The words threw him, not something that he could ever remember happening before, so much that his jump had been too short. Landing on the ledge with only his toes keeping him from falling the four stories, his arms automatically shooting forwards to grab the lip of the ledge. A large hand gripped the front of his cape and pulled, tugging him onto the roof before falling away from his collar. A mixture of feelings flashed through him, shame and irritation at Father having to save him from falling, due to his distraction. Confusion at Grayson's words, because what did he mean she was taken? Where had Todd been? He was supposed to be with her for some ridiculous thing she had happily called movie night. She'd mentioned it to him the night before last, that was why he didn't do his added route to her building. Because Todd was supposed to be there, so how was she gone?

"Taken, by who?" Damien focused on his father's words.

"I don't know, but it's nothing good. Jay just left, pissed." Todd had been at the Cave?

"How long ago?" Father asked calmly.

"About five minutes, he… his eyes, they had swirls of green." Damien felt the involuntary full body flinch as Grayson's mention of the Lazarus Pit.

As a child the Lazarus Pit was used as a reminder; a not so subtle threat by his Grandfather and to a lesser extent his Mother. That if he failed or disobeyed he could always be made into an obedient soldier or go mad and be put down like a rabid dog. Damien feared few things, he would tell anyone who asked that he indeed feared nothing. But the Lazarus Pit set a block of ice in his gut. He had seen what it could do to a person, he'd seen the 'failures' the way they would scream, bodies twisting, contorting in ways no human body should be able too. Some crawled out of the Pit completely mad, clawing at their skin, seemingly trying to peel it off, babbling incoherent nonsense. Other's fell into madness slowly, over time or completely gave into the rage that filled them and had to be put down. Damien could only recall a handful of people who gained control of the Pit: his Mother, Grandfather and finally Todd gained his own form of control.

The Pit would always stay a part of whoever it touched, no matter how long it had been since they came out of it. Emotions were the strong defining factor in the madness, he'd seen glimpses of his Grandfather's eyes flash the deep bright green of the waters of the Pit. Before it was gone replaced by the Demon Heads calm, calculating mask of reserve. Anger and panic Damien had taken note were the main triggers. Todd was no stranger to anger, when he had crawled out of the Pit he wasn't a raving lunatic like the others. Mother had been shocked at first then impressed and had taken Todd under her wing, for sometime before he broke away and struck out on his own. Damien didn't have much interaction with Todd before coming to his Father and Gotham and hadn't cared to be honest. Todd was a weakness, led by his emotions letting the Madness fill him and corrode his flimsy control, pathetic. Or so he'd thought. Then as Todd's vengeful quest went on, Damien found himself agreeing with the things Todd would do. Killing the ones who were truly unredeemable, something Father didn't believe in.

Justice not vengeance was his father's mantra. It was something new to him, something novel, since being raised by the League of Assassins. It was kill or be killed, be the best or be punished, nothing less was acceptable for him, the grandson of the Demon's Head. It was all he knew, fight, kill, be the best, to please Mother and Grandfather, to stay out of the Pit. Those had been his reasons to live and then Mother had left him in a nearly parallel world, left him with Father. He was nine and set in the ways of the League, once his Father took him in Damien found his ways were frowned upon. He'd learned there were more ways to subdue and stop opponents than to just terminate them, adjusting had been distasteful. Father and Pennyworth had patients and after the years and his span of trying to kill Grayson and Drake to prove he was the best Robin. He had come to value the lives of others, not necessarily care for them but value they deserved to live, and under some circumstances deserved a second chance.

"Robin and myself are close by, we'll go." Father's words pulled him back to the issue.

"Right I'll try and get through to Hood." Grayson said his voice off, almost, guilty?

"If able we'll intercept him, keep collateral down."

"I'll listen to the scanners too."

"Report anything you hear." Father said before he looked down at him. "Let's go."

Damien nodded and followed.

"Robin?" Father called after a heavy four minute silence.

"Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"Of course, I'm fine." His response was automatic as they dropped to the street and made their way to the Batmobile.

"Are y-" His words were cut short as Grayson called over the comlink.

"The GCPD are on their way to the scene, pizza delivery guy called it in, Gordon's the lead."

"Rodger, I'll contact him." As the hatch slide closed Father was already contacting Gordon.

"Yes?" The tired voice of the commissioner filled the interior of the vehicle.

