Ch. 9 Spoiler
Nothing. For the past two days, Jason and I have been searching across Gotham for any clues regarding Spoiler's whereabouts. However, our efforts seem to have been wasted because we've come up with nothing. It's as if she disappeared, without a trace. Thing is, we knew that Spoiler was still in Gotham. If our hunch was correct, Spoiler's the one behind the increased gang activity throughout the city. Also, she must have had some sort of connection to the League of Assassins. It would have been highly unlikely that Spoiler left the city. The problem was finding her.
After this evening's patrol, I decided to do some after hours work at Firewall. Wendy was being a good sport and stayed with me. I quickly changed out of my costume and into my gray sweatpants and a black, long sleeve shirt and made my way towards the computer. I padded over and took the seat next to Wendy.
"So, what exactly are we looking for?" Wendy asked as her fingers typed away.
"We're looking for the Spoiler," I answered while I brought my hair into a ponytail, wanting to get it out of my face after a long night.
Wendy's fingers stopped when she heard my answer and she shot me a confused look. "Wait a second, wasn't that you're old identity?"
I explained to Wendy everything that's happened to lead up to this point. I told her about Spoiler's supposed involvement with the Gotham gangs and the League of Assassins. Unfortunately, that also meant that I had to explain Jason's involvement in my investigation.
"So, Jason's been helping you look for Spoiler?" Wendy questioned. "I thought he was supposed to be a bad guy?"
"That's what everyone's been telling me, but now I'm not too sure," I sighed as I leaned back on the chair, my fingers interlaced behind my head. "He's saved me a couple times and he's helping me figure this case out. Maybe he's trying to change? Who am I to deny him that chance?"
Wendy shrugged. "Look, I don't know much about Jason Todd, but I do know you Steph. You need to be careful, you never know what could happen."
"Don't worry, what's the worst that could happen?" I laughed. At that moment, I felt my cell phone vibrate, signifying a text message. When I saw whom the message was from, my face quickly fell. It was as if the universe was trying to tell me something.
Brown, meet with me after school tomorrow. We need to discuss some things. – Damian
My Thursday morning was hands down the slowest morning ever. I couldn't believe how long it took for all of my classes to finally end. I felt like a zombie when I finally left the lecture hall. To my surprise I saw Alfred waiting for me in the parking lot.
"Good afternoon, Miss Stephanie. Master Damian thought that you would prefer to be picked up after class," Alfred greeted.
"Hi Alfred! Damian really is a sweetheart isn't he?" I chirped in response. Alfred smiled as opened my car door.
The ride to the Manor didn't take too long. However, it gave me time to think about everything that's been going on in Gotham. People have been dying because we couldn't stop a single girl in my hand-me-downs. The thought alone churned my stomach.
When we arrived, Alfred first stopped at the kitchen to grab a platter of cookies and a pitcher of milk. We then traveled together down to the cave. Damian was standing in front of Jason's memorial while waiting for me. Alfred announced my arrival as he laid the snacks down.
"Thank you, Pennyworth. Hello Brown," Damian greeted. He turned his attention away from the old costume and faced me. Alfred turned to leave, giving us some privacy.
"Hey, thanks for sending Alfred to pick me up from school," I responded, filling a glass with milk and grabbing a cookie.
"You're welcome. Now, down to business," Damian started. "Why are you so attached to the Red Hood?"
Damian's question surprised me so much that I spat out the milk I was drinking. "Wait, what?"
"I'm asking you why Jason Todd fascinates you so much," Damian emphasized. "During the night of the gala, you jumped at the opportunity to chase after him. Which is confusing to me, because aren't you Drake's girlfriend? I never thought of you as an actual harlot."
"It's not like that!" I declared as I stood up. "I was the most logical choice to go after him. That doesn't mean that I'm cheating on Tim with Jason!"
"If that's the case, why'd you almost kiss him the night Gotham was covered in fire and ice? Weren't you also on a date with Drake that evening?"
"It's complicated…" I admitted, grabbing another cookie and breaking it into pieces.
Thing was, I didn't completely know how I felt about Jason. I never thought that he would have such an effect on me. Our encounters have become very familiar and I've gotten used to having Jason in my life. But, I wasn't totally sure if this familiarity was a good thing.
"Well you better figure it out because sooner or later you're going to get hurt," Damian huffed.
