THESE VIOLENT DELIGHTS
xv. MISERY LOVES COMPANY
❝GOTHAM IS HOME TO THE UNFORTUNATE.❞

SHE HAD PROMISED ALFRED TO ONLY TAKE TWO HOURS ON HER TRIP, but it had taken much much longer and it was close to ten o'clock. Her mind scrambled to find an excuse, considering she couldn't tell them the truth about what had happened with Eric Sato. She was parked next to Bruce's car, knowing he was home too. Her disappearance would earn her a lecture since she had only left the hospital yesterday, but she truly felt fine. A sigh left her lips, turning off the car as she got out. With the oxygen tank in hand, she began to walk toward the manor doors. She pushed her key into the door, opening it slowly to take a peek inside. Empty.

Stepping inside, she was grateful for the warmth that the manor provided. She closed the door behind her, locking it. "Hello?" She called out. "I'm home."

The parlor doors opened, revealing both Bruce and Alfred. Worry was written across Alfred's features, breathing a sigh of relief when his eyes met Anastasia's. However, disappointment remained on Bruce's expression as he stood straight with his arms crossed. Anastasia chewed the inside of her cheek, approaching the two of them slowly.

"Hey," she said nonchalantly, giving them both a nod in acknowledgment. "Sorry for taking so long."

Bruce was the one to speak first, letting out a heavy sigh. "Where were you, Ana?"

She cleared her throat, twirling the keys in her hands. The manor was starting to feel too warm, making her sweat inside the thick jacket she wore. "I went out to dinner with Laura."

Bruce frowned. "Is that all you did?"

"Of course," Anastasia lied, crossing her arms as she unconsciously mimicked Bruce's posture. Her eyes flickered to Alfred, noticing his tired expression. Perhaps, Bruce had yelled at him for letting her go. She felt guilty for getting him in trouble. "Look, Bruce, I'm fine, I promise," She reassured, letting out another sigh. "You don't need to worry."

"I worry because you should still be on strict bed rest, Ana," Bruce scolded, making her fight the urge to roll her eyes. She knew he was only looking out for her wellbeing, but she did not like to be treated like a child. "It's too dangerous for you to leave the house. You could have gotten hurt or opened your stitches. Then what?"

"Bruce, it was just dinner," Anastasia sighed, shaking her head. She faced Alfred, hoping it would cut in and say something to Bruce. But, the older man stayed quiet as if he had already had a silent agreement with Bruce. "I promise you two, I'm fine. There's nothing to stress about."

Alfred and Bruce shared a look, having a silent discussion amongst themselves. Something they did very often. Eventually, Bruce sighed. "Fine, Ana," he said, meeting her green eyes. "Please, be honest with us about where you're going next time. You had us both worried."

"Okay, yeah," Anastasia said, giving Bruce a thumbs-up. "Though, I'm really tired. I think it's time for me to head to bed."

"Okay, I'll be up there in a moment," Bruce said, lowering his arms to his side. His posture relaxed, turning to face Alfred. Still, he regarded Anastasia. "I just need to discuss a few things with Alfred."

Anastasia nodded, offering Alfred an apologetic smile. "Don't lecture him too badly, Bruce," she said, making her way toward the grand staircase. "It's not his fault!"

She headed up the stairs, wishing they had an escalator for all the trouble she went through going up and down the stairs. She turned into their bedroom and prepared for bed. Her mind stayed on Eric, thinking of what could have possibly happened to him. She changed into something more comfortable before she took a seat on her bed with her laptop. Fortunately, the GCPD hadn't taken all of their electronics. She pulled up the web browser, searching up recent Gotham news that involved the animal attacks. She read through them, seeing a lot of the things that Laura had mentioned. However, the news provided a lot more information about the victims and how the outskirts of Gotham seemed to be affected the most. All the articles said that the animals were dangerous, but none had any true evidence of what the creatures looked like. After what Anastasia had seen today, she knew that it wasn't animals. It was human beings, infected with.... something. If word spread that the attacks were actually people, she could see some people suspecting a zombie apocalypse. Though, some people would be excited about it.

The bedroom door opened, causing Anastasia to look up from the computer screen. Bruce walked inside, rubbing his eyes as he closed the door behind him. "How was your day, honey?"

He hummed, looking in her direction. Bruce looked exhausted, dark circles lining his eyes as always. "It was fine."

"Laura said she didn't see you at work," Anastasia pointed out, keeping her eyes on him as he made his way toward the closet.

"I wasn't there for too long," Bruce said, shrugging off his coat before hanging it up in his closet. He looked in her direction, offering a warm smile. "I only picked up a few files before meeting up with the investors."

Anastasia hummed, continuing to read the articles on the computer. But, she still listened to Bruce. "What did you talk about?"

"The R&D division," Bruce mumbled, looking through the closet for something more comfortable to wear. His attention was divided, like hers.

"Okay," Anastasia said, clicking on a new article that the Gotham Gazette had written. She frowned, reading the title of the article. Batman and Anastasia Lovejoy forming a secret romance? Some believe Batman is Bruce Wayne himself. It made Anastasia roll her eyes, considering the ridiculous things the media was allowed to say. She cleared her throat, locking eyes with Bruce. "Something new you and Lucius are planning?"

"Something like that." After those words, Bruce only smiled. It made her curious, considering the last time they had worked together, the two of them had designed a new car for him and her. She wondered what else they were hiding up their sleeves.

Her fingers tapped against the laptop, humming softly as she watched Bruce. She tilted her head, keeping her eyes focused on his jawline. "You know..." Anastasia mumbled, "The media thinks you're Batman."

Bruce let out a dry chuckle, barely reacting to her words. "And, what do you think?"

Anastasia shrugged, hiding her amusement behind the screen. "I think it's silly."

Bruce smiled, raising a brow. "You think I can't be Batman?"

