A/N: This chapter is huge, but I really couldn't split it. I'm not sure about this one. Let me know what you think and I hope you like it.
"You weren't joking, were you?" she asked dryly, clutching the basket to her with both arms.
"I'm always joking, honey, I'm the Joker," he laughed and danced around her, his arms out wide, her bag in one hand.
Jane looked around the entrance foyer of the old abandoned office he'd brought her to. He led her past several men who were sitting on old armchairs and either playing cards or watching something on a huge TV that sat in the corner of the room. She stepped over the rubbish littering the floor following him to a flight of wide stairs; the carpet that had once adorned the floor was patchy, stained and mouldy. She inched her way up the stairs behind him her eyes darting everywhere, taking in the faded wall plagues that spoke of days gone by when the office had been an up and coming printing firm.
He waited for her at the top of the stairs, her bag in his hand still and a smug look on his face.
"Don't you like it here?" he inquired in a high-pitched voice and then laughed.
"Well, I'm just wondering how much the bugs are going to like me taking up room with them," she muttered and screwed her face up as something scurried across the floor. "What was that?"
"Hum?" He looked around at where she was staring and saw the rustling under the paper. "Oh, just a rat, probably, don't you like them?"
She threw him a disgusted look and jumped a mile when he calmly pulled out his gun and shot the rodent dead.
"There, dealt with. Don't you want to stay here with me?" he asked sounding offended.
"I want to stay with you, just not here," she replied and clutched her waste basket closer to her as she looked around the floor again in distress.
"You're so picky!" he whined. "Look, it'll have to do for tonight, probably you can rustle something up tomorrow with all that lovely money they've given you for your book. Somewhere with a bit better security than that dump you were in."
"It may have been a bit rickety in places, but at least it was rodent free and just exactly where am I to stay?" she asked looking around the bare room that had led off from the stairs.
"Follow me," he giggled and leaning sideways slightly indicated for her to follow him. He crossed to a door that she had missed before in her appraisal of the room. He opened it and with a flourish motioned her to go before him. Still clutching the basket she eyed him doubtfully and then went into the room. It was pitch black and she immediately backed up, right into his chest. His arm slid around her stomach and pressed her more firmly into him.
"It's too dark!" she squeaked and he chuckled.
"That's because there's no light on yet, Janey," he spoke as if she were a slow child. She heard him drop her bag and then he reached out and she heard a flick as light flooded the room.
She took in the single bed stuck against one wall. There were no windows and the walls were streaked with years of grime. Office equipment long since given up the ghost was piled against another wall. And on the last wall there was a huge map of Gotham held in place with four switchblades at the corners. Pins were stuck in several places but Jane had no desire to find out where. She eyed the floor and saw a pile of clothes that sat on a rickety chair by the bed. Magazines and books were lying in piles around and the odd knife could be seen in various places.
"Oh, good, it's actually improving," she snorted.
"Has anyone ever told you that you can be very ungrateful?" he whispered in her ear and she realised that he actually had a point. She sighed deeply and slumped backwards into him slightly.
"You're right, I'm sorry," she muttered. "My mouth runs away from me sometimes," she added ruefully.
"Yeah, I'd noticed," he replied quietly and reaching around her he took the basket from her arms and plopped it down onto the floor where he'd dropped her bag.
There was a banging on the door and Jane turned in surprise when she heard a voice behind her. There was a man stood in the doorway with a gun in one hand and a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. His hair was dark, unkempt and in need of a good cut. He wore similar clothes to the ones she'd seen them wearing in the bank.
"Boss, Jones is back and not looking too good," he said eyeing Jane with a frown.
"I'll be down," the Joker grunted. "Get out and shut the door!"
The man obeyed him quickly and Jane realised that his tone of voice was completely different to the one he used for her. She looked back at him and lifted an eyebrow but made no comment.
"I have to sort them out." He slapped his hands together and then scratched his head as he looked at the bed. "The sheets ain't clean, babe, not even close; but it's only me that's been in there, no one else."
Jane nodded and then crossed to him. "Is your name really Jack?" she asked him.
"No, it's the Joker," he said seriously. "I used to be called Jack, Jack Napier, to be exact. But I'm not that person anymore, why?"
"I just realised I don't know what to call you, that's all, calling you Joker just doesn't seem right."
"Well, you could always copy the boys and call me 'boss'," he said with mock innocence. She lifted an eyebrow at him and drew the scarf from his neck slowly.
"I don't think so," she whispered. "I like Jack, can I call you Jack?"
"Only when we're alone," he replied and lifted his eyebrows as if he was surprised by his own words. "But not in front of the boys."
"Okay, it'll have to be "hey, you" then," she laughed and folded her arms around her waist.
"Get some sleep, Janey, I'll be gone for awhile but I'll get you something to eat." He stepped away from her and then changed his mind before crossing back to her and gripping her face tightly. "I'm going to lock you in, don't panic, it's to protect my boys."
"Protect them? Who from, me? Not exactly a ninja turtle here, y'know," she retorted and covered his hands with hers. He laughed loudly and grinned down at her.
"No, protect them from me, silly, you're off limits and while they know that, if they try anything I will have to hurt them."
Fear slid over her face and he watched it smirking at her; then he leant forward and licked her lips. "They won't," he breathed against her. "I'll kill 'em for less than that and they know it."
"You'll come back?" she asked as he pulled away from her and crossed to the door. "Where will you sleep?"
"In here, with you," he replied and opened the door. "It'll be interesting to see if two people can sleep in a single bed and not fall off at any given point." He laughed, went out and shut the door. She heard the key turn in the lock and it made her feel closed in and panicky. She paced the room until fatigue and the events of the day caught up with her and she crossed to the bed. She looked at the sheets and shook her head; they were crumpled and she could see spots of red and black that she just hoped was from his face paint. Shrugging she undressed to her underwear and pulled out her pj's from the messy bag. She stripped, slid into them and climbed into his bed. It was surprisingly comfortable and she realised it smelled of him; which, for some reason unknown to her, was not a bad thing. She snuggled down under the blankets; her face buried in his pillow and fell asleep almost straight away.
She was having another bad dream; she knew it, but couldn't control it. But it wasn't the usual dreams; she wasn't being attacked by the rapist, this time it was Crane and he was tormenting her with his questions, holding the mask in his hand and laughing.
