We all stood before burning flames set inside a magnificent marble fireplace.
"Please, have a seat."
I sat myself in front of the fire on a Persian rug, still wrapped in the red coat. No one questioned me. Crane and Ivy sat together on a white sofa and Riddler and the Joker sat on an identical one. Falcone settled in a large ruby armchair. They all looked at me.
"Joker has agreed to get rid of the Batman," Falcone announced.
"Uh, we'll all be participating in that task. Except Harley," Joker confirmed.
"Excuse me?"
"He's right Harls, you need to recover from the-"
"Bullshit! I'm fine. I don't know how many times I need to tell you all!"
"We just want to look after you, Harley," Red finished.
My face burned with rage and embarrassment.
"I'm not a child. I can take care of myself. I got away from Batman, didn't I?"
"She has a point," Crane agreed. All heads snapped in his direction. He just shrugged, "she's not weak."
I gave him a nod of thanks to which he returned a small smile.
"This suggests you know where Batman is?" Falcone implied.
"I do. So you see, you need me."
Falcone grinned, clearly impressed.
"You did well with this one."
The Joker stared into the flames behind me, the light flickering in his dark eyes.
"Are those your only terms, sir? That we kill Batman and in return you harbour us? Riddler asked hesitantly.
"Yes. You've no idea how much business I lose because of Gotham's "hero". If Batman is killed, the city will run smoother than ever."
I was excited. The thrills of the Mafia life seemed to jump out at me now. Falcone had everything he could ever want. He was rich. He was famous. And not a single cop in the damned city would even consider going near him.
I almost felt settled.
"But hey, listen to me going on and on...you should all get some sleep. Rest while you can, you're going to need to energy," he chuckled.
He stood then, shortly followed by the rest of us.
"We've plenty of room in the house, you can stay here for now. Until things settle. Then we'll see about sending you elsewhere, you know, to run business on the side."
He lead us up a grand wooden staircase and through halls decorated with fine paintings.
"There are 3 rooms you can use. Take all of them...one...two. I don't care how you split up."
"Thank you sir," Riddler said, marveling at the art around us.
Everyone piled into one room, but before I could follow, Falcone grasped my arm lightly. Very lightly, compared to the roughness I was used to from the Joker.
"I know you're a smart girl, Harley. I know that you know what you're doing. But just a word of caution to you; watch yourself. That man, he's...well, I'm sure you know. You can't believe everything he tells you," Falcone warned.
Words struggled to form in my mouth.
"Thank you," was all I could manage. He smiled at me again, that large, genuine cheshire grin, before squeezing my arm in reassurance and leaving me standing there. I leaned against the wall, staring at an oil painting of Gotham city in front of me.
