A/N: Hey guys, sorry about the break in writing, I was getting ready for school and work has been kicking my tail again. It also didn't help that I went to see Les Mis the movie (if you get a chance to go, go, it's beautiful and pretty faithful to the musical and the book that inspired it).
Beyond the Barricades
I fell to my knees in shock. My mind spun as I listened to the broadcast. Liberalists had partnered with some other rebel groups…they managed to breach the palace walls…the place was set alight…no known survivors…
They were gone…no they weren't! This was a really bad joke…no it's not…they would've called me…or maybe there was no time…
Or maybe they were really gone…
No…
No…
My phone rang. It was…I grabbed it and answered it, holding onto the hope that it was really them. "Mama?!"
"Hi, sweetie." Mama's voice was the other end. It was tired and sad…but it was hers.
"Mama…!" I began crying in relief. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!"
"I'm sorry, baby, but we barely escaped. There was no time to let you know. But we're safe now."
She used 'we' but was that referring to Papa or whoever happened to escape with her? "And Papa? Is he ok?" I waited with baited breath.
"He's fine, he's asleep now but I thought I'd call and let you know that we're safe."
Bruce knelt next to me and looked at me. His eyes were silently asking me to pass the phone to him. "Hang on, Mama. Uh, Bruce wants to talk to you if that's ok."
"Sure." I passed the phone to Bruce.
"Hello, Rebecca…is Victor ok? Good, where are you two now? How long do you think it'll take to…oh I see. You have a safe and reliable transport? All right. How soon will you be ready to leave? That's good, I'll call as soon as I have everything ready to go. Get some sleep, Rebecca, you've had a long day. I'll pass you back to Grace." Bruce passed me the phone.
"Grace, it's all set. Bruce is coming to get us. We'll be in Gotham in time to see you perform in Faust." I felt a sense of relief…Bruce was going to get my parents…we were going to be a family again. But a new feeling came over me…the war was over…but all of it was in vain… "Grace? Grace, honey, are you ok?"
"Yeah, it's just…beginning to sink in. I'm not sorry the war ended. But I'm sorry that it had to end this way…"
"I know. Your poor father hasn't spoken a word since we fled. I think this broke him more than anything else." Mama's voice was sad and concerned. Not that I blamed her, of course.
"We can never go home again, can we?" I asked.
"There's a government set up in exile. But yes…it's unlikely we'll ever return, in this life anyway."
I heard a loud beeping on my phone. "Oh, I've got another call coming in. Can I call you back later?"
"Sure, I'm about to go to sleep here. Have a good night and I love you."
"I love you too, Mama." I hung up and took the other phone call. "Hello, Mr. Freeman."
"Grace? I saw the news, are your parents…?"
"No, they're ok. Bruce will be going to get them."
"So that's why your husband called…"
"Pardon?" I looked at Bruce out of the corner of my eye. He had a neutral look on his face.
"Your husband called and said that you two had a family emergency and asked if you could miss the last two rehearsals before opening night. Normally, I wouldn't have allowed it…but given the situation and the fact that you know the opera inside and out…if you need to go and be with your parents, then go ahead. We'll be ok here until opening night that is."
"Ok, Mr. Freeman. Thank you so much…"
"No problem and I'm sorry about what happened."
"Thank you. I will see you opening night." I looked at Bruce, surprised at what he had done. Not that I was upset…anything but.
Bruce smiled. "At least I have my alibi now. A surprise belated honeymoon in the Guibileo Islands."
The private plane rolled to a stop. Bruce couldn't help but smile at Grace as she looked out the window. She looked so happy. It felt so good to see her happy.
Victor and Rebecca had fled to the small archipelago in the Caribbean, a territory of Corte Maltese, unaffected by the war. It was to be the new seat of power for the monarchy.
It was such a change from gloomy and overcast Gotham. Sunshine, scarce a cloud in the sky, the water as blue as a sapphire.
Grace kept her composure as the pilots opened the door and lowered the steps. But Bruce could tell she wanted to run out of the plane. He got out first, helping Grace down the stairs.
