This is an important chapter, as it does move the story on a little.
Chapter 6 - Getaway!
"Dad?"
I peered through dad's bedroom door. He was lying face down on his bed, his covers carelessly hanging over onto the floor. His head was under his pillow, and he tightly gripped his pillow over his head with his hands and his body was completely stiff. The side lampshade was dimly lit, enlarging his shadow on the wardrobe.
"Dad?" I whispered again as I looked through the gap in his door. He stirred slightly, but he remained silent. I thought I should leave him, but I was determined to prove my mind wasn't playing tricks. I tiptoed into the room and stood beside his bed, silently stepping over the covers on the floor. Dad kept his face hidden, not making a sound. "Daddy?" I said, nudging his shoulder slightly.
Then I heard him sigh quietly.
"What is it?" he asked, his voice muffled under the pillow.
"Did you hear a…uh…"
"What?"
"Did you hear, like a, faint bang just then?"
Dad then removed his face from under the pillow, curiously looking at me.
"Well, I can barely hear anything under here, darlin'," he chuckled.
"Dad, I'm serious."
He paused, as he nervously rubbed his face, before putting his hand closed over his mouth. He stared at my serious face for a while.
"Are you sure it's not just…you know…" Dad whispered, removing his hand from his mouth.
"It's not my head!" I yelled.
"Alright, alright, calm down…" Dad said calmly, sitting up.
"I promise I heard something!" I cried.
Dad continued to stare at me. "An explosion?" he asked.
"Yes, I heard it, it was far away…" I replied, nodding my head.
"Ahh, it was probably Harleen blowing something up," Dad said, smiling. "Unless it was a gunshot, but…it can't have been. She didn't have a gun…Not that I saw..."
"Blowing something up?"
"Yeah, she's like that."
I paused. "Dad…who is that Harleen lady?"
Dad's smiled faded and he started to fidget. His eyes nervously looked around the room before coming back to me, who looked at him, questionably.
"She's, uh…she's a friend," he finally said.
"A friend?" I sounded shocked.
"Yeah…yeah…"
"How does she know mom, though?"
Dad sighed heavily, before gently taking my hand. His weary eyes looked straight into mine.
"Do you really wish to know?" he asked.
"Yeah…"
"Okay. I was going to tell when…when you were older, but…maybe you do need to know…I'll tell you tomorrow when we have some time alone, huh? Your mother's going to be raving mad tomorrow…"
"She hasn't even come home…"
"Ahh, don't worry, Shay, she'll be…she'll be home. When Harleen starts talking, she can't stop. She's probably gotcha mother tied down listening to her."
Dad started giggling quietly, looking downwards, shyly.
"Dad?" I said.
He coughed loudly, making me jump and he let go of my hand, before getting himself comfortable again.
"Right, young lady, to bed," he said. "You need sleep. I'm locking this door, no way am I letting your mother in here tonight. If you hear her raging around, just ignore her. She's not worth it."
He slumped his head back on his pillow and turned his face away again.
I don't know what came over me, but I suddenly leaned down, and very gently kissed his cheek.
"Goodnight, dad," I whispered.
He didn't say anything as I walked out, but just before I shut the door, I glanced over at him and saw he was smiling, making me do just the same. I couldn't believe I did that.
That night, I curled myself in my bed and starting dreaming up ideas about who this Harleen was. I thought back to her funny high-pitched voice and the annoying remarks she made at dad. Even a ten year old like me could make the obvious conclusion she was crazy. I thought dad was crazy even at that time, but he was normal compared to her. Although their laughter seemed so harmonious, it almost sounded the same. Maybe she was copying him, maybe she wanted to be like him and that's why she beat up the cop for him.
At least I didn't have to think about her for that long. I fell asleep within minutes.
I was hoping to get a well-deserved lie in the next morning, but things can never go my way, can they?
At around 9am, I was woken up by dad banging deafeningly on my door, waking me immediately.
"Shaylee?" he called. His voice was filled with worry.
I sat up, ruffling my hair as I did so. "Yes…?" I moaned.
"Are you up?"
"I am now."
"Get up! Come in the sitting room right now! There's something…." His voice trailed off. I could hear his shaky sighs, making me alert.
"Okay, I'm coming. What's wrong?" I said.
"Just…just…just come with me, please."
I threw my covers to one side and got out of bed. Dad wasn't there when I stepped out of my bedroom, rubbing my eyes. I peered through the wide-open kitchen door, to look for mom, but there was no sign of her. I crept into their bedroom to find her, but she was still nowhere to be seen.
I started to panic.
That's when I finally rushed into the sitting room, where dad was surprisingly sat directly in front of the television, gazing at the screen in front of him, still in his pyjamas and his hair frizzy in front of his face. I stood stiff in the doorway. He didn't look at me.
Gotham News was on the TV, but I was so shocked by dad weirdly sat there, that I didn't catch what was on the news.
Finally, I managed to stutter, "D-Dad?"
He didn't move.
"Dad?" I said again. My heart began to pound. "Dad what's wrong?"
Then he sighed quietly and closed his eyes.
"Come sit down," he said, blankly.
I wasn't going to question him, so I immediately sat next to him. His eyes were still glued to the TV, and he began to look very worried.
"Dad, is everything okay?" I asked, quietly. "What's going-?"
"Shhh," he said, softly. "Just watch. It's the second item up."
I looked at the News on the TV, where they proceeded to talk about something totally boring. I kept making worried glances at dad, who didn't move a muscle. He didn't utter a word to me.
Then the second item came up, so I paid close attention. It was obviously very important if dad had woken me up just to watch it. I felt my hands becoming sweaty as I wiped them on my t-shirt. Dad still didn't move.
The story began.
"A woman has been found dead at a scene of crime in Gotham Town, following a robbery at a jewellery store."
My heart stopped.
"The woman, who has been identified as Diana Jane Jenson, was witnessed being shot dead by Harleen Frances Quinzel by the police, and afterwards she attempted to blow up the store. Quinzel was later arrested. Police are still investigating Quinzel's motivation and her prison sentence is yet to be confirmed. The robbery at Goldie's Jewels in Gotham Town took place last night, where two men were arrested and one other escaped after threatening Officer Matthew Grayson with a gun. More information about the scene is yet to confirmed, however, it is known that Quinzel was working with the three men and she confessed to be an acquaintance of the victim Diana Jenson. As of now, the police are searching for the getaway man, who was later identified as Jack Napier."
