Bringing My Children Home

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Disclaimer: I am only borrowing the Bat family to practice my art.

Chapter Seventeen

Tim

When his phone buzzed, Tim wondered how they had not expected this.

"What is wrong?" Tam Fox asked. Surprised by her perception, Tim stared at her, reevaluating. She was a sheltered, rich girl who had taken advantage of all the opportunities she had, but not one he had believed would see beyond the end of her own nose. It was not often someone surprised Tim.

"Stephanie's dad, who threatened to kill her, was just spotted outside the hotel," He replied, bluntly. Her eyes widened. "There is no current restraining order, but Bruce hired an investigator to keep watch."

Well, more like Tim had hacked Oracle's surveillance network, to run a new facial recognition program he designed to monitor the threats to his family. This was going to open that can of worms. He wondered how mad Babs would be. Bruce had caught him at it and pointed out that all the heat would come down on Tim.

"I've let Bruce and the others know. Security will be sent to check it out, but I can't help but worry about her. She was really brave to testify against him," Tim said sheepishly, fingers running down the side of his jacket where he had his collapsed staff hidden.

Across the room Cass was pushing Stephanie out of the room, despite the blonde's protests. Dick and Bruce were caught in the center of the room and were too noticeable to get out. As for Tim, his interest in learning who Tam Fox was had trapped him. While it was an open secret that Mr. Fox knew what the Wayne Family really was, no such connection had been made to any of his family. His eldest daughter worked in social services, his son was in college; Tam was also a college student, but as the only child following her father's steps, had been drawn into Wayne Enterprises.

When she had read the minute concern in his face, he had discovered she was far more observant than expected. This was a big complication. She did not know, and he did not think either Bruce or Lucius would be pleased if he let her see enough to put the pieces together. Therefore, he was restricted from sneaking out, as well as using any part of his physical training.

"Can I ask about your family? Dad fondly mentions most of Mr. Wayne's 'kids', but no one really knows why..."

"Why Bruce has adopted, fostered, or taken parental duties to so many of us?" Tim smiled. "I think he was lonely. He wanted a family, but he never met the right person to start a family with. So, when he saw Dick's parents killed, it reminded him of himself, he had to help. It just snowballed from there."

Her face lit up with amusement, but also question.

"There is a lot of question about you," she said awkwardly. Tim blinked. He was not sure if it was just a social faux pas, or a disguise to interrogate him.

"I am aware of that," he said lightly. "I like being the mystery. My siblings all have their specialties that draw people to them, but I am unique just because no one knows what made Bruce decided I was one of his."

"Dad says -," she began, but Tim dove for the ground, dragging her out of her seat and to the floor as the first spray of bullets into the ceiling began.

"GET DOWN ON THE GROUND NOW!" There were seven, eight, twelve men. They wore masks, which was a good sign, but carried automatics with fingers on the triggers.

He pulled one of his phones out, changing the warning on the Bat Network to an all-out emergency alert, then using the other phone to place a brief, whispered call to the police. The Birds and Phoenix were not present at the Gala. Next to him, Tam was on the ground with her hands over her head, shaking with nerves. Cass and Stephanie were out of the Ballroom area, hopefully out of the building, but Spoiler could not make an appearance.

The gunmen were all walking among the rich, the famous, the powerful, and taking their valuables.

Tim propped his civilian phone against one of the legs of the table he and Tam were partly under, to record the events. Cluemaster had not yet made an appearance, but two of the men had pulled Bruce to his feet. Dick had not been discovered yet, and had nearly gotten to the door before the invasion.

He needed to separate from Tam, in case he needed to make a scene.

His bat phone alerted him that the signal was jammed.

Bruce

If Babs went to ream Tim out for the hack, Bruce was going to have to take the heat after all. Oracle refused to allow her system to be used for tests of new programs, but Tim had written this program only after Stephanie had come to the manor. He had done a single test before putting into Oracle's Network. It was paying dividends.

"Ah, Mr. Wayne, our boss wants to see you," two of the thugs said.

"I don't have anything else on me," Bruce said meekly, as they pulled him to his feet. Dick had almost made it out the door with one of his fangirls on his arm before the invasion. Tim had not even been able to make the attempt after managing to intrigue Tam Fox.

"Not even my daughter?" Cluemaster demanded as he stalked into the room, right past Dick's head. Bruce felt one of his worries lessen. One of the benefits of Dick's flirtatious persona was that no one took him very seriously. He was concerned that Arthur Brown would use Dick or Tim as bargaining chips.

