"I'm fine Bruce," I insisted. I had cut my hand the night before when Ramirez pushed me and I fell on broken figurine pieces. I had a nasty cut but I didn't feel it then, probably because of everything else going on. I made the mistake of not telling Bruce about it and instead, bandaging it up myself. Needless to say, he found out the next day during breakfast when I reached out to take something and the sleeve of my shirt was blood soaked.
"Charlie," he told me in a warning tone. I had already gotten in trouble the previous day. "You are going to the hospital even if I have to drag your sorry butt."
"Bruce, I'll take her," Rachel said, interrupting us. I looked at her guiltily as I remembered what I did to her. She didn't seem to take notice; she was intently staring at Bruce. "There's something you should see here." She pointed at the TV.
It was a report about how a man was going to reveal the identity of Batman. They showed a picture of him and he looked familiar. I was sure I've seen him somewhere before. I was a bit worried about the implication of what he was going to reveal. I wasn't sure if he really did know the true identity of Batman but Bruce's worried face was enough to make me stress. "Bruce? What's going on?" I asked. I wanted him to smile and say, nothing's wrong.
He smiled. "Nothing's wrong."
I didn't believe him.
"But," he continued. "that man works for me. I'll have to go check that out. I wonder what he knows." I knew he was just putting a calm façade.
Rachel ended up driving me to the hospital, and Bruce left on his Lamborghini. I watched jealously as he drove the car fast, he never drives that car fast when I'm in it. Rachel was worried, I could tell. She had a lot of things to be worried about; the Joker was after both her boy friend and her boyfriend.
"Hey Rach," I whispered. "Sorry about the whole knocking you guys unconscious bit." She didn't take her eyes off of the road as her hand reached out to me. I thought she was going to hug me or pat me on the head but instead, she pulled my ear fairly hard. "Ouch!" I yelped at the unexpected pain.
"You're hand is bleeding and you say ouch to a small pull?" she asked. I think it was meant as a joke, but it came off as angry. "You're so-" she huffed, searching for words but I don't think she could find it. "Look, I'm not angry that you took us and helped us. I know that if it weren't for you Harvey would have been in serious danger and based on what Bruce and Gordon told me, so would I. So I'm thankful that you saved us, but I cannot forgive you for doing what you did."
I turned to face her. "I'm sorry." I forced myself to sound calm but I was also starting to get angry. I did save her life. I did save Harvey's life. Why was everyone so pissed off over that? I was only doing what I thought was right.
"You don't understand," she snapped. "What if something had happened? What if you were hurt?"
"But I wasn't hurt!"
"Then why are we headed to the hospital right not?"
I sunk back in my seat. I didn't reply. What could I have said? She was right, I was wrong. I acted stupid and I didn't think at all about the consequences. "Charlie," she said instead. "If something where to happen to you, your father would be devastated. You're the only thing that really matters to him, the only thing that's keeping him together. If anything were to happen to you, he'd -,"
She didn't continue. I think she didn't want to reflect anymore on the matter.
"Where's Harvey?" I asked, wanting to change the subject. Harvey had very early in the morning.
"He's with Gordon I think. Jim's very relieved to know that Harvey wasn't blown up." She bit her lip as she seemed hesitant to continue. "Thank you for what you did, even if I'm still angry about how you went about doing it."
We soon arrived at Gotham General Hospital. Bruce had told me that my grandfather once worked in this very hospital. I had only been here a few times, but I have met many of the doctors through various fund raisers.
Had I known that someone had followed us, that someone had been reporting our actions, that someone was very happy that we were in this particular hospital, then maybe things would have been different.
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Bruce was tense. It was a very long week for him. First the Joker came into his home, then he had to send Charlie away, then Gordon get's killed during the previous commissioner's funeral parade, then Charlie somehow managed to come back, then Harvey gives himself up as the Batman so he had to make sure Harvey isn't killed, then it turns out the Gordon isn't dead, then he comes home after thinking that this time Rachel's dead only to find out that she's not dead either (not that it was a bad thing), then Reese had to go on national TV intending to reveal Batman's identity and now the Joker had called the station saying he was going to blow up a hospital if Reese reveals the identity and isn't dead in the hour.
He remembered his conversation with the Joker so vividly. What struck him was how much those things he said made sense. It was uncanny how much sense the Joker had. They were both similar in so many ways; they were more similar to each other than the very people they worked with. Yet, at the same time they were almost polar opposite, keyword: almost. If Batman was the only life that Bruce had, the only thing that Bruce held dear to him, then he would have been comparable to the Joker. But it wasn't. He had Charlie to keep him grounded. He had a daughter to take care of, that's why he was out in the streets trying to make it safer. That's why he needed to keep himself leveled so that he wouldn't lose himself. That's why he was looking for someone proper to replace the Batman, because of Charlie.
