Chapter 8

Point of No Return

Song: Point of no return, by Starset. Also another music, but I'll reveal it at the end of the chapter, otherwise it could be a spoiler.

As Bruce stepped in, two other people, a man and a woman, got out. They looked shaken, the man's head was bleeding and the woman had a bruise on her face. They both stared at Bruce but the teen closed the door behind him as soon as they got out. He saw the group of cultists; they were pointing their guns at the hostages who were all kneeling with their hands on their head, looking down. He immediately felt angry and sorry for them.

"Are you okay?" Asked he to the closer one.

The man looked up a bit, and before he could say anything, the cultist threatening him barked: "You're not allowed to speak to them!"

Bruce gave him a death glare. Before he could say anything, Jeremiah's voice was heard: "Bruce! It's nice to see you!"

He went toward the closest hostage and pointed a gun to his head. "I guess I don't need to tell you that you'll have to be very obedient." He could have let his men do the threat, but he liked to remind Bruce he had power. The teen was tense, it was obvious, and he savored that.

"Come here," Jeremiah softly demanded.

Of course, Bruce obeyed, there was no way he would let Jeremiah kill that man. He walked toward them and he could see that expression in Jeremiah's eyes again. The redhead grinned; it could almost have looked like a warm, welcoming grin. Jeremiah titled his head to the side, took a look at him and hummed.

"Bruce. I'm gonna shoot this guy if you don't take the speaker they hid on you. Also, take that bulletproof vest."

"I don't have…"

He took a step further toward the teen. "Please, not to me. Take it off or I swear this punk will die."

Outside, the cops hoped Bruce would find another way. But of course, he would have no other choice. Any sound coming from inside stopped. Jim closed his eyes tight and called the SWAT: "Do you still have an insight of them?"

"Positive. Only Jerome Valeska is out of our sight. But we can't get in yet, every hostages are on gun point, including Wayne. He took off the bulletproof vest."

"We know, Jeremiah forced him to." He hung up and mentally prayed for the teen inside.

"He said he would free them once Bruce Wayne would be with him," Harper reminded. "We have to call him again, to insist on him releasing them."

"I will. But it won't be easy to obtain that from him."

Inside, Jeremiah had put an arm on Bruce's shoulder and turned to the man he was previously threatening: "You can leave now."

The guy stood on shaky legs and ran away. It was at least that. Four hostages remained. Jeremiah was taking him away from the others. "What going on between us isn't their concern, it's only ours. I wished Jerome was here, but it's nice to have you for myself, just for a bit. He called me and told me the two of you fought."

"We did," he admitted unwillingly.

"Oh, are you pouting because he escaped you? Each one their turn, you escaped us too, and you used a nasty method at that. But don't worry, Bruce, I'm not rancorous."

"What do you intend to do now? You got me here, but how will you escape? Do you seriously imagine the cops will let you take me away like that?"

Jeremiah smirked and took a step aside; in a fluid movement, he turned to face him, walking backward. As he did so, his hand trailed from Bruce's shoulder to his neck, then his other shoulder, descended his arm and took his wrist. The teen couldn't help but feel a shiver at that move. He stopped walking and Bruce stilled as well.

"You don't expect me to give you every answers right away, Bruce?"

With that, he brought Bruce hand to his lips and kissed the tip of his fingers gently. The teen pulled his hand away swiftly. It reminded him of the time Jeremiah had kissed his temple when he was their prisoner. It had been more disturbing than any other kisses. He could comprehend sexual touches, but this…This wasn't just sexual, there was something else which made him feel more uncomfortable.

Jeremiah huffed at that reaction. "Come on, don't play shy," he murmured on his slow, soft and dark tone. He looked at him all over again: "You know, I'm glad Jerome didn't let me ruin that jacket. I love it when you wear leather."

"Cut it! You told me you would release the hostages, didn't you?"

"Indeed…After all, what's the use for them? But not right now."

"Why not?"

"To build tension. You know, Jerome isn't the only one who got a sense of the show. I also do, even if I don't always put myself on the front."

"Tension for me or the cops?"

"Both. Although with you, it's another kind of tension I like to create," he uttered with a slow voice.

Bruce rolled his eyes. "Making people wait in expectation, I guess this is indeed a great way to build tension, to get on their nerves and play with them. But don't try to make me think that you're doing this only for those reasons. You want to gain time, am I right?"

"Interesting. But tell me, Bruce, why would I want to gain time?"

"I guess it would have something to do with the bomb."

"Nah, it's been achieved. I don't need to work on it anymore."

"Why didn't you leave before the cops arrived, then?"

