Simply & Sanely - Jeremiah Valeska

Chapter 3

The once quiet alley was now filled with noises of chitchat, sirens and camera flashes. Police officers secured the crime scene and documented every piece of evidence. A little crowd has gathered to watch the events, their whispered speculations were interrupted by a man who pushed his way through them.

"Captain James Gordon", one of the officers greeted him as he pulled the barrier tape up. Gordon ducked to enter the crime scene. "What do we got here?", he asked as his eyes scanned the nine bodies.
"Nine victims, all killed by a head-shot. The forensic doctor said they're dead for at least 3 hours. The neighbours heard the shooting and called the police."
Gordon nodded and kneeled down to inspect one of the dead men.
"Hey, Jim!" Harvey Bullock jogged towards Gordon and made a grimace, due to the new case and his physical activity.
"Hey...", Jim said and stood up. "Do you recognise those two?" Harvey looked down at the dead bodies.

"Hell yeah, those two belong to Penguin." The GCPD captain nodded and pointed to the other group of three men at the end of the alley. "As those guys. Just this group in between...", Jim and Harvey walked over to the men. "Just these four don't fit in here, they're just ordinary people." Harvey kneeled down to look for their wallets. "Ordinary people with no money", he stated and showed Jim its empty insides. He frowned.
"Robbery? That makes no sense. It's obvious that Jeremiah was involved in this. But why did he kill those four?"
Harvey shrugged. "That kid's crazy, he likes to kill people, just like his brother did."
Jim shook his head. "No... Jerome enjoyed killing people, yes, but Jeremiah... he enjoys planning and designing and those four were not part of his plan."

"Hey, look...", Bullock pointed to something and stepped aside for Jim to take a closer look.
"Two of them have their belts undone." Jim knitted his eyebrows in confusion.
"Well, either they where about to take a piss in the middle of a crime scene...", Bullock said sarcastically while he examined their pockets.
"... Or they were about to rape someone", Jim finished his partner's sentence.
"And I know where we can find this 'someone'". Bullock held a tiny object in front of Jim's face that he'd found on one of the dead men: it was a matchbox, nothing special, except the name on it... 'Wonderland - strip club'.

***

The night was gone and a new day rose upon Gotham. Ironically the weather matched your feelings - heavy rain paired with grey clouds that covered the sky and locked up the sun.
Your breathing was the only sound inside the car. Jeremiah sat next to you. The generous space allowed him to cross his legs, his hands rested on one knee.
You had no idea where he took you, but you assumed the destination was not your freedom, rather outside of the city judging by the ride time.
After you and Jeremiah escaped from Oswald's assassins he had guided you towards a dark corner. First you thought he would kill you there, but then you saw the car, waiting to pick you up.

You glimpsed over the lock of your door. It was activated. You sighed quietly, but not unnoticed. You felt Jeremiah shifting next to you and you carefully turned your head to meet his pale face.
"Say, how long do you live in Gotham now?", he asked you without any sign of curiosity.
You frowned. "Excuse me...?" Jeremiah pressed his lips as he was thinking.
"Then, what's your favourite colour?"
His question confused you and you didn't know what to say. "Why... are you asking me this?" The man shrugged and leaned back, not sacrificing his stiff posture though.
"Oh, I thought some mindless conservation is what you seek, since you got so bored to the point that you looked for a way to escape after...", he studied his watch, "... 2 hours of driving."
Jeremiah mocked you. This maniac was fucking mocking you. You felt the urge to yell at him, to punch him, but you couldn't. Unless you wanted to be killed.
"Don't worry, dear. I appreciate that anxious attitude of yours, it makes the whole drive more... sustaining." You had enough.