My heart sunk like a ton of bricks.
"Oh my God…" my trembling voice whispered.
I put my quivering finger to my mouth, making my tongue bleed as I desperately tried not to cry.
Dad sat there wide-eyed and slightly open-mouthed. Dad finally glanced at me.
"Shaylee…" he whispered, his voice shaking horribly.
I started panting uncontrollably and I could feel that horrible pain inside of me, so I quickly covered my eyes. I shut them tightly, biting my lips harder.
Mom. Oh, mom.
I felt dad grab my arm. "Shaylee..." he said again, as he forcefully moved it away from my face.
I didn't want to look at him.
"Look at me," he said, harshly.
Very tensely, I lifted my head up to look at him. He lifted my chin up and used that familiar serious tone again.
"Listen to me, Shay," he instructed. "Listen. Now, don't cry, don't cry…come on…I know, I know, it's…it's a bit of a shock, but listen…this is what you're going to do. Go to your room, grab your suitcase, and get your stuff together."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "What? Dad, why…?" I whimpered.
"Shh-hh-hh…just do as I say, right? Look, there's only one way we can get through this." He paused, looking at me expectantly. "Go on."
I shot out of the room and immediately did as I was told. God knows what dad was planning to do, but I was too scared to question him. It was rare I used my suitcase because we never ever went away.
I pulled it out from under my bed and starting rushing to pack my things, constantly putting my hands to my head and panting hard. My mind was banging furiously, making me untidily pack my belongings. I gathered all of the things I loved as well as clothes, like my special pens and paper. I also got dressed but I was in such a state that I didn't bother making myself look half decent.
Once I'd gotten everything, I unzipped my case and I sat on my bed, in complete silence. I didn't listen out for anything. I didn't need to. There were too many noises yelling in my head already. Dad and Harleen's hysterical laughter from the previous evening kept replaying in my mind, the noise increasing more and more and more. It was overshadowed quickly by mom's voice, followed by a deafening gunshot and then mom's familiar yelling I was so used to, the shrill scream and her nagging and shouting and shouting and shouting and…
"Shut up! Shut up, mom! SHUT UP! You're not even here anymore! Get lost!"
It got louder and louder until I had to cover my ears and squeeze my eyes shut. I fell onto my knees on my bedroom floor, my hands tightly gripping my head.
Block out the sound, Shaylee. Fight back. It'll drown it out.
"Please! Just shut up! Mom!"
It was so thunderous in my mind and my piercing screams were racking the walls so much, I didn't hear my bedroom door being kicked down by dad.
The next thing I remember was fluttering my eyes open to see dad looking down on me. My eyes were filled with tears. I was laying on dad's lap in the middle of my bedroom floor. My head was still racking slightly, making me yell out loud a couple of times, but dad shushed me and softly stroked my hair to keep my calm. By his side was his own small backpack, and he was dressed in one of those purple suits with a green checked tie.
"Dad? Dad, what happened to me?!" I shouted, as I clung onto him.
"You just had a little breakdown, honey," Dad whispered. "It's okay. I'm here."
"Oh, dad. Daddy, why? Dad…dad why won't they stop?" I screamed, as the tears continued to roll down my cheeks. Dad gently wiped them away with his freezing cold hands.
"Shhh, Shaylee, it's okay," he whispered, soothingly. "Don't listen to any of them. They're not real. It's all in your head."
"Dad, they won't….they won't…"
I sobbed into his arms and he held me close to his chest.
"Baby, I know it's horrible," he said, gently. "You think I haven't had the same problem?" He rested his head on mine. "The voices…they're not real, they're just the most evil thing you could possibly get, there to make your life a misery. And people say I'm scum? They don't know what it's like…to have voices…I tell ya, Shaylee, if only they knew…you're a little girl going through the worst thing in the world, and I mean that. This is much worse than you getting bullied or you failing your grades. You're only ten years old. They have no idea. They can do nothing." He sighed. "Come on, now, princess…it's all okay now, hmm?" I sniffled as I nervously wrapped my arms around my father. We stayed there for a couple of minutes as the voices faded away, one by one. I eventually looked up at dad, who stroked my cheek as he smiled at me, proudly. "Better now, darlin'?" he asked. I nodded as I wiped another tear away. I sighed heavily as I calmed myself down. "Okay," Dad said. "You have everything ready?" It had slipped my mind that I'd packed a suitcase. I stood up and whirled around, gripping the suitcase and nearly falling over. "Hey, hey, hey, take it easy…" Dad said, holding my shoulders. "Calm down, now."
I sighed again as put my left hand on my head.
"Dad, where are we going?" I asked quietly, not looking at him.
"To the city," he replied, simply.
I shot my head up at him. "Why?"
"Well…" Dad lifted my chin up again, as his voice became more serious, making me pay attention. "You heard the news, didn't you? I…I don't really know what to think. Most of it is probably bullshit. Harleen would've been arrested, yeah, but…"
"So you don't think mom's dead?" I asked.
"Well…yeah, she…she probably is. They…they say they're 'investigating' her motivation? Bullshit. They know that she works with me…"
"What?"
"Yeah, yeah…you see, we've worked together a lot...one time…we were in the city, and we got caught mugging this guy…"
"Mugging?"
"Stealing something from this guy, basically, Shay, yeah? And I got away, and poor Harleen, she was caught, but she claimed I forced her to do it. I never did. That got us both into trouble. Mind you, this was quite a while ago…when you were about four, honey. So anyway…we both got arrested but managed to get away with it…it's a long story why. It doesn't matter, does it? Anyway, they know we work together, she's a little idiot and she always falls for helping me. She's even said to the cops she does all this stuff to please me…Personally, I just think she's crazy. Last night she was a little crazier than usual. She probably did shoot your mom, but…our plan was never to blow up the place. That proves just how mad she's turning out to be. Anyway…they're coming for me…they didn't even mention you were at the scene and that's…that's good, I guess, but, as soon as they find me, they'll take you away. I'm not having that. My job is to protect and provide for you, isn't it, Shaylee?"
"Y-Yes."
