"Alfred, are you there?"

"Yes, of course. Everything alright, Master Wayne?" Alfred spoke back through their communications system.

The Dark Knight groaned and picked himself up off the floor. He had no idea how he had ended up back in the abandoned apartment building, but he climbed out the broken window and onto the nearest rooftop. Flecks of morning light had just started to make their way over the horizon.

"I'm alright, Alfred. I just had a little run in with a new strain of fear toxin. I'm sending you a blood sample so we can generate an antidote."

The rain from earlier continued to fall as the caped crusader waited for Alfred to receive the sample.

"Sir, there's nothing here. Your blood is clean."

"That's impossible. I was only hit with the fear toxin two hours ago."

"I'm sorry sir, but it's true. There are no trace amounts of whatever Dr. Crane has given you this time. Were you at least able to apprehend him?"

"He got away," There was an aggravated tone to his voice that didn't go unnoticed. "Someone intervened; it's a good thing too. I almost lost it today, Alfred. It took a taser to snap me out of it." There was guilt and regret in Bruce's voice. Things for him hadn't been the same since Arkham City. He was mourning his losses.

Alfred truly felt bad for him, but there was still a dangerous criminal on the loose and they could leave no stone unturned. "Who attacked you?"

"I'm not sure. I didn't get a good look at them. I think it was a woman, though. She must have dragged him off somewhere."

"May I suggest setting up a crime scene then?"

Batman turned the detective vision on in his cowl and looked down into the alley for any clues. "It's no use. The rain has washed away any trace of where they might have gone. I'm heading back to the Batcave. No reason to lingering here any longer."

"Very well, Master Bruce."

000

Angela woke up late in the afternoon after having passed out from complete exhaustion. She had spent several hours stitching and bandaging the wounds of her unexpected guest. The last thing she was sure to do was tie one of his wrists to a leg of her coffee table with some cloth she ripped from his shirt. It wouldn't keep him in place if he were to wake up, but she hoped it would at least give her a bit of warning and time to defend herself should anything happen. To be quite honest, it was more to give her peace of mind than anything else.

It wasn't likely that he would be waking up anytime soon with all the pain medication she had given him. Even if he were to wake up it was going to be nearly impossible for him to move with all the injuries he had received.

All these factors granted Angela enough reasons to reel down from her adrenaline rush and get some much needed sleep. When she got up she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and rustled her tangled hair. She grabbed her towel before heading to the bathroom. As she stepped out into the main room she looked to the couch.

"Shit," She grumbled as she continued her way into the bathroom. "Why couldn't it have been a dream?"

She set the water to a steamy temperature before undressing and getting in. she allowed the water to wash over her hair and rested her head against the cool tiles. The hints of a head ache had already started to creep up the back of her neck and her day had barely just started.

She took her time freshening up for the day. She had a lot to think about, after all. For starters, what was she going to do about this guy passed out on her couch while she worked her shift at My Alibi. There was no way she was going to be able to call out. Grocery shopping day was coming up and she wasn't going to force herself to eat leftovers and bread for the next few days. Not again.

She stepped out of the bathroom and headed to her room to get dressed and study before she had to get ready for her shift. Usually she would sit on her couch because the space in the living room helped her focus. That option wasn't really available to her at the moment, and so her mind kept wandering and she was hardly able to retain any of the information she had spent hours reading.

Thought the day her guest had not stirred even once. She went into the main room several times to check that he was still breathing. At around 8 p.m. she changed into her uniform and headed into the main room. She nudged the thin man on her couch several times and even prodded the purpling bruise on the left side of his face; just to be sure he wouldn't wake. Satisfied that she had drugged him up enough to keep him knocked out until her shift was over, she headed out the door and made her way to the club.

Her only reassurance was that she had nothing of significant value in her apartment besides her laptop and she had taken his weapons with her to work just in case.

Angela was actually happy to be back at work. It gave her a sense of normality that she would have usually sought out in her apartment. Today she was working a short shift – 8:30 to 12 a.m. – which she was grateful for. She didn't want to leave some stranger in her house alone for longer than she needed to.

