Hello dear readers! I have another exciting installment of this heroic tale.

Phycaryour319: Thank you for your enthusiastic support. Tori did kiss Superman as a kiss to her hero, but will Freddie mention it to Jade? Will it be a point of contention between them? Telling you who the third person is might be potential spoilers to this or any potential sequel.

Soleneus: Define 'justice'? Why is it her personal responsibility to bring her friend's to 'justice'? We wouldn't ask the police to arrest their own family due to conflict of interests, why should she be held to a higher standard. How many times has Batman across the interpretations has looked the other way with Catwoman and Talia to name two off the top of my head? Also, what does it get him being that emotionally detached? Dying alone and alienated from all those he cared about if one goes with how his life plays out in 'Batman Beyond'.

JadeElizabethOliver: Nope, Tori got a little excited in thanking one of the heroes, but will the Bat and Superman kiss… we'll see.

Fanfic-Reader-88: Freddie was toying with him at that point. From my research, the Venom to its max will give him the strength to about 3 tons at max while Freddie here is quite superior (I'm leaving his absolute strength a bit vague on purpose). It would have been nice for Freddie to beat the snot out of Gibby. Tori is more than just a pretty successful actress here and we'll see more of that in the coming chapters.

Challenge King: If Gibby didn't have the venom, Jade would have put him down. If there is ever a rematch between them, he won't get off so lucky. We'll see if the Venom will do any good for Robbie.

I have an interesting recommendation on a new story by Speedy21 titled, 'Strange Relations'. It's a new interpretation to the Jade/Freddie relationship and already four chapters post and yes, I'm behind in reviewing them.

Rating: T, Adult Situations

Chapter 15: Night Isn't Over Yet

Warehouse 7
Gotham Docks
Gotham City, NJ

About half an hour after the first police units arrived at the warehouse, police activity surrounding the building had only multiplied with another half a dozen marked police vehicles, a few unmarked cars that was part of the police commissioner's protection detail and a few ambulances parked around the parameter. The police were keeping the press away from the scene as they were desperate to get inside and find out the details of the apparent rescue of the starlet. The reporters and cameramen were however able to record in the distance a number of mob soldiers being led into the back of the police van while the others were being loaded into several ambulances.

Out of sight of the reporters inside the building where a number of flood lights had been set up since workers from the power company were still trying to restore power to the building, the CSIs were going over the warehouse with a fine tooth comb regardless that there was evidence strung all over the place.

Commissioner Dickers had arrived on scene just a few minutes ago and was speaking with a number of detectives including Detective Vega and Tori. After being caught up on what had happened, he gratefully smiled to Tori and said, "I'm glad that you're safe Miss Vega. We've been tearing up the city looking for you."

"Yes, thank you for looking for me, but I also have to give credit to the Bat. She's the one that stopped them before they could hurt me or anyone else."

One of the CSI technicians carefully picked up the blood stained bat-a-rang that had been in Gibson's leg and flippantly remarked, "Her showing up would explain this."

Gary looked to him and the strange weapon and suggested, "Once you get that back to the lab, maybe we can figure out the identity of this vigilante. If we're really lucky, there are some prints on it."

Tori tensed for a moment. She wanted Bat to get credit for her rescue, not them figuring out her identity to arrest her because she decided to help. She made a quick and risky decision, but one she felt she owed the unknown woman that had a hand in rescuing her and Robbie.

Dickers threw a look to Detective Vega, not appreciating that the actress would be giving any praise to the dark vigilante and that he should correct his daughter of such ideas, but he sighed to the actress, "I can imagine how grateful you are to her, but she's still a vigilante taking the law into her own hands."

Tori politely answered, flashing her dazzling smile to him and answered, "I know she is, but she saved me and I'd be ungrateful if I didn't give her proper credit."

The Commissioner struggled with a smile as he wasn't in a position to publicly admonish her of such a belief. It wouldn't look good in front of his officers and she could always tweet about it. "I cannot argue with your feelings, but it would be best if we downplayed her involvement. It might give others ideas that they can take law into their own hands and affect police morale. It would put more strain on them now having to worry about more vigilante justice."

Tori smiled, but remained silent about whether or not she would heed his advice.

Satisfied for the moment that Tori perhaps would listen to him, he glanced over to Gibson as the EMTs and a few officers were strapping him down with a gurney. A few CSIs were bagging the harness with the pumping system to the unknown drug and taking samples of the green liquid.

The Commissioner questioned, "Who is he?"

Gary answered with a clearly annoyed tone, "He won't say anything. He won't even give us his name. We'll print him at the hospital and hopefully he'll turn up in the system."

"What's that contraption their bagging up?"

One of the CSI technicians answered as he finished taping up the large plastic bag they were putting the harness inside for evidence, "It's a pumping system that lets him inject some kind of drug directly into his jugular. We're not sure what it is, so we're going to take it to the lab to have it analyzed."

Tori could notice there was a missing cylinder in the row of four, but she wasn't going to let slip what happened to it, hoping that it could be used to help Robbie.

Gibson shouted as they were rolling him away on the gurney, "I would have broken the Bat if it wasn't for that damn Superman! I'll kill her then that damn circus freak!"

Dickers looked to his detective and Tori, quick to ask, "Superman was here?"

Tori motioned with a nod of her head and sighed, "He showed up at the end after she did all the work. He just finished the job with that hard head." She turned and walked a few paces to the bound criminal then smirked and mocked the defeated criminal, "He's lucky it was Superman or she probably left him in worst shape."

Gibson struggled in the gurney, outraged by her accusation and feeling the withdrawal from the drug pumped into his system and shouted, "Liar! I kill the Bat then I'll find a way to kill that… that freak of nature!"

Tori defiantly shouted back, "She was kicking your ass and he just showed up in time not for her to humiliate you further."

Gibson growled at the actress and jerked back and forth, desperate to get out of his bindings despite a broken arm, wrist and leg and a number of other injuries.

Detective Vega walked behind his daughter and gently grabbed her upper arms to pull her away from the mercenary.

The EMT holding the gurney and trying to prevent it from tumbling over from Gibson's shaking shouted, "Calm down! Calm down!"

Tori shouted back just as angrily, "Not so tough without that drug of yours!"

One of the CSIs muttered, "So that's what that green stuff that was being pumped?"

The actress glanced to the technician and answered, "Yeah, it's some kind of steroid that made him really strong… he thought he was strong enough to fight Superman."

"I will beat him! He's still just a man and I will find a way to beat him!"

Detective Vega knotted his brow and ordered, "Give him a sedative if you have to and make sure he doesn't get anywhere near that stuff."

A second EMT reached for his bag to pull a sedative then grabbed Gibson's uninjured arm to hold him down, but the man was struggling too much to get the needle in his arm. "I could use some help here."

Gary and Vega walked over with a number of other uniformed officers to grab the man's arms and legs to hold him down while the EMT stuck the needle in his arm.