"So you do care?" I teased as I nudged his shoulder.
"Yes, I suppose I do."
Alfred drove me back home after Damian and I concluded our talk. To be honest, the heart to heart with Damian definitely was not what I had in mind when I read his text last night. However, he helped put some of the things in perspective. Damian was right; I needed to sort out my feelings for Jason.
The hard part about being a vigilante college student is actually keeping up with the homework. I was staring at the same set of calculus problems for the past hour. There were only a couple of classes left before finals started, and then everything would be crazy. Not to mention that I had my work cut out for me looking for Spoiler.
I tapped my pen on my open notebook passing the time until some sort of sense was made from the different equations. Of course, I couldn't spend all night slaving over my homework; I had to go on patrol with Damian.
I made my way to Firewall around eleven so I could suit up. When I got there, Wendy was typing away at the computers. I made my way to the locker rooms so I could change into my Batsuit. I quickly stripped off my clothes and without skipping a beat started pulling on my costume. There was a rhythm that came to being able to change from one identity to the other. After slipping on my gloves and fastening my cowl, I met Wendy at her workstation.
"Hey Wendy, what's up?" I greeted.
"Well, nothing new on your Spoiler case. But it doesn't help that you don't know who's behind the mask," Wendy started. "And I just got a message from Barbara. Someone was murdered in Robinson Park."
"Does she want me and Damian to check it out?" I questioned. Spoiler had to take a backseat tonight. Wendy was right, I didn't give her much to go on. I shouldn't have been surprised that she couldn't find anything.
"Seems like it, she wouldn't have called us if it wasn't important."
"Alrighty then, I'll take the Ricochet and meet Damian there. Don't wait up!"
Wendy didn't get a chance to answer, because I was already on my way to the garage. It didn't take me that long to make my way to Robinson Park. I left the Ricochet hidden in an abandoned alleyway and waited on the roof of an apartment building for Damian to arrive. There were cops everywhere and they squared off part of the park. I noticed Detective Gage among the men that surrounded the crime scene. I heard a thump behind me, signaling Damian's arrival. He walked up and joined me on the ledge of the roof.
"Why are we waiting so far away from the crime scene?" Damian scolded.
"I was waiting for you, slowpoke," I teased. "Let's go, Detective Gage will probably give us a few minutes alone with the scene."
"Gage? Another suitor?" Damian quipped. I waved the comment away as I landed on the pavement. I made my way through the shadows so I could get closer to the crime scene.
"Alright people, let's take a break, " Detective Gage instructed. When the other investigators dispersed, he coughed and said, "You can come out now."
"Hey Santa, what do we got?" I chirped as I hopped off of the branch I was waiting on. Damian quickly joined me.
"See for yourself, Batgirl … and Robin?"
The man lying before us looked as if he had been out drinking, which was emphasized by the fact that there was a bottle of liquor hidden in a paper bag clutched in his right hand. The victim was covered in multiple stab wounds and surrounded by a puddle of blood.
After examining the body further, I noticed that the man's wallet was about to fall out of his jacket pocket. When I opened it, I saw a picture of his wife and two kids along with a driver's license. Interestingly enough, the cash and credit cards were still in the wallet, meaning that this wasn't a robbery.
Damian also examined the body and noticed a piece of paper that was lodged in the inside pocket of the man's jacket. Damian pocketed it before Detective Gage noticed.
"We think this is linked to one of Gotham's newer gangs. They're full of guys who want to distinguish themselves," Detective Gage offered as he stepped towards the body.
Before Gage noticed, Damian and I made a silent exit back to the alleyway. Damian then pulled out the scrap of paper and pointed it towards me. Upon closer inspection, the piece of paper was actually a calling card that said, Let the Punishment Fit the Crime.
"This is Todd's doing," Damian accused.
"Hey, we don't know that!" I threw my hands up in protest, in an attempt to reason with Damian.
"It's the same calling card he left when he was running around in that ridiculous outfit!"
I swiped the card from Damian and took a quick look at it. "Even if it's the same card, why would he kill that guy? Doesn't he only kill if he had a reason to?"
"He's psychotic, would he need a reason? And why are you protecting him?" Damian jibed, pointing an accusatory finger at me.