She laughed, shaking her head. "Are you?"

"I am."

Another laugh left Anastasia's lips, playfully rolling her eyes at Bruce's words. She lowered her voice, keeping eye contact with him. "I'm Batman."

For a moment, Bruce stared. A million thoughts hid behind his eyes, but he never shared a word about what he was hiding. Instead, he only chuckled as he shook his head. "I don't know how he gets his voice that low."

"I don't know how either," Anastasia shrugged, turning off the laptop before she put it off to the side. She checked the meter on the oxygen tank, realizing she would have to change it before she went to bed. After the eventful day she had, it had drained faster than it should have. She stole a glance at Bruce, noticing him deep in thought. "I've met him like... three times in the past two weeks," Anastasia pointed out, realizing how close and personal she had been with Batman. She chuckled. "I'm starting to think I'm a bad luck charm."

Bruce smiled sadly, facing her. He approached, sitting on the bed as he reached for her hand. She returned his smile, squeezing his hand. "Ana, listen to me, you need to be more careful," he whispered, reaching forward with his free hand to tuck a strand of her blonde hair behind her ear. "I can't lose you."

"You won't lose me, Bruce," Anastasia said softly, leaning into his touch as she placed a gentle kiss against his cheek. She shrugged her shoulders, shooting him a wink. "I'm still standing, my love. It's gonna take a lot more than two bullets to kill me."

"Too soon to joke about it still," Bruce smiled, shaking his head. He sighed, facing her as his expression became more serious. "Please, promise me that you'll take it easy? I need you safe, Ana. Especially with everything that's been going on."

Anastasia nodded, deciding it would be best to agree with Bruce. He was only looking out for her and she didn't want to give him any more stress than he was already under. "Fine," Anastasia said. "I promise."

He seemed pleased.

"But..." Anastasia trailed off.

Bruce tried to hide his amused smile. "Ah, there it is."

Anastasia chuckled, leaning back against the headboard. Her eyes focused on Bruce, holding his hand in hers. She noticed scars on his knuckles, making her frown as she traced over them with her fingers. "Bruce, I know I just got out of the hospital," she started, meeting his eyes. "But, I want to go back to work."

He frowned, squeezing her hand. "Ana, I don't want you to stress yourself about work. It's fine. I can handle whatever is going on down at Wayne Enterprises. I only want you to think about recovering."

"I'm not stressed at work, Bruce," Anastasia pointed out, shrugging her shoulders. "I just... I don't want to be locked up in the manor all day, please. It gives me too much time to think about what happened and... I need a distraction."

Bruce nodded, thinking over her words. "Fine, I suppose it should be okay," he mumbled, mostly to himself. "But, are you sure? I don't want you to overwork yourself."

"I'll be fine, I have Laura!" Anastasia reassured, smiling wide as she placed a kiss against his lips. He smiled, holding her close as a content sigh left his lips. "Thank you, Bruce, for understanding."

He held her in his lap, unconsciously rubbing his hand up and down her arm. "Plus, there's no place safer than here or Wayne Enterprises."

Anastasia smiled, snuggling her face into his as she peppered kisses against his cheek. "Exactly, we have nothing to worry about, Bruce."

━━ ━━ ━━

A WEEK HAD PASSED AND THEIR SEARCH FOR ERIC HAD YIELDED NO RESULTS. The first place that Anastasia and Laura had tried was Eric's mother Ruqa and stepfather Mark; the two of them lived a few neighborhoods away from Eric. They had met Eric's two youngest sisters at ten and fourteen, Marci and Melanie. Unfortunately, they did not know where Eric was and it seemed that their questions had only caused worry to strike in their hearts. Anastasia felt guilty leaving their apartment, seeing the look that Eric's mother had given her. She had already lost one child to Gotham and could be on the verge of losing another. Next, they tried Eric's second oldest sister, Ella, who lived in Metropolis. She hadn't heard from Eric in a long time, saying she had lost touch with her family a long time ago. While in Metropolis, they had checked up on the three Lovejoy hotels located in the city. Everything was in working order, showing great numbers and projected growths over the next couple of years. Unfortunately, their trip to Metropolis had not yielded any results of Superman's existence either. The only good news they had from the past week was that they had been able to find someone to extract the hard drive from Eric's laptop. It had suffered a lot of damage, but there should still be some files intact. It was better than nothing.

Anastasia and Laura sat huddled in front of the desktop, having the hard drive hooked up with Anastasia's computer as it copied everything at a snail's pace. Monique and Anya were working in the office area separate from Anastasia's private office, working on their respective projects as they remained out of earshot. Anastasia had left her office doors open, not wanting the other girls to think that she and Laura had something secret going on. "It's going to take a few hours to copy everything," Anastasia muttered, watching the copying symbol swirl on her screen. A heavy sigh left her lips. It felt as if all they did was wait around. "Hopefully, nothing goes wrong this time."

"We should go see Erina today," Laura suggested, earning a nod from Anastasia.

They had decided to meet with Erina last, considering they weren't sure if they could trust someone who had been in Falcone's inner circle. From what they had learned from Eric's notes, Erina Sato was a ruthless assassin kept under Falcone's thumb as she carried out his bidding. But, she was still Eric's oldest sister and there was a chance he would go to her for help.

Anastasia checked the time on her watch; it was eleven in the morning. She placed a hand on her hip, flipping through Laura's notes as she looked for the address where Erina worked as her day job. "She works at a diner called Over Easy," Anastasia mused, wondering how many times she must have driven past the diner. Gotham was still a mystery to her, considering there was so much in the city she had yet to see. "It's not too far from here. We can walk, actually."

"You want to walk?" Laura asked, raising a brow as her eyes drifted down to the heels that Anastasia wore. She was used to wearing high heels that reached five inches, but the ones she wore now were only three. They weren't uncomfortable, making Anastasia believe she could walk in them through the streets of Gotham. Laura wasn't convinced. "Are you sure?"

