YAAAY! Bruce and Diana are finally reunited though some answers are still slow in coming. Enjoy! :)

Chapter 24

Wayne Enterprises; September 28th, 17:53 EST

I frown as I continue reviewing one file after another from the marketing department, wondering how I had gotten so far behind. It feels like I had just gotten caught up on all of it last week. Unfortunately, Lucius informed me this morning it had been over three weeks ago.

While very important, it isn't one of my favorite parts of running a billion-dollar company, my greatest interest lying in research and development. I click on the next one, glancing at my watch to find it's already close to six o'clock. I'm beginning to think about ditching the task Lucius had assigned me until tomorrow to see if Diana wanted to join me for dinner.

Despite already having a date scheduled with her this coming Saturday night, I want to spend some time with her before going out on patrol tonight. I can't stop thinking about her, my attraction to her growing stronger with every passing day. It's becoming harder to control this desire for her, harder to contain.

I pull out my cell phone to call her as someone knocks on my door. "Come in," I respond, hoping it's the very woman I've been thinking about.

I look up to see Lucius enter, trying my best to hide my disappointment. He seems to read my thoughts, a knowing smile on his face. "Have you been able to finish the files I sent you?"

"I have three more to review," I tell him, resigning myself to the fact that my early escape has just been cancelled by Lucius.

He purses his lips as he nods his head. "Not bad," he decides. "I figured you hadn't even started them yet, especially knowing how much you love to review them."

"I decided to just bite the bullet and get them over with," I confess with a reluctant sigh. "Are you heading home for the night?"

"Yes, but I thought I'd check in with you first," he admits and I can tell that there's more that he wants to say.

"Anything I can help you with?" I ask.

"No," he coyly replies, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Just thought you should know that I think Miss Prince has been a great addition."

I can't help but smile with the mention of her. "I agree," I say with a nod. "She has done an amazing job with the drug coalition program."

"Yes, she has…among other things," he cryptically states.

"Like what?" I ask him.

"She's been good for Wayne Enterprises, but she's also been very good for you too," he clarifies. "You've never seemed happier, Bruce."

I nearly smirk, but decide to play innocent. "I'm not sure I know what you mean."

Lucius gives me a look that tells me that he sees right through my coyness. "Whatever you say, Bruce," he replies. "All I'll say is that you better do whatever it takes to keep her."

I flash him a grin before I begin closing the files on my computer. "I plan on it."

"Good night," Lucius tells me with a smile.

"Good night, Lucius."

As soon as he closes the door behind him, I reach for my cell phone again to call her. It takes a few rings before she finally answers, making me wonder what she's up to. "Bruce," she answers in a voice barely above a whisper. There's also an underlying sense of urgency there in just the sound of my name.

I sit forward in my chair, wondering what is going on. "I was wondering if you would like to join me for dinner tonight."

"I'd love to, but can we do it in a couple of hours?" she surreptitiously asks, her voice still muted.

My eyes immediately narrow with suspicion. "Diana, are you all right?"

"I'm fine," she replies a little too quickly and definitively.

I frown, not believing her for one second. "Where are you?"

Several moments slip by before she responds to my question. "Ah…Tenth and Lexington…I think."

"Diana, that is not a good part of Gotham," I grimly warn her. "You need to get out of there now."

"I can take care of myself, Bruce," she softly hisses into the phone, but her resentment is crystal clear.

"Yes, you can, but Diana Prince cannot," I remind her. "What are you up to?"

I hear her huff in annoyance over the phone. I can picture the scowl that is no doubt adorning her face. "I'm following someone…well, a couple of someones," she confesses.

Now, she has me really worried. I get to my feet and begin pacing my office with cell phone firmly in hand and a scowl on my face. "Who exactly are you following?"

"Two men," she softly replies. "I overheard them talking about Ash so I decided to follow them to see how deeply they're involved."

