Part VIII:  'The Enemy of My Enemy'

By: Calico

            "Dammit!" Hannah stormed.  "I almost had him."  She tossed the handgun onto the large desk in Bruce's study, and then ran her fingers angrily through her frosted hair.  Craig waited patiently for her temper storm to pass.  "This is getting ridiculous!" she fumed.  "McGinnis has interfered for the last time."  She twirled on her son pointing a finger.  "Maybe you'd better pay another visit to his girlfriend."

            "Um, well, she kind of won't talk to me," he replied hesitantly, tugging on his earlobe.

            "And I wonder why that is?" she sneered at him.  Walking over she cuffed him upside his head.  "You're no better than your father.  What on earth were you thinking anyway?!" she growled.

            "Mom," he pleaded, "I…"

            "You weren't thinking, that's the point."  She waved a dismissive hand, her face tight and pinched as she began pacing the room.  "But you're going to rectify the situation, aren't you?  Find that girl, do whatever you need to do, but we need an insurance policy against McGinnis, or this entire thing is blown to pieces."  She began to seethe in earnest.  "They're not letting me anywhere near Bruce, on that little punk's orders, even though I managed to secure power of attorney from him before his incapacitation, but it will take weeks before I can legally put it into effect.  In the meantime, that boy could ruin everything."

            "I understand, mother."

            Opening her purse, she pulled out a smaller version of the perfume bottles Terry had taken, the last of their stash.  Handing it to Craig, she said, "Go then and don't disappoint me again."  She took a deep breath and her entire body relaxed.  With an angelic smile she said, "And I am going to start redecorating this old place, now that we're here to stay.  It really needs a feminine touch."

            Craig waited outside Hamilton Hill High School until he saw the petite, Asian beauty walking down the steps to the sidewalk.  She appeared to be alone.  He quickly leapt out of the car and caught up with her.  "Dana, can we talk?"

            "Oh!  Craig."  She stepped backwards with a worried expression.

            "I think we had a misunderstanding.  I was hoping we could go somewhere, and work it out."  He smiled and tried to step closer, to take her hand.

            "No, no," she said, shaking her head emphatically and stepping farther from his grasp.  "I really don't feel comfortable around you right now.  Please leave me alone."

            "But, Dana," he pleaded.  "Was it something I did or said?  I thought we had connected."  He lowered his voice.  "I know you wanted it too."

            She sucked in her breath, eyes widening in shock and inner pain.  Before she could respond, a voice called out from behind.  "Hey Dane, wait up!"  Both of them looked to see Max running down the steps.  She came to a sudden stop when she saw Craig.  "What are you doing here?" she asked sharply.

            "Hey, I don't want to cause any trouble, I just want to talk to Dana," Craig said easily.

            "Well, you're causing some trouble, so I'd suggest you leave," Max retorted, and stepped between them.

            He chuckled.  "I don't think this is any of your business."

            "Actually it is my business.  Terry and Dana are my friends.  I don't know what you have up your sleeve, but you're not doing anything to hurt them.  Now leave while you still can under your own power!"

            "You're going to make me?  You and what army?"  He laughed outright.  While his attention was diverted, Max stepped forward and grabbed a wrist.  Using his arm as leverage, she turned him around and frog-marched him back to his car, while he howled in pain the whole time.  "Let go of me!"

            With a final painful yank of his arm, she pushed him at the car, brushing her hands together as if removing a layer of dirt.  "Now don't come back!"  Returning to her friend's side she said, "Let's go, Dane, you don't have to worry about him anymore."  The two girls walked away, leaving Craig behind.

            With a flash of anger he slammed a fist onto the roof of his car.  "Slag it!" he cried out, knowing his mother would not be happy with this turn of events.  He dreaded her wrath more than anything else in the world.  He missed her soft, sweet voice and how she smoothed his hair back with her fingertips and when she called him a good boy, Momma's good boy.

            But those times had become fewer and farther between, coming to an almost complete stop once Aunt Devon had started making trouble.

            He growled in frustration.  This wouldn't even be necessary if it weren't for Devon.  Her return had been a family reunion from hell…

            "Bingo!" he cried out, snapping his fingers together.  He was going to make his mother proud of him again.

            Craig trotted up the steps and into the school, walking purposefully down the halls.  Hannah had once told him that the secret to blending into any situation is simply to act like you belong.  The few straggling students preparing for after-school activities merely glanced at him with little to no interest as he strode with complete confidence towards the main office.

            Outside the door to the office he heard muted voices.  Moving on a few feet away to a bulletin board, he acted as though he were engrossed in the announcements as the door opened and a slightly built man exited.  "Have a good evening, Alice," he called out and, briefcase in hand, walked past Craig to the nearest exit.

            Craig went into the office with his most charming smile.  The middle-aged woman at the front desk looked up with a polite smile.  "Yes, may I help you?" she inquired.

