Until Lambs Become Lions

Chapter Three

Authors Notes: Still can't thank you guys enough for all the followers and faves. Here's another chapter. Feel free to give ideas on how you think it should go, cause I have stuff in mind, but I like to please the audience.

Blake heaved a relieved sigh as he entered his bedroom at the manor. He was tired from his night out and more than that he was unbelievably horny. He blamed Evy and her little strip show. He spread his weary, recently showered naked body onto the suede duvet cover of the California king bed. Though he was sure she wouldn't have done such a thing had she realized that he—or rather Batman had been there. He ran a hand across his chest, then over his face. Without a thought he rolled out of bed and began to do pushups. When pushups didn't relieve the desire that was burning in his gut he switched to sit ups. Finally exhausted Blake rose to his feet, his muscles ached, but only slightly. He glanced at the sweat glistening on his chest and heaved a resigned sigh as he went for another cold shower. When he finally fell to sleep he had dreams of grey eyes, luscious curves and throaty moans.

Fifteen miles away Evy tossed in her sleep, and murmured Batman's name in the empty darkness of her bedroom. Her long legs moved restlessly underneath silk sheets. Her hands gripped at the bunched sheets. With a sharp moan she awoke. It took her a moment to remember where she was. She heaved out a sigh and rubbed a hand across her sweaty face. "Fucking men dressed in leather sneaking into houses." She mumbled. She punched her pillow to fluff it up and then looked almost hopefully at the window. "Hell with it," she plopped down. "He's probably got a dozen women."

0-0-0

Monday morning came too soon for both Evy and Blake. His day was chock full of interviews all revolving around the shooting of Seth. On his desk was a note in his partner's handwriting. Dr. Carter called this morning. She'll be here at 1000 hrs for the interview. With a sigh Blake glanced at his watch. It was 1005. "Shit." He shoved the note into his khaki pants as he traveled through the halls of the department. Sure enough in interview room two there sat the prim and proper social worker. He took a moment to gaze at her and for a second wondered what kind of matching set she had on that day. He knocked before he entered and found himself being assessed by her grey eyes. "Detective Blake."

"Dr. Carter," Blake offered his hand. She took it briefly and as she let go she tried to imagine where he got the calluses from. "I appreciate you coming in."

"I didn't do it for you slick, let's get that on the table right now," Evy leaned back in her chair.

Oh yes, prim and proper, but still the one I talked to last night, he thought to himself. Still out for murder. "I understand that."

"Good," she nodded her head, a strand falling loose from her chignon.

"Thank you for the file…it's helped."

"But it's not enough?"

Blake sighed and laced his fingers together. "Finnocetti is a very powerful name in Gotham." He dropped his voice with a discreet glance at the two way mirror. "Can we meet somewhere else?"

Evy frowned at him. "He's watching…"

"Yeah."

"Well, bring the bastard in. This oughta be good." Evy rose and before he could stop her, rapped her knuckles on the mirror. "Franko you lousy piece of shit, get in here." No sooner had the request been made the door opened. A large man with a thing mustache entered. "Al, get outta the way." She leaned past the fat man until she spotted the lean, tanned gypsy like man. "You brought your lawyer?"

"I have to be prepared for everything."

"You wearing Kevlar?" She shot back. Blake rose from his seat, and took her gently by the arm.

"Sit down," he muttered. "The DA is on the way in." Evy shot him a cold, angry look, but did so. "Gentleman," he waved to the other empty chairs at the steel table. "I'm sure we can discuss this civilly." Even as he spoke Evy was shrugging out of her jacket, beneath it she wore a blue top with a cowl neck that draped down between her breasts. Immediately Franko's eyes dropped. Well played. Blake thought to himself and caught himself from glancing. The new defense attorney arrived swiftly and quietly. Calder Todd was tall and strongly built, a recent health fitness nut he spent every free minute at the gym and it was, he had to say, paying off. He glanced from the woman to the three men. "Oh boy," he muttered, before sitting beside Evy.

"Since we're all here I'd like to point out I am being held here against my will," Franko spoke first. "I've done nothing wrong."

