The sky darkened gradually as clouds slowly moved in. Victoria Evans stood at the edge of the sidewalk adjacent to the prison she had served her time in for the previous 10 years.
She looked up to the clouds, comparing them to a similar day that decided her fate 10 years ago. She grabbed her wrist anxiously, praying that it wouldn't rain before her mother picked her up.
It was hard for her to believe that she was released. It felt wrong to walk freely and she wondered if it was too soon for her to leave. She had killed someone, and whether it was intentional or not, she knew that she had made ripples in that person's life that could never be stopped.
She was officially convicted of second-degree murder, but given the amount of information she had on other wanted criminals, she was given the minimum sentencing. Her previous involvement with Arthur had prevented the charge from being reduced to manslaughter, but admittedly, her persona of a white, young girl originally from a well-meaning family helped her conviction.
Her mother was late. Vic guessed she had been standing on the sidewalk for about 30 minutes. She reflected on the last interaction with her mother and gulped.
Vic's sentencing came from the judge in the courtroom with some of her family present. Despite the exceptions given by the judge, her mother still sobbed upon hearing the charges. Vic had turned to see them, and exchanged a glance with her mother. Her mother had previously been hovering in a stage of denial, not believing that her daughter could do anything like murder. Vic assumed that the sentencing cemented her realization that she did do it, and she did have to answer for what she had done.
After it had felt like an hour, Vic finally saw a boxy red car driving down the road leading to the prison. She stepped towards it, an anxious feeling rising in her chest. What was her mother going to say? Would she be grateful to see her? Would she be disappointed?
The car came to a halt in front of Vic. She opened the door and sat down in the car. Her mother's expression was serious and she had barely given Vic a glance when she entered the car. A sense of shame began to build in Vic. It overtook her whole body.
They shared an awkward silence as her mother began to drive back towards home. Vic looked out the window, trying to ignore the awkwardness between them.
Finally, her mother began to speak.
"We need to make some things clear, Victoria," her mother began. Vic looked at her, trying to read her expression. It was closer to anger.
"I'm sure you can imagine the scandal that occurred after you were convicted, Mason really struggled at the company. The Board almost voted him off, but somehow he kept his job." Vic listened to her mother but eyed her with skepticism. Her mother continued.
"We know it's going to be nearly impossible for you to get hired as an ex-felon, so I've convinced Mason to let you work at his company until you can fully clear your name," her mother told her, almost with an air of smugness.
"What? I never asked you to do that," Vic told her, her mouth slightly agape.
"Well, we're asking you to do that," her mother replied. "We can't have you tainting our appearance further. If you want me to be honest, you embarrassed us and we almost disowned you after they shipped you off to prison." Her mother said to her, void of any caring emotion. Vic felt her anger rising. "You should appreciate the fact that we're taking you back."
"You basically disowned me anyway when you refused to help me with college, forcing me to live in that dump of an apartment." Vic snapped back. Her mother's expression turned to offense.
"Victoria, you know that's Mason's money, he worked for it. We didn't want you to go to that school anyway," her mother scolded her, exasperated with the lack of her daughter's appreciation.
Vic's mood darkened. She thought that if anybody would've been glad to see her, it would have been her mother. She tried to empathize with her, reminding herself of the things her mother had sacrificed when she had her at 18 and the abusive marriage she had endured. Admittedly, she had never seen her mother as happy as when she was with Mason.
Vic shook the thoughts from her head. She told herself that the past shouldn't matter, she still deserved a fighting chance.
She looked out the window to distract herself and end the conversation. Trees and buildings flew past as they drove to a neighborhood outside of Gotham. Vic's stomach turned as she imagined stepping into the family home.
She eyed the handle of the car and wondered briefly if the pain of rolling out of a moving car would be less than knowing she was the most disappointing part of her mother's life.
Vic found herself in shock when her half-brother and step-father treated her better than her own mother when greeting her for the first time.
Her stepfather was noticeably older than Vic remembered, but she was most surprised by Keith, her half-brother who was only a toddler when she went to prison. He was now 12 years old.
