Chapter Two

It's a week later, and Sara is struggling with her book. Bruce finds her in their library doing some research.

"What is your latest book about? I'm sorry I haven't been paying attention. I've just been spending so much time with Lucius at the office that I can't keep up."

"The book is actually a textbook for middle school kids called 'What You Should Know about Capitalism and the Free Market.' I know – exciting stuff. What have you been doing with Fox?"

Bruce seemed hesitant to tell her, but he knew she would find out anyway. She still had a lot of friends at W.E. - friends who didn't mind sharing gossip. "Well, you remember the attempted rape last week. Fox thinks there may be another vigilante out there. If there is, we might want to help him. The hard part is finding out who he is." (It didn't occur to either of them that it might be a woman, Sara thought.)

"Lucius wants to interview you. You might remember more than you think. Don't you have the music class tonight? Alfred is going to drive you and pick you up. Just call him when you are ready."

Sara didn't want to be dropped off in some expensive car in front of the kids. She had come too far in gaining their trust. She didn't want to rub it in their faces that she was rich – they were brought up not to trust people like her.

"Ok, but he has to drop me off at least two blocks away near the train station."

"No problem – he knows the drill."

When Sara went upstairs to their bedroom to get changed, Bruce followed her. She happened to be in just her bra and underwear. Bruce decided to take advantage of the situation. He took her hand and gave her a passionate kiss. Sara smiled up at him and said, "What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm trying to seduce you," Bruce mumbled as he nibbled her neck.

"I have to leave in a few minutes. I don't have time to be seduced." Even though she protested his efforts, she was enjoying every second.

"I think you do." And with that he gently pushed her on the bed.

"Well," said Sara, "I guess I have some time." Their busy schedules didn't allow them to make love as often as they used to, and they both welcomed the opportunity.

After catching her breath, Sara finished dressing, kissed her husband goodbye, and met Alfred outside. It was freezing cold, so Sara wore a snow cap and a scarf.

The class was disappointing. Two of the boys didn't show up, and the rumor was that they had joined a gang. This was exactly what the music program was for – to keep kids off the street. Sara was so upset that she didn't even think of calling Alfred. Bruce was at a dinner with clients anyway, so he wouldn't know she didn't call. She would take the train – no harm, no foul.

As she was almost at the train station, it happened again – another scream. This time the guy was on top of the girl trying to get his pants off. The girl tried to hit the man, but he was so big he didn't notice. Sara couldn't believe it. How many rapes and molestations occur here every night when no one is around to help? Sara wondered. Sara ran to the scene.

Sara had to keep this from happening. She found a piece of rope a few feet away and quickly jumped on the man while tightening the rope around his neck. He was so surprised that the girl was able to crawl out from under him. Sara yelled for her to run. The would-be rapist turned around quickly and slammed Sara to the ground. When she hit, her cap fell down over her face only revealing her lips. Thankfully, her hat covered most of her hair, and it was so dark out the man couldn't see its color. When he made a move toward her, she kicked him in the gut, knocking the wind out of him. Before he could recover, she took the opportunity to run. As she ran, she called 911.

Sarah had done this twice, and this guy knew she was a woman by her voice. She couldn't keep this up – she wasn't Batman. She needed to think of an explanation for the large bruise forming on her back. But first, she needed help, so she did the only thing she could think of – she ran to the basement door of Wayne Enterprises and prayed Lucius Fox would be there. She banged on the door and looked straight into the security camera. Fox opened the door right away.

"Are you ok? What happened?" He could see that she was in a lot of pain.

Sarah knew she had to tell him the truth. "I just saw a guy trying to rape a girl in the Narrows and tried to stop it. The girl got away, but the guy threw me to the ground so hard it feels like he broke my back. It was dark, and my cap fell over my face, so he can't identify me. Unfortunately, he heard my voice telling the girl to run so he knows I am a woman. I really need help. Can you look at my back?"

As Lucius examined her, he saw a dark bruise starting to form. He could also tell that one of her ribs was cracked.

"Mrs. Wayne, I am afraid you are going to have one hell of a bruise. You also have a cracked rib. I don't want to wrap your chest because, even though it hurts, I want you to try to breathe as deeply as you can to prevent pneumonia. Plus, Mr. Wayne would notice immediately and know what you've been doing. We have been looking for another vigilante, and I think we found her."

"Please keep this between us," Sara begged. "It's going to be hard enough to hide the bruise. If he knows how I got it, he will lock me up in the cave."

Fox agreed to keep the secret as long as he could. He said, "I have only one condition – you can't do this again. It's simple - stop walking home, and have someone pick you up."

Sara couldn't promise anything. "These crimes will continue to happen. If I am not there, who will try to stop them?"

Lucius shook his head. "I don't know. But by now word should be getting around that someone is out there watching. Let's remember the power of neighborhood 'talk.' The fact that Batman was out there made many criminals think twice." He gave her some pain medicine to take only at night. If she was loopy during the day, Bruce and Alfred would notice.