BAE Chapter 12

With Kate safely kicked out, Barbara gulps coffee, dresses nicely in black slacks, white blouse, and a red blazer, and calls a cab. As she gets ready to leave, she notices that the handle of her balcony doors is slightly turned. A quick examination reveals that the lock has been picked. Kate didn’t do this, and it wasn’t like this yesterday.

Barbara stands up, worried but not panicked.

Someone else broke in last night. Probably while she and Kate were asleep. Whoever they are, they’re very good. Bruce? Maybe. That seems like the most likely person… but there are others. She’s not too worried because everyone who knows that Barbara Gordon is Batgirl is an ally. It’s probably that the visitor came in, found Barbara in bed with another woman, and politely chose to come back another time.

Barbara wishes she’d slept on the couch; she’d have woken up and ambushed the intruder in that case. She’s puzzled, but there’s no time to be puzzled. If someone wants to talk to her, they’ll find a way.

She checks for traps and listening devices, but finds nothing. Strange, but strange is part of life when you dress as a bat and spend your nights jumping off rooftops.

As she rides through Gotham in the back of a taxi, she tries to focus on how annoyed she is with Kate and not how incredible her mouth is. Dick has a tongue and knows how to use it, but this morning is the first time Barbara has had one used on her new part.

She bites her thumb and stares out the window.

“Miss?” the driver says.

The car isn’t moving.

“Thanks,” Barbara says, blushing. She pays the man and gets out.

Wayne Tower looms over her. She’s had a small internship with Wayne Tech for years as cover for the very occasional times that Bruce needed someone with a functioning brain to come and do something when he couldn’t, usually when he was off doing Batman things in other countries. Barbara would coordinate to get him what he needed and do research for him.

So it’s not her first time here, but it’s different this time.

She gathers her courage and heads in.

Lucius Fox is in the lobby, waiting. He wears a gray suit and a big smile.

“Ms. Gordon. Welcome,” he says. He has the airs of a man who would be cast as God in a movie, and play the role extremely convincingly. He and Alfred are around the same age, but Alfred never comes off as a grandfather. Lucius does.

“Mr. Fox.” Barbara shakes his hand warmly.

“I simply can’t tell you how glad I am that we’ll be seeing more of you, Ms. Gordon,” he says as he leads her to the elevator. Barbara doesn’t know if he means seeing her around Wayne Enterprises or seeing Batgirl on the streets, but either way, she appreciates the sentiment. Barbara knows that filling Bruce’s shoes is an impossible task, but she has certain strengths that he does not, and Alfred and Lucius both appreciate them. It’s gratifying.

The next hour is spent meeting people in various departments of the company. They all seem to be expecting Barbara, which Barbara did not expect.

Safely in Lucius’ office, she listens to his explanation.

“Ms. Gordon, it’s necessary for some diversionary tactics when Mr. Wayne goes missing,” he explains, handing her a cup of coffee. “Lest people start to notice how he and a certain someone tend to be MIA at the same time. The changes I’ve made to your internship will raise eyebrows and I can promise you that the picture we’ll paint of the new Barbara Gordon will be the last person anyone would expect to have a second job.”

“I trust your judgment,” Barbara tells him. “I just wish I’d been a part of the planning process.”

“There’s no planning, Ms. Gordon. We’ll all making this up as we go,” Lucius assures her.

“You want Gotham to see me as an ambitious upstart. Who’s to say that’s not the real me?” she asks.

“Suits me,” Lucius replies with a shrug. “You don’t owe us anything. The way I see it, you’ve already given more to this city than I ever could. My niece was there, you know. When you stopped Bane. Eleven people got to go on living. And you had three broken ribs for your trouble.”

That memory irritates Barbara. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. Strength is not one of her strengths. Bruce should’ve been there.

But Bruce couldn’t be everywhere at once.

“You’ll be a hotshot intern, racing to the top. There’ll be talk. And media,” Lucius adds, giving her a meaningful look. “Be ready for that at the Gala tonight. You’ll be one of the hottest items there. You need to get ahead of this, Ms. Gordon.”

“Understood,” Barbara says with a nod. “How much pull do you have with the board right now?”

“Almost none without Mr. Wayne here to bully them for me,” Lucius replies with a sigh. “Applied Sciences is a money pit. We’ve hidden the worst of it, but there’s only so much we can do. We have good accountants. Unfortunately. Together, we might be able to change that—if you’re willing to make more of an effort than Mr. Wayne ever did. But for now, my department is on thin ice. I have to focus my resources on our current projects just to stay solvent. If you want my help with your other job it’ll have to be funded.”

“Can’t Alfred just write you a check?”

“He already has. Mr. Wayne made a good decision when he gave the board more power—more profits for Wayne Enterprises is good insurance for the future. But someone has to steer the ship.”

Barbara nods. “What will it take?”

“First you have to become a member of the board. That can’t happen overnight. That’ll make two of us. It takes three to make anything happen.”

“So for now we need two more,” Barbara says.

“That’ll be a problem for later. In the meantime, start making friends. And Ms. Gordon,” Lucius says, giving her a look over the top of his mug. “Do you have a date for tonight?”

“No. Why?”

Lucius smiles and looks out the window. “Have you read Pride and Prejudice?”

Barbara snorts. Of course she has. Lucius makes a good point. But she can’t just conjure a date out of nowhere, and who would she even want to take? The only person that she can think of is her father. It would be good PR and it would help her get ahead of certain problems that Lucius and Alfred have caused with all this internship stuff.

On the other hand, having Dad at this event might cramp her style in other ways.

Pros and cons.

Should Barbara bring Commissioner Gordon to the gala?

Or should she go alone?