"You're new friend sure took a beating, Master Bruce."
"Falcone did it, he's got them under them under strict control."
"Poor kid."
-
It was Halloween tonight which meant it was the anniversary of my parent's death and it would be splattered all over the news compare the photos of me as a kid to now, they often talked about how I looked as if 'I never aged a day but that was because I had to cake my face in make-up due to the shit Carmine put me through.
I knew it was him who got my parents killed and he admitted it once when we got into a fight which I shortly lost as I was only a teenager and was still under heavy training, I hated thinking back on all the shit I was put through as the man simply wanted a weapon.
Something to exploit, someone to neglect until he wanted them.
An assassin that wouldn't ask questions other than essentials to the missions he gave them, now that he had Shade for that it only sparked his confidence and threw me into the dangerous waters that he was treading in and I couldn't say anything.
The only way to stop it was dying, dying in a fight and letting someone have a power trip over killing the infamous Shade.
At the same time, it would reveal that I was Shade too and I was scared of how the public would react if they found that out.
I was meeting Bruce Wayne today too and Falcone warned me if I slipped up during this reunion then I would have to move back into the club which was going to be torture, this apartment was perfect and I didn't have to worry about privacy most of the time as I already knew where all the cameras were and none were inside the apartment luckily.
Turning on the TV was something I quickly regretted as they started talking about my case almost instantly so I shut it off before I had to hear anymore, my memory of the events was starting to fade but I managed to still remember the fear of that night and it also haunted me when I thought of the moment.
Why did my parents have to betray Falcone? They knew it wasn't going to last long, the Wayne's warned them and it only angered them.
Why?
Understanding my parents was so difficult as I knew that they were aware of the danger they were putting us and everyone they had a connection to in danger so maybe that was why they cut contact with the Waynes?
Maybe they knew that Martha and Thomas Wayne would warn them and try to offer help but knew they were too deep in and decided to say their goodbyes, they must have taken me so Bruce would have a good memory of me or maybe they hoped that I would live to.Who fucking knows at this point.
I took a deep breath then walked into my bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror to see I was still bruised from the beating I took last night for Batman, it was a dumb idea to follow but he was grateful that I took the hit for him and understood my lack of freedom more.
Only a sigh was able to escape my lips as I grabbed my make-up and started trying to cover it with my scars which was something I had to do every morning so that no one would accuse Falcone of anything, it would be worse if my scars were revealed now that Batman could recognise me from it and I didn't know who he knew and how many people were his 'eyes and ears.'
It was raining again as I finished my make-up but it didn't surprise me as this was Gotham which meant rain was common so I changed into a semi-formal outfit that should keep me warm, I grab my umbrella when my phone starts to ring causing me to pause for a moment as I looked down at my phone to see it was an unknown number.
I gave my number to Bruce not long ago, could it be him?
Curiosity leads me to answer the phone.
"Hello?" I answer.
"Hello, Shade." A muffled voice hummed.
What.No.Fuck, no no no!This can't be happening, surely not.How the hell did they know?I can't think straight, my hands are shaking.Am I going to have another panic attack?Shit, no.
"Who are you?" I choke out.
You could hear the panic in my voice, it was clear that I was in shock of sorts.
The phone call then cuts off as there was a knock at my door I had unlocked it but my body was frozen in fear, the person who called me would have known I would be on edge because of the anniversary of my parent's death and knew that I would fall into panic.
Breathing was becoming difficult and I felt as if I was choking from the panic I was in, my door swung open which made me quickly look up to see Bruce standing there confused.
He looked at me up and down then slowly walked over to me, I took a step back and shook my head which seemed to hurt him but he accepted that I wasn't in a good place and needed space.I took a moment and then picked my phone up again then threw it into the wall causing it to smash into smaller pieces and fall to the floor, I knew this guy was the person who was across from the Iceberg Lounge and had watched Falcone and me through their window.That fucker was going to wish they were never born, I'm going to make their death as painful as possible.
Someone grabs my arm causing alarms to set off so I quickly punched them in the face and stepped back, it was Bruce and his nose was no2 bleeding which caused me to panic and quickly grab some tissues."I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to. Fuck, I'm sorry Bruce" I apologise.Bruce gently takes the tissue I give him and holds it to his nose to try and stop the bleeding to turn and smiles at me, he didn't seem angry or upset and just smiled instead as if he was in the wrong.Why would he think that? I was so clearly in the wrong.
"It's fine, I forgot that you would most likely be on edge today," He smiled in a calm manner.
The mention of the anniversary of my parent's death was something I had forgotten due to that phone call, it caught me off guard and Bruce seemed to notice and looked at me confused.
"What's wrong? You look-" Bruce asks.
The concern on his face showed me how much he cared for me but Falcone would have cameras and most likely watching, I didn't want to push it too far so I just shook my head and gave him a smile.
"No, don't worry about it. I'm fine!" I smiled, hinting to the camera for Bruce.
He glanced at the camera subtly and seemed to understand why I was so on edge and nodded his head, pretending to still be concerned and confused towards me whilst I grabbed the umbrella that matched my outfit.
Bruce had arranged to be the one to take me to wherever they agreed to let us have our meeting, meaning that the car ride would have no security and I could try and explain some things to Bruce as I had to be careful about what I've said until now.
The door was held open for me by the driver and I smiled a thank you as I stepped in for Bruce to follow shortly, when the door closed he quickly looked at me and gave me a confused look."I was panicked over a phone call, I'll play it but you have to promise to keep what you hear a secret." I sigh.
Bruce quickly nods his head whilst the driver looked around briskly to see if there were any news reporters or something, maybe Bruce asked him to wait until he gave him a signal?I played the call over again, Bruce's face dropped when they heard the caller refer to me as Shade and there was no denial.
"You're... Shade?" Bruce asked.
He wanted to confirm, as if uncertain and in disbelief.
"Falcone only took me into custody to make me a weapon, he kept me away from you knowing that you would become a weakness and he wanted none for me." I nod.
Bruce wasn't able to keep his thoughts at a steady flow and it was clear but I felt it was understandable, I just admitted to killing so many people and barely explained anything to him.
I sigh.
"I'm not indestructible either, my training was where I received majority of my scars." I mumbled.
Bruce looked at me confused as I lifted my shirt and his eyes widened when he could see all my scars, they were more clear than when I showed Batman due to how it was brighter in the car than what it was in the club.
"Leave, come with me and I'll protect you. I can't- you can't let this continue!" He spits out after stuttering a few times.
I smiled weakly at Bruce and he knew what that smile meant and shook his head as if telling me to reconsider, the driver then got into the driver's seat without warning which annoyed Bruce but told me that the driver most likely saw something.
Sweat was slowly crawling down the driver's nervous, fearful face as he gripped the steering wheel which caught my attention and Bruce caught on too, something was off and I looked out the car window to see a man with a green mask and clear framed glasses stood and wave at me.
They had casual clothes but the fact that they covered their face despite it being day told me it was them, fear crawled up my spine and I felt my eyes widen before the driver drove out of view of the man.
My blood ran cold.