Jðkêr//Är†hµr x RêåÐêr ïmågïñê§ & ðñê-§hð†§

• Undercover Love (pt.2)

This deal should've been relatively straight forward. You had accompanied Joker, along with a number of his goons to partake in an arms deal, but things had taken an extremely drastic turn.

Joker had been double-crossed before, but his reactions were always unpredictable. Regardless of the situation, he always had his revenge. And yet tonight, even with most of his men shot dead, instead of being blisteringly furious he seemed in surprisingly high spirits as you fled the abandoned warehouse.

You didn't want to dwell on it but he even seemed to relish having to run and hide in a closet with you to avoid being shot.

And as you raced across the parking lot; your booted feet pounding against the wet asphalt, you found yourself giggling along with him. Perhaps it was the relief of reaching the awaiting car, having narrowly escaped tonight with your life.

Or maybe you were being sucked into the rabbit hole of madness that was Joker's world.

How had you ended up in such a mess? That was an interesting question. One that you kept repeatedly asking yourself each time you wound up in a precarious situation with the nefarious Joker.

When you'd first started working for him two months ago, initially the job had entailed of little more than what you'd done at Lucky's casino. The only difference was Joker owned a club, The Jack Of Hearts, which lay on the main drag in The Narrows; one of Gotham's most crime-ridden, dangerous neighbourhoods.

What remained of the occupied apartment buildings in that part of town had basically become a slum; home to the city's poorest residents, and the district had a reputation serving as a denizen for the most violent criminals and mobsters.
These days however, The Narrows was Joker's dominion, along with Amusement Mile and parts of Otisburg. The clown prince of crime had steadily won supremacy over these areas as his army of followers continued to expand.

Your boyfriend Stephen had strongly objected to you accepting the unwitting crime lord's offer of employment, as had the new police commissioner and the chief down at the 75th precinct. But their reservations only served to steel your resolve. You were convinced you could handle working undercover in the toughest neighbourhood in town, and so far you'd proved yourself right.

At the club you had worked the bar and waited on guests. Serving them drinks whilst humouring their poor attempts at flirtation, and all the while you were making mental notes on the known criminals who frequented the place; reporting whatever useful information you could glean, back to your superiors.

The irony was, you were also covertly supposed to be gathering intel for Joker; who was to all intents and purposes your boss. As stressful as the job itself may have been, the working environment wasn't all that bad. Joker ruled over his establishment with an iron fist; security was tight, the guards removed any trouble-makers swiftly and effectively, because despite it being situated in the slums, The Jack Of Hearts clientele  consisted of only the most elite, powerful, and influential of Gotham's underworld.

After having worked there for over a month, you received word one day that the man himself wanted to speak with you.

"Am I in trouble?" You had joked, with Jack; Joker's most amiable goon.

"Not that I know of." He'd replied with an ominous smirk, which had severely unsettled you.

Your stomach clenched with anxiety. No matter how careful you were to keep up the pretence of being a mere bartender and informant, the fear of being discovered as an undercover cop always lurked at the back of your mind. It didn't bear thinking about what horrors might be inflicted on you, should the Joker come to realise he was being duped.