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In Essence (Slowed): KaStro
"Forget your umbrella?" Galavan asks through the glass as he sits down. "Thought visiting hours were over. What are rules to the woman who arrested the mayor of Gotham? Any chance you're gonna tell me what this little visit is about? Tomorrow's hearing, perhaps? You're here to gloat."
"Does the name Katherine Parks mean anything to you?" I sit down.
"No, can't say it does."
"I'm gonna be there tomorrow. I'm gonna watch them put you away." I stand back up.
"Always a pleasure, Miss Brady." Galavan tells me before I leave.
"You kill him?" Margo leans off the wall.
"He's gonna wish he did." I rasp out before we leave the prison. "Thank you guys for coming to Katherine's funeral. I know you didn't know her."
"She gave her life to the people here. And the people here include you." Lois heads inside her car and I get in the passenger seat. "Do you wanna talk about it?"
"Katherine Parks was twenty three. On the force a year. And today we put her in the ground because when I had the chance, I didn't do the only sensible thing." My eyes start to water as I keep my gaze forward.
"Brianna."
"An assassin kills four cops—dares me to pull the trigger, and I don't. Explain that to me."
"That man was your prisoner—you didn't have a choice."
"I had a choice." I nod.
"Yes, to uphold the law or to become a murderer. You made the right one. Like I knew you would. Because you are not a murderer." Margo inquires.
"You think Katherine Parks feels the same way? What about her family?" I choke out.
"So you saw Galavan."
"You're asking did I get the guards to turn the cameras off? No. But they would have. Galavan as good as killed Parks, Essen and a dozen other cops, and yet he sits there, smiling, breathing."
"And tomorrow, Aubrey James is going in front of the grand jury and telling them that he was kidnapped and tortured by Galavan. He's gonna be put away for a long time."
"Maybe. Just the way he acted. It wasn't a man looking at a decade in prison. I have a bad feeling."
"Don't do this to yourself." Lois grips my shoulder and I turn to her. "Brianna, you did good. You always do."
"Yeah, I always do, don't I?" I smile before sniffling and she pulls me into her.
"Does Clark know?"
"No, no. He needs to be with Martha to grieve his father. I have no right to throw all of this on him. This is my problem. He needs to grieve, and to mourn, and to accept. I have to make sure Galavan never gets out. Never." I sob and she places her hand on the back of my head.
"You should tell him." Margo urges. "He was so worried. All of us had to stop him from coming down here. Even Lex."
"Screw him, forget him. I have to help Bruce and Selina with this girl."
"Who?"
"Her name is Silver St. Cloud. Galavan's her uncle."
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
"No, I'm not." I sniffle. "He made a deal with Bruce. Said in exchange for full control of Wayne Enterprises, he would give Bruce a file on who killed his parents."
"Please tell me Bruce didn't believe that sociopath."
"No, he didn't sign the papers. But he still wants that file. And to be honest, I kinda wanna see for myself too. I could use some help."
"This is gonna be my first case here, awesome." Lois smiles and I wryly chuckle. "But seriously, Brianna, Margo's right, you should tell Clark. You're always there for one another and I see the way you look at each other. You can't fight something like that. Let him take care of you."
"That's what Jonathan told me before he..." I thickly swallow.
"So listen to him." Margo places her hand on my shoulder and I slowly nod.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"This isn't gonna work. This girl is a world-class liar from a family of world-class liars. She'll see through you. Or her uncle will." Selina inquires as stand a few feet away from Bruce's school.
"Well, that's very possible." Bruce replies.
"And? Bruce, they're playing nice with you because they think you trust them. Once they see you don't, it'll get ugly fast."
"Your logic is flawless, Selina."
"It's not too late-"
"If there's even a chance Galavan knows who killed my parents, I have to take it."
"We will." I nod.
"I told Alfred I have fencing practice after school to buy us some time if we need it." Bruce nods back at me.
"Hey. The best liars always tell the truth. Something to remember." Selina tells him.
