A/N: So it's now 12/29/17 and here comes the sixth chapter! I've already planned the days I'm going to upload the chapters too! I'm on top of this story!
Thx!
AMM
I walk up the street towards Café Triste and see Harvey sitting at one of the outside tables. I come up to him and slam the warrant that Gordon never took back on the table.
Harvey looks up at me then the warrant. "A warrant?" He asks disbelievingly, picking it up. "What the hell's going on? Wait, does this have to do with what the reporters were talking about this morning?"
"Yeah, someone's coming after me." I state, not hiding my anger.
"Let's avoid making another scene, shall we?" Harvey snaps. He lowers his voice to a whisper, checking over his shoulder. "The press is already up my ass." I take a seat across from him as he looks over the warrant.
"Mayor Hill authorized this?!"
"Yeah, then the cops raid my house, taking everything related to Wayne Enterprises. Computers, hard drives, files," I list off.
"Son of a Bitch," Harvey curses quietly while leaning back in his chair.
"You're the god damn DA, Harvey," I accuse and Harvey quickly leans back towards the table.
"I didn't know about this, I swear," he tells me. "Hill totally blindsided me on this one. Goddamn it! He has no right to issue search warrants without my okay."
"Okay, I believe you, Harvey. Mayor Hill's trying to screw us both over with this move."
"Then he's made two enemies." Harvey says determinedly. "I just don't get it. Why would Hill stick his neck out over this? Just to tangle you up in some frivolous investigation? That just doesn't make sense. I mean, what could he possibly hope to accomplish other than a few cheap headlines?"
"That is exactly what I intend to find out," I tell him.
"Easy, Bruce," Harvey says. "Oh God, what a mess. Bruce, I wish I could just make this go away, but I'm not sure if I can. If I get in the way of this investigation, Hill would be able to spin it as a conflict of interest and that wouldn't be good for either of us. It would jeopardize the entire campaign."
"Then I'll go it alone," I tell him, feeling rather hurt that he's more worried about his campaign struggling for a few days instead of how I'm being targeted but at the same time, I understand. "I've got plenty of resources to fight this."
"We're in a bind here, Bruce," Harvey admits as if I couldn't figure that out for myself. "I'll do whatever I can to help."
"There you are," a familiar voice suddenly cuts into the conversation. A woman walks forward with a….black eye...like last night. It's her. It's the cat woman.
"Hey, you," Harvey greets affectionately as he stands to greet the woman.
"Sorry," she apologizes. "I gotta habit of being late."
"No, no, just glad you made it," Harvey brushes off before he leans in to kiss her cheek.
"You didn't tell me you were bringing a friend to dinner," she comments, eyeing me, her gaze lingering on the scratches and her eyes squinting. She must've pieced it together too.
Harvey pulls away and angles himself towards me. "This is Selina," he introduces.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," she says.
"I'm Bruce Wayne," I tell her.
"So you are." She replies.
"Pleasure to meet you, Miss…." I hold out a hand and she reaches forward to take it.
"Kyle." She tells me as we shake hands. "That's a strong grip you got there," she says and that's when I know for sure she knows who I am. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna fall," she tells me before muttering, "again."
"Selina's new to town," Harvey says as we all sit back down. Yeah, I know. "I've been showing her around Gotham. Introducing her to people.
"You're an excellent tour guide, Harv," she praises.
"Well, if I lose the election. I guess I can drive one of those double-decker tour buses around town." Harvey jokes.
"Meet anyone interesting?" I ask her.
"Not really," she replies. "They haven't all been as welcoming as Harv. I was mugged," and I know she's covering up for the black eye I gave her. "I'm just angry I let that masked freak get away with all my stuff." Yep, she definitely knows.
"I still can't believe I let you walk home alone," Harvey says, putting his arm over the back of her chair and pulling her close to his side. "I should've called you a car.
"Well, I sure hope whatever he took wasn't too valuable," I try.
"Actually, it was,"
"It's probably long gone by now, whatever that idiot took," Harvey tells her.
"I hope not. These were important materials."
"Ooh, sensitive?" I ask.
"Very. I don't know how I'm going to explain this to my client," she says, looking down at the table with worry. "When things like this happen in my line of work, people tend to over-react." She tells me.
