It's a long drive from Gotham to Smallville, Kansas.
Jade rides beside him and Artemis sleeps in the back. Jade says nothing to him, but her eyes still speak volumes. Artemis wakes up two or three times, cries for her mother, and then falls back into an uneasy sleep.
It's hell.
Tears threaten to blur his vision whenever he so much as thinks of Paula's name. Grief tears at his mind like a hungry tiger. He doesn't know how to live without her.
He wants to grieve. He wants to scream. He wants to kill and fight and die.
But he can't.
He can't die.
He has his girls to think of.
Jade is tough and strong. He wanted her to be strong so that she wouldn't have to be afraid of anything—even him. She's already very good …but not as good as she thinks she is.
The Shadows will take her. They will take her and make her into the thing that her mother had fled from. They will make her into a killer.
They will make her like him.
He will do anything to prevent that.
And Artemis… His Artemis. Her training has barely begun, but he can already see her potential. She's going to be good—potentially better than Paula, than Jade … even himself.
He can see her stalking the night, killing with every unleashed arrow … her hands stained with the blood of the Shadows' enemies…
No.
Not that.
He will not permit that.
If he had someplace safe he could leave the girls, he could go to the Shadows … either to bargain with them or to force them to leave his girls alone …
Oh, my Lawrence. He can virtually hear Paula say the words to him. You are bold indeed, my love. But do not let false pride lead you astray. Not even youcan defeat every assassin of the League of Shadows. At least not alone …
He pushes the thought away. No. He will not train his daughters to fight the League of Shadows. He will not make them killers. He will not let the Shadows win.
"We're nearly out of gas, daddy dearest."
"What?" He blinks and glances over at his oldest.
"We're nearly out of gas. There's a truck stop coming up. We should stop."
He looks down at the dash and sees that she's right. He also sees the sign about the upcoming truck stop. "All right. We'll get some food too."
Jade says nothing.
He pulls in. "Artemis, baby, wake up."
"Are we there yet?" Artemis rubs the sleep out of her eyes, looking younger than her nine years.
"No, baby. It's a pit stop. Go on inside with your sister. I'll be right there."
"Wanna stay with you." Artemis yawns.
"No, baby. I need you to go with Jade. I'll be right in. I promise."
"Come on, Artemis." Jade takes her little sister's hand. "I know daddy dearest isn't the best at keeping promises, but I don't think he's going to desert us just yet."
He wants to protest—needs to protest—but he can't.
Jade's right.
His track record at keeping promises to his girls is lousy.
He could use some sleep, but he doesn't dare stop for it. Jade may run away.
Or kill him in his sleep.
In spite of himself, in spite of his grief, he smiles at the thought.
If the Shadows don't get him, Jade just might.
He finishes filling the tank up and goes inside to pay. He can remember when truck stops were privately owned— remembers eating more greasy hamburgers than he can count and sleeping in the car as he crisscrossed the county searching for someone—anyone—willing to train him. Those days—like most of his teachers—are gone now.
He spots Artemis sitting by herself at the counter, looking at a menu. She's doing her best to look all grown up and mature, and the waitress is smiling at her—a smile that goes a little uneasy when she sees him walk up.
He's used to the fear. He's a big guy, and pretty much looks like the bruiser he is. People expect trouble when they see him, and most of the time they're right.
He smiles at the waitress and does his best not to look intimidating. "Hey, baby. Did your sister go to the bathroom?"
He's uneasy about Jade leaving Artemis alone, but he doesn't think that she'd run away without her little sister.
Artemis shrugs. "She went off with some guy."
"A boy?" Jade's a teenager now, and has enough of her mother's looks to have no problem attracting boys. He knows that she likes to flirt, but she's not normally so irresponsible as to leave Artemis alone.
"No. An old guy. Maybe as old as you."
He glances at the waitress who looks away. "I didn't see nothin', mister."
"Do you know where they went, baby?"
"Towards the back. He said he was a truck driver and wanted to show us his truck. He wanted both of us to go with him, but Jade said to wait here for you." Artemis looks at him. "He was kind of a creep, Dad."
"Stay here, baby." A quick look at the waitress's nametag. "Polly here is going to take good care of you while I'm gone. Jade and I'll be right back."
He's worried.
Artemis is young, but Jade is old enough not to go off with strangers—not to leave her sister alone. Especially with a grown man trying to chat up two children. Why had she done it?
He heads out back to where the trucks are kept. There's one with an open door. He can see Jade climbing out of the cabin, holding a wad of bills.
Did she-? Did he-?
He runs over to her. He grabs her by the shoulders. "Did he-?"
"Of course not, daddy dearest." She shrugs her away free of his hands. "I knew what he was when I went with him. He didn't touch me. Not the way he wanted to, anyway."
He spits out a curse and walks over to the truck, climbing into the cabin.
A man—big, fat, but nearly as tall as he is—is slumped over the steering will.
"Did you kill him?"
He's afraid to check for himself. Afraid of the answer. Afraid of what it means for his daughter.
Afraid of what it means for his family.
"No. I just knocked him out and took his money. I don't imagine he's going to say anything to anyone though. By the time he comes to, someone will have checked on him and seen the pictures that he's got in that truck. I don't think he'll be inviting any other girls into his truck anytime soon …"
Jade smirks at him.
Yesterday he would have climbed into the cabin and killed the man himself. He would have complimented his daughter on what she did, how she handled herself. He would have been proud.
Now … now he's afraid.
He knows how quickly death can take away what he loves. He knows what it's like to lose someone. He knows what it's like to be afraid.
But Jade is alive. Jade is alive and she didn't kill. Her hands aren't stained with blood.
At least not yet.
"All right then. Let's get Artemis and get back on the road."
"I thought you wanted to get something to eat, daddy dearest. I'll even pay."
"I've lost my appetite. Come on. We've still got a long way to go."
He reaches out and touches her shoulder—as much to prove to himself that she's still here—still alive, still safe—as anything else.
For a moment—a second—Jade lets him. She looks up into her father's eyes and almost—almost—smiles.
For a moment, they're almost a family again.
Almost.
Jade pushes his hand away. "It's not that easy, Daddy dearest. I'm not Artemis. I know what you are."
And then she walks away.