I growl low in my throat as I pause before the window of my office that overlooks downtown Gotham. "You were never supposed to be investigating this," I snap. "You were supposed to educate and promote anti-drug use—nothing more."

"Then you never should have let me go with you on that drug bust," she counters. "You can't have it both ways, Bruce. Either I'm helping you with this or I'm not."

"Fine," I growl in annoyance. "I'm leaving now. Just wait for me and I'll meet you there."

"I've got to go," she tells me.

"Diana…Diana!" I yell.

My only response is a dial tone as I grab my suit jacket and briefcase before racing downstairs to my car. I know I'm not going to get to her any time soon. Traffic this time of day is beyond horrendous. Getting into my car, I grip the steering wheel and grit my teeth. She's the most obstinate woman I have ever met, testing my patience and my sanity. She makes me look compliant compared to her. I swear that woman is going to give me gray hair long before my time.

My fist is continually hammering my horn, trying to get through the thick knot of traffic, but no one is moving. There's more than likely a car accident up ahead that has traffic backed up. I'm going to have to trust that she knows what she's doing.

I decide to call her on her commlink, hoping that she'll be able to respond. "Batman to Wonder Woman."

It feels like an eternity before she responds, but it's probably only been a handful of moments. "I really can't talk right now," she hisses so low I can barely hear her.

"Where are you now?" I demand to know, unfazed by her brewing anger with me. I'm not exactly happy with her either right now.

"I'm not sure," she whispers. "I'll keep you posted if I find anything."

"Princess!" I snap. "Wait until I get there!"

"I can't," she insists. "I have to move now or I'll lose them. They're going towards some building."

"What building?"

"It looks like…" she begins, her voice trailing off.

"Diana," I call to her.

"It's an old…"

"An old what, Princess?" I growl with growing frustration.

"An old…"

Greek curses fill my ear, causing me to growl with the lack of information that she's giving me. "Diana, talk to me," I demand.

"I lost them," she snaps. "I'm going to see if I can find them again."

"No, you are not, Princess," I grind out the words. "Meet me at Sabatella's in half an hour. I have a private table reserved at all times under my name. Go wait for me there and we'll decide what to do next."

There's a long pause before she ultimately agrees. "Fine," she relents, though clearly upset about it. "I'll meet you there."

I release a long, low breath, relieved that she's leaving that part of Gotham. I sink back in my seat as traffic begins to move, wondering what it was that she had found. I'm anxious for night to come so I can get into my uniform and properly investigate.

For now, though, I need to make sure Diana didn't get herself into any trouble. At least she hasn't received any more threats at work. The security system that I had installed in her office hasn't picked up anyone snooping through her office or leaving any more black roses.

Now to figure out what it was that Diana had possibly stumbled upon.

Sabatella's, Gotham;September 28th, 18:30 EST

I button my suit jacket as I quickly make my way up the steps and into the Italian restaurant. The maître d' smiles at the sight of me as he comes out from behind his podium. "Ah, good evening, Mister Wayne," Francesco warmly greets me. "It is so good to see you again. Your guest is already waiting for you at your table, sir."

"Thank you, Francesco," I reply with a patented Bruce Wayne grin as I follow him to my table and my waiting princess.

I spot her sitting at my private table in the back corner and I forget how to breathe for a moment. She's wearing a fitted light blue, short-sleeve dress shirt, her raven hair pulled up into a high ponytail. Her long legs are visible beneath the table as well as the navy blue skirt and high-heels that she's wearing. It amazes me how she can make something so simple and business-like look so elegant.

A raven curl suddenly slips free from her ponytail, falling to brush against her cheek. She unconsciously slips it behind her ear with a frown. She's buried in her cell phone, her brow furrowed in thought. I can't help the way she makes me feel every time I see her.

