Jim stood outside the door that led inside Lovecraft's condo uptown with his gun drawn and ready to fire. He kicked the door once, and almost instantly, the lock broke and swung open. Despite the loud noise, Jim quietly stepped into the property, his eyes scanning the room for any spot Lovecraft could be hiding. But the condo was dead quiet, too quiet. As Jim walked towards the bedroom, Lovecraft popped out from his hiding spot behind the curtains, also pointing his gun.

"GCPD! Drop it," Jim instructed. Almost instantly, Lovecraft lowered his weapon and kicked it over to the detective. "You're under arrest. Conspiracy to commit murder," Jim said as he tucked Lovecraft's gun into his belt. "Murder? Me, murder?! Look, what are you talking about?" Lovecraft looked shocked. "You put a hit out on Selina Kyle!" Jim spoke. "No, not me! The same people that came after her came after me too!" Lovecraft swore. "They attacked me on the street! Why do you think I'm hiding in here?!"

"Why would they come after you?" Jim asked, not believing a word Lovecraft was saying. "Why do they ever come? Cause I know too much!" Lovecraft answered. "Cut the crap. Who are you so scared of?" Jim continued to aim his gun. "You have no idea, do you? You think I'm the big wheel. When it comes to the crunch, kid, I'm nobody, just like you. And the people who really, truly run this city, they're watching you huff and puff and run around crusading, and they are laughing at you!" Lovecraft stuttered. "You're so deep in the maze, you can't see over the wall!"

"Tell me something I don't know!" Jim scoffed. Lovecraft gestured underneath his bed, saying there was a briefcase containing important files. Though Jim still didn't trust him, he let Lovecraft take out the briefcase, and show him the contents. With the front door busted open, Jim kept looking back to the entrance and then to Lovecraft just in case someone had the bright idea to show up. "Right before the Waynes got killed, there was a run on Wayne Enterprises stock, like somebody knew something bad was gonna happen," Lovecraft said, pulling out a few papers. " So, I figured I deserved a cut, and I started digging,"

Before Lovecraft could explain any further, Jim's ears perked up at the sound of the front door creaking open, slowly he walked back into the hallway to see the woman and the remaining male assassins approaching him, their faces etched with determination. "I've come for that man. You need not get hurt," The woman stated. Jim slowly put his hands up, still holding his gun as he tricked the assassins into thinking they were taking Lovecraft so easily. But the second the male assassin walked past him, Jim pinned his arm behind his back and pushed him onto the floor.

The female assassin was quick to get the jump on Jim just as he turned around to see her charging towards him. They both struggled just as Lovecraft caught wind of what was going on, and gathered the files, and ran off to another section of the condo. Jim and the woman continued fighting, trying to knock one another to the ground as Jim threw punches and kicks her way. Sometimes, he hit her, sometimes he missed, and other times, he was on the receiving end of the blow. The woman jumped Jim from behind and wrapped an arm around his neck, choking him as she wrapped herself around him, like a spider trying to web its unsuspecting prey.

Jim tried to fight back as much as he could, but the woman's grip was stronger than he thought, and within a few seconds, everything faded to black as he was knocked unconscious. "That was nice. Let's do it again sometime," The woman whispered, untangling herself as she ran off to meet up with the other assassin. It might've been only minutes or maybe even an hour since Jim had been knocked unconscious, but as he came to, he felt the vibrations of his phone and answered the call from Harvey.

"Fish got a lead on the kids. At a place on the Narrows called "Factory". Word is, Cat used a fence named Clyde. He hangs there. We're on our way now," Harvey told him. As Jim hung up, reality quickly hit him as he remembered why he was there and the fight that ensued, leading to him passing out. He walked through the condo, calling out to Lovecraft, only to get no response. As Jim looked into the bathroom, he found Mr. Lovecraft sitting in the bathtub, his eyes full of fear as blood dripped down his forehead and onto the bridge of his nose. A clean gunshot to the center of the forehead.