"Gordon, heard over the scanners another one has been taken." Damien's fists tightened.

A deep sigh. "Yes, taken from her apartment, this is a new occurrence they normally grab them off the streets. They're getting bolder, to take her from an apartment, this is the fourth this week. Are you going to show?"

"In route."

"Right, I'll put my people on foot duty, asking tenants about the girl, see if she had any enemies, if anyone has seen anything odd, heard anything. How long?"

"Six minutes."

"Her place is on the top floor, I'll open the rooftop access door."

"Alright." The call ended.

"Damien, son."

"No name's in the field." He said, hand fisting the green material of his cape.

"Will you be alright, going into this?" Damien's head whipped to the side to look at his father.

"Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"You seem… upset."

"I'm not."

"It's okay if you are, I know you like her." Damien snorted softly, he didn't like her.

"She's Hood's friend, I've only been keeping her under surveillance."

It was not 'stalking' as Grayson said, he had been keeping her under surveillance since the fight Todd had with Father. The night he came to the Cave covered in blood, and after Todd had intentionally disobeyed Father's order to stay away from the girl. He'd wanted to know who would cause anyone to disobey a direct order, so he'd picked the shoddy slidelock and let himself in. He'd taken in her apartment, normal, modest, covered in plants and books, he was checking for anything incriminating when the sound of a bell had him looking down. He was holding her cat when she came into the living area, looking at her floor, the lights came on. He wasn't lying when he had told her he was expecting more, and he had, maybe someone sinister, evil looking, tattoos or piercings at least. Not someone who looked like the public librarian with the mouth of a sailor, no wonder Todd liked her.

After that he read the file Father had given them all and had kept up his surveillance, following her to work and back waiting for her to do something. It never came, then Gotham Heights happened and he'd found her niece apparently. She'd kissed the side of his head. With a soft smile and kind words the action confused him, he'd never had someone kiss him. Then Grayson and Drake had mocked him and Father never breached the subject, so he'd asked Pennyworth. Who made tea for them and asked him what he believed it meant, he'd thought about it and of when Mother would let him join her outside the compound. He would see other mother's do what Todd's friend had, along with soft smiles and kind words, it was... affection. Pennyworth had agreed, telling him that it was her way of thanking him and that she was probably someone who showed her love through gestures.

The next time he found himself in her home she was baking and had screeched in panic when she saw him. Then yelled at him about 'boundary issues' as her cat rubbed along his leg. He'd scooped the animal up and she'd sighed, pulling a tray of cookies from the oven. He watched as she moved around cleaning her kitchen of the mess before putting the cookies in a container and sat at the kitchen table. She'd waved at it and with caution he sat, she eyed her cat and told him it's name and that she got him from a shelter. She talked and ate cookies, she'd pushed the container towards him and rolled her eyes when he didn't take one. He finally questioned her about Todd and why she let him in and she'd told him that she liked his company. That had confused him because who liked Todd's company? He was brash and loud, didn't listen to orders, he was everything she seemed the opposite of, maybe that was why?

After that visit Damien would stop by and she would have sweets or pastries for him and would tell him about something that had happened to her that day. Then she would ask if he was being safe on his patrols. After a while, Damien saw that she genuinely cared, that her kindness wasn't some way to gain favors. She never asked for anything in return she would sometimes even go out of her way. She made Baklava for him once after a short conversation about their favorite deserts and he had mentioned not eating it in a while. She was strange and he found himself constantly going back, he was sure Father knew but didn't know why he was allowing it.

"We're here." At his father's words Damien nodded.

Gordon was standing by the roof's access door. He nodded and turned to walk down the stairs reaching the hallway, Gordon and Father started a conversation. Damien tried to listen but also had to fight the sudden desire to walk faster to get to the apartment sooner. He told Father he was fine, he was fine and he could do this. The splintered wood of the door dusted the floor and the doorframe was beyond saving, it had been kicked in, forced entry. Had she slammed the door shut on her attackers? Damien felt a flicker of something at the thought of her trying to protect herself at least. Stepping into the apartment felt wrong somehow, it was too quiet, didn't smell of baked goods like it always did when he was here. As he walked he saw the stack of books she kept on the coffee table were now scattered across the floor. A cactus and it's split pot lay in the center of the living room, reaching the island he looked at the floor.