Victor and Rebecca were waiting for them at the small airport. Bruce could tell that the war had affected them. They had aged in the nearly two months since Bruce and Grace got married. Rebecca was what Grace could look like when she turned sixty, the once luxurious black hair had dulled and was streaked with white. Victor had a haunted look in his green eyes, his face sunken in.
Rebecca held her arms open wide. "Mama…Papa…" Her voice cracking, Grace ran to them. Bruce stood and watched as the small family was reunited. It was bittersweet…seeing Rebecca hugging Grace and Victor wrapping his arms around his family…his parents used to do that with him when he was a boy…
They looked up to Bruce. Rebecca held out her hand, smiling. "Bruce…come here. You're as much a part of our family."
Life in the Guibileo Islands was quieter than sleepy Corte Maltese. Of course there was the heightened security on account of what had happened. But otherwise, we might as well have been in a different time. I think it worked best that we were here…Mama and Papa deserved some peace and quiet.
Our family home was in a secluded bay on the main island. As we drove up to the villa, I gasped. With its white walls, blue domed roofs and greenery…I had forgotten that it was based off the villa back in Corte Maltese. The villa where Bruce and I got to know each other. The villa that was now a pile of rubble faraway.
"Welcome to our new home." Mama smiled as we stepped inside the courtyard. "We'll show you to your rooms, and yes Bruce, you're not sleeping in the servant's quarters this time."
"I don't really care, Rebecca, you know that." Bruce said as we walked up the stairs.
"Don't tell me you've forgotten what she said back at the airport?" Papa gently chided, putting his hand on Bruce's shoulder. "You're part of our family."
After they got settled into the villa, Bruce suggested to Grace that they take a walk on the thankfully deserted shore. He needed to go over the last few details of the plan with her. How the seaplane was going to land close to the bay early the next morning. How he was going to be swimming there with his gear. How the whole mission would take about forty-eight hours altogether. How she would tell her family that he was going to take care of something.
That and he wanted to talk about the annulment. The annulment…now that Grace's parents had a safe place, they didn't need to be married anymore. But he never thought of how much he was going to miss her…her laugh, her smile, her love of music, her loyalty…he realized that part of him didn't want the annulment.
Grace listened carefully as he told her, braiding her hair over her shoulder. She had changed into a white shirtdress over her dark blue swimsuit and was barefoot. While she had a calm face, there was a soft light in her green eyes.
"Do you have any questions, Grace?" Bruce asked.
"No, but I do want to say something. Bruce…I want to thank you for everything…" Grace said, pushing a lock of hair out of her face.
"You don't need to thank me for anything." Bruce said, touching her shoulders.
"No, I do…I know that our marriage has put a strain on everything. Your life as Batman. Your life with Rachel. And I'm grateful for everything you've done." She smiled.
"Grace…thank you…for being there." Bruce hugged her. How he didn't want to say anything more and just stay in that moment of peace. But the talk he wanted to have with her gnawed on the back of his mind.
"What's wrong?" Grace asked.
"Grace, we do need to talk about the annulment. I know you didn't want to get married. It wasn't fair to you. Now that your family is safe, there's no need to keep up the charade. We can file for it as soon as we head back to the States. You don't even need to go back…"
Her face fell. Was it possible that she didn't want it either? "Bruce, I…can I have some time to think it over first?"
"Yeah, sure." Bruce was surprised of the feelings of relief. "We need to get back." He cleared his throat. "They'll be wondering where we are." Grace said nothing but nodded. They began walking to the villa. Bruce felt something grip his hand. It was Grace. He said nothing but allowed her to hold his hand. She began chuckling. "What's so funny?"
"I was just remembering something we did in Corte Maltese. That time we went jumping in the waves?"
Oh he remembered that… "And how I fell onto a sea urchin?" he winced at the memory of the painful sting. Grace laughed. "Know what? Let's go jumping with the waves." Bruce said. "I've changed into my swim suit."