"Wakey, wakey."
Hands tugged at her shoulders until she was pulled from the dream, and looking up, she saw the painted face of the Joker.
"Your screams are scaring my boys," he laughed and jumped from the bed to stand back from her. "They're kinda fragile like that. Bunch of sissy's," he giggled and watched as she ran a hand over her face still struggling to shake the images from her head.
"What you dreaming about this time, babe?" he asked and began pulling of his coat and jacket.
"Crane," she muttered. "Damn the man and his bloody mask."
"Ooohhh." He undid his tie and slid it from his neck before taking off his waistcoat. "You swore. Do you realise that you hardly ever swear and when you do it's something a child would say?"
"My dad always said that swearing showed a lack of vocabulary and imagination," she said absently and sank back against the pillows still breathing heavily, the blood still rushing through her veins.
"Where are your folks?" he asked and sat on the edge of the bed. He kicked his shoes off and looked around at her.
"Dead," she replied and scooted right to the edge of the bed against the wall and turned on her side to give him room. She didn't even think of what she was inviting him to do, she just did it.
"When?" He slid down beside her and turned on his side to face her. His face paint would come off on the pillow and she now realised why his sheets were so stained and dirty.
"Years ago," she answered sleepily. "I was fifteen, there was a train wreck and they didn't make it. I was put into a children's home for three years and then made my own way."
"You've had it hard, haven't you?" he murmured pillowing his hands under his face.
"I guess," she mirrored his actions and closed her eyes, tiredness seeping over her again. "Not as bad as some though," she muttered and sank into sleep once more, safe in the knowledge that he was there now.
"What am I to do with you, Jane Kimble?" he muttered frowning at her sleeping face. "You're the one thing that might make me weak and I hate being weak, Janey, I hate it."
A phone ringing from somewhere on the floor made Jane sit up suddenly. The light was still on and she could see the Joker was beside her still; his eyes were open as he watched her.
"The phone is ringing," she said stupidly and rubbed at her eyes before trying to pinpoint where about her phone was.
"Yup, they tend to do that when someone wants to talk to ya," he grunted and smacking his lips together a couple of time closed his eyes.
"Who is it?" she asked him and tried to orientate herself. She had no idea what time it was or how long she'd been asleep.
"Janey," he mumbled, his eyes still closed. "How the hell am I supposed to know that?"
"Well, what time is it?" she demanded and peered over him at where the blue screen of her phone lit up; she'd left it on her pile of clothes on the chair. She leaned over him and picked it up, one hand holding herself over him on the mattress. She peered down at the phone and groaned.
"It's 2 a.m!" she groaned. "Who's ringing me at this time?"
"Why does a grown woman have pink pigs all over her pyjamas?" he asked with a smirk in his voice and she looked round with a frown to realise she was leaning over him; her chest quite close to his face.
She sat back hurriedly and shook her head at the absurdity of the situation. Here she was sat in her Piglet pyjamas at 2am in the morning, next to the Joker and her phone was still ringing.
"I like Piglet," she defended herself. "Should I answer this?"
"Do you want me to answer it?" Before she could answer him he'd plucked it from her fingers hit the green button and held it to his ear.
"What?" he grunted into the phone and listened, a sly grin tugging his scarred cheeks up.
"Yeah, she's right beside me," he chuckled and held the phone out for her. "Lover boy Ron wants to know where you are."
"What? What!" She took the phone with a horrified look at him but he merely smirked again and shut his eyes, getting comfortable on the pillow again.
"Ron?"
"Jane," his tone was relief and it made her feel guilty. "I've just had a call from the boys stating you weren't in your apartment, where are you?"
"Uh… I'm here," she stated and rolled her eyes at her own lack of imagination. "I'm fine… how did they… I mean…. What?"
A snort from the Joker told her he was laughing at her inability to communicate. She poked him in the shoulder but he merely ignored her and kept his eyes shut.
"We've been watching your apartment, Jane, to make sure you were safe. I promised you protection."
She heard the censure in his voice and it made her feel a little annoyed.
"Yeah, but obviously the protection has blind spots," she said a little sharply. "I left hours ago and they only know now?"
"You should have told me you weren't staying there tonight," he replied and his voice sounded weary. "Where are you and I'll pick you up tomorrow."
"No!" She poked the Joker again and he opened one eye grumpily. She covered the handset and spoke to him. "He wants to pick me up from here."
He snorted and closed his eye again. "Yeah, why not? Get him to bring the S.W.A.T. team while he's at it," he muttered.
"I know he can't!" she said annoyed again. "What should I tell him?"
"They really did siphon your brain, didn't they?" he said and sat up to lean on one elbow to glare at her. "Use your imagination, Janey, god knows it's going to earn you a lot of money in those books of yours." He slumped back down and closed his eyes.
"I've already got a lift tomorrow. I'll meet you there," she said into the phone glaring at the Joker.
"With your friend, Jack?"
"Er… yeah. Look it's late, I'll be fine, honest, Ron. I'll see you tomorrow. Thank you for checking on me." She rang off and threw the phone back onto the pile of clothes. She lay back on her side and stared at the face of the Joker. His paint was completely gone in places and badly smudged in others.
A rumbling noise came from her stomach and she slapped a hand over it. She was starving.
"Was that thunder?" he chuckled and giving up trying to go back to sleep, sat up and nearly fell off the bed. "Ahh fuck, look what you made me do," he grumbled and rolled to the floor on his knees and then staggered to his feet, running one hand through his messy black hair.
"Where you going?" she asked but he didn't reply and instead he weaved his way over to the cabinets.
"Oh, pizza!" she said happily when she saw him turn with a pizza box in his hand.
"You were too tired when I first came back," he muttered and thrust the box onto her lap and then sank back onto the bed taking up most of it as he lay face down and closed his eyes. "Eat quietly, I want to sleep," he ordered her.
Jane opened the box and took out a now cold slice of pizza and sat slightly sideways squashed against the wall. She studied him as she ate the pizza; his face was patchy with paint, his eyes closed and his lips slack. She could see the scars quite clearly on his right cheek as he lay there. She wondered again if he'd told her the truth about how he'd got them. She'd read in one of the papers about the stories he'd told at the Dent Fundraiser Party; one had been a violent abusive father and the other had been self inflicted because of a wife somewhere. She frowned, the version he'd told her was so mundane she was inclined to think that it was exactly how he got them. However they happened, it was terrible; that someone could inflict that kind of pain on another defied belief.