"It'll be fine," Anastasia reassured, urging Laura to gather her things so they could leave. "It's only a ten minute walk. My doctor recommended exercise everyday."

Laura chuckled. "If you say so."

Anastasia grabbed her purse, locking the desktop screen before she left the office with Laura. After their eventful week, Monique and Anya had stopped asking them where they were heading. It didn't seem as if they minded, considering it was always an easier work day without your boss lingering around. As Anastasia had said, it had taken them ten minutes to reach the diner. The two of them had gotten strange looks on the street, considering Anastasia was recognizable in Gotham and the oxygen tank was a dead giveaway. They walked up to the diner, noticing a group of teenagers that must be skipping school. It made a flicker of her high school years pop in her mind, hearing the name Edward Astor echo in her mind. It made her frown, seeing a glimpse of a face before it faded back into the depths of her memory.

They stepped into the warmth of the diner, having their noses be invaded with the scent of bitter coffee and bacon. The bell above their heads signaled their arrival, the jingle echoing deep through the diner to the inhabitants in the kitchen.

"Just catch a seat anywhere!" A woman's voice rang from beyond the double doors that led into the kitchen. "I'll be right with you!"

Anastasia and Laura shared a glance amongst one another, hoping the voice belonged to Erina or else the trip would have been futile. They wandered around the diner, eventually finding a booth in the far corner where they could find some privacy. Against the near wall, there was a jukebox that played an 80s pop song from an artist she didn't recognize. She took a seat across from Laura, looking over the menu. She should eat, but she wasn't feeling hungry. She didn't want to speak to Erina about her missing brother while trying to eat blueberry pancakes at the same time.

The sound of heels clicking against the tiled floor caught their attention, causing the two women to look up as they spotted Erina making her way toward them. She stood tall, dressed in a pink dress with a white apron. Her black hair had been pinned back, but a few loose strands framed her sharp features. "Morning, what can I get started for the two of you?" Erina asked, holding her notepad in hand as she stood prepared to take their order. But, she faltered when she locked eyes with Anastasia. She frowned, lowering the notepad as she tilted her head. "Mrs. Wayne, I never expected to see someone of your status in a diner like this."

"Erina..." Anastasia greeted, lowering the menu as she clasped her hands together. She spared a glance in Laura's direction, noticing the nervous expression that lingered on her face. She cleared her throat, facing Erina again. "How are you?"

"Fine, all things considered," Erina mumbled, shrugging her shoulders. She tapped her pen against her thigh, letting out a heavy sigh as she pushed away whatever thoughts that had come to her mind. "So, what can I get you two?"

"Actually," Laura started, setting the menu down too. She kept her eyes focused on Erina, studying her as she tried to determine whether they could trust her. "We're here to talk to you."

Erina hummed, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Your brother," Anastasia answered, earning a frown from Erina. However, the dark-haired woman waited for her to continue as she watched with cold eyes. "We're looking for Eric Sato. He's our friend and he's..." Anastasia let out a heavy sigh, messing with the bracelet around her wrist. It had been a difficult experience to speak to Eric's family, considering they never told the truth about what was truly going on with him. "He's been missing for about a week."

Erina placed a hand against her hip, wetting her lips as she stared at the ground. She was quiet for a few moments, trying to gather her thoughts. She looked uncomfortable, unsure, unsafe. Eventually, she regarded them again. "How do you know he's my brother?"

"He told us, through a case file he's been building over the past few years," Anastasia answered, remembering the room they had found in Eric's apartment. "We're just trying to find out where he is."

"He's not at his apartment? Or out on vacation?" Erina asked, crossing her arms. She kept occasionally glancing toward the kitchen, making sure her co-workers weren't eavesdropping into the conversation. "Are you sure he hasn't been showing up at work? Maybe he's been working from home?"

"No, he hasn't," Anastasia said, shaking her head. "He hasn't come to work for two weeks."

"Two weeks?" Erina frowned, confusion spread across her features. Her distrust was starting to fester, turning her body away from them as she kept glancing toward the kitchen. As she moved, Anastasia was able to catch glimpses of the scars imprinted into her skin. "You just said he's been missing for a week."

"After the first week, Laura and I went to visit him at his apartment to make sure he was okay," Anastasia explained further, earning Erina's attention again. She looked at Laura, both girls remembering what they had gone through at Eric's apartment. "But, there was something wrong with him. He wasn't in the right state of mind. And then he kind of ran off after we tried to talk to him. We're afraid he might be hurt, so we've been looking for him. And, we were wondering if he had made any contact with you?"

"No, he hasn't," Erina answered grimly, causing both Anastasia and Erina's hopes to diminish. Their last lead to find Eric had been Erina, but she hadn't seen him. A frown was permanently sketched on Erina's face. "I don't understand why you two would come to me. Eric shouldn't even know about me."

"He's been looking for you and your father for years," Anastasia said, causing Erina to pause as she stared. There was sadness in Erina's eyes, one that Anastasia would never be able to understand. Still, she tried to offer the woman a smile. "Your family never stopped looking for you, Erina."

Erina sniffled, taking a moment to compose herself as she took a few deep breaths. Her eyes looked around the diner, making sure they were truly alone. Someone continued to clank around dishes in the kitchen, but they were out of earshot. Erina pulled up a chair to the table, taking a seat. "I can tell the two of you are hiding something from me," Erina muttered, narrowing her eyes at the two of them. "Tell me the truth. What's going on with my brother?"

"We're not completely sure," Laura said. "But, we think it has something to do with the animal attacks happening all over Gotham."

"I heard that had something to do with the Children of Arkham?" Erina added, frowning. "They've been popping up everywhere and our new Mayor isn't doing much, except making them angry."