They simultaneously greeted her with a 'welcome home' as she entered the house. Keith held a poster board up in the air, painted with the same words they had spoken.
Vic looked at her mother for an answer upon seeing their greeting. Her mother had no outward response. Instead, Vic grinned at them both and meekly thanked them.
"Thank you for the surprise?" She said to them. Oddly, they seemed satisfied with her response.
Mason quickly corralled them to eat dinner and wasted no time chatting Vic up on what she would be doing at his company. She debated telling him that she actually wasn't that interested in working for him since it seemed to be out of pity and obligation. Her urges were suppressed with her mother nearby.
She listened to him describe the clerical work that she would be doing.
"Of course, you know it's a construction company. You would file papers, answer the phones, maybe type a few things into the computers if we needed you to, like reports, customer information, meetings-" Mason started to ramble but Vic cut him off abruptly.
"I've never used a computer in my life. I'm probably terrible at answering calls too." Vic told him.
" Victoria! Be willing to learn, will you?" Her mother shot from across the table.
"Carolyn, it's fine," Mason said calmly. "We'll teach you," he reassured Vic. She nodded and then looked closely at the food in front of her.
She had forgotten what a meal like this was like and felt spoiled that it had been prepared by Mason's personal chef. It was a neatly spiraled plate of pasta smothered in pesto and topped with halved tomatoes. Vic began to eat cautiously, but then started to eat quickly. She had forgotten what gourmet food tasted like.
Her mother's voice interrupted her heavenly reunion. "While working for Mason you have to be on your best behavior and under no circumstances can you stir up trouble." Vic stopped eating to look at her mother.
"Do you think I'm a teenager?" Vic asked her. Her tone was reminiscent of when she was in secondary school.
"I just don't want Mason to have to fire you." Carolyn motioned to Mason, minding his business and eating his food in silence. Vic looked over to him. He nodded slightly.
Vic could tell that the next few months were going to be rough.
Being released on a Friday meant that Vic had the weekend to try and reacclimate to the outside world. However, she knew that two days was not enough when her mother woke her up Monday morning, holding a business casual outfit.
She begrudgingly got up and did her best to be presentable in a business environment. Vic assumed she did a decent job since her mother had no gripes while saying goodbye to her and Mason.
Vic rode with Mason in his company car to the office. They tried to small-talk but couldn't get comfortable enough to have a full-on conversation. Vic swore he sighed in sync with her as they pulled into the office parking garage.
Mason's company was in a five-story office building located near downtown Gotham. The construction looked new and grey was the dominating color. The building towered over Vic as her and Mason approached the building.
Vic could sense the atmosphere as soon as she entered the building. Everyone was wearing a faux face or persona, she realized that Mason had this affliction as well, permanently. She kept her mouth shut while riding with Mason in the elevator.
Eventually, Mason and Vic arrived at the suite leased by 'Evans and Lawson Construction'. It took up an entire floor, but the office itself was relatively quiet.
The reception area was simple and held a few couches and a receptionist desk. A young woman sat at the desk, lighting up as soon as she saw Mason.
"Good morning, sir!" She said cheerfully, putting on the faux face Vic had seen on others while walking through the building.
"Morning, Julie," Mason replied, motioning towards Vic. "This is my step-daughter, Victoria, you'll probably be working alongside her."
Vic could see a series of emotions play on Julie's face. She assumed that Julie knew who she was already.
They cordially shook hands and Julie filled Mason in on anything he had missed in the office.
Vic's office tour continued as Mason prepared for the day. It felt like she was being introduced to a new person every few minutes. She hoped she could remember their names, or even just faces.
Finally, Vic and Mason ran into the office manager, Ruth.
"Ruth, this is my step-daughter, Victoria, she will be reporting to you as of today," Mason said proudly. Vic smiled and put her hand out.
"Your step-daughter? The felon?" Ruth said monotone. Vic felt her face flush and began to retract her hand. Mason let out an awkward laugh that lasted five seconds too long.
"Oh, Ruth. Your humor is so dry, but I love it!" Mason exclaimed. "Victoria has made tremendous progress these last few years and I really believe that having a diverse set of views at the company is beneficial."
