Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from the DC Universe.
Chapter 34
[5:00 pm. Next day]
I paced around the room, running my hands through my hair every so often. I licked my dry painted lips anxiously and groaned loudly,
" I can't wait any longer I'm going now" I complained heading for the door.
Ace quickly put her laptop down and jumped up. She raced over and blocked the door from me, stating "Oh no you don't Ava, not yet. I'm almost done!"
I groaned once again and followed her over to the table and slumped down roughly in a chair. The chair rocked and suddenly toppled over sending me with it. The Joker laughed at me, lying crumpled in a red and green heap on the floor. I stood up and glared at him, dusting myself off.
"That was so not funny" I muttered before carefully sitting myself down again making sure as not to fall off this time.
The Joker grinned at me from across the table and winked, I mock glared at him for laughing at me, pouting slightly before looking over at Ace.
Her painted face broke into a smile, she clapped her hands in victory and turned the laptop to face me.
"There you go Ava; I told you I could do it. Here is everything on this Cassie, everything from date of birth to mental disorders. Trust me; she isn't someone you want to be messing with. Just look at this "Ace told me pointing at the screen.
I began to read out-loud;
"Her real name is Cassandra Monroe. Her mother had a severe mental disorder known as Dissociative Amnesia which means she couldn't remember personal information among other things. She wouldn't have even known Cassie was her daughter. Her mother also suffered from Schizophrenia which meant after she was diagnosed with it, she was sent to an Arkham Asylum, it says here"
Ace read on and told us both;
"Look here! It says after her father died, Cassie was sent to an orphanage. There she was abused and bullied, the teachers said she was unusually quite and often got into fights with the other children. The worst case, it says was when she stapled a kid arms to a large crucifix the orphanage had and wrote in the kids blood 'There is no hope for any of us. I'm going to kill you all. So long and good night kiddies' She was sent away to a psychiatrist but one day she returned to the orphanage, they were all afraid of her and refused to have her. She murdered four kids. Cassie was only seven when all this happen. Oh my goodness, Ava read that"
I read a small paragraph about the murders and how one day after the orphanage was abandoned she return and were raped by a boy still living there. The file continued the rest was all about her mental disorders, personal information and criminal record.
"Paranoia, personality disorders, depression. Bad childhood, parentless, drugs, alcohol. You name it, this Cassie is one messed up chick. She is dangerous Ava, your not going out there alone today" Ace said firmly, she looked at the Joker.
The Joker smirked and pulled out his knife, it glinted as he twirled it in between his fingers, he licked his lips, "Don't look at me. Jinxy is doing this to save that pra-"
"Matt!"
"Right Matt. I want no part in it. Although if we do find him...I guess I could just kill him then and there…" He muttered thinking about it for a moment.
There was a silence before the Jokers knife was forcefully stabbed into the table. He burst out laughing hysterically before cheering "Alright Jinxy babe, I'm in. I convinced me. Let's go"
He pulled the knife out and leapt up, he walked away from the table pulling me roughly by the arm along with him.
"I'll see you later Ace. Thanks for the help" I called
She waved at me smiling slightly before turning back to her laptop.
I shut the door behind me and followed the Joker into the van.
"Where to?" He asked getting behind the steering wheel.
"Le póléa róse restaurant" I stated.
"Ah Yes. I remember that night well" The Joker said giggling evilly.
"So do I" I muttered
The van sped round the corners in the direction of the restaurant. Suddenly a thought strung to my mind.
"Wait you blew it up. There's nothing there!" I cried
"They rebuilt it. Thanks to a little donation from good old' Brucey" Joker explained.
"Oh" I murmured
"It was quite an eventful night wasn't it? Back then" he inquired.
"As I recall you forced me to tell Bruce about my little erm...double life. Which resulted in his confession of love and his almost very near death" I remarked.
The Joker laughed and slowed the van slightly " As I recall Jinxy babe, it went something like this" he said leaning over and kissing me sweetly on the lips.
He pulled away and murmured "You and I both know Brucey cant love you the way I can"
He leant back and turned his attention back to the road speeding up the van intensely.
"Mmhmm. I agree with that, no one shows love better than a murdering clown who had his last girlfriend blown up using a mobile phone to the lower intestine" I retorted with a smirk.
"You weren't saying that last night Jinxy. If memory serves correctly, I think I caused quite a few smiles" Joker retorted
"Just drive" I muttered, my cheeks flushing pink.
He laughed at my embarrassment and hit the breaks abruptly. He burst into his usual insane laughter and cried "No need. Were here!"
I stared at the new and rebuilt restaurant.
Memories came flooding back; Bruce's voice rang out through my mind, images of Jinx flashed and The Jokers cruel insane laugh and grin.
I shook my thoughts away and proceeded to walk up to the new building.
Pressing my hands against the new glass door, I groaned reading the sign.
Closed.
The Joker pulled out a gun and pushed me aside. Stumbling backwards, I covered my ears, watching the glass shatter into a million pieces as the bullet hit.
" That's how to open a door" he chortled
The Joker gripped my hand and pulled me inside the restaurant. It was all silent and nothing was out of the ordinary...well...except for the present on a large table.
What...what!?
I ran over to the present and reached out to open it.
"No don't!" The Joker yelled grabbing my hand and yanking it away.
