Gotham's Discontent
Chapter Twenty: I Love Family Reunions, Don't You?
Resolved by Tabitha's awe-inspiring rendition of what would happen if she tried to climb out the window again—though, admittedly, half-tempted to give it another shot to reel the very attractive, leather-clad Tigress back into the bedroom for a nasty invitation—Deedee had remained sequestered in her bedroom for the night; as a result of a boredom and when she felt the adrenaline release from her from the events of the day prior, Deedee had fallen asleep.
A deep sleep it must have been, for she hadn't awakened until late in the morning when the sun had already risen. Galavan and Tabitha must have returned from their duties—Galavan, from speaking for Commissioner Loeb's retirement and Tabitha, from procuring one oddly named 'Zaardon'. It must have been a success, for there were no loud noises coming from the mansion; had there been, Deedee assumed that she would have registered them. A survival instinct she had picked up on from the years living with Lila Valeska—one could get accustomed to listening to footsteps behind a door, Deedee thought cynically.
Deedee awoke peacefully, dressed in her red shorts and white tank top—clean and refreshed from the massacre at Broadwalk Circus—and went into the bathroom to freshen up. She pushed her wild, ginger hair into a messy bun. Then…a gentle knock at the door.
"Pigeon…"
Deedee peaked out the bathroom and said, "Present!"
Tabitha opened it and gave a sigh, "It's always fun and games with you, isn't it?"
"Not always," said Deedee, stepping into the bedroom. "But I'd much rather it be so. As my brother always tells me, you have to stop taking everything in life so seriously."
"You're needed downstairs. Guests are here."
"I didn't know that I was entertaining anyone. Oh!" Deedee grinned widely. Tabitha raised an amused eyebrow as her newfound friend jumped onto the bed, bouncing slightly. "Do I get to play with Mayor James today? You've had a turn already."
"You got to burn down an entire circus, Pigeon." Tabitha replied. "Isn't that enough fun for you?"
"Pssh." Deedee said, continuing to bounce on the bed. Tabitha's eyes followed Deedee's movement like a cat watching a bird swing on its perch. "That was yesterday. Today's a new day. So…" She dropped the playful act and descended to the floor. "Who's downstairs?"
"Your Arkham family." Tabitha answered.
Deedee eagerly jumped onto the spiraled railing and slid down the whole way, racing to the bottom. Tabitha met her downstairs, grabbed Deedee by the wrist, and led her into the dining room where the view sent an exhilarating chill up Deedee's spine.
There, in the middle of the dining room, stood Dobbs, Greenwood, and Aaron, dressed in their Arkham uniforms. They seemed groggy, as if they had awoken from being drugged. Deedee noticed a woman that she didn't know—also attractive with blonde curly hair and bright, blue eyes, wearing a familiar Arkham dress that Deedee had worn during her stint. Galavan chose her, it seemed, so she must have had some importance. Of course, all the pretty ones are the craziest. Theo Galavan stood to the side, leaning against a wooden desk in observation; and Tabitha gestured to Deedee's right, pulling her attention to the next thrill in the room.
However, when she turned, Deedee didn't see him; but he had snuck up from behind her—
"Gotcha." She heard his voice in her ear, and she jumped, startled—though, almost immediately, Deedee's shocked expression melted into a delightful grin as she turned on her heel, and stood face-to-face with Jerome Valeska.
"I saw you on TV," said Jerome, to which he put his hands together into a polite applause as a posh spectator would in an opera. "Also…" He leaned in close and muttered in a lower, more intimate voice, "I enjoyed my present."
Deedee's face burned, and she turned her head, landing a kiss on his cheek. As it seemed like a casual thing due to the fact that they had spent so much time with them, the interaction didn't faze Dobbs, Greenwood, or Aaron—however, the woman with the bright blue eyes grimaced wordlessly; Tabitha and Galavan, in Deedee's peripheral vision, smirked knowingly.
Jerome gave Deedee's cheek a light, playful smack, turned to Galavan, "So…when do we begin?"
"Hold on," Deedee said suddenly, surveying the room. "Where's…? Ooh."
Realizing that Richard Sionis had not been standing in the room, she thought that perhaps Galavan thought it best that he not be a part of his scheme. However, Deedee had glanced down on the floor at Tabitha's feet to find that somebody (honestly, like eight guesses who) had mauled that man into a bloody mess on the dining room floor. Sionis lay in a pool of blood.
"So…" Deedee said, pointing at Sionis, speaking to Tabitha. "He didn't like what you had to offer?"
"He interfered," said Tabitha pointedly. "So, I put him in his place."
Deedee gave a small nod, "Noted."
Jerome shrugged, "Sionis was close-minded. The man would never have gone far."
"Exactly." Galavan said approvingly.
Deedee turned to the bright-eyed woman. Expecting her to be a bit of prude, Deedee was surprised when she stepped forward, flipped her hair, and as if they were in school together offered her hand and said, "Hi. I'm Barbara. You're obviously Deedee."