"Maybe I wasn't done yet. But how about we do that little game of ours? One question each, here is mine…"

"I don't have time for such games!"

"Oh but you'll have to take your time! It's at the core of everything. So, one question each, and you know what? If I actually enjoy the game, I'll free more hostages. So, here is my question: how did you discover our location?"

"The cops called me here."

Jeremiah frowned and grabbed Bruce's shoulder roughly and tightly: "Don't play stupid! I told you Jerome called me after fleeing!"

Yeah, he had forgotten that. "Let's say I know how to listen and I have some relations. And your cultists aren't especially good with discretion. Here is my turn: you didn't expect me, but you did expect the cops, didn't you?"

"I did, why would I put mines over the road otherwise? Did you tell anyone about what happened between the three of us in our lair?" Bruce shook his head to say 'no'. "Good!"

"My turn, you expected the cops, but was it more than that? Knowing you, if you didn't want the cops to find you, you would have been more careful. So I wonder: did you intend for the cops to come?"

"Ah, now that's an interesting question! What would be the reason, Bruce? Answer this one right and I'll free two more hostages."

Bruce thought for a moment. "I see several possibilities. First, it wasn't in order to make them explode, those mines weren't enough for it. No, there are other reasons…You're a strategist, but Jerome also took part in this, and he isn't a brainless goon. He might have wanted to show off something to them, to have an audience, and you liked that idea. Or maybe you two wanted them to explode over the mines. Or…" Bruce's eyes widened: "You wanted to use this as a way to get me. You wanted to force them to handle me to you."

Jeremiah had a little devilish laugh at this: "Ah, you should have heard Gordon's voice when I told him I wanted you! It was heart-breaking, how he offered himself instead, he was so decided to protect you! But in the end, he had to yield." He was obviously savoring this victory, and it only made Bruce enrage for Gordon. Jeremiah blinked at him, and took hold of the jacket's zipper, played it with his fingers before releasing it. "You're very close to the truth. For now, that answer is perfectly fine. Which one of us decided to get you that way?"

Very close to the truth…What did he mean by that, what did he miss? He still answered, though: "I think Jerome did. You would have contacted me directly. This is more eccentric, more spectacular. Not that you can't pull anything spectacular, but it still feel more like Jerome."

"Very good. You know what? I'm gonna release two hostages as I promised. And I will also show you the bomb."

He sent a signal to the cultists and took Bruce by the arm again and started to lead him furthermore toward the bomb.

O o O

Meanwhile, Harper and Bullock decided to go and try to interrogate some of the cultists they had found when they arrived. After all, time was passing, and it was frustrating to do nothing but wait. They would rather use it usefully.

"Take the woman with the pigtails, she is important for them. I'll take the big guy."

"Okay. Do you think they know who were the people who called us? Some people beat those psychos, after all."

"I don't know. The one who waved at us to make us stop was familiar, but I didn't see their face, so I can't be sure. Anyway, it's not those guys who concern me the most. Be careful, those assholes can be tricky."

She would remember that. Handcuffed in the car, the pig-tails woman looked more impatient than worried. Harper opened the door and leaned down to look at her.

"You must be bored in there. We're gonna have a talk, you and me."

"A little girl-talk? Okay, but I'm not that bored, it's like a movie, you wait for the climax!" She replied.

"What's your name?"

"I go by Ecco, no one told you? I thought I was famous," she replied with a fake-pouting tone. She looked at Harper all over. "You must be new around, I have never seen you, and I'm not the kind to forget a face! What's your little name?"

"Tell me now…"

"Tellmenow? Well, that's a weird name!" She laughed at her own joke.

"…where is the antidote?"

Sighing at Harper's stoic face, she simply replied: "I have no idea."

"I don't believe that. You're not anyone in that organization, you're special."

Ecco gave her a disturbing childish grin, like a little girl who just got praised: "Well thank you! Recognition is always enjoyable."

"Tell me where it is. It's best for you if you cooperate."

"You know what they say about secrets, don't you? Two can keep a secret if one of them is dead. If you don't want a secret to spread, you can't tell people around. It wasn't a necessity for me to know."

"You mean only the Valeska brothers knows?"

"Yep. Too bad you don't seem able to catch or keep them."

Harper contained the urge not to slap the young woman. "Let's say I believe you, you probably have an idea of where it could be."

"I could give you a hint: it's probably in Gotham." She laughed again and Harper rolled her eyes. "I don't have time to lose!"

