The next afternoon
Tuesday
Midtown
The BMW roared around the corner, with the two SUVs close on its bumper.
Smoke billowed from the tyres as they fought for grip on the blacktop. The three vehicles were racing at over fifty miles per hour and swerving to avoid other vehicles. First one, then two stoplights were violated as the chase increased in speed and lethality. One SUV was able to close and creep up the right hand side of the BMW. The driver of the SUV turned his wheel to the left and smashed into the BMW with a grinding of steel and hiss of sparks. The BMW swerved away from the SUV, but then it skidded on some watery oil and moved sideways down the street for a dozen yards before the back end hit another car and pointing the luxury vehicle in the correct direction. It accelerated, the six-litre V12 engine whipping every horsepower it possessed into service. The SUVs had larger super-charged engines and closed the gap rapidly. The three vehicles continued through the West Side of Midtown and ahead of them were the Sheal Docklands that sat on the Queens River. The BMW never slowed down as it smashed through the wire mesh gates into the docks, sending the security guards running for cover. The SUVs continued in their pursuit, but then luck ran out for the driver of the BMW as a warehouse appeared ahead, blocking the road. The BMW's driver stomped on the brakes to no avail as the BMW smashed through the thin metal walls of the warehouse and finally stopped, its front end smashed up into a pile of boxes.
The driver was not moving.
Downtown
I was pissed off; the scene was unreal! I could not believe that the bastards had managed to get the drop on me.
I had no idea why, but I felt groggy, so maybe I had been drugged; that made me feel a little better. The last thing I remembered was heading into Midtown, in the BMW, alone. There had been no reason to be concerned; it had been broad daylight and in the safer part of the City. Although in hindsight, this was Gotham!
My head was sore and it felt like I had banged it. I looked up and found that my wrists were bound securely and then secured to a large, rusting steel nail in the wall. The man slapped me again, with the back of his hand and I could taste the blood in my mouth. I just glared back at him; I had to be careful not to overplay the part and give us all away.
"Just tell us what we want to know!" The man said, trying to be polite.
"I have nothing to tell you!" I insisted, pretending to sound just a little bit scared.
"I don't believe you, bitch!" The man yelled and yanked at my dress, ripping the top and revealing my black bra, underneath.
The man and his colleagues smirked when they saw bare skin and the bra. Then the beating began as another man blindsided me with a punch into my stomach. All the breath was forced from my lungs in one go and I screamed, which was not all pretend! I had taken worse punches from other members of Fusion, so that one could be ignored. The next punch, however, struck me in the chest right on my left breast and it hurt like fuck; I screamed for real, that time.
Nothing they could do to me would make me reveal my secrets.
I would stay silent until they silenced me permanently.
Wayne Manor
"Keep your head up, watch me!"
She was a cast iron bitch, not to mention the short ass!
"Cat, you listening?" Chloe called.
"Yeah, sorry, my attention wavered," I replied. I was exhausted!
"A few more punches and then we'll call it a day, okay?"
"Thanks, Chloe," I replied with a forced smile.
"You're letting her off easy!" Megan complained.
Megan loved torturing people, especially me! She may have been quite a few inches shorter than I was, but she was capable of kicking my fucking ass. I had always thought of myself as being able to look after myself, but this lot made me look like a fucking pussy.
"A good view, is it, Master Bruce?"
Bruce jumped up sharply at the interruption.
"Err, no, Alfred. I mean yes." Bruce stammered, looking embarrassed.
Bruce was sitting in a chair, not fifteen yards from where the three young girls were exercising their skills.
"Unfortunately I am much too old to enjoy those sights..."
Alfred walked off with a laugh.
Downtown
I regained consciousness for what seemed like the hundredth time.
My head span and my legs would no longer support me. I was hanging from my wrists, which was very uncomfortable. I looked down and saw that I was only wearing my knickers and bra. My dress was in tatters on the floor, along with my shoes. I could feel dried blood on my face and I could see more dried blood on my body, where it had run down.
"You are awake again?"
I glared at the boss man.
"Ready for some more?" The boss man continued with a leer. "Well, let's remove this shall we?"
The man flicked open a knife and cut off my bra, not very expertly, as he managed to cut and nick me.
"Nice!" One man declared, leering at my bare chest.
"Seen bigger, I has!" Another man laughed.
"Let's see some more, shall we?" The boss man asked, reaching for my panties.
