Oh yeah baby- two updates in a week...you know that you love me!

You guys are so awesome with the reviews and kind messages! I wish I had the time to respond to them but know that they're sooooo appreciative. Just for that, I'm going to spoil you with another chapter. I just love you guys!

"Members of the board, I have a question," Joker said as he stepped into the room. "Who wants to die first?"

The next few moments became a flurry of silent horror as the board members sat down on the carpeted floor. Six clowns with guns hovered over them as Joker approached, eyeing each of them. As his eyes fell on Emily, she felt herself swallow hard as his gaze lingered before he licked his lips and moved onto the next person.

"I need a volunteer," he finally said, as no one in the group dared to move. With one swift movement, he reached forward and grabbed ahold of Johnson, one of the younger members of the board. "You look like you're tech savvy."

Joker pulled him along with his hand and grabbed a small video camera from his bag. He shoved it at Johnson's chest.

"I need you to make a movie for me."

"Do it again," Bruce urged Bill.

Bill punched at Bruce's open palm.

"Again!"

And Bill followed the direction.

"Harder!"

"Bruce! If you say 'again' or 'harder' one more time I'll be forced to punch you in the face!"

The constant ordering caused Bill to get frustrated and he grunted with each punch he gave at Bruce's hands.

"You got it!" Bruce finally praised.

Bill, completely out of breath, relaxed and sat back on the small stool along the wall. He reached over and picked up a water bottle that rested against the chair.

"You have the idea now," Bruce added. "Work on the consistency of the hits and the accuracy will come."

Bill saw Alfred walk into the room first. The older man made a bee line for the mounted television and it wasn't until Alfred was standing on a chair to turn it on, that Bruce saw him. He was about to question what Alfred was doing until he saw an aerial photo of Wayne Tower appear on the screen, followed by the newscasters voice.

"We have breaking news. As Marcella reported earlier, it appears that the 36th floor of Wayne Tower has been taken hostage. Word has come in that the Joker is in the building as the station has just been anonymously given this recording. We warn you - the video is graphic."

An image of the Joker appeared on the screen of a rather shaky recording. He sat on top of a glass table with the view of Gotham behind him. Bruce curled his hands into a fist when he saw the familiar elevated tram pass by in the distance. He knew that view and exactly where Joker was.

Joker licked his lips.

"Hi," he said. He looked over his shoulder at the clear day over Gotham. "If you haven't guessed where I am, you'll figure it out soon enough. There will be bodies on the sidewalk outside of Wayne Tower. You have thirty minutes before I get impatient and start killing off my fifteen hostages."

He pushed himself off the table and turned towards the group sitting on the floor.

"And I have lots to choose from. If I get really antsy, I may just go ahead and push one or two out the window." Joker reached for his gun that laid on the table beside him.

"So uh...tick-tock." He paused for a moment and turned back to the camera.

"Did I say fifteen hostages? I meant fourteen."

He aimed the gun at the camera and fired.

More than a few people shrieked as they watched Johnson collapse to the floor; a bullet hole evident in his head as blood began to pool around him. A few even sobbed softly.

Emily felt her heart race as she watched Joker pick up the camera from Johnson's hand and proceeded to pull out the tape. He walked towards one of his clowns and handed him the tape. The clown nodded, obviously aware of the plan and left the room.

It was then that she felt it again; that tightening feeling that started in her back and then rotated to her stomach, squeezing like an uncomfortable belt wrapped around her. Trying to be inconspicuous and breath softly through a contraction was no easy task. She shifted slightly where she sat in hopes of not drawing attention to herself. That was the last thing she wanted to do. Except someone noticed.

Lucius was watching Emily.

Her facial expressions as she looked down and he was even certain that he saw her close her eyes, visibly trying to relax. It wasn't until he noticed her glance down at her watch and ran her hands over her large abdomen that he knew that something was wrong.

"You!" Joker suddenly said, gaining Lucius attention as he pointed directly at him. "You're the man in charge here?"

Lucius nodded. "I am."

