Espera | R. Grayson ✔

[37]

She switched off the news channel and leaned back in her seat with a thoughtful expression on her face. The latest news being broadcasted was of the tragic suicide of Timothy Drake, the youngest CEO to Drake Corporate.

The look on her face was unreadable as her eyes swept over the bloodied mess of the spot where he had fallen from the immense height of the tower of Drake Corporate. it would have been a striking image of Richard's past haunting him as his parents had fallen from the trapeze and the aftermath hadn't been much different.

Timothy was too young to die and after all the boy had been so innocent and fragile without even her messing with him in the first place. She really hadn't wanted to use him as a pawn that could be forfeited.

But time was running out and she needed to teach Richard a lesson that it was futile to think that he could save everyone.

Some people, like Tim, were never meant to be saved.

Some paths like the one he had chosen were never that easy to be trodden upon and each step was ridden with a painful sacrifice.

She knew very well that by then Richard would be devastated and would definitely be doubting his own self and his ability to continue being the city's protector. He would certainly be ridden with guilt and not in the state to resume the act of Gotham's savior.

He was no savior.

He was just an ordinary man who was deluded enough to try to save an entire city and make a difference on his own.

And delusions came with a price such as the death of a precious little friend.

She clearly recalled the day Tim had paid her a visit not very long ago and had sat in that very room on the couch across from her. She had offered him coffee and cupcakes, putting on her very best performance at being friendly and amiable.

The boy had wanted to warn her about the attacks that were targeting Gotham's elite and deep down she had felt surprised that he had pieced everything together so flawlessly. According to him, the attacker would target her next or come back for those who had survived such as the Mayor's family and Tim himself.

But Tim hadn't known that the woman knew about those attacks much more than he did and was involved in it as well to some extent. He wasn't aware that it was a matter of the Court of Owls which was indeed under Lavina's control.

Hence, it had been futile for him to come and warn her though his concern for a stranger such as herself had been downright touching, reminding her again of Richard.

That was the day she had reworked her plan to steer Richard back towards the Court. Initially, her prime target had been Barbara as she had seen for herself how much Richard valued and cared for her. 

She had chosen her to be the target because seeing a woman other than herself holding unshakeable importance in Richard's life had sent a pang of jealousy coursing through her.

She might not be interested in Richard romantically but she still wanted to keep him under her control, something which could not be possible if his attention was divided towards an attractive and intelligent woman as Barbara Gordon.

She had felt competition from her ever since she had first seen her with Richard, hence she was eager to get rid of her first.

But right then as she had assessed the move she could make by forfeiting Tim, the aftermath seemed a lot more promising than that of getting Barbara out of the way.

Surely, she would have to deal with the redhead sooner or later, but for the time being she had switched targets from Barbara to Tim.

And judging by the news that was being broadcasted on each channel of Tim's suicide, it was evident that her arrow had struck on the mark.

Therefore, all that was left for her to do was wait for the chessboard to realign itself and for the rest of her plan to unfold gradually.

***

Richard woke up to find himself still in Gotham Tower and in the vigilante suit. He realized he wasn't alone and saw that his head was resting in Barbara's lap while she was uncomfortably asleep, back leaning against the wall with her fingers entangled in his messy hair.

It was evident that she had stayed with him as he had been very unstable after what had passed the previous night. 

He sat up and edged closer to her, hand reaching out to gently cup her cheek. Forest green eyes fluttered open and seeing him awake, she had immediately closed the gap between them, bringing him close in a tight reassuring hug.

He held on to her, finding that his eyes had gone dry and his throat was raw. Tim's broken and bloodied body was flashing in front of his eyes and he squeezed them shut but to no avail.

Barbara was trying her best to comfort him but he seemed unnervingly detached. As if a piece of him had been snatched away from him and he was finding it impossible to function without it.

Shortly after, Helena and Jason had come to Gotham Tower too and though they were all talking to him and trying to reassure him, their words were not registering within him.

They took him back home and Barbara had to leave too as her father already been very anxious of her phone constantly going over to voicemail that night as she had been avoiding all calls.

Helena and Jason did not want to leave him alone but the second they had reached home, he had locked himself up in his room, ignoring their protests of letting them stay with him.

All he could see and think about was Tim.

His head was throbbing with pain as he collapsed on the bed, all the memories he had of Tim striking him with full force.

And along with the memories was an unavoidable statement that chilled him to the bone.

He had promised to give him reasons to live but still the boy had chosen to end his life. And that definitely meant Richard had failed to save him. That Richard was partially responsible for his death.

He had promised to always be there for him, to be a soul he could confide in without hesitation and yet the frail little boy had taken such a huge decision without letting him get even a whiff of it.

If he had known in the slightest that Tim was deteriorating to such an alarming extent, he would have done all in his power to make him recover and feel better.

But all that was past and the present was too tormenting for him to even think about.

The present was that Timothy Drake had committed suicide and died at the spot before he could be taken to the hospital. The present was that a funeral would be held for him soon and none of them would ever be able to see him again.

The present was that he felt the intense guilt of not being able to save the one soul that he had vowed to protect first and foremost.

His head was about to explode with all the intense pain and guilt, the knocks on the bedroom door were no longer reaching him as his mind was miles away, wallowing in the darkness of failure.

If only he had been able to adopt Tim and keep him with himself and Jason as a family they were meant to be, then Tim would still have been alive and happy. 

***