"Yes. They're not taking you away from me. If you were, all hell would be let loose. God knows what I'd turn into…"
"Daddy, I wouldn't let them take me away from you…"
"I know you wouldn't, because you're daddy's big tough girl, aren't you?" He winked at me. "But I can't risk it. But really, now the police are looking for me…they know me. And they know I have you, and now Diana…"
Dad's voice trailed off as he sighed, shakily and glanced away from me. He looked like he was about to start crying.
"Daddy?" I said, as I reassuringly held his arm. He looked at me, smiling gratefully.
"Look, I just know, honey. They don't let people like me keep a child as young as you. Especially now I'm…" He paused for a while as he glanced upwards. "Now I'm on my own. So, we're going to the City for a little while, to protect ourselves. Until they give up their little search party. There's this place I know, a friend owns it, he'll let us stay there for a while. I'm not letting them find us, Shaylee. You're staying with me, I swear to you. When I feel it's safe to come back to the flat, we'll come back, okay?"
"Okay," I said, bravely.
"That's my girl," he said, as he kissed my forehead.
I smiled widely. I loved it when a rare moment like that happened.
Dad flung his bag over his shoulder and ventured into the hallway, where I followed him, dragging my suitcase behind me. He paced up and down the room for ages, ruffling his hair and shuffling his feet. Judging by his movement, I could tell he was very nervous. Dad was only like this when he was really worried about something, or if he was in a state of shock. I think it was both of those things in this case.
I still didn't know what to think about mom. The thought of her dead made my stomach turn a little bit, and thinking about it, it did strike a pain inside of me. The fact I could still hear her, though, scared me beyond belief.
I traced him up and down the room with my eyes, before asking, "Dad, are you okay?"
He glanced at me before quickly turning away again. "Yeah, yeah…of course."
He grabbed the keys on the table and plunged them into his pocket, before making his way back to me in the doorway again.
"Do me a favour, Shaylee?" he asked.
"Yes?"
"Go to my room, and get me my gun, will you?"
I gulped. "Y-Yes, dad."
"It's under the bed." I rushed into his room and retrieved that familiar black gun from under the bed. Just holding it in my hand flooded my mind with memories again. I was just about to head out the room, when dad barged in like a commanding officer and flung open his wardrobe door. He kneeled down and shoved three pots of that face-paint into his arms, before slamming the door shut with his elbow and walking out, followed by me, carefully holding the gun in my right hand. Dad dropped them down on the hallway floor, and then turned to me, grinning when he saw the gun in my hand. "Thank you, precious," he said, as he took it off me.
"That's okay," I said, managing a small smile.
"Will these fit in your case, Shay?" Dad asked, pointing to the face paint.
"Erm, probably," I replied, laying my case on the floor and starting to unzip it.
Dad place his gun inside his jacket pocket as he returned to his bedroom. Luckily, there was just enough room to fit the three pots of face paint in. Dad returned to the hallway as I was struggling to zip up my case again. As I finished, I saw his back turned to me, fiddling with something. I lifted my case back up and stood up with it, just before dad turned around, putting his gun in his pocket again, and then something else inside his jacket.
"Right, okay, are we ready?" he asked.
"Yeah…" I replied.
"Are you okay, baby?" Dad kneeled down.
"Yeah, I am…it just all seems so sudden, dad…"
"Yeah, I know, I know…things have been changing all the time and they're still changing…I don't know, if it will ever stop. Fuck, our minds are annoying, aren't they?"
"Tell me about it. I just want it to stop."
"They will, you just have to keep calm. Don't panic, stay close to me, and you'll be fine. Okay?"
"Yes, dad."
A smile formed across dad's lips. "Good girl. Okay, let's go."
We walked over to the front door with our cases and dad flicked the light off. He opened the door wide, when I suddenly grabbed his sleeve.
"Wait, dad?" I said.
"What?"
"How are we gonna get there? We don't have a car. Won't people see us…?"
"Hey, hey, calm yourself…it's all gonna be fine. Didn't you know I passed my driving test years ago?"
"But…"
"Shaylee, daddy has it all worked out."
"So you have a plan?"
Dad paused as he touched my face, smiling a crafty grin at me. "Do I ever have a plan?" he chuckled.
It was so nice to her him laugh after such a horrific morning.
"Don't you?" I asked, surprised.
"Hmm, I just…do things. I don't have plans, not a lot, not like the cops, who are planning to take my baby off me, which is why I'm going to the City to keep her away from them." He gave me a wink before stepping out of the door and onto the pathway. He strolled out like a badass, and I followed him out, dragging my case behind me. Dad turned around and locked the door, then placing the key inside his long purple coat. He gave me the nod to follow, so I did. "Stay on your toes, Shaylee," he whispered as we began to walk down the street. "And if anyone dares to speak to you, don't give them any information. If they want info, I'll give it to 'em."
I nodded. I felt my legs already aching. Just proves how unfit I was.
"Dad, it's going to be such a pain dragging this around all the time," I moaned as we steadily walked down the bland street.
"I know," Dad replied. "Which is why we're getting a little lift."
"What? From who?"
"Shaylee, I told you, I can drive." I stared at him curiously, as dad suddenly put his hand in front of me, making us both stop dead in our tracks just before the corner. Dad grabbed me and pushed me up against the wall, managing not to hurt me. He put himself against the wall too, as he peered around the corner. I saw him delicately pull out his gun from his pocket, making me nervous, but also focused. He continued to look around the corner, and pulled up his bag on his shoulder. "Right," he addressed me, lowering his voice. "Stay here. Don't move until I call you, understand?"
"Yes, dad," I answered, immediately.
"There's a good girl."
He slowly walked around the corner until he was out of my sight. I anxiously looked around me, to see if anyone was watching. I knew I had to be alert, I couldn't let anyone catch us. I wasn't stupid.
Once I'd checked to see everything was clear, I looked around the corner to see what dad was up to, still holding my case's handle in my hand. Dad was halfway down the other side of the street, where he was standing near a blue car. The car was parked on the side, and dad was pacing up around it, keeping his gun firmly in his hand, occasionally prodding it. I shuffled my feet, waiting for him to make a move. I glanced over my shoulder many times, to check if no one was going to bother me.
Then I saw dad trying to open the door, but obviously it remained shut. It took him half a second to then shoot the door, where the window of the smashed beautifully. Dad got out of way before then sticking his arm through the window. The gunshot didn't bother me, what bothered me more was the fact dad needed to hurry before someone caught him. Take his advice, stay put, but stay on your toes at all times.
