The local police seemed to have arrived in seconds and spoke to doctors. And moments later they had directed the Joker into a private room in the hospital.
One of the two officers there asked his name.
The Joker felt almost like it was a trick question. Any interactions he had with the police never started with them asking his name. He knew this situation was entirely different.
"Jack," he told the officer.
"And your last name, sir?" the other officer asked.
Jack had to think for a second to remember the last name Lucius had picked for him. He knew it wasn't his true last name, but he needed one. Adriana knew his true last name. The Joker never wanted to know it. He had settled for a name picked at random by Lucius.
"Ah....Hayden," the Joker remembered.
"Jack Hayden?" the first officer asked and wrote down his name.
"Yep," the Joker told them.
The Joker began to realize that perhaps the jig was up. He was going to be arrested after being found out. He would spend the rest of his life in prison or worse. He didn't mind at all. He knew he had done what he needed to. He did not have a single regret. She was safe now.
"We would like to ask you a few questions," one of the officers said.
"You are not under arrest" the other officer said. "We would like to know what happened. You brought Mrs. Adriana Wayne to this hospital, correct?"
"Yes," the Joker said.
The Joker took a breath.
"Is she alright?" the Joker asked.
"Sir, we can't discuss that," the officer told him.
"Would you tell us your count of what happened?" the other asked.
The Joker took a deep breath and decided it was best to say as little as possible.
"I was driving," the Joker began to say, and realized he needed to lie. "Nature called so I pulled over. I heard a scream or cry coming from the woods. Realized it was coming from a cabin up the road...so I went there. Found the woman tied to the bed and brought her here."
The office began to scribble down notes. The Joker wasn't sure if he was a suspect yet. But if the officers decided to give him a simple pat down, they would find that he was carrying two guns. Neither of which belonged to him. One belonging to the man who had kidnapped Adriana. He had no license to carry. He would be taken in, prints collected. It would be over.
"Where did you pull over?" the officer asked, and the Joker told him the location of the cabin.
They asked him more questions about the time, what he saw when he arrived and more. Damien was there but the Joker knew that telling them that he shot a man in the shoulder would do nothing but hasten his arrest. He told him that there was no one there but Adriana.
It was very likely that Damien had fled the scene by now. The Joker knew it was still possible that he would be arrested. The Joker knew it was over, but he wanted to keep his name clear for a long as possible in hopes that he could see Adriana again before he was carted off. It would likely be his last opportunity to see her in person.
So far it seemed they had no reason to suspect him, and it also seemed they had no statement yet from Adriana.
"Mr. Hayden," one of the officers said. "This was simply an interview. However, we would like to request for you to stay on the premises until we can investigate the situation further and receive statement from Mrs. Wayne."
