BAE Chapter 42

Barbara doesn’t have the heart to do this the way that Bruce does. At least, not with Summer. But a serious relationship is also out of the question.

She sighs.

“Are you good enough to send her a message that I value and appreciate her and I’d like to see more of her but also not to get the wrong idea?” she asks hopefully.

Alfred takes several moments to respond. Barbara irritably lowers the barrier and peers at the rearview mirror to see his expression.

“Did Bruce ask you to do that?” she asks hopefully.

“Master Bruce never addressed the issue. I took it upon my own discretion.”

“And?”

“And there are you Ms. Selina Kyles and your Andrea Beaumonts.”

Barbara scowls. “And which is Summer?”

“The latter, I should think.”

“Redheads,” Barbara mutters. “Redheads everywhere. Can you do it or not?”

“I will do my best to strike an appropriate balance in the bouquet, which I shall personally select and arrange. Might I convince you to consider the virtues of writing her a note, or dare I say calling her by phone?” he suggests.

“Isn’t it a little early for this much sass?” Barbara asks as Alfred pulls into an appropriately secluded alley. She climbs out and goes to Alfred’s window. He lowers it and meets her gaze. “Thank you, Alfred. I appreciate you, too.”

“You change the topic quickly when I bring up communication,” he says, unperturbed.

Barbara steps back and takes the grapple off her belt. “You think I dress up as a bat and kick people in the face because I’m bad at communicating?” She snorts and points the grapple up. She fires it with a bang and the hook whistles up into the dark.

“When’s the last time you spoke to Master Dick?” Alfred asks.

“Goodnight, Alfred.”

BAE

According to Alfred, Kate is training in the cave. What Barbara doesn’t know is if she’s regaining an edge that she lost or if she’s gaining one for the first time. Kate’s performance in the costume had always been woeful, and Barbara had always been grateful that the two of them had never been on the street at the same time. Kate had demonstrated the other night that her fundamentals were sound and that her nerves were steady, but that wasn’t enough.

Lucius is handling the Daggett situation through legal channels, which frees Barbara up to pay a visit to Riley Beaumont. Unfortunately, she doesn’t make it that far before her police scanner picks up a high-speed chase not far away, with shots fired.

Bruce would’ve grappled his way into the path, jumped onto the car, punched through the windshield or done something equally irresponsible, risking an enormous amount of collateral damage and probably getting injured. And then he’d have slammed more of that steroid and gone out to do it again tomorrow night.

Barbara pauses on a rooftop to use the Batmobile’s autopilot, ordering it to catch up to the robbers, use the thrusters to pull ahead, then cut in front to block the street. That forces the robbers to stop, and the police in pursuit take it from there.

With that handled, Barbara sends the car back on patrol. No one has to know that she isn’t in it. Or Batman, for that matter.

A few minutes later, she silently ropes down to her perch across from Riley Beaumont’s apartment. Riley is inside, dressed in leggings and a tee. She’s at the stove in the kitchen. It looks like she’s making stir-fry. She’s obviously not expecting company. Healthy eating for one?

Barbara admires that. She admires a lot of things about Riley and catches herself doing that. She shakes her head in frustration. What the Seed formula has done to her is infuriating. She just had sex. With another beautiful redhead, no less.

Of course, Summer doesn’t have what Riley has. Or her confidence. Or her athletic body.

Barbara gets those thoughts under control and grapples across to place a microphone on the window that will let her hear what’s said inside the apartment and allow her to track people inside. It confirms that Riley is alone.

Barbara stands to the side of one of the big windows, just out of sight. Riley is listening to music in there and humming along to it. The point is not to stick around and listen; Barbara can use the Bat Computer later to run these recordings and pick out relevant parts.

But Barbara hasn’t left yet. She risks another peek, just to be startled by the sound of a phone going off. Riley frowns and grabs it.

“It’s me,” she says, putting her hand on the burner control. Seconds pass. She turns off the burner. “OK.” She hangs up.

That was a quick conversation. Barbara watches her move the wok off the burner and run her hand through her hair. A moment ago she was carefree. Now she is not.

She’s typing on her phone. Barbara checks her microphone, which has already captured Riley’s devices. Barbara watches the feed to see exactly what Riley is doing: ordering a taxi.

Her destination: The Iceberg Lounge.

Is she going out clubbing? Or going to see Cobblepot? Or just to meet someone else?

Someone who hangs out there, of all places?

Barbara pulls out of sight. As she does, Alfred speaks in her ear through her cowl.

“Ms. Gordon, there’s an item on the police scanner that might require your attention,” he informs her.

“Sorry, I was listening in on Beaumont. What’s happening?”

“According to the police, a bomb has gone off at Wayne Tower,” he replies. “The building is under attack.”

There’s no time to think or be shocked. Barbara cannot be in two places at once, and she is not sending Kate out.

Follow Riley Beaumont?

Or respond to the attack at Wayne Tower?