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Fever Ray-The Wolf

M.I.A.-Bad Girls

Chapter 32

"Is that my buddy Oswald? Come here," Maroni said, surprising Oswald with his presence.

"Oh, Oswald," his mother beckoned.

"There he is."

"Mother, what are you doing?" Oswald asked.

"I'm having a drink with Mr. Mar…"

"Uh-uh-uh-uh. I told you-Sal."

"With Sal." Oswald didn't like how pleased Maroni looked sitting next to his mother nor how happy his mother looked sitting next to him.

"But we shouldn't impose any longer…" Oswald tried, reaching for her.

"Uh-uh-uh-uh-uh-uh. No, you're not taking my Gertrude."

"Oh, his Gertrude," she chuckled, flattered.

"Sit. Join us."

"Oswald, sit," his mother said.

"Sit, Oswald," Maroni demanded.

After all the threats this man had made towards him and Isabelle, and even trying to kill him, Oswald had nothing but a bad taste in his mouth as he sat down.

"Never, never, would he play with the other children. You know, even then, he was too good for them. And now he is respectable man of business-my Oswald." Gertrude bragged to Maroni.

"Well…this has been a delight. But it's late," Oswald said.

"One thing…Gertrude, my love," Maroni started.

"Aw…" Ms. Cobblepot flushed.

"A question that's been bothering me."

"Oh, no. Oh…no, no." Gertrude reached a hand up to touch Maroni's cheek and Oswald's stomach recoiled.

Maroni moved her hand away. "Is this an act?"

Ms. Cobblepot chuckled.

"Are you pretending that he's just a nightclub owner? Or are you really that stupid?"

"Stop!" Oswald was growing angrier, tired of Maroni's games.

"I don't understand. I…" Gertrude looked to her son.

"Your son…"

"Don Maroni, I am warning you!"

Maroni continued, "is a cold-blooded psychopath."

"No, no, no, no, no…" Gertrude denied.

"I can't count how many men he's killed. My own friend, Frankie Carbone, he stabbed him a dozen times. What kind of person plunges a knife into someone over and over?"

"He is a filthy liar, Mother! He's just angry because I played him for a fool!"

Maroni grabbed Gertrude by her face, "Oh! Oswald…"

"You know, don't you? His girlfriend knew. Word is she left after he lost it on her and she hasn't been heard from since. She saw him for what he really is and she left, leaving no trace, because she knows he's a psychopath! Oh, I can see it in you too."

"Let go of her!" Oswald tried as his mother whimpered in Maroni's grip.

"Did you catch him, one night, washing the blood from his hands? When did you realize that you had given birth to a monster?"

Gertrude let out a shout and started to faint. Oswald grabbed her and held her to him, to the delight of Maroni. "You are going to pay for this!" Oswald warned.

"Maybe. Or maybe this ends with me dumping your lifeless body into the river. Either way, you and Momma Gertrude can stop pretending. Place is looking good."

Later Oswald sat across from his mother in their apartment. "Feeling better? I made tea." He chuckled nervously. "I'm afraid you had…well…a little too much to drink. Mr. Maroni, he…has a strange sense of humor…"

"Oswald…I am not some bumpkin from the country, with hay in my brains!"

"No…"

"I am your mother…and I will love you no matter what. But lie to me now…you will break my heart. Oswald…have you done things…you should not? Have you a girlfriend you have been messing with? When I have told you all the girls are no good? Not good enough for my Oswald?"

"I…Mother…I'm a nightclub owner. That's all," he lied. "There's no girl."

"I'm tired now," she rose from her chair. "I'm tired."

Oswald watched as she left the room and when she disappeared into her bedroom he began to cry. He felt the pain of lying to her, of seeing the disappointment in her eyes. A sudden knock at the door pulled him from his thoughts.

"Yeah, I got a delivery for Gertrude, from Sal. Tip's not included," the delivery man said after Oswald opened the door.

Oswald observed the man holding the vase of roses. Anger shot through his veins at the gall of Maroni to send his mother flowers. He took the vase from the man. "You tell Sal it's over. The guns are bought. The killing room is waiting. He doesn't know it, but he's a dead man." Oswald dropped the flowers to the floor and the vase shattered, sending glass, water and flowers all over the floor. He slammed the door, but after a moment he opened it again. "On second thought…I'll tell him myself."

Oswald knew exactly what prompted him to kill the delivery boy. Isabelle's disappearance and the stress of his club along with his plans for Maroni were boiling over. Maroni's stunt at his club that night had pushed him too far. He sat in the bath now, late in to the night, considering Maroni's words. The same thoughts from the first time Isabelle left came to him. Had she really left because of him this time?

~O.o~

"Jim. So lovely to see you. To what do I owe this wonderful surprise? Have you found anything new concerning Isabelle?" Oswald asked.

"Maybe but I'm not here to give details. But you can help. I need to know where the Foxglove is. And I need an invitation," Jim said, clearly not happy to find himself in Oswald's club once again.

Oswald chuckled. "Well, someone's in a mood."

"Can you help me out? Yes or no."

"Jim, I do so love our give-and-take relationship. But it's starting to feel a bit one-sided."

"Fine. I'll owe you a favor."

"You already do."

"Then I'll owe you another."

"Cards on the table. The Foxglove makes a lot of money for some important f…"

Jim's patience was wearing very, very thin as he lashed out an arm and grabbed a hold of Oswald, jerking him up and out of his seat as he pulled his handgun out and aimed it at Butch. "You think you know who I am. What I'm capable of. You have no idea, especially when my niece has been missing for weeks. I've been out solving cases in the city while personally visiting the stations of surrounding precincts to be sure they're still keeping an eye out for my niece. I haven't been sleeping much lately because I'm trying to keep those I love safe and find the one person in my life that I care about more than anyone while you sit here and play boss. I told you you can help. There's a serial killer that frequents the Foxglove. He favors beautiful young girls. Isabelle fits that bill, wouldn't you say? And this man, The Ogre, doesn't keep girls alive for long. You will help me get into the Foxglove and you will get off your ass and look for my niece. You love her? Prove it to me. Prove it to her."

