grace under pressure • jerome valeska

CHAP.68: Three Empty Chairs

  As soon as Jerome and I announced for Jimbo to make his way over here, we started up the music to full blast. Turns out the inmates and our cult followers were quite the musicians. When they started up the music I couldn't help but dance and soon Jerome followed suit. We laughed and spun around hand in hand, throwing ourselves around the stage without a care in the world. I was dizzy from excitement with this whole situation and dancing made it even better. 

  The radio on my side kept flopping around, attached to my hip with my knife and gun. The let down side of my hair was getting even more messy and my braid kept getting more frizzy. But I could care less. All I cared about now was Jerome and the fact I would be seeing my sister soon. Those were the only two things on my mind. All the other things in my life were background noises. They would continue to be background noises until I got what I wanted. And at the moment, that seemed to be happening fast. 

  Jerome, while dancing, suddenly dipped me and I gave a slight yelp but laughed. The crowd watched the stage in fear. If they moved, the followers at the tops of the buildings would shoot them down in a second. I hoped they didn't. We needed a big crowd. Actually, people were starting to come to the stage from other parts of town to see what was going on. Some of those people were even police cars and some ambulances. But sadly, no Jimbo yet. I wasn't worried though. He would show. He cared too much to not show.

  I laughed with happiness as Jerome and I jumped around to the beat of the music. The music pounded in my ears, the sound bouncing around and thumping. My heart raced and my blood pumped. As always. But this was just so...amazingly overwhelming it felt like a release that I needed. I whipped my hair around and yelled out, laughing wildly. The people in the chairs looked so scared they looked like they were going to shit themselves. That just fueled my amusement.

  Suddenly while I was spinning around, Jerome took a hold of my hand and spun me around. I laughed all the while and when we stopped, I could see he was laughing just as much as I was. I grin wide at him. 

  "Great dance moves, Gingy!" I call over the music. He smiles back. 

  "Not too bad yourself Grey!" He tells me. I chuckle in response. 

  While continuing to dance, I see another few cop cars join the crowd. I raise a brow and turn in that direction, looking at the people exiting the cars. I squint my eyes through the crowd then see the one person I had been waiting for. I smirk then hit Jerome on the arm to get his attention. He looked confused for a moment before I directed his attention to the cars. Once spotting the cars he gave the same smirk as me then gestured for the music to stop by putting out his hands. And that is when we both turn to see Jim walking through the crowd. 

  Jerome takes the microphone and I take my own, staring at Jim walking up to the stage slowly and carefully.

  "Ladies and gentlemen as I live and breathe!" Jerome calls out. 

  "James Gordon is in the house." I finish. 

  There was a long moment of silence and I wondered what was running through Jim's head. He was probably thinking of ways to handle this peacefully and calmly and blah blah blah. I just wanted him to get Jerome's brother, Bruce and my sister. I couldn't care less about what he wanted. He took a step forward. 

  "I'm not talking to you until I can get up there and check on the well-being of your hostages." He calls out to us. I click my tongue in annoyance. Already trying to negotiate. Same old Jimbo. 

  "First of all Jim, you're late." Jerome starts slowly. I shake my head. "Secondly, I think we're the one's who should be making demands. Don't you?" He holds up the dead man's trigger and I grin evilly. But Jim was ever persistent. He took another step forward.