Her Dark Knight

Chapter 7: Fear

Bruce felt like he had been punched in the gut, but he showed none of that on his face as he replied flatly, "Ra's al Ghul is dead."

His hand tightened around Crane's chin as he repeated harshly, "Who are you really working for?"

Crane didn't reply at first, the fear and the gas getting to him, so Batman leaned in closer as he demanded, "Crane."

Crane stared back at Batman, his eyes looking strangely in focus all of a sudden as the man whispered, "Dr. Crane isn't here right now. But if you'd like to make an appointment..."

Batman frowned, but the sound of police sirens pulling up right outside the asylum finally made him look up.

Realizing his time was up – much faster than he would have thought; the police had to have been ready beforehand, Bruce realized – Batman smashed Crane's head into the stairwell, knocking the man out.

Moving quickly as he heard police officers shouting outside, Bruce leaned over Rebecca. She naturally screamed the instant she saw his face, and Bruce tensed, his anxiety only climbing as a loudspeaker called, "Batman, put down your weapons and surrender. You're surrounded."

Bruce ignored them as he picked Rebecca up, the woman struggling weakly against him even as she shuddered against the effects of the gas. With her so close, he could smell the faint familiar scent of vanilla around her, with a hint of coffee – that was new, but she probably lived off the stuff now as a cop compared to before.

But Bruce shoved those thoughts aside, far more concerned with how she appeared to be fighting to breathe as he carried her quickly towards the highest floors of the building. He laid her down before retrieving Rachel from one of the lower floors as well, laying the knocked-out brunette beside the gasping redhead before he tried to peer at Rebecca again.

"Rebecca?" He called quietly, but she barely seemed to hear him. "Becky, can you hear me?"

She glanced at him then, her eyes focusing and then unfocusing alarmingly, but as time went by she seemed to be recovering just slightly. Or perhaps it was the recovery before the more dangerous relapse.

Hearing movement below – though he detected only one pair of footsteps – Bruce took a chance to look down. His luck was with him, and Bruce quickly left Rebecca's side again to secure a grapple line onto the stair railing

"I'll be right back." He informed her, on the off chance she could hear and understand him, before he dropped down.

Gordon flinched in surprise as Batman suddenly grabbed him and pulled him up quickly onto the highest floor of the asylum, while the SWAT team converged on the building.

"Miss Dawes?" Gordon asked in surprise when Batman hauled him up over the railing and his eyes landed on Rachel, before his eyes caught sight of familiar red hair.

His eyes widened as Gordon gasped, "Becky!"

She barely registered him, groaning as she gasped out short breaths, and Gordon asked Batman, "What happened to her?"

"Crane poisoned her with a psychotropic hallucinogen – a panic-inducing toxin." Batman explained tightly, and Gordon answered instantly, "Let me get her down to the medics."

"They can't help her," Batman refuted, "but I can."

Gordon paused, looking straight at the other man as he weighed Batman's words. A bright searchlight turned on outside as the SWAT team moved into the building while others searched the outside for Batman.

Gordon glanced at the light before looking back at Batman as the masked man added, "There's something else."

Batman stared right back at Gordon as he revealed, "Crane's been smuggling his toxin hidden inside Falcone's drugs, and they're dumping it into the city's water supply."