"Oh come on, I was just teasing you! I just want to make you laugh a little, I like you! You know, you could look much better with a make-over, with more original clothes…"

"Sure! If you don't want to talk about the antidote, let's talk about why you were unconscious on the road. Who did that to you? Some vigilante?"

"Probably. I don't know who those guys were, but they were a freaking pain in the ass," she lied. She hoped the other would remember they were forbidden to talk about Bruce Wayne.

"How many were they?"

"Didn't take time to count. They were good fighters, though."

This was pointless. And if those people had been vigilante indeed, the cultist surely didn't know them indeed. "Okay, let's talk about Bruce Wayne, what do they want with him?"

Ecco looked maliciously at her: "You perfectly know what they want with Bruce Wayne…"

"I asked you a question."

Still smirking, Ecco titled her head and answered with a soft, sultry and sickening voice: "They desire him, you know it. They want him, his body, his mind, his soul, they want his devotion and they want him to lust for them too..." She licked her lips. "Or maybe you want details about their fantasies. Not that I would blame you, it also entices me to imagine them together."

This was just what she feared, and she bet Jim had the same fear. That was probably another reason why he didn't want to have Bruce come here at first. "Aren't you jealous?"

She huffed: "You really are a sheep, aren't you? I don't see things like that. If you intend to manipulate me through jealousy, I'm sorry but it won't work. It's a novice method."

"Well…I wouldn't be the only novice around. Seriously, did you guys really thought that anti-personal mines like this would take us all down? It could have killed a few of us, and it would have just angered all the others! You mustn't know much about…"

"Of course not! It was merely a taunt!"

Harper smiled inside, seeing that she had made her angry. "Yeah, well, too bad you didn't add a real strategy to escape. Hostages can hold us back for a time, but it won't allow any of your friends to leave! So excuse me, but even novices would have done better than that!"

"You're stupid, and you don't know anything! Of course Jeremiah got something, he is a genius! Even Jerome, he might not be as smart as him, he knows stinky cops! But we don't fear you!"

"You should! We're ready to get you!"

"Oh yeah! Even if you get Jeremiah, you wouldn't keep him long with Jerome out there, he will make your police station explode if needs be!"

This sent a cold shot through Harper: Jerome was out?! From the beginning, they thought he was inside with Jeremiah! "He is out?!"

Ecco tensed, realizing she had made a mistake; she thought the cops had seen Jerome leaving but didn't manage to get him. Apparently had been able to flee before being sighted. Damn!

"Where is he?"

She just shrugged, not willing to say anything else. That cop had tricked her! She heard the cops say that two other hostages had been freed. Only two remained. She smirked: they thought they were winning but it was far from over! Harper tried to ask her again but she remained silent. Understanding the cultist wouldn't talk anymore, she went back to Jim.

"Gordon, Bullock! Jerome isn't in here! She just told me he was out!"

"What?!"

She briefly summed up the whole interrogation, Jim sighed and Bullock swore at that. Damn! Since the beginning, they thought Jerome was in here as well. But apparently, they had something planned in case it would go wrong. Bullock took care of sending cops to watch the surroundings, in case they sighted Jerome and in case he would do anything to try to attack them. Knowing him, he would be able to actually bring a whole bunch of cultists and try to shoot them by surprise.

Harper felt lost. This was bad. She comforted herself seeing the two last hostages who had been released. They had a comfort blanket over their shoulders and their family was here. They assured they were fine enough to go home now. At least, those people would get back home safely, even though they went through something hard. Only two of the hostages had been sent to hospital due to some injury, but even those weren't that bad.

"What do we do now?" Asked she to Gordon.

"Well, there are only two workers and Bruce Wayne left as hostages."

"They won't release Wayne," she pointed out, remembering her conversation with Ecco.

"I know. But Jeremiah doesn't want him dead, at least it doesn't seem like it. If we can finally free the two other, we'll be able to intervene."

O o O

Smiling delightfully, Jeremiah led Bruce toward his creation, looking proud as hell. As soon as he saw it, Bruce frowned. That bomb…It was big indeed, it looked like a big gas cylinder. Hell, it seemed complicated to undo, the anti-bomb squad would have a hell of a work! But something bothered him about it. He remembered Jerome's words while they were fighting earlier: You still underestimate us a lot, Brucie. But with what will happen, maybe you'll learn not to. Jeremiah passed an arm around his shoulders slowly and leaned against him, looking at him expectantly.

"So, Bruce, what do you think about it? Will you try to undo it? That could be a challenge. To be honest, I'm curious to see whether or not you can do it."

The teen turned to him and stared at him intensely: "This…This isn't you."

