DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the Teen Titans characters, or the DC Comic Characters. Nor any of the brand names found in this story!

Summary: Kori Anders, news reporter, has seen a lot in her time. With the recent killing of civilians, Kori is putting away her papers, and testing out her investigation skills. Not only worrying about becoming the next target, she is worrying about her old flame Richard Grayson who seems to be appearing a lot more often, especially when she is with billionaire and rival to Bruce Wayne, Slade Wilson. Who is killing the people and will Kori be next? Oh, and who is Nightwing?

Dedication: I would like to dedicate to all of my fans who have been amazing and leaving supporting comments! I would especially like to dedicate this chapter to Star of Airdrie who has not only been my one hundredth reviewer, but who has become a good friend and an inspiration to me on Fan Fiction! Hope you all enjoy!

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Nineteen

"Where have you been?" The voice of Victor rang in Richard's ears.

"Last minute Christmas presents. Have you seen Kori anywhere?"

"Nah, man, last time I saw her she was dancing with her date Slade Wilson."

"I hate that man, but I have to admit…he throws one hell of a party." Gar had crept up on the two, causing Victor to almost spill his drink.

"Watch it, man! Victor scolded.

"I'm just saying…something about him, isn't right." They all peeked over to look watch as Slade chuckled at something another man in a tux suit said.

"I'll agree with you there, Gar." Richard took a glass of champagne off of a tray. He took a sip, downing half of the glass.

"Gar, have you seen Kori?" Richard bit his lip. It was something he rarely did, unless he was extremely nervous.

"Sorry, man. Haven't seen here since the beginning of the night…have you checked with Rachel or Karen?"

"I'll go find them now." Richard excused himself from his friends and began his search for Kori.

- - - - - - -

It was dark and dreary in the deepest part of Slade Wilson's mansion. Beyond his well furnished basement was a secret door that led to his underground lair. The ceiling dripped droplets of tainted water and the ground smelt of urine.

A small area was set up with a large comfortable black chair. It sat in front of seven large television screens, flipping through images of the party, security camera videos of Nightwing, and pictures of Kori. The seat was empty and the silence was unbearable. The small droplets dripped though, which gave the illusion that the room was not empty. The cracked floors had bugs and small mice cowering over the split cement. The wall as well was cracked; the cement bricks ruined and had stains run down the side. The air was stiff, the space was small.

In the middle of the room sat a young red head. Her hair was now down from its original up do. Volcanic hair cascaded her face as her head hung down in a sleeping form. Her dress was dirty at the bottom, a small rip on the right side of the long gown. Her feet were bare from the heels she once wore.

She lay unconscious in front of one giant wall to wall, floor to ceiling television screen. The party played in silence, the elite of Jump having a grand time not aware of what had just happened minutes ago. They drank and ate until their stomachs were full. They all were excited as there were only two hours left until twelve o'clock, when Christmas night would then be upon them.

Kori sat on an old brown chair. The chair was uncomfortable, too firm, and slightly rickety. Her legs were tied tightly with rope, each leg tied to the two front leg chairs. The rope was tight, impossible to untie or get lose without a knife. Her arms were tied behind her as well with the same thick rope. She was trapped, a prisoner waiting for her execution to come.

In the deep shadows of the night was a young man, wearing a white mask with a red X going through the design. He watched his prey with intense eyes. His job was simple. Be ready at any moment, to pounce.

- - - - - - -

"I'm worried about Kori."

"Why are you worried about her?"

"I just am." Rachel sighed.

"She can handle herself, she is a big girl." Karen gave Rachel a look.

"I know she can, I just feel like right now, she isn't going to be able to." Rachel shook her head and the two walked away from the bathroom.

"What do you mean?"

"She was so upset all day and I have no clue about what thought. It's really bugging me." Together they pushed through hoards of people.

"She had a date yesterday with someone, maybe Richard might know something? Haven't they been getting closer?" Karen smoothed out her red dress, the sparkly material shone in the light.

"Maybe…" Rachel ignored that Kori had forgot to mention her about her date. "Excuse me, Karen, while I go to find Richard."

"No need to, he's walking over now." Rachel looked over at Karen. Karen got the hint she needed to be alone with Richard and walked off to go find Victor.

"Rachel, we need to talk."

"So do we," Rachel crossed her arms over her chest.

"Do you know where Kori is?" Richard asked. He looked around the crowd of people, not seeing the vibrant red hair he wished to see.

"No, I haven't seen her at all a matter of fact. Last time I saw her was before Gar and I left. We invited her to come with us, but she rejected the offer."

"Oh, well thanks…" Richard began to walk off in search of Kori, but the hand that grabbed his arm firmly held him back.

"What, Rachel?" Richard hissed. He was annoyed and really needed to find Kori.

"We said we both needed to talk. You asked what you had to ask. Now, now it's my turn."

"Okay…" Richard stood patiently waiting for Rachel to say something.

"Has Kori mentioned anything to you? Today, she was just, upset all morning. Something was on her mind and it was obvious she wasn't going to tell me. She even mentioned to me something about how people lie and keep secrets."

