In plain sight (Sequel to Unappreciated by all except you.)

Chapter 6: Ed Nygma: Penguin detective.

Ever since he was a child a part of him had always wanted to be a private eye. Sure, there were many inconveniences with such a profession. Conducting his own autopsies and easy access to forensic evidence were impossible, one of the deciding factors in his eventual choice to join the police force, but there was something glamourous about the job that Ed found appealing. Plus, despite the limitations, there was a freedom in working for oneself which sure beat pandering to the rules and regulations of some narrow minded knuckle head like Barnes. In fact, had the circumstances, Edward would probably have been relishing this moment. Here he was, hunting down clues and chasing theories with out anyone to tell him that he'd 'crossed the line.' As it was, however, he was too worried about Gertrud Kapelput to give it much thought.

Awake purely through the miracle of coffee, Ed had immediately set about his task of tracking down Oswald's mother. A task which necessitated buying a copy of every variety of gossip magazine in Gotham. An odd purchase to be sure but one Ed had hoped would pay off. He tended to find such magazines indispensable when it came to gathering information about the cities citizens. After what felt like years of looking at make up adverts and reading about the marital relations of every struggling couple in Gotham, however, he was forced to change his approach. Anything on Galavan was simply speculation. The man might as well be a ghost for all the dependable information there was about him.

Adopting a different tactic Ed stopped off at central library and searched through books about Gotham's oldest families, only to come up empty handed. He was searching for a connection to the city, anything that would give him an inkling to Galavan's intentions and motivations. As Oswald said, if you want to destroy a man it helps to know what motivates him and finding Gertrud would undoubtedly bring Galavan down. Not that he was the main concern, her life was what mattered.

You see, the rich and powerful never moved to Gotham. The only people who moved to the city were those who had no choice or those trying to escape, either from the rest of the world or themselves. Edward could still remember how he had felt when he had first arrived, determined to forget his past and recreate himself in this dark and horrific paradise. Sure, Gotham had a wealthy elite but it was home grown. A collection of do good-ers like the Wayne's, corrupt politicians and mob bosses like Falcone and Aubrey James and finally those like Penguin, those who had started off with nothing then clawed their way to the top. Gotham was a place where you needed to fight to survive. Money meant almost nothing and it most certain wouldn't buy you power, not if you weren't prepared to go to what ever lengths necessary to attain and keep it. The city was vicious, unpredictable and unforgiving. An out of towner didn't stand a chance. So, despite how much the city would no doubt be worth to any greedy hearted scoundrel, only those who knew Gotham at it's worst, those who had lived and breathed it, dared to try and tame it. For anyone else it was a suicide mission. The rest of the world gave them a wide berth and it suited them just fine.

Which bade the question, what did a rich posh boy like Galavan hope to achieve? A man with that amount of money could settle down anywhere in the world and have everyone at his beck and call, no questions asked. So why here? Ed would have just assumed that he was stupid but his actions proved that he knew how to play ball Gotham style. Therefor,there had to be more to it. Ed had assumed a family connection, perhaps their new playboy was more acquainted with this sordid city than he let on, but so far all searches had come up empty. No mention of the name Galavan on record. If there was a connection he was hiding it well which meant that Ed had little to go on.

He was running out of time or already had done. Ed hadn't heard from Oswald since he'd left the flat, which wasn't surprising considering their last conversation, and he was finding it deeply unsettling. If Galavan had hurt Oswald, or worse, Ed would never know. It would probably be covered up so well that they'd struggle to even prove that Oswald had even existed. An over exaggeration perhaps but given how hopeless Ed felt it certainly seemed that way. Still, Oswald was tough, fierce and more than capable of looking after himself. He would be fine. Edward tried to convince himself of that anyway.