Book Two: Chaos

Chapter 19

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After being refreshed and putting on clean clothes, Bruce and I were lying down on his bed. Facing each other.

"I'm sorry." I said grazing his face with my fingers.

"Why?" He replied in a whisper.

"I wasn't sure." I answered in the same tone. "I knew about Gordon but about me…I wasn't sure."

"So, you didn't think it was worth mentioning?" Bruce asked.

"I knew in advance that Gordon would make it out alive because that was his plans." I explained. "I knew that Joker was after me. I didn't know when he would act on it. So, I thought it wasn't worth mentioning." I pulled him to me in a tight hug. "I'm sorry for hurting you."

"Don't do this ever again." Bruce said in my neck.

"I'll try very hard." I answered. My phone ringing broke the tranquil atmosphere of the moment. "Sanders."

"Rachel Dawes just called." It was Stephens. "Dent's missing."

"What? Rachel called?" I asked sitting up.

"Yeah, she was asking after him. Wanted to know where he was?" Stephens answered.

I glanced down at Bruce who was sitting next to me. "You called Gordon?"

"On his way, over here." Stephens retorted. "Rookie?"

"Yeah."

"Wuertz was the last one to see him." Stephens informed me.

I remained quiet for a few seconds. "I'll meet you at the MCU." I hung up. "Get ready for Gordon's call. Harvey went missing."

"What about Rachel?" Bruce asked.

"She's the one who called." I told him. "And that worries me."

"He changed his plans." He followed me through the loft.

"And probably the locations." I continued through the loft, grabbing keys and helmet.

"Where are you going?"

"Trying to buy us some time." And I left.

My first stop was 25052nd street where Rachel Dawes was supposed to be but I checked and she was safe at her flat waiting for Harvey's news. The warehouse was empty. There was no one, no bomb, nothing. Already knowing that I'd find nothing at Cicero, I went anyway just to be sure. The Joker had changed his plans and maybe, just maybe, Harvey was his only victim. But where did he put Harvey?

"Boss?" I answered as I rushed back to my bike.

"Sanders, where are you?" He asked breathlessly.

"Near Cicero." I replied quickly.

"Turn around. Go to 52nd Apple Street." Gordon ordered me. "We'll join you there."

An old building stood at 52nd Apple Street. I ran to the building but it was locked up. "Can anybody hear me?" I froze when I heard the voice. It wasn't Harvey, it was a woman. It wasn't Rachel but who was it. I grabbed my gun and shot the padlock. "I'm here." She continued to scream and my heart started to beat wildly when her voice became clearer. Another door was in my way, I kicked it open. "Emma, thank God, you're here."

"Sue." I breathed out.

I took a step forward only for me to be blown away by the sudden explosion. I don't know how far I flew, I don't why the Joker took Sue instead of Rachel. All I know is that it was my fault. That the Joker changed his plans because of my intervention. I learned it the hard way.

They took me to the Gotham General Hospital. Bruised, wounded, broken ribs here and there, I was okay unlike Harvey. Unlike Sue. They stitched me up, examined me but I could barely hear them. My ears were ringing from the explosion, from the shock of losing a friend. My heart felt heavy and full of regrets. In the end, I came to understand her choice to protect Liam instead of Loeb. In the end, I came to realize that I wanted her to forgive me for my outburst. I wanted Sue to forgive her stupid friend. And the Joker took her from me. He killed her and I left her to die.

"Where is she?" Someone yelled in the hallway. "Where is she?"

"Dr. Malone, please!" A woman begged him. "You can't go in there."

The door to my room slammed open. Liam Malone stood in the doorway, staring at me furiously. He stomped towards and grabbed my shoulders harshly. "What did you do?" He yelled angrily. "Answer me, what did you do?"

I didn't react, I deserved this punishment. I deserved this anger, this hatred. His, more than anybody else. Security guard pulled him away and slammed him into the wall. The nurses rushed to my side and checked if I was alright.

"This is all your fault." He said calmer than before but angered still. "If you haven't dragged her into this, if you haven't asked her to help you. She would still be alive." He choked on the last part. "She…would…would still be alive."

"I'm sorry." I apologized choking up a sob. "I'm sorry." I finally sobbed.

I cried and apologized over and over again as Liam left the room.

I was to be kept under observation. I didn't want to be here, I wanted to be elsewhere, somewhere I could forget everything about the Joker, Gotham and Sue. Somewhere I wouldn't know so much.

I fell in the sweet comfort of sleep. No dreams, no thoughts, no planning ahead. Nothing. It was sweet oblivion, a welcomed oblivion. However, this sweet oblivion lasted but a few hours. I felt fuzzy, I ached everywhere when I woke. The backlash of almost being caught in an explosion. I wonder how Bruce does it everyday without going to a proper hospital.

A small bag was left in the room. Clean clothes were inside with a note. "You were sleeping. -B" I smiled softly. I changed into those new clothes, moving was painful. Simple things such as bending over, hurt more than I've hurt before. Legs, stomach and arms were sore.

I found Rachel in the corridor, getting out of a room, probably Harvey's. Her hand was over her mouth and she was crying. "Rachel? Are you alright?" I asked her.

"It's Harvey." She replied. "He's…been burned very badly." I remained quiet. "He doesn't want to see me. He doesn't want me in there with him. He refused medication, skin grafts. I've never seen him like that before." She took a deep breath. "So angry."

"Give him time. Maybe, he'll come around to it." I offered, knowing well my words were empty.

"I don't know. I hope so." Rachel retorted. We remained silent for a few seconds. "I'm sorry about Sue."

Hearing her name send a jolt of pain through my heart. "It wasn't your fault." I said simply.