"Hasn't mentioned a thing," Richard gulped.

"Are you positive?"

"Yes…" He silently breathed out relief.

"Okay, another thing as well, did Kori mention a date at all to you? She was supposed to go on one last night. That's what Karen told me at least. I'm thinking this guy did something to her."

"Kori hasn't told me anything. To be honest I haven't seen her all day. Excuse me Rachel, I see Bruce calling."

- - - - - - -

Richard walked away from Rachel as fast as he could. He was thankful Bruce called him over. He felt hot, his palms were sweaty. He felt that the air in the room was stuffy. He rubbed the back of his neck as he approached Bruce.

"Rich-"

"Thanks for calling me…"

"Richa-"

"Rachel was asking some interesting…"

"Richard!" Bruce interrupted Richard calling his name loud and clear. Some people looked at the two. The dirty look from Bruce cleared the space around them.

"Is there really a need to yell?" Richard hissed.

"Yes, if you don't listen. Now come with me."

Together the two walked away to the balcony outside, overlooking Slade's gardens. The night air was silent and cold. Chills formed on Richard's arms and he gave Bruce an impatient look. Bruce gave his own look though, a serious look. Richard took a deep breath.

"Have you seen Kori at all tonight, Richard?" Bruce first asked. His head looked down.

"No, I haven't." Richard took another breath. He stared at Bruce hard, figuring out what he had to say.

"Richard…I, I think Kori is in grave danger." Bruce closed his eyes, afraid to see his adoptive son's pained face.

"What do you mean?"

- - - - - - -

His tux was tailored to a perfect fit, showing off his masculine body. His black hair was slicked back. His breath was fresh and very minty. His teeth were white and perfectly straight. His cologne covered his body in a non overbearing scent. He was Bruce Wayne, he was perfect.

Walking into Slade Wilson's party gave him a feeling of disgust. His very business opponent was a slick man, as quick as a fox, a man you would certainly never trust with your life. He was a conniving weasel, but very few ever saw that side. They could never look past the charming rich personality.

Bruce had already had quite a few drinks in him by the time he had arrived at Slade's party. He was happy he could hold his liquor well. However, the liquor seemed to forget its job because when Bruce walked into the party he still felt uneasy about the whole night.

He had grabbed a glass of champagne and mingled with a few of the other socialites. Within the first hour he already had two girls on his arms. One was a beautiful blonde, who had big breasts, and wore a very revealing purple dress. The other was a brunette. Her hair was long and curled and went well past her breast to her mid back, draping over her white dress. He had mixed up their names already. He believed the blonde to be Cindy and the brunette to be Sarah? Or maybe it was the other way around? He couldn't remember and at this point it, he didn't care. It was Christmas Eve a time where all women were looking for a Mr. Claus., a job he was happy to fill.

"She probably thinks she is so good looking with that Mr. Wilson." Cindy spoke. Bruce suddenly remembered, the brunette was indeed Cindy.

"Well, she does look good. Wonder who she is wearing…" Sarah let out a dreamy sigh.

"Who cares," Cindy had rolled her eyes. She pouted.

"Now ladies, who are we talking about? Who could be more beautiful then you two?" Bruce chuckled. He was indeed a womanizer.

"That reporter girl…what's her name Sarah?"

"Kori Anders, that's her name. Just this morning even wrote a bullshit article on the man." Cindy turned her nose up in disgust.

"Wonder why she would ever show her face here! That little bit-" Sarah began to spoke, but Bruce coughed. The two giggled and blushed.

"Excuse me ladies. It seems my drink is empty…I'll me right back, I'm going to get another one. Don't have too much fun without me." His wink drove them to blush and giggle again.

Walking away briskly, he placed his empty glass on a server who carried an empty tray. He pushed through the dancers and all of the gossipers. He rushed over to see Slade Wilson and Kori Anders in a heated dance, continuing to swirl and twirl all the way across the dance floor. Where were they going?

Bruce walked further out into the dance floor now seeing an empty hallway. He watched it seemed in slow motion as Slade ushered Kori into the hallway. He seemed to push her into someone else's arms. He walked further out to see a set of gloved hands covering Kori's mouth with a white dirty looking cloth. Her eyes fought to stay open. Her body was seen struggling against the strong arms of the unknown person. He seemed to be the only one to hear her muffled cry.

"Richard!"

- - - - - - -

"Are you sure this happened?" Richard's knuckles were white. He had been squeezing his hands so hard. He took a deep breath, his eyes closing, trying to control his anger.

"Yes, I tried to follow them Richard, but Wilson saw me so I disappeared. I don't know where they took her or even why. It doesn't make sense…" Bruce shook his head in thought.

"Yes it does."

"What, how?" Bruce looked up. He shifted anxiously.

"I don't know how we could have been so stupid, how I could have been so stupid. All along…"

"Richard, what's going on?" Bruce's voice was firm.