She looks up from her phone to see me approaching. She smiles at me, but it doesn't reach her eyes which are still simmering with displeasure and making her blue eyes even more vibrant. I'm not entirely certain if she's angry because she lost the two men that she had been following or at me for basically ordering her to leave. Either way, I'm going to have to handle this very carefully or risk being thrown through a window.

I nod to Francesco as I unbutton my suit jacket and slip into my chair right beside her. "You know you could look a little happier to see me," I tell her with a smirk.

A prefect raven eyebrow arches over a blue orb and I know that I'm definitely in trouble. "You didn't have to talk to me like I'm some impetuous child," she softly states with simmering vehemence. "I'm fully capable of taking care of myself, Bruce. I know it's your city. I would never intentionally do anything to harm you or your mission. I'd protect both with my life in order to keep you and Gotham safe."

A wave of guilt washes over me as her words sink in. I instinctively reach over and take her hand in mine, squeezing it as I try to find the words that will make her understand. "I'm sorry if I made you feel that way," I find myself apologizing. "It wasn't my intention. I was worried about you being in that part of Gotham, Diana. It's not safe there."

Apologizing to anyone isn't something that I'm used to doing or say very often, but I find that I'm doing it more and more when it comes to her. A look of surprise momentarily flashes across her face with my confession. She turns her hand over to lace her fingers with mine and it feels perfect.

"I guess I should apologize too," she admits with a sigh, adjusting her wire-rim glasses. "This is your city, Bruce, and I promised that I'd be respectful of that."

"I just don't want you to get hurt," I admit. "If something ever happened to you…I'd never be able to forgive myself."

The soft smile she gives me is warmer than a thousand suns and I swear that I could bask in that light forever. I want to tell her everything that I've been holding so close to my heart, but I can't help the lingering doubts that continue to cloud my mind. I know that I want to go through with telling her on Saturday, but I just have to make absolutely certain that I'm making the right decision by fully letting her into my life. Besides, we need to talk about what she discovered this afternoon.

"I know how you feel," she replies, her eyes bright with emotion. "Unfortunately, there's always that risk, especially with the lives that we lead. We just can't let it dictate us or our hopes and dreams for the future."

Her words strengthen my resolve, but I don't get a chance to respond as our waitress appears to take our orders. Once she leaves, I decide it's best to get back to business. "Tell me everything that happened," I tell her as I reach for my glass of wine, "and don't leave anything out no matter how small or insignificant it might seem to you."

Diana looks about the crowded Italian restaurant, skepticism coloring her face. "Are you sure it's okay to talk about it here?"

"I'm partial owner of the restaurant," I explain. "When Wayne Construction built this restaurant, I had special…precautions…put in place. That's why my personal table is situated where it is. Still, I wouldn't get too specific with names."

"Why am I not surprised?" she replies with a smile as she shakes her head in amusement. "After finishing with a school educational program, I had stopped by one of the indigent clinics on Lexington to drop off some more literature on the effects of Ash. I was leaving the clinic and heading to my car when I overheard a couple of men walking down the street. They were talking about making more Ash."

"What happened next?"

"I made sure that I stayed back as I followed them and kept several people between them and me so as not to draw attention to myself."

"Did you get a good look at them?" I ask her. "Would you be able to describe them?"

A sly grin forms on her face as she hands me her cell phone. "I can do you two better," she proudly informs me.

"It's one better, Princess," I correct her with a lop-sided smile as I take her phone to look at the picture she had pulled up for me.

"But there were two men, not one," she reminds me. "Therefore, I did you two better, not just one."

"Whatever," I reply with a roll of my eyes as I enlarge the picture.

There are two men of about equal size, one Hispanic and the other covered in tattoos and piercings. They're both standing on the corner of 10th and Lexington smoking cigarettes as if waiting for someone. Even though it's only a picture of their profiles, it might just be enough to get identification on these two guys.

"What happened after you took this picture?"

"A black car pulled up a few minutes later. They leaned into the driver's side window and talked with the driver and then the car left," she tells me. "I followed them for a few more blocks before I lost them."