"Because, I don't think he did it. Just let me talk to him before we start placing blame okay?" I pleaded.
"Very well, I'll let you handle this for now. But if he is the killer, I'm going to be the one to take him down," Damian sneered.
"Whatever. We better go look for some clues that can help us find the killer," I said as I put the card away and mounted the Ricochet. I looked over towards Damian to see that he was also mounting a brand new motorcycle. "Where did you get that bike?"
A smirk splashed across Damian's face as he answered, "Son. Of. Batman."
"You're a spoiled brat you know that?"
"tt. Where are we going Fatgirl?"
"We're going to go talk to Lynx."
The ride to Lynx's hideout didn't take long, but waiting for the rest of the Golden Dragons to leave did. Damian and I probably could have taken them on, but that was a confrontation that we didn't need. Once the other members left the warehouse for the evening, we made my way to the building.
When we opened the door, Lynx was reclined in her seat with her feet on her desk. She was relaxing, absentmindedly examining a knife. When she noticed that we entered her office, she shot me a look. When she got up, her knife was still held loosely in her hand.
"Why are you here?" Lynx asked coolly. With her mask off, I could see the ferocity in her eyes that was akin to her namesake. Even if she didn't look angry, I could tell that she didn't like us visiting.
"We need information," I started. "There was a murder that occurred this evening and we think that it might be gang related."
"What do you want me to do about it?" Lynx asked sarcastically.
"We want to know what the Red Hood is up to and if he's connected to the murder," Damian interjected as he stepped towards Lynx. She eyed him and smirked.
I shot him a look before Lynx answered him. "Why don't you ask her? She was with him the last time he visited." Damian raised an eyebrow but remained quiet.
"Look, we just want to know what you know about the other gangs. Maybe one of them committed the murder," I appealed.
"No," Lynx deadpanned. She began to play with the blade again, tracing the edge with her fingers. Damian stepped forward, ready to attack Lynx. Luckily, I grabbed his shoulder to stop him.
"We need your help, if we don't act soon innocent people could die," I pleaded.
"Why should I help you?" Lynx inquired.
"Because that's what Red Robin would do," I answered. I didn't want to bring Tim into this, but we needed to find whoever's responsible for the murder.
Just then, Lynx slammed her knife down, embedding the blade into the wooden desk. She was angry, but tried hard to hide it. Once she released the handle, she made eye contact once again. "Then why don't you ask him for help?"
"He's not in Gotham at the moment," I started. "He told me that you could help him, he believed in your abilities."
A few moments passed as silence set into the room. However, Lynx seemed to take what I said to heart. She sighed, "There hasn't been any activity from the newer gangs recently. I doubt that one of their members is the murderer."
She pulled the knife from the desk and began to examine the blade with feigned interest. If the gangs weren't involved, then who was the murderer? I nodded to Lynx and turned to leave. Once we were outside, Damian spoke.
"You used her previous relationship with Drake as emotional leverage, nice work," Damian praised. "However, I wonder, why did you visit Lynx with Hood?"
"Listen, it's complicated. I needed some information and Hood brought me to Lynx," I explained.
"Is that why you don't think he killed that man? He helps you once and you think he's a saint."
"No it isn't. We just don't have any proof, so before you start pointing fingers, get some hard evidence that Jason killed someone."
Instead of going back to the cave with Damian, I decided to touch base at Firewall. I made my way to the Ricochet, a few blocks away from Lynx's base. However, I had an unexpected visitor waiting for me.
"Hey you." Tim was leaning against the Ricochet in his Red Robin outfit. The whites of his lenses glistened in the moonlight as he rested his chin on his knuckles.
I ran over to Tim and pulled him into a kiss. "When did you get back?"
Tim cupped my chin as his fingers laced with mine. "About an hour ago, Proxy said you were out on patrol with Robin and I thought I'd swing by, see how you're holding up."
"Well, I could be better. Patrol with Robin is very draining. " I replied. I turned to see that there was a something on top of the Ricochet. "What's in the box?"
"I brought donuts," Tim laughed.
Tim must have looked ridiculous buying donuts in his Red Robin costume. Or did he do it before changing? Either way, it was totally sweet of him to get them. I decided to send the Ricochet back to Firewall while Tim and I ate our snacks on a rooftop. Our gloves were tossed in a pile to side and we both took off our cowls in order to remove that final barrier between us.