The shattered remains of an aloe plant, ceramic pot and dirt covered the floor along with a cell phone, crouching, he looked at it. If Grayson and Todd knew she had been taken before the report came in had she called Todd? If she had, then he needed to take the phone with him, it would put Todd in a bad position that could affect them all. Grabbing the phone he turned it off before slipping it in his belt and making his way around the rest of the main apartment. Making it down the hall he stepped into the bedroom looking for anything out of disarray, and saw nothing. As he was turning to leave the sight of a small orange pill bottle pulled his attention to it, grabbing it the soft rattle of pills filled the quiet room. Turning the bottle over he read the label, filed it away later to look it up and set it back down on the low dresser by the door. The soft sound of a bell caught his ear, looking towards it he saw a pair of large yellow eyes under the bed. Crouching down he held out his gloved hand, slowly Jasper crawled out, belly low to the floor ears back. The cat slinked over before curling up at Damien's feet, gently scratching the cat's head he calmed the feline before scooping him up. Cradling Jasper in his arms, cape falling closed hiding him, Damien turned leaving the bedroom.

Damien Wayne was many things the Grandson of Ra's al Ghul, son of The Batman, trained assassin from the League of Shadows, but above all else he was Robin.

Robin didn't fail, Robin refused to fail. "We'll find her and they'll pay."

XXXXXX

Bruce had to focus on what Jim was saying as he watched Damien walk in front of them, his shoulders tight, his normally slow gait faster. Despite what his son had told him, the boy was worried and he couldn't be blamed, none of the women who had been taken have been found. Damien had taken a quick liking to the girl, to Marley, the same way Jason had and Bruce didn't know why. He'd met the girl once under dire circumstances and had been shocked at her attitude and appearance. Jason's friends or associates were unsavory at best and unstable at worst. So seeing the small brunette, covered in Jason's blood, on the verge of either hyperventilating or having a panic attack had confused him. He'd watched as Dick calmly corosed her into cleaning up and coming back to talk, she'd been clinging to Jason's hood like a lifeline. Dick had to remind her of it and she'd given it up, hands shaking before she walked down her hall. She'd taken nearly a half hour before she was back, awkward and shifting on her feet as she watched him. He'd turned to her and noted the slight flinch that ran up her body, he'd demanded to know what was going on. Telling her Hood was a danger to her, she'd denied it and he could see the defiance in her eyes, even as her shoulders sagged.

His argument with Jason at the Cave had only added to his confusion, Jason was adamant that the girl was in no danger, that she was fine. Bruce had argued against the fact and had only succeeded in Jason doubling down, then he'd questioned why Jason was fighting so hard about her. Did he care for her? Like her, love her even? Jason had denied it automatically, saying she was his friend. The whole thing had gone nowhere, like it always did, Jason left angry and Bruce was left confused and conflicted. Confused because he didn't know the relationship between Jason and Marley and conflicted because Jason had been less violent since he'd met her. But she was also in danger from knowing Red Hood and he didn't know how to make Jason see it, he'd pushed it down. Then he'd found out Damien had been doing surveillance on her after the argument and his confusion only grew. The fight in Gotham Heights with the Scarecrow hadn't helped any as Damien's intrigue with Marley only seemed to grow.

Bruce had followed his youngest and watched as he sat on the building across from her apartment surveyed the area before moving on. It seemed to be something new to his route and occasionally he would drop to the fire escape and she would let him in. A half hour or so later he would climb out of the window and continue patrol with a pouch full of cookies or other baked goods. Damien didn't take to very many people, Bruce figured the only people he didn't outright hate or find some type of contempt for were Dick, Jon, Alfred and himself. So for him to go out of his way to check up on and visit Marley, left him, well, confused. Marley's addition into his boy's lives brought up a massive amount of confusion for him, but contentment for them.

"Her name is Marlene Dupree, twenty-two years old, she moved to Gotham from Star City over two years ago. She's rented this apartment for over a year, her landlady is on her way up from the first floor." Jim said as they reached the door to the apartment, Damien disappearing past the busted entrance.

"This building is old, how is it no one heard anything?" Bruce asked, eyeing the doors lining the hallway.

"I can answer that, son." He turned towards the soft voice.

An older woman of about sixty stood a few feet away leaning her weight on a cane, she glanced at the broken door. Sadness flooded her features, before she looked back to him and the Commissioner.

"Mrs. Storn." Jim greeted with a nod.

