a/n: hi all,

Making it short and sweet this week: I got the new chapter wrapped before my self-imposed Sunday deadline, so I'm just going ahead and posting it now. Enjoy!

Cheers,

EQT.95


"Hey babe!"

Sophie turned around at the familiar voice. Mary was ecstatically marching toward her through the crowd, champagne flute in hand and ignoring the strange looks by fellow party-goers.

"I didn't realize you'd be here!" Sophie said, pleasantly surprised by the disruption. She'd been stuck in endless chatter with the politically minded, and Mary was a refreshing face in the sea of it.

"Hamilton Dynamics," Mary responded easily, waving her hand in disinterest. "Can't let the family name go unrepresented."

"Really?" Sophie said in surprise.

"No. There's some other guy here for that; I'm just here for the free booze and press," Mary quickly admitted, tossing back her drink before grabbing another one off a passing tray. "Is Kate here yet? I heard she was a fellow obligant."

"That's not a real word."

"Don't care. You see her?"

"Uh, no, I haven't," Sophie replied.

"Hmm, was looking for a party-pal…"

Sophie chuckled. "I don't think she's been up to that lately. The ribs and all," Sophie remarked, distracted by Cobblepot making her way over.

"The what?"

"Hm?" Sophie said, returning her attention to Mary.

"Ribs?"

"She didn't call you," Sophie remarked, unsurprised.

"...about?" Mary asked, eyeing Sophie curiously.

"Kate got attacked in one of those buildings she just bought. Got her ribs beat to hell."

"When?"

"One… two weeks ago?"

"A Thursday?" Mary pressed, her brow furrowing in speculation.

"Uh… I… maybe? Yes?" Sophie replied, staring at Mary in confusion.

"Right or left side?"

"Right, I think? Hey, chat later? I need to deal with… Margaret, hi!"


"These things are a real snooze-fest, am I right?" Renee commented as she observed the room full of people dressed to the nines. She was leaning against the bar with a casualness that contrasted strongly with her dress.

"I've been to worse," Kate replied coolly. She had arrived minutes earlier with no plans to stay longer than an hour before bailing.

"What're you having? Next one's on me," Renee joked, knowing full well it was an open bar.

"I'd better not," Kate answered, looking around for a distraction to get her away from Renee.

"Oh come on, Kate Kane saying no to a drink? I've read page 6; I know you can toss them back."

Kate glanced at Renee's eagerness with annoyance. She didn't have anything against Renee as a person, but when it came to Sophie, her standards were at a different level. She swallowed her judgments and turned to face the bartender Renee had flagged down.

"Scotch, neat; the peatier, the better," she said, the bartender nodding in affirmation before stepping back to prepare Renee's ill-fitting margarita.

"The what?" Renee asked.

"Peaty. Smoky."

"Sounds pretentious."

Kate shrugged indifferently.

"So what's this thing for anyway?" Renee continued, trying to make small talk.

"Meet and greet celebration over the merger of Gotham Security and Covert Surveillance," Kate said, unsure if Renee really had no idea or just didn't know what else to talk about.

An uncomfortable silence fell between them as they waited for their drinks. Kate wasn't interested in keeping up small talk with Renee, and it helped that she was distractedly looking around anyway.

"You see Sophie anywhere?"

Of course, Kate thought. Yes, Kate had seen Sophie; she was the first person she laid her eyes on when she'd arrived. At the time, she was standing in the far corner of the room trapped in a conversation with xxxx, the Director of Operations at Gotham Security who was failing in dramatic fashion at wooing her. Even at that distance it was impossible not to pick her out from the crowd. She'd found herself staring at the glimpses of Sophie as people circulated between and around them. Sophie herself was glancing around for an excuse and their eyes locked briefly. Kate offered her a knowing smirk as Sophie shot her a glance of faux annoyance, knowing Kate wouldn't be coming to rescue her this time. "Not really on my radar, no."

Renee scoffed, "Of course not, sorry I asked - ah! Thank you!" she exclaimed with relief as the bartender finally returned. She grabbed her drink and took a much needed drag before eyeing the glass in Kate's hand skeptically, crinkling her nose.

"That's what you ordered?"

Kate stared back at Renee, bewildered by the accusing question. Kate was having a hard time deciding if Renee was acting this way out of nerves; this room clearly wasn't her scene. She had come to know Renee as fairly witty and level-headed, but all of their conversation tonight seemed fragmented and distracted.

"Ugh, I can smell it from here. Sophie drinks that crap," Renee offered unprompted. "Must be a Point Rock thing."

"Must be," Kate replied simply, bringing the glass to her lips to hide a small smile. She relished in the smell and flavor of the peatiness, and for a moment, didn't hear her name being called across the room. A nudge from Renee interrupted her thoughts.

"Hey, I think that dude is trying to get your attention."

Kate looked up in the direction Renee pointed and settled her eyes on a very familiar face.

"No shit. Melvin?" she called out, a genuine smile appearing for what seemed like the first time in weeks across Kate's face.

"Well if it isn't the Kate Kane," Melvin beamed in response. The event was stiff and professional but all formality was ignored as he scooped her up into a giant bear hug, causing Kate to nearly lose her drink on Renee's dress. "How have you been?"

"Just dandy," Kate managed, rubbing her side lightly after finding the ground again. "What about you? I heard you we-"

"Hi, there. Melvin is it? Renee Montoya, Crow Task Force," Renee interrupted. Kate tried restraining her annoyance as her and Melvin paused the conversation to introduce each other.

"Presumptive," Kate clarified. She'd seen the paperwork cross her desk a few days earlier and knew her official start date wasn't until Monday.

"If I had known the Crows were nabbing all the most attractive ladies in town, I'd never have signed on with SRR," Melvin replied smoothly.

"Wrong team, Melvin," Kate interjected with a grin.

Melvin gaped, "This is my luck. This is why I will never find a woman; all of you are just in it for yourselves."

"Oh you've had your share of chances," Kate remarked without pity. "It's not their fault you can't commit."

Melvin smiled lightly, waving her off.

"I thought SRR was British?" Renee cut in, her eyes narrowed in skepticism.

"It is," Melvin answered simply, raising his arm to flag down the bartender.

"But you're American."

"But I've got a mean British accent and classic English charm," he winked. Renee scowled back, unsatisfied with Melvin's deflection as he placed his order.

"So when did you get back? You've never been stationed here before," Kate pivoted quickly. She hadn't seen him since she'd left the Academy, but he was one of a handful who she stayed in constant contact with over the years. The last time they'd talked was over ten months ago when Melvin went off grid for an undisclosed case, and it was their longest length of time without chatting.

"Just over two weeks ago. I'd have reached out sooner, but they had me make the rounds in D.C. last week before deciding to relocate me to Gotham until my next assignment. It was here or Canada," he said generically of the world's second-largest country by land mass.

Melvin continued on about his acclimation to Gotham as Kate glowed with excitement, memories of their time at the Academy buzzing on the edge of her mind. She had a million questions for him and considered suggesting they blow off the rest of the event and grab a few drinks when Melvin interrupted himself in renewed excitement.

"-is that? Shut the front door; yes it is! Sophie Moore is here, too?" Melvin shouted toward the figure talking with two of the Crow board members. She turned in brief annoyance at the interruption until she recognized who had said it and immediately broke into a smile. She quickly excused herself from her conversation and made her way over. She was greeted with the same bear hug Kate had encountered minutes earlier. "Sophie Moore, how are you still as drop-dead gorgeous as the day I met you?"

Sophie blushed at Melvin's meticulously-timed charm. "I doubt that, but look at you! You look like you haven't aged a day. It's been, what four years?"

"Nearly five," Melvin corrected, all smiles.

"And I see some greys," Kate joked.

Melvin waved her off, caught up in his own excitement. "Wow, it is so good to see you, two. And in the same room!"

Sophie was equally all smiles. Nostalgia began creeping in as Kate took in the two old classmates standing next to each other. Even Sophie had softened, almost as though going back in time when there wasn't a care in the world.

"Look, I've got to show my face - shake hands, kiss babies - but we should grab a drink after this thing. I need to hear how you two worked things out. I wouldn't have dreamed you two wo-"

"Drinks sound great," Kate cut in. She watched Sophie's face devolve into a tense look as she quickly glanced between Renee and Melvin, but Renee didn't seem to catch anything unusual, distracted by her drink which only reinforced Kate's earlier conclusion that Renee was not used to events like this.

Melvin laughed, "Well, I knew I could count on you to say yes. I'm holding out hope for your better half."

"Soph? You in?" Kate asked, trying to defuse the conversation.

"Uh, we-"

"It's Sophie," Renee cut in, looking up from her glass with a scowl of disapproval on her face. She glanced between the three former classmates who all looked equally shocked by the interruption. It was clear her understanding of their relationship was rocky and incomplete, and Melvin was struggling to pick up on the subtle cues Kate was trying to give off to stay quiet.

Melvin chuckled awkwardly, "What? Tha-"

"That was a running joke back at school," Kate interjected, communicating silently with a glance at Melvin. "We uh… we all knew she didn't like being called 'Soph' but teased her with it anyway," Kate replied lamely, unable to come up with a better excuse on the spot.

Renee's eyes narrowed at Kate, "I'm starting to see why Sophie thinks you're such an ass."

Melvin's eyes widened in surprise as he let out a low woa.

"Renee, that- that's not really -" Sophie began, wanting to defend Kate but unsure how to do so without blatantly admitting what she'd been avoiding for weeks.

"No, she's probably right," Kate offered.

"No wonder you hate it so much, babe," Renee offered sympathetically, softly placing her hand on Sophie's back.

"No shit," Melvin muttered to no one in particular, starting to piece together the context. Babe? He mouthed to Kate who offered back a 'let's talk later' face. It was enough to temper his curiosity for the moment. For her part, Sophie's lightness had deteriorated back to her usual sober seriousness. She stepped lightly away from Renee's hand. To Renee, this was obviously because they were in public and their relationship needed to remain quiet, but to Melvin, he sensed there might be more to it.

"Well, I see at least three other people I need to say 'hi' to," Melvin said, offering an out for the deteriorating conversation. "Sophie, any interest in that drink later?" he asked, accentuating the latter part of her name.

"Maybe another time. It was great to see you though," Sophie offered, her warm smile long gone and instead replaced with a polite demeanor.

"Aww, that's too bad," Melvin replied, sincerely disappointed. "I guess I get Ms. Kane all to myself, then."

Renee scoffed at this, her hostility replacing her general sassiness as she eyed Melvin and Kate standing together.

"And you have some explaining to do," Melvin whispered in Kate's ear before stepping away from the conversation.


"Here you are."

"Hey Mary, I didn't know you were a fellow obligant."

"Ha! I knew it was a word."

Kate smiled, "It isn't. I ran into Sophie."

Mary rolled her eyes as she sat in the seat next to Kate.

"Haven't seen you in a while," Mary began casually.

"Busy times, I guess. How's the clinic going?"

"Dude came in with a kilo of cocaine the other day."

"No shit. How'd that go over?"

"He offered it as payment. He wanted me to help him with some back pain he had."

"Really?"

"Turns out his back pain was coming from a knife. So much blood, and since he didn't know his blood type I had to give him my good stuff."

"Good stuff?"

"O positive."

"Ah… er… right."

"Universal blood type. Works with everyone."

"I think I'm type O. I could give."

"No, you're O negative."

"Same thing?"

"You're blood is basically useless to me."

"Probably has too much alcohol in it anyway."

"Sophie told me about the break-in," Mary feigned casually.

"Oh, it was nothing. Took some copper piping."

"Heard they did a real number on you; ribs, right?" Mary continued, eyeing Kate for a slip-up.

"I think Sophie was embellishing."

"She also mentioned it happened two weeks ago. It's funny; about two weeks ago, you know who else came into the clinic with rib damage?"

"RBG?"

"Batwoman."


Sophie glanced around for an excuse to leave. She'd somehow found herself trapped in a conversation with Cobblepot for the second time that night. The first had been easy enough to bail out of: the CEO of Covert Surveillance caught Margaret's eye, and she quickly made her leave to have her with him. Now though, there weren't as many fresh faces with powerful standing left that Cobblepot hadn't managed to talk to leaving Sophie as an easy target.

"And that's why the board is voting on this reinvestment strategy. I think with time you'll come to appreciate it. It'll certainly lighten your workload," Margaret chuckled.

"I'm still not sure we see eye to eye on this, Margaret. Gotham doesn't need additional surveillance. They need an example they can trust. More cameras will only exacerbate the feeling of being powerless," Sophie replied coolly.

"Ms. Moore raises some valid points, Margaret," Alan Duncan said, interrupting the conversation. "We may be a corporation, but not everything is about the bottom line."

"Oh, Alan, don't be delusional. Of course not - we're not in this business to get rich. We're in it to see results against Gotham's growing crime numbers. The city's public leadership hasn't been able to quell the disorder, and we are in a unique position to make those changes."

"So you agree with Ms. Moore that building trust is the first step," Duncan continued, challenging Cobblepot.

Margaret's smile was unfailing. "I admire the ideals of saving a city from self-destruction, but I won't let this company be the little boy who puts his finger in the leaking dike. This company is the surveillance that catches the leak before a finger is ever needed."

"I think the problem with your premise is that it assumes the dike isn't already leaking," Sophie remarked.


"Wait, so you're saying she has no idea?" Melvin asked, perplexed. Kate shook her head in confirmation. Melvin let out a low whistle. "I give it four weeks."

"Give what four weeks?"

"That relationship. How long have they been together?"

Kate sat back, trying to recall. Everything about the last few weeks had blended together that she was having a hard time pinpointing when she found out.

"Altogether four? Maybe six weeks?"

Kate and Melvin hadn't lasted much longer before bailing to a local bar down the street. They'd only just ordered their drinks when Melvin began peppering Kate with questions.

"And you all work together, and she still hasn't figured it out?" Melvin continued, his amazement only growing. "I can't think of anyone who didn't know at the Academy. If it wasn't the sexual tension, it was the jealousy or the fact you two weren't exactly quiet, and those dorm doors were hollow as hell."

Kate mock glared back at him. She knew Melvin was coming into this thinking that because they worked together her and Sophie were just as close as years ago, and she weighed how much elaboration she should provide.

"So obviously you need to tell me everything," he said as though reading Kate's mind.

"There isn't enough booze in this bar for that," Kate joked back.

"Good thing the city is full of them, then," he countered before ordering another round in anticipation. "So, tell me how you screwed it up with Sophie Moore this time."


"That Marvin guy was a real tool," Renee slurred as they entered Sophie's flat.

"Who? Who's Marvin?"

"That guy. The one you went to school with. All chiseled and looming with inexplicable charm."

"Wait, you mean Melvin? Why would you say that?" Sophie asked, stunned by the accusation as she hung her keys and jacket up, watching Renee shed her own bag and walk over to the couch, collapsing on it in one fell swoop.

"Sure, Melvin. That guy. Well, I mean, him and Kate. With friends like that, am I right?"

Sophie had been hoping the earlier conversation between them would be forgotten by Renee, but the trajectory of Renee's drinking throughout the night let Sophie know it was still very much on her mind. She had been around a tipsy Renee before, but this was her first experience around a drunk Renee. What Sophie had originally chalked up to nerves was now becoming clear as something more personal.

Renee knew how important the night was for Sophie to save face with the board, and her inviting Renee had been an attempt to temper the growing frustrations that came from spending little time together since the Dent catastrophe. Sophie had made it clear the night would be spent rubbing elbows and playing politics, but she also wanted Renee there for the stolen moments between dry, endless conversation. Now Sophie was dealing with the consequences of one of those moments including her former classmate and Kate together.

"Melvin is pretty great, actually. He got me out of a tough situation at school for a while."

"But he's friends with Kate."

"Yea, so?" Sophie replied, trying to anticipate where Renee was going with this.

"And you and Melvin are friends," Renee continued, thinking out loud.

"Well, I haven't seen him in years, but yea."

"But you and Kate weren't friends. How does that work?"

"It's not that Kate and I weren't friends," Sophie said, trying to ease Renee's self-drawn conclusions.

"That's not what you said before," Renee accused.

"I don't think we've ever explicitly talked about it," Sophie replied, sensing this wasn't going to be a quick discussion. "The class was small and everyone knew everyone to some degree."

"But you don't like Kate."

"What is your real question, Renee? Because I'm tired and this feels like a tomorrow conversation," Sophie replied with feigned annoyance, hoping to bluff her way to the end of this conversation as she entered the kitchen.

"Did you run around with Melvin?" Renee asked.

"Yes, Renee. Isn't that effectively what I just said?" Sophie responded, her anxiety beginning to translate in actual annoyance. "And it's late, and I'm tired. Can we just go to bed?"

"And Kate?" Renee continued, either not hearing or choosing to ignore Sophie's plea to suspend the conversation.

"It was a whole group, but yes, if you want to be nuanced about it, sure, we ran around together," Sophie said, walking to the cabinet and grabbing a glass. She turned the faucet on just as Renee opened her mouth again. "Can't hear you," she called over the water.

"I said," Renee continued, appearing next to the counter, "Did you ever run around with Kate alone?"


"For someone as smart as you, it surprises me how often you screw things up between you two. I mean," Melvin chuckled slightly, "If you weren't so pathetically miserable, I'd suggest you pitch it as a sitcom."

Kate glared back at Melvin, letting him have his fun as she swirled her near-empty glass. He'd promised to remain quiet during Kate's regaling of the latest news between her and Sophie, but it wouldn't be Melvin if he didn't interject every three sentences with a digressing question or observation. What should have been a five minute tale had now rolled into a full hour.

"Enough," Kate finally said, "stop beating the horse."

Melvin raised his hands in surrender, still all smiles. "Ok, ok, fine. But answer me this final riddle Kate: if you're still so in love with her, why don't you just tell her? It's not like she's head over heels with that Renee character."

"How do you know?" Kate asked, caught by Melvin's observation. "Wait, no, that's not the point. I never said I was still in love with her."

"Really? I'm almost offended," Melvin said, clutching at his heart before breaking into another chuckle and knocking back the rest of his drink. "It's written all over your face, Kate. The way you talk about her, the way you are around her, the way you look at her. You didn't need to say it. Nothing about you has changed in five years."

Kate glowered at Melvin for a moment, taking in his knowing gaze before breaking. "You're annoying, you know?"

"Just tell me I'm right," Melvin grinned.

Kate waited a beat, staring into her now empty glass. "Fine."

"Fine, what?"

"You're right."

"Knew it!"

"Yes, you win; happy?"

"Only when you tell Sophie how you really feel," Melvin mused, tapping his glass for another round.