"Did you see the driver of the car or get a license plate number?"

"No, I'm afraid not," she admits with a frown of frustration. "The windows were tinted and I couldn't see the license plate without being noticed."

"It's okay, Diana," I reassure her. "Where did you lose them at then?"

"I think it was an old recycling plant," she replied. "I don't know for sure if they actually went inside or down the alley past it to someplace else."

"You did good work," I say. "I just hope no one recognized you."

"I stayed back and I was wearing my sunglasses," she assures me. "They never saw me. I blended in with the crowded street."

I try to quell my worry for her safety, knowing that she never blended in any given situation. She stood far above the rest, like the perfect diamond among rubble. I force myself to remember that she could take care of herself no matter where on earth she actually was, but it did little to suppress my need to protect her no matter what it took.

"Tonight, I'm going to the recycling plant to see what I can find out," I thoughtfully inform her as I hand her phone back to her, her fingers brushing against mine as she takes it.

Diana leans towards me, a mischievous smile on her face. "Do I get to tag along again?" she sweetly inquires, batting those long eyelashes at me. "I did after all make the discovery."

I lean in towards her, my gaze momentarily falling to her red lips. "You know I'm beginning to think you just might be a lot more trouble than you're worth," I flirt.

"Oh, Mister Wayne, you have no idea how much trouble I can truly be," she teases back, "but I promise you I am more than worth it."

"I have absolutely no doubt about that, Princess," I softly murmur, pulling back as the waitress decides to appear at that very moment with our food.

PRESENT DAY

Gotham General Hospital; October 8th, 06:08 EST

I can't stop pacing despite my badly sprained ankle that forces me to limp. My heart is still hammering as I wait for Leslie to finish with Diana. My mind is a tangled knot of varying thoughts and fears, none of them good at this moment. The relief that I felt with finding her alive has been crushed by the panic of not knowing what they'd done to her before I got to her.

I know the instruments of torture that I had spotted lying on that table had only been the tip of the proverbial iceberg. They had done far more to her and only Leslie and Diana will be able to reveal just what that torment consisted of.

Dick had notified me that Leslie had Diana transported to Gotham General and it would be some time before I could see her. Deciding my time would best be spent working instead of worrying myself sick, I had gone to the Gotham PD to spend a little more time with Ian Callahan before coming here. Jim had allowed me some alone time with the Butcher, the security feed temporarily offline while I personally interrogated him.

Despite receiving a few more broken bones on top of the ones that I'd already caused, Callahan still refused to talk. Jim had eventually been forced to come in and pull me off him, keeping me from doing even worse to that monster. I'm afraid that the information I want about who Callahan is working for is going to go with him to his grave if I don't find a way to break him soon.

I ignore the pain in my ankle as well as the throbbing in my shoulder as I stop to glance at the door of Diana's hospital room. All I can think about right now is her. It's because of me that she was taken and tortured like this. I had been so foolish to actually believe I could have a happily-ever-after. I'm not meant to have happiness in my life let alone a special woman like her. Pain and devastation follows me everywhere I go and Diana is now suffering the effects of that curse on my life.

I rake my fingers back through my hair before rubbing my eyes that burn with exhaustion. I pause in my pacing once more at the sound of approaching footsteps, knowing instantly who it is without turning around. "Leslie is still with her," I tell Alfred, my back to him as I stare at the closed door of Diana's hospital room, wishing I knew what was going on in there.

As much as I had wanted to take her right back to Wayne Manor and care for her there after finally finding her, I knew that I couldn't without jeopardizing her life as well as both of our identities. It was a risk I couldn't afford to take because of my selfish desire to have her all to myself.

I had raced home to shower and change after paying a visit to Callahan in jail, Alfred forcing me to stop long enough to stitch up my shoulder wound again despite my desperation to get to the hospital. Commissioner Gordon was here when I had arrived; asking me questions that I couldn't answer as Bruce Wayne. Unfortunately, Diana wasn't going to be able to give us any answers right now either.