In the mayhem of the last week, Anastasia had completely forgotten about Harvey Dent. She hadn't been following his mayoral career too closely, but he seemed vengeful of the Children of Arkham when they had met last in the hospital. She wondered what he was up to, considering he did say he had a plan to get rid of the Children of Arkahm. However, she had no desire to go see Harvey. After everything that had happened between them, it still felt awkward... and painful.

"Whether the Children of Arkham are behind the animal attacks or not, they pose a serious threat to Gotham. There's been a reported twenty deaths in the past week alone," Anastasia pointed out, shuddering at the thought of those unnecessary deaths. She had read that one of them had been a child, walking home from school. It had made her feel sick, not wanting to think about the parents who had dealt with the loss of their child. "So, we've been trying to keep track of the attacks and where they've been occurring. For now, it's just the borders of Gotham with most of the attacks happening in the abandoned part of the city."

"But, what do the attacks have to do with Eric?" Erina asked. Her eyes wide, filled with panic. "Has he been attacked? Is he part of the Children of Arkham?"

"It's not... animals... that have been attacking," Laura mumbled, unsure of how to answer Erina's question considering the two of them were still unsure of what was going on. "The attackers are humans. There's never been any animals."

"Humans?" Erina echoed. "But... I wouldn't have guessed they were human attacks from the way they're described in the news."

"Yeah..." Laura mumbled, pulling out her phone from her purse. She found the video they had gotten earlier in the week from the GCPD, showing it to Erina. "I was able to speak to Mayor Dent about this issue and he had the GCPD send us the footage of what happened at Eric's apartment. You can only see a glimpse of the alley from the street cameras, but there were a few frames that caught Eric."

Anastasia stayed quiet, remembering how terrifying Eric had looked. The video didn't do the horror justice. Somehow, she believed it was her fault Eric had been put in the line of danger. She didn't know how, but a part of her knew this was her fault. All she wanted to do was set things right, figure out what was going on in Gotham's shadows and save Eric. It was all that mattered.

Erina took the phone from Laura's hands, zooming into the video of Eric. Her hand stayed steady, watching the video with wide eyes. She looked up, shaking her head. "I don't understand..." She whispered, trying to come up with a reason why her brother could have attacked them. "Why is he doing that? What's wrong with him?"

"He's infected with something, we think," Anastasia pointed out, watching as Erina turned off the phone and handed it back to Laura. "We don't know with what, though. We're still trying to figure that out. We're hoping to get his computer's hard drive unlocked and see who he was in contact with before his infection. If it has that information, we might get some clue of what happened to him."

It was quiet for a few moments as Erina mulled over the information they had given her. It was more of the truth than any of his other family members had received. Somehow, it had been easier to speak to Erina than the others. She already knew about the darkness that hid deep within Gotham. She had been a part of it for so long. "I should have been there," Erina mumbled, closing her eyes as she took in a deep breath. "I... I was too afraid to go back to my family. For so long, Falcone convinced me that I was a monster... A monster that couldn't be loved, unworthy of a family. I wanted to escape, but... He held my kill switch in his hands and I was... terrified of him. When he died, it felt as if a weight had lifted off my shoulders. For the first time in my life, I was free. I should have gone home. I could have protected Eric."

Anastasia hesitated for a moment, but eventually found the courage to reach forward and place a hand on top of Erina's cold one. She squeezed, offering the woman a warm smile. "Erina, we'll find Eric. We'll save him, I promise," Anastasia said softly, noticing the unshed tears that shone in the other woman's eyes. Laura had stayed quiet, trying to keep her own emotions in check. "It'll be okay. You'll be reunited with your family. The world isn't cruel. It'll set things right."

Erina's lips twitched upward, blinking the tears away as she nodded. "I'll do whatever I can to help," Erina said, taking her notepad and writing down her number and address before handing it to Anastasia. She regarded both Anastasia and Laura. "I'm always a call away. Don't hesitate to reach out, please. I want to find Eric."

Anastasia nodded, taking the piece of paper before tucking it away behind her phone case for safe keeping. "I'll call you later tonight, once we figure out what's on the laptop."

Erina stood to her feet, letting out a heavy sigh as she nodded. She put the chair back to the table where she had grabbed it from, turning back to look at Anastasia and Laura. "Are you sure I can't get you guys something?"

"We'll take a few muffins?" Laura said, pointing to the assortment of muffins on display at the counter. She shared a look with Anastasia. "For Monique and Anya, we don't want them asking too many questions."

Erina smiled, nodding her head. She packed six muffins for them in a pink box, the same color as her dress. Anastasia returned the smile, paying for the muffins and leaving a hefty tip for Erina and her co-worker who was singing in the kitchen. "Thank you for reaching out to me," Erina said, sliding the box across the counter to give to Laura. "Keep me updated. I'll be here."

They left with heavy hearts, walking back in the direction of the office. The temperature was warmer than before with the sun hitting them, but it did little to combat the autumn breeze. Anastasia dragged the oxygen tank with them, counting down the days till she could get rid of it completely. It was something she had gotten used to and people had stopped asking questions, even Erina hadn't batted an eye at it. But, it was still uncomfortable and her arm would cramp whenever she had to drag it for too long. Perhaps, they should have taken the car but she should be able to handle a ten-minute walk.

"I don't know if we should trust Erina completely," Laura pointed out, facing Anastasia. Her brows knitted in worry, tightening her grip on the box of muffins. "She used to work for Falcone. I just..." Laura bit her tongue, letting out a heavy sigh. "I think we need to use our best judgment here."

Anastasia nodded, knowing where Laura was coming from since they couldn't trust everyone. But, she truly felt as if they could trust Erina. She only wanted to see her brother safe and sound. Still, she wanted to ease Laura's mind. "We'll be careful with what we tell her," she reassured. "The last thing we want is someone messing with our investigation."

