Chapter Three
The hospital had been absolutely packed.
Reporters were crammed into the halls like sardines, fighting to catch a glimpse of Bruce at his most vulnerable state.
Diana paid them no mind. Instead she kept her head up, her back straight, and marched through the crowds to reach Bruce's room.
When she finally made her way in, she slammed the door behind her.
Much to her surprise, the room was empty; minus Alfred sitting in the corner with his head in his hands.
"Where is he?" Diana asked softly, fearing the worst for a moment.
Alfred sighed, lifting his head to meet her gaze. "He's... He's going in for surgery. The doctors are worried about the amount of blood he lost..." He trailed off, running his hands through his hair. "I've had to bury every member of this family..."
"And you won't have to bury anyone else." Diana said, taking a seat beside him.
Alfred nodded, but he didn't seem convinced. "Did you catch them?" He asked her. "Did you catch the bastard that did this?"
Solemnly, Diana shook her head. "There was two of them. One of them pulled the trigger, the other was some form of back up. They both got away. But I won't let them get away again."
She rose to her feet, and began pacing back and forth. "I know Bruce has plenty of enemies, but how many of them know about his double life?"
"None, I would hope." Alfred replied.
"One of the men said that Bruce has 'had this coming', and that he 'has blood on his hands'. I thought that Bruce had a 'no kill' policy?"
"For the most part. There have been some instances where he's had to break that code. But what did this bloke look like? He's acting as if he knows Master Bruce."
"He kept his face hidden." Diana admitted. "He wore this red helmet. It masked up both his face and his voice."
Alfred looked up at her, almost as if he was connecting some dots.
"That... Is interesting." He commented.
"What about it?" Diana asked.
"Many years ago, there was an incident at a chemical plant with this group of thugs known as the Red Hood gang. Master Bruce has always been a bit vague on the details, but I'm sure he could go over it with you once he's recovered."
Diana nodded, trying to let her mind settle.
Hours went by. Before they knew it, dawn had broken.
It seemed like an eternity, but they finally got some good news.
Diana could hear the sounds of shouting outside, and the door to the room opening to a hospital bed.
Bruce was brought into the room, and his doctor shouted in the hall for the reporters to leave before he called the police.
To put it lightly, Bruce looked awful. He was coming down from whatever drug-induced state the doctors had him in, and he was wrapped up in bandages across his chest.
Still, when he caught sight of Alfred and Diana, he had the biggest smile his face could manage.
"Well... You two are a welcome sight."
Diana couldn't help but grin in return, taking a hold of his hand. "How are you feeling?"
"Like shit." Bruce retorted, bluntly, only to realize the company had. "I sorry, I mean I feel awful. Tends to happen when you get shot at... But the bullet didn't get very far."
"Surprisingly enough, it did very minimal damage." The doctor added. "You're very lucky to be alive, Mr. Wayne."
"Indeed he is." Alfred commented. "How soon can he return home."
"I would like to have him recover here for at least two days. Possibly more, but it really just depends on how his body reacts to the stitches. But I'll keep the paparazzi at bay."
"Thank you." Bruce replied. "Could I have a moment with my friends?"
"Of course." The doctor said, giving a nod. "I'll just be outside the door."
As the doctor left the room, Bruce took a hold of Diana's wrist.
"Did you find them?" He asked, his voicing bordering on panic. "Tell me you found them."
Diana sighed, relaying everything that she had said to Alfred. At the mention of the red helmet, Bruce's eyes went wide.
"You're sure? You're absolutely sure the helmet was red?"
"Positive."
He pondered for a moment before letting go of her and leaning back in his bed.
"Bruce, what's this all about?" Diana asked.
"The... The Red Hood gang was essentially where the Joker came from." Bruce explained. "It was all one big accident... But this doesn't seem like the Joker's style. He's more about chaotic theatrics than subtlety."
"And there's still a matter of the man behind the sniper." Alfred added. "Perhaps Miss Prince would benefit more from the profiles of your... Adversaries?"
Bruce nodded at that, turning his gaze to Diana. "In my bedroom, there's a desk. In the bottom right drawer, there's a false bottom. Inside the compartment is a hard drive. Take that down to the Cave and you can read whatever you like. Whatever helps you narrow down who these scumbags are."
"You're letting her use the computer, Master Bruce?" Alfred asked, feigning a look of offence. "I thought only I was allowed to use it. That was part of our special bond. Our 'us time'."
Diana chuckled in response, and Bruce groaned, shaking his head.
