Chapter 108

After dropping off Eel at a nearby motel, I take the train up to Renee's apartment. After two days of (near) full rest, I feel much better physically, but emotionally...not at my best right now.

"I knew you were hiding something," Ed's voice runs through my head.

"Aren't I always?"

He frowns, crossing his arms, "You have your 'reasons' for hiding things, but I thought we had an understanding. No secrets. ...is this your way of expressing your frustration over my affection for Ms. Kringle?"

I shake my head, "No, Ed, it's nothing like that. It's just...just a work thing. Cops go undercover all the time. I don't see what the issue is-"

"The issue Natalie, is that you are putting not just yourself, but everyone around you in serious danger. Nat...you can stop now. You don't need to put yourself in perilous situations for what you think is a sacrifice for others," Ed's tone is still timid, but a definite sharpness has arose.

He softens, and clasps his hands on my shoulders, "The people in your life would be much happier if you were simply...safe."

"'The people in my life'? If it wasn't for work, who would the people in my life be? You?" I snap, pushing away from him.

Ed's shoulders slump, and his hands shake as his cheeks begin to turn red, "...aren't I enough?"

Realizing what I'd just said, I back away, "I-I'm going to meet with Renee and Crispus, tell them that I'm well now."

"Nat, no! You're still not well-"

"I'm still unwell? Or are you just holding me back?" I counter, before marching out the door.

Poor Eel, he probably had to listen to all of that, I think to myself as I keep my head down. I take a deep breath. That conversation with Ed is not over. Does he really want me to back out so bad? And...if it were for him...would I do it? But, at the same time, could I do it? From a practical standpoint, it seems impossible. Oswald knows where I live, and has never seemed to have trouble tracking me down.

Getting off the train, I walk up the stairs to ground level. Renee's apartment is only a few blocks away, and hands in my pockets, I start trudging through the cold streets.

What do I tell Ed? That I'm not going to give up my dual life because I can't? It's unlikely he'd accept that for an answer. But then what?

I ring the doorbell to Renee's apartment, and after hearing some indiscernible shuffling and murmuring, Renee answers the door wearing nothing but emerald green and black lingerie. Behind Renee, I spot Barbara peering in from the bedroom door.

"Uhm...am I interrupting something?" I ask, biting my lip.

Renee turns around, just in time for Barbara to hide her head back in the bedroom. Turning back around, she replies, "Uhm...no, no, we just...weren't expecting you."

I scratch the back of my head, "Yeah, sorry I didn't call ahead of time."

"No, no, it's fine. C'mon in, we'll get changed," Renee opens the door for me, before heading back to her bedroom.

I step into Renee's apartment. It's maybe a tier below Barbara in terms of class, but her eye for decorating is near-identical.

"Hey babe," Barbara greets, walking out from the bedroom in a long white button-down shirt.

She sulks over to me in a sort of graceful dance. I raise an eyebrow as she wraps her arms around me.

"Wow...someone's loose this morning," I chuckle.

She looks down, and smiles, "I'm just feeling...liberated. I love Jim but, I can't really be myself around him. He likes a prim and proper...Stepford wife. And I'm willing to be that for him, but sometimes...I don't know, I just gotta get away."

Huh, and I thought I had relationship issues.

"So...how are you and your 'dark and dangerous' lover?" she asks with a passive-aggressive tone.

"...Oswald is paler than a can of coconut oil. I wouldn't go so far as to call him 'dark and dangerous'," I counter, chuckling.

She frowns, "You know what I mean. He's alluring because he's...such a rush."

I mean...I would say it's more than that, for better or for worse. When I'd first met him, he was far from "dark and dangerous" but now...well, okay, he was always dangerous at least. The difference now is that he has power. He has men he could sick on me or my friends.

"A rush...alright, being with him can be fun, but it's not worth the other times," I shrug.

Barbara shakes her head, "Don't think you can fool me. The battle is part of the action, am I right?"

What is she getting at?

"I thought you didn't approve of Oswald and I," I recall, taking her hands off of my shoulders.

She tilts her head down, glowering at me, "I don't. I'm just trying to figure out how you two...tick."

"You seem to think you already have everything figured out," I observe, crossing my arms.

Barbara leans in and kisses me on the cheek, "I would like to think I'm on the right track. On another note, you could always join Renee and I. Lots of fun for far less baggage."

"I don't know if that's a great idea," Renee interjects, standing in the bedroom doorway.

Barbara turns to her, her hands clapping together, "Why not? Three's company."