"Thank you. And thank you for being here, Lois. I greatly appreciate your help."
"Of course, BW." Lois grins.
"That's her car. You'd b—" Bruce cuts himself off Selina climbs the tree above us.
"C'mon." Selina holds out her hand.
"Okay." Lois takes it. "Oh, jeez." She gasps as Selina pulls her up. "Thanks, girl. You should head to the station. I'll keep you posted."
"I-"
"Lois is right. You should go to work. I wanna see Galavan put away for good." Bruce hugs me and I hug him back. "I'll call you."
"Okay." I nod and wave at Selina and Lois before walking off.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"Alvarez, call the morgue. See if any bodies turned up matching Gertrude Cobblepot." I tell Alvarez as I enter the station, still limping a bit from my healing wound on my leg. "She didn't just vanish—Galavan killed her."
"Did that yesterday." Alvarez replies.
"And you're gonna do it again today."
"I got my own cases, Brianna."
"Hey." Jim stands up.
"Hi." I hug him and he hugs me back before kissing my temple. "Turn up anything on that symbol we found in the penthouse?"
"No. I'm waiting for Father Mike up at St. Bart's." Harvey tells me. "Sent him a picture of the cassock, too. He's up on all that religious mumbo-jumbo. You okay, kid? How you doing?"
"I'm fine." I nod.
"What exactly are we after here?"
"Something tying Galavan to the murder of Essen, Parks, any of the people he killed."
"Not to state the obvious, kid, but the guy's going to jail."
"I went to see him last night."
"Yeah? Get the guards to turn off the camera?"
"The look on his face, Harvey—I don't know, I can't describe it." I inquire.
"Oh, you gotta be kidding me. God. Guy almost gets stabbed. I thought we'd have at least a week of peace. Hey, Cap! How you doing?" Harvey questions and I hold in a laugh.
"Got something for you two. Munis found a dead body down by the port, throat cut from ear to ear." Barnes hands me a file. "The vic's a career dirtbag, but the work's the same."
"Uh, sir, if it's all the same, I'd like to stay on Galavan." Jim tells him.
"It isn't. Galavan's cooked, so you're back in the rotation. What?"
"I just feel like we're missing something, sir. There's some piece of the puzzle that's gonna come back and bite us. Just give us a few more days."
"Answer's no. Be pissed, but it's for your own good. Oh, and, uh...I'm sorry about Parks. She deserved better. You feeling okay?"
"Yeah. I'm fine." I nod and he nods back.
"You and everyone else in here didn't have to come to Jon'a funeral. But, you did. Thank you."
"From what I could tell, Jonathan Kent was a decent man. He marched right here and volunteered his service to you and the rest of us, no questions asked. You rubbed off on him."
"No. No, it's the other way around." I nod and he grips my shoulder before heading into his office.
"Yo, soon to be relatives!" Harvey calls out. "Message from Father Mike. That symbol is from something called the Order of St. Dumas. They used to have an abbey downtown."
"Barnes just told me to lay off of Galavan." Jim says.
"Oh. Well, then you probably don't care that the mayor's office tried to buy the abbey last week."
"Galavan tried to buy it?" I raise my eyebrows.
"Yeah. Some urban development nonsense. New owners said no. It's a Chinese slap-slap joint now." Harvey nods.
"Hell with it. You got the address?"
"Yep. Let's go get lucky."
"Alright." I nod and Jim leads me with him down the stairs.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"You sure about this? Doesn't look much like a massage parlor." Jim comments as we head out of the car.
"Maybe there's another entrance." Harvey suggests and I turn my head at the sound of a gunshot before girls covered in blood start running out, screaming.
"Get these girls out of here." I raise my gun before heading inside through the back.
"C'mon, c'mon. C'mon." He leads the rest of the screaming girls out.
"GCPD!" Jim shouts as we slowly walk down the hallway and I see a man on the floor.
"Sir?" I lower my gun and kneel down to him before checking his pulse.
