The Backstory

A Compromise 

Tiffany's face was stained with mascara and dried tears. She was tied to a chair in the middle of Roman's living room. She had a piece of cloth tied in her mouth and both her hands strapped down. She didn't know how long she had been there.

After Roman had found out, he grabbed her by the arm and quickly dragged her upstairs. He had Victor help tie her up and he had just been sitting at her watching her.

She finally had the courage to look at him. He sat on the couch, drink in his hand, and one leg crossed over the other. He took a drink from his glass, then held it up in the air for Victor to take. Victor grabbed the glass and set it on a table close by. Roman stood up from the couch and approached Tiffany in the chair.

He rested his hands on the arms of it and bent down so that they were face to face. Her breathing picked up and he watched as her chest started to rise and fall. He slowly brought his hands up and pulled down the cloth from her mouth. She looked him in the eyes and quietly spoke, "A-a-are you g-going to k-kill me?" Roman's eyes roamed her face and a smirk grew on his face.

"I'm not going to kill you doll." He brought a finger up to her face and touched her cheek, "I just want to ask you a few questions." She felt pressure fall off her chest.

She looked at him and nodded, "I'll tell you whatever you want to know." He backed up from the chair and stuck one hand in his pocket, gesturing with the other.

"You really didn't know before?" Tiffany shook her head, "I had a small hunch. But, the way you treated me, I didn't think it was true." Roman nodded and looked over at Victor, "How did you find out?"

She glanced over at Victor and looked to the floor, "I- um. I found your room." Roman looked back over to her, "And how did you get into the room?"

Tiffany gripped the chair, "I found the key." Roman laughed and clapped his hands together, "Did you hear that Victor?! She found the key." He turned back and grabbed her face, forcing her to look at him. "Where." She stared up at him in horror, "I-in a shoe."

He threw her head to the side and looked at Victor, "In a FUCKING shoe Zsasz. You're a fucking idiot." He picked up a pillow from the couch and threw it at Victor.

Zsasz flinched away from the pillow and walked towards Roman, "The last person in there boss was Harvey." Victor looked over to Tiffany who had her gaze on the ground.

Roman looked towards Victor and pointed a finger at him, "You're right. You're right." Roman ran his hands through his hair and fixed his suit jacket. He turned back towards Tiffany, "He wanted her to stay in our meeting. Of course he wanted her to find out." Victor motioned towards her, "Think of all the things she could get you boss. You use her to help convince Harvey to give over the rest of Gotham." Tiffany looked up at the men.

She didn't want to be a pawn, passed between the men of Gotham.

But, she also wanted to live. Roman bent down again and held her face in his hands, "Yes. She could be my token to everything. Every villain in Gotham is going to want you doll." He stood back up and faced Victor, "But, they won't be able to have her and it'll drive them wild. We could set all kinds of traps." Victor and Tiffany both watched as Roman paced around the room.

"It's really perfect." Roman stopped and faced Tiffany, "Victor. Leave us please." Victor exchanged looks with her then left the apartment. Roman bent down once again to be level with her.

He pushed a piece of hair behind her ear, "You think you can pull this off doll? It'll work both ways. I keep you safe, you help my business." Tiffany stared into Roman's eyes. She watched him go from psycho, to caring in a matter of seconds. She knew who he was and yet, she was still so attracted to him.

She really didn't even care that he was Black Mask.

She was honestly excited about it. Her whole world was about to get flipped upside down. She nodded her head, "I can do it. I'll do whatever you need me to. But, I have one condition."

Roman looked at her and chuckled, "You are in no position to have conditions, but shoot." Tiffany looked at him, "I want to stay here. It'll be safer for me and for Kat that way." Roman smirked and started to untie her hands.

"Smart girl. That can be arranged." Once her hands her loose, she rubbed her wrists. Roman held his hand out to help her up. She looked at it and pushed it away. She stood up and took a few steps back from him. He looked at her, "The whole point of this deal, is that you still have to be with me." She crossed her arms, "In public. I will be completely yours, nobody will know a thing. But, behind closed doors, you will not touch me."

Roman chuckled and slowly walked towards her, "Doll, that's not how it works." He placed a finger under her chin and lifted it up to look at him. "I own you. I will allow you to sleep in the guest bedroom. But, you do not make the calls around here. Understand?" Tiffany glared at him and nodded, "Yes." He wrapped his hand around her throat.

"Yes, what?" Her eyes widened as she looked at him, "Yes sir." Roman smirked and whispered in her ear, "Good girl." He released her and started walking towards the front door. "You'll stay here starting tonight. You can go to bed now or clean up and meet me downstairs. I will give you the choice." He stopped walking and turned to look at her, she looked up at him.

"Goodnight Roman." He pointed down the hall, "Your room is the door to the left of mine. There's some old shirts in there that you can borrow for tonight. I will take you to get some of your things tomorrow. Goodnight doll." He smiled at her and then headed out the door.

Tiffany watched the door close behind him. She let out a breath she had been holding in. She whispered to herself, "Fuck." She looked down the hallway and made her way down it. She stood in front of the door and slowly opened it.

The room honestly looked very similar to Roman's, not as extravagant of course, but still decent in size.

She walked over to the dresser and opened the top drawer. She pulled out a shirt. To her surprise it was just a regular old t-shirt. She didn't think he actually owned any of those. She unzipped her dress and stepped out of it. She grabbed the shirt and slid it on over her head.

"I really should shower." She reached up and touched her mascara stained face. She didn't have anything with her for a full shower, a nice face wash would work just fine. She poked her head out of the bedroom. Once she realized nobody was in the hall, she walked across the way to the bathroom.

She walked up to the sink and turned on the hot water. She waited for it to get warm and splashed it on her face. