Chapter 3

The next morning, Piper woke to the smell of pancakes and bacon. She jumped out of her bed and ran down stairs to find Bruce and Dick already awake. Bruce smiled as she walked in.

"Did you sleep well Piper?"

Piper nodded. "Better than I have in years. Thank you so much Bruce."

He smiled. "It's no trouble at all Piper. Would you like breakfast?"

She laughed. "Of course!"

They all ate their breakfast, joking and laughing the whole time. So this is what a real family is like, Piper thought. She smiled all throughout breakfast.

A few hours later, Bruce, Dick, and Piper were walking to the train station. Piper was holding Bruce's hand, swinging their arms back and forth. They talked about Piper's new school and the design of her new room. He's more like a real dad, she thought.

"Do we really have to talk to him?" Piper asked. "Why can't you just send him an email?"

Bruce laughed. "It's more business like to talk face to face."

"Sounds like a Bruce Wayne thing to say," Piper responded. Dick laughed and Bruce gave a little chuckle.

On the train, Dick and Piper played Sweet-or-Sour with other passengers. They laughed and joked the whole way. Many people asked Bruce about Piper. He said that she was Dick's new sister. When they heard this, Dick and Piper exchanged huge grins. Dick was especially excited by this news. For a long time, Bruce had done so much to help him. Now, he had someone to help and protect. He decided then and there, he would be the big brother she could count on and that he would do anything to keep her safe.

They got off the train in east Gotham. Piper led them to the poorer part of town and they followed her to her old house. It was a small, rundown two story house, with peeling paint and splintering wood. Bruce walked up to the door and knocked. A man with a scruffy beard opened the door. He had an empty bottle of beer in his hand. The man looked at them in disgust.

"What do you want?" he slurred.

"Excuse me," Bruce said. "Clint Baker correct?"

"Yeah, what's it to ya?"

"Perhaps you remember me from your trial. My name is Bruce Wayne. I'm here on behalf of your daughter Piper."

"That little witch. What did she do this time?"

"It's not a matter of what she did sir. I'm here to inform you that I'm taking her in."

"You're what?!"

"Piper told me everything you've done to her. It is not appropriate to raise a child this way. You will be arrested for child abuse and finally convicted of the terrible crime you were accused of. Ann will have justice."

Piper looked at Bruce then at her father. They were talking about her mom. She will have justice? What happened to her?

Anger rose inside Baker's eyes. "How dare you accuse me of such things! How dare you mention my wife in front of my daughter. Do you know how long it took for me to finally stop her crying over her mother? I've been the best father that ungrateful girl could ever have!"

"Best father my butt!" Piper yelled. She tried to hit him but Dick grabbed her arm and held her back.

"You," her father growled. "You brought these people here. You're the reason I'm like this! You're the reason your mother disappeared!"

"No Baker!" Bruce stepped in front of him. "You're the reason her mother is gone! You killed her remember?"

Piper heart skipped a beat. "You killed her? You killed mom?!"

"Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill you!" her father lunged and swung his beer bottle at Piper. Dick pushed her behind him. The beer bottle struck him across the head and he fell to the ground.

"Dick!" Piper kneeled beside him. He was holding the side of his forehead. A tickle of blood made its way through his fingers and down his face. She turned and looked at her father with pure hatred in her eyes. "You monster!"

"You…" Bruce balled his fist and punched Piper's father in the face. He slumped to the floor unconscious. Bruce knelt next to Dick and put pressure on his head.

"Piper, do you know where a phone is?"

"Yeah, there's one in the house."

"Call the police. Now!"

Piper ran into the house and got the phone. She dialed 911 and told them everything that happened. The police arrived shortly after and took her father away. The paramedics bandaged Dick's head. After the excitement was over, Piper sat on the front step with her head on her knees. Bruce sat down next to her.

"Did he really kill my mom?" Piper asked without lifting her head.

Bruce put his arm around Piper and took a deep breath. "Piper, your father was drunk that night. They had an argument. Over you. They were going to get a divorce and your mother wanted you. Your father's aggressive side took over and he struck her. Your mother was dead before we got there."

Piper lifted her head. "You were there?"

Bruce sighed. "Piper, when we get back home, I will tell you something that will help explain things."

Piper nodded. Dick stumbled over with a paramedic spotting him.

"Can we go home now?" he asked.

Bruce smiled and helped Piper to her feet. "We can go home now." He turned to the paramedic. "Is there any way we could get a ride back to Wayne Manor?"

"Of course," the paramedic said. "Just get in the back of the ambulance."

"Thank you," Bruce said. He loaded Piper and Dick into the truck and then stepped in. Bruce smiled at Piper and put his hand on her shoulder. "Let's go home."