For a moment, they walked in silence. The streets of Gotham were busy, too demanding on their ears as the noise pollution reached an all-time high. Cars honked on the streets, construction was never ending, the sea of people passing by never diminished. Still, the two women walked at their own pace and no one bothered them.

"So," Laura broke the silence, causing Anastasia to glance in her direction. "What's been going on with you?"

Anastasia frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know how to explain it, but you're... different than before, Ana," Laura tried to explain, tilting her head to get a better look at Anastasia's expression. "I've always worked close with you, but nothing like this. I feel like after the debate, you're a whole different person."

She didn't know what to say, not knowing she had been acting differently than before. With a shrug of her shoulders, Anastasia tried to come up with some excuse. "I've been through a lot these past two weeks, Laura. It feels like I've aged decades."

Laura gave her a kind smile. "Well, you can trust me. I'm here to talk if you want to."

For a moment, Anastasia hesitated. There were some things she hadn't told anyone yet, not even Bruce. Her memory of the debate had come back and it was something that continued to haunt her every waking moment. She had kept it bottled up, but the truth was scratching to come out. "Promise me that you won't tell a soul?"

She frowned. "I promise, Ana."

"At the debate, I... I was able to find out who the shooter was," Anastasia mumbled, slowing her footsteps as she tried not to let the memories of the debate overwhelm her. She could still feel the initial pain of the bullets when they had hit her, making her feel nausea as her hands flashed red with blood for a moment. She gulped, trying to focus on Laura's features. "The Penguin, I guess is what he calls himself. I know who's behind that mask."

"You do?" Laura asked. "Why haven't you told the police?"

"I don't have any evidence and I don't have the best track record with the GCPD," Anastasia sighed, remembering when they had brought her in for questioning after Dr. Franklin and when they had raided the manor. The GCPD must hate the Waynes. "But, I know the shooter was Oswald Cobblepot. He used to be childhood friends with Bruce, but after what happened with his family... He turned to a life of crime, I suppose. Before he... shot me, he said he's coming for everything. He wants to destroy Bruce and the Wayne legacy. Shooting me was just another way to hurt Bruce, but Batman stopped me from bleeding out. He saved my life. I doubt Cobblepot is happy about that."

"I had a feeling all these allegations against Wayne Enterprises was a coordinated attack," Laura mumbled, shaking her head. Her eyes narrowed into daggers, feeling hatred toward Oswald Cobblepot and the rest of the Children of Arkham. "With the video they showed of Thomas Wayne causing Esther Cobblepot to go insane, Gotham has nothing but hate for the Waynes. The board members are scrambling to fix this."

"It's going to take a lot more than P.R. to fix this," Anastasia muttered, feeling disgust at what Thomas Wayne had done. However, she knew her father was in company with the Waynes and Falcones. He must have committed crimes just as heinous, but Anastasia's mind still drew a blank when it came to him.

"What was being shot like?" Laura asked, making Anastasia frown at her question. It seemed that the other woman noticed her discomfort, causing a frown to appear on her lips too. "Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. Morbid curiosity, I suppose."

"No, it's okay," Anastasia said, shrugging her shoulders. "I haven't had someone ask me that question, actually. So, I don't know how to answer it. But, from what I remember, I know it hurts like hell."

"I bet," Laura whispered, shuddering as the two of them continued to walk in the direction of Wayne Enterprises.

"I must have blacked out," Anastasia confessed, trying to remember what had happened after Batman had tended to her wounds. She remembered Harvey being attacked by Penguin, but that was the last thing. Other than that, she remembered the other world. She wondered if she should tell Laura, knowing she would sound as if she had lost her mind. Still, she decided to take a chance. "I remember everyone fading around me as the world became darker, pitch black as all the lights went out. It was silent except for the thunder and screeches of... monsters in the distance. I was still on the stage, but I wasn't here... if that makes sense. It was some kind of other world. One that looks like ours, but it isn't. It's void of people, filled with monsters, a rotting world as it sought to destroy whatever life wanders into it."

"Are you seeing visions?"

Anastasia shook her head. "No, it's more like I see flickers into this world." A dry chuckle left her lips, making her realize how disturbed she sounded for saying this out loud. She remembered waking up in the other world at the hospital, how real everything had felt. She had truly felt a monster tear into her neck with its jagged teeth, but it had only been a doctor trying to sedate her. "I might just be losing my mind, but it all feels so real. I don't know what to think anymore."

Laura hummed, listening. "You started seeing this other world after the debate?"

"No," Anastasia muttered, letting out a sigh. "I suppose I've seen these visions all my life, but I stopped seeing them after my doctor prescribed this medication. However, they're back now and, I don't know what they mean."

"And, it's always random?"

Anastasia nodded. "It is."

"Are you sure?" Laura asked, frowning. "I feel as if there must be something triggering you that causes you to see these things."

"The only times I had seen into this world when I was awake was after I had that run-in at Falcone's club, but it had happened when I was at the manor," Anastasia began, thinking of all the times she had seen something off about the reality around her. "I had seen it when I was at Franklin Crematorium, after I had been shot, and then immediately after I had woken up at the hospital. At least, those are the only ones that I remember."

Laura nodded, balancing the box of muffins with one hand as she took out her phone. In her notepad app, she had written down everything that Anastasia had said. "We can take a deeper look into this," Laura reassured. "It might be something."

"I doubt it," Anastasia mumbled, shaking her head as she tugged on the oxygen tank when it had gotten stuck in the cracks within the pavement of the sidewalk. She sighed. "I only hope we can unlock the files and get the attacks figured out before more people get hurt. Then, we can take everything to the police. Have them figure it out."

Laura agreed.