Brown had only been told that Stephanie had made friends with Tim and Cass, which explained Bruce Wayne's decision to offer her shelter when threatened by her father. With Spoiler's return to the street not public knowledge yet, Brown had not pieced together that she had been taken into the Bat Family as well. He was intelligent enough to put that coincidence together.

Cass would have to keep Stephanie out of this fight.

"I think Stephanie went home with a couple of the others," Bruce said quietly, keeping his shoulders hunched to portray submission, but allowing enough steel to come through to show he would not give her up.

This was not going to be pretty to discuss with his Aunt Kane, the current matriarch of that side of his family. She would never publicly denounce his actions, but there was no doubt she felt six children were a bit excessive charity. Her Gala being ruined because of the dangers to one of the children would lead to a nasty scolding.

"I happen to know that only two of your charities went home, the street rat and the newest one," Cluemaster laughed. "She's still here."

"Really? I had a text from her saying she was leaving," he held up his phone.

Steph had texted an excuse text, moments after Cass texted Bruce's hidden phone that they got out of the building.

C & I going for real chocolate 😊. This fancy stuff is sickening.

"We were watching every exit. I know she's still here," Cluemaster said, gripping the other man's shirt. "You may be idiotic enough to think you can get me to leave, but she's here. Not sure why you wanted her in the first place. You're just a bored rich man. I know your type. You'd pay a million dollars to save your own life. She doesn't even cost you that much to care for."

Dick was easing backwards now that the goons were past him. Bruce tilted his head, staring at the stupid mask. For some reason those villains who aspired to so-called super-villainy thought a mask was scary enough. None, except Scarecrow, really thought the costume through. All they really wanted was attention, failing to see the purpose behind a costume.

"But a person's life can't be valued with money." Sometimes Bruce liked the simplicity of being Brucie. Not quite an idiot, but seeing the world very basically.

He could see those brave enough to look up at their captors' grimace at the plain words.

"Maybe not to you, who has never suffered for want of money, but to most people there is a price. They said you were stupid, Wayne, but they never said you were an idealist. Fine. Is one girl's life worth the life of a son?"

Dick was so close to getting to the door. Bruce held his breath as Cluemaster began to turn around.

A clatter on the opposite side of the room turned everyone's eyes away from Dick, who was immediately out the door. There was no relief at that, because Bruce knew, before the shouts began, what had happened. It was likely having Nightwing would make the rescue operation smoother, but it would place Tim in the center of the struggle, unarmed and unable to fight.

"What are you doing? What are you doing?!" The thugs nearest Tim were yelling. Several screams came from the area behind Bruce. "Boss, he's got a phone! He's got a phone."

"We jammed the signals," Cluemaster said calmly.

"Then how is there a call logged to the Police?"

"What? Bring that brat over here!"

"Get up! Get up!"

A few seconds later Tim was frog marched between Cluemaster and Bruce. He glanced briefly at Bruce, but gave no signal of anything.

"I should have guessed it would be one of Wayne's brats. Were you wanting to turn this into a hostage situation? We would have taken your valuables and my daughter and been out of here if you hadn't done that."

"You planned to come here and rob Gotham's elite, kidnap someone Bruce Wayne is taking care of, and walk out of here, with no consequences?" The teenager said. "I thought you were supposed to be a smart man."

"I'm smart enough to know you're worth more than my daughter any day," Cluemaster snapped.

Both the masked men, holding Tim's arms tightly behind his back, pulled out pistols. If Tim was Robin he would already be free, but as Timothy Drake, the nerdy genius, he could not make a move. Tim's eyes shifted slightly behind Cluemaster. The cavalry had arrived.

The lights went out.

"Well, well, well," Phoenix's voice echoed through the room. "This, young grasshopper, is what we call a hostage situation."

"I'm not stupid," Damian's voice replied.

Jason was grounded and penniless from this moment onward. What did he think he would accomplish, letting Bruce's assassin trained twelve-year-old son along for the ride?

"Spoiler, Batgirl, nice of you to join the party."

Bruce was grounding them all! Had he taught them nothing? A flash of a purple cape in the door way was the disheartening answer to that. Cluemaster laughed.

"Still playing the petty little girl, Stephy?" He taunted.

Finally, Bruce had adjusted to the dim lighting. He could see Phoenix in a corner, holding back the tense hooded figure of Damian. Nightwing and Batgirl were on the ground, silencing the outer hostages and sneaking them backwards.