Also, that's why the Joker may be right. He might break the one rule he set for himself –he would not kill. Bruce remembered when the Joker told him that Rachel's life was in danger. Bruce recalled the anger he felt, he wanted to hurt the Joker but he didn't want to kill him. Now, he would be very willing to kill Reese without a second thought if it meant protecting Charlie. But he knew the Joker. Even if Reese was killed by someone, he would still blow up a hospital regardless.
He had to get to the hospital fast.
He saw Reese being protected by the police, which included Gordon. He spotted a man take a shot at Reese but missed, the man was arrested. The people of Gotham were angry, angry enough to kill and he felt the same way he did. Is this what the Joker had planned? Is this what he wanted to show? That the people of Gotham would be willing to commit senseless acts of murder when given the right circumstances. That these 'normal' people would turn just as crazy if pushed. Bruce understood them; he understood their need to kill Reese, because he wanted to kill Reese.
He drove fast. He was tremendously grateful that he decided to use the Lamborghini. He was extremely nervous and scared; the adrenaline of driving fast was helping calm his nerves. He needed the rush. He drove so fast that he did not even notice the lights turning red.
Crash!
Loud ringing noise, pounding head, feeling disoriented, he couldn't think clearly. He could feel his body aching. Though it was nothing compared to all the scrapes he's been through as Batman, it was different because he was Bruce Wayne at the moment.
He could hear moaning, and it took him a while to realize it was coming from him. He groggily got out of the car. His noticed that it was hit by a small truck on the passenger's side, and that his car hit another vehicle on the other side, a black van. Bruce sat in his broken car nursing a cut on his head.
"Mr. Wayne," Gordon greeted as he came round the corner. "That's a very brave thing you did,"
Bruce frowned and looked at Gordon, confusion evident in his face. "What? Trying to run a red light?"
Gordon was taken aback. "So you weren't trying to save the van?"
Bruce nursed his bleeding forehead. "Why? Who's in it?" He honestly did not know. He turned and saw Reese being led to another car. He wanted to kill him; he's ever wanted to kill anyone in his life until now.
"I should get to the hospital," Bruce told Gordon urgently, though keeping his eyes on Reese.
Gordon chuckled lightly. "You don't watch a whole lot of news do you Mr. Wayne?"
Bruce stood up abruptly, glaring at Reese who did not move. "No, my daughter's in the hospital," he growled loud enough to be heard by Reese.
He saw his employee's – ex-employee's eyes widen. It was a nice feeling being able to see fear in his eyes, because he had every reason to be afraid. He wanted to hurt Reese, more than anything he wanted to hurt Reese at that moment. Bruce tried with all his might to control himself not to kill the man; it had been the hardest thing he had to do. But if anything were to happen to Charlie, he would make sure the stupid idiot would pay. He would stop at nothing to make Reese pay.
The moment explosions were heard in the south eastern part of Gotham, Bruce knew it was the hospital Charlie was supposed to go to. He knew it was Gotham General Hospital.
It was probably a good thing that Gordon was there; else Bruce would have landed in jail.
Bruce lunged himself at Reese's direction, who took a step back in fear. The only thing holding Bruce back from committing murder was Gordon pushing him back. The Joker won. He now knew what it was like to want to kill someone so bad. He wanted to hurt Reese, to make him suffer, to kill him. He had all that strength but it still wasn't enough to keep safe the one he loved the most. How much he wished that Charlie had been disobedient and decided not to go to the hospital. If only he didn't force her.
"They cleared the building," Gordon yelled trying to calm Bruce down.
Bruce tried focusing on Gordon, "Are you sure?"
Gordon didn't look too certain. "That's what I've been told." Had Bruce not been so worried, he would have applauded Gordon for the diplomatic answer.
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Gordon was a good man. He had always tried living a good guilt free life. He wouldn't say he followed the laws to the letter, and he would be willing to admit that there were times he had bended the law to suit himself, after all he was only human.
He had a loving wife, who was there when he needed her, who gave him two wonderful children, who understood how much he wanted to make the city better. He had his little girl, who was such a daddy's little girl. He loved spoiling his daughter to pieces; she was his little angle who lit up his world with the smallest of smiles. He would go to the ends of the world and back just to make her happy. Then, he had his son. As much as he loved his wife and his daughter dearly, he cherished his son in a different way because his son was his son. There's really no other way to describe it. There was a bond different to that of a father and daughter and a father and son. His son was going to be a man someday and he wanted to be sure that his son would be a good man when he grows up, just as he wanted his daughter to forever be a little girl.
He may have caused his family undeserved pain by faking his own death, but that was for their own good. He couldn't let them get hurt after all. He would do anything, including give up his own life, to protect his family. So as he watched Bruce struggle with himself in front of Reese, the man who in a way was responsible for Gotham General Hospital, he could not blame Bruce Wayne.
He watched sympathetically as Bruce paced back and forth while trying to call his precious daughter through his phone. Gordon too was saddened and angered by the fact that Charlie was in harm's way. He had known the child for years and was a good friend of his son. For some time now, he had considered himself the girl's unofficial godfather of sorts. He had hoped that what was told to him, that the building had been cleared, was true.