As soon as the doors opened at 9 the customers were lined up outside and ready to have a good time. Business was booming as it always was on a Saturday night and that meant lots of tables and lots of tips. Despite hating the customers that came in, Angela loved working Saturday nights. The show girls always had spectacular numbers throughout the night and there was even a live band that would come in sometimes. The atmosphere was buzzing and the music was rhythmic, she couldn't help swaying her hips as she stood at the bar and waited for Don to fill her orders.

"Better watch out, Med School. All that swaying is gonna get you some unwanted attention if you don't cool it." Don chuckled as he looked over her shoulder to a group that was indeed enjoying the view. "Or maybe it'll just get you a nice tip."

Angela looked over her shoulder to give the offending group a glare. Her stern look hardly did anything to deter them but most of them turned their attention back to the girls on the main stage. Angela huffed and turned back to Don. "Whatever, I want to enjoy the music tonight, let them stare. As long as they keep their hands off I'm happy."

"Had a rough time since I last saw you or something?" He asked as he set her drinks on the serving tray.

"You have no idea." She headed towards her table and worked on trying to stay calm before having to head home. She had a fairly good night, only having to put one or two customers back in their place. Most of them were too busy paying attention to the show girls to give the servers any of their attentions, though she was still able to catch enough attention to bring a huge tip home tonight.

She bussed her last few tables and headed into the dressing room to change into her jeans and clock out for the night. As she was pulling her jeans over her tights she looked over to where Stephanie was fixing her makeup for her next number. Hanging out of a props box near Steph was a pair of fuzzy black cuffs.

A light bulb went off in Angela's head and she walked over to Stephanie's makeup table and grabbed the cuffs out of the box. "Are you gonna need these tonight?"

Steph paused to look at what Angela was holding and gave the woman a sly grin. "Got plans for a special someone tonight, Angie?"

Angela tried her best not to cringe. How exactly was she going to explain this one. If she said yes, she was bound to come off as a sex crazed maniac. If she said no, well that would just look suspicious. "Yes," she said a completely blank look on her face.

Stephanie was shocked into silence for a moment before her smile came back. "Well alright then, Med School. Go get 'um," She said as she reached into her vanity drawer to pass her the keys. "Give him a few spanks for me," Steph gave Angela a wink as she handed her the key.

"Yeah, whatever," Angela turned and stuffed the set into her coat pocket and headed out for the night.

As she walked she did her usual ritual of stuffing her hands in her pockets and keeping her hand wrapped around her taser. "Please let this be a normal walk home," she sighed as she rounded the first corner toward her house.

By the time she made it to her building her heart was pounding. She was extremely nervous about what she might find in her apartment. Would he be awake? Was he going to be a threat? What if the Batman had already found out where she lived and was waiting to take her into the G.C.P.D. the moment she stepped into her apartment?

"Alright," She sighed as she approached her door. She turned her key in the lock and let the door swing open before looking in from the hall. She learned a long time ago how to check corners before stepping fully into a room where there might be a threat. She took a cautious step into the room and leaned forward to check the couch.

She gave a sigh of relief and walked in to disable her security system. Her guest was still passed out on the couch. For a brief moment she wondered if she might have overdosed him on pain killers but was relieved when she got closer and could hear his wheezing breaths. She quietly hung up her coat and pulled the cuffs out of her coat pocket.

Angela prodded the man on the couch, just to be cautious. He didn't stir at all so she moved to put the cuff around his wrist and around the leg of her coffee table. He wouldn't be able to get free without breaking the leg off the table since there was a beam intersecting between each of the legs. Admittedly, it still wasn't the best form of security- and visions of this stranger staking her with her coffee table leg while she slept passed through her mind- but it would have to do for now.

Satisfied that she would be safe for now, she headed into the bathroom to shower and change into pajamas for the night. As she was reheating some leftovers she heard a rustling and then a low coughing.

"Crap." She had a lot of explaining to do.

AN: Okay. So this chapter was tough to write because I'm really trying not to rush into things. I want the flow to be natural. Also, sorry for leaving off on a bit of a cliff-hanger.

Other than that I just really want to say thank you for the reviews! The advice I got was extremely helpful. As far as chapters go I honestly have no clue how many I want to write, but I am very dedicated to my story and I know where I want to take it. It's going to be fairly lengthy if I can help it.

Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and as always, reviews are much appreciated.