"I'm sure Leslie is doing everything she can for her, sir," Alfred replies as he comes to stand next to me, handing me a large cup of hot coffee.

I take it without looking at him, knowing that Leslie was the only one who could treat Diana without the risk of revealing who she really was. How would we ever be able to explain her enhanced healing now that she is no longer bound with rope or hide her Amazonian physiology?

I resume my pacing back and forth before the closed door, the constant movement reminding me I'm alive despite feeling as though a piece of me has died on the inside. Seeing her like that nearly broke me. I'm sure the memory will haunt my dreams for months to come, intermingling with the horrors of my past.

Staring at the door, my heart aches to be in there with her and yet the culpability of it all weighs so heavily on my mind I can barely draw a breath. Alfred seems to pick up on my conflicting emotions as he takes a seat in a chair situated in a small sitting area directly outside of Diana's hospital room.

"Master Bruce," he sharply calls to me, forcing me to turn around.

His expression is stern and I know that I'm in for a scathing lecture the likes of which I've never heard before. "Listen to me, young man," he somberly tells me, his tone broking no room for argument. "Not one iota of what has happened to Miss Diana has been your fault."

"Alfred, it was my fault," I angrily growl as I tightly grip the Styrofoam cup in my hand, nearly crushing it. "I'm the one who—"

"Did you kidnap her?"

"What?" I exclaim, taken aback by the unexpected question and how ludicrous it sounded. "No, of course not!"

"Did you shoot her or tie her up…leave her hanging by her wrists for days on end, tormenting and torturing her?"

"No," I grind out through clenched teeth, knowing where he was going with this line of questioning as I furiously avert my gaze from him.

"Did you beat her? Assault her? Deprive her of food and water for the last five days?"

"Alfred!" I snap, unable to handle hearing him give voice to all that she had been forced to endure.

"Then you should not blame yourself for what has been done to her," Alfred tells me. "The blame rests solely on this Ian Callahan fellow and whoever he's working for."

"But I—"

"Don't you dare wallow in guilt or push her away out of fear because of what may or may not happen to her if she is in your life," he continues with a hard edge to his voice that shows how deeply all of this has affected him as well. "Miss Diana needs you now more than ever if she's going to get through this. You shutting down and shutting her out will only make things far worse, not only for her, but for you as well.

"You need each other more now than ever before in order to heal from this ordeal. You were traumatized by all of this as well, just in a much different way than she was. I know you have fallen in love with her, Master Bruce, and I know that she loves you in return. Don't throw it all away because of this horrible event."

I straighten up, his words cutting through the thick blanket of guilt that's wrapped me up like a strait jacket. "What?" I sharply question him, my eyes narrowing in question as I meet his gaze once more. "How do you know she feels that way about me? Did she say something to you?"

A soft, knowing smile plays at the corners of Alfred's lips, his eyes gleaming with the wisdom of his age. "A blind man could see what has been happening between the two of you, Bruce," he reveals, talking to me as a father would to his son, not a butler to his employer. "When you two are in the same room, it's like an electrical current magically fills the air, revealing the connection between the two of you. Don't tell me you haven't seen the way that she looks at you or how she reacts whenever you enter a room?"

I look away again, my mind filling with treasured memories shared with her over the last six months that I'd greedily stored away just in case this never worked out between us. "I…I feared to hope," I softly confess.

"Well, fear no more," he tells me. "Just please follow your heart for once in your bloody life."

I consider his words, my heart beating a little faster with the thought she feels the same way that I feel about her. I know that he's right, but it's still more than difficult to swallow the guilt and anger that I harbor inside of me. I need to find a way to deal with all of this for her. I can't abandon her now after everything she's been through.

