Chapter 2 Him

Jacqueline Napier knew her brother was crazy and she knew he was the infamous villain known through Gotham City as "The Joker", but none of that mattered to her. He was always going to be big brother Jack to her, no matter what crimes he committed. Jacqueline was very different from Jack. She had never gotten so much as a parking ticket and she was as far on the right side of the law as he was on the wrong.

When she had gone to law school she thought he was going to kill her, especially when she told him she would not be representing criminals, but instead working with people on their wills and end of life desires. He had not been a happy psychopath and she had a deep gouge in her left hip from his displeasure. He hadn't meant to hurt her, but when he through the knife she had not moved out of the way fast enough and it struck her cutting into the muscle at her hip. His personal doctor had sewn her up that night and Jack had gone out of his way to take care of her for the weeks it took her to recover.

Jacqueline didn't advertise that her brother was the notorious criminal known as "The Joker" and she had changed her last name when she graduated from school so that no one would be wiser. The door to her office proudly displayed Jacqueline M. Nallier in gold letters and labeled her as a partner in the firm. She had worked hard for her title, but she still feared the day someone in the office would discover her secret.

She pulled the sleek silver BMW into her parking place on the third floor of the parking garage and checked her reflection in the rearview mirror. Her hair had a few strands out of place and she would have to fix that once she entered the building. She exited her car and gathered her brief case and purse before stepping onto the moving sidewalk that would take her to the front of the office. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and began to review her calendar for the day and was briefly distraught at her nine o'clock appointment. Bruce Wayne was coming in to review his last will and testament as well as his living will and she was not looking forward to this meeting.

She had been briefed about Mr. Wayne's frequent visits to update his information as he acquired new companies and even though she had prepared for his visit for over a month she had barely scratched the surface of his holdings. She thought he needed an entire legal team assigned to him, not just one single partner and her secretary. She stepped off of the moving sidewalk and took the gold doored elevators up to the eighteenth floor. Stepping off the elevator she was met with a cheery good morning and a fresh cup of orange juice from her assistant and best friend Nelda.

Nelda followed her into her office and stood quietly as Jacqueline put down her belongings. "What?" Jacqueline asked, never making eye contact.

"Are you ready? For him I mean?"

Jacqueline shook her head. "No, I'm not. But it is my hope that he is just going to breeze into my office and breeze back out. He is a wealthy business man, surely he won't be here for long. Besides, isn't he like over a hundred years old or something? Surely the geezer will need to take a nap sooner than later."

Nelda clucked her tongue. "I assure you he is not nearly as old as you think and from the looks of his photos on the front of each paper in Gotham City he is a very handsome man. I have a feeling he will be here for the entire meeting and maybe even take up more of your time than you are expecting."

"Nelda, I've told you about reading those newspapers. They are full of gossip and rumor and should not be trusted. I don't understand why you waste your time on them at all."

"Because I like gossip and rumor, and I like looking at pictures of Bruce Wayne. I'll make sure to have coffee and tea ready and waiting for his arrival. Anything else?"

"The documents say he likes pastries so grab something tasty to have with the coffee and tea. I want to make sure he's happy, before he has to go take his nap."

Nelda chuckled. "We'll see how much of a geezer he is when he shows up," she thought to herself before leaving the office to get the food items together.