A man then breaks through the wall and lunges at me. I get on my back and harshly kick him in the chest. His back hits the wall and Jim fights him off.
"Jim!" I yell as the pair go through the wall.
I grab my gun and get up. I run over, but stop once Jim falls to the floor again. I drop my gun, not wanting to waste anymore bullets. I grab the man's arm and twist it. He grunts as his arms snaps. I now grab his wrist and shove the knife in him.
"Brianna!" Jim pulls me into him before the man takes the knife out and runs off.
"No!" I pick up my gun and we follow him out of the back. "Stop! Drop the knife."
"The day of reckoning is at hand, and the blood of nine shall wash away the sin." The man tells me as he drops the knife.
"Uh-huh. Who are you?" Jim questions.
"What's your connection to Galavan?" I ask.
"And Gotham shall be cleansed." The man moves back into the street.
"Hey. Hey." I start running after him. "No!" I stop and Jim grabs me as the bus hits the man.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"The girls at the parlor say they saw at least six monks." I inform as we stand in Barnes's office.
"Uh-huh." Barnes paces back and forth.
"They have to be a part of this same order of St. Dumas. Bullock's contact says they're penitents." Jim adds.
"Yeah, I forgot my dictionary in my purse."
"They believed in purification through pain. Blood. They were big in the old days in Gotham. Then about a hundred years ago, vanished. It was their crest we found in Galavan's penthouse." I inquire.
"And now they're back and they're pissed off that their home is a high-end rub-and-tug joint. Fine. Gather what you have and give it to Alvarez." Barnes tells us.
"Captain, these monks could be the key to whatever Galavan is planning." Jim replies.
"As I recall, Detective, I already gave you a case. And I expressly told you to move away from Galavan. The both of you."
"The dead guy at the ports—he attacked a woman across town yesterday. In her statement, she said her attacker was pulled off by a man dressed like a monk."
"Does the universe normally like you this much, Detective?"
"First time."
"Alright, say they're the same monks. Why would they killed a bunch of bankers and some...nobody street thug?"
"The monk said, the blood of the nine shall wash away the sin. It's obviously some sort of ritual." I nod.
"And if Galavan is connected, what does he stand to gain?" Barnes wonders.
"I don't know. We have to find a monk and get him to talk."
"Well, considering what this last one did, that might not be so easy."
"Barnes, it's no coincidence that this is happening just as Galavan's about to stand trial. Whatever it is, it's going down today."
"The blood of the nine. Five are already dead. Okay.
But I still want you both at the grand jury to hear James' testimony. And, whatever this is, you both stop it." Barnes orders and I nod before heading pot with Jim.
"You okay?" Jim cups the back of my head.
"Yeah. Leg's feeling a lot better." I tell him before my phone rings. "It's Lois. I'll be right back." I step away to answer it.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"The scar tissue's old. See how the wounds wrap over his shoulder? It was definitely self-inflicted." Lee inquires.
"I stabbed him, he didn't flinch." I tell her.
"And there are thick scars on the palms. He cut himself there repeatedly."
"Father Mike said the leaders cut themselves and then mark the followers with the blood, like a blessing."
"Charming."
"Dug up two more bodies from the past three days." Harvey enters and hands me a file. "Career hoods. Killed somewhere, then dumped. Both their throats cut."
"Seven down, two to go." I mutter.
"It's weird. How has nobody seen these monks till now?" Lee questions. "A, they're killing people and carrying them across town, and B, they're monks."
"The woman who was attacked yesterday, she said the monk vanished with the attacker, but...that alley was a dead end." Jim speaks up and I look at the man's galoshes.
"The sewers." I pick them up.
"Oh, no." Harvey shakes his head.
"Yeah." I nod. "Let's go." I start to walk and the boys follow me.
"Brianna." Lee turns me around. "About what happened over Christmas, I'm so sorry. I'm just so worried about you. You're my friend, and, I just wanted to make sure you were alright. I don't want you to feel like you have to hide anything from your family."
