CHAPTER FIFTEEN





Derek was starting to feel edgy as he glanced around the room for his son. He had to make several trips to the restroom already just to make sure his make-up was still sticking, and when he came out his son was still nowhere to be seen.

'Let's just hope he got rid of the bat', he thought. He had been doing his research on this new menace in Gotham. Collected newspaper articles, searched the net, anything he could think of.

Then Paxton entered the room. He looked slightly disheveled as he glanced around, trying to find his father. Derek got to him first.

"Where were you?" Derek hissed, approaching him, "I've been waiting!"

"Sorry, it took longer than I thought," Paxton replied nervously, straightening his tie. "Have I missed anything?"

"Obviously not," his father snapped, "did you handle him?"

"Yes, drugged him and tied him up."

"I'm sending a squad over there to make sure. I don't want him around anymore."

Paxton blinked. "What? They'll kill him!"

"That's not my problem. I want you out of here. Now. Get out."

"Why? What are you going to do?"

"None of your business. Leave now."

"I don't understand."

Then Derek turned around and looked at him for the first time since the accident. It had been so long since he had looked at him in a fatherly way and Paxton was caught off guard.

"Please," he said quietly.

Paxton stared back, but his father was already turning away and calling on the attention of a different employee. He could feel the sweat build up on his brow and he turned to leave the main room.

This was wrong. This was all wrong, he couldn't let his father do this. He wasn't even *sure* what his father was planning on doing. All he knew was that it was something bad, worse than what he'd thought before.

Security stood at every door and Paxton slipped past them effortlessly. Ever since the accident Derek Powers had become dangerous- too dangerous. He had followed along with his games long enough. He wasn't going to put up with it any longer.

Taking out his cell phone and making sure he was well out of sight from his father, he dialed.

Watching him from inside the parlor was Bruce Wayne, not taking his gaze away as he stood leaning against his cane.





Max, armed only with the mace she packed in her purse, headed up the hotel stairs toward the room directly above her car. She had no idea where she was going or how she expected to even find the room, but a chance of luck brought her close.

Broken glass littered the hallway just outside one of the rooms. She stepped around the mess carefully and found the door ajar. Looking around warily she pushed it open.

Inside was completely dark.

She stuck her head in the doorway, the can of mace in her hand. "Hello?" she called out timidly, feeling her heart race. "Hello! Anyone in here?"

There was silence for a split second, then the sound of shuffling came from within. She uttered a gasp and jumped back, her heart beating even faster. Was someone inside? Maybe she should go.

Then there was another sound, only this time it sounded like someone falling down. She hesitated before pushing the door open all the way and feeling along the wall for the light switch. She found it and flicked it on.

The room lit up in bright florescent lights, revealing a bed in the far corner next to a balcony window and dresser. To her left was a doorway leading into another room.

"H-hello?" she wavered, "anybody here?"

Another shuffling sound. Behind the door.

Eyes wide, she reached out gingerly for the door handle. She could feel her body tremble with anticipation as she positioned the can of mace, twisting the door handle.

Then she stopped. What was she, crazy? She shouldn't even be up here, she should be back on the ground in her car, waiting for Melanie to come find her. She shouldn't be trying to stick her nose around in other people's businesses.

Yeah but---someone was hurt. She heard it, she was sure of it.

Taking a deep breath she pulled the handle and pushed the door open.

Nothing.

She froze, looking around. It was a bathroom. A tiny bathroom with enough room to fit a toilet, a sink, and a tub. She reached over and turned on the light.

No one was there.





Terry held his breath expectantly, trying not to make a sound as Max stood in the doorway, looking around the bathroom. He had managed to free his hands just before she opened the door, and as fast as he could flipped the camouflage switch on his belt.

He didn't dare move from his spot but he stood up, standing against the shower curtain. He could feel her eyes upon him, but she didn't acknowledge seeing him.

She stepped further into the bathroom, setting her can of mace aside on the bathroom sink. He watched her, trying to back up. She was effectively blocking his way out, and if he were to even try to move she'd most likely feel something.