For a minute, the two had settled into silence again. But, like before, it had been Laura who had interrupted it. "You know, I've heard whispers around work the week you were in the hospital," Laura mentioned, making Anastasia frown. "I didn't want to stress you or Mr. Wayne out, but I think it could be serious."

"What's going on?"

"The board members, they've been whispering about their next big move to fix Wayne Enterprises' reputation in the media," Laura said, making Anastasia wonder what they were planning behind their backs since no one had brought it up to her. She was acting CEO and she had a right to know what was going on with the company. "I heard Regina mutter something about changes that involve the Waynes, you and Bruce. She wants to look at interim CEOs."

Anastasia cursed under her breath, fighting the urge to roll her eyes. It didn't surprise her that Regina was looking to replace her with someone else to be CEO. It had been something that Regina had been trying for years, but it could happen if she had enough backing from the board. "We need to get the Waynes reputation back up or we'll start to head into the negatives," Anastasia muttered, knowing that whatever happened to Wayne Enterprises happened to Lovejoy Corp. "Then, Regina will have a reason to complain."

"I'm sure we'll think of something," Laura hummed, deep in thought as she began to brainstorm ways to improve their relationship with Gotham. "The public is easily persuaded, considering they fell for that pregnancy story Mr. Dent put out when it was revealed the Waynes were mobsters. I'm sure they can forget how terrible Thomas Wayne was behind closed doors."

Anastasia groaned, shaking her head as she remembered the news articles she had seen about her supposive pregnancy. It had been irritating and barely worked since it had been overtaken by the misfortune at the debate. "I think we need to show Gotham that Bruce and I are nothing like Thomas and Martha Wayne. We care about Gotham. We only want what's good for the city."

She could feel her mind start to wander, making her feel overwhelmed. It was too much to think about, too much to handle for Anastasia. She dug through her purse, letting out a sigh of relief when her fingers brushed against cool metal. She pulled out her flask, something that used to belong to her father. She had found it buried deep within his things, deciding to take it and the revolver he always used to have on his person. After their encounter with Eric, she didn't want to take any chances with their lives.

Bringing the flask to her lips, she took a sip of the bitter alcohol inside. However, the bourbon had a hint of caramel which Anastasia craved. It was warm going down her throat, providing her with the tiniest bit of comfort as it numbed her mind.

"You're drinking?" Laura asked softly. "Won't it conflict with your medication?"

Anastasia shrugged off her concern. "It takes the pain away, better than the medication if I'm being honest."

Laura stared for a moment, but slowly nodded. "Okay, if you say so."

She tucked the flask away in her purse, wishing it had been something much stronger. Still, it had been enough to calm her nerves as Wayne Enterprises came into view. "We need to think of what we can do to bring up our reputation."

"How about a charity ball?" Laura suggested, giving her an excited grin. "Raise money for the people displaced by the Children of Arkham and the so-called animal attacks. A big donation from the Waynes themselves will look good too."

"Show that the Waynes still care about Gotham more than anything," Anastasia agreed, even though she wasn't big on parties with Bruce's social circles. She still felt like an outsider when she was amongst them, considering they had been counting on her downfall for years. Still, it was the best course of action despite her personal feelings. "I'll bring it up to Bruce."

Anastasia was grateful to be back inside her office, wanting to give her feet a break after their walk. Monique and Anya were quietly doing their work, typing away at their computers. It was strange to see the office in dead silence since the girls liked to play music as they worked. However, it was quickly known why everyone was hyper-focused on work when Regina's voice sounded from inside the office. It made a sigh leave Anastasia's lips as she entered her private office, telling Laura to wait behind with the other girls. She closed the door behind her, giving herself and Regina privacy. "Regina," Anastasia called out, forcing a smile to her face. "Hi, what brings you here?"

"Anastasia, you shouldn't be here," Regina said softly, stealing a glance at the oxygen tank by Anastasia's feet. Guilt was written across her features, making Anastasia frown. Her hands were clasped, approaching as she looked over Anastasia. "You should be at home, resting. We can handle whatever work is here."

"Regina━━"

"How are you, truly?" Regina asked. Her eyes lingered on Anastasia's abdomen, imagining the wounds that her blouse hid. It made Anastasia all too aware of the pain that lingered, making her take slow breaths. She itched for another sip of her bourbon.

"I don't want to talk about it, Regina," Anastasia mumbled, knowing how deep the wounds from the debate ran. She didn't want to keep reminding herself of what she had gone through, what she was still going through. It was nothing compared to what had happened to other people. Harvey had half of his face burnt off. So many people had lost their lives at the debate. Anastasia should consider herself lucky. She didn't deserve to feel bad for herself, considering other people had it much worse. Still, it didn't stop the nightmares. She woke up screaming most nights, trying to get away from the Penguin. Bruce was there most nights, rocking her till she fell back asleep. When he wasn't there, Alfred came to the rescue.

"Ana?"

She snapped out of her thoughts, facing Regina's concerned expression. "I'm fine, really."

Regina nodded, unconvinced but she did not press further. "Alright, but do let me know if there's anything I can do. I'm here for you and Bruce."

"Thank you, Regina."

The older woman left, allowing Laura to come into Anastasia's private office. Monique was still working, nibbling on a blueberry muffin. Anya had wandered off somewhere, probably to go on her lunch. Anastasia smiled at Monique, leaving the door open only a crack. Anastasia and Laura walked over to the computer, bringing the screen back to life as they checked the progress.

COMPLETED.

The word stared back, allowing a weight to lift off both of them. Anastasia took a seat, staring at the notification as she made sure it was real. Everything that wasn't damaged on the hard drive had been copied over. She took a deep breath, clicking on the new file on her desktop. Almost immediately, hundreds of files popped up all over the screen as their eyes darted from one corner to the other. Along with the files, there were warnings from the computer that a lot of the files had been corrupted and unable to be opened.

