Phantom Files

FILE 12: Melting Point

Hello again! The author here to bring an update. Just so you guys know, I toned down Joker's usual "Harley abusiveness" a little :)

The two chatted the day away until it was time for Damian to leave. They said their goodbyes and parted ways once again. It was a good refresher to Damian, an old face other than idiot Grayson popping in.

Danny found the meeting pleasant, and extremely lucky. He knew better than to believe Gritsin sent him to take care of Mr. Wayne's ward just because it was "convenient". The woman wanted him out and fast.

It was the next day, and Danny was having a small talk with Harley. It wasn't all fun games, sometimes it was a real therapist to patient interactions.

"Mistah Jay's finally here, Doc!" Harley exclaimed, shaking her fist in the air like a child. "I'm so gonna meet up with puddin' during lunch, see if I can get him in the mood." Harley kept babbling with innuendos in every sentence, which Danny found lucky that Kristofferson wasn't within the room.

The kid was getting a regularly scheduled doctor's examination. Danny had to reassure him that it was for the best since he was not going to live in Arkham all his life. The boy needed his vaccines.

He'd heard of Harley's relationship with Joker, and it sounded much less bad than he heard before. He'd thought Joker was an abusive bastard that Harley had deluded herself to love. Instead, he was just a bit of a bastard that Harley loved. The bastard part primarily coming from breaking his jar.

Putting that grudge aside, Danny has always found minds like Joker very curious. He disagreed with his actions but was willing to help if it meant for said actions to cease. It just took some good influence for a person to change.

"-word between the cells say that Freeze's being cut off? Crazy right?" This piqued Danny's interest especially.

"What do you mean 'cut off'?" He asked, trying to expand on the topic before she continued ranting about Joker.

Harley leaned forward to Danny, "Like Arkham's stopping his whole 'coolant room', say that it's too expensive to maintain. I think it's crap, keeping one room in freezing temp while the rest of Arkham is like a sauna should be reasonable. If gossip's right, he's got a week left to live." Danny's jaw was nearly dropped at the notion. If this Freeze guy didn't have a freezing temperature, he'd die.

He had to do something, and confront as certain someone.

As soon as asylum lunches started, Danny started his fast walk to Teresa Gritsin's office. If it was anyone willing to sacrifice the life of a patient for extra cash, it'd be her.

His heart raced a bit, not from nervousness but from how heated he was getting. He burst his way into the witch's office and faced the hag.

She looked surprised at first but became annoyed when she saw his angered face.

"I demand to know if-!" Danny began.

"I am cutting off the supply of Victor Fries, Dr. Joan Leland came in with the same question. I am." Her words cut deeper than any knife and her face seemed a hundred times more ugly and villainous.

The worst part was that she was giving a knowing smile. She knew how much it ticked Danny off and that a bad move could call for a reasonable discharge. Not only that, but she also seemed perfectly content with her decision. Disgusting.

This infuriates Danny. He slammed his hands on her desk, "You can't legally kill a person-"

"But I can, you horse doctor." A smug smirked appeared on her caked face. She lifted a piece of paper from her desk and shoved it at his face. "I have a signed document from the mayor himself that allows me to do so."