She chuckles, now dressed in her usual heavy trenchcoat, "I don't think I want my relationship to be publically traded, Barbara. Two is more than enough already."

"I-...I agree. I wouldn't want to intrude on your relationship," I chime in.

Barbara looks to Renee, and then turns to me, but then flips back to Barbara, then back to me.

"Neither of you are any fun," she pouts, putting her hands on her hips.

"That's cause being fun is your job," Renee jokes, pointing to her.

Barbara gives a mischievous smirk, "Isn't it?"

Stuffing her hands into her pockets, Renee walks up to us, "Alright. Barbara, you can stay here while Natalie and I meet up with Crispus."

"Leaving me here all by lonesome? You're starting to sound like Jim," she grumbles, crossing her arms.

Renee walks up and kisses Barbara on the forehead, "I'll see you after work, and no overtime like Jim. Promise."

Renee and I walk out of the apartment, as Barbara watches us leave by the door. As soon as we're far enough away, Renee leans over and whispers,

"She really needs to stop dating cops."

Oswald taps his good foot impatiently as he waits in a warehouse owned by Don Maroni. Everything's been set up perfectly...only, the guests are late. Where's Eel? He should have come back with Trixie and her consort hours ago. He'd prepared every little detail, two chairs and lots of rope, the belt he'd used on Trixie, a tuna sandwich in case he got hungry. He'd even sharpened his knife for the moment when he'd stab her lover to death right in front of her.

But now...nothing. It's a good thing he brought dinner, otherwise he would have starved in this wretched place.

Gabe bumbles into the "Boss, I'm sorry. I can't find Eel anywhere-"

"Just! ...just forget it Gabriel," Oswald grumbles, throwing himself back into the rusty metal chair he'd found in the abandoned warehouse.

With his large figure, Gabe shuffles in slow steps over to him, "Well gee boss, I've never seen you so down. ...it's that girl again, isn't it-"

"Gabriel! ...I'm simply upset that Eel has failed in his task," Oswald snaps.

"Eel's just a kid, boss. Give him a break-"

Oswald leaps out of his chair and sticks his knife right by Gabe's neck, "You know very well that I will not 'give him a break'. I will not tolerate insolence and incompetence from my men."

After a few more moments of Oswald holding his knife to Gabe's throat, he swipes it away, turning and slamming himself back down into the chair.

Trixie...one day he'll find the strength to end her. But for now, here he lies. Weak and beaten, a wretched feeling if there ever was one.

Was he simply not a powerful enough man for her? Had her ambitions risen above even his, has she...moved on? If that's the case, Oswald knew he would either garner more power, more resources as to make him more desirable, or simply make her other options...unavailable.

Reaching up, Oswald grasps the empty air, imagining that Trixie was sitting on his lap, and he was running his hand through her hair. Sweet to the touch...perhaps there's more-...no, no, there never is.

Author's Note:

Narutoske: Thanks :)

I try to keep a balance of characters. There are just so many interesting characters to cover, after all. And yeah, in this chapter Natalie does come clean to Ed, and it doesn't go very well…

davinaxo: Thank you. I'm from the US, where the Season 2 Premiere last Monday; Season 2 has not started in the UK. The exact release date for the UK has not been officially announced, but reports are saying "sometime in early 2016"

I'm glad you like Natalie, but while she's not putting on the waterworks every chapter, she still has her vulnerabilities, and that's what makes her interesting

Langley21: I'm inching closer and closer to the episode where Oswald and Ed meet, and sometimes it feels like I'm just writing in circles, waiting for that moment (but it is coming soon!). Yeah, as Gotham natives, you have to get used to some terrible things. As for Ed's backstory, I don't know whether I should go for the traditional abusive father route, because I don't know where the show's going. I'm already worried, with all of this sideline canon I'm creating, if the show seriously contradicts what I'm writing, I'm going to have to backtrack completely, correcting canon going back dozens of chapters. I've already had a run-in issue with their canon (I used Aaron/Amygdala as the teenager from the Flea who ends up in the hands of the Dollmaker, and then a month later Gotham uses Aaron as the Arkham Asylum inmate who gets electro-hypnotized by the Electrocutioner. That's why I was never able to continue that storyline). So I won't delve into Ed's backstory unless either Gotham never touches on it, or gives their definitive version. I will at least give nods to the backstory if the opportunity presents itself. I agree, given that background Natalie's predicament would not sit well with Ed, but I'm going in a slightly different direction with Ed's reaction

Thanks! :)