The next thing I knew, the car door could suddenly open and dad skilfully swung it open. He'd obviously managed to unlock it from the inside, which at the time I thought was unbelievable because I didn't have a clue, I hardly ever sat in a car at the time. He'd also managed not to hurt himself on the shattered glass, making me feel much calmer. Dad took a few moments to look around before running back towards me.
I couldn't wait. I dashed out, pulling my case behind me, to meet up with dad. My case bumped uncontrollably on the road as I sprinted to dad, who didn't even have to call my name, my mind knew it was the right time to follow him. We met in the middle, both of us panting hard, as he took my free hand, gripping it tightly. As he held my hand, we dashed like criminal getaways to the car.
"Give me your case," Dad ordered, when we reached the car.
I couldn't lift it, so dad took it off me and carefully pushed in through the smashed window until it landed on the front passenger seat.
Before we could do anymore, we both jumped upon hearing a loud yell coming from a house behind us.
"Hey! What you think you're doing?!" A middle-aged man with a red face barged out from his front door and started running towards his front gate. I clung onto dad, who rolled his eyes before looking down at me.
"Get in the car," he said, as calmly as possible.
"But dad…"
"Just get in, Shaylee, trust me." I didn't argue. Carefully not trying not to touch the smashed glass on the concrete, I opened the car and sat myself in the driver's seat. Dad slammed the door on me and peered at me through the windowless car door. I could still see the man running behind dad, it's a good job he wasn't very fast. "Push that onto the floor," Dad said. "Sit in the other seat."
I pushed down the handle and struggled to shove the bag onto the foot space on the floor. As I was doing that, dad put his back against the car door, facing away from me, ready to meet his hopeless prey.
"What are you doing?!" the man shouted at dad.
Just as I'd managed to complete putting it on the floor and sitting in the other seat, I saw dad point the gun at the man's face, making him back away, helplessly. I thought dad was going to fire his clever comebacks at the man, but surprisingly, he addressed me.
"Shay?" he said.
My heart started beating fast. "Y-Yes?"
"Look out the other window for me, darlin'," he said, his tone now having that mischievousness to it. "Make sure no one's coming."
The craftiness in his voice intrigued me. "Yes, daddy," I replied, beaming, although he couldn't see me.
As I observed in the window, the man continued to try and take on dad.
"Is that your child?!" he asked, sounding incredibly stupid.
Dad erupted into boisterous laughter. "Ye-Yes, she's my child! Don't be silly now! Anyway, about your car, can we just…?"
"It's not my car," the man replied.
"It's not?" Dad laughed even harder.
"No…"
I couldn't help but turn around to see his expression. I started giggling when I saw him with his hands up in the air. Dad was now closer to him, laughing in his face and still clutching the gun.
"Then – then why you come running over asking us about it? Huh?" Dad asked, loudly.
"B-Because…I wasn't going to let you just steal a car, was I?"
"Ha! Watching me through your window was you now, huh? Nosey parker!" That's when I burst out laughing too. Dad's comebacks just cracked me up every time. It was so good to have a laugh after such an awful morning. "Funny, ain't it, Shay," Dad continued, "how people like this think they can save the day when actually they're…just…pathetic? So why don't you run along, and let me get my little girl to the city for safety?"
Dad then violently grabbed him by the neck, making me lean closer on my seat. I don't know why, but this scene was so captivating to me. It was like one of dad's stories coming to life before my eyes.
"Please…please," the man cried. "Just, please, don't hurt me…"
"Isn't that interesting, baby?!" Dad called to me. The man looked completely terrified, and dad wasn't even at his most angry. "He's suddenly turned into a scaredy-cat! I could hurt you, you know….but you could have a wife and kids in that house. I'm not that heartless. I've just lost my fiancée…trust me. It's…it's not pretty." Dad's voice had suddenly turned dangerous, like his usual unpredictable self, so I sat back again and gripped onto the door handle. I wasn't scared, but I was just preparing for a gunshot at any moment. I knew what dad was like, after all. Dad paused for a long while, and I glanced out the window again. I couldn't believe no one else was around, but then again they wouldn't dare come near dad who was holding a man at gunpoint in broad daylight. "But…if you let me go and run away like a little coward, I'll leave you be…and don't threaten me with 'I'm calling the police' because then you will die. Is that clear?" Dad said in his scary voice.
I looked back again to see what would happen. The man didn't say anything, he was just whimpering like a pathetic loser, a bit like mom did when dad had held by the throat. The gun was digging into his neck by now, which I guess made it a little harder to speak, but, I just thought to myself, is anyone actually not a coward in this godforsaken town?
I heard dad sigh heavily.
"What should I do, Shaylee?" he called to me.
I stuttered pathetically, as I was unprepared for dad to fire questions at me. Although I could not look into his eyes at that moment, I knew that they were probably sparkling with the urge to kill.
"Uhh...what do you think?" my silly answer was.
"Well, can we trust this man?" Dad asked, poking the gun in his throat more.
Look at him, Shaylee, he's nothing but a goodie two shoes. He'll ring the police as soon as he gets in his house, and you know what that means. They'll take you away from your dad, Shaylee. He's not worth it.
"I don't think so, daddy," I replied, sweetly.
"Ahh, now there's a good judge of character, my Shaylee!" Dad chuckled as he pushed the man onto the cold pavement, and spat on him. The man yelled in pain, I guessed that was from the shattered glass on the walkway.
"Please!" the man cried. "I won't do anything…I swear! Just don't hurt me!"
"You need to lighten up, man," Dad said, pointing the gun at him. "Let me tell ya, you messed with the wrong guy, this morning. Did you really expect me to just give up the car, when I have a duty to take my daughter somewhere safe?!" He paused. By now I was on the driver's seat, leaning over to witness the action. Dad turned his head slightly to speak to me. "Remember what I said to you last night?" he said. "Close your eyes, I don't want you to see anything, Shaylee. This is not something for a lady to witness." I giggled and did as I was told. I climbed back onto the passenger seat and covered my ears, preparing for the gunshot. "Why so serious?" Dad laughed.
"Please…" the man uttered his final words.
Bang.
Thank goodness this time it didn't start my head racking and making the voices argue.
Dad quickly got into the car and slammed the door behind him.
"Alright, I want to drive!" Dad yelled, placing his gun inside his pocket again.
