Disclaimer: I do not own and am not, in any way, affiliated with the Dark Knight franchise.

"Nothing is like it used to be, lady," he said. "The world is almost rotten."

― Flannery O'Connor, "The Life You Save May be Your Own"

Chapter Seven

A week and a half later an opening presented itself.

Audrey was laying on one of the cots, reading, while rain pounded on the windows. Judging by how cold it had been, there would soon be snow. Arjun dozed in his office chair; his snoring was rhythmic and on the verge of putting her to sleep too.

"Arjun?" she asked. A loud snore. "I'm going to make some tea." She paused but the snoring continued. Smiling to herself and muttering about old people, she rolled off the cot in search of something to keep her awake.

The main hall was empty. She wandered into the breakroom where they kept the electric kettle and was surprised to find it empty as well. She poked her head into a few of the other rooms trying to quash her mounting excitement. Nothing. Okay, be cool. They're around here somewhere…

The building doors were glass, darkly tinted to shield the people outside from viewing the misery inside. No one appeared to be out there. There was not a soul in sight as she peered as far as she could to both sides. Heart pounding too loudly in her ears, she pushed one open. It gave way easily and she found herself on the other side. No alarms rang, no one came running out after her. Temporarily forgetting her captivity, and her last encounter with Jack, she inhaled the sweet scent of freedom.

Freedom smelled acrid and an awful lot like burnt tobacco.

Panic flared in her chest, causing it to tighten, and she cursed her own stupidity. She flattened herself against the wall, ears straining to hear over the barrage of sleet. Easing her way to the corner of the building where the smell was emanating from, she peeked around into a covered alley where Jack and Andy were standing. An Emergency Exit door was propped open and, had it not been for the weather, they would have likely been able to hear everything that happened inside.

"Andy, be a good boy and check the front, would ya," said Jack, in a voice that was more order than suggestion. The ever compliant Andy flicked the butt of his cigarette and trudged over to the front.

There were two options, neither of which there was much time to consider. Going inside meant giving up whereas leaving meant facing the unknown. She decided she would take her chances with the latter. She turned and raced in the opposite direction, hoping to get away before Andy saw her.

The wind roared in her ears. Wet and cold came at her from all sides, but she didn't stop. She turned down streets blindly, running anywhere that looked like it would lead somewhere far, far away. Not until she felt she was at a safe distance did she duck behind the stone pillars of a bank building.

I've got to start going to the gym, she chastised as she tried to get her winded breathing back under control. The thought made her giggle, but there was a frenzied quality to it that she did not like. Crouching in a dark corner, all senses operating on high alert as she tried to see or hear any sign of pursuit, was not the place she wanted to have a break down.

"Take a deep breath," she whispered remembering a meditation technique that Beth had taught her, mostly as a way to keep her from waging war with some of her patients. For each inhale, she silently counted to four and did the same for every exhale. As thoughts crowded around her head, she pushed them away. After several rounds of this, her breathing steadied while calm and logic resurfaced.

Now, it was a waiting game.

As the minutes passed, each one more excruciating than the last, she allowed herself to hope. She thought about her dad, how excited he would be to see her. She imagined the interaction over and over, finding comfort in the fact that the universe had aligned just right so she could see him again. So that he wouldn't have to be alone when Gotham detonated.

The sound of the frozen rain fell into the same steady tempo as Arjun's snores. To think that only an hour or two ago she had been trapped there. Has it even been that long? Longer? Would they be looking for her now? Visualizing Jack having to explain her absence to Barsad brought a small smile to her lips. Trouble wouldn't even begin to cover it, he was going to have his ass handed to him. If anyone could deliver a brutal tongue lashing, it was Barsad.

Despite being soaked and bitterly cold, her eyes began to feel heavy. She yawned and leaned her head against the marble, eyelashes fluttering as she debated whether or not it was safe to move. Five minutes. Just five minutes and then I'll figure out where I am and what the next step is.

There was no way to be sure how much time had passed when she finally stirred from sleep. The sleet had stopped, but gray clouds still hung heavy in the sky, though they had taken on a lighter hue that could only mean one thing: snow.

She stretched herself back into working condition, body aching from the temperature drop and the uncomfortable position she had slept in. Her clothing was still damp and she shivered uncontrollably as the icy material touched her warm skin. "Okay," she said, rubbing her hands together, trying to focus on something other than how she felt. "First thing's first. Gotta figure out where I am." The street sign on the corner was a good starting point in determining that she was a long way from home. By keeping off the main avenues, she thought she might be able to start covering good ground with minimal interaction.

