Bruce Wayne

Chapter 33: GothCorp

Bruce waited in the parking garage of GothCorp for his opportunity to slip past building security. Overall, the defense of the building was fairly solid, but he'd identified a few weak points he intended to exploit. Primarily, the parking garage was poorly lit, dark shadows and blind corners giving him ample places to avoid being seen while making his approach. Security cameras had wide fields of vision, but they were too far apart, their limited range preventing them from detecting Bruce as he slipped from one shadow to another.

Standing beside a concrete pillar holding up the next level of the parking structure, Bruce watched for his opening. The janitorial team hired to clean the building was scheduled to arrive at any moment.

Bruce had actually visited the parking garage the previous night to do some reconnaissance. He'd checked the layout and discovered the weaknesses in security he could exploit to breach the building's defenses. Also while he'd been here, Bruce had spotted the janitorial crew coming in, taking numerous photos and detailed notes. He'd discovered the name of the company GothCorp had contracted to clean the building, the type of uniforms they wore, and he'd even managed to get close enough to take a picture of their ID badges without being noticed.

While Alfred had used his skills as a former British agent to forge an ID badge, Bruce had put on a disguise and went to purchase a cleaning jumpsuit like the ones the janitorial crew wore. Thankfully, they lacked any kind of company logo on the jumpsuits, so Bruce didn't have to add anything special or unique.

The disguise Bruce wore changed his appearance dramatically. A wig of stringy, black hair hung down to his shoulders. Makeup darkened his skin tone several shades, giving Bruce a much more noticeable tan than he actually possessed. Contact lenses changed his eyes from blue to brown. A fake scar had been placed perfectly on the back of his right hand, and a spider web tattoo decal had been positioned on the left side of his neck, half sticking up above his collar. Prosthetics on his face made his chin appear more angular and pointed, increased the sharpness of his cheekbones and gave him a flatter and wider nose. Alfred had taken a picture of Bruce's altered appearance and affixed the image to the ID card.

Still in his disguise, enhanced by the ID card and jumpsuit, Bruce waited patiently for the janitors to arrive. They were late. Remaining motionless, Bruce was hardly idle. He listened intently to the sounds of the parking structure. Bruce heard the hard soled shoes of the security patrol as they walked the upper levels on their rounds, gauging the time he had remaining before they reached his floor. If they arrived at the same time as the cleaning crew, it would make getting in undetected much more difficult.

He listened to the various motors of the people leaving for home after a hard day at work, the car doors closing loudly as the echoes of the surrounding concrete amplified the sounds. One motor was much closer and drew nearer with each passing second. Pushing himself into the shadow of the pillar as best he could, Bruce turned his eyes toward the approaching sound to see the pickup truck pull up to the entrance. The dull brown vehicle hadn't been kept in the best of shape, paint chipping from the hood and doors. A sizable crack marked the windshield on the passenger side. The truck possessed an extended cab, allowing five workers to make the commute together. The bed of the truck was completely empty.

During his recon mission the previous night, Bruce had seen them arrive empty handed, as they were tonight, but when he'd spotted them through a window later on, they had their equipment and cleaning supplies. Bruce knew their gear was stored somewhere in the building, but he would need them to lead him to it.

Bruce considered his best approach. Since the five men would undoubtedly recognize him as not being one of them, Bruce needed to get inside the building separately without drawing too much attention. Going in after the main group might cause suspicion as to why he was late, so he made up his mind to get inside before the actual crew.