I'd now positioned myself in the passenger seat againand sat there casually, as if a scene of murder had never happened. Dad glanced at me and I looked back up at him, smiling. Then my smile faded as I realised we had no keys to start the car.
"Wait, dad, how are we going to start the car?!" I cried.
Dad chuckled as he fiddled inside one of his pockets inside his jacket. "You think I didn't plan ahead?" he said, with a crafty grin.
"I thought you didn't plan," I replied, confused.
"Shush, you," Dad laughed. "Look."
He revealed a golden key from his pocket, making me open-mouthed. Dad placed it into the keyhole and the engine started roaring.
"Dad, what? How…? What is that? What…?" I spluttered.
"Don't ask, honey," he answered. "Just go with it."
Although I was still totally amazed, I decided to take his advice. I scuffled in my seat, preparing for the journey. I heard dad cough loudly.
"Shaylee?" he said.
"Yes?"
"Seatbelt." I sighed and quickly strapped myself in and dad did the same. "Don't want you flying out the window and joining him, now would I?" Dad laughed as he finally got the car going.
Before we knew it we zoomed off through the streets of our grey Gotham Town, zooming past the bleak buildings and past Little Hill Elementary, and I looked at it in disgust when we drove past. Because the glass from the driver's seat window has completely gone, we had a constant gush of wind blasting through the car, sending my hair out of control and it wasn't helping dad's hair much either. Dad dashed through the roads full speed ahead, making cars beep from left, right and centre, but he didn't care. His face was one of pure delight, so he was driving uncontrollably. My feet were resting on top of my suitcase below me. Although I loved observing the streets through my window and feeling my hair in the wind, I couldn't help but worry. Yes, we were strapped in, dad wasn't that stupid, but with his adrenaline rush I didn't feel safe at all. Plus, he didn't want to be caught speeding, the police were on his tracks already.
We'd just come out of Gotham Town and was heading onto the motorway to the City, when I finally plucked up my courage.
"Dad?" No answer. "Dad!" I shouted.
He shot his head up at me. "Yes, darlin', what is it?"
I could barely hear him because of the wind drowning out our voices.
"Dad, is it okay for you to be driving?" I asked, making my voice clearer.
"Yes, yes, of course it is, I have a licence, Shay, like I said."
"What?"
"I have a licence!"
"Oh right."
"Why?"
"I was just wondering are you well enough to be driving?!"
"What?"
"Are you well enough, dad?!"
"Yes! I'm fine! I'm not ill, sweetheart, I told you."
"Shouldn't you slow down?!"
"Slow down? Nah, I'm getting to the City as soon as I can!"
"But won't we get caught?"
"Sorry?"
"I said won't we get caught, daddy?"
"No! Never! Like I said, they're useless, and if they're looking for me they'll start in the town, that's why we're moving!"
"How long will we be in the car?"
"How long? Uhh...well with my driving, darlin', we shouldn't be too long! Oh and by the way, when we get to this secret place where we're staying, don't be scared, you know…"
"Scared?" I started laughing.
"What's so funny, hmm?"
"I'm not scared of anything, daddy!" I said, proudly.
"Nothing at all?!"
"Well…I'm scared of mom…"
Dad's smile faded as he stared ahead into the road. He went deep into thought. I sat quietly, starting to fidget with my clothes again.
Finally, dad said, just clear enough for me to hear him, "Yeah…yeah, I know you were."
"I still am," I said, truthfully.
Not another word was said for about 15 minutes. Dad continued to drive ahead, as I gazed out of the window, waving to random people in their cars. Sometimes little kids waved back to me, but most of the time I got disgusted looks. Dad was right. Why were people so serious?
It wasn't long until we entered Gotham City. This was my first time visiting the place. I was amazed when we drove through the busy traffic. I traced the buildings on my window with my hands, trying to count all the windows on the huge skyscrapers. There were thousands of people scurrying through the streets, pushing and shoving. Most people looked happy, I saw many cheerful couples skip down the street holding hands, making me imagine mom and dad when they first met. There weren't many police cars around, but I noticed the odd cop dotted around the City. The sky was blue and cloudless that day, but I didn't feel hot because of the wind coming into the car. I felt like I'd entered a different world, because this was a different world to me. I wasn't used to overcrowded streets and thousands of huge stores and people looking sort of cheerful. I felt very peculiar.
My emotions were all over the place that day. To first being sort of heartbroken, to absolutely distraught (hence the breakdown), to being panicked, to then be laughing with dad as he totally gave that guy a piece of his mind. I know at I should have felt petrified at that scene, like I had been the night mom and I found dad and Harleen robbing the jewellery store, but I didn't for some reason. Maybe it was because I knew dad was in control and we were going to get out safe, the night before was different. I felt like dad could have been taken away at any moment, making me terrified.
We'd been driving through the streets for at least 10 minutes, when finally dad spoke.
"Put the radio on, Shay," he said.
I tried to work out how to work the damn thing, but it didn't take me long. Soon we had the radio blasting such a depressing song, making both of us silent.
The music continued playing as we drove through the busy traffic. Soon we got to the end of a road, and I was expecting dad to follow the rest of the traffic to the right, but instead, he turned sharply the other way, startling me. I screamed a little as we turned down this mysterious road, following some loud beeps behind us, but dad just laughed them off.
A catchy rock song started playing and dad turned it up on full volume, making it impossible for me to hear anything else. Dad was head banging along to the riffs as we carefully headed into this extremely narrow road which seemed like it was in the middle of nowhere. The road was empty, with no person in sight. On the left were a line of crusty old buildings that looked like they were starting to fade away. There was a huge sign on the right which clearly read 'No Parking' but when was dad ever going to listen? Dad was so into the music, he nearly scraped the side of the car on the buildings because of the narrow road.
Then dad stopped the car when we got right to the end, a fence blocking off the rest of the road. Dad turned the car off, and the music died down. He sighed and leaned back in his seat, before looking at me, who was looking quite flustered. I was already overwhelmed by the huge city, which already set my heart racing, but suddenly being cramped in a street like this made it beat even harder. I glanced around, anxiously, before finally looking to dad, who was grinning at me.
"We're here!" he cried, nudging my chin. I didn't know what to say, so I kept quiet. "This is it," Dad continued, pointing out of my window. "Joey's."
