My Deadly Mistake (Jerome Valeska/Gotham FanFiction) [Book 1]

Epilogue

"It's been a while since I've seen you up here."

The father turns slightly to see his life-long friend coming up behind him. He turns his gaze back to the view of Gotham City. He swirls the brandy he has in the glass he is holding. It's true what his friend just said.

It has been a while since he's been up on this particular balcony. This was the place him and his lover would often frequent. They would spend the nights looking out at Gotham City, and they would talk about what they had in store for it. Or sometimes they would look up at the stars and then somehow it would end up becoming a night of lovemaking. 

After she had left, he found that he couldn't bring himself to come up here anymore. He had thought about tearing it down, but he just couldn't bring himself up to do it. 

Today's events however have brought him back.

"It makes me feel closer to her Micheal. I've never stopped missing her, and now I wish more than ever that she was here."

He feels his friend rest a strong hand on his shoulder. He sighs when he says, "She's lost someone she really loved Cesare. She needs time to grieve and then to heal."

The father shakes his head when he says, "It's more than that. You should have seen her. She's not the girl I met when you brought her here to me. I refuse to believe she could have changed that much, and all for some boy she barely knew."

He looks over at his friend who is looking out at Gotham City. Even in the dim moonlight, he can see the scar that lines his face and he can't help but remember that this man who bears the titles of assassin and torturer also bears the title of godfather to his daughter.

"Why did you hide it from me Micheal?"

"Because I didn't even know what I was dealing with. My family has served your family since the beginning, and I've seen my share of criminal romances. I know how they work and how they will most likely end up. If it had been that then I would have told you immediately. Those two though..."

The father turns and throws his glass in frustration. The sound of the brandy glass pierces the dead silence of the night. He glares at his friend when he says, "What more could it have been?! They were just two kids. What really happened was a boy who saw a lonely vulnerable girl who he could sway and mold to his liking!"

Micheal turns to look at Cesare when he says rather coldly, "Sounds like you are upset because she's already becoming her own person, and you don't like who she is becoming. Are you mad because you didn't get there first?"

Cesare steps closer to Micheal, closing the space between them. The two men glare at each other. Both of them feel a rising burning anger boiling inside them. Both of them care for the girl inside, but both of them want something different for her.

"I'm her father. I know what's best for her."

"I find that hard to believe when you weren't even there for her."

Like a striking cobra, Cesare raises his fist to strike but Micheal is quick. He blocks his friend's blow, and to remind him that he is not dealing with some amateur he pushes him back and whips out his dagger.

"You would do well to remember who you are talking to Farnese. You are like a brother to me, but you of all people should know that hasn't stopped me from taking care of those who started to irk me."

Micheal snickers when he says, "Oh I remember, and that's why I haven't run this dagger through you yet. You being her father  is a big part of that. You know I care for her as much as you do."

"Prove it."

Micheal raises a faded red eyebrow at that. Cesare can't help but let out a smirk when he says, "We both know that he isn't good for her. No matter how much she weeps for him, and how broken she looks...we both know that having him gone is for the best."