            "You most certainly can, Alice dear!" he said enthusiastically, maneuvering himself around the desk to her side.  She began to protest his proximity, but her mouth hung open in mute silence as he leaned down intimately, as if to give her a kiss.  Instead, he whispered, "I need some information, and I'm sure you're going to tell me everything I need to know."

            In a small, monotone voice, she replied, "I will tell you everything you need to know."

            "Wonderful!  Now, there is a student named Terry McGinnis…."

            Craig knocked on the door sharply.

            "Who is it?" the voice of a small child answered on the other side.

            "I'm a friend of Terry's.  Is he home?"

            The door opened slightly and a small blue eye peered out at him.  "Nah, Terry's never home."

            "Oh?  That's odd, he asked me to meet him here.  Hmmm."  Craig placed a finger on his lips in thought.  "You're Matt, right?"  The small head nodded.  "Is your mom home?"

            "Nope, she had to work."

            "So you're here all alone?"  Craig furrowed his brow in worry.  "That doesn't sound very safe."

            "Well I'm not a baby," Matt replied in a huff.  Then he shrugged.  "Jocelyn, the girl from downstairs, is s'pposed to sit with me, but she's late today."

            "Ah, that's a relief.  Listen, Big Guy, I'd really like to call Terry to find out where I'm supposed to meet him.  Do you think I could come in and use the phone?"

            "Not supposed to let strangers in," the boy replied warily.

            "An excellent policy my friend."  Craig nodded sagely.  "I wouldn't want you to do anything to make you feel uncomfortable.  Maybe Terry will introduce us one day, and we won't be strangers anymore."  He smiled broadly.

            "Fat chance, Terry's never around anymore."

            "Heh," Craig replied.  The boy had allowed the door to open wider and he could see one small hand was clutching something.  "Say, is that a Batman figure?" he asked pointing at it.

            Matt brought the toy up for closer inspection.  "Yep!  It's a special edition, comes with a Blight doll too."

            "Wow!  That's really schway.  I used to have the entire JLU series, but my mom made me throw all mine away.  Batman is cool, but Flash was my favorite."

            Matt nodded quickly, "Yeah, he's good, but Green Lantern is the best.  I have the whole set of them."

            "No kidding!  I'd like to see 'em sometime, well, you know, after Terry introduces us," Craig laughed.

            Matt mulled it over in his mind for a few seconds and then pushed the door wide open.  "Come on in."

            "Cool."  Craig walked in and closed the door behind him.  "So who's the best GL?"

            "Well Kyle was good, and I like Kangar Ro, but my absolute favorite is John Stewart, he got the job done."

            "Yes, yes he did," Craig said quietly and followed the boy into his room.

            Mary McGinnis sighed as she unlocked the door and lugged the two bags of groceries into her apartment.  It was completely dark.  "Hello?" she called out.  "Matty?  Are you here?  Jocelyn?"

            A light suddenly blazed next to the couch where a strange man was sitting.  Matt was lying beside him with his head on the man's leg.  "I sent Jocelyn home," the man told her with an ingratiating smile.

            "Who are you?" she demanded.

            "Don't worry, I'm a friend of Terry's," he explained as her tense face regarded him.  "Matty and I were playing with his toys and the poor guy just got worn out," he said, rising up from the couch.  "Here, let me help you with those, ma'am."

            Taking the bags from her, he turned and walked into the kitchen.  Mary followed, rubbing her forehead.  "I don't understand.  Why are you here?"

            "I have some business to take care of with your son.  And he's making it a bit difficult."  Craig set the bags on the counter and turned, while pulling a small canister from his pocket.  "But you and Matt are going to make things much easier."  He smiled as he sprayed her in the face.  Her eyes rolled back into her head and she sank to the floor.  "Much, much easier."

            Gathering up the two bodies, he left behind a note: "If you want to see your family again, you'll do exactly as you're told."

            "Do you really think it was wise bringing them here?" Hannah asked harshly as they stood outside one of Wayne Manor's many guest rooms.

            Craig shrugged.  "They're bound and gagged and blindfolded.  They won't have any idea where they are.  And we've changed the locks, so he's not getting back in here to find them anyway.  It's all good, Mom."  Craig smiled proudly, hoping she would agree, but before she could respond the phone rang.

            He followed her into the library, where she picked up the phone, answering with pride of ownership, "Wayne Manor…Yes, this is Hannah…My, my Ms. Kyle, this is a surprise…Really?  That is an intriguing offer, of course I'd like to hear more…I'll be there in an hour."  She hung up with a smug smile.  "It seems, Devon has visited our little Catwoman again and she's willing to make a deal.  Luckily for us she hates my sister as much as I do.  You know the old saying, 'The enemy of my enemy is my ally.'  This could just be the break we need."

            "I don't know, Mom, this sounds like a bad idea.  I think it could be a trap."

            She whirled on him and boxed his ear with a lightening strike.  "That's why you don't think."  He rubbed his ear morosely as she stalked off, grabbing her purse and coat.  "Don't wait up," she called over her shoulder.