"MOM—Ben stole one of my French Toast!" Julian yelled in the kitchen.
Jackie sighed heavily as she walked into the kitchen in her nurse outfit, she looked at both of her sons, Julian who was now 10; and Ben who had just turned 3; both boys looked like their father.
"Mommy, when is daddy coming home?" Ben asked.
Jackie checked her watch "I don't know, he should've been home by now; and mommy needs to go to work soon, huh?" she spoke, looking at Ben.
"And I'm going to be late for the bus." Julian spoke, getting off his chair and grabbing his backpack.
Jackie sighed "Are you sure you don't want to wait for your dad to get home? I'll take you to school." she asked, walking out of the kitchen and following her oldest to the front door; who grabbed his favorite hoodie from the coat hanger.
"If dad's not home by now, it's obvious he's going to be late." Julian spoke, opening the front door right as Commissioner Gordon rang the door bell, with two Gotham City officers catching up behind him.
Julian looked at his mother "I didn't do it!" he yelled, running past Gordon and down the porch to catch the bus before it left him behind.
Jackie smiled at Gordon, who cleared his throat "Mrs. Crane, may I come in?" he asked sternly.
She lost her smile, Gordon's somber looking put knots in Jackie's stomach as she let Gordon and the two officers into her home "Please, sit down…" she spoke softly, sitting across from the old friend.
Gordon cleared his throat again "Mrs. Crane, I'm afraid I have some bad news." He spoke softly, adjusting his glasses for a moment.
Jackie huffed "What did he do? Is he in Arkham or did he go straight to GCPD?" she asked, feeling her body tense into a ball, trying to avoid what the real reason was to why Commissioner Gordon was in her home.
Gordon took Jackie's hand "…he's in Gotham City Morgue…"
Jackie felt an invisible punch into her ribs as she leaned forward, trying to hide her sobs from the Commissioner as she covered her face; Gordon held onto her hand tighter.
"Jackie…"
"No!" Jackie sobbed.
Gordon got off the couch and crouched next to Jackie "…Jackie, I'm so sorry." He comforted her.
Jackie looked up to Gordon "What happened?" she asked.
Gordon took a deep breathe "We're not exactly sure yet, but he was shot…" he whispered softly.
Jackie cried in agony again, attracting attention from Ben, who came out from the kitchen to see the cops surrounding his mother "Mommy?"
Gordon turned to the youngest Crane son, before turning to an officer and motioned to comfort the youngest while he tried to keep the focus on Jackie, who was losing control of her emotions.
"…you should go." Jackie spoke, taking a deep breathe and getting up off the couch and walking away.
Gordon followed Jackie into the kitchen where she picked up Ben and turned around to him "You should go…please." She asked, opening the front door and turning away.
The commissioner and his officers walked out of the house, leaving Jackie alone with her youngest son; Gordon turned back to Jackie "…I don't want to leave you alone!" he told her.
Jackie shook her head "I'll be fine." She said, slamming the door in Gordon's face.
The officers walked with Gordon, who looked somber as he walked back to his patrol car; one of the officers turned to Gordon "Should we call somebody?" the officer asked.
Commissioner Gordon turned back to the house before looking back to the officer "…call Mr. Wayne, let him notify her next of kin." He spoke before walking away.
Jackie glared at the ceiling as she lied on her side of the bed, still in her nurse outfit as she stared blankly at the white ceiling.
She heard the doorbell ring faintly outside her bedroom, she didn't care who it was and didn't want to speak with anybody; she didn't want to respond to the reporters, or have the neighbors fake their sympathy by giving her a pie or worse, a quiche.
"Mom?" she heard Julian ask as he opened her bedroom door.
Jackie closed her eyes "…what, Jules?" she asked softly.
"Uncle Bruce and grandpa are here." He said, before letting the door open widely and Jackie could hear a near-stampede of foot steps coming into her bedroom.
Jackie covered her face "I really don't—no, just leave! Go! Please." She spoke as Alfred sat next to her on the bed and turned her lamp on.
Alfred stroked his 'daughters' hair for a moment "…it's alright dear." He spoke softly as Jackie tried to ignore Alfred's comforting touch and Bruce's glances as he distracted both Julian and Ben.
It was the noise, the familiarity of it all that made Jackie shoot up in her bed as Alfred moved so he wouldn't get hit; she hadn't realized that the sun was already setting as she turned to her clock, 6:43 P.M.
Alfred scooted back on the bed as he looked at Jackie, whose hand he was holding as he waited for something, whether it was a shrieking cry or a jerk to get her hand back; Alfred waited for that moment.
"…why did he have to die?" Jackie whispered.
Alfred sighed as he shook his head, letting a tear fall down his cheek "I don't know. I honestly don't know, love." He whispered to her.
Jackie sighed as she sat against the bed with Alfred, adjusting her hair and her outfit as she looked down at her lap "…I'm gonna go change into something else." She muttered as she got off the bed and walked into the bathroom.
Bruce walked in as Jackie closed the bathroom door, sitting next to Alfred who turned to him "…this isn't going well…she's not responding." Alfred spoke.
"I'll get to the bottom of it, I'm going to find who did this. This wasn't some accident, Alfred…somebody killed him." Bruce whispered.
Alfred patted Bruce's shoulder "Just don't keep her in the dark." He muttered as he got off the bed and walked out of the bedroom.