Before the man could do more than touch my waist, I heard gunshots, medium-calibre. I felt myself being hauled off the nail and then dropped to the ground where I must have hit my head.
Everything went black.
Elsewhere in Gotham
"Don Falcone, we have the woman."
"You have a gift; that is for sure, my friend."
Downtown
I came around slowly.
Only this time, I was lying on something soft and I had a warm blanket covering me. I ran my hands across my body, finding that I was still only in my panties. Where the fuck was I now?
"You are awake!" A deep, friendly sounding voice stated.
I opened my eyes and saw a kindly faced black man, with a moustache and short greying hair.
"Who... Who are you?"
"Most people call me Fox, but for a beautiful lady like yourself; you may call me Lucius."
"Okay, Mr Fox, err, Lucius, where am I?"
"About ten stories below Wayne Tower. The Applied Sciences Division. Funny thing happened to me today. I was out by the docks, checking on some new equipment when I heard gunfire; not exactly unknown in that part of Gotham, but then I saw you being shoved into the back seat of a car. The driver was stupid enough to leave the keys in the ignition while he went back into the building, so I stole the car!"
It sounded like a plausible story! I was in a comfortable looking office on a large couch, but it was hard to believe that I was ten stories below ground.
"You do have some cuts and bruises, but they are in areas that I did not want to touch. I cleaned up you head wounds, though."
"Thank you, Lucius. I don't suppose you have any clothes that I could borrow. My dress got a little torn up and the nearest change is at Wayne Manor."
"So, you are one of those people staying with young Master Wayne!"
I had a distinct feeling that Mr Fox knew exactly who I was and where I was staying. He struck me as a man that kept himself informed.
"I knew Thomas Wayne; he was a good friend. Bruce is a good lad and Alfred is doing everything that he can to help the boy. I have been meaning to say hello, but have not had the moment," Fox explained further. "Now, Miss Macready, I had better find you some clothes!"
Wayne Manor
It seemed that nobody had missed me!
I was also pleased to see that Alfred welcomed Lucius Fox into Wayne Manor, which confirmed what he had told me.
"What the hell happened to you?" Josh blurted out, looking at the blood on me, not to mention the fact that I was wearing a set of overalls that were way, too big for me.
"Holy fuck!" Chloe exclaimed. "Mindy!"
"Who is out in Gotham?" I demanded.
"Right now?" Abby enquired. "Just Dave and Curtis."
"Get them back, right the hell now. Wipe my cell, it was compromised."
Abby pulled out her cell phone and started punching numbers as she headed towards the rear of the Manor and Mia.
"Who is this?" Chloe asked.
"May I introduce a good family friend, Dr Lucius Fox," Alfred said.
"Hello," Chloe and Josh said together.
"Hello," Fox replied.
"Let's get your wounds looked at, Miss Mindy," Alfred insisted.
I allowed Alfred to take me through the study where Bruce soon appeared with a first aid kit. Alfred changed the dressing that Fox had applied to my head and checked the wounds.
"Nothing much there. You feeling dizzy or anything like that?" Alfred asked. "Do you remember everything that has happened to you today?"
"Unfortunately, I remember everything from when they took me, but I have no idea how I ended up there.
"Maybe I can fill in the gaps, Miss Macready."
It was Detective Gordon.
"Your BMW was found, smashed up in a warehouse at the Sheal Docks. I assume that the car has incriminating evidence," Gordon smiled. "So I have had it towed, un inspected, to a safe place."
"Thank you, Detective," I said. One mystery solved.
"We also have reports of a high speed chase through Midtown. A BMW and two SUVs."
I could not remember any of it.
"I have no memory of that."
Abby appeared.
"I can't get a hold of them, but I am attempting to triangulate their location. The GPS is not locking for their Audi, not their cells," She explained unhappily.
I jumped up and left the room.
Uptown
I dropped to my knees as another blow landed in my stomach.
Another blow struck my face and I fell to my backside. I heard a scream and felt a small body land beside me. I looked up at my attacker and glared defiantly.
"Leave the boy alone, bastard!" I growled.
"You were both trespassing where neither of you belonged!" A voice said simply.
"I saw no signs," I replied, wiping the blood from my nose.
"This place belongs to Don Falcone and he don't like trespassers; even if it is some rich bastard and the boy he wants to fuck," The cocky mobster went on.
"Not even close; but you will pay for that remark," I growled.
"We'll leave you two together; goodnight!" The man laughed and the men filed out, slamming the door behind them.
..._...