Vic looked at the wall, she couldn't bear to look at either of them out of embarrassment. She knew her face was red, but she tried to hide it.
"Maybe it is," Ruth said to Mason, her opinion unchanged. She walked away after saying goodbye to Mason.
"So does that happen often?" Vic asked Mason once she was out of earshot.
"People just say things sometimes, don't take it too personally," Mason told her. "They probably don't have bad intentions and, you know, it's the office." Vic frowned.
Many of the people that Vic encountered in the office had a faux face, but they occasionally let their feelings be known like Ruth.
The first week in the office was standard for Vic. She got to know the layout, people, and her basic job duties. The following weeks were more difficult, as she found herself being shown things once and then ignored. People would act friendly, but she could tell they didn't want to be bothered.
She also learned the hard way that just because people weren't straightforward like Ruth, it didn't mean they weren't conniving behind her back.
Vic was one of many secretaries, and on more than one occasion she had accidentally eavesdropped on a conversation involving her.
"I wish I could go to prison for 10 years and then just be given a cushy office job when I got out." Vic heard one day while making her way to the break room for a cup of coffee.
"Right? She's spoiled, she should be working a hard job and making her way up to prove she actually learned anything." A second voice chimed in.
"You know she murdered someone, right?" Upon hearing the third voice, Vic turned around and walked back to her workstation, empty mug in hand.
She dropped the empty mug off and then headed straight to the bathroom, finding an empty stall and locking the door.
Once alone, she crossed her arms and cried quietly, trying not to make any audible noise.
She wasn't reacting to a specific emotion, but instead to a general feeling of being overwhelmed. Requiting her family required her to be thinking about past events constantly. It was something frequently on her mind when she was serving her time, but this was different.
It was less personal. Her coworkers were general society. This is what they thought of her, and it seemed to be all that they thought of her. Vic pondered if her being there was actually making their situation worse.
It certainly was making her worse.
Vic waited a few moments for her tears to dry. She stared at her eyes in the bathroom mirror, poking at the redness that had appeared.
She cautiously entered the hall and to her dismay, her heart sank as saw someone she had gotten bad feelings about previously.
The man had initially seemed friendly when Mason introduced them, but now Vic felt uneasy when around him. She tried to appear cordial, but some of the things he had said to her had made her uneasy.
"Hey cutie," the man started, he stopped walking upon seeing Vic. She waved.
"You settling in alright?" He continued. She nodded.
"I'm doing okay. Just regular first month things." Vic replied, signaling with her body language that she needed to leave. She walked away slowly even as the man continued.
"Well, feel free to chat sometime." The man finally said as Vic walked back to her desk.
Once seated at her workstation, Vic wondered if she could get away with crying at her desk.
Once back at her family home that night, Vic isolated herself in her room. She ignored multiple requests for her presence, until she received a request that was hard to refuse.
"Victoria, it's your mother, open the door," her mother's voice boomed through the door. Vic sighed.
"I want to be alone," she yelled back. She could feel her mother's frustration through the door.
"This is my house. Open. The. Door." Vic shuddered at her mother's words. She felt like a child. It was like she hadn't aged a day since seeing them. Vic felt an anger rising in her chest.
Vic got up from the bed and opened the door halfway to face her mother. She frowned at her.
"What?" Vic said sharply.
"Mason says your performance at work has not been very good, he wanted to let you know that you need to put in a bit more effort." Her mother stated. Vic laughed in shock, was her mother serious?
"Well tell him that I'm sorry that my performance isn't great, but also that I've been incarcerated the last 10 years and I'm still adjusting to things." Vic said, hoping her mother found an ounce of sympathy for her. She wanted her to turn off the 'tough love' attitude for at least one second.
"Is that the kind of attitude you bring into work?" Her mother looked at her, almost offended.
"By 'attitude' do you mean me being upset at people talking behind my back and creepy men bothering me at work?" Vic inquired. Her mother just shook her head.
Their conversation ended awkwardly and neither party was satisfied with the result. Vic's mother reminded her of the event they were throwing the next day at the house and left her alone.
Vic returned to her bed and tried to hide herself in the sheets.