The walk was lonely and, though she tried to hide it, Audrey was scared. The last time she'd walked these streets she had been lucky to end up kidnapped and not worse. You don't have a gun this time either, a nasty voice whispered in the back of her mind. In defiance of her fear, she crossed her arms in front of her chest and plastered a scowl on her face, hoping to come across tougher than she looked.

A group of metal trashcans lined up against the side of the street clanked together loudly causing her to jump back. The ground was slick and she almost fell backward, wildly windmilling her arms to steady herself. Once her feet were solidly planted on the ground, she positioned herself in what she hoped looked like a fighting stance right as two alley cats streaked past her.

As she watched them run down the street she caught sight of her reflection in the window. Instead of the fierce pose she had imagined herself being in, she was standing like a Street Fighter character. She burst into relieved, shaky laughter. "You're losing it, Campbell. Get it together," she scolded, shaking her head. This was becoming far too common a phrase she felt she had to use. But it worked.

Night came on quickly. The vacant streets were less of a comfort and more fuel to feed to her paranoia. Even the slightest sound now made her jump, pause, and look over her shoulder. Small snowflakes fell lazily from the moonless sky. The only source of light came from occupied buildings that still had power as most streetlamps had been knocked over in the initial blast.

The cold had gotten worse the darker it became. It pierced through her jacket so that her bones felt frozen and even now, relatively dry, she was still shivering. Every so often her teeth clicked together as her lower jaw trembled. She pressed the heel of her hand against her chin and rubbed her cheeks to try to regain feeling, wishing she'd managed to steal a scarf.

An open lot lay in front of her. Fire blazed in a trash can where two people, a man and a woman, huddled around it. Neither of them wore a red scarf, a potentially good sign. To avoid bringing attention to herself, Audrey shoved her hands in her pockets and slunk quietly past them.

"Where do you think you're going?" a voice asked from in front of her. A figure materialized from the shadows, his mouth widening into a Cheshire cat grin.

Fuck.

"Home." She offered what she hoped was a sweet smile.

The man checked his watch and took a step toward her. It was a nice watch, gold with a jewel encrusted rim. On the face of it, she thought she saw dark flecks. She stepped away from him in response, bumping into another body. The man and the woman were behind her now. When had they moved? She rotated so that her back was facing the street, but the woman cut her off. Okay, she reasoned. You can talk yourself out of this. The man with the watch clicked his tongue three times, shaking his head. "Out awfully late. Wonder why that is?"

"Just on my way back from a friend's. Her mom is sick." Her right hand fidgeted with a stray thread in the pocket of her jacket hoping they would think she was carrying a weapon. She gave them another, weaker, smile. "I don't want trouble, just to pass through."

"I don't know," the man to her left commented. His voice was low and gravelly. "You're dressed pretty ritzy to be out in the open like this, lady."

That was ridiculous. Except it wasn't. Had she not had a warm shower, new clothes, and decent meals the last few days? Of course they would mistake her for some upper class denizen. She wished she had her old clothes. No doubt they would have left her alone then.

The man standing to her right held something in his hand that glittered in the fire light. A knife.

Double fuck.

"Can we just hurry this up already? It's freezing out here," the woman stated in flat voice. Audrey stiffened. How often are they doing this that they're so bored of it? That worried her more than the man with the knife; that was the attitude of a person who had nothing to lose.

An idea came to her. It was stupid, but if it worked she would be out of this mess. Once more into the fray was her last thought before charging forward and ducking down.

An arm caught her right in the middle of her face as she tried to run by the woman. Black stars exploded behind her eyes and warm substance seeped out of her nose. She was pretty sure it was blood. A hand lodged itself into her hair, wrenching her back into the group.

"Nice try," the woman jeered, shoving her hard against the brick wall and holding her there. The man with the knife moved toward her. Audrey averted her eyes, prepared for the inevitable, when a crack rang out. The third man collapsed. The woman's grip loosened enough in the surprise of the moment for Audrey to get the upper hand. Her fist connected with the side of the woman's face. Hard. She staggered back, but did not fall.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw a figure step into the light.

Barsad.

They locked eyes and, for just a moment, Audrey forgot where she was as a combination of relief and utter terror swept through her. His mouth was set in a hard line, eyes searing with irritation.

Oh, I am in trouble.

A/N: Hey everyone! I know this chapter is a little shorter, but worth it for the cliffhanger, amirite? Thank you all so much for your kind reviews!