Chapter 3

Meeting for dinner with Lucius Fox on late Friday afternoon proved to be fruitful and entertaining. Bruce came home late as he was prone to and deflected a slight jab about his punctuality from Lucius by reminding him that it was, in fact, Fox who insisted that Wayne have an unofficial lunch with their next potential business partner. The lunch turned into a much longer meeting and a few drinks on his guest's part, meaning it wasn't this easy to sneak out.

The first thing Lucius suggested was dusting off some unfinished projects that were not in any way part of Batman's gadgets, but ones that could, once put into mass production, provide police officers with better safety equipment. Some parts of the suit that was the base for Batman's first outfit could be redesigned and incorporated. Costs would have to be lowered since the deal needed to be good for the police to even consider their offer, but Bruce was positive they could push co-financing the project to some degree.

Applied Sciences had been officially shut down just before the company went public and Bruce bought back the majority share holds, but with the purchases Wayne Enterprises had been doing since then, resurrecting this department, at least in part, wouldn't be really surprising. Bruce Wayne was known for buying underdeveloped technologies for further studies and perhaps finding new branches his company could expand to. Wayne tech labs were already one of the best in the region, certainly way beyond the police resources and this was another aspect the police could greatly benefit from.

The problem was that when it came to sharing any of their lab technologies, Bruce was close to paranoid about their resources falling into the wrong hands. As Batman he had only shared bits with Jim Gordon alone, but realistically there was no way he could enforce as much as Bruce Wayne. Besides, no one could expect or demand that the Commissioner be personally responsible for everything.

In the end Alfred suggested a different approach. Wayne Enterprises didn't have to sell any of their lab equipment to Gotham Police. They could share it, allowing selected police technicians access to their resources, with the crystal clear record of the staff being a mandatory condition. In the light of the recent events and with the corruption history the police had, it shouldn't come out as surprising that Wayne Enterprises wouldn't be eager to put the company's reputation at risk.

While setting the project to motion would require way more planning than just one dinner, it was a premise to start with. Alfred was glad to see Bruce this hopeful again. His young employer wished them good evening before he left to venture out, since there was a drug dealers meeting he knew of and intended to ruin. Alfred and Lucius finished their tea in peace, enjoying the company like they once had, when Lucius Fox was a frequent guest of Thomas Wayne. Bruce's father found little joy in day to day business of his company, but the railroad had been something he had been as passionate about as Bruce often was about his work. Alfred couldn't not see similarities.

After so many hours of avid brainstorming, the penthouse felt quiet and soulless and Alfred missed his kitchen in the mansion more than on most days. He cleaned after the meal and was about to set the dishwasher, when he was disrupted by his phone ringing on the counter. The butler wiped his hands and reached to pick the call.

"Yes?"

Answering his phone in such unprofessional way was something he could never really ignore, but in this one case the lack of manners was justified. It was Bruce calling him after he went out as Batman. Unless he was proven it was safe to act normal, Alfred would not use his own name nor address master Wayne the way he normally did, since he couldn't know Bruce's reasons, whereabouts or his potential company.

"Hi, Alfred. Not sleeping, I hope?"

The tone and the light question ensured Alfred there was no threat nor emergency on his employer's side. Bruce had left earlier in a surprisingly good mood, the plans they had made with Fox obviously turning the wheels in his brain already. Still, it wasn't like him to call for a chat in the middle of his patrol for no reason.

"What is it, master Wayne?"

"I need a lift," Bruce deadpanned after a slight pause, then must have realised how alarming it sounded. "Don't worry, I'm alright."

"Then what's wrong with your motor?"

There was an even longer pause this time, then an exasperated sigh. "It's missing tires."

"Beg your pardon, sir?" The butler couldn't' help a small smile creeping in.

"You heard me." Alfred cold practically hear Bruce roll his eyes. "I'm about ten miles from the bunker, my motor is useless and I hope police will show up here soon, so if you could-"

"Come to the rescue?" Alfred chuckled. "On my way, sir."

"Great. I'll wait on the roof."