Vic guessed the event that Mason and her mother were throwing was fairly large as she observed entertainers and caterers roaming through the house the next morning.
She caught up with her mother around noon to gauge her expectations. Despite the new day, the previous night's tensions remained.
"Do I have to attend this party?" Vic asked her mother outright. Her mother laughed.
"Do you have to? It's centered around you." Her mother clarified. Vic put on a confused face. "You could call it… a reintroduction to society?" Her mother continued, fully serious.
Vic asked no further questions and decided to focus on blending-in when the time came.
The party officially started at 5:00PM. It was around this time that Vic put on the black dress provided by her mother.
She looked at herself in her bedroom mirror and took a deep breath.
It doesn't matter what other people think of you. You make your own reality, she said to herself slowly.
Vic ventured into the common areas of the house and noticed that strangers were arriving. She gave them basic greetings and tried to appear in a hurry. She had one thing on her mind: food.
Peeking into the backyard, she saw exactly what she was looking for. Her parents had ordered what seemed to be a buffet line.
Vic floated over to the buffet, taking in the gourmet food that had been freshly prepared. She was spoiled when you compared what she had been mainly eating the last 10 years. Hell, scratch that—the last 13 years, college food was also subpar.
Over the course of the party, Vic eventually found that she was enjoying herself. She downed a few drinks and enjoyed the buffet. The people were the worst part, but Vic found a few familiar faces to reconnect with— despite the awkwardness.
As the party began to wind down and the crowd dispersed, Vic found another familiar face alone under the porch. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw his aged face.
"Bruce?" She exclaimed loud enough for him to notice. He eyed her curiously, unsure of who she was. Vic gingerly approached him.
"I'm Victoria Evans— Mason's my step-father." Vic blurted, doing nothing to help Bruce's confusion.
"I'm sorry," Bruce started, "Have we met?" He inquired. Bruce couldn't recall meeting her, but sensed that they had somehow met before. Vic's breath caught in her throat. He didn't remember.
"We have," Vic started, "but it was 10 years ago." She felt uneasy uncovering the past. "It was a tense moment. We met in the graveyard. I told you to leave, or rather, that you needed to.." She left out the sensitive details.
Vic could see the memory flash across Bruce's face and his face quickly turned to hurt. It felt like she had reopened a scar that had supposedly healed.
"That was you? But I thought—" Bruce said, stumbling over his words.
"Aren't you Mason's step-daughter? The one who went to prison?" Bruce asked. Vic bit her lip nervously but nodded. Bruce's face turned to disgust and he took a step back from her.
"Then— what the hell? Weren't you an accomplice of Joker?" Bruce asked nervously. Vic's stomach turned— she should have never said anything.
"I wouldn't call myself an accomplice," Vic started. Bruce narrowed his eyes. He wanted the truth.
Vic felt her face become flush. Serving time for her crimes was one thing, fessing up to them in front of someone directly impacted by them was different.
"You're going to need to explain to me how you weren't an accomplice of Joker yet also went to prison, only to wind up here with this cushy family," Bruce said flatly. Vic frowned and a loneliness washed over her. Was she herself, or just a previous partner of Joker's?
"I lived in an apartment next to him 10 years ago when I was in school. I thought he was an interesting guy and I was a naive 20 year old," Vic began, looking down at her shoes while she explained.
"By the time I realized he was dangerous, it was too late. We were involved in an altercation at a restaurant. I shot the host. That's what I ended up serving time for."
"Liar," Bruce spat. Vic shot him a confused look.
"You knew what he had done. You knew what he was turning into. And you just stood idly by," Bruce said, his anger rising. Vic gulped. He had clearly researched the case.
"You walk around like you should be forgiven because you served time. No matter how much time you serve, it won't bring back my parents or that man." Bruce said, appearing to be on the verge of tears. He placed his drink on a nearby table and headed towards the exit. Vic watched him, unsure of what to say. She stood in shock.
She believed that she had ultimately helped Bruce. She thought she had saved his life.
That reality was shattered. He hated her. He couldn't care less if he had helped her. He would have preferred that she had not helped.