Just when he thought she was going to collide with him, she stopped, face inches away from his. She was breathing softly, eyes running across the shower curtain. He could tell she was trying to work up the move to open it but he couldn't move out of the way. He could smell her perfume and it smelled distinctly of raspberries.

It was getting hard for Terry to control his breathing. It made him nervous being this close to her and wondered briefly if she could hear his heart racing. If she found him out he'd be a goner.

The seconds passed like hours and Terry started to wonder if she knew he was there. If she did he'd have to move soon. The stupid bathroom wasn't even wide enough for two people to walk side by side. This was going to be difficult.

A loud noise erupted from behind them suddenly, and Max spun around. Someone was kicking the apartment door down.

"Oh sh-" she began, but Terry didn't let her finish. He grabbed on to her and spun back, tearing the shower curtain off its rail and falling backward into the tub.

Just as the gunshots rang out.

Max screamed, throwing her hands over her head. Terry tried to cover her as best as he could without getting shot himself, and glanced up long enough to see who was attacking them.

Two burly men stood in the doorway, guns in their hands. They could see the lump in the bathtub that was Maxine, but they couldn't see Batman. They didn't care. They kept shooting.

Fighting the pain in his head, Terry pulled himself out of the tub and released his Batarangs. The precision was exact enough to knock the weapons from their grips, but the attackers weren't finished. They advanced.

Batman wasn't finished either. He pushed forward, igniting the blasters beneath his boots to give himself more levitation as he slammed into them. At the same time his camouflage switch went off and he appeared.

The two men were caught off guard and sent flying back into the main bedroom of the apartment. Batman flipped and landed gracefully in the middle of the room and quickly grabbed the man nearest him. He cried out as Batman threw him up against the wall.

"Who sent you?" Batman demanded angrily. Behind him the other man was raising his gun, but Batman simply swung his free arm, sending a batarang flying into the weapon. The gun sparked and the man cried out, dropping it.

"Don't make me ask again!" Batman yelled.

Behind him Maxine was climbing up from the bathtub and grabbing the can of mace from the bathroom counter. She looked terrified as she hid behind the door, watching them.

The man against the wall grunted something, trying to pull free, but Batman didn't release his grip. Finally he uttered "Powers!"

"Why?"

"To kill you-"

"Where is he?"

"I don't know!"

Batman pulled the man forward, but just to gather enough momentum to slam his head back against the wall. Maxine winced from the blow and stepped back, but all she did was attract the other attacker's attention.

"Guess!" Batman said angrily.

A scream split the air then, and Batman turned his head just as the other man attacked Maxine. Eyes wide, he shoved his informer against the wall hard enough to knock him out and went after Max.

The man had attacked her, shoving her hard into the bathroom. She cried out, tripping over the bathtub rim and falling inside. The curtain ripped from the bar ahead and came crashing down on her, covering her from sight. She screamed, trying to get away, when Batman arrived, smashing into her attacker from the back. She looked up just in time to see both men crashing against the wall-

And right through it.

The force of the attack was strong enough to blow a hole in the wall, and Batman and the attacker disappeared in a cloud of dust and debris. She scrambled to her feet, shoving the curtain aside as she heard noises coming from the room beyond.

Then silence.

She stood there, uncertain of what to do next. Had Batman won? Or had the attacker won? What if he came back through that hole for her? Nervously she held out her mace, popping the top. And waited.

There was a shuffling sound, and she jumped back, trying desperately to see through the darkness in the hole. The shadows shifted and-

Batman stepped back into the bathroom, dirt covering his ink-black costume. She stared at him in amazement, the forgotten mace still raised.

Batman dusted himself off for a moment and looked back the way he had came. Then he looked at her.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She blinked, searching desperately for her voice. "I-I-"

"Get out of here and somewhere safe," he commanded suddenly, pushing past her out of the bathroom. She stared after him in surprise.

"What was that all about?" she demanded, finally finding her voice. She lowered the mace, tucking it into her pocket. "That was." she searched for the right word,---interesting."