As they were distracted with sedating the hired killer, Commissioner Dickers glanced over to the warehouse's man entrance, seeing the dent in the door that was fairly the same shape and size as Gibson. If that drug allowed him to survive such an impact to a steel door without being crippled if not outright killed then it could be an incredible opportunity to make an obscene amount of money. He whispered over to one of the detectives assigned to his protection, getting a nod in return then looked to the investigating detectives after the EMT got the needle into Gibson's arm.

Dickers looked to his officers and asked, "Okay, so I assume no one else is talking?"

Gary caught his breath after exerting a bit of effort to hold down the mercenary. "They're all asking for lawyers and invoking their right to remain silent."

Dickers looked to Tori as he commented and questioned, "Since the big guy's not talking and neither are the others, did you hear who was behind this? They certainly didn't do it for a ransom as we never received any demands."

Detective Vega interrupted, "It's clear that Quincy's was behind this. All those men work for Shawn Quincy."

Dickers sighed and patiently answered, "That's just an assumption that they—"

The outraged father sharply interrupted, having no patience in the Commissioner trying to protect the mob boss, "You mean like it was just an assumption that Lee wasn't behind kidnapping the D.A.? Are we going to sit around and wait for him to be killed by the Joker?"

The Commissioner didn't appreciate the tone that his detective was giving him, but he couldn't exactly admonish him in front of the man's quite famous daughter. She could easily give his political ambitions a headache if she started speaking to the press and to her fans. "Detective, none of them are going to say they did it on his orders. We're not going to be able to arrest him based on association alone. We're going to need direct corroboration if we're to arrest him—a money trail or a witness."

The detective took a hard stance and stared his boss in the eyes, not caring about his job, but that his daughter would find justice, "If you don't arrest him then the Feds are going to arrest him and how is that going to look? How long do you think it will take the mayor to ask for your resignation being embarrassed by them?"

Dickers frowned in not appreciating the borderline disrespect or pointing out that he served at the pleasure of the mayor, especially one that ran on a platform of law & order. He took a breath and looked to Tori to ask, "Miss Vega, did you hear anything that could link Mister Quincy to your kidnapping?"

"The big guy said only that his employer wanted Beck dead and I was the bait. He was expecting Beck to show up to rescue me then would try to kill him. He wouldn't tell me who actually hired him."

Dickers curiously asked despite already knowing the answered, "Why would they want him dead?"

"They think he's that Joker fellow."

Gary rolled his eyes and sighed, "He is the Joker."

The brunette frowned and glared at her father's partner. "Says who? Steven Carson? The guy that dated another girl behind my back for three months? I'm supposed to take his word on anything?"

The graying haired detective struggled with an embarrassing smile, unable to get around the credibility problem the dead man had with Tori.

Vega cut off the potential argument by pointing out, "Right now it doesn't matter if Beck is or isn't the 'Joker'. This guy had no problem walking into Mrs. Lee's restaurant and shooting her in the face, so when he finds out that Quincy was attempting to ambush him—whether it's true or not that he was behind it—do you think he'll just take the chance and leave him alone?"

Dickers sighed, his patience with the detective running thin, "Then what do you suggest we do? I can't arrest him; there simply isn't enough evidence."

Vega thought for a moment, wearing a contemplative expression on his face, then suggested, "Then how about we offer him protective custody?"

"On the grounds that we think he's genuinely a suspect? His lawyer is going to see right through that."

"We may not be able to prove at the moment that he was the one that ordered the kidnapping, but as I just pointed out, this Joker fellow certainly isn't going to be concerned about admissible evidence. When he finds out that the kidnapping was a ruse to try to murder him, he's going to go looking for blood."

Dickers sighed, unable to argue his point. If it got out that the Joker was targeting the suspected mob boss after the news of what happened to Lee then something happened to him, it would be his job and then some. He nodded and answered in a consolatory tone, "I'll have to check with the D.A.—or whoever is in charge while he's in the hospital—and if we can't get that, I guess… we should at least offer him police protection. At least that way we can keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't try to skip town while we're investigating him."

Gary pointed out the obvious, "What if he refuses Commissioner?"

"He doesn't get a say with us stationing cars outside his apartment building and outside his place of business as long as we're not stopping the flow of business."

Gary looked dubious of the explanation, but he was not paid enough to worry about the political fallout from his bosses dance with the mob heads.

Detective Vega wrapped his arm around Tori's shoulders. "If that's settled, I'm going to take my daughter home… and if Quincy or any of his men come on my property, I'm going to shoot them dead."

Tori looked to her father with a stunned expression, not expecting such vitriol to spew from his mouth.

Gary spoke up to back his partner and let the other officers around him hear, "And no one around here would blame you."

Vega smiled in thanks to his partner then politely nodded to the Commissioner before heading out of the warehouse.

The senior detective looked over his shoulder to see that Vega and his daughter were out of earshot and the CSIs were too busy combing the area before he looked back to the Commissioner and hissed, "We have to pick up that son-of-a-bitch."

Dickers leaned his head to the side and started with a grin, "Now Gary—"

"I'm not Vega and you don't have to keep up appearances with us." He looked to the protection detail then continued, "We all know Quincy was behind this. He kidnapped a cop's kid and we can't let him get away with that whether we can legally arrest him or not or every other scumbag will think it's open season on our families."

The Commissioner glanced to his protection detail and they gave him looks that wholeheartedly agreed with their fellow detective. Quincy, whether he personally picked Tori to have kidnapped as bait or not in trying to entrap the Joker had crossed a line. It wasn't just the Mayor or the public breathing down his neck to get Quincy, but his own officers could revolt if they thought he didn't come down on hard on someone willing to target one of their brothers in blue's family.

He politely smiled to the detectives and asked, "Gentlemen, could I have a moment?"

The officers shared glances then turned away from their boss. Dickers turned away from the other officers and CSIs and took a few more steps for added safety and hit a button on his phone for it dialed a number to one of the most powerful men in the city. When the other end picked up, he hastily spoke, "Mason, we have a problem."

Mason laughed over the sound of the television in the background, "A problem? From the news I'm watching, you successfully rescued Miss Vega and nabbed a truckload of unsavory individuals."

"Yeah, but it looks like it was on Quincy's orders as bait to try to kill Beck, but it was the Bat that saved her. Her father is demanding that we arrest Quincy for it before Beck can kill him or the Feds get involve since it was a kidnapping—a very high profile kidnapping."

There was silence on the other of the phone then Mason calmly answered, "That's not such a bad idea."

Dickers jaw dropped then took a breath to recover and ask, "What?"

"The man had a famous actress kidnapped, shining a big spotlight for the entire country to see. The public will demand someone's head and Hoover is such a prima donna that he'll hijack the case to put a feather in his cap. You might as well move on him now and take all the credit."

