"You're trying to kill him," the Batman's voice growled in her face, glancing in the direction of the Senator and the knocked out guard beside him.
"I'm not!" Shade said, her voice growling back. "I'm trying to save him! He wouldn't cooperate."
Shade started to speak again but then heard the sounds of someone speaking on a microphone saying Senator Wagner's name. There was no time to argue. Shade twisted the baton he was pressing over her just enough to give her the space to strike him in the jaw before sending her elbow into his neck, which was covered in armor for support. She managed to twist the baton away from him entirely and sent it down vertically hitting him again and again until she could get most of her body from underneath of him. He gripped her arms so she used her legs to pin him down. It came instinctively and she was astonished at what she had done as she pressed the baton down over his neck.
"There's no time for this," she said and stood up, throwing the baton across the room and going back over to the senator and tore open his shirt. Shade felt the Batman's thoughts as he stood behind her.
He came behind her and shoved her aside before looking down at his chest where she had just pulled the bandage off. He began examining the stitching over the wound.
It had been reported in the news that he had received a stent in the hospital. The stitching was so sloppy, the Batman knew immediately that Shade had been telling the truth. He could see a rectangular bulge under the skin. It had been the Joker who did this. I Immediately he lifted the senator and threw him over his shoulder.
"I am getting him out of the building," he said in his husky voice and walked towards a door at the back of the room. "Leave."
She ignored his command and instead she followed him until they were out of the building and in the back alleyway.
"There!" Adriana pointed to an ambulance. She knew it was the one that the Joker and his men had stolen. It was a little over half a block away and she realized she could not tell if there was anyone in it. As they got closer, the thoughts of one man in the driver's seat came in loud and clear. "Wait here."
The Batman stood by as she walked over to the driver side, opened the door and pulled the man out. He was astonished at how quickly she was striking him until he was on the ground and had passed out from being hit in the head. She pretended to look around on his body for a detonator even though she knew he wasn't the one who had it. She got in an looked into the back area before coming back out to speak to the Batman again.
"He doesn't have the detonator," she said. "It's not here. But there's medical equipment in the back. We have to remove it."
The Batman was so surprised at her quick thinking that he was not entirely sure that this was not a trap for him.
"Come on!" she said and got into the driver's seat.
The Batman was silent as walked around and he placed the senator onto the stretcher. Shade came through the front of the ambulance and met the Batman in the rear.
"There's ketamine," Shade said after looking through the ambulance supplies.
"We need to get him away from the buildings here," the Batman said to Shade.
They looked at each other for a few seconds in deliberation. Suddenly there was the screeching sound of a vehicle approaching and a red light appeared through the senator's skin.
"We have company," the Batman said.
"You drive," Shade demanded. "I will remove this device."
There was no time to argue. And the Batman was fairly certain that if he could keep out of range of the detonator, Shade's surgical skills would not matter.
The Batman lept into the driver's seat. The vehicle pulled off so quickly that Adriana nearly fell but once she stabilized herself again she sedated she senator.
She took several deep breaths as she sanitized her hands as best she could before pulling on gloves and grabbing the scalpel.
The Batman glanced at the rear view mirror. They were being followed. Adriana strained to see the thoughts of whoever was following them but it became easier as they approached rapidly. They needed to be close to activate the detonation but not too close since they didn't want to perish as well. Once they activated it there would only be ten seconds to get away. The Joker was in the car following them.
"Go faster!" Adriana shouted. "We have to stay away from the detonator!"
She needed to focus on removing the device. The Joker's vehicle sped up. He was encouraging the driver to drive at reckless speeds as he sat in the passenger's seat with the detonator in hand. They got closer and the senator's chest began to make a beeping sound.
It was too late for driving away faster. The bomb had been engaged.
The vehicle went faster and the thoughts of the Joker and his men faded as she made the incision into the senator's chest. His blood spilled over her fingers. She removed the small device quickly and easily as they hit a bump in the road.
"I got it!" she said. "Slow down a little!"
The Batman glanced back at her.
"Slow down!" she shouted again and looked at the timer on the small but what she knew was, a powerful device.
He barely slowed down until the Joker's vehicle was close enough to activate the detonation.
10...9...8...7...
Shade opened the back door of the ambulance and flung the device into direction of the car that was following them. She stopped breathing as she and the Joker made eye contact. All she could see was the paint on his skin through the window and penetrating eyes. He reached over and yanked the steering wheel sending the car spinning as the bomb exploded, destroying the passenger side of the vehicle. At the same time, the Joker had already opened the passenger side door and had lept out of the vehicle, landing while rolling on the ground after hitting it hard. Almost immediately, as if he felt no pain from jumping from a moving vehicle, he got up and began to run.
"He's okay," Shade shouted as the Batman stopped the ambulance. "The senator. He needs to go to the hospital. This wasn't sterile, there's a lot of blood-"
The vehicle came to a screeching halt.
"You're going after the Joker," Shade guessed.
The Batman glanced at the senator, who was bleeding but not enough to be in danger. He glanced at Shade and left the ambulance, leaving her question unanswered. It was obvious. The Joker wouldn't be far.
.
.
.
"I don't like surprises," Adriana said to Sidi as they sipped hot chocolate.
"Well, if you tell me exactly what happened maybe we can figure it out," Sidi said, sounding a bit annoyed. "How were you surprised?"
"I can't...it's personal," Adriana explained.
"Mhm," Sidi looked away and sat her mug on the table.
"It's just...I was about to do something..concentrating," Adriana said. "And he just came out of nowhere. I didn't even sense him coming. And I'm not able to sense anyone that's too far away. They have to be really close, maybe no more than 40 yards? I dont know..Ever since I was young I would automatically hear all thoughts of everyone all jumbled up all at once from all over. Neighbors from half a block away to people that I knew were around fifteen miles away. Sometimes even thought from people that I didn't even know where they were..could have been further. Now they have to be close and I have to be focusing very hard on them to sense anything and now people can sneak up on me and I never had that problem before. I hate surprises."
The Batman had appeared out of nowhere and had nearly killed her in their fight. Damien had appeared in her apartment without her even knowing he was there. She hated it.
"You mentioned that," Sidi said. "You ungrateful girl."
"What?" Adriana said. "I'm not ungra-"
"You are," Sidi said with a sour smile. "You came to me absolutely miserable. So many problems, telling me you were cursed-"
"I was! I couldn't sleep...I was sick, I was institutionalized-"
"Yes and now look at you," Sidi said. "Complaining about not hearing as much as you used to. Sorry for the inconvenience, you ungrateful child. If you would have followed my instructions when I treated you, you would be hearing nothing now! How would you be reacting then?! And how will you react when your gift goes awry? It is only a matter of time. Then I will have to remove it for good and what then? Will you come back complaining you silly girl!?"
"I'm...I'm sorry Sidi," Adriana apologized. She thought of all that Sidi had done for her. She finally felt normal and could have a somewhat normal life. She finally could enjoy the newfound bliss of sleep without having to take several medications that were destroying her stomach. Sidi had told her that her gift would either have to stay in it's natural state which was hearing everything around her from everyone or it would have to be completely removed. Now she was somewhere in the middle and it was frustrating to not have her gift be as predictable as it was before.
"Yes, yes," Sidi said. "You are taking for granted that you are not suffering as you were. If you don't want anyone to sneak up on you, open your eyes and ears."
"I know," Adriana said and looked down. "It won't happen again."