"Commissioner." Mrs. Storn replied and went on. "Edna, the woman who lives in five O' two is visiting her son for the holidays, and has been gone a few days. Jamie, who lives in four nine nine works third shift so he was gone, leaves at 11:30 on the dot. Kassie and Rene, who live under Marley in four O' six, Kassie works third shift also and Rene, her sister, is deaf."

"What about the people across the hall?" Bruce said nodding towards the doors across the hall.

"I use those rooms for storage, the basement here floods with heavy rains so I can't keep anything down there."

"I see."

"Mrs. Storn, do you know of anyone who would want to harm Miss. Dupree?" Jim asked.

"Lord no, Marley's such a sweet girl, she's never caused me any trouble, not like most young people her age. She even made my granddaughter a unicorn cake, made out of cupcakes for her birthday back in March. Edna's told me that she takes her trash down, due to her knees being bad, her and Jamie swap baking recipes. She has good friends too, a blond friend with the cutest set of twins who comes by often, Marley watches them for her. Her newest friend is a nice young man with the bluest eyes, he helped me with my groceries a few days back." So Jason came here often?

"Do you happen to know the names of her friends?" Jim questioned.

"Her blonde friend's name is Karri, she's down as Marley's emergency contact, the document folder is down in my office. Now what was his name, Jameson, Jackson it was a J name, I can't remember, I only heard it once." Mrs. Storn mused.

"That's alright, do those security cameras work?"

"They do, well not all of them, I've been fighting with the company to come out and fix them, charging me what they do should be a crime with how horrid their customer service is."

"Would you show me the footage?"

"Of course, I'm not good with technology. I'll have to call my son to come down, unless you know how to work them."

"I can figure it all out, shall we." Jim said with a sweep of his arm.

Before she let Mrs. Storn looked at Bruce. "I know what's been said about you lot, but I don't believe it. I want you to find Marley and all them other girls and bring the ones behind it to light, then you bury them under Blackgate, you understand me youngman." Bruce took in the old woman's steady gaze, before nodding.

"Yes ma'am we'll do our best."

She nodded. "Well, come on Commissioner, let's go figure out this new fangled camera system."

Watching as Jim and Mrs. Storn made it to the elevator, he waited for the doors to close before he turned to the apartment door. Pushing it open with the back of his gauntlet he took in the room, broken plant pots and scattered books on the floor. It was all contained in a small area, so more than one kidnapper, two at the most. The broken door meant that she either didn't open the door or slammed it shut, she didn't call the GCPD, so the attack must have been fast. No more than five minutes, probably less, walking the area careful to not disrupt anything, he took in the crime scene. He looked for blood or other identifiers to help find the attackers, not finding anything of note. The soft padding of footfalls had him looking up, Damien stood at the opening to the hallway, his posture still stiff. Something shifted under his closed cape and a gray tail flicked out before disappearing again, an animal?

"We'll find her."

"We'll try to find them all, Robin." Damien's shoulders pulled back before he walked across the room.

"No, we will find her." It was said with such conviction, Bruce didn't have the heart to tell his son that she might never be found.

They would try though, he would try, if for nothing else then for them, for his son's he would try to find her.

XXXXXX

Jason paced the floor of Magnolia's office in short strides, trying to calm down to get the Green to fade fully. It had been a long while since he'd seen the Green, the sudden spike of the Pit nearly had him ripping Dick's throat out. The urge flared through his veins, filling his body with the rage he'd thought he had a grip on, the punch he'd throw. If Dick hadn't dodged, would have at best dazed him, at worst broken his jaw. Dick had tried talking and that just pissed Jason off even more. His fucking voice, his stupid face, had just fuled the rage coiling in Jason's gut, then Dick had stepped back. He had shown weakness the Pit flared, whispered to him, move in, attack, finish it, his fault, gone because of him. Jason had followed Dick's retreating form snarling the thoughts he had at the time, he couldn't even remember what they were. All he remembered was the urge to go through with the act of hurting Dick, breaking him, punishing him for letting this happen. Marley was taken, gone, because of Dick and his need to control shit, just like Bruce.