"In all seriousness, though, help her navigate the database." Bruce told him. "I can't be much help from here."
Much to his disdain, Alfred had to leave him behind in that hospital. There would be plenty of security, along with the body guards Bruce had hired. It was enough to set his mind at ease.
When they got back to the house, Diana immediately went for Bruce's room to hunt down that flash drive.
When she opened the door, Diana was shocked to find his room completely ransacked.
His dresser was torn apart with clothes scattered everywhere. The bedcovers were crumpled up into a ball on the bed. The closet was completely ripped open.
The desk, however, was in the worst shape. It was snapped completely in half, and the drawers were practically smashed to splinters.
Frantically, Diana dug through the wreckage. But she only ended up confirming her fears.
The hard drive was missing.
"Alfred!"
Diana spun on her heel to hunt down the Butler, only to find him standing in the doorway.
"Do you think it was those thugs from before?"
"I don't want to jump t any conclusions," Diana stated. "But it's too much of a coincidence."
"Follow me." Alfred said, quickly gesturing out the door. He hurried down the stairs, and Diana followed suit.
He led her to the library, and trailed his fingers across a set of books on one of the shelves. He pulled one forward, activating a switch.
The bookshelf sank into the wall before disappearing into a gap and revealing a set of stairs.
Diana followed Alfred down the stairs, and was greeted by the large, open cave systems that resided below the manor.
At the ground level, there was a large set of computer screens, and a well-worn leather chair. It dawned on Diana that this was the first time she'd ever set foot in Bruce's self-proclaimed lair.
"Master Bruce installed a set of advanced security cameras in the event of a breach. Hopefully these will have caught the thieves."
He typed in a rather long password before tapping away at the computer screen to try and find the necessary program.
Soon, the computer came to life with a set of camera feeds. Alfred found the timecode for the previous hour, and isolated the camera posted at the end of the hallways outside of Bruce's room.
Just as Alfred had suspected, the two men from before came into view.
They came in from the window at the end of the hall, with the helmeted man at the lead. He led the Sniper down the hall, stopping at Bruce's door.
He tested the knob before realizing that it was locked, and then ultimately kicked the door down.The Sniper stood in the hallway, keeping watch while his accomplice tore the room apart.
And then, he turned his head.
He turned his head, catching sight of the camera. As he strolled closer to it, Diana suddenly felt her throat close over.
The man pulled out a silenced pistol and shot the camera, now rendering it useless.
"Go back." Diana said to Alfred. "I want to see the man's face."
Alfred complied, taking the footage back a couple frames.
The image was blurry, but Diana couldn't deny the eyes that stared back at her; piercing into her soul. The eyes held a look of hatred and malice.
"Is there a way we can enhance the image?" Diana asked.
"Actually, yes." Alfred replied, fiddling with the computer programs. "Just let me insert the footage into here, and-." He was cut off suddenly as the screen began to flicker before ultimately freezing. An eyebrow rose on his face as he attempted to fix it.
Then, the screen erupted into a bright blue wall with white text. Immediately Alfred began to panic.
"No, no, no, no! This isn't possible!" He hissed, frantically slamming his fingers on the keyboard. "Come on, you bloody piece of junk!"
Despite his best efforts, the computer had done the very thing he feared. It completely crashed.
Diana couldn't help but be shocked. "How... Is that even possible?!"
"It's not." Alfred growled. "Those bastards must be behind this. It's going to take me days to try and recover everything."
"Isn't there some sort of backup, or something?"
Alfred took a moment to try and recall, but then an idea came to him.
"Actually, yes." He said. "She won't have everything, but she's sure to have a backup of our security footage. She can enhance the footage, and give us what we need."
He jotted down the address for her before handing her the paper.
"Take one of the cars. Once we have that face, we'll find a way to hunt him down."
Diana nodded, gripping the paper between her fingers.
She found herself changing into more suitable clothes to got walking around in the daylight, unfortunately only leaving herseld with her bracers. However, she had come across a circular backpack in her travels that served as the perfect container for her shield and lasso.
She pulled her hair into a tight braid before making her way back downstairs and lookng through Bruce's collection of vehicles.
Out of the corner of her eye, a red motorcycle sat shining from a waxing. A small smirk formed on Diana's face as she took the helmet between her hands.
"I'll bring it back in one piece." Diana promised.
"Somehow, I doubt that," Alfred chuckled. "Safe travels, Miss Prince."
Diana reved the engine on the motorcyle as a response before taking off onto the open road. Without a word, she left Wayne Manor behind her.
It was time for her to meet with Oracle.