Joker grabbed the phone from the corner of the room and slammed it onto the table as one of the clowns roughly pulled at Fox's shoulder and pulled him up to stand. Fox walked towards Joker where he stood by the phone.

"Call down to the front desk," he told him. "Tell them that there is a hostage situation here."

Confused and cautious, Fox slowly picked up the receiver and did what Joker had asked. After speaking briefly with the receptionist, he hung up the phone.

"You know, you really need to increase your security's pay," Joker commented. "It's amazing what a few low-paid security guards with the promise of a couple thousand dollars will do."

"I did what you asked," Fox said. "Now, let some of these people go."

Joker smiled. "And where would the fun be in that? Besides, just wait for the grand finale. When I'm done here, Wayne Tower will be nothing but a crater in the centre of Gotham."

"You're going to blow up Wayne Tower?"

Joker shrugged. "And every police officer or SWAT team that is sent to stop this hostage situation that you just called for."

He pushed Fox back towards one of the group and he sat back down, thinking about what was about to transpire with that one phone call. Lucius looked back at Emily and caught her gaze.

He mouthed two words to her - you, okay.

She simply shook her head solemnly before running her hands over her stomach and then to her back, massaging it.

The contractions weren't getting any worse as she sat there but they were consistent. They were only four minutes apart but her current situation concerned her. This was not the ideal place to be in labour.

She had to get out of there.

Nervously, she raised her hand, gaining the attention of the board members around her and the clowns as well.

"Excuse me," she spoke up.

Joker simply turned his head in her direction.

"I need to use the bathroom.

The clowns looked to each other, not knowing what to do as Joker sauntered up towards the group sitting on the floor. He kept his eyes on Emily as she sat.

"You look familiar," he said. "Have we met before?"

Emily didn't answer but he smiled. It was a look of pure evil as he smiled, showing his yellowish teeth as he ran his hand along the handle of his knife.

"So, we have. Who are you?"

Emily could feel her heart race.

"Emily. Emily Tucker."

Joker nodded. "Wayne's main squeeze." He paused looking down at the obvious fact that she was pregnant. "And it looks like he left you with a parting gift."

Joker glanced to one of his clowns and nodded who promptly reached for Emily's arm. He pulled her up to her feet. Joker took the opportunity to step closer to her, looking into her eyes. Emily shuddered under his gaze.

"But I do remember you from somewhere."

"The Pruett building, the night Harvey Dent died," Emily said softly, hoping that it would put an end to his visual examination of her face.

Joker nodded as a smile pulled at his scarred cheeks.

"One of those pretty doctors," he said, licking his lips as he took his knife, gently trailing it along her face to her neck.

"Please," she said softly as her voice shuddered nervously. "I really need to use the bathroom."

After a few more seconds, he pushed her towards one of the clowns and told him to bring her to the bathroom.

Emily felt like she could finally let out a breath that she had been holding. She knew that one of the armed clowns walked behind her as they headed towards the bathroom at the end of the hall. She prayed that the next contraction wouldn't begin until she reached the bathroom. Suddenly, the clown behind her grabbed her arm and pulled her towards a small Xerox room.

"Hey! What are you doing?!" she managed to exclaim as the clown pushed her into the room. She braced herself against the copy machine.

"Nothing yet," he snickered from behind the mask. "But this will only take a few minutes."

Emily's heart began to pound when she knew what the man was insinuating. She was prepared to put up a fight. She was ready to use every tactic that Bruce had taught her. Emily only hoped that her centre of gravity wouldn't throw her off and she wouldn't lose her balance.

Then it happened.

She could feel it come out of no where and gradually get stronger. It was stronger than any contraction she had before. Emily reached out and put her hand against the copy machine and the other hand to her stomach as she pinched her eyes tight, attempting to breathe deeply and relax as best as she could.

"Oh my god," Emily thought, just as the clown spoke the same words.

As though on cue, the lights flickered and then shut off before the emergency lighting turned on.

The clown backed up from Emily and turned, ready to go back to the room with the news of the woman being in labour when he was met with a firm fist to the face.