"What?" I shouted
"Were being watched" he murmured looking around.
"Your paranoid" I replied reaching for the present.
But he gripped my wrist tightly.
"Let me" The Joker stated.
He slit the corners of the present and cut the sides quickly before pulling me safely away from the present. The sides collapsed and a pie suddenly flung out and splattered against the opposite wall. He walked over and sniffed at the smashed pie. He grinned and walked back.
"Cyanide Pie" The Joker stated
My mouth hung open slightly in shock.
" Ugh...thanks" I murmured.
He peered inside the box, reaching in he pulled out a note. The Joker read it out loud,
"Ha-ha! Gotcha, if you didn't like our present then here is the last clue. You will find Matt here.....Come tomorrow at 10 pm, here is your last clue. A coin and a man. Who had so many plans. Never knew his fate wasn't in his hands, Harvey Dent, the man with more than one face. You'll find Matt in his dying place. It ended their for him, come and get your prize. Matt is at?"
I thought hard about the riddle.
Then it struck me, remembering the news report about where Harvey Dent had died.
" The abandon McKinley enterprise that's it!"
The Joker laughed and ruffled my hair " that my girl"
Suddenly he turned his head to the side and stared at something. He grinned, laughing madly and pulled out his switchblade. He flicked it up and slowly walked closer to something in the corner tilting his head to the side slightly.
[Meanwhile in a secret location, two people watched Jinx and The Joker closely]
Cassie grinned as she watched them enter the restaurant at exactly 6:00 pm.
Matt stood beside her and watches grimly as the woman he loved entered holding hands with that psychopathic clown freak!
They must pay!
Anger flared inside him as he saw Ava reach out for the present but be stopped by The Joker. Matt growled quietly through gritted teeth.
How dare that freak touch Ava.
"He isn't worth the ground she walks on" Matt muttered
Cassie tore herself away from the screen to look at Matt, she laugh slightly and spoke in a fast tone "Thought you hated the wench? Yeah yeah yeah.......hahahahaha... you said. You said. You hated her...yep…yep you Time to kill em"
"Your crazy and I do, I want them both dead, doesn't mean I don't love Ava any less" he stated.
Cassie calmed slightly and ignored him turning once again to face the screen.
Her eyes widened as the Joker looked instantly directly at the camera. They both watch as he pulled out a switchblade and flashed it to the camera grinning as he slowly got nearer.
" I know your there kiddies. This erm...plan of yours Matt, it isn't going to work" The Joker snarled loud enough for the camera to pick up but not loud enough for Ava to here.
He smirked and looked back at Ava before his head snapped back to the camera.
" You don't know what your missing Lt. My girl Jinxy is amazing...hehe in more ways than one. You had your chance Matty, so you might as well give up now. Because yours and this erm...Cassie's schemes and plans wont work. It's pathetic. Oh and Cassie, these rules your setting...well...you should know by now that the only sensible way to live in this world is without rules, I'm gonna break your useless rules and I'm gonna break you. I would have thought you would have learnt that after your mother went koo-koo" The Joker taunted.
Cassie's fists were balled up and she shook with anger.
How did that clown know about her poor mother?
The Joker burst out laughing as if he could see her getting angrier and angrier.
" By the way Matt because I know your watching, this ones for you" The Joker snarled
"Jinxy come here" he turned and said almost gently to Ava.
She looked up and walked over to him,
"Yeah?" She asked innocently.
He leaned down and kissed her, Matt watched furiously as Ava wrapped her arms around that madman and kissed him back, he turned away and after a few minutes, Cassie snapped "You can look now they have stopped"
Matt slowly turned around and gasped. The Joker held Ava tightly in his arms and they both stared at the camera, The Joker was grinning wildly whilst Ava had a confused look on her face, he pointed to the screen,
"Look right there babe. There is a camera there. Cassie is watching from a secret location somewhere in Gotham. When we find them Jinxy, Cassie has a little surprise for you. Anything to say to her? Since I know she's watching"
Ava remained silent but then glared furiously into the eyes of Cassie as if she could almost see her. A rippled of fear went through Cassie but she shook it away and grinned as Ava snarled " I don't know who the hell you think you are. But you clearly have no idea who your messing with. I don't know what your grudge is against me but your going down Cassie. I'll make sure you burn in hell just like your psycho mother and father. You think you know everything about me? Well here is something new; I know everything about you bitch!"
The grin went from Cassie's face and was replaced with a furious look, a snarl escaped her lips. Matt balled his hands into a fist and threw a punch at the screen as The Joker walked away hand in hand with Ava.
The last thing he heard from them was the Joker say to her "Don't worry doll face. We'll make em laugh!"
His loud laugh rang out through the room where Cassie and Matt were, fear shook them and suddenly their plots, plans and torture schemes seem small and pathetic compared to what would happen to them if The Joker and Ava had there way.
There was no escaping this, one way or another someone's punch line was coming soon.
The ultimate punch line and curtain call called to them and deaths scythe swished past there bodies.
Matt shook with anger and fear. He felt his punch line coming ever so close as did Cassie. They tried to shake their worries and doubts away but from those few moments of hearing the Jokers cruel and merciless laugh, his punch line to them became to clear in their minds.
The ultimate punch line was coming.
Death.
But for who?