But then Brian Douglas hadn't escaped his vicious attack. She'd seen the images on the TV, read the articles in the paper. She shuddered and looked down at the pizza in her hand, her appetite suddenly vanished and a feeling of guilt settled low in the pit of her stomach. How could she justify being here with him; because when all was said and done she had done nothing to actively stop this. She had gone with him willingly, had kissed him willingly, had allowed him into her life willingly. She'd had the means to stop this from the start, one call to Ron and the whole thing would have been halted one way or the other. But it was too late now and to her eternal damnation she realised she didn't want to stop this.
She set the pizza back into the box and closed the lid; her hunger killed completely. She stared down at the closed lid and wondered just what would happen to her now. She looked up at him and frowned; he was asleep and in his sleep, even with the paint on his face he looked peaceful, at ease. His normally alert eyes shut, his normally over-active brain halted for a few hours of peace. She reached out a hand and let it hover over his cheek, not touching him. She swallowed and pulled her hand back to cover her mouth as she laid her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. She was damned; not sure where this would lead, but suspecting it might be her grave when he tired of her. But she couldn't deny that at the moment he was looking after her, albeit in a strange fashion.
She leant over him careful not to touch him and set the box on the floor before lying back down on her side under the covers and facing the wall. Her mind whirled round and round, desperation clawing at her thoughts, preventing her from switching off and going to sleep. A hand slid over her waist and fingers slid under her night shirt to rest against her scars. She relaxed completely, her thoughts stilling with his touch and she sank further into the pillows with a sigh, letting sleep claim her again.
When Jane woke again she was alone. She took a moment to remember where she was and why; she rolled over and reached out for her phone to see what the time was. It was 8.30 and she only had an hour to get ready and get to the court house. Panic set in as she scrambled from the bed and began rummaging through the bag for new clothes. That was when she realised he'd only packed stuff from the wardrobe and had taken nothing from her drawers. She had no underwear at all; she sank back onto the bed and blinked.
The door opened and she looked up in fright, but it subsided when she saw the Joker come into the room. He looked at her and grinned, his face clean of paint.
"Sleeping beauty woke up then," he chuckled.
"Thanks for the pizza last night," she mumbled and found herself blushing. It annoyed her and made her frown.
"You're welcome, Janey." He half bowed and smirked at her. "You gonna get dressed or do you have plans turning up in those adorable pyjamas?" He drew out the word adorable and she knew he was mocking her.
"Is there a bathroom here?"
He laughed at that and shook his head; he was dressed in his usual purple suit and green waistcoat.
"This isn't the Hilton, honey, the best I can do for you is a sink, a make shift shower over a drain and a toilet. You can wash up a bit, but you look and smell fine to me, babe."
She sighed, resolved not to complain again, it really was better than lying dead somewhere courtesy of Crane.
"Thank you," she mumbled and gathered her stuff together. She'd just have to put on yesterdays underwear and grin and bear it.
"Go, on, honey, don't bite your tongue with me," he spoke quietly. "I just know there's a complaint in that beautiful head of yours somewhere, just itching to break free from that delectable mouth." Every word was enunciated carefully and she frowned deeper at him.
"I'm not going to complain," she said uncomfortably. "I do appreciate what you've done."
"And what have I done?" he asked her and laughed slowly. "C'mon, Janey, you only had my word that Crane was after you the other night. How do you know I wasn't lying?"
She looked at him and blinked, disconcerted by his words. She opened her mouth to say something and then shut it again. She took a breath, narrowed her eyes at him and opened her mouth again.
"I guess I don't," she replied carefully and stopped before her mouth could get her into trouble.
"Go on… I can hear the 'but', Janey, finish it." He came towards her and stood in front of her, hunched over slightly in order to peer into her face.
"Even if you did lie, I don't think I've slept that well since this whole thing started, so I appreciate that," she replied and frowned her eyes moving to study the knot in his tie.
He licked his lips and rolled his eyes upwards slightly. "Yeah? Well it seems we both sleep better together. Funny that," He sucked on his scars and leant closer to her. "Hey, look at me," he whispered and he reached out with his hands. He gripped the back of her head with one hand and then tapped her cheek with the fingers of his other hand.
"Look at me," he whispered again and her eyes lifted to meet his. "I ain't lied to you yet, Janey, and I see no reason to start any time soon." His eyes flicked upwards as he spoke, his tongue flicking over his lips.
She lifted her hand and gripped his tie and did something that surprised them both. She closed the distance between them and kissed him fully on the lips. He reacted instantly, his hand closing over her cheek as he deepened the kiss, pushing her backwards with the force of his mouth on hers. He was devouring her whole and she loved it. Fire raced through her stomach and made her toes tingle; his mouth left hers and moved to her throat, his tongue and teeth working at her till she thought she'd die. Her breathing was erratic and her grip on him tight, one hand still on the tie the other in his hair.
His hand left her cheek and slid down over her arm to the edge of her shirt, his fingers slid easily under the fabric and he splayed his hand over her scars possessively. She lifted her hand from his tie and clutched at his shoulder as pure desire seared through her veins.
"No time," he muttered into her throat. "No fucking time, Janey. Not for what I want to do to you," he choked out and took a step back from her, his face still buried in her throat but his mouth closed against her now.
His words brought Jane back to herself and her eyes widened as she stood there. She slid her arms around his neck and hung on as the feelings ebbed away leaving her slightly shocked.
"You touch me and I forget everything," she whispered into his ear and felt him shudder.
He grunted as if in pain and then let go of her completely and stood right away from her, breaking her hold on him.
"Get dressed," he muttered and looked at her sideways, his tongue running over his lips. "Get dressed before I decide to make this a kidnapping and never return you." He walked to the door and went out shutting it behind him with a bang.
Jane sank to the bed and covered her face with her hands. She could honestly say that she had never experienced anything like the way she felt when she was with him. He was a drug and she was past addiction and into dependant.
Jane was nervous, it wasn't hard to spot and it wasn't him making her nervous.
"Just eat your toast, Janey," he muttered with his mouth full, spraying food everywhere.
