Disclaimer: The Joker and Harleen Quinzel (ie Harley Quinn) are not mine…I simply make them do what I want!! Hehe!

Just a little one…oh and you all going to hate me!! Hehe!

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A Prelude to Death

BANG!

The sound echoed down the empty hallways and into the dusty room, visibly suprising both of the hostages. As the sound dissipated into the darkness the sound of hard footsteps clicked their way ever closer to the waiting couple.

The Joker rolled his head from side to side over the backrest of the bed. His dark eyes found themselves concerning themselves with his ever increasingly tense doctor huddled against the wall. He watched as surprise quickly turned into worry before she turned to look at him.

"It's showtime," the scarred man purred quietly, knowing that his companion could hear him.

As Max rounded the door frame Jess turned her attention to him. Was this it? Was the Joker right? Had he come for her?

"I see you've been a naughty girl," the guard growled. "What did I tell you? Huh? WHAT?"

The Joker watched as Jess started trembling, she was scared. He was surprised.

"To stay…"

"I'm sorry, what? You're mumbling,"

Jess lifted her head to look directly into Max's eyes and raised her voice, "To stay on the bed. I'm sorry, I was so cold and I needed to…"

Suddenly she felt his open palm collide with the side of her face. As the stinging heat spread through her cheek she tried to turn away from him but her bound wrists made it impossible.

"When are you going to realise that you do as you're told? HUH? When?" Max yelled at her before spitting on her. "You're pathetic! You don't even realise when you're beaten! Too long have you ordered me around, told me that I'm wrong…that my opinion doesn't count. You doctors think that you can just treat us like shit! Well, it's about time you were taught a lesson! I thought Brightside was bad enough but Jesus, you're the devil himself!!"
"I'm sorry," Jess practically coughed the words.

"Sorry? SORRY? Sorry isn't good enough, Jess! It's too late for that! Far too late!"

The sitting woman lifted her head and attempted to shake the dank hair from her eyes, "Why are you doing this to me Max?"

"Why?" he loomed over her. "Because I can. Because you behave like you're better than anyone else around here. You make ridiculous decisions regarding your patients and you put us all at risk!" He turned to point at the Joker. "He is a monster, and you set him free!"

Jess watched the Joker raise his eyebrows sarcastically, roll his eyes and shake his head while prodding his upper teeth with his tongue, before silently mouthing the words, "I'm not a monster."

"Set him free?" Jess repeated questioningly.

"You stopped his medication, you took away his restraints…and look what happened…he murdered my colleague and friend! All because you wouldn't listen!"

"Hey!" the Joker boomed from behind him. "You can't blame her for your guy dying. That was your own fault. You shouldn't have killed the boy…or should I say you shouldn't have tried to frame me for it. What the hell possessed you? Huh? You say that I'm a monster…I didn't plaster a kid's insides all over his room and his friend…"

"Shut the fuck up!" Max marched across the tiles and punched the Joker hard in the face, drawing a heinous grin from his lips.

"You can't hurt me Max. There is nothing you can do that hasn't already been done to me at some point or another!!" the victimised man giggled. "Come on…hit me again!"

"Hit you? I ought to fucking kill you for the things you've done to me!"

Suddenly the Joker was confused, "What things?"

"Max what did he do?"

"My brother was a police officer…he was stationed in GCPD cells on the night you killed Rachel Dawes."

The Joker's frown slowly faded away as the question he thought he already knew the answer to was suddenly torn from his mind. Slowly a thick grin spread across the Joker's face as he realised exactly what was going on, "Oh…Apparently this is all my fault."

"What?" Jess sighed. "Joker? Max? What's going on?"

"Tell her what you did, tell her!" Max ordered.

"Hehehehe, haha, I blew the place to kingdom come!! Let me guess…did he die?"

Another fist pummelled hard this time into his stomach and suddenly the Joker was laying on his side almost on the floor. Max stood up and rounded the toppled bed. Breathing heavily he kicked the Joker repeatedly in the stomach and chest before dragging the gurney back onto its wheels.

"You started this Joker…you took him from me and now I'm gonna take her from you!" Max turned to face the quivering woman.

"Take her from me? What makes you think I want her? Hmm?"

"Everyone sees the way you look at her Joker! You watch her like…like…"

"Like you did? You know when you first met her?"

Jess frowned at glared first at the Joker ant then at Max. What the hell was going on? "Wait a minute, I thought you said this was all about drugs?"
"Drugs?" Max spun back to the Joker who simply shrugged his shoulders as best he could.