"That's easier said than done. Everyone wants me to get him—even my own cops because he kidnapped a cop's kid. We have his boys, but none of them are going to turn on him."

Mason sighed loudly on the other end of the line then spoke with barely a patient voice, "Do I have to connect the dots for you? Get some of you detectives to 'interrogate' a few of them and get them to point the finger at Quincy as the one they were taking orders from." He flippantly added, "You do still have to have a few phonebooks lying around?"

Dickers wanted to roll his eyes at Mason making it sound so simple to get a confession out of one of Quincy's men. This wasn't some isolated pocket of the Deep South where some would turn a blind eye to a corrupt sheriff roughing up some African-Americans before the individual States or the Feds would crack down on them; this was Gotham City, a modern city in a Union state during the war decades ago and people simply wouldn't tolerate it. He still remembered stories form his father when he was a beat cop the protests throughout the city had nearly turned into riots when Wilson attempted to institute segregation in the Federal government and military.

However, he didn't want to get in the middle of clearly what was going to turn into a mob war with what Quincy would see as a blatant move on Mason's part in using the police to do his dirty work, but he didn't want to be on Mason's bad side or be undermined by the Feds, so he would find a way.

He grinned and answered, "I'll take care of it."

"Good, just keep me up to date."

Detective Vega had the same concerns about being out of earshot of the others but before they reached the desperate reporters, Vega asked his daughter, "Beck was here wasn't he? As the Joker?"

Tori came to a stop and looked to her father, stunned by the question, "What?"

"He had to show up before we got here."

The brunette actress nervously laughed, "Why, why would you say that?"

"Because you have a brush of white makeup on your face. How did you get that without getting close to his face? You wouldn't have let anyone else get that close if it wasn't Beck. What did he do? Give you a hug to make sure you were alright?"

Tori's hand flew up to touch her cheek and felt the makeup on her flesh. She dropped her hand from her face and turned a hard expression to him and answered, "The Joker showed up, but I didn't recognize him. He was concerned about my safety. I guess he's a crook with a heart of gold."

David Vega gave his daughter a stern expression and replied, "Cat didn't 'recognize' him either. If she wants to cover for him, that's her business, and she'd have to deal with the consequences, but I don't want you wind up with an accessory after the fact charge."

Tori crossed her arms over her chest and demanded, "What do you mean she didn't recognize him either?"

"The Joker supposedly killed Mrs. Lee earlier tonight and Cat was there."

The brunette threw a hand over her mouth then worriedly demanded to know, "Oh my God, is Cat alright?"

"She's conveniently fine after he murdered a bodyguard and shot up another one… one that's saying that Cat actually poisoned Mrs. Lee and he's covering for her. Who else than Beck would do such a thing?"

The color seemed to drain from Tori's face. She knew Beck wouldn't purposely try to harm Cat, so that was no surprise, but the idea that he would try to take the blame for Cat murdering someone was unbelievable. She knew Cat was upset and could get pretty feisty when she was pushed to her limit, but she couldn't imagine that she would actually carry out murdering someone to avenge Robbie. She just didn't think the girl had it in her.

Tori shook her head and replied with a strained voice, "No, Cat wouldn't do that. She's justifiably upset, but she wouldn't do that. If she was there… it was just to take her frustration out on the woman and she's the one lucky to be alive because Mrs. Lee could have done something to her just like she did to Robbie."

Detective Vega glanced down and sighed, not really wanting to argue on that point with her about the redhead, and answered, "Look, we don't believe him that Cat poisoned her. Even if the tox screen comes back to say she was poisoned, there are plenty of things there that could have accidentally caused her to ingest something to give her an allergic reaction. What I'm saying is that she may want to protect her friend, especially since I remember her roommate is involved with Beck, but that doesn't mean you owe him that same loyalty."

Tori nodded along, but she had no intention of agreeing with him and answered, "Well dad… if he was here… it was dark and I couldn't make him out and for the paint… isn't that for a prosecutor to prove that it was from him? It could have been from a knocked over bottle of whiteout. I was tied up in an office where I was in a fight with two of my kidnappers."

The detective took a deep breath, unsure how to deal with the fact that his daughter was willing to cover for her friend. "Okay, but I would like to remind you of something."

"What's that?"

"If Beck really is the Joker, your friend's a potential murderer, a killer at least."

Tori shut her mouth shut, stung by the obvious ramifications that Beck was the clown criminal with blood on his hands.

Vega didn't like slapping reality into his child's face, but she had to clearly see the situation that she was placing herself with covering for her friend.

As she contemplated his words, he took her by the elbow and continued on their way out of the warehouse and to his vehicle.

As Detective Vega was leading his daughter out of the warehouse and towards a car to take her to some undisclosed location, the reporters spotted her and began shouting random questions from behind the police tape, "Can we get a statement? Can you tell us what happened? Are you alright? Who kidnapped you?! Do you know why?! Are the reports true that you were injured? There was blood left in your room!"

Tori paused in walking to the call and turned to the reporters.

Her father put on an expression that showed that he didn't think it was a good idea with her speaking to them, but she gave him a quick look and whispered, "My fans are going to need to know what happened to me."

The detective sighed, hating that she had to be so concern about her career at such a time.

Tori walked to the police tape and the reporters converged to her, trying to step over one another while a few uniformed offices kept them at bay.

"I would like to make a quick statement." She passed a quick glance to the officers standing to protect her from the reporters mobbing her. "First, I want to thank the dedicated Gotham Police Department for all their hard work in protecting our city and searching for me. About what happened to me? I want to assure everyone that I'm fine. Any reports of me being injured are a bit exaggerated. I was kidnapped by several men that burst into my hotel room—I think I gave them a pretty good fight since it was their blood that got left on the carpet and not mine—that all apparently work for Shawn Quincy, though the prongs of the tazer weren't pleasant."

One eager reporter shouted, "Are you saying Shawn Quincy is the one that had you kidnapped?"

Tori diplomatically smiled as she answered, "All I'm saying is that all the men that were here that were involved in my kidnapping work for him, so people will have to draw their own conclusions and if… if it wasn't for the 'Bat', I don't know what they would have done to me."

The shots started getting louder from the reporters, but one got through and asked, "Are you saying the 'Bat' is the one that rescued you?"

Tori looked from the corner of her eye to her father's disapproving gaze at her publicly giving credit to the vigilante. However, she couldn't deny the woman credit for her part in rescuing her. "Yes, I would like to thank 'The Bat' for showing up and stopping my kidnappers before they could harm anyone else. She's the one that took down my kidnappers. She was terrifying and I'd hate to be a criminal in Gotham while she stalks the night. Now if you'll excuse me, it's been a very long night and I'd like to get some rest."

The actress waved at them then turned to walk with her father back to his car.