"I can't," she pushed the plate towards him. "I feel as if I've got a thousand butterflies inside me."
He laughed and dragged the toast onto his own plate.
Jane looked around her at the tiny room that held a sink, a toaster, a fridge, kettle and a microwave. Dirty plates were piled everywhere and the kettle looked as if it's been blown up a few times. The table they were sat at was only big enough for the two of them. Jane stretched and got up to cross to the sink.
"Does this supply hot water?" she asked turning on the hot tap.
"Nope." He shook his head and shrugged beginning to demolish her toast now. She pulled the full kettle towards her and filled the grimy sink with half and then set it back on to boil.
"I don't suppose you have some sort of soap or washing powder here somewhere?" she asked, peering in the cupboard under the sink.
"Dunno, might do, I usually just rinse stuff off under the cold tap."
"I don't suppose any of you have ever died of food poisoning?" she inquired dryly.
"Funny girl," he said sharply. "Usually the boys don't live long enough and I'm immune."
"Hum… not sure I want to know any more." She poked about and shrieked slightly when an enormous spider scuttled across the shelf and settled itself beside an old bottle of washing up liquid.
"Spider?" he inquired giggling.
"No, a monster," she returned. "Spiders aren't this huge; this thing rivals a blue whale."
"What under my sink?" He widened his eyes at where she was standing looking around the small room with a frown on her face. "Look, sit down, Janey, you're making me dizzy."
"No, I need to be doing stuff," she muttered and spied a broom that had long since lost its bristles. She turned it around and poked it under the sink, bringing the bottle and the spider crashing to the dirty floor. She used the broom handle to whack at the spider until it was crushed beyond recognition. She could hear him laughing but ignored it until she was sure the spider was not moving anymore. She looked up at him and glared.
"What? Most people are scared of spiders; speeds like that just aren't natural!"
"No, no, darlin', it was the "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," you kept muttering as you were hitting it that makes me laugh." He mimicked her higher voice and waved his hands about in mock girlishness.
She snorted and picked up the bottle and squirted half of it into the sink and using a hanky from her pocket, cleaned first the sink and then using fresh water, cleaned all the plates and cups and then left them to dry.
"When you've finished your Suzy Homemaker impression, we need to be getting you to the court house."
She turned and winced when she saw the Joker was sat at the table cleaning out his fingernails with his knife. He looked up at her and grinned, his tongue flicking out to lick his lips. He looked back down and carried on cleaning his nails.
"I'm going to have to clean up a bit first," she hedged.
"You had a wash, didn't you?" he asked referring to the tiny bathroom he'd showed her earlier.
"Yeah, but I think I got out dirtier than I went in," she muttered remembering the mildew on the tiles and the grime encrusted plug hole of the shower basin.
"You have a real problem with being picky, don't ya?" he laughed. "Can't say I've ever noticed anything wrong with this place before."
"That's because you're a man," she said absently.
"Well, I'm glad you noticed." He got up from the table and slid the knife into his jacket pocket.
Jane didn't say anymore just followed him out of the kitchen into the entrance area. Several of the thugs there disturbed briefly but the Joker let them go as he crossed to the door with her.
"Will you be there again?" she asked and realised she sounded needy. It annoyed her and she glared at his back; unfortunately he turned to look at her and raised his eyebrows at her face.
"Woah!" he laughed. "If looks could kill you'd save the Bat Man a big job right now!"
"No, it's not you," she said hastily. "I just realised how I sounded."
"And how do you sound, Janey?"
"Needy, like some little kid and I'm not. I'm a woman, I can take care of myself, and I don't need any help in there today."
He giggled and then reached out to grip the back of her head. He yanked her close to him and tilted his face slightly.
"Y'know what'll come up today? You want to know?"
"Huh?" she stepped closer to him to stop herself from falling.
"Eaton is going to give you a good roasting over me. He'll start to ask questions that'll make you sweat, girl. And you ask if I'm going to be there? I'm not going to miss this for the world, babe."
"And just what do I tell them?"
"The truth, sugar, the truth will set you free."
"Yeah and Crane, cause it'll completely make my witness to his mask useless."
He threw his head back and roared with laughter, still gripping her head. Jane became aware that he was waking up the thugs in the room, but she just ignored them.
"Told ya, justice is only a word, babe, a useless word."
"And if they ask me if I've seen you since Arkham?"
"They won't," he giggled supremely confident. "It wouldn't even cross their minds that sweet Janey would let the Joker into her life. And it wouldn't cross their minds that I'd come see you again and let you live."
"Boss?" A groggy voice from behind Jane made him tilt her head to look over her shoulder.
"What?" he demanded and licked his lips.
"Er… I thought you called," came the now alert voice that reeked of the mistake he had made.
"No." The Joker rolled his eyes and lifted his free hand, a gun was now in his clasp and he pointed it at the man.
"You shoot him and you'll make me go deaf in that ear," Jane said quickly, her wide eyes straining at where the gun was beside her ear.
He looked from the gun to her ear and back to the man. "Your lucky day," he giggled and put the gun back into his pocket and looked back at Janey.
"Listen, sweetheart, just answer their questions, and watch as Gotham's justice department blows itself up."
"Not literally please," she begged. "At least not until I'm well away from there,"
He laughed again and released her head. "But you were all for it the other day! I thought you said you'd give me fifty cents for blowing it up. Changed your mind, Jnaey?" He laughed and shook his head. "No, babe, while I liked that idea, I won't blow them up today. They're going to do that all by themselves. Now get going, Jimmy is waiting outside in the car for you. He'll get you there or die trying."
She nodded and went past him clutching her hands together; she hesitated at the door and turned back to him.
"Don't suppose I could just pretend I don't have to go and stay here with you, could I?"
He laughed and shook his head at her mouthing for her to go. She frowned and shrugged at him before going out the door.
Jane settled herself and waited. The defence had re-called her almost straight away and she was pretty sure she knew why. There was little left to do now but see how it worked out.
She kept glancing up to the galley but there was no sign of the Joker. She clutched her hands together tightly and waited as Mr Eaton took his time in coming over to her. He had just stood up when there was a commotion in the top galley. She looked up hopefully and sure enough, there he was, his hair black as the night, his face half covered making his way through the stands to an empty chair in the middle.