Grace smirked. "Last one in is a rotten egg?"
"You know it." Bruce took off. Thanks to nights spent running after criminals, he was in the cool water long before Grace.
"Hey! No fair!" She said, finally having caught up. They were about chest deep in the water. "Ready?" She said as a wave came in. "Go!" Grace and Bruce jumped as the wave hit them, enjoying the feeling of weightlessness. She was smiling, genuinely smiling.
That was the Grace he remembered.
They went deeper and deeper until their feet were no longer touching the ground. As the water receded, Bruce felt his feet getting caught by a strong current.
"Whoa!" Grace yelped as they were pulled under. Bruce remembered to not kick but allowed his body to float to the surface. That was close, he thought as he gasped air. But something was wrong…
"Grace?" Bruce looked around. She was gone. Oh no…"Grace?!" Fighting the want to panic, he studied the water, looking for dark spots. A tight feeling gripped his chest.
"Gotcha!" Grace yelled from behind. She splashed water at him. "You ok?" she finally asked.
"Oh, I will be…" Bruce smirked as he splashed her. They began a splashing fight. Grace swam closer to shore. "Hey! Where are you going? Don't tell me you've turned chicken." He teased.
"I want to get closer to shore so we're not caught up in any rip currents." She said. Bruce realized that she had a point. He followed her. Eventually, they got pulled back into shore by the waves. They lay on the wet sand, enjoying the water as it rolled over them. Grace kissed his cheek. He returned it, her cheek tasted of sea salt.
They lay there for a little while, until they heard Victor calling out. "Bruce? Grace? It's time for lunch!"
"That was fun, Bruce. Thanks for going swimming with me."
"It was fun and you're welcome." Bruce said, standing up himself and helping Grace up. They walked hand in hand back to the villa.
Victor was waiting for them in the gardens, holding up some thick and fluffy white towels. "How was your swim?" Grace's father asked.
"It was good…a lot of fun." Grace took a towel and began drying her hair.
"Grace? Can you help me here, please?" Rebecca called from the table.
"Sure, Mama." Grace wrapped her towel around her chest and went to help her mother.
Bruce watched Grace as she helped pour out the drinks. She laughed and was chatting with Rebecca. Victor stood next to him. "I haven't seen my daughter smile in a very long time." The father said, a sad smile on his face. The war had taken a lot out of the family. "She missed you, you know, after you left."
Bruce nodded. He left very early the morning after he and Grace kissed. Victor had offered to let him come to the palace and work there. Part of him was tempted to…but he remembered Rachel's words. About making a difference…but he couldn't bear to say goodbye to Grace. So he left behind a short thank-you note for Victor and an ebony carved bracelet he had made for Grace.
And he didn't look back. Until he heard about the trouble in Corte Maltese…
"Bruce, I'll admit that I wasn't happy with how you treated Grace shortly after you returned to Gotham…"
"That was a very dumb mistake on my behalf." Bruce admitted, grimacing at the memory of that night. "I've tried to make it up to her."
"She did mention that your relationship was getting better. Now that I see her like this…" Victor nodded. "…I know you're doing what you can."
The sun had long gone down and the stars shone brightly in the sky when I started packing up Bruce's waterproof bag. He had already put the container holding the body armor, cape and other equipment inside along with a camera bag. But I decided to put a change of clothes and his shaving kit in there as well. Not only would it help his disguise, but it also hid the steel container, in case somebody tried peeking inside.
Bruce was out in the gardens, going over the last minute details with Alfred back in the States and the pilot of the plane who was going to take him to Hong Kong.
I had finished putting the things in and zipped it up when he came in. "Grace?" Bruce asked, stretching out. "You're packing my bag?" He looked at me, no doubt surprised.
"Well, I…I wanted to do something nice." I said, nervous. "Maybe I should've asked…"
"No, it's ok." Bruce smiled, brushing some hair out of my face. I shivered at his gentle touch.