I looked out the window to see a red-brick building with the roof hanging on an end. The sign that read simply 'Joey's' was barely readable. The door was wide open, but I could see nothing inside. I unstrapped my seatbelt and peered out the window even more.
"Where are we?" I asked dad, nervously.
"Our new home for a little while," Dad replied.
"It doesn't look much like a house."
"It's not, Shay, it's an old tavern. A good friend of mine still lives here, although it's not a business anymore. Come on, let's go." We both got out of the car, carefully trying not to hit the door on the wall. Dad walked round to my side and helped me drag my suitcase out. I slammed the door and dad locked it from the inside again. I stayed very still, unsure what to do. Dad joined me, rummaging in his pockets. Much to my disappointment, he got out a cigarette and placed it in his mouth, followed by revealing a lighter. Dad looked at me, who had my arms folded, glaring at him. "Honey, look," he sighed. "It's all okay isn't it?"
"Mmm," I mumbled.
"I'll just have this and we'll go in," he replied, as he began to light it.
I was starting to get frustrated, not with dad, but with myself. I was getting angry because I was terrified to walk into this new place. Whilst dad damaged his lungs, I stroked the brittle walls of Joey's Tavern, glancing upwards and observing my new 'home.' I didn't enter, but I stood in the doorway, peering into what was just darkness. I couldn't believe this guy would leave his door wide open, but then I guessed if he was dad's friend, he'd give the clueless wanderer a piece of his mind.
Dad threw the cigarette on the floor and stamped on it, laughing hard. I started giggling with him, too.
"What's funny, dad?" I giggled.
"Nothing," he said, cheerfully, as he flung his own bag over his shoulder. I wondered what had happened to that bag, but I didn't ask about it. "Come on, then." I grabbed the handle of my case, as dad took my other hand, and we walked in the door together. Dad squeezed my hand as we entered the darkened room. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Dad called, making me laugh.
We waited for something to happen, but the room seemed like a tomb.
"Dad, there's no one here," I said.
"Of course there is, baby," Dad said. "It's just Larry being silly with me. He's like that."
"Who's Larry?"
"My friend, the one who owns this place, hon, remember?"
"I thought it was someone called Joey."
Dad laughed. "No! No, no, no! This place is old, Shaylee, older than me. It was owned by someone called Joey years ago. He's dead now."
At that moment, a sudden light flicked on and we heard footsteps approaching, coming down some stairs at the far end of the room, behind the old deserted bar. A man who looked about dad's age came slowly down the stairs.
"Is that Jack Napier I can hear?" he called.
"Certainly is, man!" Dad replied.
He enthusiastically came down the stairs and towards us. He had a leather jacket on and had short blonde hair. His face was spotty and covered in marks and scratches. I smiled at him, although I felt a little nervous. As I've said, I was conscious of new people, but only if they seemed like they could hurt me, if they looked harmless, then nervousness would be the last thing I would feel. This guy looked like a serious criminal, looking even more intimidating than dad did.
"Hey, man!" the man greeted, as him and dad did a little handshake and manly hug. My smile disappeared because dad had let go of my hand.
"Hey, Larry," Dad said. "How's things? Haven't seen you in…how long has it been?"
"A while, dude," Larry replied. "At least two months. How's the gang? You know Rob, Ken, Harleen and that?"
Wait, how did he know Harleen? I'd only known the woman's existence for a day and yet she was suddenly being brought up all the time. It was very odd.
"Ahh, not good, man, not good," Dad said, shaking his head.
Larry then finally looked down at me interestedly, I was determined to maintain that friendly smile. I didn't dare act cowardly in front of dad. Larry exchanged his eyes from me to dad numerous times, before looking at dad, chuckling slightly.
"And who's this, then, Jack?" he asked. "Haven't seen this little mite before."
Dad then winked at me and took my hand again, reassuring me everything was okay.
"This is Shaylee," he said, sounding proud. "She's my partner in crime."
I stared at dad. I wasn't sure how to react to that comment, especially when dad and Larry started laughing.
"Oh, really?" Larry said, still sniggering. "Bit young to be in your gang, isn't she, pal?"
"Ha! She's not in any kind of gang, at least I hope she isn't. Nah, this is my little girl. Come on, man, I've told you about her before, haven't I?"
"Ah, yes, you and Diana's kid." There was a moment of silence as Larry looked at us both, awkwardly. Talking about mom made us both feel pain. We don't like feeling emotional pain. Not one bit. "So, what brings you here, Jack?" Larry broke the silence. "Not like you to come here during this time of the day. And with your kid, as well…" He paused as he looked at me with a worried face. "What's happened?"
"Didn't you see the news this morning?" Dad asked.
"Ah, man, I wasn't up in time. Why what's happened?"
"Harleen. That's what happened."
"Oh God. What's that bitch done now?" Larry gasped and covered his mouth, making me giggle. "Oops, sorry, ignore my language, Shaylee."
"It's okay," I said. "I hear it all the time."
Larry smiled at me before dad continued.
"She's been arrested. Ken and Rob have been, too. Last night, it...it went off a bit crazy. Things didn't go the way we wanted, you see. Harleen was out of her mind. Diana, she – she came to find me, and she and Shaylee found us robbing the jewellery store."
"Stealing again, Jack?"
"Yeah, well, you know, we were bored...Anyway, I…I, we…" Dad's voice lingered away as he put his hands over his face.
"Jack?" Larry said, putting his hands on dad's shoulders.
"Don't touch him," I snapped at him. "It won't help." Larry backed away slowly. "Dad, it's okay," I said, gently. "Do you want me to tell him what happened?"
Dad removed his hands and kneeled down to my level.
"Would you?" he asked.
"Yes, dad, you said I shouldn't be scared, so I'm going to be brave and tell him why we're here. It's what's best for me."
I felt a surge of pride as dad smiled broadly at me. "Okay then, darlin', I…I'm going out for, uh…"
"Cigarette?" I finished.
"Yeah, yeah…I'm sorry."
"Don't be." Dad rested his head on mine, affectionately, before heading out the door with his bag over his shoulder. He sighed and ruffled his hair, as he exited. I looked back at Larry, who was completely gobsmacked. "He's…he's not himself today," I explained.
"Clearly not," Larry replied. "He's not usually like this, you know, looking all worried. I've never seen him be affectionate. Well, I've never met Diana, so…"
"He was never affectionate with her, either," I cut in. "He never will be."