The reporter turned to camera and eagerly reported, "You heard it: Tori Vega thanked the 'The Bat' for her rescue, the vigilante that had been rumored to be terrifying the criminals of Gotham for the last several months, but was dramatically confirmed earlier today with the rescue of District Attorney by men confirmed to be under the employment of the now late Mrs. Lee."

Once they reached Detective Vega's personal car, he uttered in irritation, "Did you have to say that? Did you have to praise the vigilante?"

"The woman that saved me and Robbie? Yes, I do think she needs to be given credit."

Her father sighed, but held his tongue. He was far more grateful for her safety than getting into any kind of argument with her.

Shawn Quincy Residence
Gotham City, NJ

The time was well past midnight and Quincy was still awake, his blood boiling with fury as he watched the news where his trap for the Joker was completely derailed by 'The Bat'. He couldn't believe that she—something he still couldn't believe a woman could strike such fear into the hearts of hardened mob soldiers—could bring down his plans and leave his best men being hauled away to jail. His hired assassin, one of the best in the business had been bested by her, though there were unconfirmed reports that Superman had been the one that actually left him a broken mess. He swore that he would make her pay and find a way to put that muscle bound hero down.

If those pieces of news weren't bad enough, Tori was broadcasting that it was his men arrested, making the obvious implication that it was he that was behind the plan to kidnap her and giving credit to the Bat in rescuing her.

The door to his office flew open and his assistant hastily stepped inside, wearing a look of near panic on his face. "The police are outside and they have a warrant. We're trying to stall them, but—"

"Shawn Quincy! We have a warrant for your arrest!" Gary shouted from downstairs with the pounding of footsteps coming up the stairs.

Quincy stood up from his seat, outraged that the police would just barge into his home.

Gary walked into his office flanked by several offices. He politely, but firmly stated, "Mister Quincy, I'm here to place you under arrest."

He shouted in outrage, "On what charge?"

"The kidnapping of Victoria Vega."

"This is outrageous! I had nothing to do with that horrible incident."

Gary patiently smiled as he answered, "We have several of the kidnappers saying that on your orders, you had Miss Vega kidnapped for the purpose of attempting to murder another individual."

Quincy clamped his mouth shut. He wanted to tell them that was a bunch of bullchizz as his men wouldn't give him up, but went the pragmatic route, "They have to be lying. I never and would never ask anyone to kidnap someone."

Gary pulled his handcuffs from his belt and approached the mob boss. "You'll have to tell it to the judge, but for right now you are under arrest."

Quincy glared at the officer, but complied with the unasked request of putting his hands behind his back. He looked to his assistant and demanded while Gary walked behind him to handcuff him, "Get my lawyer and have him meet me at the station."

The assistant dutifully nodded and reached for his phone as the suspected mob boss was led out of his office.

Batcave
West Estate
Gotham City, NJ

The armored beast of a vehicle rolled into the entrance of the secret cave under the West estate and traveled down a long corridor until it reached a spacious cavern underneath the main estate. The cavern was fairly dark other than a number of various overhead lamps dotted about to partially illuminate the cave, but for the most part it as a fairly foreboding dwelling with various stalactites and a number of bats dwelling on the ceiling.

The vehicle pulled to a stop in the center of a circular platform then the armored canopy of the vehicle opened.

Sikowitz wore a worried expression as he was waiting outside the platform with the rest of the inner cave to his back.

Jade raised a hand over the side and carefully pulled herself up, holding onto her left side then slipped out of the vehicle. She managed to stay on her feet despite her wobbly legs as she kept her grip on the side of the vehicle.

"Jade?" the faithful butler came rushing to her.

She held out a hand and waved him off with a tired voice, "I'm fine."

He ignored her and wrapped his arm around her lower back and took her left hand in support then asked, "What happened?"

The millionaire stifled a painful moan from the contact on her side and answered, "I found Tori, beat the chizz out of some gangsters then fought Quincy's hired gun… I won... kinda."

The butler was not amused with her flippant behavior despite the years of becoming accustomed to it.

Jade sighed, attempting to reassure him, "I'm fine. I'm just a bit bruised up, nothing broken."

Sikowitz didn't look all that convinced as he walked with her from the platform to the next open space where there was a large screen monitor and several smaller ones were connected to an advance computer station to their right and several tables placed end to end with various pieces of equipment on them perpendicular to the station. He turned and walked her over to one of the chairs to the workbenches and carefully sat her down.

Jade sighed out, "Would you just get me so ice and some painkillers please?"

"You need to see a doctor."

She glared and asked, "And tell them what? I dress up as a bat at night to go fight crime, but got a little over my head tonight? Yeah, that would go real well."

Sikowitz shook his head and relented, seeing there was no point in arguing with the young woman, "Fine, I'll go get you some ice and the first aid kit, but you sit right here until I come back."

"Where am I going to go?"

The dutiful butler ignored her quip and headed towards an elongated and slightly curved ramp of steps to the entryway from the house to the cave a dozen yards away.

After he disappeared from view, Jade reached over to her left cheek with her right hand and pulled up and back to pull the armored cowl off her face and over the crown of her head. She hissed from the bruise forming under the skin of her left cheek, a testament to Gibby's strength of overcoming the padded/ballistic armor of the cowl. She detached it from the neck of her suit then threw it to the side on the workbench then proceeded to undo and take off each of her gauntlets and gloves followed by her armored shin guards and boots.

She pulled down the hidden front zipper under her chin to about her naval then pulled one arm out of a sleeve then the other to push it down to her waist and revealing her bare skin and sports bra. She glanced down at her left to where she had been hit. Her skin was still faintly pink that was more skewed from her natural pale complexion, but she knew it would be a few hours if not the next day for the skin to start turning a sickly yellow, black and blue. She figured it would be the same at various places on her back as it was killing her and her shoulders weren't feeling all that good either.

She rubbed the back of her head, trying to feel if she had any knot on her head. She wondered if she had a concussion and if not that, perhaps bruising to her skull. She might have to relent and go to a doctor to perform some test to make sure she didn't have a more severe head injury.

The dark haired young woman was interrupted from further undressing when light spilled back into the cave from the entrance and Sikowitz stepped out of it, expecting the arrival of her faithful butler to return with the ice packs and pain medication. However, he wasn't the only one that was walking down the steps: Superman.

Jade was startled for a moment at the handsome young man's appearance then looked to Sikowitz with a furious expression for revealing her secret even if Freddie already knew the truth about her identity. The cave was her personal sanctuary and he had no right to reveal the existence of it, least long bringing someone inside. If she didn't care about him so much, she would have fired him on the spot and never wanted to see him again.

Sikowitz stared back that he used when he had to discipline her as he had raised her after her parents' death, not concerned one bit by her judgmental expression.

The look was so harsh that even Jade resisted the urge to flinch, recalling the times where he had put his foot down with her.

