Crane had set up his lab in an abandon apartment complex in 'No Man's Land' that had been inhabited by Jarvis Tetch. He was now locked back up in Arkham after he went back to find his 'Alice'. From what rumors he heard the poor extern had been so scared by Tetch locking him and her in a closet trying to get back to Wonderland she quit and transferred out of Gotham University and was moving to the west coast.

Crane decided since Tetch wasn't using this space he set up shop. The bat wouldn't bother looking for im hear if he knew about this hideout since Tetch was locked up. This five story shit hole was perfect for him, not many neighbors around to complain about the smell of chemicals. He turned off the Bunsen burner in front of him, and stood up to stretch. Walking over to the window he looked at the run down building across the street. There was a lone light on in the building; a figure was sitting on the couch typing away at a lap top.

"What are you staring at Johnny boy?" Nigma asked as he strolled into the room in his Riddler outfit, twirling his gold question mark staff in his hand.

"Ever heard of knocking," Crane asked as he stared at his neighbor, all he could see was the back of her strawberry blond hair and the top of the silver lap top on the table in front of her. "What are the odds of seeing S.D. again?"

"Slim to none," he replied walking over to the window. "Unless the world wishes to play a cruel joke upon you. That couldn't be her, she would have fled Gotham by now, Falcone put a hit out on her."

"Because of one failed hit?" he asked and Nigma nodded yes. "That's why I never associate with those mob bastards. They think they are better than the rest of us. You didn't leave a riddle that leads to here did you?"

"Of course not," he laughed, as he leaned against the wall. "Batman figured out my riddle before I even got back to my hideout and now I'm hanging out here until he leaves. No I was not followed."

"Terrific," Crane muttered as the light went out across the street. "Same rules as last time don't touch MY stuff!"

"As if I would mess with your little chemistry set," Nigma replied as he walked out of the apartment. "Night neighbor."

Annoyed Nigma was staying on the floor below him; he started to clean up his experiments for the night. Crane knew he owed him one for sharing his hideout with Crane last year. They usually hid each other when the bat was on one of their tails. Nigma and Tetch were the only two other rouges Crane would associate with outside of Arkham. The rest where too brainless for him to deal with, especially after working with Joker the one time, he still had a scar on his left calf were Joker threw a knife at him when Batman foiled his plans.

Damn clown was always so stab happy. It amused him that the true psychopath of the rouges was he only one with a steady girlfriend, of course he didn't count Freeze's wife she was frozen sold she didn't have a choice but to be kept by him. There were plenty of crazy females out there, but none of them could hold his attention long, of course most of them ran in terror from him in the end. Fear was the only emotion he needed a woman to feel, unlike the clown that loved to flaunt how crazy in love Harley was and how she would do anything for him.

He finished cleaning and was heading over to the well-worn couch that he was using as a bed when he saw someone scaling the fire escape across the street. The person was outside the window that had light pouring out moments ago. Watching as they opened the window, he heard a crash from across the street, and the person tried to back out the window. Then the mystery strawberry blond appeared and followed them out onto the fire escape. Pulling out a knife, the person wildly swiped at the woman, who expertly dodged, and then she swung her right elbow into the person's chest stunning and causing the person to drop the knife. Then she wrapped her hands around the throat of the would be killer and choked the life out them. Standing up she looked across the street at him, he would remember those cold blue eyes anywhere. Smiling she gave a small wave before dragging the corpse into her home.

It would be his luck Tetch had a hideout next to S.D., and she saw him watching her. He was still watching her as she shut the window and replaced all the knick knacks and other items on the windowsill. Walking out of view she returned with a black oversized constructer trash bag. She shoved the corpse into the bag and slung it over her shoulder and exited the apartment. He knew she was doing the easy dump. The trash men who worked in 'No Man's Land' never left there trucks and quickly dumped the dumpsters into the truck and got out of this side of town as quick as possible. If the body was ever found it would be in the Gotham dump and no one would know exactly where it came from. The corpse was just another nameless dead in Gotham.

Crane was still standing at the window when she returned. She swept up something broken on the floor by the window before checking all the other windows in the apartment. Standing in the shadows of his own darken apartment, he forgot she knew he was there. Until she went back to the window that faces directly across from his, she winked then closed the curtain. The heavy wool curtain blocked out the light completely, the rest of the apartment went dark a few moments later.

"So it is S.D.," Nigma laughed, startling Crane not that he showed it.

"I thought you went to bed," he commented as he turned to face Nigma who was now dressed in a green long sleeved shirt and jeans.

"I was hungry and have yet to stock my refrigerator," he replied as he fiddles with his pockets. "I was heading to the mini mart open all hours around the corner when I heard noise. Making sure you weren't climbing up her fire escape."

"I allow you to stay here and you are mocking me," Crane replied as he walked away from the window. "Besides when have to ever seen me climb up a fire escape."

"Good point," Nigma replied, and then laughed. "I've also never seen you stare at someone so intently for so long without gassing them up."

"Seeing as I have had to make a whole new batch of fear gas since those punk kids broke into my storage space," he growled, pissed while he was locked up in Arkham all of his fear gas was ruined.

"At least the experience the full effect of you gas," Nigma laughed, he was still loose when the incident happened. "One of the kids still hasn't fully recovered, even after Batman gave them the antidote."

"Yes but four teenagers is not the effect I was going for!" he roared thinking of his ruined plan. "I wanted to see the look on Bruce Wayne's face as I filled his charity ball with fear gas!"

"Always the same with you," Nigma stated, as he turned to leave. "Going after old Bruce Wayne, at least he never fired you."

"No just called my fear experiments a travesty, that I no longer had the talent of a good doctor so I subjected my patients to fear to cover my own failure!"

"Wasn't that Lucius Fox that said that?" Nigma asked as he stopped at Crane's door.

"It was in an interview for the new cure for my fear toxin Wayne Enterprise mass produced," He informed him opening the door and nodding Nigma out. "Wayne had to approve that little speech, I know his true thoughts on my experiments and he will become one for this new batch of fear gas that Batman will have no antidote for. Rich boy will get what is coming to him!"

"Make sure to film it I would love to see Wayne's face twisted in fear," he laughed, there was no love lost between him and Bruce Wayne after he was fired from Wayne Enterprise. "Wayne is such a poster boy for the virtuous citizens of Gotham; he needs to be knocked down a peg or two. He is as bad as the bat."

"Believe me I will," Crane promised then shut the door behind Nigma.

Rubbing his hand through his hair he stifled a yawn. It was past three a.m. by his calculation, he needed sleep. As soon as he lay down on the couch he out like a light.

Thank you for the review Booklover1498 I love reading reviews and makes me want to write more!