"Thanks."

He was looking around now, apparently for something important. She watched him as he bent down over the first attacker, lying motionless on the floor. Batman bent down, going through his jacket and examining the weapon on the floor. Maxine noticed the batarang sticking out of it and she secretly wondered if it were real metal or if it were-

"I have a lead," Batman spoke up suddenly, and when Maxine looked up he wasn't talking to her. He was still bent over the man, but a finger was at his ear. He stayed there for a moment, listening for something. A moment later he stood up, looking puzzled.

"No answer?" she asked out loud, then quickly wished she hadn't as he stood back up and gave her a look.

"Do you have a way home?" he asked.

"Y-yes-"

"Then go home." Still watching her, he pulled the batarang out from the gun and stored it back onto the launcher installed on his wrists. "Now."

Before she could answer, he had gone toward the balcony and was gone, igniting the jet boots and flying off into the night. She stood there, watching him. The way he moved, the way he fought those men and the way he spoke it was absolutely.

"Wow," she commented.







Terry had about a million things on his mind at that moment.

First it was the worry he had for Bruce Wayne. Amazingly enough the old man wasn't at his normal post behind the Bat computer. Maybe he was mad over their argument or something, but whatever it was he wasn't there. And if Terry didn't know where he was, he didn't know what he was going to do.

Second was Max. What in the world was she doing up there that night? She lived across town, why was she over there? Did she know he was there? Had she seen him somehow? He had been careful, or so he thought.

He had never felt so paranoid like the way he did when he and Max were in the bathroom. She was so close, had she felt him? Heard him breathing? It was bad enough that his identity was creating problems for him at school, but now that he's had a full on confrontation with someone he knew so well.

And then there was Dana. Had she left the restaurant by now? Was she mad at him? When would he be able to call her and apologize? At this moment he didn't know when he was going to have the chance to do anything.

There was only one place he could go, and that was back to the cave. No matter how angry Bruce was with him.





Barbara Gordan didn't have any problems getting into Wayne Manor. The dog, Ace, knew her well enough, and also knew better than to mess with her. She may be a good several years older, but she still knew how to defend herself when worse came to worst.

She sat down in front of the monitor. She knew the computer like the back of her hand. She had spent a good amount of her time on it already.

"Computer," she said, and a split second later the computer flashed to life, bringing up the opening screen of the Batcave program. "Files. Batman."

The computer whirred, images flying faster than she could read them. As she waited she glanced around.

The cave didn't look any different than it had when she had left Bruce. She could see the glass cases holding the batsuits, and her gaze rested longer on the batgirl suit than the others. Those were the only cases she could at least tolerate.

It was all the cases containing costumes of their arch enemies that really got her. It had been one of the first signs she had read from Bruce Wayne back so many years ago. The signs that told her that the mantle was getting out of hand and that it was growing into more than a night job. An obsession.

She rubbed her eyes momentarily before putting her glasses back on and concentrating on the screen. The monitor had come to a still on one of the files. She read it quickly.

"Profiles, latest," she said.

The computer whirred again, but this time it was slow enough for her to catch the faces of the photographs that came up. She recognized all of them until-

"Computer, stop," she said suddenly, and the screen did, stopping on Dick Grayson's profile. That wasn't the one she wanted. "Go back," she said, and it did, stopping on Catwoman's profile. "Back," she repeated, "back. Back. Stop."

A face appeared on the screen, a new face but vaguely familiar. He was young, barely out of high school, with jet black hair and dark eyes.

"Got you," she whispered, narrowing her eyes at the picture.

"Hey!"

The voice came out of nowhere and she whirled around, instinct taking over. She turned just as a dark shadow moved behind her and she swung her arm, hitting it.

The same voice cried out, not in pain but in surprise, and jumped back. That was when she saw him.

Batman.

He was tall and skinny, but muscularly proportioned. She recognized the model of the suit, with its long skinny bat ears and red emblem across the chest. He was looking at her, surprised, and she did the first thing she had been wanting to do for years.

She attacked.