"I know. It's all good, Lee. I'm okay."
"And I'm so sorry about Jonathan. He had an interview with me when he was running for senator. He was a very kind man."
"Yeah. Yeah, he was."
"I'm here if you ever wanna talk."
"I know. Thanks, Lee." I hug her and she hugs me back. "I'll be back soon." I pull away and leave.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"So, the monk drags the woman's attacker into the alley above us." I shine my light around as we enter the sewers.
"Next thing, he's food for seagulls." Harvey inquires.
"Ports are this way." Jim shines his light ahead and we follow him before my phone rings.
"Hold on." I stop and take out my phone. "Hey."
"Hey. We got her." Lois tells me.
"Tell me where you are."
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"You have one chance. You let us go." Bruce seethes as I enter and he grunts as I slap him.
"You talk...when I tell you to. Understand?" I rasp out and he glares at me. "Now...so you know, we are outside of the city, and there is absolutely no one to hear you scream, except me."
"You work for the people inside Wayne Enterprises.
Whoever's paying you—ah!" Bruce groans as I slap him again.
"Again...you talk when I tell you to." I wryly chuckle before laughing. "Now, my employers have heard that you are thinking of selling your company shares to the uncle of this one?" I point to Silver. "That's not good.
But not why we're here. The issue is: someone's been nosing into the deaths...of Thomas...and poor Martha Wayne. And I wonder who. Mmm. Kidding. We know it was blondie's uncle. So...I've been tasked to find out what dear old uncle told little Bruce Wayne."
"Nothing. Galavan didn't tell me anything." He says and I slap him for the third time.
"You think that I won't hurt you because you're a kid?
Or because you're you? How'd that work out for your mommy and daddy?" I chuckle. "There are billions at stake here. And that's with a B."
"Do what you want to me. I don't know anything."
"Okay, so we start with Goldilocks." I point back to Silver.
"You touch her, and I swear-"
"Yeah? I've been threatened by the best, kid, and you... not exactly terrifying." I scoff. "Now, let me tell you how this is going to go." I take out my knife. "In a minute, I'm gonna take one of you into the back and start cutting off your fingers. And you're gonna talk. I've been doing this a very, very long time, and everyone talks. So...unless you're really into wearing mittens, this is your last chance. What does Theo Galavan know?" I questions. "Okay. Let's go." I wheel Bruce with me.
"No, no, no, no, no!" Silver screams.
"No, wait, stop! Stop, stop, stop! No! Silver, you have to tell him. I'll hold my side of the deal, I promise. Please." Bruce begs. "Please. I promise."
"But my uncle didn't tell me anything."
"But you left me a message."
"I was supposed to keep you busy till this evening. He's sure he's going to be freed. Then he'll convince you to sell your company. I'm sorry, Bruce. I don't know anything."
"Really?" I mock.
"I don't!" Silver tells me.
"That's a pity."
"No."
"No!" Bruce cries.
"Kid." I say.
"No! Please."
"Kid. You really need better taste in women." I drag him into the room and Silver screams his name.
I now close the door and I cut the ties off Bruce's wrist. Lois hands me a bottle of fake blood and I pour it on the knife. Selina then holds out a rag and I pour it on the rag and then my hands.
"Listen to me." I whisper. "We're close. We're so close. I'm gonna get that name. Even if it's the last thing I do." I tell Bruce and he hugs me.
"Thank you." Bruce sobs. "Thank you." He whispers and I place my hand on the back of his head.
"Go, go." I lead him with Selina and Lois and we all share a nod.
"Bruce?" Silver croaks out as I open the door.
"Well, if nothing else, today has given me a newfound respect for boy billionaires. Kid's tougher than he looks. Didn't know a damn thing." I wipe the rag on my knife.
"Did you kill him?"
"No, not yet. But the rest is kind of up to you."
"I told you...my uncle didn't tell me anything."
"Are you gonna stick to that story?"
"It's the truth. Bruce, I'm sorry! I don't know anything!"
