The Way We Fall | Bruce Wayne

CHAPTER 38 - Headlines

Sara sat at the dining table, focused only on the breakfast delicacies. She didn't look up at the man sitting beside her, not once.

"Everything alright, Ms. Carter?" Alfred inquired, looking knowingly between the two of them. He never missed a thing.

"Of course, it's delicious," she said, knowing full well that he wasn't taking about the food. "I'll sure miss your cooking."

Alfred lingered a moment longer before leaving and returning with a folded newspaper in hand. "The morning paper, Master Wayne." He placed it next to Bruce's plate. Sara saw them exchange a brief glance.

She lacked an appetite that morning for the first time in nearly two weeks. The butler wouldn't be wrong if he was concerned only for her odd behavior, though she suspected he may have heard every word of the conversation.

As she struggled to finish even a savory slice of bacon, the newspaper was tossed on the empty space beside her own plate.

"There's something you should see," Bruce said when she glared at him questioning.

It didn't take long to read the big, bold letters on the front page.

GOTHAM TECH PRESIDENT ARRESTED.

A poorly printed photo of Mr. Riley below the headline dragged her hidden memories to the surface. Gradually, the pieces of the puzzle finally fit into place in her mind. And the realization came in waves.

"All this time, he was the one..." She said, more to herself as she held the newspaper in her hands. "He took me to Arkham. And he gave me some sort of weird poisonous gas or something, thinking I'd give him information." She studied the paper, mentally reliving the events that had been restored to her memory.

"But Bat—" she looked up at him suddenly and hated the chills she felt along her spine, "—you got me out of there."

"It was the same toxin that plagued the Narrows a few months back, but he had given you a more potent dose. The antidote took longer than expected," he said. That explained the temporary amnesia.

"Wait." She placed the paper down, frowning as she tried to dig deeper. "He said something about you. Something about your money."

"He had arranged for another funds transfer, one big enough to crash the company. Once we knew the signs to look for, we caught on before it happened."

Sara could breathe out what little relief she had. "He had planned to bring Wayne Enterprises to its knees," she looked back to the front page, "and as a result, make Gotham Tech the city's largest technology company."

"It goes deeper than that," Bruce said, crossing his arms on the table. "Gregory Riley wasn't very fond of my father. And after doing some research, I found that just he's one of those 'jealous people with chips on their shoulders.'"

She recalled the latter words as an echo from their conversation in the Lamborghini. It felt like months ago. "Well, that mystery is solved, I guess. You can breathe a bit easier now," she said with an insincere smile.

Eying the newspaper once more, she noted the date printed on the corner. Three days ago.

She glared sharply between both Bruce and Alfred. "Either I've misread the calendar, or this isn't this morning's paper."

Bruce had opened his mouth to say something when the butler interjected. "I advised Master Bruce to inform you after you've had time to recover."

Raising a brow, she glanced at the younger man as if looking for confirmation. He nodded in agreement.