"Can we talk about you now?" Kate asked, suddenly wanting to transition away from the last hour.

"Ah, my second favorite topic."

"What are you really doing here? The SSR doesn't just leave its agents loose in the states."


"So you're telling me, the girl you dated in secret at school was Kate Kane?" Renee asked, fuming with anger. "And you didn't think that was something I should know?"

"I'm sorry. I should have told you sooner," Sophie began, cursing the timing of this conversation.

"Oh, that's funny, because I feel like if it was up to you I'd never have found out," Renee continued, her voice ringing off the walls.

"That's - that's not true," Sophie said, lying through her teeth. Renee was practically seething at Sophie from across the room, and Sophie was at a loss for words. She'd played out all the millions of ways she might finally reveal Kate as her ex to Renee, but drunkenly after a business party was apparently the one scenario she missed. "I wanted to tell you - I really did."

"But?"

"It's com-"

"If you tell me 'it's complicated' one more time, I'm walking out that door," Renee challenged back, her arm raised toward the door.


"And that's when they asked me to help start up the stateside branch," Melvin said simply. "With the U.S. special forces getting stripped of authority and funding, they can't keep up with everything. Plus this administration has made their intentions pretty clear: they don't trust the intelligence community, so they're outsourcing it. It's good business for SRR but shit for anyone who's worked in the public sector for decades."

"That's… wow, that's amazing. So are you going to? I mean, you've wanted to come back to the states for a while, right? After everything with Monica," Kate said, alluding to Melvin's youngest sister.

"Yea, I don't know. It's a big shift: I like being out in the field. If I take this route, I might as well be behind a desk for the rest of my career."

"You've never let that stop you before."

"I always forget you know Julia," Melvin remarked offhandedly. "She's almost gotten me fired twice, I'll have you know."

"Yea, yea, your whole 'rules are mea-'"

"'-meant to be broken' -"

"-philosophy. Yea, you've mentioned it once or twice. At least it means you won't get shot for a while, though," Kate said alluding to two years earlier when Melvin had taken a bullet to the ribs and wound up in hospital for two weeks.

"Hey, that story has gotten me more dates than-"

"Yea, yea, I know," Kate interrupted, filled to the max with Melvin's tales of conquests. Kate knew he embellished them heavily - his sisters would skin him alive if he actually did half the things he said. "So, hypothetically, where would that put you?"

"Well… that's kind of why I'm here."

"You're saying the SSR are looking to set up shop in Gotham? Or Canada?" Kate asked, recalling the earlier conversation.

Melvin laughed, "No, no, not Canada. There's already an outfit there, and it's a common layover for stateside agents before trekking across the pond. But yes, Gotham is on the shortlist."

"Well, shit, that would be amazing. Where else is being considered?"

"Top secret. I've already said too much," Melvin shook his head.

"Oh come on, you can tell me. Who am I going to tell? I'm in real estate, not national security."

"Nope."

"Metropolis? Chicago? Coast City?"

"I'm not telling you."

"National City?"

"Nope."

"LA? Boston?"

"Kate."

"Fine," she huffed.

"You got two right. You'll never guess the last one."

"I bet I could try," she said, the glimmer of an annoying sister flickering devilishly.

Melvin sighed.

"Gotham, Chicago, National City, and Atlanta."

"Atlanta? What's in Atlanta?" Kate asked. The first three made some sense, granted, she wouldn't have pegged Gotham as a contender, but Atlanta?

"Peaches, the largest international airport in the country, and The Walking Dead."

"Never heard of it," Kate dismissed. "So what do we need to do to get you here?"

Melvin chuckled. "Well, if I wanted to be here, I wouldn't have to try very hard."

"Hmm?" Kate asked, distracted by the rest of her drink.

"Gotham Security offered me a job on the spot tonight."

"They what?" Kate asked, her hand with glass in hand suspended midair. "Who offered it? I didn't think they'd be hiring given the merger. Aren't they absorbing Covert Surveillance?"

Melvin eyed her curiously. "I thought you were into real estate."

"I'm still a board member for the Crows," Kate excused. "Trying to keep up on the competition otherwise I risk my coffers being depleted."

"Isn't that why you're in real estate?" Melvin teased.

"Yea, but I didn't say I was any good at it."

"Mmm, well, I don't know about any of that, but I'll always entertain anyone willing to wine and dine me."

"You're considering it?"

"I'm considering the tasty aged porterhouse at the fancy three-star restaurant they're taking me to. I promise nothing beyond that."


"But why didn't you just tell me?" Renee asked again, her eyes only slightly softened from twenty minutes earlier. Sophie knew she was toeing the line, and alcohol wasn't making the conversation any easier with Renee derailing it every few minutes.

Sophie had yet to answer this very basic question, and wasn't ready to lie to Renee.