"Detective Sanders, Attorney Dawes." Maroni greeted us.

"Today's really not the day." I warned him.

"I'm sorry for your loss." He smiled.

Before I could think about it, I sprang towards him to punch him. "Detective." Rachel pulled me back. "He's not worth it."

"I guess I deserved it." Maroni nursed his jaw.

"And much more." I said through gritted teeth.

A door closed behind us. Maroni looked up. "This craziness, it's too much."

"Should've thought about that before you left the clown out of the box." Gordon replied walking past us.

"You want him?" Maroni continued as Rachel and I started after Gordon. "I can tell you where he'll be this afternoon."

Until then, I hadn't thought about what I knew. What I learned from watching the movie. No matter how hard I tried to forget, no matter how hard I tried to stifle the memory, it just came flooding back and I knew what was coming. Coleman Reese.

Still I wondered how Maroni could know where the Joker would be. I mean Lau was nowhere to be found and the money was secured in the MCU building. Except, the Joker blew up the MCU building and probably took the money with him. It was more likely. No one would have been able to stop him.

"Where are you going?" Gordon asked us as we followed him.

"We're coming with you." Rachel answered. "I want to be here when you'll arrest the Joker."

"Same here." I said. "I need to see the end of this."

Gordon grabbed my elbow and pulled me closer to him. "Are you sure you can do this?" He asked. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yes, I can do this Jim." I assured him. "And if I stay home, I might go crazy."

"Let's go." He said after staring at me after a few seconds.

Back at the MCU, the SWAT team was already in the building. Stephens patted my back as I walked past him. I smiled at him as I continued further into the building. I took off my jacket and grabbed a bullet vest. "Take off your blazer and put this on." I said handing one to Rachel. "Stick to me." I told Rachel. "Follow my instructions." She nodded as she finished putting on her bullet proof vest.

"…I want auxiliary units to cover all possible getaway routes." Gordon was yelling his orders. "This is our chance. Stopping the Joker is our priority…"

"Hey, Jim. Get a load of this." Stephens called out looking at the TV.

Rachel and I turned our heads towards the TV. "Let's take the next caller." The Anchorman, Engel, continued his interview.

"Harvey Dent didn't want to give into this maniac. You think you know better than him?" A viewer asked on the phone.

"Do you think he really knows who Batman is?" Rachel asked me.

"Yes, he does." I replied. "But he's playing a dangerous game."

"…we wish him a speedy recovery. Because God knows, we need him now." Engel said. There was another call. "Who is this?"

"I had a vision of a world without Batman." It was the Joker. "The Mob ground out a little profit and the police tried to shut them down one block at a time. And it was so boring. I've had a change of heart. I don't want Mr. Reese spoiling everything but why should I have all the fun? Let's give someone else a chance. If Coleman Reese isn't dead in 60 minutes then I blow up a hospital."

"I want you to call in every officer." Gordon ordered. "Tell them to head…"

"Change of plans." I grabbed Rachel by the arm. "I'm gonna need you to check police officers and their families. Look for Hospital admissions."

"Are you ordering me around?" Rachel asked as we walked towards Gordon.

"I kind of like it." I smirked. "Boss, we're right behind you."

Gordon nodded. "Alright, everybody, just get a move on."

GCN building was crowded with civilians probably worried about their relatives in the hospital. Gordon and two officers got in while Rachel and I remained in the car, in front of the building.

"What about O'Brien and Richards?" I asked Rachel while she was using my laptop.

"No relatives admitted to a Gotham hospital." She replied. "Do I want to know how you got access to every hospital admissions of Gotham City?"

"No, you don't." Someone in the crowd took his chance and shot the glass doors. My instinct was to duck down and to pull Rachel with me. I radioed up the other vehicles. "Move all the cars around the back. I repeat get all the cars around the back."

I followed the cars around the back why Rachel kept looking. "No one on Zachary's or Burns' sides, either."

"Keep looking." I told her as Gordon pushed Reese in truck.

We were right behind Gordon's and Reese's vehicle. "Patrolman Berg has wife in a hospital. Lieutenant Ramirez' mother is in, too."

"Ramirez is not in that car. Get a hold of Gordon."

Rachel grabbed her phone and called him. "Commissioner, one of your men, has someone in the hospital. His name is…" She stopped talking and hung up. "He already knew."

We stopped at the red lights, I knew a car was coming and I also knew that a Lamborghini was going to intercept it. I saw it happened as soon the light turned green, a black truck came at high speed, the Lamborghini moved past us and came just between the van and the truck. The impact was more violent than I expected it to be.

"Bruce?" Rachel frowned up when she saw who the driver was.

"Rachel?" Bruce said back.

"The EMT should be here in a few minutes." I informed them both walking towards Gordon's SUV. "Is everybody alright?"

"Yeah, we're fine." Gordon answered.

"Good." I walked back to the Lamborghini. "Where's Rachel?"

"On the phone." Bruce told me. "Checking in on Harvey."

"I can't believe you just crashed a Lamborghini." I told him. "Come on, let's get you out."

"That's Mr. Wayne, isn't it?" Gordon came up to us. "That was a very brave thing you did."

"Trying to catch the light?" Bruce retorted.

"You weren't protecting the van?" Gordon asked him.

Rachel joined us and stood next to me. "Why? Who's in it?" He looked behind him as Reese was being transferred in another vehicle. He gave the man a slight nod. "Don't you think I should go to the hospital?"

"Unbelievable." Rachel scoffed next to me.

"Don't watch a whole lot of news, do you, Mr. Wayne?" A loud bang was heard throughout the city.

Gotham General just went up in flames.