Yeah, sorry i was gone for so long.
"God Dammit Gordon."
The Commissioner looked up in surprise. The mayor stood in the doorway flanked by two bodyguards.
Gordon stood up hurriedly, knocking the table backwards with his legs as he did so.
"Sir, I-"
"Did I ask you to speak?" The mayor asked quietly, his voice echoing in the cold room.
Gordon shut up. While Mayor Anthony Garcia kept his temper for the most part, when he was angry people ended up regretted being in the same room.
The mayor, motioned his guards out of the room and closed the door behind them. Gordon remained standing, feeling awkward in the presence of a man he had always admired.
There was the metronome click of the mayors sturdy shoes, Gordon swallowed hard.
The Mayor turned and rubbed his temples. "Gordon, you know how much heat you're going to get for this? You know how much I'm going to get for this?"
"I was-"
"I've heard it all before Gordon, don't make me hear it from you."
"No, I wouldn't..." Gordon trailed off, he hadn't really come up with an explanation.
"You know, when i got this city it was a nightmare. I faced twelve assassinations in my first month. Now I'm getting fat behind a desk. You did that, Batman did that."
Gordon shifted uneasily on his feet. Mayor Garcia had stopped pacing and was staring at the Commissioner, his brow furrowed.
"I thought I could trust you, I thought that you could handle the position I gave you."
"Who came for him?" It was the question that burned in Gordon's mind, the one thing that he needed to know.
"I don't know." the mayor was temporarily derailed from his train of thought. He shook his head impatiently "Look, I'm going to have to put you on probation, and that's a light punishment."
Gordon opened his mouth to protest but Garcia interrupted. "This is a betrayal. There is nothing further to say."
"Look sir, I didn't-"
The door slammed behind the mayor and the Commissioner was left standing alone in the room.
A slip of shadow tapped at the morgue basement. The sound was faint, on the edge of hearing, nothing moved in the still silent room, it was as if nothing had ever disturbed the hushed tomb.
There was a pause and then the sound of breaking glass, the muted crash echoed in the stillness.
Jim Gordon clambered out into the darkness, breathing heavily.
"Hello?"
Silence.
"...Right."
He stood awkwardly beside the broken window, his face half masked in shadow.
Loud shouts could be heard far off in the distant hospital. Gordon knew that running through the hospital were various reporters and journalists searching for Batman and himself. Nervously, afraid of the boor bursting in and exposing him, Gordon crept through the room, searching.
He was a good cop, but poor at stealth. When he had been in the force, guns came out first in all situations, creeping and stalking were for criminals.
His attention was caught by a gurney pushed up against the many shelves. A body lay still with the moon casting it's pale, dappled rays around it.
Gordon made his way over to the still figure upon it.
"It's me..."
Nothing.
"...hello?"
No response.
Gordon swallowed hard. He hadn't really killed him had he? Wait... Wayne had jumped at him, perhaps the movement had shifted his aim? No, Gordon was a fair shot, he wouldn't make that mistake. Would he?
Gordon gathered his courage and prodded a shoulder. The flesh was cold, hard, clammy, limp, dead.
"Oh, Goddammit!"
He kicked the shelf violently, not noticing the pain. He had just killed Batmen. He braced himself on the gurney, trying to think. What was he going to do now? This whole exercise was useless, he was going to lose his job, his friendships, maybe even his family, and he had just killed Batman.
He closed his eyes and leaned backward. "Fuck."
"You got that right Commissioner." A nasal voice shivered up Gordon's spine.
The acid prick of a knife stopped Gordon from whipping around. He froze.
The Joker for once, wasn't laughing, his voice was lower than usual, hoarser. He was angrier than Gordon had ever heard him.
"You must be exhausted, why don't you rest those legs."
The knife slid into Gordon's side and he gasped, it didn't hurt much at the moment, the Joker's knives were too sharp for that, but later there would be pain.
Gordon slumped to his knees as the knife was withdrawn. He could feel hot blood burning a trail down his side.
"You shot batsy."
Gordon nodded slowly.
"I respect you and bats very much, I thought we had a mutual agreement. We all stuck to our separate little lives, and when they intertwined we tried our best to hurt one another, but here is the one rule that I can agree upon, We don't kill each other."
The knife had found it's way to Gordon's neck where it stayed unwavering, barely touching his skin.
"You see, I thought we had a code, well, you and bats did, You would... how do you put it? 'Book me'? Because your morals are so demanding. And me? I just kept you two alive because you are an incompetent fool and bats is just too much fun."
The Joker took a deep breath. "But. You turned out to be such a killjoy. What exactly did batsy do or say to get you to take such drastic measures?'
When Gordon didn't reply the Joker sighed. "I'm not big on revenge killings, if you study them you'll see that there is actually a pattern. And I just hate patterns."
The knife was scratching Gordon's neck, irritating the area.
"Please..." Gordon gasped as the metal dug further into his skin.
"Shut up Gordon. I want you to die a man of honor, that's more than you deserve."
"No please, I didn't want kill him."
The knife stopped it's slow inch and was withdrawn. The Joker backed off and whipped the mask off the figure on the gurney.
Gordon got off his knees, they ached from their prolonged time on the floor. The knife whipped around to Gordon's throat and the Commissioner froze again, his eyes squeezed closed.
"He looks pretty dead to me."
Gordon opened his eyes and yelped. Batman's mask was dangling off the Joker's long fingers and Batman's face was revealed in the moonlight.
It wasn't Bruce Wayne.
Well, yeah, yet another short chappie, I'm trying to get back on track. I dedicate this chapter to Margaret Flora, an amazing artist and loyal friend who was taken too soon in a horrible way.