"And don't say it's complicated," Renee warned.

"Because… I-I... Honestly? At this point, I don't know. I didn't think it would be great first-date material. And then it was a week later, and then another week, and I just… how do you tell the person you're dating that the person making life a living hell is also an ex?"

Renee's eyes didn't leave Sophie. They were piercing, and Sophie could feel them interrogating every word Sophie had just said.

"You still love her," Renee said, saying aloud what Sophie was afraid to.

"Renee, that's not-"

"Tell me you're not still in love with her."

Sophie stared back at a loss for words.

"I'm gonna go."

"No, please, Renee-"

"Sophie, stop," Renee cut in. Her eyes were still angry, but there was also a hurt in them.

"Don't go, please. I want you to stay."

"I think we both know that's not what you really want," Renee said softly, walking toward the door.

"Yes it is," Sophie rushed, following Renee to the door. "Renee, please. What do I need to say to convince you?"

But Renee's mind was made up. She grabbed her bag and, in a single motion, unlatched the door and walked out.


"Ah ha!" Melvin giggled, his face lit up by his cell phone.

"What?" Kate asked, reaching over the bar to retrieve another bottle.

They had closed down the previous bar and, given the time, found themselves at The Hold Up. It had shut down earlier in the night, and Kate and Melvin showed up just as the bar staff was leaving. After a brief exchange of niceties, Melvin and Kate had propped themselves at the bar for an encore of the evening.

"Look," Melvin said, shoving his phone in Kate's face. Kate squinted, blinded by the closeness of the screen.

"You're drunk, man," Kate said, pushing it away.

"Yea, but I'm still getting that booty call," Melvin chuckled.

"At this hour?"

"Ladies don't know how to stay away," Melvin slurred slightly.

"Who is it this time?"

"Your ex."


Kate was cleaning up after helping Melvin into a cab set for Sophie's place. She was reflecting on the night's conversation, wondering briefly where it might have gone if not for the untimely text from Sophie. They quickly concluded it wasn't nothing, and that it'd be best for Melvin to be on his way.

"This is the best of both worlds. I get to hang out with my two favorite ladies on the same night," Melvin had giggled in anticipation.

"What we talked about in there - you can't tell Sophie any of that."

"Kate, we aren't in school anymore."

"I know."

"So if it comes up-"

"Melvin. Let her move on," Kate interrupted. She looked into his eyes and he could tell she meant it. Melvin nodded in understanding.

"You're making a mistake," he noted as the car pulled up.

"I know."

"As long as you know," Melvin remarked before engulfing her in another hug.

The bright light of an incoming call broke her from her thoughts. She reached over, grabbing her phone from the bar in surprise.

"Luke? You're up late."

"We have a problem."

"What's going on?"

"I don't know how to say this."

"Is everything ok?" Kate said, quickly sobering.

"There was a break in."

"Where? At the apartment building? Are you ok-"

"No, I'm fine. Kate, it was Wayne Tech."

Kate reoriented her thinking. Shed expected him to say it was a few teenage hooligans loitering and causing trouble. She was not prepared to think about Batwoman or Wayne Tech for that matter.

"Did anything get taken?" Kate asked.

A long pause followed.

"Luke?"

"Kate… I…. I think they stole the bullet-proof technology. The same bullet-proof technology that's built into the batsuit."

Now it was Kate's turn to pause.

"What do you mean you think? Do you not know?" Kate asked finally, quickly forgetting the dirty glass on the bar as she grabbed her jacket and keys and made for the door. That this technology, if in the wrong hands, could be used to the advantage of someone looking to reign terror.

"I mean… I'm not sure, but-"

"I'll be at Wayne Tower in 30."


"You're drunk."

"I feel like you're the last person to judge right now," Melvin said. "Calling me-"

"I texted."

"-at all hours of the night-"

"You answered."

"- like some low-level booty call."

"We're not having sex."

"Well then what am I here for?" Melvin feigned shock as he slipped past Sophie into the apartment. "Damn, girl, you have done well for yourself," Melvin whistled.

"I've seen better," Sophie shot back, dismissing Melvin's transition.

"Yea, but Kate was always rich. You're a working gal making it big," Melvin replied with a grin before shedding his jacket and casually settling onto the couch.

"No, please, make yourself at home," Sophie remarked, watching him snuggle further into the sofa. "Want anything? A drink? A sandwich?"

"Bourbon, if you have it. Or gin. Or Vodka. Or-"

"I'll just close my eyes and grab something, yea?"

"It's like you're in my mind," Melvin smiled as he watched Sophie walk over to her cart of bottles to retrieve the flavor of the night.

He tapped the seat next to him for Sophie to join. When she did, he put his arm around her before continuing. "So, tell me how you screwed it up with Kate Kane this time."

"That's not why you're here," Sophie denied quickly.