Oswald had decided after the ball that he needed Jim Gordon's respect, and to have that he couldn't cower in a situation such as this one. He wanted to find Isabelle. He wanted her safely wrapped in his arms like the first time they kissed, their hands entwined, hearts racing. "Today is an important day for me…but Isabelle is more important than that…so I will accommodate your request. But, Detective, mark my words. You owe me big favor."

Jim let out a laugh and released Oswald. "And what will Isabelle owe you, huh?"

"Excuse me?"

"You're all about people owing you. Do you think Isabelle owes you because you saved her from those two lackeys months ago? Do you think she owes you anything because you didn't kill her?"

"Wh-what? Absolutely not! That's ridiculous!" Oswald answered.

"Then stop sitting around here while other men look for her."

"Surely she would understand that I have a club to maintain. She was enthusiastic about it, even."

"Yeah, I hope you're prepared to tell her that when I find her. See just how enthusiastic she is then."

"I have almost a dozen of my best men looking for her. Do not mistake my current demeanor for indifference, Jim. I love Isabelle and want her to be back safe in Gotham just as much as you do."

Jim's eyes narrowed, doubting Oswald's words, before he turned and left.

Later that night Oswald's club had quite the crowd, bigger than he'd been seeing lately. He wished Isabelle was there with him. Of course he felt bad about not being out there looking for Isabelle himself. But what did he know? What could he uncover? He'd hired some of the best men he could find for the job but he began to wonder if they were as good as he initially thought since the last he heard from them that afternoon was that they still hadn't found anything. Hopefully if what Gordon said about the Ogre frequenting the Foxglove was true then they would find him, and soon, although Oswald wasn't sure if he wanted Isabelle to be found with him. He preferred it if she just left the city and decided to cut all ties than to imagine her in the hands of the Ogre.

~O.o~

Jim and Harvey were making their way into the Ogre's apartment.

"Jim?" Harvey called. "Place is empty. But there's something you should see."

Jim followed Harvey into what looked like a torture room. They stood over a case that was open and displayed several weapons. "You see anything that connects to Isabelle or Barbara? Maybe they were never here."

"No, Barbara was here. I can still smell her perfume."

"Hey, we're gonna find this guy, but you need to prepare yourself…that we might not be in time to save her, or Isabelle if he has her too."

"That is not an option," Jim stated.

"It's the most likely option," Harvey found himself trying to reason with Jim once again.

The phone in the room began to ring and Jim answered it warily.

"Detective Gordon. I assume you are the one who triggered the alarm."

"You son of a bitch. Where's Barbara? Where's my niece?"

"I don't anything about your niece. Barbara's with me, of course."

"If you've hurt her…if you're lying about my niece…"

"Barbara's as safe as milk. Safer than she ever was when she was with you."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"She doesn't need your protection, Jim. Fact is, she never did. I'll see you around."

"Wait," Jim tried but the line ended.

They were on their way out there now after figuring out Jason was heading upstate to Barbara's parents' house. Jim was passing by the couch when something shone in the beam of his flashlight from underneath it. He bent down to pick it up and he froze.

"What is it?" Harvey asked, coming up behind him.

Jim straightened and dangled a silver bracelet in front of Harvey. It had a silver dove charm and blue heart-shaped crystal hanging from it. "This…" Jim swallowed. "Is Isabelle's."

~O.o~

As Jim fought with Jason he wasn't about to lose, no matter how hard Jason tried. Barbara, Isabelle, and countless other women were on the line. Jim had no choice but to wrap his hand around the knife Jason was trying to kill him with as he yelled out in pain and turned the knife on him. Jim grabbed his gun as Jason ran up behind Barbara and held a knife to her neck.

"Drop it. Drop the knife or I'll shoot," Jim said.

"Just an ounce of pressure, and she'll split right open. I don't want that. Do you want that?"

It's gonna be all right, Barbara. It's gonna be all right," Jim assured her.

"If you cared about this woman you never would have come after me. I love her more than you ever did."

"Did you love my niece too?" Jim nearly growled out, his hand steady on his gun.

"I already said I don't know anything about your niece. At least, I haven't touched her. I did go looking for her initially but it seems she left Gotham and disappeared."

Jim pulled Isabelle's bracelet out of his pocket. "Really?"

"That's Barbara's," Jason said.

"No. This is Isabelle's and I found it at your place," Jim told him, his voice showing his desperation.

"I found it," Barbara squeaked out. "In the hallway at the ball Jason and I attended. I was holding onto it for her."

"Drop the knife," Jim ordered, pushing the new facts aside.

"Won't be me that slits her throat. Detective, that's gonna be you."

"Drop it," Jim demanded.

"Jim, please. Just leave us alone," Barbara said.

"Hey, jerk-o!" Harvey called before taking a shot at the Ogre and killing him.

~O.o~

Jim, Harvey, Oswald, and Falcone had just arrived at Falcone's safe house. "Nobody knows about this place, right? Nobody?" Harvey asked.

"Nobody. Anybody who did is dead," Falcone answered. "We'll be safe here."

All four men froze as Cat and another girl with a short, dark, pixie haircut strolled up carrying guns. The pixie girl wore black high-heeled boots, tight black jeans that had horizontal tears all the way down the legs revealing dark purple lacey tights underneath. She wore a matching loose, dark purple t-shirt and a black studded leather jacket. Jim looked at her face and nearly choked on air as he spoke.

"Isabelle."