Once he had made his point, he glanced to Superman and commented, "Mister Superman arrived before I could get what you requested. I'll be right back." He turned and headed back upstairs, giving a furious stare at the back of his head.

Jade turned her glare to Superman and stated with a stern voice, "I don't want hear one janking 'I told you so' from you."

Freddie lifted off the steps and glided towards her in a few moments to cover the more than a dozen yards separating them, landing right in front of her. He calmly answered, "I wasn't going to say that."

"Then what are you here for?"

He stared at her for a moment, finding it hard to believe he had heard her correctly. He answered with a curt tone, "Are you seriously asking me that question? I'm here to make sure you're alright, which by the way you're not. You need some proper medical care. I should take you to a hospital."

She answered back with a near accusing tone, "I'm fine. I have Erin and you should be with Tori making sure she's fine."

"You're not fine. You're bruised in several places and you might have some microfractures to some of your ribs. The muscles down your spine are starting to swell and that could mean temporary paralyzes."

Jade took a sharp breath, not considering that possibility, but she wouldn't show weakness in front of him. She defiantly looked up at him and spat out in disgust, "Well some of us aren't the 'Man of Steel' that can't get hurt… being a god and all. I just have to settle being mortal and getting banged up from time to time."

He answered with mild shame in his voice, "Yes I am…" He reached out and delicately ran his pointer finger over her shoulder where he could see with his enhanced vision a yellow and purple discoloration was forming under the skin.

A soft shiver ran through her, the sheer gentleness of his touch surprising her when he could turn steel bars into pretzels if he desired.

"…and you're made of flesh and blood… you can't be so caviler about being hurt or mock me for caring. I don't want you to…"

He trailed off and glanced down as he let his hand drop from her shoulder.

He looked so vulnerable that a shiver of dread shuddered through her, her mind not able to comprehend fully the significant of his gaze on her. She dipped her head down and asked, "You don't want me to do what?"

He moved closer, bracing his hands on the armrests and met her concerned eyes and answered, "I don't want you to die… I don't want some nut out there to get a lucky shot and end you. I don't want to go to your funeral… I don't want to bury you because of some need to avenge your parents' death."

She stared back into his eyes, seeing the love and caring she had only truly seen in a handful of people's eyes and it startled her. He had gotten to her too close too soon and a part of her was frightened by it. He shouldn't have cared about her that way, not yet anyway and should have only wanted to get close due to her wealth like all the other prowling bachelors, but he didn't care about it. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that he wasn't human, something she was still trying to come to terms, and made him think on a different level. Her right hand went up on its own and cupped his cheek while she tried to stare into his soul to figure out why he would care that much about her… why she was starting to care so much about him.

As they exchanged looks, some inexplicable force drew their faces together until she grazed her lips across his lips then closed her eyes when she deepened it into a kiss.

Freddie closed his eyes and gently returned the pressure of the kiss.

Jade's hands slipped over his shoulders and locked behind his neck to pull him closer, pleasurably mewing into his mouth.

Freddie's hands moved to the small of her back and protectively held her, letting himself get lost in the kiss.

Their lips parted and dove back to one another, sharing lazy affection with one another as the seconds ticked by, each tuning out the rest of the world to focus on one another and trying not to let their conscious minds get in the way of their actions.

One of his hands started trailing up her sore and soon to be visibly bruised spine, somehow drawing the pain away while her right hand left the back of his neck to run her fingers through his hair over his crown. Her left hand slipped from behind his neck and let her fingertips trail down over the front of his chest, feeling the unknown material of his suit. She thought it felt similar to Kevlar, but… 'alien', but her mind didn't go any further in analysis as her fingertips really wanted to just feel him.

A loud clearing of a throat sounded behind Freddie and the pair pulled their lips away from each other. He turned to look over his right shoulder and she around his arm to see Sikowitz giving them a perturbed look. He sarcastically remarked, "I was expecting you to take care of her, not… take care of her."

Freddie straightened up and released her, blushing nearly the same color as his cape.

Jade clenched her sore jaw and muttered, "Way to kill the mood Erin."

"Well… it was my intention. It's not as if you are in any condition for any… extracurricular activity." He looked to the red caped individual and asked, "Are you going to help or are you going to put the moves on her?"

Superman cleared his throat and answered, "What do you need me to do?"

"Good, I need you to carry her to her bedroom where I can take a look at her with some decent light."

Jade was about to argue, but Sikowitz walked to his charge and helped her pull the rest of her suit off her legs, leaving her of course in her underwear. The butler stepped aside to allow Superman to pull his cap around his right shoulder then slipped his arm under her knees and around the small of her back to pick her up bridal style from the chair. Her arms naturally went over a shoulder and across his chest to lock her fingers behind his neck. In expected superhuman balance, he was able to reach over with his left hand to pull the cape over her to keep the chill the cave off of her.

The crimefighters looked to one another, exchanging an awkward gaze at what they had just shared.

Sikowitz interrupted, "This way."

After taking Jade to the master bedroom, Sikowitz took about an hour to thoroughly examine Jade, doctor her sore muscles and future bruises with ice packs then let her soak in a nice warm bath to relieve the muscle tension before settling her into bed with some mild painkillers to let her sleep.

During her bath, Sikowitz was gracious enough to give Freddie an old t-shirt and boxers to change into in the bedroom as he sensed that the muscular hero wasn't intending to leave anytime soon. He didn't particularly mind this as he could do the heavy lifting with Jade—as if she was particularly heavy—and if need be, he could literally fly her to the hospital faster than him driving her to one.

As the butler and Freddie were heading out of the master bedroom to let Jade have a good night sleep, the boy from Kansas picked up his cape that he had hung over a chair while changing and draped it over her as an extra sheet then rested a hand on her right shoulder. Her eyes were closed as sleep overtook her, but a faint smile passed her lips. He turned and joined Sikowitz heading out of the room as she subconsciously pulled the cape closer to her body with the sheet.

Sikowitz pulled the door shut then looked Freddie and demanded in a hiss, "Okay, what happened?!"

Freddie took a deep breath and slump his shoulders. He quietly answered, "Do you want to wake her up?"

The butler doubted she would do such a thing with the sedative that he had given her with the painkillers, but knowing Jade could get quite cranky if she was woken up agreed with the suggestion. He struggled with a smile then motioned his head for the guest to follow him away from the door. He led Freddie down the hall, down the stairs and into the kitchen. They reached the expansive kitchen and Sikowitz led them to a small dining table, the same one where Freddie had treated Jade's hand after the benefit ball. He retook his seat and Sikowitz went over to a counter with a fancy looking coffee maker and asked, "Coffee?"

Freddie slightly grinned and answered, "Thank you."

"Caffeinated or de-caf?" the butler followed up while reaching to the cabinet and pulling out the coffee.

"Plain with sugar."

As the butler went about preparing the drink, giving him the good stuff that he stocked for Jade, he commented and asked, "Good, I can have the hard stuff then, so you were about to explain?"

