A/N: Go on, cut me into little pieces and burn them. Then pour the ashes into the sea so they will never be one again to write this.

Also I love cliffhangers. They're the best. I hate them when I'm the reader, but I just love them when I'm the writer and the only one that knows what's going to happen and how things are.

Well in this case it's pretty straight forward, thus no real cliffhanger. Everything is as it is described, even though it is in first-person. There isn't a single lie or misconception in the end. Only a false assumption that is immediately identified by the reader.

Sorry, but this FF ist shorter than you thought.

When you're a villain you can't have attachments.

-

Robin's POV

„It's like they're mocking us", I hit the table. The ransom demand had been send. 6 million dollar. The infuriating part was, the message had been shot in exactly the same location as the first one. The same old factory. The same room. The same goddamn chair I had kicked. „Be calm, Robin. At least we know she is still alive and we will catch them when the handing over takes place", Starfire covered my clenched fist with her hand to reassure me.

„It's just... It felt like we almost had them. When we rushed in there it really felt like we would encounter them in flagranti. But then they weren't there. They slipped through our fingers just like that. And then they made fun of us even further by returning there, without setting off any of the alarms we placed there in case they came back.

We had nothing.

Nothing to go by.

I sighed again and looked at the clock. Two hours and five minutes until the handover. I had said we would leave two hours early and then search the vicinity. I couldn't wait anymore.

Five minutes or not.

„Starfire, let's go", I stood up and pressed the yellow alert button. It was specifically for occasions like this. It meant: „The plan commences now." aka „Teen Titans, go!"

It was two minutes later that we all were on our way to the pier. That was cliché, but for a reason. There were many unused barracks there and many hiding places. Perfect for an ambush.

Perfect for a handover. I tortured by bike by going even faster. I had seen both videos. I had seen her face. How she had looked like. Although there had been something odd about the messages they were enough to make me want to kill the kidnappers. Whatever they had done to her to make her look like that, they deserved to be punished.

But I reminded myself not to think like that. If I let my anger control me I wouldn't be any better than them. After all, I wasn't a vigilante, I was a Titan. They would be punished but not by me. The police would take care of them, they would be put on trial by an incorruptable judge. They would be detained, maybe even for life.

From Bruce I had learned that anger ans revenge was not only wrong but also dangerous. It clouded your mind. It was like a heavy backpack that you were carrying around with you. Only slowing you down and getting rid of it is the best option.

I had to think clear now. An analysis of them would be the best. After all I had more than enough material and loads of experience.

From the style of both the kidnapping itself and the videos they had to be at least three, probably very aggressive and with masks. Guns had to be in it, too or there would be more cuts in the videos. She would have tried to send a message if there was no gun pointed to her head. They also were clever strategists to evade me like that and not set off any alarm while getting Hailey. We were facing very skilled people here. And very ruthless people, too. He had no clue as to who they might be whatsoever. They were too good.

Beastboy had said he knew the scents from somewhere, but couldn't remember where and that there had been only two besides Hailey Morrison. So the third hadn't been in there. Kidnappers on that level always worked in groups of three. A brain, a sneaker and a brute.

It was a risk that we were involved. The girl had been punished for it, I had seen the bruise on her cheek. But otherwise she might get killed as soon as they had their money.

So us being involved was the lesser of two evils.

I was there. I hid my vehicle in an empty storage house and under a black cover. I heard sniffing, that had to be Beastboy. I trusted Raven was already scanning the area, too with her powers. And Cyborg was checking and recalibrating his sensors. And I was pretty much useless right now. I couldn't locate them in any way.

I sighed and raised my hands for Starfire to pick me up. She had already made her way to me and now grabbed my hands. We quickly flew to the nearest building with a hiding place on it. „Have you seen anything from above?", I asked her. „No, I have been unable to detect any sign of them", she said. „Well, I guess we better keep watching, so we'll see them when they arrive", I gestured at the nightsky.

What I didn't expect her to do was grabbind me around the waist and taking off with me.

That was, indeed, a surprise. But it made me feel more useful for the moment, I hated sitting around. But sometimes you couldn't do anything. In this case, we shared a duty. We waited for one and more than a half hour before something happened. And the thing that happened wasn't even very special. Robert Morrison arrived in his Rolls Royce, with a silver suitcase in his right hand. He looked extremely nervous. Close to a breakdown, or collapsing.

I had almost forgotten he would come. I looked at my watch.

Ten minutes to the handover.

I motioned Star to put me down again. She obligued and soon I was on the ground again.

Mr. Morrison came over to the dark corner, when I waved him over to me. „The only thing we know is that they've been here about twelve hours ago. As it seems they haven't arrived yet", I told him. Beastboy had found that scent again.

Five minutes to the handover.

„I see. I just hope she is safe. I couldn't stand it if she-", he broke off. I placed my hand on his shoulder. „I understand", I said. I had been broken when my parents were killed. My life had been empty and meaningless. But Bruce had been there for me. He had pulled me up again.

I didn't want this man to go through the same thing.

Four minutes to the handover.

The security cameras of the pier were still operational. I had made sure about that. I wanted to catch whoever did this. I moved back to the roof from earlie, it was a good place.

Three minutes to the handover.

All lights went out. It was almost completely dark. My eyes took some time to get used to it.

Two minutes to the handover.

Mr. Morrison stuffed a little piece of paper into his pocket. I didn't know what it was, but I didn't need to either. He walked over to another shadowy place between two buildings. „Where are you going?", I asked but of course he couldn't hear me, as I had spoken to myself.

One minute to the handover.

He entered the shadows so now I could no longer see him.

The time of the handover had come.

And nobody was there! There hadn't been any instructions on what to do once he was at the pier. Just that he should bring the money. The lights went on again. I heard noises from the „valley" where Robert had went. I jumped down the low roof of the barrack and approached with caution. And when he stepped out of the dark I couldn't believe my eyes.

His daughter was with him! The handover had taken place in that dark corner. But how had he known to go there? He couldn't have seen any more than I did in that place. When had they told him to go there? Hailey was smiling and clinging to her father's arm. She didn't look afraid, that was odd. But I didn't have time to think about it.

Just when they had reached a wide-open space between the buildings Robert was shot in the forehead. He collapsed immediately. „Father!", Hailey shouted, truly afraid now. Out of the corner of my eye I thought I saw something on one of the roofs, but when I turned it was gone.

Another shot, this time from the opposite direction. It hit the girl in the guts. I could see the red liquid under her hand which she had pressed on the wound. She looked shocked and surprised when she fell to her knees.

I ran towards them.

Three persons. Two snipers and one to make the handover. Why hadn't I seen it earlier?

Raven rushed towards them, too.

We would be too late.

I had failed