I found the courage I needed to talk about the annulment. "Bruce, I did some thinking about the annulment and…is it ok that we file after the Batman isn't needed anymore? I promised you I would be there for as long as you need me. That and I do want to finish Faust and make sure that the music classes I set up at the children's home are steadily going."
"Grace," Bruce stopped me. "Thank you, I…I wasn't ready for you to go yet, either. I like the talks we have every night and I never realized how much I'd miss that."
The talks…I had taken to the habit of waiting up for Bruce and we'd talk when he returned from his nights as Batman. We'd talk about pretty much anything…"Speaking of which," I smiled and put the bag at the foot of the bed. "You want to talk?"
"Of course." Bruce pulled the blankets on the bed back. I got in on one side and he did on the other. "It's good to see your parents so happy."
I smiled. "I agree, they hadn't many reasons to be happy since the war broke out."
"Not that I blame them…Grace, may I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"Your father and I were talking and he mentioned that you missed me after I left."
I sighed, remembering those days. "I did. I missed talking to you out in the gardens and going swimming with you and all of the other things we used to do back then. What I was most upset about was the fact that you didn't say goodbye to me."
"And that was a stupid decision. I regret it now. But…I didn't know how to say goodbye. Or rather, I didn't want to see you upset. You have no idea how much it hurts me, Grace, to see others in pain and know there's nothing I can do to help."
"I'm not too surprised, seeing what you went through. I hate feeling that way too. You know I worked as a war nurse for a while. And there were many cases where I had to see people in unbearable pain and it hurt knowing that nothing could help them, save death. It about drove me mad, especially after…"
Bruce looked at me, silently prompting me to continue.
"About six months after I got my certificate, there was a terrible battle, many casualties and many more wounded. It was a terrible and stormy night, they came in like a flood. We were already exhausted and to make matters worse, we lost power. We lit flashlights and candles, trying to see our way. I was passing out bottled water when somebody from one of the beds grabbed my hand. He was young, must've been no older than a teenager. I remember his haunted eyes as he begged me to stay there and hold his hand. I wanted to. But I got called away to help with something. I promised him I'd be right back…well, after I helped them, I got called away for something else. It continued like this for about three or four hours. All that time, I thought about that young man and his haunted eyes. When it had finally settled down, I went back to the bed…somebody else was in it. I asked the head nurse and was told that the young man had died shortly afterwards…"
"I'm sorry, Grace." Bruce said.
"Not as sorry as I am. For a long time afterwards, I had nightmares of him asking me to stay and as much as I want to, I'd always say I'll come back later."
"Have the nightmares stopped?"
"They only come back when I'm under a lot of stress. Not that it makes it any better."
Bruce nodded. "I had similar nightmares after my parents died. I'd always relive getting scared and asking my father if we could leave. All the time I want to scream at my parents to run and get away…"
"…but you can't." I finished his sentence. Bruce nodded. "Did they ever go away?"
"Like you, they only come back when I'm stressed. And you're right, it doesn't make it any better. You do know that it wasn't your fault that the young man died?"
"No more than it was yours that your parents died. And while my head knows that there was nothing I could've done…"
"…your heart insists otherwise." Bruce finished my sentence. We said no more, listening to the waves gently breaking on the beach. "Grace?" His voice sounded distant, he was falling asleep.
"Hmm?" I asked, myself dozing off.
"Thanks for packing my bag. That was really nice of you." Bruce yawned.
"You're welcome." I mumbled, half-asleep.
As was his habit, Bruce got up early. The sky was overcast, making the ocean look a grayish blue. He could see the plane resting in the waters. It was time to go before anyone else woke up.
Grace, still asleep, stirred beside him as he got dressed. Her black hair pooled in wavy ringlets on the pillow. She looked so peaceful…Bruce smiled as he pulled the blankets up to her shoulders and kissed her on the temple. "Good-bye, Grace." He whispered. But part of him kicked himself for not saying the words he wanted to tell her last night as they were falling asleep. Might as well say it now in case something happens.
"I love you."
