Updates may be a little slower in the coming weeks since I'm starting a new job as a part-time art teacher, but the story will continue, I promise!


Chapter 30 – Family Trees

"Carmine Falcone."

Bruce's cheek twitched slightly. Was Selina joking?

Try as he may, he could find no trace of mirth on her face. All he saw was discomfiting shame. This had certainly been her day for dramatic disclosures. It had to be a world record of some sort.

He blinked once. "You're serious."

"Unfortunately. But… it might not be as bad as it sounds."

An indecent urge to laugh hysterically fell upon Bruce, but somehow he resisted. His shoulders shook a moment as he cleared his throat. "I'm all ears."

"Well, it all started when my parents saw our wedding announcement," she reiterated. "When Carmine pointed out to Louisa that Bruce Wayne had married someone named Selina Kyle, she started acting strange. Real anxious and on edge."

Selina took a steadying breath before the next bombshell. "Eventually, she told him that his father Vincent wanted to have me killed at birth. So Louisa faked my death, said it was a stillbirth, and placed me for adoption. All without Carmine ever knowing."

Yep, definitely a world record for today, Bruce verified, smirking sardonically. Nothing else would surprise him ever again.

Relieved to see Bruce was somehow taking this all in stride, Selina continued. "Carmine flipped out. It made him question everything in his life, and now…" she rubbed the back of her neck uneasily, "… he says he wants to reform and leave the family business for good."

That did it – that was one absurdity too much. Bruce laughed callously. "Is that so!"

"He's offered to prove it," shrugged Selina. "By the end of the month, he'll give me a list of everyone high-ranking in his syndicate. He says it'll include enough leads and evidence to easily put them all away."

Interesting. A self-imposed deadline with a report delivered right into Selina's lap. More transparent and verifiable than handing the list directly to the police, who wouldn't be able to confirm or deny its contents once it was in their hands. Whether he liked it or not, Bruce had to admit it was an integrity move – if Carmine actually followed through.

"And then we'd pass it on to Commissioner Gordon?" Bruce concluded.

"Obviously, yes."

Nodding to himself, Bruce couldn't help but chuckle some more. "I'm not sure which is more shocking: the fact that Carmine Falcone professes to be reformed, or that he's my father-in-law."

"Same here," she confessed. "But if there's even a chance he's telling the truth, we have to give him the benefit of the doubt."

No sense in arguing that point. Besides, what better to occupy his thoughts during PT than eagerly awaiting Carmine's informant list?

Oh, that's right – eagerly awaiting the birth of his twins, which he hadn't remotely begun to wrap his head around yet.

Selina must have recognized the fatigue settling across his face. She grimaced up at the clock. "Looks like I stole Alfred and Dick's time slot, sorry!"

"That's all right. I can go a day without hearing how bored Alfred is without me to look after. Or how Dick's grades are still lower than I'd like them to be."

That was a welcome shift in atmosphere – not just the levity, but preferring her company even after all the surprises. Selina offered him a grateful smile as she stood.

"Thanks. Either way, though, visiting hours end in three minutes," she walked over to him once more. "See you tomorrow morning?"

He looked slightly hurt at her inquiring, uncertain tone. "Of course."

"Goodnight," she squeezed his hand. But just as she was about to turn away, he pulled her in toward him, kissing her properly for the first time in over four months.


The next morning, Alfred Pennyworth's shoulders felt a good deal lighter. With the burden of concealing Selina's pregnancy now lifted, he could finally enjoy free, open conversation with his beloved employer.

That he'd been spared the task of revealing all to Bruce was no small comfort either. Though he wouldn't admit it to Selina, he'd be forever grateful for her taking that bullet instead of him.

Yes, no doubt about it, the butler's steps had a new spring in them as he opened Bruce's hospital door that morning. But one look at Bruce's sour countenance and his spirits fell.

"Good morning sir," he greeted uneasily. "I've brought the magazines you requested."

"Mm," came the minimal acknowledgement.

"And my homemade scones," Alfred placed a brown paper bag on the bedside tray.

"Mm."

"I've also decided to apply to NASA's next mission to Mars."

"Mm."

Well, that confirms it. He barely even knows I'm here, lost in that ever-churning mind of his, bemoaned Alfred. Taking a seat, he selected a magazine and waited for Bruce to return to earth. Three minutes later, he finally did.

"Was it really a surprise?" Bruce blurted out.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Selina. Am I wrong to think she may have… conceived accidentally, on purpose?"

"Ah. No small talk for you today, I see."

Bruce threw him a withering look. "Answer the question."

"Very well," Alfred straightened in his seat. "No, I do not believe Madame Selina capable of doing such an unethical thing."

"How can you be sure?"

"Because I saw her face when she told me, Master Bruce. I helped dry her very real tears. I heard the panic in her voice."

"That could have all been because I'd entered a coma," Bruce countered. "Facing the prospect of single parenthood would have that effect on anyone."

"Wrong again. Out of all of us, she believed most fiercely that you would wake up," Alfred upheld. "She always spoke of it as it were a total certainty, like spring following winter."

"You're telling me she never once lost hope?"

"Not about you reviving, no," the butler contended. "That's not to say she wasn't anxious. She was, but Lois and Clark helped her through it. Helping them prepare for their baby provided a welcome distraction."

Bruce crossed his arms, his brow still furrowed. "I want to trust her. But… this sort of thing just doesn't happen to anyone else. It's insane. Twins, out of nowhere."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," warned Alfred. "Half of all pregnancies are unplanned. And it's not like being struck by lightning, you know. There's always a 'cause' and effect," he winked.

Bruce rolled his eyes. "You know what I meant."

"Yes, I do. You're fixated on things beyond your control, rather than things you may still be able to."

"How's that?"

"That night in Metropolis, in the alley," Alfred replied. "If I had just lost four months of my life to some unknown assailant, my first priority would be trying to remember what happened there."

"I still can't remember my own wedding, Alfred. How am I supposed to jump ahead to that alley?"

"Well, I've brought some things that might help." Reaching into his bag, Alfred extracted a manila folder. "Brochures and notes from the Wayne Enterprises Conference you were attending that weekend."