It took Alfred under half an hour to reach the docks area, driving a van they usually used for picking up unusual deliveries outside Gotham. Once he parked in the dark alley Bruce had sent him directions for, he saw a swift movement in the side mirror, then heard the back door open. As soon as they shut after Batman and his motor, Alfred took off, heading straight for the bunker.

Bruce, as expected, was exasperated. As soon as he was out of his suit and back into a pair of stained sweatpants, he pushed up one of the working tables.

"No one dared to touch Batman's vehicles before," he commented as he was examining his motor and the way the wheels had been removed. "No matter where I parked, no one ever tried to steal anything. I miss the tumbler."

"I thought the whole idea was to be inconspicuous, master Wayne?" Alfred pointed out, his arms firmly crossed. He wasn't about to help Bruce tinker with his machine at midnight.

Bruce looked up and the corners of his lips twitched. "And that's working a bit too well, don't you think?"

"A bit," the butler agreed easily. He couldn't not find the whole ordeal a little hilarious. "Good thing that one is still working," he pointed at the red motor his employer usually used to get to the bunker.

Bruce snorted, but got the hint. "Don't wait up, Alfred, I'll be back later."

xxx

An invitation from Wayne Enterprises for what obviously sounded like a business meeting was not among things Jim Gordon expected to find on his desk upon entering his office. While Wayne Enterprises stayed away from muddy business and had the opinion of keeping their records clean, Gordon wasn't exactly looking forward to dealing with the owner. In fact, Bruce Wayne appeared on the local news so rarely in the context of his family company, and so often in gossip media, that Jim was a little surprised the invitation he got was signed by Wayne himself. He suspected the billionaire had competent people running the company for him, but perhaps someone from his PR suggested the initiative should come from him directly.

Still, while Wayne certainly wasn't one of the local mob, he was an important person and ignoring his offer without even listening to it first would be a political suicide, should this fact ever leak out. Gordon might not have cared much about politics, but a certain portion of diplomacy did come with the Commissioner's seat and willing or not, he was currently the face of Gotham Police.

That's why Jim Gordon found himself in the hall of Wayne Tower. Before he could ask for the way, one of the security guards pointed him to the right floor and towards the lifts. Once he reached the top, a blonde secretary led him straight to Wayne's office. She was every bit what Jim could expect of the billionaire's assistant – tall and beautiful, with natural blond hair pulled back into an elegant bun. The skirt she wore exposed enough of her long legs without really breaking any dress code rules a place like this probably had.

Jim wasn't exactly sure what to expect, but it seemed Wayne wasn't just a figurehead and at least actually possessed a place to work. Or at the very least, a desk with a huge screen on it.

"Ah, good afternoon, Commissioner," Wayne stood up from behind his desk. His grip was surprisingly firm.

"Mr Wayne." Gordon nodded politely. "Your invitation mentioned your company intends to offer us a special deal for personal safety equipment," he decided to go straight to the matter as he took the offered seat.

"That's part of a joint deal, yes. The other would be, ah," Wayne stopped dramatically. "Less public."

Several thoughts crossed Jim's mind at these words and some of them must have showed, because his host chuckled and raised his hands up.

"Whatever it is you just assumed, Commissioner, I assure you it's not that." There was some real mirth in Wayne's eyes. "We're thinking about supporting Gotham Police with lending you access to our technology," he explained. His expression was so innocent that Jim felt genuinely bad for thinking there might have been something illegal involved. "I'm sure Mr Fox will share all the details later, but if the access to our lab resources could increase your efficiency in tests you might need for investigations, then perhaps in long term this would make a change."

"I admit, you've got my interest," Gordon said. If what the billionaire just offered was indeed the reason of this invitation, he most certainly could not blow it before learning more.

Wayne grinned at him in a very boyish manner. "I was counting on that. "

"This is a generous offer, Mr Wayne," Gordon admitted. That was not something he expected. "But if you don't mind me asking, why now?" It had been well over a year since Bruce Wayne returned from the dead and in all that time he had not shown the slightest interest in the state of the city when it didn't concern the places he owned or the restaurants he dined in.

Bruce Wayne looked at Gordon and there wasn't a slightest hint of smile on his face.