Batman swept his foot under him and quickly rendered the man unconscious before walking into the copy room. He could see Emily in the dim lighting and he quickly walked over to her.

"Emily, are you all right? Are you hurt?"

Without saying a word, she shook her head.

"I'm in labour," she gasped out, tears in her eyes. "Please, help me."

Emily quickly turned and put her hands on Batman's shoulders. He could see the pain in her face before she lowered her head, trying to regain control.

"I..I don't know...how or what to do, Emily," he said, his voice softening as it instantly became Bruce's.

As the pain subsided, she looked back up at him. The tears were still present in her eyes.

"Get us out of here," she told him.

Without saying a word, he nodded. He glanced out of the copy room and down the darkened hall towards his office. He knew it was unlocked; it was the way that he gained access to the building in the first place.

"Stay close," he told her as they made their way through the corridor. Voices could be heard but the words could not be made out. The entire floor except for the conference room had been vacated and since the announcement that there was a hostage situation in the building, it had been completely evacuated. Batman reached for Emily's hand, willing her to move faster.

It wasn't until he closed the door to his office and locked it that he relaxed a bit more.

"Where's the Joker?" he asked, softly.

"In the conference room. He has a few clowns in there with him."

Batman nodded, as he put his head beside the door, listening for anyone coming towards them.

"He has a bomb."

Batman suddenly turned his head towards Emily, the news shocking him.

"Where?"

She shrugged, her eyes watering once again. "It's somewhere in the building. He's planning on blowing up Wayne Tower once he has you."

Batman sighed, knowing that it had changed his plans and unfortunately, his priorities. He took her hands.

"Emily, I can't get you out of the building right now," Batman said, although the voice belonged to Bruce. "I have to stop him."

Emily nodded, feeling the tears begin to fall from her face. "I know."

"Stay in here until I return," he said, leaning in and pressed his lips to hers for a brief moment. "And I will return as soon as I can."

Emily smiled weakly. "First babies always seem to take their time anyways. That'll give you plenty of time to get that bastard and become a father."

A smile pulled at Batman's lips as he gently placed his hands on her stomach before taking her hand, gently squeezing it before he made his way to the window. Emily watched as he reached out the open window and shot a grappler across to the neighbouring building before he jumped out.

Lucius watched the door as time passed on from when Emily had left the room. He wasn't the only one wondering what was going on. Joker swiftly made one of his clowns go to check up on the whereabouts of the other clown and Emily. His brief comment about that one clown that took Emily probably had a fetish for pregnant women turned Lucius' stomach.

Less than a minute later, he heard footsteps rushing back towards the conference room. The door opened, revealing the clown had returned.

"Happy has been knocked out cold," he told him, completely out of breath from his run. "And the woman is nowhere to be found."

Joker clenched his teeth and Lucius was certain that he heard it.

Joker opened the conference room door and pushed the clown back out into the hallway. "Then go find her! If you come back empty-handed, I'll kill you."

Joker slammed the door behind him.

At that same moment, the glass from the window behind them suddenly blew out. Wind from the outside swept into the room as the board members began to shriek. In the midst of the chaos, Batman swept into the room and proceeded to fight the clowns, one by one. The hostages instinctively lowered themselves to the floor as they heard gunshots.

Batman grunted, feeling the impact of a gunshot hitting his back. He knew that would leave a nasty welt, but it was better than the alternative. He reached for his belt and quickly swung around throwing a bat dart at the other armed clown. The clown fell to the ground. Batman turned to see that Joker had left the room. He quickly raced towards the door and into the hallway and found that it was empty. Batman turned back to the conference room and nodded towards Mr. Fox who promptly urged the other board members to stand up to leave the room.

"Head towards the stairwell," he said. "If we only have emergency power, the elevators wont be working."

Lucius turned to Batman once the other board members were out of hearing distance.

"Emily is in labour."

"I know. She's in Mr. Wayne's office. I'd appreciate it if you could stay with her until I can get her out of the building."