But that wasn't the only thing that caught the detective's attention. He saw the gun lying on the ground, the same one he took from Lovecraft upon his arrival. Now, it was no longer in Jim's pocket. The female assassin had to have taken it from him during the scuffle. "No, no, no, no, no," Jim panicked, realizing that the fingerprints on the weapon were his own. They were going to try and make it seem like Jim was the one that killed him. "This is Detective Gordon. Badge number 231611. Reporting body at 1257, Antioch,"

It all seemed like the perfect set-up. Holly was in danger, and with Lovecraft being the supposed mastermind, people would think Jim's fatherly rage got the better of him, and he killed Lovecraft in cold blood. How he was going to explain this to Essen and the rest of his colleagues, he didn't know. But all he knew was that those assassins needed to be stopped as soon as possible.

~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Even with the protection of her jacket from the unforgiving and cold wind blowing through Gotham that night, Holly couldn't unshake the feeling that somebody was watching every step they took as Selina led them to the Narrows. Some street kids were nestled around garbage can fires trying to get warm, while others hid themselves underneath piles upon piles of trash bags and cardboard in makeshift forts. "Right through here," Selina gestured as they walked into the 'Factory' to meet with Selina's fence.

"Why do you think she wants to meet up with him?" Holly whispered to Bruce. "I don't know, but I just hope this is quick and we can get back to the Manor," Bruce answered. "Me too," Holly nodded in agreement. The three of them walked into a small office where a guy appearing a little older than them with a single red streak in his hair sat staring up at the ceiling. "Cat! My baby!" he greeted Selina. "Hey, Clyde," Selina slightly smiled. 

"Well, what have you got for me?" Clyde asked. Selina emptied her jeans and jacket pockets, plopping a fistful of valuables, including a watch. All of them she pocketed from Wayne Manor without Holly or Bruce suspecting a thing. "Hey!" Bruce tried to protest, but Selina shushed him. "Wow, sweet swag. Not your usual junk, you're moving on up," Clyde chuckled. "Where'd you get this?" He picked up the tiny watch. "You want a story or the swag?" Selina asked. Clyde sat back in his seat, inquiring how much it was worth, and Selina estimated it to be about 1000 dollars.

Clyde and his associates looked at each other and burst out laughing, making Selina's face flush with confusion. "Please! Give me a break," Clyde composed himself. "That's rock-bottom, you know it is!" Selina responded. "Fifty bucks," Clyde smirked. "50?! This pen is real gold, and that's an antique jade netsuke. It's worth 2,000 dollars on its own!" Bruce looked outraged, leaning across the glowing table. "And who is this well-spoken little dude and quiet little mouse?" Clyde questioned. "Never mind who they are. Look, 500 is rock-bottom. Why are you wasting my time?" Selina scoffed.

"Relax. I'm sure we can make a deal," Clyde smiled as he stood up, walking to the other side of the table. But Selina shook her head, insisting she'd take her business elsewhere. As the children turned to leave, two of Clyde's blocked their paths and grabbed ahold of Holly and Bruce. "Cool down, Cat. Or we'll poke your little friends' eyes out," Clyde warned. Holly and Bruce attempted to break free of the men's tight grasp, but no matter how hard they struggled, they couldn't escape. Selina tried backing away, but Clyde continued to approach her, stroking her arm in some sickening and creepy way. 

"You get away from her!" Holly finally spoke up, making Clyde turn towards her now. "Ah, so she does speak!" Clyde teased as he reached out to stroke her cheek, but the closer Clyde's hand got to her, Holly lurched forward and bit his pointer and middle finger. "Gah, shit!" He hissed, trying to pull his hand away, but Holly's jaw was tightly clamped around it until Clyde finally freed himself. "Goddamn it!" He looked at his bloodied fingers as Holly spat his blood on the ground and shot him a glare. "Lock them up!" Clyde ordered his men. "I've got some friends coming over who would just love to meet you," He turned back to Selina.

Another man grabbed Selina, and the children were led up the metal stairs into a back room. The lock clicked behind them, leaving them trapped inside, along with the few dozen metal racks and file cabinets. "What do we do now?" Bruce asked. As they looked around the room for any other way to escape, Holly looked up as the full moon's light shone through the skylights, and she looked up to see not only that, but also an open window. All they needed was a way to reach it.

Selina followed Holly's gaze to the window, and without a word, they both began dragging file cabinets to the center of the room, creating a staircase. "Here, this will help," Bruce said as he attempted to drag a metal rack over to the set-up. Holly went to the other end and helped him push it. It made a lot of noise, but at least they were one step closer to freedom. As Selina climbed up to the skylight, Holly and Bruce stood awaiting further instructions on what to do while Selina finagled with the chain stuck on the rusted wheel.