Mr Eaton looked cross at the interruption and waited till he had sat himself down with a quick wave of his hand at the defence lawyer in mock apology.
Jane suppressed a laugh and didn't give it another thought as to how her spirits were lifted seeing the Joker.
"Miss Kimble, we're sorry to have to re-call you to the stand, but we do have a few more questions for you." He smiled at her and once again she thought of sharks.
"Miss Kimble I want to put it to you that you did in fact have an affair with Doctor Crane and when he called it to an end you decided to make him pay."
"No!" Jane shot out hotly. "No, that is wrong! I did not have an affair with Doctor Crane!" She clenched her hands into fists and forced herself to remain clam although two spots of colour in her cheeks belied her emotions; she hadn't been expecting that again.
"Please look at this letter and read it out to the court."
He handed Jane a sheet of paper that she took with a shaky hand. She looked at it in confusion and started to read.
"Dear Jon
Please don't do this, don't break this up. We've been…" She faltered and looked up at him in real confusion but he indicated her to continue.
"We've been good, had very good times, haven't we? I love you, and I always will. Please reconsider. Yours eternally, Jane.
"Did you write this Miss Kimble?"
"Certainly not!" She snorted. "Looking at the grammar and the construction; I'd say a five year old did."
"Doctor Crane says he received this from you just shortly before he left Arkham."
"Then he's mistaken," she replied calmly while inside she was seething. She looked at him and her face was blank but her eyes spat fire.
"Please remember you are under oath."
"I do, Mr Eaton; I did not write or send this letter."
"Are you certain?."
"Positive," she replied and held the letter towards him and pointed at the start. "I'm a writer, Mr Eaton, a romantic fictionist, I can think of a thousand better ways to start a letter than Dear Jon, good grief it's how you start a break up letter, not a take me back letter. And there's no feeling in this, it's just words strung together, where's the depth? The emotion? It's like reading dust and just as imaginative." She sat forwards in her seat and pointed at the last line. "And this… please reconsider? It sounds like someone trying to get their boss to give them their job back, or for the landlord to cancel the rise; not someone begging a former lover to return. I'd have been begging at this stage, please, I can't live without you, you make the sun shine yadah yadah. I'd probably have written something like…"
"I think we get the point, Miss Kimble. You deny this to be your letter to Doctor Crane."
"Damn right I do," she replied smartly and clenched her hands back into fists on her lap. She'd got fired up a little over the letter but a flash bulb in the room going off brought her back to where she was and she shrank back in the chair.
"Can you tell me what your relationship with the Joker is?" his question threw her completely as it was supposed to do. She blinked at him and her mouth fell open.
"I beg your pardon?" she stuttered and frantically fought to get a grip on herself; she sank her nails into her palms and bit her lip.
"The court has already been informed of the events in the Joker's cell that led up to the death of Mr Bond, so we don't need to go over it again."
"What has been said, if it's anything like this letter, it's so far off the beam, it's not even on the same planet."
"The police reports, Miss Kimble," he said impatiently. "Which you signed to be true."
She shrugged and then nodded her head at him.
"Thank you," he said slightly sarcastically. "So, I repeat, what was your relationship with the Joker."
"In Arkham I do not speak to any of the inmates, he was no exception."
"So, up to that day you had not spoken to him at all."
"No,"
"Objection your honour, I fail to see the relevance."
"Your honour, I wish to show the court that Miss Kimble is not always as honest or reliable as she would seem."
"Over-ruled but please get to the point quickly." The Judge said and Jane looked at the court clock and rolled her eyes. It was almost lunch time and she knew why he wanted it speeded up.
"But you spoke to him that day, didn't you?"
"Yes," she replied.
"And, remember you are under oath, Miss Kimble. You did have contact with him over the time he was there didn't you?"
"I didn't talk to him," she replied frowning confusion.
"No, but you did slip him food each day, didn't you?" He arched an eyebrow at her and watched the colour fade from her face. He smirked and looked across at his defence team. "Please answer the question." He turned back to her and pinned her with his dark steely eyes.
"Yes," she replied quietly. "He was.." Her words were lost in the uproar that happened in the court room. Flash bulbs erupted and journalists all starting talking at once. The judge banged his gravel and called for silence. Christopher Eaton started the moment it was quite enough for her to hear him.
"Is it your job to feed the inmates?"
"No, but he.."
"Just a yes or no, please." He stated and walked away from her to stand by the jury. She looked at Michael but he was frantically going through his case notes with Kristen. He looked up at her and pulled a face that told her he was not pleased with her. She looked up into the galley and saw the Joker was gone. She sighed and sank back a little, she realised she couldn't blame him. With that out of the bag now he could very well get caught if he wasn't careful.
"You know it is against the rules to bring anything into the cells don't you, just a yes or no, please."
"Yes." She looked at where Crane was sitting; he was regarding her with a look of interest now and it frightened her. She looked at Christopher Eaton's assistant and knew that the line of questioning, while new to Crane, was not new to the team as a whole. It suddenly dawned on Jane that in order for them to know she had fed the joker, they must also know that he was being systematically starved in Arkham. They must have connected the dots as to why he wasn't dying like they intended and why he chose to save her.
"Did you feel pity for the Joker? Attraction perhaps?" Mr Eaton questioned her sharply and she jumped slightly.
"No, he was starv…"
"Just a yes or no, Miss Kimble," he snapped out. "Are you aware of what he has done in this city?"
"Yes,"
"And it made no difference to your decision to help him."
"No, I mean…"
"I think it's fair to say, Miss Kimble that you have dubious morals and your witness to this case should be held in doubt. No further questions, your honour." Mr Eaton sat down and Jane felt blown over. She blinked at where Michael stood up looking a bit ruffled. She'd been discredited by Mr Eaton and he could see no way of salvaging it.
"Miss Kimble," he started and then straightened his tie. "Could you explain to the court why you chose to feed the Joker?"
"He was starving to death; they were starving him to death."
"Objection your honour, she has no proof of this and thus is merely an assumption."
"Sustained. Question and response to be struck from the courts records." The judge agreed and the penny dropped in Jane's mind. She turned and looked at the judge. They were all part of this large fiasco. Crane was never going to be found guilty even if he'd walked into the court room wearing the mask and cackling like the lunatic he was.