Jeremiah's expression was enough to confirm Bruce's thoughts, he wasn't only expecting, he was impatient. It was as if he waited for Bruce to reach something. He wanted him to understand what his plan was. He had no idea what it was yet, but he knew one thing: there was something wrong with this bomb.

"You don't think I would give you a chance to defuse it?"

Pushing away Jeremiah's arm, Bruce took a step away from him. The redhead let his arm fell, letting his fingers graze Bruce's back in the process. "You would. In fact, you would love to see me defuse one of your complicated bombs, just to see who would win. It would be like trying to solve one of your complex mazes. But this isn't your bomb. It's big, it's scary, it's just showing off. You're not one for that kind of device. You would prefer something discreet, something that wouldn't raise suspicions."

"Really…" He murmured with a fascinated stare.

"Yes. You like to show off your intelligence, and you like challenges. You could put that big thing in a ventilation system maybe, but it wouldn't be like you. You would rather have something discreet, that people would pass over, and once your misdeed is done everyone would think: 'oh hell, it was right under our noses.' That would be the best way to show off your intelligence. I can't help but smell that something is wrong. You have a bomb, but it's not that one."

Even Jeremiah, who was a great actor, couldn't hide his excitement. That was Bruce at his best, and he was almost entranced by that sight. It wasn't just only the demonstration of intelligence which gripped him, it was that feeling that Bruce was seeing, piercing through him all the way. He could understand him, get a grip of who Jeremiah really was. It was as if their mind touched and melted together. He only wanted Bruce to feel that way too.

"And where do you think it is?"

"Somewhere in here…" He thought over a short moment. "When the cops will come in and focus on that fake bomb, you will turn on the real one and contaminate them, will you?"

At this, Jeremiah looked disappointed. He tsked, but still looked at Bruce longingly.

"Ah, too bad, it was almost perfect. I admit, it could have been a good idea, except for one obvious detail: I wouldn't do that while you're in here with me. We would have been both contaminated. I don't intend to die by my own creation, and I don't want to see you die from it either."

"You could use your antidote. I know you made one."

"I did, but it would be hard with the cops around. So, Bruce, show me what you're capable of. You already solved a part of that little mystery, but you're not through yet."

"Release the other hostages first! You perfectly know I won't get away, I won't leave until I found the bomb."

"Hum…I'm not sure…Why would I do that?"

"They're useless to you, you said it yourself."

"They can be human shields. Hum…Actually, I could accept for something."

Bruce kinda feared what he would ask. The mad scientist looked at him and smiled. Once again, he took the zipper of his jacket, reminding Bruce of what recently happened. He played with it, but didn't open the jacket.

"I thought of asking for a kiss, but that's trivial. I can obtain one more easily. No, I know what I want…"

"Spell it out!"

"So impatient! Fine: I want you to look at me in the eyes and beg."

"What?!"

"Beg for their lives. I know you won't beg for yours, but you will do it for other people. Ask me nicely to release them, and I will."

Sighing, Bruce knew he had no choice. At least, he didn't ask him to get on his knees, but that wasn't his kind. Jeremiah didn't want him to be completely stripped of his dignity, because Jeremiah liked him to keep a bit of power, even when he was in his clutches. He looked straight into the man's eyes, and he couldn't help but remember how those green eyes were alluring to him at a time.

"Jeremiah, I beg you, spare them." His tone was stiff.

"Hum…You can do a little better."

He contained the urge to roll his eyes and tried to relax his stance. He spoke as if it was indeed possible to reach something in him. Still looking at him in the eyes, he spoke softly: "I beg you to let them live. Please, Jeremiah, could you do it? For me?"

That was better. "For you…I guess I can do it indeed."

He put his gun on Bruce's chest, and the teen tensed. "I'm sorry for that, but I have to keep you under threat. You know, once they will be free, the SWAT will probably try something."

He called for his cultists and told them to release the last two hostages. Bruce felt relieved. He didn't know what was happening, but at least, no innocent would be killed in here. Jeremiah looked at him intensely.

"We could do pretty much anything for you, Jerome and I. If only you accepted us as we are."

"I wouldn't do that."

"You should. There is nothing in life like utter devotion, and we can give it."

"Jeremiah, do you really think I will accept it like that. Have you ever thought of trying to redeem?"

Jeremiah gave him a regretful look. "I guess we're going to continue our little game for now. Go ahead, try to find the bomb."

Taking a few steps away from him, Bruce looked around. He couldn't see anything that could make him think of a bomb, it was probably hidden under something casual…Jeremiah looked at him all the time, slowly lowering his gun. As he was trying to find out what, something caught his eye. A large sport bag near the fake bomb. Bruce guessed this probably belonged to the twins. He went to it and kneeled to see what was inside. Wait…What?! There were several syringes inside. Some were empty and some were still full. What the hell was that?

