Killer Queen

Part 7

Jason would admit it did take him a little bit of time to leave home. He had absolutely no clue as to why Damian would ask him to visit Destiny's. The diner would be quite empty seeing as it was late at night but it would be worth his time if Damian went out of his way to inform him. 

And he was right.

The young man ordered a chamomile tea. No shame in doing so since Jason didn't plan on staying awake all night anyway. 

At first he didn't know what he was searching for. So Jason sat himself in the last booth near the bathrooms. He would be able to scout out and notice anyone coming in or going out even with his back toward the rest of the diner. His ears would do much of the work tonight.

Just as the man took a sip from his hot drink is when he heard the familiar voice. 

"Lawrence, my boy, we've given you plenty of chances."

Goddamn it. Of course it would be the bastard himself. Jason would be sure to pay him a visit once again the following day. Lawrence had now gained the man's undivided attention.

Jason cleared his thoughts and made sure to keep his head low as he listened intently on the conversation going on just a booth away from where he sat. Their voices were hushed yet sharp, Jason had no problem in keeping up with them though. 

"Del-"

"We warned you about this. Kept you on the tab and forgave you over the little hospital incident. You've wasted perfect product for the last time. Get the hell out of my sight." 

A few heavy footsteps were heard as the man left the diner as quickly as possible. Jason waited a few moments for something. Anything. His back was turned and the young man could only go by what his ears picked up on the matter.

How could Lawrence be such an idiot. Idiot was an understatement. Once a decently powerful man, now cleaning up the dirty work of others and not doing a good job at it either. 

Jason sighed and finished is drink. Just as Delto and his bodyguards stood up, Jason followed right after. 

A light drizzle of rain covered the driving cars as it slowly paved the roads yet the air was sticky with a warm gloss. Jason walked down the sidewalk, behind his unsuspected targets as he lit a cigarette, the flame illuminating his shadow covered face.   

"Tell Sugar to get rid of the girls."

That was enough to make the blood drain from his face. The girls. Lawrence. His failure with Delto. Of course. How could he have forgotten Debbie and her mother. Jason stopped in his tracks as it all came into realization. 

His mouth was agape, dropping his cigarette, Jason swallowed hard. His breathing was slow, staring at the two men walking away from him, unknowingly just a few mere feet away from the vigilante. 

Next thing he knew, Jason stomped his way to the men, punching and knocking down Delto's muscle as he soon held the other man by the collar of his shirt against the brick building aside from them.

"What did you do, you bastard? What did you do?!" 

At that same moment his phone rang. 

The burner phone. 

Jason breathed heavily before throwing one last punch and letting the man fall to the ground. He ran a hand through his hair as he walked briskly, pulling his phone from his pocket and immediately putting it to his ear.

"Baby girl?"

"Red!"

His eyebrows knitted together as Jason sighed and took a turn down the street toward his car, "Oh, kid," he breathed out, "tell me you're alright."

"Red-" she coughed, trying her best to keep calm, "-quick!" 

It was obvious that something was off. Debbie was shouting into the receiver and Jason found it difficult to make out what exactly was going on behind her shouting. 

"Debbie, listen I'll be there soon! I'll be there!"

Jason was in his car and down the street within the minute. At five minutes he reached Debbie's apartment. A large crowd had gathered around. Many children and adults blocking both the sidewalk and street. 

What awaited him would grieve Jason for years to come. 

"Debbie!" he yelled as he ran from his car toward the burning apartment complex. The entire fourth floor seemed to be the main source of the buildings' unlikely demise. Jason was quick with his actions, pushing his way through the crowd and the few firefighters that were at the scene, "My kid's in there, fuck off!"

 He was soon bolting up the fire escape to reach the second floor. Jason was able to bust a window open, helping many others make it out before going back to his own search. Within a few more moments, the young man was crawling through the third floor of the building. The smoke filled air burned his lungs and blurred his vision yet Jason kept going on his search.

"Jason!" he heard from behind him. 

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he followed the voice calling his name into a janitors closet just down the hall. Yanking open the door, he found the small blonde sobbing and holding a cellphone tightly against her chest. Her curls now a heap of tangled mess and sweat covering her face.

"Jason!" she threw herself to the man's arms and cried into his jacket.

"It's alright, Debs. You'll be alright, princess." Jason held her tight as rubbed her back in a soothing motion.

Jason was able to get Debbie out before any more serious damage came to either of them. His jacket now an ashen stained mess resting on the young girls' shoulders as he carried her to an ambulance for help. Even after she continued to cry out to him, Jason urged himself back into the building in search of one last person.

The toughest part of that night wasn't rushing through a nearly collapsed building, no, it was facing the blonde with grieve stricken eyes to tell her of her mother. 

"They... I'm sorry. You're mom- there was no way for her to get out."  

No matter how much he searched, no matter how hard he tried it just hadn't been enough. 

Within days, Debbie and her stepfather were forced to live in a motel. On the down side, it was a terrible neighborhood in the prostitution district. On the up side, it was just around the corner from one of Jason's own safe houses. 

Even without a body, Larena had been buried alongside her late husband. The lot hadn't been difficult to obtain and the funeral was not difficult to afford. All courtesy of Bruce Wayne. What he didn't know wouldn't hurt him, Jason kept it under wraps, having borrowed some cash from the old man.  

Debbie never left Jason's side during the funeral. Roy had accompanied him, always having his friends back and being there for Debbie. Her stepfather had arrived with two other men following close behind him. A few neighbors had shown up out of respect but other than that, it had been a lonely burial. 

"What are we gonna do now, Jason?" Debbie had asked when the man had taken her away to walk among the other graves. 

Jason sighed, "It'll be alright, princess. I'll take care of everything."

And he did. Of course he did. Jason would make sure everything would be just fine no matter what.

On the upside, Debbie lived very near to one of his safehouses. Jason was quick in telling her that she would always be welcome. At any time of the day or night the young girl would be able to access his safehouse with a key of her own. 

Of course everything would be alright. It just had to be.