Suddenly, the man walking felt someone pushing him. He fell to the ground. The next thing he felt was a hard fist against his face. Barbara turned, the man in the front seat opened the door, but the red head kicked it, closing it and trapping his leg. He yelled. The guy in the back seat tried to take out his gun, but she moved inside the car throught the window and, taking him by the lapel, slammed him against the window frame.
The guy that was on the ground stood up and took her by the waist and threw her against a car; she rolled over the hood and fell to the other side. He jumped through the window and started the car. It sped away at high speed.
Barbara stood up quickly and tried to follow them, but she stopped. She stepped back and opened the car door on Helena's side, who was distractedly reading the comic. She took her hand. "Come with me," she said.
"Uuh?"
"I'll explain to later." Barbara pulled her out.
"What happened?"
"I have an emergency. I can't take you to school now."
"My teacher will be angry: Wait! My bag!" The kid ran back to the car and opened the door.
"Don't worry, I'll talk with her." Barbara took the school bag and took her hand.
"Mom will be pissed, too," Helena said at looking her. "I haven't gone to school many days this week or all of last week."
"Helena! Don't use that language!"
"You say it."
"You're a child."
"That's not an answer," the child protested.
"And that was not a question."
Barbara opened the door and Helena walked in first, she crossed her arms facing her. "Well? What happened?"
Barbara was surprised at her attitude. "Nothing."
"I don't believe you."
"I have a problem and I need to fix it, that's all," the red head said, closing the door behind her.
"Who called you, Barbara?"
"The office..." She picked up the phone off the floor.
"The office," the child said.
"Office." Barbara turned and bent down over her. "Why?"
"Office." Helena shrugged her shoulders and walked toward the corridor.
Barbara raised her brow. "Now what?"
"Nothing, you said office. It's the office."
"Are you mocking me?"
"No." she went to the bedroom.
"Where are you going?" The red head put her hands over her hips.
"You're an adult. You have to work. I'm a kid, so I get to sleep."
Barbara rolled her eyes. She hung up the phone. As soon as she hung it, the phone rang and she picked it up immediately.
::Is she okay?:: Selina asked desperately.
Barbara looked down the corridor. Helena had closed the door. "She's fine. Don't worry."
::Oh my, thank God!:: Selina felt her soul return to her body.
"Now explain to me what the hell is happening and no excuses and lies." Barbara said angrily. "Why is Curaré looking for Helena? She is just a kid!!"
Selina rubbed her temples, She was okay. That was the only thing that mattered to her at that moment.
::Selina? Are you all right?::
"Yes... Thanks, Barbara."
::Now explain everything. ::
"All right, all right... Many years ago, I testified agains a criminal named Lussac. He was one of the biggest drug traffickers in France. Somehow he blackmailed the judges and paid to have evidence disappear. He was freed a few months ago. A stoolie called Michael Dubois, the Police Commisioner in Paris. Lussac had contracted killers to look for me. Michael told me that he couldn't arrest him without any proof."
Barbara listened at the other end of the line, stunned. She never had imagined that.
"I couldn't stay in Gotham just waiting for him to kill me someday or hurt Helena. The best thing was go to face and trap him."
::Why didn't you tell me?::
"I thought it was a personal problem and I didn't want to involve anyone else."
::I was involved the moment that you asked me take care of Helena!:: Barbara said angrily.
"It was my mistake, but I have always worked alone... I couldn't put Helena at risk! I needed to find him before he found me. I let the people of underworld see me;, I contracted an old friend and I paid him for the plans of the Louvre museum. I was trying to make him think that I was behind the jewel theft of that exposition. But I failed, he stole the jewels a day before. He wanted to involve me and have the big prize. I never expected it. He sent the police to my apartment where I had the plans and all. Michael told me it was better to let the press and the others do their job. That way Lussac would think he had won."
::That was when the newspaper...::
"Yes, I never expected that news would be published in Gotham too."
Barbara put her legs over the couch. She hadn't expected this.
::Michael told me that he couldn't trap him without any proof.:: Selina added ::I was helping him to send Lussac to jail again. Lussac is egotistical. I was sure he wanted to laugh in my face and tell me why he had done all that. It was easy to contact him a few hours ago. He confessed to his blackmail and drug business. I had a mic and I recorded everything, but he had been tracing my phone calls, he knew I had a daughter and that you were taking care of her. He contacted Curaré to trap Helena and if something failed, use her to force me to do what ever he wants. That is worse than killing me.::
"Well, now I need do research on her."
::Don't leave her alone, please! I'll be back on the first flight:::
"Don't worry Selina, but we can't keep her inside all day; Today she has a party; I'll drop her off at six and I'll pick her up at nine. I can investigate a few things while she's there."¨Barbara looked at her watch.
::It's a safe place?"
"Yes, don't worry. I know where I can look for her tonight."
::See you.::
"Bye."
Barbara put the phone on the couch. She went to her bedroom door and moved her head near it to listen. The kid was watching TV.
"Helena, I'll be back in a minute I forgot some papers in the car."
"Yea." The kid shouted from inside the room.
She walked outside her apartment, she wanted to look for some clues on the street.
Selina returned to the hotel as fast as she could. She took out her suitcases and put them on the bed. She began to pack in a hurry; she wanted to get back to Gotham as soon as possible. Curaré was a woman that wouldn't stop until she reached her goal. A knock at the door called her attention.
"Who is it?" she shouted.
"Michael..."
She went to the door and opened it. She turned and kept packing.
The detective walked in and wqatched her packing her clothes. He put his hands inside his pockets. "I got the message that you are leaving over Lussac. Why are you leaving so fast?"
"I have work to do."
"You can't go, we need to send him to jail."
Selina moved toward the night table and took a tape that she threw to him. He caught it with his right hand. "There is your evidence." She took some blouses off the bed and put them inside her suitcase.
"Why the hurry?" he looked at the tape.
"You wanted him. I trapped him. You wanted proof, you got it. My work is done."
"What happeneded?" he looked at her suspiciously.
She turned angry. "He contracted a killer to kidnap my child. I need to catch her before she can hurt Helena."
"She? It's a she?"
"Yes, it's a she." She took a deep breath.
"We can force him to stop the killer. We've got him."
"He doesn't want to stop it." Selina shook her head "He wants to use her against me. It's his only opportunity to escape again."
"The police can't protect her?"
"You don't know Curaré." She removed her clothes from inside the closet and threw them over the bed. "She won't stop until she finishes her job. If she traps her; Lussac would try to blackmail me, demanding that I get him out of prision. If not, she would kill Helena."
"We've got him Selina; I can make him..." Dubois said, trying to comfort her.
She stopped picking up her clothes and faced him. Her eyes couldn't hide her rage and anger. "Michael! You don't know him. He has nothing to lose and so much to win if that criminal kidnaps my kid. He knows I couldn't let her die! She's just a child! You don't know me either... If he traps her and he asks me to kill, I'll do it; anything to keep her safe. I'm sorry." She closed her suticase. "I'm sorry. I need to go. But if you need me to testify I will do it, but now I need to protect my girl."
He smiled at her and hugged her. "All right. Let me take you to the airport."
