2| 𝙊𝙪𝙩𝙩𝙖 𝘼𝙧𝙠𝙝𝙖𝙢 |

| Chapter VII | gala gets bloody

They played games for a while, and by 'played games' I mean messed around with a few of the hostages.
Jerome was aiming a gun at an apple on someone's head.

"I can't look. Someone tell me how it turns out."

He covered his eyes and the gun started going down to the man's face. When he pulled the trigger it turned out to be a water gun.

"Damn."

Before he could grab the real gun, Reine shot the apple off the man's head. She blew the gun, cockily.

"Well, clap!", Jerome told the audience/ hostages.

They did as told.

"Kinda rude of you for stealing my spotlight, dollface."

"I have a gun, Jerome. Don't make me use it on you?"

"Ooh, I like it when you play rough."

"You're such a dickhead. Sometimes I wonder why haven't killed you yet."

"Because I'm your dickhead."

"You're the worst."

"Come on, I don't even know why you're mad at me."

"I don't have to explain myself to you, also Barbara is about to stab Lee."

Reine went up to Barbara and held her hand back before she could stab Lee.

"It hasn't been ten minutes.", Jerome told her as Reine took the knife from her.

"We need to buy you a watch."

Barbara punched Lee in the face.

"That make you feel better Barbie?", Reine asked her.

"Not as much as killing her will."

"Well, I think it's time for tonight's first official victim. You all know and love. Poor rich boy, parent's murdered in an alley, and my favorite volunteer. Where is Bruce Wayne?"

<Wait, what?>

Bruce wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"You know I'm an orphan too, Bruce? I killed my parents, though. Where are you hiding? Bruce! Where are you, buddy?"

"Kill his butler.", Barbara suggested.

Some henchmen brought the butler over.

"All right, last chance Bruce, but it's about to get very butler-brainy out here. Brucey!"

When the boy didn't show up Reine let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"I'm bored. Shoot the butler."

Then before butler's brains were served, Bruce jumped out of a curtain.
The curtain, that Reine knew, was the way to leave this place or get in.

"Stop!" Bruce ran up to his butler.

Jerome quickly took him, placing a knife at his throat and taking him back to the stage.

"Let's get this started, huh?", he pointed at a henchman, "You, check behind the curtain. Make sure no one's playing silly buggers."

That's when a loaded Jim Gordon came out, shooting the henchmen along with the butler who also had a gun now.

<Well shit.>

"Drop the knife!"

They aimed their guns at Jerome.

Jerome just laughed, keeping the knife at Bruce's throat.

"I don't have a clean shot."

"Stay calm, Bruce."

"It seems like we've got ourselves a pickle. What do you say, Brucey boy? Wanna boost our ratings, huh?"

"Jerome please stop this.", Reine whispered to him.

But he didn't listen to her.

"He's not really going to kill him is he?", she asked Barbara.

"I said enough.", a now awake and standing Theo Galavan said.

When Jerome turned around to look at him Galavan stabbed him in the neck.
Reine stood in shock as she processed what was happening. Soon she got out of her state of shock and ran to Jerome, pushing Galavan away.

"Get off of him!"

She held Jerome's face and tried stopping the blood from gushing out.

"No, no, you're not going to die. You're going to live and we're going to the beach. Don't you fucking die on me you hear me."

"I love you, do-"

Jerome held Reine's hand as death took hold of him. A smile stained on his face.

"No. Please. No, no, no, no."

Barbara grabbed Reine and pulled her away. Making her escape before Jim could get to them.
When they were safe, Reine pushed Barbara away. And ripped off her mask. She pointed the gun she had taken at her.

"Did you know?!"

"No of course not. I've never even met that man in my life."

"Liar! I may be crazy, but I'm not blind."

"Reine, please. Just come back with me, you'll be safe I promise."

Reine took off a bird necklace she had on and handed it to her.

"If you don't also end up dead, you'll end up back in Arkham. Give this to my sisters. That's all I want from you. Other than that, I don't want you to look for me or talk to me. Take care, Barbara Kean."

She went back to Selina's, who was waiting up for her.

"Explain. Now."

"I will, but before I do, I want you to know that I cherish your friendship that you've given these past few days and I would never do anything to hurt you."

She took a deep breath, and a small look at the poker ring she held in her hand.

"I used to be an inmate at Arkham Asylum. My mother was Amelia Coldwell, I have two half-sisters, I am the result of a rape. One night there was a break-in, five men, they were gonna hurt her so I killed them. One of them managed to shoot one last bullet before his death, it killed my mom. I was eight. Soon after that the Coldwell's sent me to Arkham.

I was hurt there, things were done to me that I never want to say out loud, ever. One day I met Jerome Valeska. I beat him up, then I got with him. I escaped Arkham the same day the Maniax did, I just didn't escape with them. I am a killer, I've killed a few people after I got out."

"So that's the whole truth?", Selina asked still trying to process what she had just heard.

"No. Truth is, I just killed two of those men that broke in. I just told the cops I did. And the evidence matched enough for it to be believable. I wish I could tell you absolutely everything, but I can't. Thing is, my life is so fucked up and I became fucked up. I can't tell you I'll change or to forgive what I've done or to even let me stay, because maybe you shouldn't. I know there's nothing I can say to make you let me stay. I just want you to know before I go, you were a great friend to me, these days with you had been some of the best in my life and I'll miss you, Cat."

Reine went to grab her stuff, but Selina stopped her.

"If you ever give me a bad feeling I will not hesitate to kill you. Don't make me regret this."