"Find me something heavy," Selina looked down at the tweens. Instantly, they quickly searched the room for anything heavy to free the chain and rest on a smaller metal rack, Bruce found a sharpened chunk of metal and handed it to Holly. "Selina!" Holly said, tossing the piece up to her. "Good, this will work!" Selina nodded appreciatively, before she started banging at the wheel. The loud clangs filled the room, and Holly could've sworn she heard footsteps coming their way. She kept glancing at the door and then back to Selina as she finally got the chain free and started pulling the window open.

"Someone's coming!" Holly said hurriedly as she and Bruce quickly ducked behind cover, and Selina jumped down, landing on a crate above them. The door unlocked and creaked open as a man wearing all black stepped in and looked around for them. With his back turned, Selina jumped and smacked him in the back of the head with the piece of metal. The second the man hit the ground, they ran down the stairs, eager to make their escape while trying not to draw attention to themselves. 

They kept running until they reached another storage room, this one bigger than the last, and the three ducked under a table mostly covered in boxes and clear curtains, similar to the ones back at The Flea. Holly covered her mouth with her hand, trying to calm her breathing as they listened for footsteps. But instead, they heard the faint sounds of gunshots. What's going on? Holly looked up to Selina and Bruce, who were just as surprised.

Bruce poked his head out, looking for the source of the sound, but all he saw was the female assassin walking down the dimly lit corridor. Bruce quickly ducked down and gestured to the girls that danger was coming. "We've got to get you out of here," Holly whispered into Selina's ear. Before Selina had the chance to respond, they all heard a familiar voice echo throughout the Factory. "Bruce!" Alfred? With a slight nod from Bruce, the three of them ran out of hiding to another section of the building as the assassin realized what they were doing.

"Follow!" She called out to her accomplices. As they climbed back up the stairs, Holly and Bruce ducked for cover as Selina continued running, remembering she was the priority target. The woman's footsteps echoed as she approached the tween's hiding spot, and as Holly scooted closer, she bumped into a barrel full of long pieces of metal. She grabbed two pieces and handed one to Bruce. Seemingly getting the hint of her idea, they started throwing the metal rods in the woman's direction. And while they only got one to two hits in, it was still a distraction to give Selina enough time to escape.

As Holly reached in and realized the barrel was now empty, she and Bruce continued running up the steps, but not long after, Holly felt someone grab at her leg as she yelped and fell. Bruce turned back to her and tried to pull her free, but the female assassin grabbed Bruce as well, shoving him down as she pulled out her handgun. "Where's your little friend?" She asked. "I have no idea," Bruce lied. "Don't make me hurt you both. You're not on the contract," The woman sighed. "I'm going to ask you one more time, where... is... she?"

Off in the distance, Holly could hear the squeaking of the window opening and closing. The Gordon kept her gaze locked on the assassin as she started smirking. "She's gone," Holly answered. Slowly, the woman tucked her gun back into her pocket and leaned in close to them. "Some advice, kids.  Don't ever mistake bravery for good sense," She spoke before disappearing into the night. "You alright?" Holly asked, looking over to Bruce. "Yeah, I'm fine," He nodded. Soon enough, they heard the rushed footsteps of someone climbing the staircase. Though the only light peering into the warehouse was from the moon, Holly could make the figure wasn't as intimidating as the assassins. 

"Master Bruce? Miss Gordon?" Alfred's voice called out to them. "Fancy seeing you here, Alfred," Bruce slightly smiled. Bruce stepped closer as Alfred pocketed his handgun and embraced the boy. "You really scared me, Master Bruce. If you die, who employs butlers anymore?" Alfred sighed with relief. In the darkness, Alfred looked up at Holly, also relieved she was okay. "Your father's outside waiting for you," Alfred told her. "Thank you, Alfred. For coming after us," Holly smiled. "Any time," Holly ran right for the exit, running into the night to see the flashing red and blue lights of the cop cars and watching as they took Clyde and his men into his custody.