I glance down the corridor at the two policemen that Jim has standing guard, knowing they won't be enough to protect her here. I've already decided that I'm not leaving the hospital until she's able to return home with me. Hopefully, she'll be well enough to come home in a few days.

Whoever is behind all of this will certainly try to make some sort of an attempt to end her life. They kidnapped her and kept her alive for a reason, wanting some sort of information from her. I have no doubt that whatever they wanted; Diana refused to give it to them. She's extremely strong willed and loyal to a fault…obviously.

The sound of her door opening causes me to stop dead in my tracks. I look up sharply at Leslie who appears weary, her expression revealing her sorrow. It causes my heart to stop, my breath catching in my throat as I feel my worst fears are now reality.

"Leslie?" I manage to choke out.

"She's severely dehydrated and has lost quite a bit of blood from the wounds," she reveals, her tone revealing her own grief over what Diana has been submitted to. "She has multiple contusions and lacerations, numerous burns and cuts all over her body as well as several broken bones. She was also pumped full of drugs including truth serum as well as some newly engineered forms of Ash."

"What?" I ask in stunned disbelief.

"They were using her as a test subject, trying out variants of Ash that they had created," she continues to explain. "Fortunately, it appears none of them were as deadly as the original form."

I look away from her, unable to listen to anymore as I release a ragged breath. I feel as though I had just been punched in the gut. "This can't be happening…not to her…not her," I murmur more to myself than Leslie as my mind works to process everything that she's telling me.

"It'll take some time for her to recover, but she'll be fine, Bruce," she reassures me. "I believe that it'll take some time for her enhanced healing to kick in again after being suppressed for so long, but she should make a full recovery."

"Was she…did they…?"

I'm unable to finish the sentence or the thought as my throat abruptly clenches shut, too afraid of what the answer might be. She seems to know my question without me needing to ask more, her eyes softening with understanding.

"No, she wasn't raped," she confirms with a shake of her head. "From the bruises, it appears that someone definitely tried to, but she managed to fight him off somehow. She's a very strong woman, Bruce. Not many would have been able to survive what she's been through."

"Thank you, Leslie," I whisper, my mind trying to process it all.

"No gratitude is necessary," she gently replies, her hand coming to rest on my forearm before squeezing it in reassurance. "I'm just relieved you found her before it was too late. You saved her life, Bruce. A bad infection had already begun to set in the gunshot wound. I'm not sure she would have made it had you been a day later."

I release the breath I hadn't realized that I'd been holding, my shoulders sagging as unwanted tears begin to build. "Can I see her?"

"Yes, but I doubt she'll be able to answer any questions right now," she tells me. "She's still pretty out of it."

I swallow hard past the thick knot of anguish that lodges in my throat with her words, doing my best to stay upright. I can only nod my head in silent acknowledgement of her words, too afraid to test my voice at this point to even respond.

I slowly make my way past her, willing my legs to carrying me to her. I open the door and peer inside, my anxious gaze falling on my princess. The sight of her like this makes me ill, but I remind myself that she's alive and she's safe once more. I can't say the same will hold true for whoever ordered this to be done to her or whoever tried to rape her. They will have to answer to me now.

I settle into a chair by her bed, my hands coming to rest in my lap. I want to hold her hand…to caress her bruised cheek, but I'm too afraid to touch her for fear she'll break if I do. All the warring thoughts and emotions inside try to tell me that I have no right to be here with her, but I quickly suppress them.

Alfred was right. I need to be here for her, just as much for me as for her. We've both been through a series of traumatic events, hers far worse than mine, but we'll get through it together…if she'll still have me. I can't live without her light in my world. That was more than proven to me these past five days. Abandoning her is no solution and definitely won't make any of this any better for either of us.

"Bruce…"

The hoarse whisper of my name is barely audible over the rhythmic beeping of the monitors. It immediately causes me to lean forward, my hand coming to rest against her bruised jaw, her skin so hot with fever. She seems to panic for a moment, but then eventually settles down as her eyes fall on me.