"You know who he is, what he has done, why would it matter to you what happened to him?" Michael broke into her thoughts and made her look at him bitterly.
"I don't believe in torture. If a person is guilty of murder, any person, then strap them to the chair and throw the switch. To prolong death like that makes us no better than a pack of animals."
"So it was your conscience that made you feed the Joker."
"Yes," she replied.
"No further questions, your honour." He said and turned away from her.
The Judge adjourned the court and Jane was led from the seat back into the little room. Michael followed her and she turned to him.
"What will happen now?" she asked and watched him warily.
"Now? Now we'll have to try and salvage the whole damn thing. Why the hell didn't you tell anyone sooner what you'd been doing?"
"Because it was none of their business," she replied and heard her cell phone go off. She ignored it and lifted her hands to him. "Don't you see? It makes no difference what I do or don't do, or what I said or didn't say out there. The Judge was so bored most of the time he couldn't stay awake. The defence team must have known what they were doing in Arkham to the Joker… what kind of place is this, what kind of justice nods its head to that sort of treatment. What makes that any better than what the Joker does? Where is the line drawn between you all? I don't know anymore, and I don't think you all do either. Crane was going to be let off whether I turned up or not. This has just been one big circus show…"
The door opened and Ron walked in. He gave Jane a sympathetic smile and shrugged at Michael.
"It's not a circus, Jane," Michael replied nodding his head at Ron. "We're aware of the corruption in this city just like you are now. But what would happen if we all threw our hands in the air and gave up?"
Jane sighed and slumped slightly. "I still think that was a complete waste of taxpayer's money and now they know I fed the joker the entire case you built on me has come down like a pack of cards."
"Not necessarily," Michael said slowly. "In fact I might be able to use it to our advantage. Jane, you are a humanitarian, you present a face that… do you want to answer that, whoever it is isn't giving up!" he said slightly impatiently when her phone began to ring for the third time.
She hit the button and put it to her ear.
"Hello?" she sighed and closed her eyes.
"Ah, babe, they weren't very kind to you today, were they?" came the unmistakable voice of the Joker. It made her sigh again and the sudden urge to burst into tears made her bite her lip.
"I can't talk yet," she muttered and felt her face flush guiltily.
"Haven't they let you go yet?"
"No," she answered.
"The car is waiting for you, babe, walk out the entrance and it'll be there."
"Thanks," she replied and could say no more for fear of giving him away to the two men watching her.
"One of my boys picked up your post for you; you got a nice looking letter from your publishers, in the shape of box…"
"Really?" she brightened slightly. "Might be the book!"
"That's what I thought; I almost ripped it open to see what kind of dirt you write," he chuckled.
"I do not write…" she stopped herself and blushed. "Don't you dare open it!"
"I won't, babe, but can't you hurry up? I have plans for that building and I don't want you in there when they go kaboom!" he whispered the last word.
"No!" she said hurriedly. "You can't!"
"Only joking!" he cackled and hung up. Jane sighed again and switched the phone off and slid it into her pocket.
"I have to go," she said. "I don't have to come back now do I?"
"Technically, no," Michael said. "But don't you want to hear the verdict?"
"Actually, Jane," Ron looked apologetic. "I have to take you down the station."
"Huh?" she looked at him.
"You committed an offence taking the food into the cells. I have to file a report; don't panic, nothing is going to come of it. Arkham's Board of Directors have already stated to the police that they have no plans on pressing charges."
"But they are going to fire me, aren't they?" she asked and rubbed her hands over her face.
"I'm sorry, Jane, I really am." Ron replied and touched her shoulder.
"Yeah, so am I," she said tiredly and looked up at them with a shrug. "Oh well, can't say I'll miss cleaning the toilets."
"Can it wait till tomorrow, Ron?" Michael asked him quietly. "I think Jane's been through enough today."
Ron hesitated and then shrugged.
"Yeah, yeah it can," he agreed and Jane thanked them both. She said good bye to them both and promised Ron she'd go down to the precinct tomorrow.
She left the building and sighed with relief when she spotted the black car waiting just as the Joker had said it would be.
She stepped forward and was completely unprepared for the sudden rush of reporters heading her way, calling her name and taking photographs and asking intrusive questions. She reached the car just before they mobbed her and almost fell in head first. She was grabbed and tugged further into the car and the door was slammed shut behind her and then the car was speeding off quickly.
"How do you like the fame then, babe?"
"It sucks," she muttered and struggled to sit up. She buckled up and looked at where the Joker was sat beside her, grinning widely at her.
"Better get used to it, babe," he laughed and produced a wrapped box from beside him. She blinked, realised what it was and pounced on it. She had it unwrapped and opened before they'd even turned the corner.
She stared down into the box and her mouth dropped open, her fingers hovered over the book reverently.
"Careful there, sugar, you're gonna drool over it," he chuckled and leaned over to take a look.
She drew the box towards her possessively and drew the book out. The cover was a deep red and orange sunset with a picture of a cowboy leaning against a fence, one booted foot lifted to rest on the bar behind him. His head was down and covered by a black Stetson.
She whistled through her teeth. "It looks just like him…" she muttered and opened the cover.
"Ah, damn it, Janey, you know what it says, you fucking wrote it. Hand it over girl!" He reached forwards and with one gloved hand plucked the book from her hand and opened it to the end.
"You can't read the end before the beginning, that's cheating!" she cried out.
"I ain't gonna read it at all, babe, I just want to know if you're a happy ever after gal, or a Romeo and Juliet tragic… ah, happy ever after," he said as his eyes skimmed the last page; he shrugged. "Should have known, considering it's how you hide yourself away from the world."
"Huh?" she stared at him and took the book back.
"You write what you don't have," he said and looked at her with eyes that saw far too much. She nearly swore at him instead she looked back at the cover and shrugged nonchalantly.
"I write what makes me feel good, what I think will make other women feel good. There's too much hate and unhappiness in this world to write that way too."
"But it's more realistic," he pointed out dryly.
"Then I'll take fantasy over reality any day," she said and realised she'd just proven his point. He cackled and reached over to rub at her hair with a heavy hand.
The car stopped and with a quick look out the window, Jane realised they were back at the offices they stayed in.
"I have to go to the precinct tomorrow," she said and began gathering the wrappings together and stuffing them into the box. He sat there and watched her, even though the driver, Jimmy, had got out and stood waiting outside.