Vic held her tears while speed-walking through the house past the remnants of the party. She headed straight for her room and closed the door louder than her mother would prefer.
She collapsed onto her bed and sobbed into her pillow. Her past was never going to leave her. It was here to stay.
She wasn't Victoria anymore, she was an ex-felon and ex-accomplice to Gotham's most wanted criminal. She was a murderer. A stupid slut who couldn't see red flags even if they were shoved into her face.
She tried to push the thoughts out of her brain, but found minimal opposing evidence to replace them with.
Eventually, the thoughts dissipated as she cried herself to a sleep.
The usual pestering followed the party. Her mother knocked on her door early in the morning.
"I need to give some critiques to you regarding the party, Victoria," Her mother said through the door.
" Not right now. I'm sick. I don't feel well," Vic shouted through the door. She heard her mother gasp from the other side of the door.
"I— you better not have spread that to any of our guests Victoria!" Her mother yelled. Vic didn't respond. The conversation fizzled out.
Eventually a day had passed since their interaction. Vic found it impossible to move even an inch from her bed.
One day turned into two, and eventually, two turned into three.
Loud knocking.
" Victoria! Come out here right now! You've got to be feeling somewhat better and Mason needs to talk with you about your job," her mother yelled through the door once again. Vic cringed at the sentence. She hated that fucking job.
"I'm still sick, leave me alone." Vic replied.
No response from her mother.
No response the next day either. In fact, it sounded like there was nobody in the house at all.
Vic decided this was the perfect time to venture out. She walked through the deafeningly silent and dark house. Her eyes caught a small note near the front door titled 'Victoria'.
Vic picked up the note. Her eyes fluttered as she read it.
" We're off on a vacation.
Don't call."
Vic felt her eyes becoming misty. She wasn't sure why she hated the note so much. She didn't care that they were going on vacation, she would have said no if they asked anyway.
Wouldn't she?
She looked at the last two words closely. Don't call.
Her mother didn't care if she was sick or unhappy. She didn't care about her. Period. None of them did.
Vic went back upstairs and stepped into the bathroom attached to her bedroom. She looked at herself in the mirror, but struggled to keep eye contact with herself.
Instead, she looked at herself from afar. Her face had matured over the years, signs of aging had appeared. Had 10 years gone by that quickly? She squeezed portions of her face, hyper fixating on the parts that stood out.
"10 years of my life that I will never get back," Vic mouthed to herself in the mirror. A lone tear streamed down her face and she sniffed quietly.
I can't feel like this much longer.
Without another thought she ran to the office downstairs. She rummaged through the drawers until she found what she was looking for.
Vic flipped through the address book until she found what she was looking for. Bruce Wayne.
She ripped the page out and grabbed a blank piece of paper nearby. She began writing feverishly as tears slipped from her eyes.
" Bruce,
I know that no amount of apologies can change anything. My words can't change what's happened, but my heart couldn't handle saying nothing before saying goodbye.
I've lived the last ten years without many regrets. I operated on autopilot and assumed that all my choices were finally fine. I knew that I had fucked up, but I was determined to change.
I served my time with the one reassuring thought that: at least I had saved you. I took a life, but in return I saved one. You were part of a timeline that I thought about frequently. What else was I supposed to think about?
I'm sorry. I realize now that I am part of something much bigger. I was wrong. Serving my time did nothing and there are some things that we do and have to live with the consequences forever.
Please don't think of me as a coward. I think this decision is the best one for me and everyone around me.
I'm so sorry, Bruce."
Victoria carefully signed her name and reread the letter. She took a deep breath and put the letter in an envelope.
She put on a light coat and called for a driver. The driver seemed surprised to see her, and even more surprised to see where she was headed.
"I was confused when I saw the number since the rest of your family is out of town. But of course— we're always at your service," he told Vic once she got in the car. Vic handed him the ripped page from the address book.
"The Wayne estate? What business do you have there?" The driver said, laughing slightly.
"Oh, uh," Vic tried to think of a good excuse, "Mason has been trying to network with him. Since I'm working for him now and not on the trip, I thought I'd help out." Vic said, clutching the letter for Bruce tightly in her hand.
