I decided to stand by the building as I took out my phone. It was getting late and I hadn't seen Dad or heard from him in a while. As I took it out, I saw a reflection on the screen.
Slowly, I raised my head and suddenly a dark figure landed in front of me on his feet. The Batman. I screamed from the shock and dropped my phone. He leaned into my face and I shrunk down a bit. I was scared out of my mind.
"What's Crane working on? Tell me!"
He was shouting at me and I was panicking. "C-Crane? I..I don't know. He said he-"
"What is he working on? What's in his drugs?"
I held my hands up and tried not to sound shaky. "Look, I-I don't know what's going on, okay? I swear I just followed him here to make sure he didn't get hurt."
Suddenly, I remembered who I was talking to. This was just Bruce Wayne in a huge bat costume. I looked into his dark eyes as he glared at me. With a deep breath, I spoke up.
"Bruce Wayne. I know it's you. Please, I want to help. Jonathan is my friend."
He just stared. I had to say, he looked pretty fit. His dark cape, draped over his shoulder and made him look really cool.
"Alfred told me about you," he replied.
I blinked. "Oh. Right, yeah."
He still looked upset at me. Maybe it was just the mask. "You know Crane?"
I nodded. I was still pretty damm terrified.
"He's dangerous. You need to leave here now, understand?"
I grimaced. "Dangerous? But, what-"
He put his hand on my shoulder and roughly dragged my forward. I pushed his hand away and scoffed.
"Hey, wait. If he's in trouble, I want to-"
"You can't help him. He's-"
"No! I have to see him again. I know him. You have to trust me, please."
I wanted to slap myself. I felt like I was begging.
"You need to leave before you get hurt."
I folded my arms. "I can talk to him. I'm meeting him here tonight."
"He's poisoning people with a fear-inducinf toxin, Miss Gordon. He's not exactly one for talking."
My heart stopped. "What? A toxin?"
"Falcone and many others have been gassed and it causes them to have hallucinations and panic. The night you found me, I had been gassed."
His eyes popped into my mind. The mumblings, the heavy breathing.
"But...why would he do-"
"I don't know. But I've come here to find out."
"Wait, maybe I can help. I said I was-"
He grabbed my arm and spoke sternly. "I want you to go. It's not safe. I can't afford to risk your safety."
I stared into his eyes. "You need my help. He trusts me and wouldn't hurt me. I can get whatever information you need tonight. Just let me talk to him."
It took him a few seconds to reply, so I knew he was considering the idea. "I won't at you risk your life to do this."
I side-smiled. "I'm going to be a cop one day, Wayne. I'll be risking my life every day to help people. Tonight is no different."
He didn't seem convinced. I turned and walked away from him. When I looked back, he was gone. I hurried back inside the building to find Flacone's room. He was shaking and mumbling.
"Scarecrow..."
That's all he said. How could Jonathan do this? What if Wayne was wrong? Would I really spy on my friend because some billionaire in a cape told me he's a criminal mastermind?
A doctor walked past me and stopped. "Shame that is. He was going to be tried in court tomorrow, and now he can't make it because he's in here. I was looking forward to seeing him get the death penalty. One of his thugs mugged my husband last week. Nearly killed him."
I looked at her in sympathy. "I'm sorry. I'm sure your husband will get this justice he deserves."
She shook her head as she walked away. "I can only hope."
Falcone was going to be tried. But, now he's a mental case. Convenient. I narrowed my eyes at that. Before I could think another thought, Jonathan was walling in my direction. He smiled and put his hand on my back.
"Still watching him, huh? Hope you haven't been waiting long."
I smiled back. "No, it's okay. I was just wondering..."
"What is it?"
"Isn't it a bit...odd for a man with no mental illness, to speak of, to suddenly have a mental breakdown right before he's about to be tried?"
He was silent for a moment as he watched Falcone through the glass. "Well, perhaps, he had a lot to hide and his brain couldn't hack it."
Falcone continued mumbling. "Scarecrow...scarecrow..."
I grimaced and looked at Jonathan. "What's 'scarecrow'?"
"Patients can sometimes have memories of past phobias during a panic attack. In Mr. Falcone's case...he has a phobia of scarecrows."
"That's a bit...interesting. Of all things to be afraid of...spiders, the dark, dying..." I shrugged.
"Phobias are interesting within themselves."
He was smiling for some reason. He just wouldn't stop. "I want to know what drugs you out in him. Just to...take a look. My...dad has been seeing people with similar cases. Maybe something is spreading right under our noses?"
I tried to sound causual, but he looked at me like I had never seen him look at me before. Suspiciously. Cold.
A smile spread across his face. "I think it's time for you to see my work."
Well, that was easy.
He put his hand on my shoulder and started to lead me towards an elevator. I felt a weird feeling with his hand on my shoulder. I just went along, though. The elevator closed and down we went. They opened again and he led the way.
"Just follow me," he said.
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A/N: If it seems rushed, I apologize. I won't be getting my hands on a computer for a while so I wanted to get this story out there. I'll be updating faithfully, but things can get complicated. Anyway, hope you like it. GO BATMAN!