"Why?"
"Did you hear it all this afternoon? I looked up but you'd gone."
"I was there, I moved before I slit the guy's throat next to me. He had this annoying habit of clearing his throat every ten seconds."
"Gosh, how did you contain yourself? Although they might just have realised who you were if blood came gushing over the sides of the galley," she said dryly.
"I thought I showed excellent restraint," he replied and clenched and unclenched his hands on his lap.
"Whatever," she muttered and shifted sideways to the door. "Oh by the way, I've got the sack from Arkham, but they are very kindly not going to press charges against me, despite illegally feeding you in the cells, which is why I have to go down and fill out some reports or something. Aren't I a lucky girl?"
"Aren't you fucking sarcastic when you're not thinking about it," he retorted and laughed. "Get out of the car, Janey."
"What? You're not going to come around and open the door for me?" she looked at him mockingly and quickly opened the door herself when he suddenly lunged towards her. She got out, his mocking laugh following her.
She looked up at the run down, dreary looking building and sighed.
"You forgot my underwear," she said quietly and suddenly felt like crying. She had no idea where that thought or the sudden rush of feelings came from.
"Eh?" he looked at her in surprise.
"Never mind, I'll just wash these out and dry them somewhere," she replied and went in ahead of him, her face showing her disgust as the smell hit her.
The Joker watched her walk in and threw his arms out to the sides, a knife in one hand.
"Jimmy, get us a Chinese and whatever the boys want."
"Yes, boss," he replied.
The Joker followed Jane in and saw her trudging up the stairs slowly. He licked his lips and lifted the knife slightly before heading towards the TV.
An hour later saw Jane sitting on the single bed in her pyjamas and robe, her underwear hanging over the back of the chair to dry. Her legs were crossed Indian style and she had a pad of paper balanced on her legs. She was writing furiously when the Joker came in with two bags in his hand. She didn't even hear him come in as she scribbled away.
"You hungry?" he asked and shut the door behind him with his foot. There was no reply from Jane who was still scribbling. He frowned and set the bags on the floor and came right to the bed. He leant down and waved his hand in front of her face; she shrieked slightly and jumped.
"You scared me!" She blew out her breath and looked at him with a slightly far-away look in her eyes.
"You on planet happy ever after again?" he laughed and picked up the bags.
"No, I was on planet 'she's just about to kick him in the arse for disturbing her'," she replied with a grin and watched as he stilled and looked over his shoulder at her.
"You like playing with fire, don't you?" he inquired softly.
"What you got in the bags then?" she asked him trying to distract him.
"Nothing for writers who get lippy," he replied and suddenly stopped to frown at her. "Eat what you want…" He put the two bags on the bed and turned to cross back to the door.
"What's up?" she called, disturbed by his sudden change in attitude. "Aren't you hungry too?"
He stopped. his hand on the door handle, and looked back at her over his shoulder, licking his lips.
Before he could say anything her cell phone rang and she picked it up from beside her.
"Hello?" She kept her eyes on him and indicated to the bags with her head. "Who?" She frowned and blinked and then shook her head.
"No." She stopped the call and threw the phone onto the floor.
"Who was that?" he asked coming back across to her.
"Gotham Globe, would you believe?" she sighed as he sat down on the bed. "Want me to answer some questions about you and Crane."
"You really are famous now, girl," he chuckled and riffled through the bags.
"Where were you going?" she asked him and took a box of rice from him.
"Ah, Janey, don't ask me that," he replied and dug into his own box of sweet and sour.
"Let's play a game, Janey, I'm bored," he whined later on; the empty food boxes lay on the floor.
"What sort of game?" she asked wearily.
"I ask you a question, every time you get it wrong you have to take off an item of clothing," he suggested and waggled his eyebrows at her.
"I don't think so," she snorted. "Got any cards?"
"What can you play? Poker? Aces?" He reached across to his overcoat and drew a packet from his pocket.
"Um…. Snap?" she shrugged and was glad when he laughed. "I'm really good at solitaire," she added.
"Well, there is actually two of us and last time I played it was a game for one," he said slowly. "C'mon, I'll teach you poker," he said and shuffled the cards expertly.
"Can you do any magic tricks?" she asked and watched as he looked up at her in surprise.
"I'm not a real circus clown, Janey, I just pretend," he mocked.
"I know that," she retorted.
"And you really don't want me to show you the few tricks I do know," he giggled. "Like my disappearing pencil trick; it runs along the same lines as a disappearing toothbrush trick; and both result in death." He laughed now and dealt out seven cards on the bed between them.
"Ouch…" She picked up her cards and opened them out holding them up. "Last time I played cards was at school and it was Go Fish," she said absently.
"Let's go fish, then, I can't be bothered to teach you poker just now, unless it's of the strip variety."
"You're a dirty old man," she laughed and put the cards back down for him to re-deal. He looked up at her and tilted his face to one side as he regarded her.
She leant forwards to gather the cards together and he reached out and gripped a handful of her hair tugging her closer to him. She raised her hands and caught his hand in her hair.
"Come here and say that," he hissed his voice darker than ever she'd heard it. It sent a ripple of unease down her spine as she looked into his eyes. She drew herself onto her knees wincing slightly at the tug in her hair; his grip eased slightly. She inched right towards him until her face was almost against his.
"You're a dirty old man," she whispered but couldn't keep a slight shake from her voice.
"Let's see just how dirty I can get then, shall we?" he replied and his voice was still gruff. He slid his other hand around her back and pushed her sideways until he could flip her onto her back; he loomed over her, one hand still clenched in her hair, both of her hands still clutching his hand. He licked his lips and a bolt of fire curled into her stomach making her gasp.
She thought he was going to kiss her but he didn't. His face went straight to her neck, his teeth nipping at her skin before bringing his other hand to the front of her robe. He lifted slightly and let her go of her hair to open her robe and her pyjama top; he brought his eyes to her face to see it was slightly flushed.
"Keep your eyes open, babe," he husked and pushed the fabric to one side. He looked down at her scarred skin and groaned; his tongue flicking in and out. He leant forwards and dragged his tongue up each scar till her stomach glistened with his saliva. Her breathing was hitched as each swipe made her stomach twist tighter and tighter, a heavy feeling settled into her limbs.