"It's better than nothing, right?" Laura asked, pulling up a chair to look at the computer beside Anastasia. "Let's see what we salvaged off the hard drive."

They shifted through Eric's personal files, moving them off the side into a separate folder. It was wise not to mess with things they didn't need to, considering Eric still had a right to privacy. Anastasia focused on the files that Eric had been decrypting for her, pulling them all up as they began to shift through them. Most of them were ones they had already seen before, blueprints for Lovejoy Hotels, Wayne Enterprises, even Wayne Manor. Next, they found the pictures of the first Lovejoy Hotel again. But, this time, they had access to more photos. Hundreds of similar photos popped up, all seemingly out of a horror film. They were dark photos of the hotel, black ooze staining the walls with mysterious plants growing out of every crack. But, it wasn't just the hotel that looked like that. There were photos from all over Gotham. It couldn't be... Gotham. It looked like another world, something Anastasia had seen many times before. Most of the pictures were shrouded in darkness, except for the researchers' flashlights. She noticed the same plant-like tendrils in the pictures as she had seen in the hospital. In some photos, the skies bled red as lightning flashed across the photo.

Anastasia let out the breath she had been holding, shaking her head. "Laura, this is what I see in my hallucinations." She pointed to the pictures, especially the vines. "The world looks like this."

"Then, this is proof, Ana," Laura whispered, facing Anastasia. Their faces inches apart, speaking in hushed tones. "Your hallucinations aren't just hallucinations. They're from something real. Something your subconscious remembers."

"But, what is this?" Anastasia asked, clicking through the pictures. Each one became darker and darker, some even had glimpses of creatures in the distance. "How does Gotham look like this? Where is this even?"

"I know that street," Laura said, pointing to the street sign they could see in the photo. Her finger trailed against the heavy cracks in the concrete, studying the plants that grew out of the ground. Upon closer inspection, they didn't look like plants. But, Anastasia didn't know what else it could be. "I have driven on that street hundreds of times when heading to work. It's never looked like that."

"God, what kind of mess is this?" Anastasia mumbled, closing out of the photos to look at the researchers' notes that were attached. They dated back decades, thousands of files were there but a lot of them were corrupted and unable to be opened. She scrolled through the files, wondering where it would best to start.

Eventually, she spotted a file that stood out to her. It was titled 'Charlotte Thorton, Patient Zero' and it was a multi-file document with gigabytes worth of information. She opened the file, watching as the documents popped up on the screen. She began to shift through them.

"This is about my mom," Anastasia whispered, noticing the picture of a young blonde that stared back. She was dressed in a hospital gown, blonde hair limply framed her soft features. However, her eyes were narrowed into glares as she stared through the screen at them. It made shivers go down Anastasia's spine, feeling the rage hidden behind the girl's eyes. However, the picture wasn't labeled as Charlotte. She was only listed as Patient Zero.

"You look so much like her," Laura commented, sparing a glance in Anastasia's direction before looking at the photo again. It felt as if they were staring at a mugshot, making her wonder why her mother was in the files. After all, Anastasia had only ever expected to find original autopsies of her parents. Not this.

"Patient Zero..." Anastasia read, focusing on the photo as Laura read through the files on her side of the screen. She barely remembered what her mother looked like, but seeing her so young in the photo felt different. She must have been a teenager, much younger than Anastasia was now. However, her eyes never changed. They were still as green as the day she had died. There was information on the photo itself, labeling Charlotte as a threat with her power level at a 10. Anastasia didn't know what it meant, wondering why her mother was labeled as a threat. She tried to come up with some reasonable explanation. "She must have been sick... or something. Right?"

"It must have been with something dangerous if they deemed her a threat," Laura agreed, nodding her head. "There's more information about your mother here, but not much. It's just transcripts of visits with doctors and they don't reveal anything."

She brought up more files, noticing her father had a document on him too. But, she hesitated to bring up his file as her finger hovered over the button. She mustered up the courage, clicking on the file to bring up the documents. His picture popped up, looking as young as her mother had. He looked so different, but she could tell that it was her father. He was thinner in the photo, having blonde hair the same shade as hers. Throughout her whole life, her father had always been a brunet but it seemed as if he had been a blond in his earlier days. He was titled as 'William Lovejoy, Patient One' and his power level was rated a four. He was deemed irrelevant on his file, not a threat. The medical photos of her parents side by side made her frown, noticing the sadness that lingered in her father's eyes... and the anger in her mother's.

"Arkham Asylum," Laura mumbed, reading another file on screen while Anastasia had been distracted by the photos. She pointed to the file, earning Anastasia's attention. Her eyes wide, skimming through the document. "It was human experimentation, but it doesn't say what the experiments were and why they were conducting them. Your mother was the first one and... It doesn't say much else. The file is redacted."

Anastasia frowned, trying to access the next part of the file but it was all blacked out. And, the rest of the file was corrupted. She sighed, closing her eyes as she leaned back in her seat. "Shit..." A curse left her lips, trying to blink away the tears of frustration. She had hoped the file held the answers, but it only posed more questions. "I don't understand why my parents were a part of this. What were the experiments about? And, we're still not any closer to finding Eric."

"Hey," Laura whispered, placing a gentle hand on Anastasia's shoulder. "Don't worry about it, okay? We still have hundreds of files to sort through and we'll peek into Eric's personal files too. It might give us a clue to what happened to him. He never went anywhere without his laptop."

Anastasia nodded, reminding herself to keep hope. It was still a miracle they had been able to extract the files from the hard drive. Things were moving in the right direction. They kept looking through the files, silently reading them as they sorted them into categories. It would take days to sort through everything, but they needed to hurry. They didn't know what timeline Eric was on, but she didn't want to risk finding out.