"My father believed in this city, but money itself can only solve so much. We've talked a lot recently within the board and we've come to the conclusion that supporting advanced technology in the right hands can help improve the situation in Gotham. If you can keep your people safer and act faster with our resources, I think it's worth to give it a try." For a brief second, there was something odd in his gaze, before he looked away. "I don't want any of my friends or my employees get caught again in some madman's scheming."

The atmosphere in the room shifted drastically, but before Gordon found the right words to reply to that last statement, there was a quick knock and the blonde secretary peeked in. "Richards arrived, the board's waiting."

"Great." Wayne smiled and looked back at Jim. "Shall we, Commissioner?" Whatever he was thinking a moment ago was now covered back with the playboy smile.

Gordon nodded somewhat awkwardly. Having seen Wayne on too many occasions in public places with pretty women glued to side, he caught himself expecting the billionaire to at least gaze after the blonde as her heels peeped on the marble floor. Instead, his host just turned to grab his phone from his desk, adding to Jim's confusion.

The secretary stopped them as they were passing her desk.

"A moment, Mr Wayne," she said, glancing up form her screen. "I've prepared the analyses you asked for. I will leave them on your desk along with that contract to sign."

"Thanks, Ann." Wayne nodded with a polite smile. "Did you send that schedule for next week? Good. That would be all."

The woman went back to work and Jim again felt awkward. Part of him wished to apologise to her for making assumptions about her by association to her boss, but there was no real need since his only offense was thinking she was a pretty addition to Wayne's office, not an actual competent worker.

Once they reached the conference room and Bruce Wayne introduced the board members, he left the meeting in the hands of his CEO and sat at the other end of the table, clearly with little intention of participating. Lucius Fox took over with ease, clearly accustomed to his boss's habits. Unlike Wayne, who only offered Jim the core of the project, Fox took his time in presenting the company's current achievements and future goals in terms of what might be vital for the police.

A loud ringing cut in.

Many of Wayne Enterprises board members glanced with barely concealed annoyance at their boss, who fished out his phone in a careless move to pick it. Jim Gordon chose to ignore Wayne's behaviour, as he was hardly the only one picking his phone during meetings, but he caught himself looking at the billionaire pretty much like the rest of the room. He saw a slight frown on Wayne's face as he looked down at the screen and probably saw who was calling.

"Alfred?" Wayne picked the call before the phone rang for the second time.

Whoever was on the other end, it clearly wasn't who Bruce Wayne expected to hear, judging by the way he froze. He was no longer leaning back casually in his chair and listening to the meeting with what bordered on boredom barely covered with mild interest.

"What happened?" He almost barked into the phone, and the sudden change was so startling that Jim found himself staring openly. Gone was the easy going billionaire and the flashy smile that seemed to be plastered to his face, leaving Bruce Wayne burning a hole in the wall with his intense stare, all of his attention focused on his speaker and the people around him clearly forgotten.

"Where are you taking him?" Wayne listened for a few seconds. "On my way."

Then he was up and moving before the call ended. He was half way to the doors when the silence that fell in the room must have hit him. He stopped and looked at the board members and their guest.

"My apologies. Family emergency," he offered in a way of brief explanation, then turned directly to Lucius Fox. "Alfred's had an accident, he's being taken to hospital. I'm sure you can carry on without me."

"Of course, Mr Wayne. I'll brief you later." Fox nodded and Wayne was already gone, not even bothering to slam the doors behind him.

Jim couldn't help but muse what sort of family Bruce Wayne meant, since he didn't have any living relatives in Gotham and didn't seem to keep in touch with any other loose relatives, at least as far as the gossip media was concerned. Then he remembered the old man who accompanied Wayne at Rachel Dawes's funeral. The way he seemed to be always within reach and almost shield him physically during the service showed deep care. And if Gordon remembered correctly, that man was Alfred Pennyworth, Wayne's butler.

Back then, twenty years ago, there was a fair share of gossip and tabloid material covering the fact that the Wayne heir was to be raised by a butler, the very same man who once came to pick a terrified child from the police station. As the years went by, it seemed the elderly man was still watching over Bruce Wayne and judging by the young man's reaction, whatever unusual relation the two had wasn't just that of a worker and an employer.

Lucius Fox cleared his throat discretely. "Shall we continue?"