BAE Chapter 93

Barbara taps on the window.

The men and women inside look up, startled. Bullock’s face darkens and Maggie folds her arms as the Commissioner stands up and goes to the window. He opens it and Barbara enters the office without a sound, shrouding herself with her cape.

“What’s the matter, freak? Left your purple pajamas at the dry cleaners?” Bullock asks.

“It’s not her, idiot,” Montoya mutters.

“How do you know?”

“Renee never forgets a rack,” Maggie says bitterly.

“Stop,” the Commissioner warns, pointing a warning finger at them. “Batgirl. One of them, at any rate. What can we do for you?”

Barbara jerks her chin at the photo on the desk.

“That seals it. Elite Pride is a disguise. The League of Assassins is here.”

“League of Assassins? Speak English,” Bullock snaps.

“It’s more or less what it sounds like. They serve Ras Al Ghul. Batman and Al Ghul had a truce, but that was before Batman went away,” Barbara says.

“Where is he?” the Commissioner asks.

“I can’t talk about that.”

“She doesn’t know,” Maggie says, mouth tight.

“Ras Al Ghul has wanted to destroy Gotham for centuries. Batman was the only thing keeping him away. If that’s what’s happening here, we need to be aggressive,” Barbara tells them frankly. “Cheshire is in Blackgate. She’s been there long enough that she probably doesn’t know anything, but you should get in the box and at least try to sweat her. I think Detective Sawyer’s on the right track. We need to look closer at every move they’ve made since they got here, especially anyone who’s turned up dead under suspicious circumstances. Old money? There’s no money older than Al Ghul’s.”

“So you don’t know what’s going on either,” Montoya said.

“We’re working on it.”

“We?” Commissioner Gordon says, raising an eyebrow.

“This redhead,” Bullock says, pointing at Barbara. “The one in the wig, and the blonde.”

“I think the play here is to get Elite Pride into custody. We should work together on this,” Barbara says.

“Any idea what they’ll hit next?”

“Hold on, Commissioner.” Montoya shows him her palm. “I want to know what happened last night. We have half a dozen dead hard cases. For what? What the hell was going on down there?”

“It was a setup. That whole street was Elite Pride’s kill zone.”

“Why? Taking out the competition? They want to move in?” Bullock asks, chewing his toothpick.

Barbara shakes her head. “No chance. Ras Al Ghul is no gangster. Elite Pride seems to have some interest in Seed, but it can’t just be that. After all, they’re the ones most likely responsible for it getting on the street so fast. We’d better hope they haven’t laced it with anything too interesting.”

“Why would they do that?”

“Seed being freely available could be destabilizing,” Barbara suggests. “It’s also a good source of leverage. Or it would’ve been if it had stayed permanent. But it won’t be long until Seed is completely reversible, so it looks like Wayne might have short-circuited that plan. I think that I might’ve been the target last night. Putting all those crooks in the open like that, making them wait—it had to be bait. If not for me, then for who?”

Talia and Ras Al Ghul know that Bruce Wayne is Batman. They know that the Cave is under the house; but ever since Ras broke in, long ago, the Cave has been secure. Ras would probably consider it dishonorable to hit Barbara in daylight at Wayne Enterprises. Maybe he wanted to take down Gotham’s remaining bats in a way that he felt was fitting.

It still doesn’t quite line up, although Barbara hasn’t forgotten about Katana showing up at Wayne Enterprises. Maybe she’d been wrong. Katana is by no means a common criminal; she could be pressured into work by Waller, or she could be talked into it by the League of Assassins.

Seed. Ivy’s blood.

“Still awake, Bats?” Bullock asks.

“Just thinking. Elite Pride was a good disguise. Nobody would look at people in tactical gear with rainbow patches and modern weapons and think that they were the League of Assassins. That makes me think that this isn’t about grudges. There must be an angle. In the past, Ras has always had it in for this city, but I’ve had no chatter about nukes, nerve gas, or any of the usual things. We have the best-guarded water supply in the world. What are they up to?” Barbara asks.

“I don’t know. But the Seed thing won’t stick,” the Commissioner predicts. “Once Wayne Enterprises makes it legal and safely available, there won’t be enough of a market on the street to tempt Maroni, Falcone, or anyone who matters. This can’t be about money.”

“Ras Al Ghul has money. It has to be about something else. What does Gotham have that nowhere else does?”

“A lot of freaks,” Bullocks says without hesitation.

“Yeah, but after the bust at Arkham, they aren’t all gathered in one place anymore,” Montoya notes.

Barbara nods. “I don’t think he’s recruiting, although a lot of them have been quiet lately. That’s a scary thought. I’ll start by talking to Maroni and Falcone. We’ll see if they’ve noticed anything out of the ordinary. We need to get ahead of this. Whenever Ras does what he’s planning, we don’t want to take it on the chin.”

“Agreed,” the Commissioner says. “Batman mentioned this Al Ghul guy a few times. I’ll feel better when he’s in Blackgate.”

Barbara snorts. “We can’t hold him. Best we can do is get him to back off for a minute.”

“So that’s it, Commish? We’re just doing business with her like nothing’s changed?” Bullock demands.

“We can use the help,” the Commissioner says.

“If you can get to Falcone, that’ll go a long way,” Maggie says to Barbara. “Maroni’s guys were there last night. I have them in the morgue and I have that knife—I can drag Maroni into my **** investigation. But I can’t get to Falcone.”

“Sounds good. I’ll be in touch,” Barbara says. She leaves by the window, grappling to the roof, where her earpiece beeps.

“What’s up, Alfred?” she asks as she gets to her feet. The cold night wind blows over her. Gotham, lit up in orange, surrounds her. The elevated train passes nearby, forcing her to turn away and touch her ear.

“Master Bruce installed a silent alarm in Selina Kyle’s apartment to monitor her comings and goings by window at night. It’s just gone off.”

“I’ll check it out,” Barbara replies without hesitation. She’s already downtown; there’s no need to bother with the car. Her batrope is all she needs. She steps onto the ledge and starts to swing it, and there’s too much going on in her head for there to be any nostalgia about this.

Bullock’s right. Gotham does attract freaks.

But it’s also a hub of organized crime and decadent wealth. To Barbara, the unequal way that wealth is distributed is a problem, but for someone hoping to steal it, it’s convenient. Ras Al Ghul operates global operations. He has money, but he also needs money. The question is: does he see Gotham as a freakshow? Or a piggy bank?