Melvin pulled away for a moment, looking properly at Sophie. Her eyes were slightly red, and there was a strained sadness about her.

"Isn't it though?"


"I can't explain it."

Luke had immediately started briefing Kate when she arrived, filtering through the lack of camera footage and trying to nail down how the heist occurred. No explosions were used, there were no injuries, and the CCTV footage had been cut before the raid. No witnesses could corroborate anything out of the ordinary, either. It was almost like someone had been escorted into the facility and gifted the technology.

Kate was straining to understand who would even know about the armour in the first place.

"Has Tommy been released?" Kate inquired thinking back to Bruce's old friend. Tommy Elliot had been responsible for a previous break-in of Wayne Tech having stolen the rail gun designed to penetrate the Bat suit.

"I had the same thought, but he's still at Arkham."

Kate stood and walked to the windows looking out over the city's glow. "Unless he's partnered with someone new," she pondered aloud. "The timing of this is almost too perfect."

"I had the same thought. To execute a break-in on the one night when all of Gotham's top leaders in security are in a room celebrating themselves-"

"- someone breaks into one of the most secure spaces in the entire city."

"Does GCPD know?"

"Not yet. I only knew because our sensors were set off."

"Good. We need to keep this under wraps because the sooner they find out, the sooner it gets leaked. Everyone knows the Gotham Police is crawling with cops looking to make a buck off this kind of a leak."

"What about the Crows?"

Kate shook her head, "The less they know the better, too. There have been too many unanswered leaks from them. We still don't have a shred of evidence against Cobblepot, and I don't trust anyone until we know how the Dent tip wasn't flagged. But I'm less worried about them because they have no reason to come sniffing."

"Right… except they're signed on to survey Wayne Tech."

Kate's reaction sobered, "What do you mean they're signed on? Since when?"

"The board voted to hire them following Tommy's break in. They've got surveillance access to everything," Luke paused, pondering the situation.

"I know every account on file - Wayne Enterprise isn't on the list," Kate challenged as she scanned her memory.

"That's because Wayne Enterprise doesn't exist as Wayne Enterprise for outsourcing services. It goes by Martha's Bakery."

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Kate asked, feeling blindsided. "With everything going on, you're telling me the Crows have had unlimited access to Wayne Tech's surveillance system?"

"It didn't seem relevant," Luke reasoned in apology.

"Well it is now," Kate shot back angrily.

Luke waited a moment to respond. Months earlier he would have argued back, but after working so closely together, he knew better than to swipe back. He watched her frustration shrivel into a sigh.

"I'm sorry," Kate said finally. "Do you know if the Crows realized there was a break in? Do they have the same level of access as we do? You said something about sensors, right?"

"That's where I think we have a lead. Bruce was very strategic about how he built out infrastructure around Wayne Tech. He and my dad knew they couldn't trust everyone from within the company, so they built in redundancy that synced only to the batcave."

"Smart, but how is that a lead?"

"Because it means that whoever did this knew about the basic security well enough to fool it."

"So you think it was from within Wayne Enterprise?"

"I think it was from within the Crows, Kate."

"Well, now it's extra relevant," Kate joked.

"Kate… this technology in the wrong hands-"

"I know," Kate interrupted. She couldn't let herself imagine the consequences of the armour being handed to Gotham's worst just yet.


"I can't believe after five years I'm sitting on Sophie Moore's couch."

"It is a bit weird."

"You just disappeared after graduation," Melvin continued.

"I know."

"I wish things had ended differently. I remember calling up Kate right before graduation - she was off on the west coast somewhere. Or maybe she went later that summer… In any case, she warned me you'd up and leave, but I didn't believe her."

"I've stopped trying to act like Kate doesn't know exactly what I'll do anymore."

"It was on that same call she gave me your new number."

"How? I wouldn't have gotten it for another few days," Sophie asked, genuinely surprised. One Crow requirement as a new recruit was to surrender old phone numbers for company sanctioned cell phones. It was less than 48 hours after graduation that she'd cut off her old number.

"She knew her dad was going to offer you the job. I thought about calling, but I was still so angry."

"I know. I didn't… I don't know. I still think about it all the time."

"I wish I was a bit more mature and had just reached out."

"I could have called, too. I do wish you had reached out about Monica though. I knew she was in Gotham, but had I known she fell out of remission-"

"Don't give it another thought. She's good now."

"If she ever needs anything though -"

"Sophie," Melvin interrupted with a small smile. "I'll make sure she has your number. I'm sure she'd love to catch up. You should know she's Team Moane though."

"What?"

"Don't worry, Kate's been taking the brunt of it."

Sophie's confusion shifted to a groan as Melvin's words registered. "Enough."

"Clever, right? Takes me back to the days of hollow doors and-"

"Kate's seen Monica?" Sophie interrupted, registering Melvin's earlier remark.