"She's not answering her phone," Bruce murmured as he dialed another number. A faint voice was heard, informing them that the phone was not in use.
"We'll find her," Gordon told Bruce, trying to bring an ounce of comfort to the man.
Gordon would admit that he used to be weary of the rich flamboyant bachelor. To be frank, he didn't think that Bruce would make a good father for Charlie but he kept his opinion to himself because he hadn't heard anything from either Jimmy or Charlie herself. He watched the news and saw Bruce getting drunk, partying here and there, photographed with various women, but he ignored it because Charlie looked happy. So as he watched the man worrying like a father worried about their children, he knew Bruce was a good father to Charlie.
"Come with me," Gordon pulled the young billionaire. Bruce had lost a lot of things already, and at such a young age, Gordon shuddered to think how the man would react to anything more. "I'm headed to the site, she's probably there,"
Gordon saw Bruce barely nod. It wasn't like the Lamborghini would be able to go anywhere, shame though since it was a really nice car. There were bigger things to worry about that a car though; it was harsh when a run over Lamborghini wasn't the worst thing you'd be coming across in the day.
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The hospital site was a mess. A huge crater was all that was left of what was once a great hospital. Gordon shuddered to think about what would be left of someone who was still inside. He really did start praying that the whole building was cleared. There were fire trucks, helicopters, police cars, ambulances and various reporters scattered around. Doctors and patient alike were littered all over the place. Dying smoke, along with debris and ash, filled the area. A bomb went off the place that was obvious enough.
"What's the situation?" Gordon asked hurriedly the moment he got off his car. He saw, out of the corner of his eyes, Bruce calling out his daughter's name.
"There's a bus missing," said a detective. "Witnesses said they saw the Joker taking it,"
Gordon rubbed his forehead vigorously, "Do you know who's in it?"
He noticed Detective Ramirez and the other detective exchange a look before shaking their heads. He knew they knew something. He knew that plenty of police had dealings with the mobs and such; he knew that Detective Ramirez was probably one of them, but he had a soft spot for the woman because she looked like his sister.
"Gordon," called out a voice from the crowed, Gordon saw Harvey approaching. He was glad that Harvey was there, it would look good for the media if they saw Gotham's white knight lending a helping hand. "I can't find Rachel."
Gordon frowned, why was Rachel in the hospital?
"She was with Wayne's kid," Harvey answered the unasked question.
Gordon nodded; he knew the Rachel was friends with Charlie. It was not unusual for her to spend some time with the child, especially before her father had come back. "It's not good Dent," Gordon confessed. "There's a bus missing, and witness says they saw the Joker in it,"
Harvey roared in frustration. "You know, if you just took care of your kid better, they wouldn't be in this mess," Harvey growled.
Gordon turned around to find Bruce standing not too far behind. Well within hearing range.
"My kid is the reason you're alive Dent," Bruce said coolly.
"Yeah, well if you had been there then she wouldn't have gotten hurt. Where were you anyway Wayne? Off with one of your models?" Harvey countered.
Gordon could tell that this was just going to lead to a non-productive argument that wasn't going anywhere. "The point is we need to find them. They could just possibly be in another hospital, or they were able to leave of their own,"
"Rachel's not answering her phone, and last I heard from here was just before the building exploded. She was talking fine when I heard someone take the phone from her and I heard laughter and it hanged," Harvey answered. "I've been trying to call her since,"
It was easy to tell that both young men were tense. Gordon wasn't stupid enough to promise them something he wasn't so sure he would be able to keep, especially not to the next up and coming defense attorney and Gotham's prince. He also knew that he could not just stand by, if either of these men were to fall, Gotham will not stand.
"We've got every police in the area searching for the Joker. If we find anything, you'll be the first to know," Gordon told them.
Harvey leaned in to Gordon, anger evident in his eyes, "You have people who were willing to sell me and Rachel out to the Joker, forgive me if I don't exactly trust them."
Gordon couldn't say anything. He knew it was true, he knew that there were many people in his department who were in line with the mob, but what was he to do? He had to do his best with what he had.
"I have to go," Bruce murmured, he seemed out of it.
Harvey glared at him. "Do you not care at all?"
It was so fast, Gordon barely caught it, but one second Harvey was glaring at Bruce and the next Bruce had his hand wrapped around Harvey's collar. "Don't you dare accuse me of not caring Dent, not me." Bruce whispered. Gordon had to look around to make sure they weren't garnering any attention. Bruce then let go of Harvey, who rubbed his neck vigorously. "I have more resources that what you and the entire Gotham Police Department has. I'll let you know when I find the Joker, in the mean time, I suggest you do your job Dent and act like the DA."
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A message from TemperedRose:
I'll try having the next chapter quick. Oh and did you guys know that they're revealed the next villains for the Dark Knight Rises? It's apparently Deadshot and Black Mask... but I don't know how accurate my sources are (PerezHilton). If you don't read the comic books and don't know who they are (like me, but I have read some of the batman comics especially those involving the joker) then Wikipedia them .