"Barbara Kean," introduced Galavan. "Killed her parents."
"I like her already," said Deedee.
"Excellent." Galavan clapped his hands together. He pushed himself off the wooden desk, and held his hands out as if he had gathered a morning breakfast meeting. "I've already informed our guests about why I've brought them here, Deedee. Initially, I was going to have you convince Sionis to join the magic team; however, I didn't anticipate sexual jealousy"—he indicated a polite nod toward Barbara Kean— "That always poisons the well."
"You don't anticipate it from me?" asked Deedee curiously, turning full-bodily toward Galavan.
Jerome's interest piqued; he observed her nature toward Theo, and it was intriguing. There was a parental tension; and he got the gist that although Galavan had been guiding Deedee to an ambition of being one of Gotham's dangerous rogues, obviously Deedee had stepped out of line a couple of times. He wasn't surprised. Deedee was as rebellious as they come; he'd have been disappointed if she hadn't tried to push the two Galavans to see how far they'd go.
Galavan said, "I'd respect the idea that the two of you"—he wagged his finger back and forth between she and Jerome— "could have a certain professionalism while working together. A brother and sister duo can be a powerful dynamic. Isn't that right, Sister?"
"You are," said Tabitha cheekily. "And as always, its annoying."
Galavan sniggered under his breath good-humoredly. He turned to Deedee. "Tabitha showed you two times what could happen if you interfere with the plan ahead. Sionis was an unfortunate predicament." He lamented in a cold manner, as if a business deal had flunked. "All that raw talent down the drain."
He turned to the rest of the room.
"My name is Theo Galavan. This is my sister, Tabitha. The world sees criminal lunatics. I see brilliance. I see charisma, and I see power. Imagine a group of brilliant outlaws, selected for your own unique ability, all working together as a team. Imagine the synergy. Imagine the impact. Gotham would tremble before you. Now Sionis said he wouldn't take orders; and that was disappointing. So," he made a point to look at Deedee, "he had to go."
"I guess that means go, go," Deedee whispered sarcastically.
"Deedee." Jerome muttered, turning to her.
With his whisper, Galavan grinned in silent approval when Deedee cast a look of annoyance at her brother, but fell silent. The master had come home from his stint in Arkham; and the mad dog was back on her leash. Deedee gestured to the dead body on the floor,
"Well, it's just a sad story." She was pushing the issue, but the waste of a CEO in a banking firm whom had commanded his employees to kill for a position—25 of them—seemed like spilled milk!
"Hope you two weren't that close," said Galavan flatly.
Deedee shrugged, "Not really. It's just that he was sort of a powerful guy. Would've probably helped if you kept him alive, is all I'm saying."
Jerome rolled his eyes, "Money only talks so much, Deedee."
Deedee retorted, "Money talks enough."
"Fine, Deedee, we'll get you a yacht," Jerome clapped back.
"You know what I mean," Deedee said irritably. "He held a company and everything. He helped us on the inside. What if we go back to Arkham?"
"What if we," Greenwood piped up, turning heads, "go back to Arkham. You got a certificate of sanity."
"Because money talks," Deedee said, turning on the cannibal quickly. Of all the people that Galavan chose for their 'unique' ability, he brought the cannibal. Anybody could eat a person. It had been Galavan whom had persuaded Strange in the first place to make the exchange. His henchman had implied it so. "And considering the fun I've had in Gotham already, it wouldn't take much to send me back to Arkham with no chance of getting out, and—" Deedee turned to Galavan threateningly— "I'm not going back into a fucking cage."
"Easy," said Galavan, raising his hands slowly, for Deedee's neck began to rise in color.
Jerome stepped in, taking his sister's chin in-between his thumb and index finger; he turned her head away from her aggravation so she'd look at him instead.
"I promise," he said quietly, "you won't go back."
Deedee stared at him. That was quite a promise.
"That carries a lot of disappointment if you break it," she murmured, aware that Galavan and company were watching them.
"Have I ever disappointed you?" Jerome sneered, challenging her to give him an answer that would say anything otherwise than the truth. Because he never had. He was the only one in her life who had never went back on his word; for what he said, he meant. Deedee answered him with a slow shake of her head, a flicker of relief on her face, if not just to feel pacified at the idea that no matter what happened, she wouldn't return to that god-forsaken place.
"That's my girl," said Jerome, and he patted her on the cheek, a little harder than before. Just listen to me.
"Wonderful," said Galavan in resignation. "So, everyone's on board. It should go without saying—but I'll say it again for clarification—if anyone tries to leave, tries to break ranks, Tabitha will be there to, heh, accept your resignation. Understood?"
A clamor of agreement and Galavan smacked his hands together and gestured to the dining room table.
"Splendid! Now, to the very important business: breakfast. Who's hungry?"