I turned to the sobbing boy beside me, pulling him around so that I could see his face. There was blood and bruising, not to mention some swelling. I was seething with rage at what those bastards had done to the boy.
"Hey, Curtis; let's get to work."
"Sorry Dave, I shouldn't be crying like this."
"You're doing okay, kid!"
I dragged myself painfully to my feet and began to examine where were imprisoned.
That evening
The warehouse
Mindy was beside herself with worry and so was I.
Dave was not answering his cell and neither was Curtis. There was also no GPS signal from their cell phones. The Audi's GPS was now responding and was located in the street where it had been all afternoon.
While Abby was still searching for them, Erika, Chloe, Josh, Mindy and me, piled into an Audi and Erika drove us to the warehouse. The plan was for Mindy to rest until it was time for action, whenever that might be.
"Megan, go check Iron Hide," Josh suggested to me.
I was almost suited up; I just had my mask to pull on.
"Chloe, you coming?" Mindy asked.
I looked over to see Mindy in her full combat suit minus her mask.
"Err, Mindy, I thought we agreed that you would rest for a few hours before you went out again; you're exhausted."
"Don't, tell me what to do!" Mindy replied, instantly angry.
"Hey, Mindy, that's the tiredness talking – you're not going anywhere," I insisted.
"I get it! You want me to slap you again like last time, so I'll feel guilty and, and..."
"Mindy, I will stand up to you and you know that," I said carefully.
"Dave is out there; I need to find him..."
"We will find him, together!" I pushed. "You are no good to him like you are now. I know exactly how you feel about him..."
"No you fucking don't..."
"No! I had to go through the same damn thing when Joshua went missing from The Farm, or have you forgotten about that!"
Mindy ignored the comment.
"I'm going and you are not going to stop me..."
I was wondering what all the shouting was about and as I came around the back of the large RV.
I saw Chloe throw Mindy to the floor, but then seconds later Mindy flipped Chloe over and pinned her; it was immediately obvious that this was not a friendly sparring session.
"I am Hit Girl; nobody tells me what I can and can't do!" Mindy growled in a very dangerous voice.
"Not even your friends?" Chloe retorted venomously.
"You are no friend of mine; a true friend would not prevent me from looking for Dave," 'Mindy' said coldly.
..._...
That was not Mindy talking. That was the side of Mindy, which, I was glad to say, I had yet to experience. It was the truly malevolent side to Mindy; the true Hit Girl that I had only heard about from Dave. Chloe had limited experience of that version of Hit Girl and I knew that Dave was the only one with real control over the Jekyll and Hyde personality that was Mindy Macready and Hit Girl.
Dave had once confided in me that Chloe also seemed to have some form of limited control over Mindy's mind-set, which was why Mindy and Chloe often teamed up together.
Dave was not able to predict the events, which might bring out the dark side of Mindy. However, from what I knew of Dave and Mindy's history, Mindy had abandonment issues and the thought of losing Dave might very well be enough to trigger a mental change within her; not to mention that she had been hit around the head only hours previously. While our usual Hit Girl was still violent, the darker Hit Girl would take extreme risks and increase the levels of violence to bloodthirsty proportions, which often included collateral damage.
I was not scared of Mindy nor Hit Girl; I respected both for their abilities. Unlike the rest of us, with our two identities, Mindy and Hit Girl were so intertwined that they were one. To be honest, I was now feeling scared of what was going on before me.
I was wearing my full combat suit, including mask, so I ran forwards and sent Mindy flying backwards and away from Chloe. In the state Mindy was, I had no idea what she was capable of doing to friend or foe.
"Okay!" Mindy held up her hands and glared at us both. "Fucking bitches!"
It was not an idle comment, either; she meant it.
"I am going, with or without you – end of discussion."
I looked at Megan and grimaced.
We had no choice but to give in to her.
"Chloe, you go with that thing," Josh said angrily, indicating Mindy. "Erika can take Megan and follow in Iron Hide. I'll stay with them."
Mindy pulled on her mask and walked over to her Panigale. She seemed oblivious to the trouble she had caused. I pulled on my own mask and mounted my Ducati Multistrada. Jackal, once he had pulled on his own mask, mounted his Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R and started the engine. Wildcat climbed into Iron Hide beside Mist.
Hit Girl accelerated out of the building the moment the lights went out and the doors opened. She was accompanied by Shadow. I turned to check on the two girls in Iron Hide. On a nod from Mist, I rode out into the darkness, with Iron Hide close behind.