"And, here I thought the Waynes couldn't look any worse," Laura whispered, drawing Anastasia's attention to a document she was reading on her side of the screen. "Look, the experiments were funded by the Wayne family."

"What?" Anastasia mumbled in disbelief, enlarging the document that Laura had been looking at. They looked at the signatures on the bottom. "Benjamin and Patrick Wayne, Bruce's family on his father's side. They were a part of this?"

"But, why?" Laura asked. "What did the Waynes get out of this?"

"I don't know..." Anastasia whispered, shaking her head. "Whatever it was, it wasn't good. I still remember how terrified my parents were living in Gotham. It was why they homeschooled me for years. I guess it must be something to do with the experiments."

Laura hummed, nodding her head. She silently wrote everything down on a notepad, keeping track of their thoughts. "If they were terrified, then they must not have been let go," Laura suggested, tapping her pen against the table. "They may have escaped."

"If they escaped," Anastasia countered, "then why stay in Gotham? Why not move halfway across the country? Or better yet, to another country all together. Arkham Asylum isn't that far of a drive."

Laura shrugged. "Unless something was keeping them here."

"Maybe..." Anastasia whispered. She kept looking through the documents, frowning when she saw another familiar name. "Dr. Franklin's name is signed on almost all of these documents. No wonder he had all these files locked away on his computer."

"We need to add him to the list of people we need to talk to," Laura mumbled, writing his name down on the notepad. Anastasia was grateful to have Laura on her side, not realizing how much the woman cared before. "He'll know more, I'm sure of it."

"He tried to kill himself the last time I tried," Anastasia sighed, remembering when Dr. Franklin had repeatedly stabbed himself over and over again with a scalpel. His daughter's screams still echoed in her ears, making her push the memory away. "I think we should be careful with him. He might be dangerous."

"Then, we'll be careful," Laura nodded, offering Anastasia a smile. "Perhaps, we can take a trip down to Arkham Asylum too. See if they have any old files they can dig up for us. It might lead to something."

Anastasia nodded, agreeing.

A knock sounded at the door, causing the two women to look up. The door opened to reveal Bruce's smiling face, giving a wave as he entered. Anastasia immediately turned off the monitor, silently telling Laura to put her notes away. She stood to her feet, returning Bruce's smile. She walked up to him, allowing him to place a kiss against her cheek. "Hi, honey," she whispered. "You're here early."

"I thought we could have lunch together," Bruce suggested, shrugging his shoulders. He gave a nod in Laura's direction, acknowledging her presence. She took awkwardly beside the computer, holding her notepad close to her chest.

"Sounds good," Anastasia mumbled, nodding her head. She would rather stay at the office and sort through the files with Laura, but she didn't want to raise any suspicions with Bruce. She knew he wasn't pleased with her decision to come back to work, but they had compromised. She would tell Bruce what she and Laura were working on, but she didn't trust him. After all, it was more than likely he would tell her to abandon the search and stay safe. It wasn't what she wanted to do. She was done standing on the sidelines. So, she decided to distract Bruce with something else. "Before we go, I wanted to let you know what was happening around here. I heard from Laura that the board members are talking behind our backs."

Bruce frowned. "What kind of talk?"

"The Waynes-are-bad-for-the-company kind of talk," Laura answered, twiddling her thumbs as she met their gaze.

"I'm not worried," Bruce reassured, shaking his head as his signature smile returned. "They can't take our company from us. We own it."

"Still," Anastasia said. "We should work on our reputation in the media. Look better in the eyes of Gotham. There's been too much bad press lately and it won't be long till it starts affecting the company."

Bruce nodded, listening. "What do you suggest?"

"Well, Laura thinks we can have a charity gala," Anastasia recommended, looking back at Laura who nodded in support. She met Bruce's eyes again, giving him a smile. "We can raise money to help Gotham with what's been going on with the Children of Arkham and the animal attacks. Donating a huge sum to show our support will work too. It might help raise the Wayne name in the media."

"Or," Bruce countered, frowning, "the media will know this is a publicity stunt."

"But, even then, you two will still be helping Gotham," Laura pointed out, approaching the two of them. She still held the notepad, not wanting to leave it around for curious eyes. "Regardless of what people think, the event will help the people who have been displaced."

Bruce mulled it over, thinking about it for a few quiet moments. It made Anastasia tense, staring at her husband as she waited for his answer. Eventually, he nodded. "It sounds like a perfect idea," he said, smiling. "I'll bring it up to Alfred and see if we can hold it this weekend."

"Perfect," Anastasia said, clasping her hands together as she beamed at him. "Only way from rock bottom is up, right?"

♡

TIME HAS BEEN FLYING. It's so hard to believe that September is already here because it feels like the year just started. I think this book will be turning five months old this month and I feel like a proud mother. Here's another chapter! I will try to get more out this month, but writing has been happening only on my days off. Work days, my mind feels too fried to write. However, I think I have almost everything planned out for Act One and it should be easy going from here. But, we'll see. I know things will start to get very tense as we go on and I want everyone to be prepared! Things are going to start becoming very sad, but then happy endings. Hopefully.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I loved writing Erina and I am so excited for her book. I will focus on it more after I finish Act One of this book, I think. I just want to focus on finishing this book because I have been so hyper-focused on it. I adore Anastasia with all my heart yet I am about to put her through the worst torment of her life. But, hey, it's okay! We'll have fun as the audience, haha.

Hopefully, the next chapter will be out soon! I think I will try to make it more of a filler episode! I want more interactions with Bruce and Alfred. I think all the chapters have been so heavy with stuff happening that it feels intense. So, a filler chapter will be nice balance! I still need to think of what exactly I want to happen but I think it should be domestic. And, on the calmer side. But, we'll see because my writing tends to focus on the drama because I love it.

AMARA.
[ PUBLISH DATE ━━ 09.01.2022 ]