Thanatophobia | VICTOR ZSASZ [DISCONTINUED]

six | spirit of the goat

James replied, "I'm not asking you to. You're not listening."

Barbara retorted, "No, you're not listening. I'm not asking you to walk away from this."

In turn, James asked her, "Really? Because it sounds like you are. And we keep going around and around, and I keep telling you that I don't have a choice. Barbara, this city, the law, the crime here, they're all twisted up in each other like a maze. I came here to be a cop, but the city needs something else."

Barbara said to him, "It's okay. I understand. I'm just asking for one thing. Half of what you have to carry. God knows I've dumped my half on you, and you carry it."

James told her, "Barbara, what I'm dealing with, it's so dangerous."

Barbara said to him, "Half of what you carry. If you think I care about the risk, then you're forgetting who I am."

James replied, "I swear I'm not." The two of them were silent for a moment before he asked her, "Are we okay? Are we still fighting?"

Barbara told him, "We're negotiating terms."

In turn, James said, "Hmm. That's not good for me."

Barbara said to him, "You tell me what you're up against, okay? You let me in. Then we're okay."

It was then that James's phone started to vibrate again, which got James to say to Barbara, "That's work again."

Barbara replied, "Yep."

James told her, "I'll tell you everything. Everything I can. Okay? I'll make it right."

Barbara whispered 'okay' before Annabelle heard them start to kiss one another and not long after that, she heard the sound of James's footsteps walking across the room and leaving it altogether.

While she listened to him leave the penthouse and walk towards his vehicle, Annabelle opened her eyes with a sigh.

She didn't care that her clothes were now soaked because of the rain or how wet her hair was.

The only thing she cared about was getting through her day and avoiding Victor Zsasz as much as she possibly could.

As long as she did that, she figured she'd be fine.

As long as she avoided the questions he was practically begging to ask her, she would be fine.

She would have to be.

After all, this wasn't the first time she'd avoided someone because of her desire to not answer their questions.

Nor would it be the last.

* * *

Not once in her immortal life did Annabelle ever think that she would have to be hiding underneath a bridge in order to listen to someone, but she was clearly wrong because there she was, listening to the members of the GCPD that were still on the bridge and wondering if she could potentially drown if she let herself fall into the water and not bother to swim up to the surface.

Just as she started to think some more on the matter, she suddenly stopped when she heard James ask, "Gotham Goat?"

Harvey told him, "A wannabe. For a copycat, the copy is, uh, downright creepy, is what it is. You moonlighting or something?"

James asked him, "Huh? Me?"

Harvey replied, "Yeah, because you're late, and you look like crap warmed over."

James said to him, "Write me up if you want."

Harvey replied, "Screw you, Boy Scout."

James said to him, "You're in a good mood."