Bruce stepped out of his limo, nodding to the driver to continue on. He straightened his traditional black and white tuxedo, straining a little at the neck. Geez, he hated these things. They always made him feel like he had to wear a mask to fit in. Stepping inside the impressive hotel, he followed the flow of immaculately dressed people into the lobby.

As discreetly as he could, Bruce scanned the room for any sign of a friendly face, namely Katherine or William. But on every front he was faced with attention-grabbing socialites, dying for a conversation with the bachelor of Gotham. As he listened to yet another chatty woman, his attention was caught by the announcement of the evening's hosts' entrance.

The entire crowd turned their eyes towards the grand staircase, and the two people that descended it. William was merry as always, in a tux similar to Bruce's, but it was Katherine that took his breath away. Her burgundy, one-shouldered dress flattered her coloring and figure perfectly, flaring out a bit at the bottom. With no jewelry, her natural beauty was her only accessory for the evening, and Bruce couldn't help but notice the difference from her choice of sleepwear.

Once the father-daughter pair had reached the bottom, they began mingling with the big shots, and Bruce was forced to turn his attention back to the large man who reeked of stale cigars who was currently talking his ear off.

Twenty minutes and four boring conversations later, Bruce decided that he needed some air. Claiming lightheadedness as a means of escape, he backed away from the crowd, and let himself out onto one of the secluded balconies that surrounded the hotel room.

Breathing in the crisp night air, he closed his eyes in an attempt to clear his head. The sound of muttered cursing brought him out of his reverie. Bruce snapped his head to the side, then laughed when he met the startled gaze of none other than the beauty that had captured his interest. At this moment, Katherine was cursing under her breath, struggling to sit on the balcony ledge.

"Having some difficulties?" Bruce snickered, striding over to help her.

She scoffed. "You try wearing this stupid thing and four freakin inch heels for hours. All I want to do right now is rip this off and put on my pajamas."

"As much as I'd love to help you with that, we might get some stares," Bruce teased her.

"Oh, I don't know. We can start a new trend. My father probably wouldn't mind- he likes you."

Before Bruce could respond, the announcement asking the guests to be seated for dinner came out through the closed doors, causing Katherine to launch into another stream of curses. "Guess that's my cue."



Bruce helped her get down and straighten herself again as she headed for the party. When she noted that he hadn't moved, she raised an eyebrow. "Are you coming?"

He just shook his head. "I'll be in a minute. I need a little more fresh air." Katherine nodded, and with one more smile, walked back inside.

The guests were seated in circular tables of ten in the dining room, each designated by nametags. Once everyone had been settled in, the kitchen door opened, and a mass of servers came in, covered platters in hand.

Katherine narrows her eyes in confusion. Wait a minute, I arranged this whole thing. There aren't any covered platters.

But before she could act on her suspicions, the dining room was rocked by explosions, as the kitchen and elevator doors simultaneously detonated, sending debris flying into the guests. Amidst the screaming of guests and the tinkling of glass, Katherine was able to motion for her father to hide under the cloth-covered table.

Suddenly, the sound of a machine gun firing shocked the guests into silence. Calmly striding through the flaming kitchen doors, a man walks into the ballroom, followed by a mass of masked men, all holding weapons similar to the machine gun that the front man wielded. The man smiled at the horrified faces of the guests.

"Now that I have your undivided attention, where is Dr. William Stuart?"

AN: I know, I know! I haven't updated in forever!! SORRY to those of you who are still reading my stories and haven't given up completely… This was going to be a much longer chapter, but I decided to cut it up because I'm tired and I'm going to bed now, and I'll finish the other half before the week is out. But I wanted to give you guys something today, so here you go. Any guesses on who the bad guy is? Andrew-Squee, you do not get to guess. :)