Freddie embarrassingly grinned and continued, "Quincy hired a professional killer to take out the Joker and 'The Bat' and he set it up as a trap for Beck using Miss Vega as bait, but Jade got there first. She took out almost ten guys then… I don't think I ever got his name… she went at Quincy's hired killer and she tore him up pretty good, but then…"

Sikowitz leaned back against the counter edge and waited for coffee to finish brewing while he asked, "What?"

"He had some kind of drug in him that made him stronger and when I got there to stop him before he could… he could kill her, he turned some knob on a controller to pump more of it into him and it pumped him up—literally made his muscles grow—and started healing the damage she had done to him."

The faithful butler glanced away and rubbed his hand over his mouth, trying not to think about burying her. He reached for a cabinet and opened it up to pull out a bottle of alcohol. He grabbed a glass then poured himself a drink.

Freddie quietly watched the butler for a moment then continued with absently rubbed his chin more from the memory of the impact than any pain. "He hit me pretty good and believe me, it takes a lot for me to feel something like that."

"I've read in the paper some of the things you've been able to do… you're bullet proof and can lift a car above your head?"

"Yes, I can do that… I'm more than just bulletproof and I can lift a lot more than that, but I haven't pushed to see how much more."

Sikowitz's concern in his voice grew as he asked, "And he was a match for you?"

"No… he was… a workout, but for Jade… he could have torn her apart and any other person that he would have gone against without a lot of firepower. She was just totally outmatched with someone like that."

If Sikowitz thought he would be sick on his stomach when he was attending Jade, the idea that he could have prepared for her funeral was inconceivable. He tried not to think on that part and asked, "Since you're obviously here, what happened to him? Where is he?"

"I… left him at the warehouse to check on Miss Vega and she insisted that I go to check on Jade—she doesn't know Jade's the Bat—then flew over here."

Sikowitz raised his brow and asked in a flabbergasted tone, "You just left someone that dangerous for the police to pick up? How could you just do that after what he did to Jade?"

Freddie returned with a stern gaze and voice, "Because I broke him and he wasn't going anywhere."

Sikowitz turned a concern gaze to the visitor and cautiously asked, "What do you mean 'broke him'?"

"He thought he could out muscle me, he was wrong and I was pissed. I snapped one of his arms, his wrist of his other arm, a leg, broke a few ribs, and nose and knocked out his front teeth. If I wanted him dead, he would be dead, but I settled for almost paralyzing the man, so he's going to be in casts for a long time."

The butler took a swig of his drink then cautiously commented, "That sounds pretty brutal."

Freddie deeply frowned and his brow slightly knotted as he answered in a chilled tone, "He wouldn't stay down, so I had to keep breaking parts of him until he couldn't get back up on his own."

The balding butler felt a bit apprehensive in knowing the man's strength and willingness to use it to that extent. "And because he made you mad?"

"Yes, he made me mad."

"Because he hurt Jade?"

He paused, knowing the truth, but unsure if he should confirm the obvious. He reluctantly admitted under the gaze of the eccentric butler, "Yes, because he hurt Jade."

The butler wasn't sure if he should address the feelings clearly developing between his charge and the muscle-bound hero. He had hoped she would eventual start looking into a serious relationship and settle down to be happy, but wasn't keen on her taking a liking to a stranger she knew next to nothing about—one to his knowledge had only met twice—to the point that he had to interrupt them possibly going further than just kissing. He decided to turn the conversation away from that direction, not wanting to get into an argument with a man that could probably punch him to the moon. "Okay… assuming he won't get a hold of any of his drug that said could heal him. You didn't leave any of it with him did you?"

Freddie was relieved that Sikowitz didn't want to delve into his jumbled feelings for Jade. He wasn't sure what to make of them, feeling that the feelings developing between them were happening too quickly, but couldn't deny that there was something between them.

"He had a few cylinders of it attached to a vest he was wearing, but I tore that off him and tossed it away out of reach. I highly doubt the cops are freely going to hand any over to him."

The mention of a cylinder reminded the butler that Superman was carrying one when he arrived, but couldn't recall what happened to it. "Wait a tick, weren't you carrying a silver tube when you arrived?"

"Yes. It's one of the containers he was storing the drug. I thought if it was healing bones and a leg wound Jade gave him that maybe it could be analyzed and used to help Mister Shapiro."

Sikowitz felt a sense of relief with some good news in this mess. "Where is it now?"

"Still in Jade's bedroom on a nightstand."

"I better get it to the cave and start analyzing it."

Freddie raised a hand and interrupted, "Not all of it though. I need some of it for my own testing."

"You can do that? How?"

Freddie cleared his throat then tentatively answered, "I have access to some pretty advance equipment that can do that."

Sikowitz turned a curious and probing look on him. "What 'equipment'?" He followed up with a laugh, "Does S.T.A.R. Labs let you have the run of their facilities?"

Freddie sighed and decided to be honest with the butler, figuring he would soon know any way through Jade, "I'm an alien from another planet with technology thousands of years ahead of yours. I'm sure my equipment could figure out what it's made from, to make it safe and how to make more of it."

Sikowitz stared at him dumbfounded for several seconds, his jaw slacking until he was able to form words and asked, "Okay…you're an 'alien'?"

"Yes, I'm an alien."

The balding butler continued staring at him then uttered, "From another planet?"

Freddie nodded again as he answered, "Yes, one that is very far away."

"But you're not green."

Freddie laughed, feeling the first true release of tension that night. He shook his head and clarified for the surprised gentleman, "I'm not from Mars Mister Sikowitz."

Sikowitz nodded, almost apologetically, and asked, "Oh, okay… where are you from?"

"My planet was called Krypton."

"Was?"

"It's not there anymore. It was destroyed and I'm… a refugee and the last member of my species…"

Sikowitz's eyes got wider as he asked, "You're the last of your kind?"

"Yes… the last Kryptonian. My parents knew that the planet would be destroyed, so they stuck me in a spaceship and sent me off here so I could survive."

The faithful butler nodded his head and remarked, "Like Moses set on the water?"

Freddie to a moment to realize the reference and tightened his smile, never being comfortable with the comparison. "My parents had made similar comparisons when they found me. A gift from God."

"I'm sorry."

Freddie struggled with a smile and answered, "It's okay. I've dealt with it the best I could."

Silence fell between them, unsure where to take the conversation next. Sikowitz took another sip from his drink then asked, "I take it that you're not leaving for the evening?"

Freddie cracked a smile and answered, "No. I was hoping to stay until morning to make sure she was alright. If something happens then I can fly her straight to the hospital… I should take her to a hospital, but… she's right that there would be too many questions."

The butler grinned and flippantly remarked, "I kind of had the same thought myself. You're just like Mister Benson. He had to stay to make sure Madam West was alright after the benefit party. I don't think he would have left if she hadn't had me get a driver for him."