"You're going after Joker?"

Batman nodded.

"Good luck."

Batman quickly disappeared down the hallway as Lucius headed to Bruce's office. He knocked lightly on the door.

"Emily?" he said softly. "It's Mr. Fox."

He could hear the door unlock before her nervous eyes appeared in the crack of the door. Mr. Fox watched her relax as she opened the door, allowing him to come in. Emily quickly closed the door and locked it behind her.

Lucius paused, noticing Emily's behaviour. Her blouse was unbuttoned at her neck and she was barefoot. A light sheen of sweat was on her forehead.

"How are you doing?" he asked, when she suddenly glared at him.

"Well, this isn't exactly a party," she growled. The moment her statement came out of her mouth, the way that it did, she regretted it. Emily sighed, frustrated.

"I'm sorry, Lucius," she apologized.

"No apology needed," he admitted as he undid his jacket and pulled it from his shoulders before draping it over the back of an arm chair across from Bruce's desk. "This certainly is not a party."

He watched her sigh as she rested her hands on her hips and began to sway. Her expression changed as he watched her begin to breath rhythmically. After a few more seconds she was able to relax again.

"How often do they come now?" Lucius finally asked once he knew that she would be able to answer properly.

"Three minutes or so," she told him. "I had to get out of that conference room. I couldn't sit still. They've only really picked up since I began moving around."

Lucius nodded and ran his hand over his face, trying to figure out what to do. He suddenly walked over to Bruce's desk and picked up the phone.

"The phone lines are dead," she told him, as he discovered it for himself.

He pulled open the drawers, shuffling the slim contents around.

"What are you looking for?"

"If I know Mister Wayne, he should have some sort of communication device in here somewhere," Lucius said.

Emily suddenly went over to the desk and began searching with him. She was about to shut a drawer when something caught Lucius' eyes and he stopped her. He reached into the drawer and pulled out a stapler. A smile appeared on Lucius' face as he set it on the table.

"It's a stapler," Emily deadpanned.

She heard Lucius chuckle. "It's a little more than just a stapler. I made this one a few years ago when Bruce asked for a communication device that would look inconspicuous. He laughed when I brought it to him. I was certain that he would have shelved it."

Emily watched as he effectively took it apart to reveal a cell phone no wider than her thumb.

He turned it on, lighting up the display.

"It works!" he announced happily as Emily felt her stomach tighten again. She walked away from Lucius and slowed down as it felt worse and worse. Finally, she stopped and leaned over Bruce's desk.

Fox looked up at the clock on the wall, and eventually he was counting aloud as the seconds passed. Oddly, Emily found that focussing on Lucius' voice counting the time helped tremendously. He stopped when she stood up straight again.

"Forty-two seconds," he told her, as she sighed. "They're getting longer and closer together.

"And stronger," she told him, as she grabbed a magazine from the small coffee table in Bruce's office and began to fan herself. "That was the worst one yet. Is it hot in here?"

"No, my dear, it is not," Lucius told her. "Perhaps if you sit down, maybe the contractions will slow down."

Emily shook her head as the phone on Bruce's desk began to beep. Lucius quickly picked it up.

"Hello? Alfred?"

Emily watched the confusion pass over Lucius face as he listened to the caller. He looked over at Emily.

"It's Bill Dravis."

Partially frantic and relieved, Emily quickly took the phone from Lucius and put it to her ear.

"Bill?"

"Emily! Thank goodness you're all right. How are you? Batman told us that you're in labour."

"I'm fine...as fine as I can possibly be," she told him. It suddenly hit her. "Wait. Are you in the cave?"

"Yeah. Once Alfred heard that you were in labour, he called me down in case Batman brings you home. We've already contacted Dr. Thompkins so she's ready whenever you get to the hospital."

Emily chuckled nervously.

"Yeah, about that," she said. "I need you to get ahold of Bruce and tell him to come back to his office. I don't think I'll make it to the hospital or home. If he wants to be here for this, he's going to have to get back here soon."