"Come here, girl," Cluemaster shouted. Spoiler stood silent in the doorway, not moving. "No? What if I give this one a third eye? He's one of your rich friends protecting you."

With a sneer, he pressed a pistol against Tim's forehead. Bruce tensed. It would be easy to knock out the thugs on either side of him.

"Don't!" Spoiler hissed as she moved forward. Bruce stared at Tim, who gave a curious side eyed glance. That was not Steph's voice and the gait was not Stephanie's. Who had come up with this plan and why was Bruce not aware of it?

"So stupid of you," Cluemaster shook his head.

"Was she your daughter?" Spoiler asked. "The girl who wore this before me?"

They had completely distracted Cluemaster and his thugs. Phoenix, Nightwing, Batgirl, and Damian were now taking down the seven thugs at the edges of the room, while Oracle's Birds of Prey moved the hostages out. There were about seven men and women on the ground around Cluemaster's main two hostages.

The gun pressed against Tim's head shook.

"What?"

The full-face mask on Batgirl was allowing Stephanie to still take part here. Jason or Dick? Neither was inclined to be this subtle. Tim might have come up with something like this, but had not had time to give them the details they needed. Of course, any one could have made basic plan, and they were making the rest up as they went along.

"She was sad when she offered it to me. She said she had done what she needed with it, and asked if I could do good with it. It was my fight, now."

Cluemaster would never have allowed Batgirl so near. Everyone knew what she could do. But Spoiler was not well known and those who did know her, knew she was nowhere near as trained as Robin was, much less Batgirl.

The two thugs on either side of Bruce went limp in the arms of the two taller vigilantes. Damian grabbed Bruce's hand and tugged, wanting to pull him away. Bruce was not wearing a cowl, was aware that if Cass got close enough she could take Cluemaster and the thugs down, but with that gun still pressed to Tim's forehead, he could not leave. Stephanie, as Batgirl, had left the room.

Phoenix and Nightwing were approaching Cluemaster from behind.

The two men holding Tim saw them and lifted their guns to point at them.

"We appear to be at a stale mate here," Cluemaster said. "I don't know how you are doing this, but it's not going to work, Stephy. It's you."

Tim's phone, tossed onto the table nearest Cluemaster, buzzed. The Birds had found and disabled the signal jammers.

"What? What is going on?" Cluemaster shouted, using his free hand to seize the phone. Steph's picture was on it. "Who is this?"

"Tim? What is going on?" Steph's voice came through in frantic whispers. "Jason just texted me and told me to get home. He said there were gunmen in the Gala."

"No. This is a trick," Cluemaster shouted. He pushed Tim's head back with the gun, glaring at Spoiler. "Take off that hood, or I will shoot him before any of you can make another move."

"Dad, please don't," Stephanie shouted in the phone. "I'll come, I'll come."

A catalyst was needed to let Cass take the hood down.

"Please," Bruce begged her, "Don't let him kill Tim."

Spoiler stood silent for a moment longer, then reached up and pulled the hood off. The black face mask remained for a moment before she slowly folded it down to reveal her dark hair and eyes. She did not take it down all the way, keeping her nose, mouth, chin and ears covered.

"Your daughter gave this to me when you went to prison. I was fighting on the streets to protect my sisters. She said to use it, to make some good come out of what you had done."

Then she moved. Behind Arthur, Nightwing and Phoenix both moved as well. Tim dropped much as possible in the arms of his captors, right before all three vigilantes struck. The gun went off, but Phoenix had gotten hold of his arm, so the shot went on an upward trajectory, missing Tim completely. Spoiler kicked Arthur in the gut, sending him stumbling backwards into Nightwing, who slammed one of his eskrima sticks down on the villain's head.

"Phoenix, take the Batgirl and the Kid back to patrol and back Batman and Robin up. The boss is going to ream us out for being distracted by this. I'll stay and handle the cleanup," Nightwing said a moment later. The lights came on.

Damian had backed away before the lights came on, so that he was nearly out of sight, and not holding his Father's hand. Spoiler replaced her hood and marched out, stopping only to give the unconscious Cluemaster a kick in the shin. None of them seemed hurt, so Bruce dove for Tim, who was seated on the floor, looking tired.

"Hey, Bruce. He broke my phone," Tim said sadly, pointing to the cracked civilian phone under Cluemaster's arm.

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