"We should just be thankful you got away with a black eye," Harvey says.
"So what do you do for a living?" I ask her.
"It's complicated. High-risk, high-reward."
I play along. "Ah, stock market, huh?"
"Something like that. At least I'm not the only one that's taken a beating. That press conference? Oof,"
"We've got it under control," I tell her as I look to Harvey.
"Do you?" she asks. I just look at Harvey.
"I'll handle it," he almost snarls before removing his arm from around Selina. "Someone in my office has to know what's going on." Harvey's phone suddenly rings and he excuses himself from the table, leaving Selina and I alone.
We stare at each other for a few moments. "Nice to meet the real you," she finally says, offering a small smile.
"Likewise," I tell her.
"This explains a lot, actually." She folds her hands in her lap. "How you can afford the fancy armor and the toys. Wouldn't Harvey be surprised," she chuckles. "Not to mention, everyone in this café." I know she wouldn't because that would mean revealing how she knows herself and that would give her away.
"Sorry about the black eye," I offer quietly with a one-shoulder shrug.
She shrugs back. "It's not the first time a man's hit me."
"I'm sorry to hear that." I tell her sincerely.
"Don't worry," she says as she leans back in her chair, making it creak, "I'm not going to expose you….yet," She brings one of her hands up to her face and looks at her nails.
"I'm curious about something, though. I do what I do for money, but you're….Bruce Wayne. What's your excuse? I have to, but you….why take the risk?"
"I think you know enough already." I tell her. "The rest is my secret."
"And here I was thinking we were beginning to get somewhere. How disappointing." She looks away for a moment before looking back. "You have something that belongs to me. I want it back." She demands as she leans forward and rests one of her arms on the table. "This is awkward for me. I'm used to robbing people, not being the one robbed."
"Who hired you to break into the Mayor's office?" I ask.
"My clients prefer to remain confidential." She replies. "They don't know who I am, I don't know who they are."
"But you know who I am." I remind her.
"These people I'm working for, they don't screw around. If I fail to deliver that drive, it's gonna cost me a lot more than money."
"Well, it looks like you've made your bed," I say but she's quick to deny it.
"No. We've made this bed and I'm not going to lie in it alone. You owe me. If they don't get what they want, there will be consequences. I don't like consequences."
I lean forward and put both of my elbows on the table. "Alright, you want my help? You got it. What can I do?"
"You can give me back the drive," she says.
"Not possible," I reply.
"Listen," she sits back. "I don't have a lot of time. My employer is expecting me to drop it off-"
"Where?" I rasp.
"Just give it back." She nearly begs.
"The address. Now." I order.
"No," she argues back. "Give me the drive."
"You're just going to have to trust me," I tell her.
"I don't do trust," Funny. Neither do I. She sighs. "I guess I'm screwed either way." She pulls a marker out of her pocket and takes a napkin from the table. "My contact…." She explains. "He'll be expecting a cat, not a bat."
"When are you supposed to meet him?" I ask her. She glances at her watch.
"Fifteen minutes ago. Better hurry." I grab the napkin and put it in my pocket just as Harvey comes back over.
"Everything okay here?" he asks.
"You tell me?"
"I have my people working on it," He assures. "We're gonna straighten everything out."
"I feel better already," I tell him before standing up. "Sorry, but I've gotta run."
"So soon? Aren't you gonna stay for a drink?" Selina asks, knowing that I'm leaving because of her. It's almost like she wants to get me in trouble.
"Yeah, Bruce. Stay for a drink," Harvey tries to help persuade.
"I'd love to," I tell him, "but I've got another appointment and I really don't want to be late for it."
"Oh, okay then," Selina says before adding. "Don't forget to change into your suit." I glance over my shoulder as I continue to walk away before pulling the napkin out of my pocket. In bright red marker, it reads:
Gotham Docks
Warehouse 133
Don't Screw
It Up!
A/N: Yeah, don't screw it up! Sorry for the shorter chapter. This is actually the shortest chapter yet. I didn't want to add the next scene then have it be to long. So, it ends here for now. I think I'm gonna go buy a violin.
Thx!
AMM
