Insanity // J.Valeska

Part Twelve: The File

Hi all!! Unfortunately this chapter will be straying away from everything Steph / Jerome related, and will instead focus more on what's going on in Gotham and more specifically the GCPD.

I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday! And I wish you all the best in 2017!!!

And with that, on with the chapter :D

*time skip - 2 weeks later*

[Bruce Wayne]

Bruce Wayne was nothing less than observant. The young detective had a knack for reading people, as well as seeing things, and it was because of his talent that he could see just how stressed James Gordon was.

The infamous GCPD detective was caught in a tough situation: attempting to maintain the balance between his personal life and career as a detective. His niece was still missing, now for a little over a month, and while Bruce did not know much about how amber alerts worked in police departments, he had noticed that by the one month mark, the alert had disappeared from the newspapers.

The GCPD was slowly giving up on the search for Stephanie Harlem. Should her kidnapper be wise, Stephanie - should she still be alive - was either on the other side of the country or out of the United States by now. On the other hand, the girl could be dead.

Bruce leapt up to his feet and began to tensely pace before the grande fireplace in his late father's office. The roaring fire usually calmed Bruce's nerves with its delicious heat, warming even the saddest crevices of his heart, however now it cast the exact opposite effect: he felt as if he were overheating and the rich flames did nothing to ease Bruce's headache. If he was being honest with himself, Bruce felt somewhat responsible for Miss Harlem's current predicament: surely if he hadn't failed to decipher his parents killers by now, Stephanie wouldn't be missing. Bruce blamed himself for his parents death, the Harlem's death, and now, Stephanie's capture.

Which, much to Alfred's annoyance and displeasure, resulted in Bruce's newfound obsession with the Harlem's murder, as well as Stephanie's missing persons case.

Bruce began his work by collecting every article he could scavenge regarding the Harlem's - both past and present - so as to develop a greater understanding of one of Gotham's founding family. The family name was nearly as old as his own, with Stephanie's great-great grandfather being one of the greatest businessmen of his era, forever going down in history as the founder of the United States' second largest corporation. Her family were more prestigious than his own, bordering the standards of that of the Royal family with their elite degree of marriage status and wealth. They were notoriously known for having arranged marriages to keep the 'bloodline' strong, keeping the tradition alive even in the present - meaning should her parents have still been alive, Stephanie Harlem would be forced into a loveless marriage so as to maintain her blue bloodline.

Bruce paused his pacing, a thought popping into his head, shoving the pounding headache out his ear. Rummaging through every case file he possessed, Bruce paused as he found his jackpot. A seemingly worthless lead that had barely made it to the police Chief's office; one that in reality could be the lead to finding Gotham's missing heiress. Scanning the document with quick eyes, Bruce could barely believe what he was reading despite having read through the case at least a dozen times.

The sudden murder of Jefferson Harlem and Clarissa Harlem neé Gordon marks the end of an era in Gotham City. The couples company, Global Inc. now lacks a President and CEO until their daughter -Stephanie Quinn Harlem -reaches legal adulthood, at age eighteen.