The driver got the sense that she didn't want to go into details. He kept the conversation light until they arrived. Vic thanked him and watched him drive away down the ordanent road.
Dusk had begun and the Wayne estate loomed in the distance as Vic stared towards it from the road. The fence towered over her and seemed to run on forever.
Deep down, she had hoped that she could see Bruce one last time, but the estate was inaccessible. Vic crouched down and tucked the letter under the fence so that it wouldn't be blown away by the wind. She then stood up quickly and began to walk towards the general direction of her house.
Her breathing became quick and she felt a surge of adrenaline in her veins. She was going to do it. Was she going to do it?
After walking for what felt like a lifetime, she turned the corner to head to the large suspension bridge that connected the city to the outskirts. Cars blinded her as they drove slowly past. She walked slowly on the bridge's pathway, dragging her fingers lightly on the metal that separated her and the edge.
Victoria reached the middle of the bridge and looked over the edge. There was nothing but darkness below, but she could faintly hear the water moving below.
She leaned, closing her eyes and letting the wind hit her face. The bridge swayed as she felt the few cars rush past behind her.
She looked behind and around her. The silence was deafening and her breath caught in her throat. She gripped the metal fence, hoisted her legs over it and then sat on it carefully.
Her feet dangled over as she kept a firm grip on the railing.
Why wasn't anyone driving past?
She could slip, slip so easily.
Nobody would be there.
How would they know?
Would they know?
Do they care?
A hand.
Vic lurched forward and yelped upon feeling a warm hand gently touch her arm.
She gasped and her yelp turned into a scream as she slipped off the railing. Her hands quickly reached for the railing. Once one hand reached it, the other was grabbed by the same hand that had caused her to slip.
She was assisted in getting back up and over the railing. Once she had reached the ground she found herself slightly shaking from the adrenaline.
It took her a few seconds to remember that somebody else was there. Her brain slowly processed Bruce's face in front of her.
" What- why are you here? How are you here?" Vic's shaky voice asked him. Bruce held up the letter that she had written just hours ago.
Vic laughed. She wasn't sure from what. Maybe it was the absurdity, maybe it was just the coping mechanism that she decided to use in the moment.
"I know you hate me, you told me already," Vic muttered.
"I had an epiphany," Bruce started. Vic scowled. Just now? He couldn't have had it a little earlier?
"I don't hate you. I have no reason to," Bruce said reluctantly, "you did try. I can acknowledge that." Vic crossed her arms in discomfort.
"My anger was misdirected. I should be pissed at Joker, not you. If anything, I guess you were a victim, too," Bruce sighed. Vic now looked at him with interest.
"...And you're someone who can potentially get close to him," Bruce tried to say nonchalantly. Vic felt her stomach twist as she realized what he was implying.
She shook her head and smiled.
"I…" she scoffed, "I never want to see that man again. Fuck him." Bruce raised an eyebrow.
"Not even for a quick…" He rubbed his fingers together, and tilted his head. "I thought you were working for Mason now?"
Vic frowned, "I am."
"He's miserable," Bruce said.
"I'll die before stepping another foot in that office," Vic spat.
Bruce left a silence between them. Vic just shook her head slowly. Bruce audibly sighed.
"Come on, you were about to kill yourself! I saw you! At least do something worthwhile before it," Bruce sounded exasperated. Vic frowned and turned away from Bruce and towards the water.
Fuck, Bruce thought, that was the wrong thing to say.
Bruce joined her in looking towards the water and leaned on the railing.
"If not for me, then for Gotham, Victoria. You already know about what he's capable of. He's made this place hell," Bruce reasoned, "he's cunning, he has loyal followers that would sacrifice themselves in a heartbeat."
Vic looked at Bruce sideways and then down at the water.
"You really think he would give any shit about me, anyway?" Vic asked him.
"Well, the rumor is he's a slight sex addict," Bruce stated.
"Oh, great. Thanks for that," Vic responded.
She looked towards the city for the first time. The lights shone across the water and loomed over the both of them.
"I guess I could give it a shot."