The Way We Fall | Bruce Wayne

CHAPTER 3 - Night Fall

Sara didn't return to the office until two hours later. No one would likely hear of the disastrous meeting until much later, if not the next day. For now, they'd assume all went well.

And Sara still had her job for the next few hours.

When she arrived to the office floor, Cathy signaled her over. She had a grim look on her face.

"Mr. Riley asked to see you as soon as you got back," Cathy said. "He got a phone call."

Great. "Okay, thanks." Sara brushed it off like it was normal. She stepped into her own office room to place down her purse before she went across the hall to Mr. Riley's office.

He looked worse than Cathy. "Mr. Bruce Wayne called here personally," he began, making the name sound extravagant. "It seems your meeting didn't go as expected."

Wayne wasted no time in calling. Sara stood with her hands placed on the back of a chair. She cleared her throat. "I was told they would make their final decision before contacting us."

"They haven't made one yet. Mr. Wayne said he'd be discussing it with their board first." He clasped his hands together on the desk. A few silent moments passed before he spoke again. "Do you realize you just picked a fight with the most influential man in Gotham?"

"I wouldn't call it a fight."

"The fate of the company lies in his hands, Sara. And you may just have helped him make his decision."

Sara stood straighter. "With all due respect, don't you care about what you've worked so hard for?" Seeing he was listening, she felt empowered. "If Wayne Enterprises acquires our company, do you really think we wont be replaced?"

"What's the alternative here? We go out of business and then all of us will be out of jobs."

Sara stopped to think for a moment - something she didn't do often enough. "We come to an agreement with Wayne. We operate independently while partnering in equal manufacturing and supplying."

Mr. Riley pondered for a moment. "I doubt they'd agree. Especially after your meeting. There's not much in it for them."

She had the upper hand now. "There doesn't have to be. If they eliminate all other tech manufacturers in the city, they damage their competitive advantage. That'll lower the company's value."

He was still doubtful. "Bruce Wayne is too powerful to care."

"He's only as powerful as his wallet, Mr. Riley."

———

Night fall was Sara's alarm clock. She managed to get home after temporarily appeasing Mr. Riley. Now she could focus on her second occupation.

She concealed her face with a solid mask that stretched from ear-to-ear and revealed only her dark eyes. With a switch she enabled a modulator that altered her voice slightly.

She tied her hair back and changed into a full-length bodysuit - black with accents of gold. Her attire was completed with a utility belt and athletic sneakers.

Around her wrist she wore an electronic watch. Sara looked down at the details of her job for the night. Document theft at Gotham National Bank.

She climbed the fire escape to the roof of the apartment building. The bank was less than half a mile away, and it closed in approximately thirty minutes.

Jumping across rooftops was cliché, she'd admit. But effective. Under the cover of darkness, she was but a shadow to the city of Gotham. Peering down at the bumper-to-bumper traffic below, Sara much preferred the parkour.

As expected, the bank was practically empty when she arrived. With a few minutes left until closing, employees began preparing to head home.

This wasn't the first time she was tasked to infiltrate the bank. She learned of its closing-time routine fairly quickly.

Sara watched as the front doors were locked.