"Is this your virus?"

"Try to guess…"

He thought for a moment: "The hostages had been knocked off with violence, you didn't use any drug to get them to sleep…"

Bruce didn't have the time to finish his sentence. In an instant, the SWAT was in here, jumping on the cultists and restraining them. The criminals were maybe dangerous, but they didn't stand much of a chance compared to the SWAT. Gordon, Bullock and Harper put themselves between Bruce and the redhead, pointing their guns at Jeremiah.

"Drop off your gun!"

The scientist dropped his weapon and put his hands behind his head, a smile still dancing on his lips while Bullock roughly handcuffed him while Harper was pointing her gun to ensure he wouldn't try anything. For a moment, it seemed like they had won. The SWAT was taking away the cultists while three of them had Jeremiah unarmed and Bruce Wayne was perfectly fine. The redhead's eyes never left Bruce. The teen remembered something else Jerome said:

"There are hostages, Bruce, you should think of that!"

It suddenly hit Bruce and horror washed over him as he finally understood, Jerome's words taking another meaning. God, no, not that! His expression was tale-telling enough and Jeremiah grinned spontaneously like a demon, not caring a single bit about his handcuffed wrists. He simply enjoyed what he saw.

"The hostages…Jim, it's the hostages, they are the real bombs!"

Gordon looked at him in confusion and saw the syringe in the bag. "What?!"

"He injected the hostages with the virus!"

Jeremiah sighed deeply, a shaky, triumphant sigh which turned into a maniac laugh, making the three cops shudder. He just loved it! And some people wondered why he was addicted to Bruce Wayne!

"Perfect! You're perfect!"

They all looked at Jeremiah who grinned triumphantly. "We injected them after knocking them unconscious. There isn't only one bomb, there are eight of those! And the cops nicely allowed me to let those out one by one! Now, the virus has probably incubated in their system, and they are unknowingly contaminating everyone around them as we speak!"

Those words were enough to make them boil in rage. Bullock punched Jeremiah hard.

"You fucker!"

"Oh, detective, punch me as much as you want but you should avoid the head! I'm the only hope for those unfortunate souls!"

Harper stopped Bullock indeed, realizing it was true. They needed him alive and conscious. The twins tricked them…Jim immediately called his colleagues and told them they had to retrieve the hostages as soon as possible. He had no illusion, though: those people have probably started spreading it already. They were either in hospitals or with their family…And they would have to get Jeremiah to tell them where they could find the antidote and as soon as possible, because even more people were threatened now! A deadly epidemic could hit the city, and maybe the rest of the country! Jeremiah had them in the palm of his hand, now!

Bruce looked at Jeremiah, and gave him a challenging look. The redhead laughed again: "You made a fine deduction. But come on, admit it: you lost, all of you."

Jeremiah would probably send them on a wild goose chase; he wouldn't give them the antidote like that. Unless something forced him to do it...Bruce looked at the syringe and knew what he had to do. Use what they want against them.

"You should know I'm a sore loser."

In a swift move, Bruce lifted his sleeve, planted the syringe in his arm and injected himself.

He blinked hard and looked at Jeremiah who was gaping at him, his smirk finally gone and just for that, it was almost worth it. Gordon, Bullock and Harper looked at him in stupor and horror. Why?!

Bruce smirked and let the syringe down. Jeremiah was breathless.

"You…"

"And now, what will you do? Either I die and it's the last time you see me, or you give us the antidote!"

"You…You seriously did that?" Jeremiah breathed out, looking more bewildered than ever. "You…"

"What the hell did you do, kid?!" Yelled Bullock.

"Bruce, that thing is going to kill you!" Jim blurted out as he regained his voice.

"I know." He looked at Jeremiah again. "How long? I'm young and healthy, how long will it take for me to die? You'll have to make an estimation, because you'll be in jail when I'll die, you won't even get to see it…"

"SHUT UP!"

Bruce gave a little quivering grin. He knew it. He knew Jeremiah wouldn't like it. Now did it mean he would actually give the antidote and therefore kill his plan, his creation? He had no idea.

Hope you enjoyed it! That one was surprisingly easy to write! Jerome will reappear, don't worry. Don't hesitate to review!

For that chapter, I also listened to the soundtrack of Mission Impossible 2, the Injection part. It was pretty fitting for that chapter. I'm not really fond of the movie itself, but I like the music.