Gotham's New Bird | T. Drake

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

It was after her shift at the bar. Robyn was home, watching TV like usual. The late night news was on. She paid the TV only half of her attention, as she was too busy playing with her hair, braiding her short copper locks, then brushing them out with her fingers. Just as she found interest in the tassels of her heavy throw blanket, the news grabbed her attention.

"Earlier today, there was a jailbreak in the GCPD. Many of the criminals were caught before they could get anywhere, but there are still a few wandering the streets." The news reporter brushed her bangs out of her eyes and adjusted her script as six images popped up in her place.

"If you see any of these men or women, contact the police department immediately. Their names are Sandy Caywood, Mark Johnson, West Falcone, Miranda Garrison, Gerimone Bardem, and Javier Cardosa." Robyn couldn't tear her eyes from the screen. Especially Gerimone's mugshot. It terrified her. Her heart nearly stopped and she ran to her door, pulling a chair to it and shoved the chair under the knob. She couldn't let this man find her. She checked her windows, made sure they were locked, and closed the curtains on the windows that had them. When she turned off her lights, she realized she was trembling.

Gerimone didn't know where she lived, which was good. Good. Not great. But good.

Robyn didn't dare leave the apartment that night. Her mind refused to settle long enough to sleep, and when she eventually did fall asleep, she woke up sobbing from an all-too-vivid nightmare. When she looked at her clock, she saw she had only been sleeping for nearly forty-five minutes. She had her knives on her bedside table and her .99 millimeter pistol under her pillow. Of course, it was set on safety, but you could never be too safe, ironically.

Eventually the early morning light, which was now more gray and dreary, now that it was snow season, glowed around her blackout curtains. Robyn's mind was still not settled, if anything, her nerves were even more worked up due to her lack of sleep. She had no appetite. She wanted to throw up. She caught her reflection when she went to the bathroom and didn't recognize herself for a few moments.

There was a small tapping on her door, which made her jump. She grabbed her pistol from under her pillow and clicked it off safety. She inched forward, flinching when the knock sounded again. She looked through the peephole and sighed a sigh of relief.

"One minute," she called and clicked the pistol back on safety and set it on her kitchen counter. Robyn jogged to the door, unlocked it, and opened it, revealing Cooper.

"You...." He said slowly, taking in her appearance, "Not gonna lie, you look like you haven't slept in days."

Robyn shook her head, "Less than an hour last night. You're not wrong."

"You need to talk?" He asked. Robyn opened her mouth to refuse his offer, but she quickly shut it. He was someone she could trust. He was only ever kind to her. And they were friends. Robyn lowered her head in defeat.

"We don't have-" Cooper started, but was cut off.

"I want to, though," Robyn said, allowing Cooper through the doorway, closing and locking the door behind her. She heaved a heavy sigh and led him to the couch, where they both sat. Robyn took a deep breath, trying to collect her rambling thoughts.

"Okay. I know you don't know much about my past," Robyn started, "but I trust you." There was a pause, Cooper nodded as a gesture for her to go on.

"My parents gave me up when I was a toddler. I remember nothing of them, so I grew up in a foster home until I was six or seven, when the owner of Haly's circus adopted me, as he had to make up for losing the Graysons all those years ago."

Cooper looked at me curiously, "What happened to the Graysons?"

"Haly didn't want to give up the circus to one of Gotham's crime lords, so Zucco got revenge by weakening the trapeze ropes. Everyone was in shock when they saw Dick's parents fall to their death."

"And so Bruce adopted Dick," Cooper finished.

"You guessed it. Anyway, I was an aerialist, but not nearly as talented as Dick. But there was one clown. Jeppy," Robyn shivered, "He was an alcoholic. He was a man to show dominance.

"Unfortunately, I was the pretty one he went after. I was only twelve, that pedophile. It started out slow, maybe twice a month. Every time he left, I felt.... Worthless, empty of everything. Then he became more constant. Five, sometimes six times a week. I was a slave. I wanted to kill myself. I felt hopeless.

"Eventually, I had gained enough strength to hit and beat back. Of course, Haly was oblivious to my situation, so every time I fought back, I would get one less chance.

"Finally, Haly was fed up with Jeppy and I. He kicked us out just a few years ago. And when we left, we went separate ways. I didn't see him again until a few weeks ago," Robyn finished. Cooper looked upset, almost angry at what the monstrous man had done to Robyn.

"That's when I saw you all beat up, wasn't it," he said, more as a statement than a question. Robyn didn't care to answer. She knew that he knew he was right.

"One of the men that escaped the jail last night, Gerimone Bardem, that's him," Robyn clarified. Cooper nodded. A moment of silence passed awkwardly. Robyn could feel that stupid lump in her throat, tears welling in her eyes, threatening to spill over at every blink.

Cooper must have seen through her weakened barrier and held out his arms. Robyn leaned into his chest and wept softly, grabbing at his shirt for dear life. Cooper held onto her like she could slip away at any moment, like Gerimone would bust in and try to take her away from him.

"I'm scared shitless," Robyn admitted with a sob. Cooper stroked her hair and shushed her gently.

"I know, I know. You don't deserve this. You never did and you never will,"
he whispered gently.

So the two sat there, one crying and one comforting, until Robyn finally fell into the heavy sleep she needed.

Ξ

Blegh. Okay: excuse time.

Exams are coming up.

My best friend is graduating and going to college which I hate bc I love him very very much

And just being busy with EVERYTHING THAT COULD EVER EXIST.

Anyway, ranting over, you got to see some Cooper-Robyn bonding time, I got one chapter further into this aye

One more thing: When I'm done with my 10k+ story, do you want me to publish it? It's about these metahumans (alien-blooded) called Heroes that run the government and are set on trying to kill off humans. My characters are trying to get together enough people for a revolt and save the pure blood humans. It's called "Of Humans and Heroes" and in the sci-fi/dystopian genre.

Comment and if you wanna read it or not!

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