Gambit/Bind Part 3

The open air auditorium where the ceremony would be held had some security of its own, mostly cameras. This meant Dick couldn't get too close to it, or the cameras would catch him and he would have to run again. It also would make it hard for an assassin to sneak in there.

Thankfully, Dick wouldn't need to get too close. With the rifle from the message the assassin would be shooting from a distance.

He stuck to the edge of the sidewalk as he walked towards the train station. There wasn't any event happening right now so there weren't many people he could hide behind to avoid the cameras. Giz and Mouse were still out there looking for him. They probably would be for years, if they weren't replaced by somebody else. The Owls always demanded results and they never gave up the pursuit. He would just have to learn where all the cameras in the city were.

Rising over the train station was a tall decorative spire. There had been nothing on the plans to indicate that there was a way up there but Dick would rather rule it out before going on to the most likely option. The train station also had plenty of security cameras but it was easier to hide amongst the commuters who were constantly coming and going. The spire's base was between the third and fourth platforms. It rose up, touched the edge of the roof, and went up beyond it, towering over the neighborhood. Dick did a quick circuit around its base. No entry ways for maintenance. With the number of commuters around it would be impossible to climb up the outside of the building without being noticed.

The only other building tall enough to look down onto the stage was an office tower overlooking the train hub on the other side of the street. Unusually for an office building, it had a few balconies overlooking the street. It also had security cameras on the outside of the building, but like the station, the heavy foot traffic in and out allowed Dick to slip in easily. Internal security didn't seem to be as strict as external security. He followed some business people into an elevator and went right up to the fifth floor.

The balcony overlooking the auditorium was on the other side of a conference room that was currently in use. Luckily, some kind soul had posted the week's schedule for the room on the door. It would be open during the ceremony and for two hours beforehand. Someone could walk right in with their weapon hidden in a large case. Looking up and down the hallway, Dick saw that most of the neighboring rooms were offices.

A woman turned the corner and Dick abruptly pretended to be looking at his phone instead of examining all details of the hallway. As she brushed past, Dick scrolled through the contact list on his phone - hovering momentarily on the saved contact 'Silver' - whom he assumed was probably Tobias.

As he turned to continue meandering his way up to where he determined the probable nest was - he hit the call button. The dial tone abruptly ended as the line connected-

"Silver here." It was Tobias, his hunch was right.

"Silver… its Kit."

"Kit - you have no idea how glad I am to hear you again."

"It's great hearing your voice too."

"Kit, I know you're in some trouble - so what I'm going to do is send you an encrypted message concerning the placement of a foxhole. You should be able to figure out the key. Please try to keep in touch alright?"

"Alright. See you soon Silver." He hung up as he pushed open the maintenance access.

-.-.-.-

As Dick perched above the balcony, he watched as the graduates' families settled into their seats down below. The graduates themselves, recognizable by their dark robes, were taken to the side to get ready for the walk across the stage. The seats on the stage where Bruce Wayne would sit along with the faculty were still empty. He looked at his watch. Thirty minutes until the ceremony began. The assassin should be coming at any time if they wanted to be set by the time the Waynes arrived.

Ten minutes passed. More students and their families arrived. A couple members of the university faculty took their seats on the stage. The assassin had apparently decided to cut it close.

Five more minutes. Fifteen minutes until the ceremony began. Dick looked around at the nearby roofs and buildings. The only place a person could set up with a rifle was here or the spire. And the spire wasn't really accessible from the ground. Where was the assassin?

Ten minutes until the ceremony. A dark car pulled up on the curb and two men in suits got out. They looked around before gesturing back to the car and two more men got out. Even from a few stories up, Dick recognized them from the many pictures in the Gotham Times - Thomas and Bruce Wayne.

Flanked by the other two men, probably their bodyguards, they headed up to the stage. The bodyguards stopped at the base of the stage and the two Waynes went up and took their seats. The Waynes were here, the ceremony was starting soon... So where was the assassin?

Five minutes until the ceremony began. Aside from a couple of the students running late (who were literally running in) everyone was here. Had Dick gotten it wrong? But this was the only location that made sense with the weapon he was using. Except for the inaccessible spire. Dick glanced over at it. It wasn't quite rush hour yet but the base was still surrounded by commuters. There was no way up it just reached from the top, brushing the roof - wait.

On the roof. Right next to where the spire was. Just barely visible was a pile of rope. The rope led up the spire. The assassin hadn't needed to climb up from the bottom because he used the roof. Dick was in the wrong spot!

Five minutes. Dick didn't know when in the ceremony the speech was supposed to be. That would be when Bruce Wayne was the most exposed. Could he get to the spire in five minutes? Dick burst through the meeting room and down the hallway, skipped the elevator- there was no time to wait- and charged down the stairs. The door to the stairwell slammed open as Dick burst out, startling a group of business people. No he didn't have time. It would take time to climb up first to the roof and then the rest of the spire. But he had to stop this.

He had to get Bruce Wayne out of there.

As Dick charged across the road, the hood on his hoodie was blown back by the wind. A car slammed to a stop as he darted forward, and Dick jumped over it to land on the opposite sidewalk. He charged towards the entrance. A smiling greeter turned towards him.

"Hello! If you are here for the graduation ceremony please be quiet as you enter since- OH MY GOD."

Dick had gotten a pretty good idea of the layout from his view up above. There were twenty rows of seats facing the stage, one main aisle down the centre, and two side aisles. The steps up to the stage were on the right from the side aisle. Dick turned on his heel and charged down the correct aisle. Onstage, the dean was talking. Dick couldn't hear what he was saying over the pounding of his heart in his ears. The bodyguards were no longer standing at the base of the stage. Where were they?

As Dick reached the steps up to the stage the dean reached behind him to gesture to Bruce Wayne. There was a round of applause. Oh no, oh no, OH NO.

"Thank you, I am honored to be here. Graduates, today marks the start of-"

"GET DOWN!"

BANG

Dick reached the top of the stairs and threw his body forward, catching a brief glimpse of Bruce Wayne's shocked face as he tackled him to the ground. The gunshot registered as he and Bruce hit the floor. The pain hit him at the same time the audience's screams did.

Well, Dick thought, as the world faded out. At least I managed to save Bruce Wayne.

AN: Dick meet Bruce. Bruce... you really need to stop getting shot at.

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