Thanks for the reviews!

Guest: Here it is! :D

angellcakes23: Thank you! Appreciate it!

Phillipe363: Yeah, I like to think that Bruce did a pretty good job of housekeeping while Alfred was away, but slowly is beginning to realize that there's more to keeping house than just keeping things clean. Not sure yet when/how I'll transition Bruce to Batman, but I expect it to be quite different then the original versions.

A/N: This chapter is a little shorter than the others, but you get a glimpse of how the heist will be carried out, and Selina returns. Once again, would love to hear your thoughts, although you're definitely not obligated! Really appreciate those who took the time to review and leave their thoughts.

Enjoy!


CHAPTER 4:

"Wow. Nice work, Bruce," Gordon said, clearly impressed.

"Thanks." Bruce gave a thin-lipped smile.

James Gordon and two police officers, Detective Caleb Maters and Officer Miles Conway, sat in the living room of Wayne Manor. They had arranged to convene at the luxurious home to discuss details of Bruce's meeting the previous day.

Sun streamed in from behind the open curtains and the sound of a lawn mower cut through the momentary silence. Bruce had been standing as they listened to the recording, but now that it was over, he sat down on an armchair across from the others, looking inquiringly at Gordon.

"He was a bit all over the place," Bruce said. "I tried to keep the conversation targeted as best as I could."

Gordon nodded, brows furrowed in thought. "No, you did an excellent job with that."

Officer Conway, a younger man in his mid-twenties, stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Do we have a timeline of this though? Didn't seem like he was following a sequential order."

Bruce tossed the notepad he'd been holding on the coffee table in front of them. "Yes. I went through the recording a couple times, this is what I pulled out of it."

Gordon picked up the pad, scanning it briefly. "Yeah. This looks about right. They have one guy going in through the kitchen entrance bringing their equipment, so they won't set off the metal detectors in the main entrance. Tag gets his tools and disables the alarms on the necklace display case. Then they've got another guy who will hit the main breaker and cut the power, so all lights go off."

"Brilliant." Conway whistled. "The gala starts at 7:30, after nightfall, and the display room has no windows – it's in the center of the museum - so if they cut the lights, it'll be almost impossible to see."

"Bastards," Detective Maters growled. He was an older, slightly heavyset man with graying hair. Bruce didn't know him well but had seen him around on occasion. Maters gave off the impression that something was always irritating him, and had a gruff manner about him.

Gordon gave a tight smile and continued. "So one of their guys breaks into the display case while the lights are off and gets the necklace."

"They're not sure yet how they'll get it out," Bruce said. "They were thinking of using the kitchen entrance, but don't want to be carrying the necklace around in the open. And Tag said there was a concern security will be tighter once the lights are off."

"Well, they're right," Conway grinned.

"They also plan on having a guy parked outside in a getaway car," Bruce reminded them. "We need to get him too."

Gordon nodded. "Yeah, we'll have to think about the best way to do this. We could arrest them as each one enters, but I'm worried they'll catch wind and disappear before we get them all."

"We could get a bunch of cops in place after the lights go off, and just arrest the whole lot of them at once," Conway suggested. "That'll be a surprise for them."

Gordon considered this. "Unless we can get the lights back on right away, I'm not sure I fancy our chances. We can bring flashlights, but still, I'd prefer to work in the light."

"We could have a cop or two get the guy in the car and stake it out," Bruce suggested. "So, as each guy leaves the hall and gets in the car, officers can arrest them one-by-one."

"Interesting," Gordon said, thinking about it. "An added benefit with that is it'll be in the parking lot, away from civilians. Interesting," he repeated, voicing his thoughts out loud. "I don't want that necklace getting out of the building, or preferably, into anyone's hands at all. We'll see if we can get a replica made or something."

Maters nodded. "We'll weigh our options and see what works best. But there are still more details to sort out. Like the kid said, we don't know how they plan on getting the necklace out the building."

Bruce didn't say anything. He was sure Detective Maters didn't mean it in a condescending way. That's just how he saw Bruce, as a younger person - a kid.

"Bruce, you'll stay in touch with Tag?" Gordon asked. "We want to know of any changes, no matter how small, or unimportant he might think they are." He paused, then added, "Great job so far. This information is very thorough."