"I'm going to save Kori. I'll have a tracker on me. If I don't contact you or Alfred within four hours, I need you, I need Batman or someone to come after me. Got it?" His eyes opened, the world seemed darker. Kori was in trouble. She wasn't here to calm him or brighten up his world.

"Richard, tell me what's going on!"

"Bruce, I can't talk. I have to go."

"Come back here!" Bruce yelled as Richard walked inside.

"I can't, I won't, and there isn't time to waste when Kori's life is on the line."

"You're being reckless and stupid you know that?" That got Richard to stop.

He turned around with a grin on his face. "Guess that's how you act when you love someone."

- - - - - - -

The room around her was still dark. Only the television screens illuminated the room. Her head ached, her breath came tired and ragged, and she felt dizzy as well. Slowly opening her eyes the room spun around her. She couldn't see straight for a few minutes.

As her vision cleared and Kori lifted her head, she felt her body restricted. She struggled for a minute before looking down to see ropes tightly limiting her whole entire body. She slowly lifted her head. It was painful experience for her neck had been hanging down awkwardly the whole time.

The room around her was reeking, dark, and terrifying. She swallowed hard as she wished she would go back to her peaceful sleep. She looked around the fractured walls with ooze stains dripping down the wall. Mice rummaged around the floor looking for any crumbs they could find. The ceiling was split as well, water dripping. You could count the drops.

"Wha-" She stopped mid sentence. She heard heavy footsteps.

Her vision rested on the floor and she watched as black boots came towards her. She began to look up to see familiar all black apparel. The red X was burned into her memory. The gloved hands reached towards her. The white mask tilted sideways, her breath escaped her.

"Glad to see your up, cutie." You could hear his chuckle as well as Kori's terrified scream.

- - - - - - -

Richard had never been happier that he had chosen his black BMW to take to the party. He had driven himself there and had driven himself back home in less than ten minutes. Of course he had sped through many red lights and broke more than a few traffic laws, but he didn't give a damn at all.

Running into his house he ran to the front where he quickly used his keys to get in. It had taken longer than expected after trying to deal with shaky hands. Once getting in he closed the door and ran upstairs, ignoring Alfred's call.

His door to his room came into vision and Richard ran inside. He suppressed the smile coming to his face after once again thinking of last night's memories. His sheets were in a tangled heat and clothes were still found on the ground. He had no time to think of those memories though.

He walked to his closet and flicked on the light and gasped. Clothes were thrown on the floor exposing his secret door to Nightwing's lair. He felt his heart drop and walking in he realized he had forgot to shut this door for many nights now.

Walking into the room, everything looked the same. Walking over to his computer he typed in the code he knew by heart. His computer greeted him and he sighed. Licking his lips in frustration he leaned over the control keys.

"Computer, show me a surveillance video of within the last twelve hours of who was last in here."

The computer took a minute to operate to its owner's command. The screen which was originally blank now turned on to show surveillance video. Richard knew that red hair from anywhere as the woman looked around the room.

"Freeze."

The video froze right where it was. Richard stared at the screen. Kori had managed to look right into the camera at that moment. Her face showed everything, all of her emotions came to life. The fear in her eyes was evident as well as the shock and betrayal showed all over her face. She now knew Richard's secret.

- - - - - - -

Walking into the room, Richard was just a normal guy. Walking out of the room, Richard felt like he was now bearing another weight on shoulder. He snapped his black gloves and shifted around in the heavily plated armor. He stood by the outside of the entrance to his lair.

The light was shut off and before closing the door, the man grabbed a piece of clothing. After locking the door for good, and taking a deep breath, the mask was placed over the blue eyes of anger. He was no longer Richard, he was Nightwing, and he was going to save Kori.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

*Hey guys! Sorry for the late update! I tried to get it earlier Sunday night, but other plans came up. I had to admit on Thursday I didn't get to read your comments until that evening. I had already had a long day on Thursday and a bad one at that because I despise going to the dentist. However, after coming home everything felt so much better after reading all of your comments! You all are amazing!

So I hope this chapter wasn't too dull for you guys. It's still a clifty. It's practically the same as the last chapter except with more detail about what else was going on at the time. I felt that it was important for you all to know this though. You now know that Kori didn't see Richard, in fact she saw Bruce! Richard finally admits his love for Kori too. Kori awakens and why was she screaming? Another reason I didn't fill in more of the cliffhanger is because I am still thinking of what to do for the next chapter. I already know what's going to happen but that chapter might take me a bit longer because of detail!

Hope this wasn't too confusing. If you guys need any help understanding something, please leave a comment or PM me! Thanks for the amazing feedback again, all positive and I so much appreciate it! The last site I wrote for was actually pretty rude. After posting a chapter then I never felt like writing another one, but here I want to much to keep writing for all of you!

Also, sorry for the long note! One last thing though, in the beginning I mentioned this chapter was dedicated to Star of Airdrie! If you haven't checked her out yet I really insist you do. She is such a talented writer who updates frequently! She is also understanding and really helps with your writing if you ever need advice.

So I'm pretty sure I'm done?

Michelle