We talked for a while. Tim explained the drama that happened with the Titans and I filled Tim in on what Damian and I found out this evening. I went over Detective Gage's theory that the murder could be gang related. I even told Tim about talking with Lynx and how she told us that the gangs have actually been pretty quiet recently.
"Sounds like you've been busy," Tim teased.
"Just a bit," I laughed, taking a bite into a jelly filled donut.
"You've done good. Lynx didn't even want to talk to me. Plus, having Damian with you must have been hard," Tim complimented as he reached over to wipe off some of the jelly that made its way to my chin.
"Well thanks. Glad to know I'm appreciated around here," I quipped. Tim laughed as he popped the last piece of donut into his mouth. This was a good a time as any to ask him about our prime suspect. "Hey, what are your thoughts on the Red Hood?"
Tim started to chew slowly, as if my question was particularly difficult. After finally swallowing, Tim sighed, "Jason's dangerous, you can never know what he's up to."
"Why do you think he's in Gotham?"
"I'm not sure, but I can't believe that no one's tracked him down yet."
"Well, it doesn't seem like he's been getting into trouble lately, maybe he wants to keep a low profile?"
"But why is he back? Why did he help us at the gala?"
"Maybe he turned over a new leaf?" I reasoned.
"Why are you defending him?" Tim inquired. "You don't know what he's done." Tim looked genuinely confused at my interest in Jason's moral standing. Maybe Jason has changed, but everyone's too stubborn to see it.
"Everyone deserves a chance to make things right."
There had to be a reason why Jason's old calling card ended up on the murder victim. Damian suspected that Jason was the killer, and Tim believed that Jason's up to no good too. I couldn't place the blame on Jason just because of a card. There had to be more, and I wanted to give Jason the benefit of the doubt. The only way to find out the truth was to ask Jason himself.
"Look, I really enjoy the one on one time we have together, but I wasn't expecting you to actually come over," Jason laughed as he stepped aside to lead me into his living room. I walked in and quickly scanned the room. Everything looked the same since the last time I was here.
"Cut it out Jason, I came over because there's something we gotta talk about." Jason took a seat and motioned for me to join him. I sat cross-legged on the couch and turned so I could face Jason. "I need you to be completely honest with me."
Jason sighed as brought one leg over the other. "Why so serious, blondie?"
"Because, this is serious." I grabbed a throw pillow and absentmindedly played with the pieces of string that came loose at the corners. "There was a murder yesterday and this is what we found at the crime scene."
I took the calling card from my pocket and handed it to Jason. He took a minute and looked it over, finally realizing why I came over. "What, you think I did it?" Jason huffed as he ran his fingers through his hair.
"No, but Damian thinks you did."
"Of course he does," Jason laughed. He adjusted himself so he was leaning against the arm of the couch. After a few seconds, Jason's eyes locked on mine and he asked, "What makes you think I'm innocent?"
I broke our eye contact and played with the pillow for a few more seconds before laying it down on my lap. When I gathered my thoughts, I turned back to Jason and replied, "Well, there's nothing connecting you to the murder, other than that card. Besides, I really doubt that you'd commit murder knowing that I'd hunt you down if I found out."
"You, hunt me down? I don't think so blondie," Jason teased, however the humor quickly evaporated as his face fell. "I didn't murder that man, but it wouldn't be hard for anyone to frame me. I threw hundreds of those cards around when I was messing with Grayson and the brat."
"Kinda came back to bite you in the ass, huh?" I quipped as I raised an eyebrow.
"You're telling me," Jason laughed, regaining the smile that was on his face only a moment ago. "So, does everyone else know that you came over to talk to me?"
"Nope, no one else knows. I wanted to talk to you without getting everyone involved." I started. "I felt like I owed you at least that much."
"You seem to have a lot of faith in me."
"Well, you've been helping me out with Spoiler. Seems like the least I could do."
"Speaking of Spoiler, you free tonight?" Jason smirked.
It seemed like I was always running somewhere when I was with Jason. Spoiler's been extremely hard to track down. Wendy hasn't been able to find any sort of lead that could help. Jason must have some awesome connections because apparently, Spoiler was supposed to be picking up some weapons from an unknown dealer at an abandoned warehouse tonight.
