SEL Chapter 42

Ivy gasps and claps her hands over her mouth. Lucius stares with wide eyes as the confused commentators swear during the events unfolding on the debate stage.

“Let me out of here,” Ivy says.

“You know we can’t.” Lucius’ beer glass shakes from how hard he’s squeezing it.

Ivy groans. “Where is Batman when you need him? Where is Batgirl?”

“I don’t know. Oh, dear heaven,” Lucius says as the tiny figure of Spoiler crosses the frame.

“Who’s she supposed to be?” Ivy demands.

“Spoiler.”

“Who?”

SEL

“We have confirmed that there are no fatalities inside the concert hall,” the reporter says, shielding her face from the icy wind with one hand while she holds her mic in the other.

A blonde waitress ducks as Oswald Cobblepot hurls a lamp at the wall. Seething, he turns back to the television.

“Both candidates are under police guard and being taken to Gotham General Hospital. Several minor injuries have been reported, and the attacker has been identified as one Floyd Lawton, known in criminal circles as Deadshot. Lawton was apprehended by a group of attendees that included members of the GCPD and some trainees from the police academy who were at the debate to show their support for Mayoral Candidate Barbara Gordon. Former Police Commissioner James Gordon is also hospitalized with injuries sustained in a home invasion by one Slade Wilson, another killer for hire known well in the criminal underworld. Wilson was pronounced dead after falling from Gordon’s apartment to the street, and the aircraft known as the Batplane was recorded in the area. It is believed that the Batman or another costumed vigilante intervened when Wilson attacked Gordon.”

Oswald picks up his phone, which cracks in his grip.

“They were supposed to be the best!” he snarls, smashing it repeatedly on the desk. Another girl in a tailcoat ducks, anticipating a throw, but Oswald holds onto the broken phone. He doesn’t notice any of the flinching or cringing as he storms around the office. He stops and shakes the phone at his assistant. “Find me someone better.”

SEL

“OK. OK.” Aki Aramaki wraps her arms around Viti Saxena in the hospital room. She’s not injured, but the police won’t let them leave yet. “You’re OK. We’re OK.” Aki stares at the TV on the wall. “Barbara Gordon obviously staged this. Performative heroics, just like her father.”

Viti pulls back, eyes wide. “That’s insane. She was shot trying to protect me.”

“It can work. Will people really believe it was a coincidence that this assassin got taken down by a bunch of pro-Gordon cops?”

“It makes sense that police would be the ones to rush in and do something,” Viti says.

“We can do this.” Aki starts to pace. “But we have to move fast.”

“I was almost killed!”

“I know. It was lucky that girl in purple was there. We’ll have to revisit our costume policy, but that’s another day’s problem. For now, we need to show everyone how low Barbara Gordon will sink,” Aki says, waving a finger.

“Aki.”

“What?”

“Stop. Just stop.”