds woman. He stepped closer to the bed, quietly unfolding his straight razor. Then as Rose turned over on her side, Oswald turned on his back and the creeping smile that was forming on Ed's face stopped, an odd moment had hit him that seemed like it was so unsolvable he couldn't even turn it into a riddle: As the moonlight had fallen on Oswald's sleeping face, he closed the blade and slipped it back into his jacket, as he felt both Nygma and the Riddler collide with a definite decision not to harm either of them...

"Not yet," Ed whispered, taking a look around the moonlit room.

It was then his gaze fell on a phone placed beside the window. He picked it up and took a quick look at it and then smiled. Perhaps this would be more fun, he decided... this was Oswald's phone. It would certainly be worth stealing to find out what was on it...

He slipped the phone back in his pocket, then climbed out of the open window, making his way downwards carefully. After robbing banks, even breaking into Oswald's home without getting caught was simple. He jumped a short distance to the ground below, then hurried off from the house, feeling a sense of victory mixed with impatience as he felt sure he would find something on his enemies phone that would prove useful...