"You hired two criminals to kill your own son," Evy said coldly.

"Actually they were supposed to kill you," the mob boss replied with a shrug. "Minor details, I'll take care of it later."

"Since I assume everyone in this room besides me is on your payroll," Evy began. "I'll just take your word for that." Blake shifted uneasily on her other side. "That being said I'm bringing you up on first degree murder."

"Do you really want to take me to court Doctor?" Franko leaned forward, placing his hands flat on the table. "Is that a wise decision for your career, or rather your life?"

"Are you threatening me?" Evy rose, hands braced on the table. Her shoulders were squared off for a fight, and if Blake had a good guess about, he was going to bet she was a hellion.

"No my dear, I'm just saying that I wouldn't take me to court."

"I'm not taking you to court," Evy leaned forward as she had done that weekend to Batman, and whispered. "I'm going to kill you, someday, somewhere." She brought herself back into his direct eyesight.

"Darling Evy," his gaze dropped to her bosom. "If you think your petty threats and your very lovely cleavage is gonna stop me from tracking you down, you are so very stupid."

"You already failed once," Evy lifted her shoulders and drew back. Franko's arm shot out and gripped her by the wrist. Blake rose at once, which drew Frank's lawyer to his feet. Calder remained sitting as he continued to write up the charges, adding more as the scene played out.

"It won't happen again." Franko promised. "Especially if I go to prison."

"Believe me, you'll go." Blake interrupted, his hand gripped Franko's and brushed it off Evy's wrist, leaving his hand there instead. He felt her pulse racing and knew from the flush in her cheeks that it was anger. "You hired two men to kill an innocent child."

"He was ready to die." Franko answered callously. Evy snarled at him.

"You'll wish you never got caught." Blake promised.

"Easy detective," Franko moved his dark eyes onto the black haired man. "Defending your girlfriend may get you in trouble."

"You son-of-a-bitch…" Evy leapt at Franko and managed to land one swift right hook before Blake had her pinned against the wall. "You're gonna burn in Hell you bastard!" She shouted after him as his lawyer hustled him out. Calder followed them with charges in hand and a big smirk. She still fought against Blake's hold, but her efforts were fruitless.

"Hey, easy, easy," Blake shoved his leg between her knees, stilling her legs from kicking, and pinned her wrists to the wall. "Stop." He ordered sharply. "We'll get him. We'll get him." He rested his chin on top of her head and waited for the movements to stop.

"Let me go," she whispered. "Please, I'm done." She waited for him to ease back before letting out the breath she could have sworn she had been holding.

"I've got a friend, he can help you." Blake blocked her path of escape.

"I've got it slick," she replied irately. "I don't need you or anyone else to help me get him."

"Think of the law Dr. Carter…"

"Don't call me that," she snapped. "It's Evy, you just had me pressed up against the goddamn wall, I think we can be on a first name basis."

"I'll talk to my friend about bringing him in."

"I don't want him brought in, I want him dead. I want payback."

Blake sighed wearily. "I can't change your mind?" His brown eyes begged silently for her to say yes. "You don't want him in jail with the men he's screwed over, that could have their way with him for years and years?" He saw a light go into her eyes at the thought and continued. "He's made enemies in both worlds Evy; he wouldn't get off scott free." There was a long silence, broken only by the ticking from the clock.

"Fine," she let out a sigh, and rubbed her forehead tiredly. "Fine, we'll go to court. Tell your friend he better cause Franko some kind of pain."

"Oh, he will." Blake replied with a smile. A very, white smile, Evy noted. "Can I buy you a cup of coffee?"

"I don't drink coffee."

"Oh."

"But you can buy me a tea," Evy offered him a smile. "Detective."

"John or Blake depending on your choice."

"I like both," Evy admitted. "I'll decide later." She followed him out of the department to the café across the street. "I love when the trees turn colors." Small talk was good, she decided.

"Fall is my favorite time of year," Blake admitted. "Not just trees, but smells, Halloween is always fun."

