ECHO (Jason Todd x reader)

Chapter 9 - Malformity

Not a lick of sleep overcame her the whole night. This cold and unfamiliar place is enough to keep her awake. She doesn't know when Red Hood will come and kill her for her supposed wrongdoings, so she'd rather be awake to have a sliver of a chance of escaping or bargaining.

She sits on the uncomfortable bed in the isolation cell, her head resting on her knees as she looks to the side, hunched over. She analyzes the squares on the greyish wall on her right, counting each one to pass the time. When she adjusts her posture, her hand meets a belt of sorts, like the ones they use in Arkham Asylum to restrain aggressive individuals. Why would Red Hood need a cell like this? Perhaps a temporary place to hold criminals before they're transported to the police station.

Her thoughts are interrupted by the clearing of a throat.

"You must be the girl accused of murder."

Her eyes drift lazily toward the voice, landing on a ginger-haired woman in a wheelchair. Dressed in a casual knit sweater and leggings, her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail, the woman gives a soft smile as their eyes meet. When the prisoner doesn't respond, the woman speaks up again, introducing herself.

"I'm Barbara. I brought you some food," she says, tapping a code into the security keypad. A high-pitched beep is followed by the glass door sliding open. A leather bag rests on her thighs.

She keeps her gaze fixed on Barbara as she wheels over and sets a tray on the small table in the cell.

"Pretty brave of you," she mutters finally, "to open a cell with a possible murderer without a second thought."

Barbara chuckles, shaking her head. "Seems like you're doing okay if you can manage sarcasm." She faces the girl with a teasing smile, her freckled face framed by black glasses that catch the harsh overhead lights.

"Sarcasm's my only defence," she replies, feeling the tension between them lighten slightly.

Barbara nods knowingly.

"Sounds like someone I know." Then, her tone shifts slightly. "I'm here to ask a few questions. After that, I'll leave you to eat." The ginger leans on her armrest, looking at her with a hint of anticipation. "Where were you on the night of the massacre?"

Deciding to cooperate, she sighs. Being snappy with Barbara probably wouldn't help, and she seems decent enough—she did bring food in person, after all.

"I don't know. All I remember is being at work around 8 PM, but after that, it's all fuzzy."

Barbara nods, taking it in. "Alright. What were you doing at work?"

"The usual. Helping my boss with his research."

"I need every detail you can remember. Don't leave anything out," Barbara insists.

"Fine..." she says, irritation creeping in. "I got to work, did my usual tasks, had dinner with my boss... and that's it." She speaks slowly, trying to pull out more details from her memory.

"That's when things go fuzzy?" Barbara confirms.

She nods. "Yeah, I don't remember anything after that dinner."

"Did you discuss anything specific with Forman?" Barbara presses.

She blinks in surprise. "How do you know his name?" She shakes her head. "Dumb question. You guys probably know everything about me by now." Bitterness tinges her voice.

"Please, just answer the question."

"We talked about how my day off went..." she trails off before remembering a key detail that weirded her out: "he asked if anything strange happened while I was out with my friend."