"I think they grab drinks once every few weeks since she got back. I think Mon still feels a bit guilty about the money," he remarked casually.

"The money?"

"For her treatment," Melvin said, watching Sophie's face contort into confusion again. "Kate never told you?"

Sophie shook her head.

"Kate's paid for all of Monica's treatment - ever since she was diagnosed."


"You smell like booze, by the way," Luke remarked.

"Sorry. Ran into an old friend."

"Oh? She an ex?"

"He and I went to school together."

"Should I be jealous?"

"No, he's SSR."

"Oh, does he know Julia?"

"Actually, yea. They have a sort of… working relationship, you might say."

"Is this your way of saying they dated?"

Kate chuckled. "Not exactly. She's not really his type."

"Female?"

"No, no… I just mean, they don't exactly see eye-to-eye most of the time."

"Impossible. Julia gets along with everyone."

"Well…"

"Except this one tool. Apparently they were on a job together, he almost got her killed, then he got shot. Ever since then Julia won't work with Americans…"

Kate watched Luke trail off in thought, waiting for the pieces to come together.

"Wait…"

"Yea."

"This guy?"

"Probably."

"I don't know if I'm even surprised by this."

"I've found it best not to be surprised about anything anymore."


"Hey, I can't really defend this Renee chick. She seems nice, but what are you really doing? Is it serious? Is it a fling? Are you just trying to make Kate jealous?"

"When it started… I don't know, it was just something different. With Tyler-"

"Oh! Don't even get me started on this Tyler guy. You married a man?" Melvin accused suddenly. Over the course of the evening and between Kate and Sophie, he had found out more about the last five years of Sophie's life than he could have imagined. "You know you're not straight, right?"

Sophie smirked, "Yes, Melvin. I know."

"Look, you know me. I've always been Team Moane," Melvin said before breaking out into a fit of laughter.

"It's like I never left," Sophie said, staring up at the ceiling in resignation.

"So obviously I'm biased. But you two need to figure your shit out."

"There's nothing to be figured out. We're just headed in different directions."

"Oh, come on, babe," he continued teasing.

"Ok, enough."

"I had no idea it had grown on you. I'll take credit for it," Melvin added, resulting in a pillow to the face.

"It was a compromise."

"A compromise? What was it going to be? Honey bee? Sugar plum? Sweet pea?"

"Something like that," Sophie said, unphased by Melvin's poking. The truth was that she'd never told Renee she didn't like the name, and she was beginning to see this habit of remaining silent crop up everywhere she went.

The two fell into a silence. They'd been chatting for the last two hours, unmoved from the couch. It had been years since they'd talked, and it surprised Sophie how much had changed but also how much of Melvin had stayed the same.

"I'm glad you stopped by," Sophie said with a soft smile as she reflected on their conversation.

"Me too."


"Tommy has consistently made calls out of Arkham to two numbers: one assigned to Johnny Sabatino and one unknown."

"What's their relationship?" Kate asked through bloodshot eyes. They had transitioned from the batcave to Bruce's office and then finally back to the loft where they had used Sophie's login credentials to gain access to Arkham's records. The sun was breaking along the horizon, as they sat around the table, huddled over their computers.

"He manages Tommy's club."

"Why would that matter?"

"Johnny Sabatino doesn't exactly have a clean record. Two counts of grand larceny: one in 2015 and again in 2019."

"Why isn't he in jail?"

Luke looked up from the screen at Kate, unamused by the question.

"Gotham, right," she waved off. "Can we track the unknown number?"

"Doubt it. If Tommy was up to something I'm sure whoever he was working with would use a burner."


Sophie bolted up, bleary-eyed in confusion. A pounding had woken her up, and she was barely registering the daylight pouring into the apartment. She shuffled toward the door, and paused briefly before opening it to reveal Renee standing behind it.

"Renee?"

"Woa, you look like hell," Renee remarked in surprise.

"Er… sorry?" Sophie replied, her cheeks flush with embarrassment at the contrast with Renee's put-togetherness after the night before.

"Look, I like you, and I want to keep doing this," Renee said simply.

"Ok," Sophie said cautiously.

"But I have conditions."

"Do you want to come in?"

"No, we can do this here," Renee said, her manner professional and without the lighthearted humor Sophie had come to know.

"O-ok…"

"No more secrets."

"Easy. Consider it done," Sophie responded quickly. "I'll tell you anyth-"

"I'm not finished," Renee continued, cutting Sophie off. "The only time you mention Kate is in a work context or to answer a question I have."

Sophie stared back at Renee, caught off guard by the request. "Uhm-"

"And my last condition: you never speak to Kate Kane outside of work context again. That should be easy since her dad will likely be reinstated as board member at the monthly board meeting next week."