Chapter Ten

James Gordon picked up the phone and dialed a familiar number. "Hello?"

"Hello, baby. It's your father."

"Hi, daddy. What can I do for you?"

"I just wanted to see if you were available for lunch this afternoon," Jim intoned into the phone. "We haven't had any real father/daughter time in a long while."

"I know, Dad. I've been really busy with my thesis. It's on crime and its effects on the city and the people that live here."

Gordon was very proud of Barbara. She was studying at Gotham State University to be a Criminologist. The classes were tough. But she was highly intelligent, and savvy about the world and her surroundings.

"I've got some free time today. Classes were cancelled because the air conditioning is on the fritz."

Gordon laughed. "Sounds like here," he joked. "It's hotter than the fires of Hades in the precinct."

He heard her bubbly laugh on the other end of the line. "What time did you wanna get together?"

"Couple of hours from now?"

"Sure, that would be great. See you then" 'CLICK'

Gordon got up from his desk and made his way to the roof for some fresh air. A familiar figure was waiting for him.

"Jim…" the figure stated.

Gordon greeted him. "Batman….to what do I owe this pleasure? You don't usually come to the precinct in daylight. "

"I found Harleen Quinzel in an alley a couple of nights ago, beaten pretty badly. I think I've convinced her that Joker might not have her best interests at heart."

Jim looked at the man in front of him. "Was this part of that attempted robbery that came over the wire?"

"Yes. Harley didn't say what they were after only that Joker blamed her for botching it. Allowed his goons to have their way with her. Left her for dead."

'Harley….Batman called her Harley.' Gordon tucked this piece of information to the back of his mind. Was that an intentional slip, or did Batman unconsciously betray himself? "Do you have any idea which place they were going to rob?"

"I've got someone working on it," Batman said. "In the meantime, Quinn has agreed to help take Joker down. We'll see how it plays out. Might take a while. He can be very slippery."

Gordon cleared his throat. "Just let me know what I can do to help. By the way, Riddler's men coughed up some dope on Black Mask. I might need your help to piece it all together. Right now, I've got a date with Barbara."

"Alright," Batman said. "I'll look into it." And with that he was gone.