His Trophy | Jerome Valeska

eight

Rory practically jumped into the car. The streets were so colourful. She was overwhelmed with the amount of crazy that surrounded her and and her roommate, Josh. They speedily drove through the streets, driving fast to avoid any of Jerome's followers to recognise her from the coveted police massacre video.

"Thank you," she turned to her roommate who was driving.

"Don't worry about it," he responded.

For some reason, Rory felt worried. All of the colours that filled the streets of Gotham made it had to distinguish who's was who's. She stared at Josh and realised that not only were the colours outside but also inside the car. Why had she never noticed before? Usually, she could see them from miles away.

He glanced at her and smiled- it wasn't a reassuring smile, more of a crazed feral grin.

"I was wondering when you'd catch on," he started to laugh maliciously.

"What's happened to you? Where are you taking me?" she yelled as she realised the danger of the situation.

"I'm taking you to him!" he said with a high pitched tone.

"He is the only one who speaks the truth, Rory!"

Josh turned to her with a malicious smile. Rory was shivering with fear. Her heart was in her mouth as she watched her deranged friend. She needed to get out of here.

"We're here!" he yelled as the car came to a sudden halt, causing Rory to fall forward.

Before he could get out of the car, Rory had flung the door open and was clambering out; she didn't care where she was going just as long as she got away from Josh. However, her luck ran thin as she ran into Jerome's goons- two of them. They were dressed in leather with there hair spiked up and coloured. They laughed as she looked at them with horror, but both became serious when the recognised her. Rory tried to run from them but ended up running back to Josh, who grabbed her by the arm and dragged her inside the circus.

"NO!" she screamed, wriggling against him. "Please, Josh! Don't do this to me!"

He dragged Rory through the circus, touring her around the event, showing the cruel games which people had created. It made her sick to her stomach. The amount of colours on top of the fluorescent lights of the carnival made her dizzy.

Josh dragged her around the circus until he spotted Jerome. He was surrounded by men who were dressed in a similar way to the ones Rory had bumped into, however, there was someone with him who stood out: a boy a couple of years younger than Rory. The famous Bruce Wayne.

Before they got close to Jerome, she attempted a last plea for salvation.

"Please let me go, Josh! He'll kill me, please!" she begged Josh her voice cracking as she sobbed but her roommate was relentless and unfortunately for her, she caught the young billionaires eye.

"JEROME!" Josh yelled as he paraded over to the group proudly.

He threw her in front of the psychopath.

"I think she belongs to you."

There was a long silence that followed Josh's announcement. Rory didn't dare move. the silence was terrifying, Josh had interrupted one of Jerome's games.

It was Jerome's laughter which broke it. Rory looked up at him, his green aura seemed to swallow everyone around him, including her. His face was stapled on. It should have been an image of terror but a disturbing feeling of comfort started to ache in her chest. She met his eyes. Jerome has never been this quiet for so long. He just stared at her.

"Make sure Brucie doesn't get away," he said to his goons, who quickly grabbed the young boy and took him away to get ready for the big game.

She couldn't help but cry, her body shook as she sobbed in front of the psycho-killer. Suddenly he stepped forward, looking down at Rory as he approached her. For every step he took, she scurried back. It was only when she hit the wall of the Parana tank when he managed to get close.

Jerome crouched down to Rory's level, saying nothing. His hand slowly reached for her face and when his fingertips brushed against her jaw, the feeling that he had always craved shot through him once again. He immediately started to laugh.

"You know - I'd completely forgot about you, Rory," he whispered as he continued to trace her face.

What! Dread crashed through her, she began to cry more violently - she'd had a chance of getting out of here without having to worry about him hunting her down, and now there was no way of escaping him.

"I know, you have every right to be upset, how could I forget you!" he continued. His hand slowly fell from her face and to her neck. She flinched as he lightly touched it.

He let out a low chuckle: "I'm never letting you out of my sight again," he said in a low, intimidating voice - one Rory was very familiar with. She didn't even bother fighting back or spitting or anything. She was just still.

"Can't you just kill me?" she muttered to her self.

Taunted by this, Jerome's hand clamped around her throat and pulled her up. Her hands instinctively grabbed him, but after a second she stopped trying to fight him and simply closes her eyes, waiting for her to pass out but he let her go.

She fell coughing and spluttering to the floor again, she stood up slowly and spat at him. He laughed, then slapped her, grabbing her face almost immediately after to force her to look at him.

"Play nice, baby, or I'll make your last moments very painful," he said with a manic laugh. He held her face for a few more moments before releasing her and pulling her towards him. He turned them back to towards the circus.

Josh had watched the whole thing, and whilst they walked away from him he yelled out.

"Don't I get a reward or something?"

Jerome slowly turned back, his grip on Rory still tight so she couldn't run from him.

"Sure," he said as he turned and smiled to Rory, pulling out a revolver and shooting Josh in the stomach.