"Y'know." He lifted his head to regard her intently. "This probably isn't the time to say this to you, but I can't remember the last time I had a woman. I don't usually bother; too much fun elsewhere to be had. But you… you just scream to me. I can't leave you alone, babe and that's not good for the concentration levels. I'm gonna have to have you sooner or later if not to just still this infernal need in me."
"You know how to sweet talk a girl, don't you?" she said dryly, but the desire he was bringing to life was still there making her grip his arms as she looked up at him.
"That's just it, babe; you're different and it's taken me awhile to box you up in my mind. But I've done it now; so it's okay. You can do what you will, but it won't change," he whispered and lowered his face to hers, his lips brushed hers and then he plundered her mouth, his tongue demanding and gaining entrance. His hands went to her waist and clutched tightly as he dragged his cheek over hers, his tongue dancing over her skin down her jaw line to the hollow of the throat. He nipped, licked and sucked his way across her breast bone and down between the swell of her breasts. Jane was on fire, her breathing was ragged, and her hands were climbing and digging into the material of his back. The sensations he was creating in her were almost too much and it made her moan and writhe beneath him. His hands tugged at her shoulders till he could pull her up into a sitting position, his mouth never leaving the heated skin of her chest. He dragged her robe and top off and tossed them somewhere over his shoulder. Jane shivered as the cold air caressed her skin, his mouth left her shoulder to pull back from her slightly, his hungry eyes taking in every inch of her exposed skin.
"Beautiful," he muttered and his hands went straight to her breasts, making her arch upwards with a muffled cry, her bottom lip in her teeth as her hands clawed into his waistcoat.
"This can only going to end one way, Janey," he breathed into her ear. His tongue darted out and licked her ear making her squirm under him.
"No one has ever made me feel like this," she shuddered. His tongue slathered over her neck and his mouth went straight to her nipple, his teeth and tongue explored her completely and his hand covered her other breast and massaged her.
"How do you feel, Janey?" he muttered against her skin and brought both hands to the waistband of her pyjama bottoms. "Tell me how you feel?"
"Like I'm on fire," she gasped and automatically lifted herself and fastened her mouth on his neck. She felt him lift her hips and drag the bottoms down and off her legs. It suddenly dawned on her she was completely naked and it made her retreat slightly, the panic edging into her mind.
"Hold on, babe," he muttered, he slid her back down and loomed over her. "Put your arms around my neck and keep your eyes open," he hissed at her and she obeyed him. He kept his face close to hers as his fingers gripped her hips; he could read the edges of panic clearly in her eyes.
"I don't know how to be any other way," he whispered and his tongue flicked out and licked at her lips. "Look at me, babe, don't shut your eyes."
He used his knee to part her legs and the panic bloomed inside her, threatening to deaden the feelings he'd created. He 'sshed her', his face still close to hers, his eyes holding her own as his fingers danced over the flesh of her hips to settle inside her thigh. He trailed his fingers up and down as he brought his other hand up to hold his own weight as he moved slightly between her legs. Her breathing hitched at the sensations his touch caused. His fingers slid higher and higher until he was caressing her intimately; her eyes widened and she almost stopped breathing, a little groan left her lips. Her hands slid from his hair to his shoulders; her eyes never leaving his. He could see the effects his touch was having on her and it made him smirk down at her.
"Janey, I'm gonna know everything there is to know about you," his words ghosted over her lips; his fingers found her sensitive spot and her eyes drifted shut as her breath left her on a groan.
"Open your eyes," he commanded and she dragged them open to stare into his chocolate brown ones. She bit her lip and he shook his head at her. "I want to hear you, babe."
"I…" She groaned deeper as his fingers slid down her so slowly she thought she'd melt. "I want… I want to touch you," she muttered her fingers slipping down his shoulders to his bare forearms. She slid her fingers up under the rolled up fabric of his shirt.
"Later," he husked and lifted his other hand from her. She squirmed when she heard him undo his trousers and push them down slightly. She could feel the ache building inside her; it seemed like a hundred years and yet the feeling was familiar to her and yet it wasn't. She didn't think she'd ever felt the intensity that he was building in her. He settled between her legs and she could feel his length pressing into the side of her leg; it made her move to rub against him, her legs settling around him, trying to draw him into where she ached the most for him.
"Want to see you come first," he muttered and lifted himself from her to bring his hand between them again. His fingers found her and he relentlessly rubbed at her until she couldn't help but spin out of control, her fingers biting into his upper arms, her cries resounded through the room. He watched as her eyes didn't leave his; he moved his hand and with her still spiralling out of control he eased into her. His eyes nearly crossed at how tight she was, tight and wet and still pulsating from the high he'd sent her on. He was so ready for this that he had to physically hold himself back from just thrashing into her like a two bit whore. He waited till he could see she had adjusted to him and then he began thrusting into her, his eyes never leaving hers as he took her. He lost himself in her, pushing into her until he came groaning her name over and over. His head sunk into her neck dimly aware that he had made her come again. He smirked and licked at her skin, rubbing his scars gently over her smooth skin.
He could feel her breathing heavily under him, her arms around his waist telling him she didn't want him to move yet.
"Can you breathe, okay?" he muttered into her neck, his eyes closing as he let his scarred cheek caress her skin.
"I don't think I need to," she muttered into his hair. "This is really corny, but I think I just died anyway."
He groaned and licked her again, she squirmed slightly and he frowned lifting himself away from her.
"You don't mind me licking you, do you?" he stated and sat back up to drag his trousers back up his legs.
"Are you joking?" she said blushing fiercely. "I love it, it's kinda kinky and unique and, I don't know, it just makes me feel good." She giggled and then went serious as she looked at him. "I didn't think I'd ever… well, y'know." She shrugged and lifted her eyebrows at him.
"You mean have sex?" he turned and leant towards her. "But ya did, didn't ya?"
There was a banging at the door and Jane jumped a mile; he laughed and got up from the bed. He moved away from the bed towards the door and she saw him pick up a gun before opening it.
"Results in," came a low voice from the door but she couldn't see who stood there. She yawned and crawled up the bed to clamber under the covers.
She heard him murmur something but sleep was dragging at her so she curled up, her head snuggled into his pillow, and shut her eyes.
A/N: Thanks so much for your reviews and I just hope this one doesn't disappoint!