Before I knew it, we made it to our destination. There was a van that was waiting outside of the warehouse. I pulled out my binoculars to get a better look of the scene. I saw that the dealer was already waiting outside with his van open and his guards around. Geez, don't these guys ever learn?
A few moments later, Spoiler appeared and walked toward the dealer. After the leader gave a nod, the men opened the back of the van to reveal the different weapons that Spoiler must have been purchasing. She looked over the merchandise and nodded in approval. The men then started to lock up the van, as the leader was about to hand Spoiler the keys. I walked towards the ledge, ready to jump in so I could stop the transaction.
"Hold it blondie!" Jason yelled. I turned around to see that Jason was on one knee and his duffel bag was opened. Great, while I was busy checking out the scene, Jason was assembling his bazooka!
"Wait what are you…" BOOM!
Before I could stop him, Jason fired at the van, causing an explosion that not only destroyed the van and weapons but also sent everyone in the immediate vicinity flying. Jason then set his bazooka next to his bag and stretched his arms over his head.
"What the hell was that?!" I yelled. "Are you crazy? You could have killed someone!"
"Details baby, details. C'mon, let's go catch Spoiler," Jason joked as he leapt from our rooftop.
Why do I deal with this? When I joined Jason on the ground, he was fighting off the three guards that accompanied the dealer. Jason was dodging the flurry of punches that were aimed at him. He easily knocked down the assailants and turned to see that Spoiler was already making her escape towards the darkened alleyway. I told Jason that I would clean up the mess while he chased after Spoiler. Luckily, the leader was still unconscious from the explosion, so all I had to do was gather the four men and tie them up in a neat package waiting for the police.
It took me a few minutes to catch up to Jason and Spoiler. Jason chased her up the fire escape of a convenience store and they were engaged in combat on the roof. Both Jason and Spoiler had their knives out and were slashing at each other. I pulled out my boomstick and jumped into the fray. Noticing me running towards her, Spoiler threw one of her knives at me. I quickly dodged the blade and stepped forward to swing at her.
Whoever Spoiler was, she had some moves. She was able to dodge every attack Jason and I threw at her. Spoiler then slipped on brass knuckles on the hand that no longer held a knife. Next thing I knew, she swung at Jason's head and her punch connected with a loud crack, shattering the crimson mask. Luckily, Jason was wearing his helmet, or else that punch could have broken his jaw.
Spoiler's punch knocked Jason to the ground. She mounted him, her legs positioned to prevent the use of his arms. Her fingers wrapped around his neck as she raised her blade, ready for the kill. Before she could stab him with her knife, I threw a batarang that knocked it out of her hand. I ran towards Spoiler, tackling her off of Jason. She regained her footing and threw a smoke pellet to the ground, disappearing from sight. When the wind blew away the smoke, Spoiler was gone. I shrugged as I put away my boomstick and walked towards Jason.
"You alright?" I asked, offering a hand to him.
"Peachy," Jason coughed as I helped him up to his feet. "Um, you let her get away…"
"Don't worry, I placed a tracker on Spoiler when I tackled her, we'll catch her again. Besides, I had to save you," I smirked.
"I didn't need you to save me, I was handling it," Jason huffed as he brushed off his jacket. He then looked at the broken remains of his helmet and sighed, "That was a new helmet."
I laughed as I walked over next to Jason. I noticed a bruise start to form where Spoiler's punch connected. She must have hit him hard as hell. I brought my hand to Jason's cheek, to check the injury. Jason winced at the initial contact but then eased into my touch, placing his hand over mine. My eyes connected with the cascade orbs behind the lenses of Jason's domino mask.
Jason wrapped his hands around me, so that they rested on the small of my back. A blush crept onto my face as Jason pulled me so close there was almost no space between us. I could feel his breath on my face as he gently pulled my cowl back.
"Jason, what are you doing?" I murmured as I stepped back, breaking his hold on me. I did not like where this was going.
Jason then laughed as he closed the gap between us. He brought his lips to my ear and whispered back, "I'm distracting you."
Whack! Before I knew it I was on the ground, my head pounding. My vision was blurred and everything was spinning. I had no idea what hit me, but it hurt like crazy. I tried to get back up but a purple form kept me pinned to the ground. Another form entered my vision and before I blacked out I heard it say something.
"Good job, Scarlet."