Dick's voice had filtered through the haze of the Pit and Jason heard the slight waiver of his voice, saw the flash of fear, panic? In his eyes, the seconds of clarity were enough for him to clamp down on his rage. Snarl out something before retreating to his bike. As he drove the Green started to recede and he gained enough of his sense to put his Helmet back on. He didn't have a destination in place, he just needed to get away from Dick. The last thing he needed was to maim or kill the bastard, it would slow his progress. Finally as the Green slipped away he'd decided to go to Mag's, her and the girls might be able to tell him something, maybe they heard talking. Apparently, John's liked to chat, either out of nerves or some misplaced idea that the girls gave a shit about what they had to say. Jason had gotten some solid leads or case busters from Mag's and her girls before. As he parked his bike in the alley by the base Mag's had looked up from her spot on the stoop, apparently he looked as rattled as he felt. The redhead stood from her spot and met him at the bottom of the steps, fussing over him as she walked him up the steps and to her office.

She sat on the tattered leather couch, a lit cigarette between her lips as she watched him wear a hole in the cheap tongue and groove floor. She'd barked out some orders before she had slammed the office door shut and let him go. She had given up on trying to talk to him as he paced like a lunatic. Pulling the final drag from her smoke she snubbed it out before flicking the butt at him, it bounced off his chest and landed in his path on the floor. He stopped and stared at the butt, God now he wanted a cigarette, fuck.

"Red, Hon what the hell's got you so cagey?" Mag's demanded softly.

Jason looked over at her and saw the concern on her face.

"Someone I know was taken." It registered with the redhead immediately.

"Oh, Red." The words were soft and sad, no one's been found yet.

"Have you heard anything about them recently?" Mag's through before she stood and walked to the door, pulling it open.

"Klarissa, come up here!" The sound of the old steps creaking let him know someone was on the way up.

Klarissa was a tall, black haired woman in jeans and a black sweater and fluffy socks, she looked between Mag and him, before settling on Mags.

"Yeah?"

"Tell Red what you heard, last night."

Klarissa looked back at him, before she nodded. "I was at the old pier on my way back, heard a group of guys talking, shouting more like it, drunk off their asses. They were talking about some guys going around recruiting new blood for a new crime boss, said they should look into it, pay's good, apparently." She shifted.

"One guy said his brother was going on a run to nab some girl tonight, didn't think anything of it, thought it was just drunk pricks from the Narrows trying to one up Park Row."

"Remember what they look like?" Jason tried to sound calm, the quick step Klarissa took back let him know it failed.

"Ye-yeah." Klarissa gave him the description of the men and Jason thanked the girl and she darted out of the room.

"Red, you gotta calm down some if you're going to do something about this." Mag's said.

"I fucking can't Mag's, they took her from me!" He snapped, spinning on the redhead.

She met him head on with a glare. "How the hell are ya' gonna help her if you run off half cocked and get hurt, or screw up loose the chance to find her, huh?" She snarled back, her red painted lips pulled back.

Fists curled at his sides, the leather of his gloves cracked, and Mag's sighed, crossing her arms and dropping her head into her hand.

"Look Red, I understand you're angry but you need to use that brain I know you have rattlin' around in that big ass head of yours. If you fly into this like a bat outta hell, you could lose the chance to find your girl, and I know that would kill you. Cause you're a big ol' softie, despite the act you throw around, you can't fool me." Jason paused and let the words process.

Mag's was right, he couldn't let his emotions get in his way, no matter how desperately he wanted them too. He needed to, to treat Marley like any other random person, not like his bubbly, chatterbox, bake happy friend, fuck.

"Right. You're right."

"Of course I am, I'm alway right, Red." The woman smiled, hand digging into her cleavage to pull out a crumpled pack of cigarettes. She tapped one out and slipped it between her lips. "Want one?" She waved the pack.

"Fuck, yes." Mag's smiled around her smoke as she tapped out another one.

With the cigarette and a book of matches in his pocket Jason made his way out to his bike, he'd need to stop by his safehouse to grab some things. As he drove the need to smoke the cigarette in his pocket scratched at the back of his mind, it was a nervous habit he'd never really dropped. The commlink in his helmet came to life.

"Nightwing to Hood, I know you're on one of these channels." Jason snarled at the sound of Dick's voice.

"Come on Hood, B and Robin are on their way back from the… scene." Jason's hands tightened on the handles of the bike.

"They have surveillance footage from the apartment complex, Gordon sent it, come back."

Jason pulled up behind his safe house, yanked off his helmet and lit the cigarette, the smoke filled his lungs and the smooth flavor rolled over his tongue. Tucking the helmet under his arm he made his way to his room, savoring the calming effect the smoke was providing. Reaching his door he paused, looking at the light filtering under the door, stubbing the cigarette out on the doorframe he dropped the butt. Pulling his helmet back on and grabbing his gun from his hip, Jason opened his door, gun lifted and stepped in and leveled it at the intruder. Annoyance bubbled up.