"Hols!" Jim ran towards her, picking her up and holding her ever so tightly. "Dad!" She muffled into his jacket as he put her down. "I was so worried, are you hurt?" He asked, quickly checking for any bruises or cuts. "Just a little winded, but I'm alright," Holly answered. Jim hugged her again, fearing she'd slip out of his grasp at any moment. "I'm right here, Dad. I'm right here," Holly assured, feeling his heart beating against his ribcage.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

While the nightmare of his daughter going missing was over, the second Jim brought her back to the GCPD he was called into Essen's office by the angered Mayor James. "What's going on?" Holly asked. "Everything's fine. Why don't you go sit down, and I'll take you home after this," Holly nodded and sat at his desk as he walked into the office. Sitting in the chair right next to Jim was Dent, and he looked less than happy as Mayor James unleashed his wrath on the both of them.

(Topic of suicide is going to be brought up again, so if you're triggered, watch for the 🌟🌟🌟🌟 when the topic is over.)

"Lovecraft was a beloved pillar of this community, a dedicated servant of Gotham. So, what do I tell the media, huh? Hmm?! Any ideas?" Mayor James snarled. "He was a crook, and we nearly had him. And he was killed by whoever he would have implicated if he had lived to testify. Say that," Jim retorted. "Forgive me if I can't get behind your approach. It was your gun!" the Mayor pointed out. "I didn't kill him!" Jim insisted. But Mayor James continued, saying that calling Lovecraft's death a suicide was much cleaner. "It wasn't suicide, it was murder!" Jim scoffed.

"It was suicide! He went mad under your relentless questioning, overpowered you, and killed himself with your gun. And don't tell me otherwise!" Mayor James pointed before turning to Dent. "What do you say, Counselor?" "I'm at your disposal, Mayor James. I'm sorry if we've caused you any disquiet," Dent quietly spoke. "Disquiet, you arrogant clowns. You're hacking away at the very foundations of this city. Tryna take me down?! I should have the both of you stuffed in a sack and thrown in the river!" Mayor James muttered. "But I can't do that. Two scapegoats would look like panic. But one of you is going down, mark my words,"

🌟🌟🌟🌟

"Sir, that's not right!" Dent protested. "Hush. It's not you, Dent. Obviously, it's Mr. Gordon," Mayor James glared. "Sir, I protest," Dent spoke up again. "But not too much. You see, Counselor Dent knows how to walk the line. He knows where the edge is. You, Mr. Gordon, do not know where the edge is," Jim rose from his seat, adjusting his blazer as he locked eyes with the Mayor. "Mayor James, you don't understand this because you don't have any children. But my daughter was also being targeted, and as her father, it's my job to make sure she's safe. Lovecraft was our person of interest; he could've been involved with the assassins. So, excuse me for not sitting back and watching my child get murdered!"

"What your daughter went through is terrible, but because of you, Lovecraft is dead," Mayor James bit back. "Mayor James, kiss... my... ass,"

~~~~~~~~~~

"They're sending you to Arkham Asylum?" Harvey asked as he watched Jim pack up his desk. "A security guard for the nut jobs?" "Criminal nut-jobs, yeah," Jim nodded as Holly handed him one of the picture frames. "Are you taking the assignment?" Harvey inquired. "It's either that or I quit. And that's what they want me to do,' Jim answered. Harvey shook his head in disbelief. "Whoever your next partner is, he or she will be a lot easier than me," Jim told him. As he and Holly turned to leave, they almost bumped into Ed, who was wondering if the rumors of him being thrown out in disgrace were true.

"Yeah, it is," Jim confirmed. "I'm gonna write a letter to the boss. Which boss should I write to?" Ed questioned. "Forget it, Ed. That's the breaks, huh? You take care," Jim held his hand out for Ed to shake. Ed shook it once before hugging him. Ed wished him luck one last time, and he walked off, and Harvey looked surprised. Ed never reacted like that whenever someone was leaving the precinct. "Maybe you should take him with you," Harvey shrugged. "You'd miss him if he was gone," Jim knowingly smiled.

"No, I wouldn't," Harvey shook his head. "Let me buy you a drink sometime," Jim set the box and shook Harvey's hand, agreeing they'd hang out together soon. "And Hols, don't be afraid to stop by and visit, okay? You're always welcome here," Harvey smiled. "Thanks, Harv. Hopefully, I'll see you around," Holly hugged him before following her father out the door.