Don't judge a book by it's cover

I'm the one who's victorious

Jerome's followers had grabbed Bruce and me by our elbows.

"Jerome's dead. Have you've been paying attention?" Jeremiah took out a white handkerchief from the pocket of his suit jacket. He then proceeded to wipe the blood on his face off. I couldn't take my eyes off of him. He had just killed someone and was removing the blood as if nothing. But the red substance wasn't leaving instead his face turned completely white where he had rubbed the piece of cloth. He turned around and kicked his brother's body into the grave. "I'm the one who's victorious."

...

"Look, Olivia, Bruce." Jeremiah turned around with a completely white face and cold electric green eyes. "Like everything Jerome set his mind in to, his insanity gas failed." Bruce and I looked at each other. "Other than some mild cosmetic effects." I scoffed, my bravery suddenly coming back.

"Jeremiah mild cosmetic effect is when I cut my hair, not when your skin is fucking white." My husband positioned his eyes on me.

"He might as well have sprayed me with water." He said that with clenched teeth, to show that my comment hadn't been appreciated. "You all have to see Jerome as the utter dud he was." All of his followers grunted in annoyance. "So I donned the mask of madness to show you how feeble that is compared to actual greatness." I scrunched my eyebrows, wondering what my now insane husband was implying. "Behold the true face of sanity." Oh, God. "But looks aren't everything. I have a compendium of Jerome's obsessions and goals." Jeremiah took out a black book with a big ice cream cone made of plastic diamonds. And glittered letters that spelled out Jerome. "I will outdo all of them." Oh great. Jeremiah turned around, probably to keep the audience entertained. "Jerome wanted to turn Gotham into a Madhouse." He was now facing the crowd. "But to truly build something, you must first tear down what is already there."

"Jeremiah, love, please listen to yourself." I looked at him dead in the eye with sorrow.

"'Via, I've never understood that sentence. I can listen to myself. I'm not deaf." He smirked with one side of his lip slightly up.

"Think about it, Jeremiah. You want to carry on Jerome's insane plans sanely? What could be madder than that?" Attaboy.

"Madder?" Jeremiah shrugged and took the diary out again. "Let's see. Ah here for example. Jerome wanted to slather you in honey and feed you to death beetles. Or, here is another one. He wanted to trick Olivia into believing he was me, to then rape her repeatedly." He closed the book and placed it back in his pocket. "If I want to kill you, I'll just shoot you and I don't feel like raping my wife or killing you." The crowd of maniacs started complaining.

"Are you going to listen, or are you going to behave like children?" Jeremiah tilted his head and looked at Bruce. "See, I'm not going to kill you. Because I wanna show you how much I've changed things. Because I couldn't have done any of this without your support and help. Without the two of you."

"What support Jeremiah?" I looked at him straight in the eye. 

My uncle once told me that animals, particularly felines feel threatened when you maintain eye contact. He taught me this for successful business making. When my uncle died, I thought I had been freed. No more Mafia talk, no more deaths. But at this exact moment, I realized I celebrated too soon.

"Well, love. Your affection is the one that keeps me going. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here." Sick bastard. "You sleeping beside me always reminds me that there are things worth fighting for. Our child needs to be born in a world worthy of our small creation." He directed his eyes at my stomach, a small bump starting to form.

"You are not laying hands on our child after this stunt Jeremiah Valeska." Usually, using his name would make him flinch. He only smiled.

"What if we call him Jeremiah Valesca Jr?" I lifted an eyebrow.

"Girl?" He smiled 'sweetly'.

"Olivia Valeska." I scrunched my nose. He was unbelievable. He talks about destroying the city and then casually discuss baby names.

"Fuck off Valeska." He raised his gun, pointing between my eyes.

"I'm going to need to teach you some manners, huh honey?" He tilted his head after Bruce muttered something.

"With my help?" I looked at Bruce with pity. After all these years he still hadn't realized how the citizens of Gotham could be. 

"See Bruce, with those generators, that we built with your money, they work better as bombs." I gasped loudly, everything clicking into place. Jeremiah stared at me with a feeling I couldn't decipher anymore. "This is why I married you. You have beauty 'Via, but you most importantly have brains." My body was filled with dread. I had just started thinking of all the lives Jeremiah was going to destroy. So many families broken. Kids who will become parentless, and parents who will lose their little rays of sunshine.

We heard and barely saw an explosion. Jeremiah smirked, and tears clouded my eyes. He took the stupid book out and shrugged. "That's one down." I looked down and tried to choke a sob. "Jim Gordon's dead." I couldn't avoid the tears streaming down my face. Bruce looked at me. Desperation was all over his face. I looked up at the monster I called my husband.

"I. Hate. You." Jeremiah tsked. He touched my cheek to console me. I only looked down again and kept crying.

Flashback.

Falcone and his men had captured me and trapped me somewhere in their dammed territory. My wrist was tied behind the back of the chair. I was gagged and my feet were bound to each other. There was blood all over my face and I had a black eye.

I suddenly heard someone shout 'G.C.P.D.' Finally, they just had to find me. I started making noises with the back of my throat. It seemed as if I had caught the attention of one of the officers.

"Harvey, you go that way, I'm gonna check who's there." They struggled to open the door. They knocked it out of its hinges. It was a man in his middle thirties probably. He was blond with blue eyes. Once he saw me, he ran towards my direction.

He took the gag off first and then untied my wrists. "Are you all right miss?" I looked at him with relief, the black eye making it a bit hard.

"Yes, thank you, Officer..." He looked at the state of my face and smiled slightly.

"Gordon, Jim Gordon." I nodded slowly, leaning down to untie the rope around my feet.

"I'm Olivia Maroni, thankyou Officer Gordon." He looked amazed.

"You are Maroni's niece?" I smiled, then I winced because of my broken lip.

"In the remaining flesh." He slipped his arm behind my legs and the other one under my knees. I ran my arms behind his neck as best as I could. He spoke into a walkie-talkie. 

"Harvey, I've found her. Get the car ready and call an ambulance, she's beaten up.

End of Flashback

"I'm sorry, but progress requires sacrifice." Bruce lounged towards Jeremiah, all the maniacs celebrating.

"I'm going to stop you." I looked at Bruce. Both of us were heartbroken.

"I hope both of you don't try to do that." I tried to let the crazy person let go of me. "I would hate to have to kill you. Or lock you up. You both will have different punishments." Jerome approached me and I growled. He took out a small vial and stabbed me with it. I instantly fell unconscious.