"Why the fuck are you in my house?"

"I figured you'd be less inclined to shoot me." Tim said eyeing the gun pointed at his face.

"It's pretty tempting, I've had a shit night."

"You won't." Tim sounded so sure of his words. "Are you going to come to the Cave?"

"I have shit to do." Jason said holstering his gun and brushing past Tim who followed.

"Oh, like what?"

"None of your fucking bussiness, Replacement." He bit out punching in the code for his safe, and pulling it open.

"You don't expect to find her on your own do you?" Jason's shoulders tightened.

"I'll damn well try."

"So what, you're just going to run around Gotham shoving guns into peoples faces?"

Checking one of the magazines. "It's never failed me before."

"You've never cared about the victim this much before either." Jason paused at Tim's words, no he hadn't cared about them personally.

"What's you fucking point, Tiny Tim?"

"Emotions make you reckless, Jason."

"I don't need your advice." He shoved to his feet grabbing the duffle bag by his feet before kicking the safe shut. Turning he came face to face with Tim.

"We want to find her too, Jason. We want to find all of them, help us."

"The League will be involved, they'd kick me out of it anyways."

"I won't let them, we won't let them." Tim's words struck something in Jason, for some reason the kid had grown on him, he was a pest but Jason found himself allowing the kid to sway some of his decisions.

"I already found a lead, one of Magnolia's girls heard some talk about a girl who was supposed to be taken tonight."

"We can let Batman know-" Jason cut Tim off.

"No, I'm going to find them and get some better information than just some description of three guys."

"Jason," Tim paused. "Fine I'll come with you."

"The hell you will, don't need your moral bullshit getting in the way of getting my information." Jason shouldered past the kid.

"I'll just follow you anyways, you should know by now."

"That you're an annoying little shit, yeah I know. Don't get in my way, Replacement."

Tim seemed to take it for what it was and followed Jason.

Twenty minutes later they sat on an old shipping container near the pier and waited for the group of men to leave the packing plant. Jason had given Tim the description of the man whose brother was supposedly a part of the kidnapping for tonight. An elbow digging into his ribs made him huff in surprise and he glared at Tim who was pointing to their left. Ding, ding there was his boy, medium build, balding, dirty blond hair, Jason slipped off the container signaling for Tim to stay. He didn't want him getting in the way or stopping him from what he was about to do, cutting the man off the startled yelp made him smirk.

The solid sound of the man smashing into the stack of dirty pallets did good things for Jason as his hand tightened on the back of the man's neck. Cutting off the man's pathetic whines and whimpers.

"I have questions and you better have the proper answers, capeesh?" His fingers dug in and the man yelped.

"Good boy, first question: What's your name?"

"Matthew Johnson."

"Question two: What's your brother's name?"

"Wh-what?"

"That was a question, not an answer." He yanked the man back then slammed him back into the pallets. "You don't ask questions, you answer questions, it's not that hard, really, let's try again, huh?"

"What's your brother's name?"

"Lu-Lucus Johnson, why?"

"Oh, so close. You gave an answer but… that was another question." With a swing of his arm the man stumbled back from the force and hit the ground, his head bouncing off an old fishing cage.

"So what was your dear bro up to tonight?" Jason crouched down, now holding his dagger aloft, the man's eyes locked onto it.

"I- I don't know."

Jason tisked. "Wrong answer." The man screamed as the blade sunk into the top of his knee going clean through. "Now, now, stop screaming." Gripping the man's face, his thumb and first two fingers digging into his cheeks. "Answer my question."

The man sobbed. "H-he said… somethin' bout quick cash, a girl."

Jason wiggled the blade still in the man's knee, he tried to scream, Jason squeezed the man's face muffling the sound. "Now you were so much clearer last night chatting it up to your buddies, I'm your buddy too, right?" He grabbed the handle of the blade.

"He, he said he was 'sposed to grab some girl, quick five grand." Jason bristled, five thousand was enough for someone to sell another human.

"You know what the girl looked like?"

"I don't know man."

"Wrong answer."

"No, Pl-" The man cut off on a muffled scream as Jason twisted the blade, the man weaved on the verge of passing out.