"You know what? I don't like you. The Wayne kid...he's got some sap in him. But you...you know when you meet someone, and you just don't click? That's the way I feel about you. That's why this is gonna be so much easier." I point the knife at her.
"What are you doing?" Silver asks.
"I'm gonna make sure that you are telling the truth."
"Touch me, and my uncle will have you gutted. Every person you love will die screaming. I've had enough of this. Let me go. Now!"
"Well, hello. Nice to meet you. I knew there was someone hiding in there."
"Are you deaf? I said...let me go!"
"I heard you, princess." I cut her free before grabbing her arm.
"What are you doing? Stop!" Silver cries.
"Who killed Thomas and Martha Wayne?"
"Malone! It's Malone!"
"What?"
"Malone. That's the name. The man who killed Bruce Wayne's parents."
"So your uncle did tell you."
"Not today. Before. When he first found out."
"Malone's a very common name."
"His first name begins with M. That's all I know."
"You know what?" I let her arm go. "I believe you. Bruce, Selina, Lois." I call out and the three step out.
"Hey. Remember me? The gutter trash?" Selina taunts.
"Bruce...what's happening?" Silver cries.
"What does it look like, dummy? We tricked you."
"Though, if it was up to me, you would've lost a few fingers." Lois adds.
"Thank you." Bruce cups my face before hugging me and I hug him back.
"I hope I didn't but you too hard." I now pull away and gently turn his head to the side.
"No, I improvised a bit."
"Nice." I place my knife in my holster.
"You're probably very confused right now. Probably have a million questions going through your head." Bruce inquires.
"Bruce, please..." Silver sobs.
"Be quiet! I trusted you, Silver. Even after your uncle was arrested, I still believed you were my friend. It was finally Selina who convinced me otherwise."
"I never bought your stupid act." Selina retorts.
"She broke into your apartment, found the file you had on me. It was clear that you'd been sent to push me to sell my company, that your entire family was corrupt, but I still had to find out what your uncle knew about my parents' murder. Now I do. Thank you." Bruce starts to walk.
"Bruce! Wait." Silver calls out. "That name wasn't real.
It was just something I made up to stop him."
"That's funny." I walk over and punch her across the face, making her grunt. "You only made it up when you were under the knife, not when Bruce was getting tortured."
"You bitch." She starts to get up. "I'll-"
"Please." I harshly slam her down and she gasps as I place my forearm against her throat. "Try it."
"You're right about my uncle. He's everything everyone says. Worse. When he finds out what I told you, he'll kill me."
"You pretended to be my friend. My real family are the ones standing in front of you. Goodbye, Silver." Bruce says.
"Bruce." Silver sniffles. "The things you told me today. I believed you."
"Yes. That was the point."
"Bruce, you can't do this. It isn't you."
"That's what you think." Bruce walks over. "But you're wrong."
"You really don't know who I am, do you?" I keep my forearm against her neck. "The polar bears in Antarctica even know about me. My name is Brianna Brady. Ring any bells?" I raise my eyebrows and Silver gasps.
"You-"
"Yes, I am the one who killed Jerome Valeska in cold blood." I tell her. "And I am the one who got your uncle arrested. I am the one who's been beating him at his own game, ever single day." I grin. "So now that I have your attention, listen up!" I slam her against the chair again and he grunts. "You do not come into my city threatening the people I care about. Going after Bruce? Bad move. You leave Bruce alone, or I will rip you to bits because I happen to believe in killing the messenger. You know why? Because it sends a message." I harshly whisper. "Your uncle wants to take me and my step father down? He wants Bruce's company, you tell that bastard to come get it himself. Oh, and threatening me?" I laugh before shaking my head. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to?" I now roughly let her go. "It's gonna be okay." I wrap my arm around Bruce's neck. "We got the name." I lead him out with Lois and Selina.