Larry kneeled down to face me. "So what's wrong with him, sweetheart? What's going on?"
I glared at him, I hated it when someone else called me things like 'sweetheart'. I took a deep breath.
"Well, Diana, my mom…you know?" I began. Larry nodded. "Well, last night, she was…she was shot." His mouth dropped open, he stuttered but remained silent. "My…my dad's scared the police are going to take me away because they're looking for him because last night they arrested these men and this Harleen woman, and it said on the news that she shot my mom last night after we went to find dad and we found him robbing this store…"
"Wait, slow down. So are you saying that Harleen shot your mom last night?"
"Yes, when we found dad and her robbing this store."
"Are you serious?"
"Yes and because my dad was involved and he got away with me because they were knocked out, they're now looking for him and if they find him dad said they'll take me away from him and we don't want that…"
"Oh my goodness…"
"I'm not sure what's going to happen to dad. Before we came here he seemed to be fine but now he's just sad and…it's horrible."
"I'm sure it is. I've known your dad a long time…it's not a pretty sight when he's angry."
"He was angry at my mom constantly, they always argued."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be, I got used to it. Even I started arguing with her. I still argue with her now and she's dead."
Larry then stared at me weirdly. I looked right into the pupils of his eyes. When I was telling someone how I felt, I always tended to stare at them right in the face, just like dad did.
"So that's why you're here?" he asked. "Because he wants you to be safe?"
"Yes. Just for a bit, until the cops give up and then he said we can go back to the town when it's safe. He said this was a good place because you're his friend and would look after us for a while."
He sighed. "Well…"
"Would no one ever find us here?"
"If you stay hidden I'm sure you'll both be safe. You must understand though, your dad can't be going out all the time and…doing things because he will get caught. He knows that, right?"
"Probably. He's not stupid."
Larry smiled at me, admiringly. "You're a very brave girl, Shaylee."
"Thank you, I like to think so."
"How old are you?"
"Ten."
"Wow, you seem much older."
"I wish I was, maybe then I could help dad more with things. Mom said he's ill, but he's not." I purposely lied to him so he wouldn't ask dad about his illness or bother him with it.
"I'm sorry about your mom."
"Don't be, I'll get over it."
"How's your dad feeling about it?"
I paused, as I pushed my hair behind my ear. "I don't know," I said. "He hasn't told me. But I know he's sad, but I don't want to ask him. He may get angry about it. Everything about my mom makes him angry."
Larry looked above my head and I heard footsteps approaching. Dad came back in, looking a bit calmer now. Larry stood up and dad took my hand again, squeezing it slightly.
"So has she told you everything?" he asked Larry.
"Every detail," Larry replied, a little sadly. "I'm sorry about Diana, pal."
"Don't be sorry, I'm more concerned about this little one here. So, where are we going to stay?"
"Uhhh…."
"You are letting us stay, aren't you?" Dad said, sharply.
"Of course man, of course, but…you can't go out unless it's an emergency. I mean, I can't let them catch you, because, you know…"
"I know, I know, I get it," Dad replied, impatiently. "Now where are we staying?"
"I have a spare room upstairs, you'll have to share a bed I'm afraid."
"That's okay," I grinned.
"Okay, well, follow me," Larry said. We followed him up the stairs, with Larry carrying my suitcase for me. We entered a very narrow hallway, where Larry showed us right to the end, and opened the door to reveal a cramped little bedroom, with a large double bed in middle. It had a little desk and a lampshade, which pleased me because I could do my drawings. There was a neat little chest of drawers, a small mirror and a tiny window with horrid curtains that revealed the street down below and also viewed the city beyond the metal fence. I couldn't wait to gaze out of it at night time. "This is it," Larry said, showing us in and putting my suitcase neatly underneath the bed. "Feel free to pack everything."
"Thanks, man," Dad said, smiling. "We…appreciate it, don't we, honey?"
I nodded as I collapsed onto the bed and stared at the ceiling, not far above my head.
"So how long do you think you'll be staying for?" Larry asked.
"As long as we need to, if that's okay," Dad replied.
"Of course, but you have to promise me you won't get caught, I'll get into trouble too, you know."
"Lighten up, Larry!" I cried, swinging my legs in the air.
Dad burst into laughter, and he tickled my stomach, making me squeal and giggle uncontrollably.
"Well said, little one!" Dad laughed.
As we calmed down, Larry started to stutter. I began to feel he was getting nervous. Weird, I thought he was dad's friend, he shouldn't be nervous of him, should he? Especially if he knows about his crimes and his criminal friends.
"Erm…uh…Jack?" he stammered. Dad darted his eyes towards him as I continued laughing. "Are you hungry? Can I get you something?"
"What's the time?" Dad asked.
Larry looked at his watch. "It's half past two."
"Is it really?" Dad sounded surprised. "Later than I thought. Okay…well, yeah, get us something then, that'd be marvellous."
Larry then smiled nervously before strolling off.
"Don't make anything green!" I called after him as he went down the stairs. Dad and I then just filled up our new bedroom with hysterical laughter. It was an amazing rush of happiness through me, even if dad's laughter was turning more insane all the time. After a while, dad then began to take off his jacket, placing his gun and everything else on the side. Then he took off his tie, then his shirt. "Dad!" I cried when I saw him topless.
"What? What's the problem, eh?"
"Why do you have no top on?"
"I'm putting my pyjamas on, relax."
"What now?"
"Yeah, I'm tired." I spluttered into silly giggles again. I sat up slowly, rubbing my eyes fiercely, and as dad rummaged through his little bag to get his pyjamas, I noticed something on his back. I leaned in closer until I was practically touching it. On his back there was a huge, ugly scar tracing down his spine. It looked horrifying, it made me shiver slightly. I then noticed there were many more marks and bruises dotted all over his back, making me gasp quietly. "What's the matter?" Dad asked, whirling around to face me.
"Nothing, nothing…just…what's all those marks on your back, dad?"
"What, these scars and stuff like that?" Dad sighed, as he pulled out his pyjama top and put it on. "You get them a lot when you do the things I do, baby."
"But don't they hurt you?"
"Not really, no. Of course they hurt at first, but I've got used to it by now. I barely feel a thing. If I'm ever injured or something, I tend to shake it off quickly. I, uh…laugh it off more now. You don't find me coming home and complaining about them, do you?" I didn't answer, but I just nodded, understanding. As dad finished getting dressed, I lay down on the surprisingly comfortable bed. Dad joined me when he was finished, putting his arm around me. I nestled up to him, allowing this amazing moment to sink in. "Oh, what a day, huh, Shaylee?" Dad sighed.