"Thank you," Bruce said. "I read the handbook on interrogation you recommended."

Gordon grinned. "All 769 pages?"

Bruce nodded.

"Long book, but it's got some interesting things in…" Gordon's voice trailed off and he frowned.

Bruce followed his gaze to the living room entrance and realized that Selina Kyle was walking past the doorway. She paused, noticing them for the first time, and froze, expression almost guilty. She appeared surprised to see them all sitting in the living room - about as surprised as they were to see her standing there.

Selina recovered quickly, eyeing them suspiciously, gaze finally resting on Bruce. "I thought you were going to be at the police station," she said, almost as an accusation.

"Well, we're not." Bruce said slowly. "We're here." Before he could ask what she was doing there, in his house, she spoke.

"I'm looking for Alfred," she said. "I'm missing some of my medical papers and I thought he might have them…"

"He's in the kitchen," Bruce said stiffly.

"Right. Well, don't let me interrupt you. I'll find him." Selina turned resolutely and continued past the doorway, a limp in her step.

A silence settled over the men in the room. Bruce resisted the urge to follow, to ask Selina why she felt so entitled to walk freely into his home after her behavior two nights ago.

Gordon was peering at Bruce, expression confused, apparently trying to work out what had just happened. He had not told Gordon of his fall-out with Selina; there had been no reason to. He had just said that she was doing well.

"Don't you lock your doors?" Maters asked gruffly.

"He did," Conway said. "When we came in. I saw him lock it."

"Yeah, well, Selina has a thing for getting in to places she shouldn't," Gordon said, gaze still on Bruce. "I'm just surprised she came in through the front door instead of a window."

"Yeah, well, she can't walk properly," Bruce said, purposely not meeting Gordon's eyes.

Gordon stared at Bruce another moment, then, seeming to come out of a reverie, he shook his head. "We should probably get going," he said, picking up some files resting on the coffee table. "Bruce, keep us updated, I hope you and Tag will meet up again later this week. The gala is only three weeks away. Oh, and we want to head to the museum tomorrow to get a better idea of the layout. Would you like to come?"

"Sure," Bruce said quickly. "What time?"

"11 AM. You'll come a little before that? We don't want anyone to see us arriving together."

"Of course," Bruce said.

He walked the officers out, down the hall and to the front door where he bade them good-bye. Gordon paused mid-hand shake and said quietly, so only Bruce could hear, "I couldn't imagine going through something like that," he said, nodding his head in the direction of the hall behind Bruce, clearly talking about Selina. "You know, not being able to walk and then all that therapy. It probably hasn't been easy on her."

"Thanks, Gordon. I'll keep that in mind."

Gordon shook his head, smiling, apparently not sure how to take Bruce's statement. "See you tomorrow, Bruce."

He nodded, standing on the front porch, and watched the officers get in their car, start the engine and pull away. He stood there a moment longer, contemplating, before deciding what he was going to do. He turned, pulling the front door open, and stepped inside. He came face-to-face with Selina, on her way out. In her hand she carried a folder of papers bearing the St. Joseph's Hospital stamp. They stared at one another for a moment.

"I'm just leaving," she said, trying to step past him.

"Selina," Bruce said. "I'm sorry about the other night. I don't know how things escalated like that."

"Don't you?" She asked coolly.

"Well, I'm sure it had a lot to do with a misunderstanding, because I had no intention of hurting you with that conversation."

"I don't have time for this, Bruce," Selina tried stepping past him once more, but he blocked her way.

"I just wanted to apologize and see if we could start over."

"No. We can't." She said shortly, and he finally moved out of the way. "Bye, Bruce." Selina said, and stepped out of the front door.

There, Bruce thought. No one can say I didn't try to make things right. If she doesn't want to accept an apology, then it's on her now, if she wants to fix it. He turned and made his way down the hall, emotions somewhere between resentment and righteous annoyance. Well, he thought bitterly, at least she didn't slam the door on her way out.


I know this chapter didn't end on the best note for these two, but it will get better. I just can't promise it will stay better, because they are Bruce and Selina. All in due time... :D