"I usually team up with Father Reilly at the orphanage to bring the kids trick or treating."

"You know Father Reilly?" Blake looked over at her surprised as they entered Café Book.

"I'm contracted by the orphanage," Evy answered easily. "That's where most of my work is based out of." They ordered their drinks, a coffee black for him and for her an English breakfast tea with sugar and milk. "Let's go to the park." Evy suggested. They crossed the busy street and walked into the tree covered park. "Why'd you become a cop?"

Blake smiled. "Is this a professional question?"

"No, I'm curious," she sipped at her hot tea, gray eyes roving over the trees and the pond where there were children feeding the ducks.

"Just felt like this was what I needed to do. After growin' up in the orphanage I just always felt drawn to the cops. Not the crooked ones though," He grinned at her, one hand tucked in his jacket pocket. "I can pick 'em up pretty easy."

"So can I."

"Am I crooked?" Blake asked as they crossed over a grassy knoll. Evy looked at him in the golden morning sunlight and smiled. "That a yes or no?"

"It's a no. I wouldn't peg you as crooked, you're too pure."

"Pure?" Blake let out a laugh. "I don't think I've ever been called pure." She smiled up at him. "I kinda like it." She chuckled softly. "So, what about you? Why social work?"

"I got sick of trying to fix adults. Kids are our future," Evy replied. She followed his abrupt turn toward the pond and merely smiled as he plopped onto the grass by the water. She took a much more dignified seat beside him. "I tried Criminal Justice, but it wasn't for me."

"Why?"

"No real satisfaction y'know?" She glanced over at him as he nodded. "You try so damn hard to keep the assholes off the street, but the system manages to get them off."

"That is true. What's your degree in?"

"I have a doctorate in psychology. Did a year of that here in good ole Gotham and decided fuck adults, kids are the ones I have to work on."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-six. I went to college at seventeen."

"Graduated early?"

"Yeah, my choice, I just wanted out. Did the whole accelerated courses kinda thing."

"Where does criminal justice fit in?"

"I did two years and got an associate's degree, did two years on the force while taking classes and said to hell with this." Evy shrugged her shoulders. "My grandpa always told there were three kinds of people in the world. There's sheep, sheepdogs and wolves. The sheep are normal every day citizens," She leaned forward looping her long arms around equally long legs. "Like that family over there." She pointed across the pond where a family of five shared a blanket on the ground, the children assembling a kite to fly, the mother holding their golden retriever in place. "They're sheep; they live their lives oblivious to crime, danger, the underworld of Gotham. Then you have the wolves, they're criminals, terrorists, drug dealers, hell politicians," She drew a smile and laugh from him with the latter. "Then you have the sheepdogs. I'm a sheepdog. You're a sheepdog. We protect the sheep in every way we can. We're the real cops, the firefighters, the paramedics, soldiers, nurses and doctors. We understand that life's not rainbows and butterflies. And we try to keep them safe even if it means that we lay our own lives down."

Blake was quiet for a long moment, thinking over her words. "What about Batman? What's he?"

"Batman I consider a sheepdog," Evy answered without hesitation. "He saved my ass."

"He's saved mine." Blake admitted after a sip of his cooling coffee.

"Gotham's gonna need him a lot more."

"Got that feeling, too?"

"Yeah."

"Swear?" Blake ventured.

"Every damn day," Evy answered. The detective laughed and glanced at his watch with a sigh. "More interviews?"

"Yeah." He rose and offered her a hand, which she took. He helped her to her feet and handed over a business card. "My cell numbers on there. Just in case."

"Any day, any hour?" She joked. He saw beyond the joke. He saw the fear in those grey eyes, fear because she knew she was a target. He brushed a careless hand down her cheek.

"Any second."

"Thanks."

"No problem," Blake turned away from her and then back. "Do you wanna do dinner sometime?"

"I'm free Wednesday night?"

"I'll get you at six."

"Do you need my address?" She called after him. He waved a hand in response. She her lips, but remained where she was. "God he's cute." She settled back into her spot and watched the ducks swim peacefully even as a dark cloud covered the sun.