"Yeah," I replied.
"Tell you what, I've experienced a lot of crazy things, but last night and today have been the craziest so far."
Then there was a long silence. I heard cluttering downstairs, presuming that Larry was making us something. I glanced up at dad, who was staring ahead, with a blank expression.
"Dad?" I said.
"Hmm?" He didn't look at me.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Anything."
I paused as I took a deep breath. "Do you miss mom?"
He then slowly turned his head to look at me, still having that blank expression. I felt my heart starting to beat faster.
"Of course I do," he said.
I couldn't believe it. "Really?"
"I'll miss your mom forever."
"But you hated her."
Dad then waited as he giggled quietly and lifted my chin up.
"Listen to me," he said, "I never hated your mom. I could never hate her. I loved your mom with all my heart. Over the years…I started to not care about her, but I never hated her. Why would I ask her to marry me? Hmm? I only ever shouted at her because she treated you like shit and that was all the time. Yeah…your mom…she was fun at first. You know, honey, the very last thing I heard her say was 'You're crazy'…how sad is that? That…that will be in my mind forever, because…my mind…it likes reminding me of stuff, don't it? Same with you, yeah? Of course, she was saying that to Harleen, but…"
"Larry said he knew Harleen," I interrupted.
"Hmm? Oh, yeah, yeah he does."
"How?"
"Well…me, Larry and Harleen…we all went to school together…"
"You said you didn't do school."
"I didn't, but I never said I didn't go…I just said I didn't do it. My attendance was appalling." Dad laughed softly. "I couldn't be doing with it, not with all the bullies and crappy teachers. But anyway…we went to school together, that's how he knows her. Harleen, she was Miss Clever Clogs, the teacher's favourite, all that crap…"
"Really?"
"Oh, yeah. She wanted to study psychology. One day she came to me, with a book all about it, shoved it in my face, and she tells me, 'Look, Jack, one day I'll be doing all of this!'" His Harleen impression made me giggle, but dad put his finger on my mouth. "Shhh, let me finish," he whispered. I stayed quiet. "I wasn't interested, and pushed it back into her face. She told me I worry too much, and that I need to lighten up. Huh, but anyway, she went on to study the goddamn thing, which how she met your mom, yeah? Remember me telling you about how mom nearly got a really good job as a psychologist but she gave it up? Yeah? Well, your mom and Harleen went to the same place to study it."
"Well, they didn't do very well, did they?" I laughed.
"Not particularly," Dad laughed with me. "I mean, your mom just quit, you know, when we moved in together, and Harleen, well…that's another story. But yeah, we've stayed good friends ever since. Me, Harleen, Larry…I wasn't into jobs much myself. Larry and his ex-wife managed to own this place but now it's shut down as a bar and now he just lives here all on his own. Me? Well, you know I can't work. My head mentally can't take it."
"So is that how you met mom? Through Harleen? You said you met her when you were a teenager."
"I did, yeah...They started studying it when they were about nineteen and they were friends at first and that's why we all started hanging out, right? Your mom…she sparkled with everything I wanted in a woman. Well, she did then…I'm not sure she'd be my type now. That's why I went off her a bit. I'll admit it, I had a little crush on Harleen years ago but…I never loved her. I still don't love her. I don't know if I even like her now…"
"She killed mom."
I felt my voice shaking, so I hid myself in dad's chest. Thank goodness he remained calm, starting to stroke my head.
"Shhh, it's fine, Shaylee," he whispered. "You said you wanted to know about her didn't you? Well now you know."
I sniffed. "But…but why did she shoot mom? Why, dad?"
He sighed. "I don't know, baby, I just don't know. She's…she's complicated. She's always come back to me when I need her…lately she's going a bit…over the top."
There were a few moments of silence as dad forced my head up to look at him. He looked at me, proudly, folding my hair back over my ears.
"You know what the best thing your mother ever did for me was?" he asked, smiling.
"What?" I asked, curiously.
"She gave me a little girl who is so clever, and brave, and beautiful and…the spitting image of her."
"I'm not the spitting image of her."
"You are, Shaylee. You have her face. But…my eyes."
"I don't want to be like her."
"Not like how she was when she started drinking, of course you don't." Dad smirked at me. "Yeah, I knew from day one you'd be a daddy's girl. All the way. You wanna know why?"
"Why?"
"Because you've always been like me, not counting all the crappy things in my mind I gave to you…but I mean, you're smart, funny, you take no shit, you're…you're certainly my daughter, aren't you?"
"I wouldn't want to be anyone else's."
"You're too kind. You know, Shaylee, you remind me of my mother." He smiled, showing his tongue in between his teeth. "Come 'ere…" I beamed at him and tightly hugged him around the neck. "Shaylee?" he said, after a few minutes.
"Yes, dad?"
"May I ask you to do something for me?"
"What?"
"You like drawing, don't you?" I nodded vigorously. "Well…I need some help. You know how I told you a few years ago about…disguises?"
I grinned at dad because I knew there was something exciting coming up. "Yes, I remember," I replied, nodding.
Dad sniggered. "Well…I'm having trouble. I'm no good at drawing…so, I thought maybe you could design something for me?"
I squealed in excitement as dad laughed at me jumping up and down on the bed. "What, what, what?" I asked, eagerly.
"Playing cards…you know them, right?"
"Yes, I used to play with them with Chase at lunchtimes."
"Well…you know how there's cards like the King, Queen, Jack and so forth? People use them all the time. Do people ever use Joker cards?"
"We never used them."
"Exactly! So…" Dad held my chin as his smirk became wider, "I want you to design a cool one of those for me. One that looks so cool people would actually use them."
I gasped in delight. "Wow, cool! Okay, dad! I'm sure I'll come up with something."
"Good girl!" Dad said, winking at me. "Might as well get started. Nothing better to do, is there?"
I leaped off the bed and in two seconds flat got out my drawing things from my case. I sat myself down at the little desk at the side, where dad's gun was still lying.
As I began to draw, I said to dad, "What is for, dad, anyway?"
"It's for, uh…future reference."
I jumped a mile as dad burst into maniacal laughter.