"I'm right here, Diana," I gently reassure her. "You're safe now."

She silently nods her head, melting into my touch and it gives me a spark of hope that she doesn't hate me. "Thank…you," she murmurs, fighting to keep her eyes open.

"I'll always come for you, Diana," I promise her. "I'm so sorry you had to go through this. I never should have—"

She frowns with my words, her brow furrowing as she tries to wet her lips with her tongue. Her eyelids are heavy as she stares at me through her long eyelashes. "No…no…not your fault," she insists, a scowl on her bruised face. "Please don't…don't blame yourself, Bruce. Please…don't. I did it to protect you."

Tears blur my vision as I draw a shuddering breath, my hand finding hers. My thumb gently caresses the bandages wrapped around her wrist, my heart hurting with her refusal to blame me for what happened to her. I dip my head to hide my hurt and shame, my lips brushing against her bruised knuckles.

"I was so scared I'd never find you…that I'd lost you forever," I softly confess, my words choked with the tears I'm struggling to contain, but I'm failing miserably.

A faint smile forms on her lips as she shakes her head. "I never lost hope," she whispers, her eyes falling closed. "I knew…you'd come. You always do...you…are my Bruce…"

Her rasping voice trails off as she finally loses the fight to stay awake, her words swimming in my mind. I want to ask her so many questions, find out every single thing those monsters did to her, anything that she might have seen or heard that would point me to whoever had orchestrated this whole nightmare. Now is definitely not the time for it no matter how desperate I am to make him pay for it. I'll have to wait until she can talk to me.

I hold her hand gently in both of mine, my elbows resting on the side of her bed. I press my lips to her hand as a tear breaks free against my will. I feel it slowly slip down my face. I quickly erase it, embarrassed to allow so much emotion to show through, but she always seems to have that affect on me.

My cell phone rings, breaking through my anguished thoughts. I notice it's Clark calling. As much as I don't want to talk to him right now, I know I have to, otherwise he'll show up here and she doesn't need that right now. "Clark," I answer.

"I just got a call from Dick that you found her. Is she all right? What happened to her?"

"They tortured her to get some sort of information out of her, but she didn't break," I inform him. "Leslie said she'll make a full recovery now that she's no longer tied up with rope. Her enhanced healing should kick in soon."

"I'm sorry, Bruce," he softly states. "I know how hard these last five days have been for you. If it had been Lois, I don't know how—"

"All that matters is that she's safe," I snap, my patience quickly running out. "What I've gone through is nothing compared to what she's been forced to endure."

"Do you know yet who took her?" he asks.

"I caught the guy who was holding her, but I don't know who ordered the kidnapping," I reveal, wishing he would stop with the questions so I could just be left alone with her. I know the sooner I answer his questions, the sooner he'll leave me alone.

"I know you won't stop until you find him," he comments.

"No…I won't," I grind out the words through clenched teeth as I think about what I'm going to do to him when I find him.

"Don't worry about anything right now," he cryptically tells me, both of us knowing what he is referring to. "Everything is being taken care of. Dick and Tim will contact me if they need anything. Call me if there are any changes with Diana."

"I will," I firmly reply, ending the phone call before he can say anymore.

My attention is solely on her as I continue to hold her hand. My eyes are growing heavier by the second as I sink back in my chair. It's becoming harder and harder to stay awake. Knowing that she's safe now, knowing that they will have to get through me to get to her again, I feel myself finally surrender to the exhaustion, her hand safely in mine once more.

A/N: Sad I know, but there are three more chapters to go and then there will eventually be a sequel that explores Bruce & Diana's blossoming relationship as well as Diana's struggles to come to terms with what happened to her. It'll be more Diana focused than Bruce, but he'll be a big part of it too!

Thank you all for following and reviewing! Sorry I haven't had a chance to respond to reviews lately. I'll try to do better. :)