"Good afternoon, Jeff! Up to your ears in grease, as usual, I see!" said Batgirl

"Batgirl, if you ain't a sight, lady..! Still have not got used to you pop-ping in on me! But I guess I know why you are here! There she is, Batgirl. Your bat cycle is as good as new and ready to go!" replied Jeff.

"Jeff! How much do I owe you for storage on my cycle?"

"No way I'm gonna to take any money from you, lady! As long as you need a place to keep your machine, my garage is yours!"

Jeff Cotton was and old man who owned a car workshop. Jeff's garage made an ideal place to keep Batgirl's cycle for the time being. It was close to her apartment and police headquarters. As Barbara Gordon, she has known Jeff for years and she trusted him. Without knowing her double identity now he was helping Batgirl. He had even given her a key in case she needed the cycle when he was not around.

"I knew I could count on you, Jeff! Thanks for letting me keep my cycle at your station!"

"Aw, … my pleasure, lady! You just take care of yourself, you hear? "

Not for nothing, the Dr. Voodoo had secretly followed Batgirl for the past few weeks. He had learned that it was there that she kept her special motorcycle guarded by someone that she regarded as a friend.

He installed a bomb in her cycle and ran away.

Next morning Jeff got to rev up Batgirl's cycle. "Guess it wouldn't hurt to check it out… make sure it's running okay" thought Jeff.

"Yes, sir. That's one special lady who owns this machine. It makes me proud that she trusts me enough to keep it for her. It makes me feel important like I'm helping to fight crime with her. And that's one good feeling… " KA BLOOM!

Barbara's phone rang at her office in Gotham Library. It was her father.

"Barbara? I'm afraid I have some bad news for you! Your old friend Jeff Cotton has been in a serious accident. He is in pretty bad shape" said the Commissioner.

"Jeff!? Oh, no! No! H-how did it happen?"

A hurried explanation was given by Commissioner Gordon and shortly she called the hospital where Jeff had been taken. He was in critical condition. They were afraid he might not last long. "But how could this had happened? Dad didn't give me many details on the phone" thought Barbara.

A worried Batgirl swung across the city with desperate speed and arrived to the garage where her dad was waiting her.

"It doesn't seem to be much doubt about it, Batgirl. The bomb in the cycle was meant for you. Someone must have found out you kept your cycle here, booby trapped it to get you. Only poor Jeff accidently set if off first."

"This is my entire fault! I should never have exposed Jeff to this kind of danger. If-if he dies, I'll never forgive myself."

"Take it easy, Batgirl. You can't blame yourself for what's happened."

"Can't I? Jeff was only trying to help me, and because of my carelessness it may cost his life!"

Batgirl found a clue, she picked up from the debris a Lyon's tooth just like the ones Dr. Voodoo used to decorate his costume. He was the one behind the attack.

"Because of my lack of caution, Jeff Cotton was almost killed in my place. Dr. Voodoo planted a bomb on my bat cycle … but it was Jeff who got caught in the explosion."

Later, the hospital said there was no change in Jeff's condition. But at least he seemed to be holding on his own. They thought maybe he had got a chance to pull through. Several days after, Jeff was recovering there. Batgirl visited him several times as Barbara Gordon… but it was the time for Batgirl to make her appearance and she wouldn't blame him if he kicked her out.

He has a private room there… she made sure of that. Bruce would be paying for that.

Gabrielle, a young nurse, was looking after the old man. She took his pulse and then she went inside a little bathroom placed inside the room to moisten a cloth for putting it on his forehead. She closed the door for avoiding noises that could wake him up since he was asleep.

Suddenly Batgirl appeared making an impressive entrance by the room window waking Jeff up.

"Jeff, are you awake?" asked Batgirl

"You sure gave me a start, lady. But I'm very mighty glad to see you!" answered Jeff.

Gabrielle was astonished by the sound that seemingly came from the room. She grasped the door knob and slightly opened it. From where she was, she could see Batgirl sitting up at Jeff side in his hospital bed. When she realized that they had not seen her, since Gabrielle had not even made a noise or spoken a single word, she preferred not to interrupt the privacy of the conversation.

"I would have visited sooner, Jeff, but I couldn't exactly walk in during regular visiting hours. I-I want you to know, Jeff that all your hospital bills will be taken care of. It won't make up for what I did to you, but…"

"Now just a dang minute there, Batgirl!

The way I heard it, it was Dr. Voodoo who did this to me… and you sure don´t look a thing like him!

Now maybe you think it was your fault because it happened while I was taking care of your cycle…

…but, lady that's a job I took on myself! I wanted to do it, and I knew it might be risky!

If something's worth doing, though, it's worth taking a risk for! You put your life on the line every day!

Don't you understand, lady? Not all of us can be super heroes like you… but all of us have something we do to help fight for what we believe in!

Me, I can fix machines and by keeping your cycle running smooth, I can be a part of all the things you can do!

You take that away from me and you take away my chance to help out something I really believe in!"

For long moments Batgirl was silent. With tears in her eyes, her delicate gloved hand took Jeff's hand and it seemed that the communication between the two was strengthened by the lack of words.

Gabrielle thought it was moving to be seeing the heroine resistance weakening and felt no sense to reveal her being there.

"Okay, Jeff, you win, but there must be two changes!

First, we got to work out a better way for me to come and go from your garage secretly, so this will never happen again…

… and the second, if you are going really to be my helper, you have the right to know that Batgirl is really Barbara Gordon!" While was saying that, she unmasked herself revealing her identity to him.

"Glory be…!" said a greatly amazed Jeff.

Gabrielle was shocked for several minutes. She was the one who received Barbara Gordon the times she visited Jeff. Now Barbara was sitting there holding her cowl in her hands and dressed in her Batgirl costume.

Many more words were exchanged after the startling revelation and then, Barbara placed her cowl again on her face, gave the old man a kiss on his forehead and went to the window.

"Just take care of yourself, lady. You're one of a kind."

Like a silent shadow, Batgirl was gone.

"Bless her. All these years I've known Barbara I never had an idea that she was Batgirl. That's sure some lady!" thought Jeff. All this excitement had really tired him and fell asleep almost immediately.

Gabrielle took advantage of that moment and left the bathroom and went out of the room quietly.

"Still hard for me to believe that Batgirl is really Barbara Gordon! That will take some time getting used to!" thought the nurse. But Gabrielle had an honor code she lived by. She could have told anyone Barbara's secret, but she didn't and would take it to the grave.

Three days later, Batgirl entered Jeff's room when Gabrielle was checking his temperature and pressure.

"Oh! I'm sorry, nurse! If I'm interfering with your work I could come later" said Batgirl.

"Don't worry, come in please! Jeff told me he was expecting a frequent visitor. In fact he told me who you are." Gabrielle answered.

"Do you… know!?" The heroine was taken aback and looked at Jeff who gave her a perplexed look.

"Yes, I know".

Barbara began to sweat and felt like she would collapse.

"You are Batgirl!"

Batgirl laughed and a feeling of relief came over her.