Freddie looked at him funny for a second then chuckled and shook his head, not realizing that the butler hadn't recognized him after changing into the borrowed clothes.

Sikowitz turned a curious gaze to the hero and asked, "What?"

"Mister Sikowitz, it's me, Freddie."

The balding butler blinked then squinted while taking a hard look at the costumed hero. "What?"

Freddie couldn't help but laugh and leaned back in his chair. After all the life hanging in the balance night, he needed a good laugh. "It's just a pair of glasses… that I left at my hotel room," he trailed off with a smirk. He brushed his hair to the side off his forehead as he wore it as Freddie.

Sikowitz studied the young reporter's face for several seconds then his eyes nearly popped out. "Wow… Mister Benson, it is you?"

"Yes. This mild manner reporter is the 'Man of Steel'."

The butler still looked at him a bit flabbergasted that he didn't realize the hero's true identity. He took another swig from his drink then uttered, "You sure do hide in plain sight."

"I guess I do…"

Silence fell between them again, but the butler formed a smile and remarked, "I guess that would explain why you and Jade would kiss; you're not a stranger she's only met crime fighting."

Freddie tightened his grin and remarked, "Right…"

Seeing that he could embarrass the young man if he continued, Sikowitz offered, "I'll get your coffee. I guess we'll be watching vigil over her tonight."

Vega Residence
Suburbs Gotham City, NJ

After a detour back to Tori's hotel room, that was still a crime scene, to pick up her luggage and bit of commute, Detective Vega finally pulled his vehicle into the driveway of his ranch house.

Tori stepped out of the passenger seat and took a long gaze over her childhood home. Since she had arrived back to Gotham on an extended vacation, she had been avoiding her parents' residence for the reason stepping out of the door.

She picked up her duffle bag that she had kept at her feet while her father grabbed her luggage from the trunk.

Mrs. Vega hurried to the driveway to meet her daughter and cupped her cheeks before pulling her into a hug. "Oh Tori, I've been worried sick."

Tori forced a smile with her mother's embrace and patted her back. "I'm fine mom."

Holly pulled back and rested her hands on her daughter's shoulders and asked, "Are you sure?"

David Vega smiled to his wife as he walked around the car with a suitcase in each hand and answered, "She's fine. The EMTs looked her over and signed off. She's a tough girl. You should have seen what she did to two of her kidnappers."

"Their broken noses should heal eventually," Tori laughed, trying to lighten the tense mood.

Holly stared at her daughter a gasped and clarified, "Oh my God, are you sure you're alright?"

"Nothing a good night sleep won't cure."

The mother reluctantly nodded her head then led Tori into her childhood home and into the living room that had remained the same over the last few years with the double red couches and the piano sitting in the back on a raised level.

Mrs. Vega began, "I know you must be tired and hungry and—"

"I am tired, so I think I'm going to take a nice long bath then head to bed. I'm kind of sore from everything."

She looked disappointed that her daughter didn't want to eat dinner with her, but offered instead, "Okay, your room is just like you left it and everything is in the bathroom that you need."

"Thanks mom, goodnight. 'Night dad."

Tori walked to her room with the sounds of her parents bidding her a goodnight even if Mrs. Vega wanted to persuade her daughter to have dinner with her. She carried a duffle back close to her body while leaving her luggage downstairs. She closed the door behind her and locked it then walked over to her bed. She dropped her bag onto her bed then unzipped, revealing a cowl, a set of goggles and a formfitting bodysuit.

The actress took a deep breath, steeling herself in order to carry out her mission. The only thing now was she hoped the lateness of the hour would catch up with her parents and she'd be free to do her part in repaying the Bat.

CSI Lab
GCPD Headquarters
Gotham City, NJ

The night shift was busy examining the material recovered from the warehouse. They had a number of weapons recovered from the kidnappers and running traces of them to see if other than the BARs if any of the other firearms were illegal and possibly tracing them back to their source. One would think that the Thompson Submachine gun would have been heavily restricted with its firepower and the notoriety it had been given by being in the hands of gangsters, but the lawmakers had been slow to catch up with restrictions.

A few workers were cataloging Gibby's pumping system and drug supply before they went about analyzing the unknown drug. As interesting as the drug may have been due to its reported properties, most of the attention was directed to the weapon left behind by the 'Bat'.

They were having a metallurgy test done on it and had taken the blood sample off one end. It was assumed that it would belong to Gibson, but they still had to make sure. They were hoping to find prints of the owner to the weapon so they could track the vigilante down.

As they continued their work, they were unaware that an intruder quietly slithering through the ventilation system to reach their lab undetected. She was dressed the same formfitting black bodysuit she wore when she had broken into Mason's apartment as she crawled through the vent undetected then stopped at one of the vent covers. She quietly spied the technicians, taking particular interest in the one examining the bat-a-rang.

The cat burglar let out a slow breath, realizing that she would have to wait for them to pack the item up before she could make her move and that could take a while. She settled on her stomach for a long wait, but the unexpected happen with one of the Commissioner's detectives entered the lab.

The squared jaw handsome law enforcement officer greeted the technicians, "Hey fellows, the Commissioner personally sent me to see how things were going."

The lead technician answered, "We're linking the weapons to each one you arrested, the supply of drug we recovered and the Bat's weapon."

"The Commissioner is concern about that drug. He doesn't want something new to hit the street, especially if it makes dirtbags think they can get into fights with cops and win."

"We were just about to have it analyzed, but we're probably going to need to send it to one of the medical universities to take a look at it to really understand what it does to a person."

He motioned his head towards the exit and suggested, "Why don't we go do that now?"

"Alright."

The bugler from her vantage point clenched her jaw as she could see the sly manner he was using to get a sample of the drug that he would probably race to get to Dickers. She had no doubt he would want to capitalize on the drug. She realized that she would have to steal the drug while retrieving the Bat's weapon. She reached into her small satchel to pull out a PearPhone to bring up the blue prints of the building so she could make her way to the other part of the lab.

As she was planning her route, the detective was walking out of the lab with the technician with a sample of the drug, but the double doors opened and an older gentleman wearing a Class A Army uniform with two stars on each shoulder, a pair of wings, parachute badge and a number of tour ribbons on his uniform, flanked by two armed soldiers in fatigues, a CSI technician and a woman in an Army uniform standing behind the General walked inside and blocked their path.

The general, quite the handsome man perhaps in his late forties/early fifties at most with dark short hair that was a slight mess in the front, imposingly stood to block the detective and technician's path.

The detective demanded, tightening his grip on the specimen cup, "Who are you?"

The General dryly answered, "It's not important who I am, just that you're holding US Government property and I'm here to retrieve it."

"This is evidence in a criminal case."

"That you look like you're trying to take with you. Why is that?"