"No, no you can't pass out right yet." He smacked the man's cheek. "Come on Matty, I need my answers. What did the girl look like?"

"Som-some tiny- tiny brunette, mousy thing, wanted her before but she got… got herself a boyfriend, was hard to get to her. So they circled back, found...pattern." It was whined.

So it was Marley. Jason growled. "Where were they taking the girl?"

The man shook his head. "I don-" The blade twisted and he screamed. "I don't, I don't know, honest!"

"Where's Lucus then?"

The man let out a shuddering breath. "I don't know, ain't… talked since las' time."

Jason looked the man over, he got what he needed, ripping his blade from the man's knee caused him to let out a screech.

"Thanks for the cooperation, Matty." Jason growled before the bottom of his boot landed in the middle of the man's face.

Crouching down he wiped his dagger clean on the man's shirt.

"Was that necessary?" Tim snapped and Jason rolled his eyes.

"Got my fucking answers didn't I, plus he's not dead, maybe crippled but not dead, that should make you all warm and fuzz inside."

Tim scowled at him and bent down to check on the man, before standing up and calling it in.

"Let's go."

"Right behind you Princess."

Reaching the Cave Jason saw Dick and Bruce talking and Demon Spawn was sitting off on a chair cross legged. Jason pulled off his helmet, Dick saw them first and opened his mouth but Jason's icy glare shut him up before he could speak. Making his way closer Jason saw a cat curled up on the Spawns lap, a gray cat with a white ear.

"Is that Jasper?"

"It is, I didn't want to leave him, there alone." Jason didn't say anything and looked at Bruce.

"We've gone over the buildings footage, the outside cameras don't work and the men who took Marley had face masks on." As he spoke Bruce played the short clip, two men one short one taller walked down the hall, the camera had a good view of Marley's door. Jason felt a flutter of pride as the door slammed shut hitting the man who'd moved, it soon vanished as the door was kicked in. It was only three minutes, before they came out, Marley flung over the taller man's shoulder.

"I got a name, Lucus Johnson."

"How?"

He eyed Bruce. "From one of Mag's girls, his brother was yucking it up at the pier, so I just paid a little visit."

"Once we run the name we might be able to find a location for where they're taking the women."

Dick gasped. "Location, Jason!"

"What?" He snarled, still none too happy with Dick.

"Location, the necklace." Fuck, fucking, damn it.

"Get ahold of Roy." Dick was at the console before he'd finished his sentence.

The screen was filled with the sleepy, annoyed glare of said man. "It's three in the morning, not all of us crime fight full time anymore, you know. Adult responsibilities and all that." He grouced.

"That necklace I had you get for me, I need to know where it is." Jason ignored his friends bitching.

"Like, right now?"

"Harper!" He snapped, and Roy sat up straighter.

"Give me a minute." He moved and the screen was filled with Lian, her tiny fist shoved in her mouth as she slept. The screen moved as Roy picked it up and set it down, his profile taking up the screen.

"Soooo, wanna fill me in here?" He asked as he typed.

"Someone took Jason's new friend." Roy side eyed the screen.

"When did you get a new friend?"

"'Bout eight months ago." Roy tisked.

"I've not met them, why?" The redhead asked, lips pursing and his typing picked up again.

"I don't have to share every aspect of my life with you, Harper."

Roy snorted. "Uh, yeah you do that's how bestfriends work, I tell you everything."

"Focus, Roy."

"I am, well wherever he is. He hasn't activated the tracker yet."

"Jason's new friend is a girl." Roy's head snapped around.

"Oh, when we find her, I'm meeting this girl, bet she'll love Lian." Jason agreed with Roy, Marley would love Lian.

"Fine, when we find her you and Lian can meet her, she likes kids." Because they would find her and Jason dared anyone to stand in his fucking way.

XXXXXX

First I want to thank everyone who reads and reviews this story, I haven't done it in a while. I love that you take the time to let me know what you think of the story so far and the characters, just wanted to let you all know I appreciate it.

So got Damien's reaction to Marley being taken and a section of Bruce's thoughts.

-Before anyone mentions the Green, I read somewhere that when the Pit takes over, Jason see's a green haze and I wanted to try and represent that.

I had a reviewer mention Jason's eye color. The comics go back and forth on his eyes being either blue or green. But on most of the info pages they say blue so I split the difference his eyes are blue until the Pit takes over then they turn green.