"No." Bruce stops me. "You did." He grins and I see his eyes fill with tears. "You've saved my life, on more than one occasion. You've saved so many people here and you don't ask for a single thing in return. And it is because of you that I finally know the name of my parents' killer. You kept your promise. And for that, I am eternally grateful for you, Brianna. You're a good woman. And you are not just my friend, you're my family. And when we find this man, I don't want your time here to be just that. I want you and the rest of our family in my life." He looks at Lois. "Now and always. You are my family." He nods and I hug him.
"You're my family too." I whisper. "C'mon." I pull Selina and Lois in.
"Alright, one group hug." Lois gives in and we all chuckle before my phone beeps and I take it out to see Jim's location.
"I gotta go get Jim."
"I'll go with you." She nods.
"No, stay here with them."
"We'll be fine." Selina tells me. "Go be a cop."
"We'll be alright." Bruce assures and I kiss his forehead before leaving with Lois.
•❅──────✧❅✦❅✧──────❅•
"Jim!" I yell as me and Lois enter, shooting the men who are beating Jim.
"Jim!" Lois rushes over to him and I follow her.
"Jim! Jim!" I cup his face and he groans. "Jim, wake up. Jim, who did this to you?" I now hold him in my arms.
"Brianna..." Jim wheezes. "How did you-"
"Tracker on your phone, remember? The location looked shady."
"Hey! Not another step." Lois raises her gun and I turn to see Oswald enter with his men.
"Brianna?" Oswald's eyes widen.
"Oswald." I get up and I run before hugging him, making him hug me back.
"Long time no see." He chuckles and I laugh.
"I heard about your mom. I'm so sorry." I now pull away. "I wanted to visit you, but, you weren't at your place. I didn't know where you were."
"I was wounded and Ed saved my life. He hid me." He grips my shoulders. "But I saw everything about Essen and Jerome, and about Jonathan Kent, and I'm so sorry."
"Me too." I whisper.
"I sent Clark and his mother my deepest condolences."
"I know. I saw you at the funeral. Thank you for coming."
"Of course. Jonathan was a good man. I saw how much he cared about you."
"Lois, it's okay. He's a friend." I nod and she lowers her gun. "Lois, this is my friend, Oswald Cobblepot. Oswald, this is my friend from Smallville, Lois Lane."
"Hi. Sorry about the gun in your face." Lois holds out her hand.
"Totally forgiven. Any friend of Brianna's is a friend of mine. Nice to meet you, Lois." Oswald shakes it.
"We got the name." I whisper.
"What?"
"The man who killed Bruce's parents. I got the name, Oswald." I grin with watery eyes.
"I knew you would!" Oswald smiles and I chuckle.
"Uh, how did you know we were here?"
"I was told Galavan got out."
"What?" Lois and I gape.
"Jim!" I run back over him. "Did Galavan do this to you? Where is he?" I hold him again.
"Hello, Jim." Oswald walks over with Lois. "Lucky for you, Gabe had people following Galavan. Now...where is he? Where's Galavan? Tell me! Where is Galavan?"
"Oswald, Oswald!" I stop him from hitting Jim. "Jim, you need to wake up and tell us where he is, okay? Please." I cup his face. "Please don't leave me." I start to cry. "You're gonna be my stepfather, don't—you can't leave me." I place my head on his chest and sob into it before I feel a hand on the back of my head, making me look up.
"I'm not going anywhere." Jim groans. "I promise." He now closes his eyes and his hand falls from my head.
"We can take him to Ed's place, where he hid me." Oswald says, a bit calmer now.
"Okay. Thank you." I nod and he nods back. "Lois, if you wanna back out now, you-"
"Not a chance. C'mon." Lois starts to pick up Jim.
"I got him." Oswald now carries Jim and we all head out.
This ends now.
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AUTHOR'S NOTE
🪐🌙✨🚀🌌☄️
istg, season 2 was PEAK. so was season 5, but season 2 is just elite!! ofc our girl lois is helping out her bestie with guns and other hot girl things💅🏻
me watching jim get beaten half to death
GAGGED her
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