The detective's lips became a thin line as he answered, "I was escorting him to take the sample for analysis, but that's none of your concern."

The handsome general broke into an easy smile and coyly answered, "Actually it is my concern and that won't be necessary. We'll be taking it."

The Commissioner's bodyguard guardedly gazed at the military officer, sizing him up to see if he had the willingness to take it from him.

The lab manager standing beside the General hesitantly informed the detective, "He has a court order for it… and a truck full of soldiers to back him up."

The detective demanded with an outstretched hand, "Let me see that."

The lab manager handed over the blue folded piece of paper to the detective. He opened it up and quickly read over the court order. His jaw tightened at seeing that it looked entirely legitimate and in order. He sighed, trying to buy himself some time in trying to figure out how he could get a sample back to the commissioner. He glanced back to the General, particularly to the nametag, and remarked, "Well General… Shay, we're still going to have to clear it with the duty officer."

The General maintained a gentle smile and answered, "Of course… bureaucracy… whatever you need to do for everyone to go through the proper procedures. I assume that's not all of the drug?"

The detective was hesitant to answer, hoping perhaps to steal away some from the majority resting on one of the tables, but another technician answered, "No, it's right here."

The handsome Army Officer looked around the detective's shoulder and spotted the three canisters resting on the table and answered, "Good. While we sort his out, we're going to need to clear the room—for security purposes."

The other technicians in the room looked to one another, gauging each other's reactions to what sounded like an order. Their boss smiled and assured their concerns, "It's okay. We could all use a break."

General Shay stepped aside to allow the detective and the others to leave the lab. He whispered over to one of his accompanying soldiers and received a nod in return. The remaining exited the room except the female officer with the soldiers taking places on either side of the door to guard the room.

The burglar saw her opportunity to snatch the bat-a-rang and the majority of the drug, but the young woman's presence was her last obstacle. She was hoping she would turn around and leave, but in those moments, she studied the General's secretary.

The young attractive woman was about the same height if not an inch or two taller than the burglar with olive skin with dark brunette hair. She couldn't help but think if she didn't know any better, she could mistake the woman for a relative, perhaps even a sister.

The secretary walked over to the table and looked over the throwing weapon. She noticed a spare latex glove and picked it up then used it to pick up the bat shaped instrument of justice. She brought it close to her face, ignoring the stain of blood over one sharp end, but examining the craftsmanship.

The burglar continued to anxiously watch the general's secretary as she looked over the throwing weapon. She noticed as the right sleeve slipped a little that there was a glint of silver around the fellow young woman's wrists. It didn't look like a bracelet, but perhaps the end of a gauntlet. She raised an eyebrow, not believing that was somehow part of the uniform.

The Army officer abruptly tilted her chin up and glanced up, turning her head slightly to listen out for something. She turned to the vent and studied it for a moment as if she could see through it.

The burglar held her breath and froze in place, fearful that perhaps the young woman had somehow heard her shifting her weight in the vent.

The General called out from the other side of the door, "Miss Vega, your assistance please."

The burglar flinched at the mention of that name, feeling that she had somehow been discovered, but was surprised when the young lieutenant called out over her shoulder, "Yes sir." She hesitated and studied the vent for a few more moments before she placed the bat-a-rang down then slowly walking out of the room. She looked over her shoulder one last time before slipping out the doors. After she exited the room, the doors swung back and forth a few times before settling to a stop.

The intruder patiently waited several more seconds to make sure she had left the room and wasn't returning before slipped her fingers through the grating and lifted one end up then carefully slid it forward as to not make too much noise despite the air conditioner covering the sound. The dark haired figure pushed it halfway down to give her enough room to slip through it and drop to the floor with barely a sound of her feet. She glanced to the door to double check to see that no one had spotted her. She knelt down behind one of the lab tables to make sure she wasn't spotted and crotched while shuffling over to the table. She grabbed the evidence bag, the discarded glove then used it to pick up the bat-a-rang and slip it into the clear bag. She tossed the bag in her satchel then looked to the steroid sitting on the neighboring table. She scurried over and grabbed the other three cylinders to put in her bag.

Satisfied that she had what she came for and then some, the black dressed figure grabbed a stool and placed it underneath the open vent. She jumped up on it and pulled herself into the vent. She turned and replaced the vent covering then quietly scurried down the ventilation to make her escape.

Several minutes later, the double doors opened and the frustrated detective reluctantly led the General and his entourage back inside the room. The technician that originally escorted Shay headed for the workbench with the steroid that was set aside for examination, but stopped when he saw that the canisters were missing.

The General walked up next to him and demanded with a stern expression, "Where is it?"

A second technician walked up beside him and answered him with a panicked expression, "It was just here."

Shay looked to the first technician and asked, "Where did it go?"

"I don't know."

The General turned to the detective and demanded, "If you've taken it to prevent me from having it, you will be arrested for treason."

The detective took offense to the accusation and sharply retorted, "We left the room with you and you left guards outside, so when did I have the chance to take it?"

The former flyer took a deep breath then slowly let it out. "Are there any other ways into this room?"

The technician answered, "No, that's the only way in or out."

Lieutenant Vega volunteered, "And I was the last one…" She looked to the vent where she suspected something odd then noticed a stool under the vent cover and walked over to it. She tapped it with her fingertips and muttered, "This wasn't here when I left…" She looked over her shoulder and concluded, "Someone was in the vent."

The detective muttered, "Impossible."

The decorated senior officer cocked an eyebrow and sarcastically asked, "Then where's the drug?"

The detective didn't have an answer and looked to the technicians for support. They stared back blankly as they didn't have any other explanation than the one suggested by the Lieutenant.

Shay sternly suggested, "Lockdown the building."

"I don't take orders from you," the detective snapped in defiance.

"You're right… but if I don't get that drug, you're going to have Federal agents crawling all over this place to figure out how it could be stolen from your custody," Shay answered with little patience.

The detective walked over to a phone resting on a desk in the corner of the room and picked up the receiver. "This is Hamilton with the Commissioner's security detail. I need you to lockdown the building. We have an intruder that just stole some evidence from the lab."

A few minutes later, a young female uniformed officer with a tanned complexion with her dark hair put up in a bun underneath her police cap walked out one of the side entrances with a GCPD marked duffle bag over her shoulder. She walked about a dozen yards down a row of vehicles until she stopped at a pretty nondescript unmarked car. She opened the driver's side door then tossed the duffle bag into the passenger seat before slipping inside. She started the vehicle and glanced out of the rearview mirror then backed out into the street then drove off while a number of other officers were exiting the building to secure the entrance.

Author's Note: So things are evolving with Freddie and Jade's relationship, return of a certain cat burglar (and a costume from a certain method acting exercise) and some new yet familiar faces. I hope you have a nice weekend (Go Panthers) and stay turned for the next exciting chapter in the exciting adventures of 'The Dark Dame'.