"Sorry…was she not supposed to know?" the sarcasm seemed to cut the guard deeply as he quickly slammed his fist yet again into the restrained man's face.

"Stop it!" Jess heard herself scream.

"You're still going to protect him? After everything? You're still going to side with him?" Max turned his attention to her. "I had to take the drugs to help pay for my brother's mortgage. His wife and kids would have ended up on the streets if it wasn't for me! Then that old man caught me and I swear I told him…I explained everything but he just didn't care! He was going to call the police, I would have gone to jail! Then what would they have done?"

"What do you think is going to happen after all of this?" Jess pointed out weakly. "Do you think they'll just let you go?"

"Do you think I'm completely stupid? They'll never find out it was me! As far as they'll be concerned it was him! The Joker ordered for you to be taken and I killed him trying to save you! I'll be a hero!! Don't you see?"

"And what about Harleen?"

"Oh, Jess, why do you care?"

"Because you coerced her into helping you; she didn't realise what she was getting into,"

"Oh believe me doctor, she's not as sweet and innocent as she looks. She hates you! She hates the fact that he couldn't give a damn about her because of you! All she wants to do is remove you from the equation…"

Jess shook her head, "But if you kill him then she'll hate you. Max you can't win. Just let me go. I swear, I wont tell them it was you. I'll even quit my job!"

The Joker cocked his head to the side and hummed quietly to himself. "Yeah, cos that'd do you the world of good! Excuse me…um, Officer Gray?…what did your brother look like? I mean before he was in millions of pieces?"

Jess watched as the only chance she had of reasoning with Max disappeared and his face reddened with anger once again.

"I swear…I'm gonna kill you, you bastard! I'm gonna make you feel pain like you've never felt before!"
The Joker grinned, "Oh I hope so…"

Suddenly Max turned back to Jess and smiled sickly at her. Taking a small flick-knife from his pocket he started towards her. Jess felt heart jump into her throat as she realise the Joker had finally pushed him over the edge. Glancing quickly towards her patient she felt her lower lip start to quiver uncontrollably as fear quickly took a tight hold of her. His dark eyes never moved from the glinting blade in Max's palm until a slow smile erupted on his face.

"Hello, old friend," the Joker purred causing Max to stop in his tracks and lift the knife to eyelevel.

"I thought attention detail would be the key," he turned to glare at the Joker. "I'm glad you appreciate the effort I went to."

Jess desperately tried to calm down and control her breathing, what was going on? She really didn't understand anything anymore.

The restrained man noted the look of confusion on his doctor's face as he piped up, "The knife…it's miiine. A very good choice if I do say so. Although, a little small for a direct kill."

"What?" Jess sighed as she felt her eyes start to burn with tears. She could not cry, she wouldn't allow it! He couldn't know just how scared she was, he just couldn't!

Max smiled again and turned back to her. Bending to crouch before her he slowly ran the tip of the blade up the inside of her leg, stopping halfway up her thigh. "You and me could have been good together. God knows I tried to get to know you, but you just didn't want to know did you? You thought you were just too goddamn good for me. Well, let me tell you something sweetheart, you're no better than he is! You're responsible for my colleague bleeding to death in a cell…you're responsible for Ricky's death…and the other kids! All of them, they're all down to you! You shouldn't have brushed me off like you did. You shouldn't have put his rights above everyone else's! But, it's too late now. Now you're going to pay for what I have lost. Now you're going to serve as his punishment. Your little lover-boy is going to watch you bleed to death, just like I watched my friend."

Never taking her eyes away from his Jess silently prayed to God for a miracle as the silver blade neared her face. She felt the slight pressure as he pressed the cold steel against her cheek, drawing her tears along its edge. As he dragged the knife over her skin towards her mouth she felt her chest heave and gave in to her fear as a torrent of tears burst forth from her eyes, wetting her gown.

"Now now, don't cry…it wont make anything any better!" Max shook his head.

"I wouldn't do it if I were you," the voice was low and threatening behind the armed man.

"Oh really? And what exactly will happen if I do, Joker?" Max chuckled, slipping the cold blade between Jess' lips and pushing it slowly back towards her ear. "I wonder just how much pain his scars gave him? Don't you?"

Jess' eyes widened as she prepared herself for the point at which the corner of her mouth would give way. Quietly sobbing she closed her eyes and waited.

"I reckon this is really going to hurt!" the sound of Max's matter-of-fact voice was the last thing that she heard before her brain gave in and the darkness took her once again into unconciousness.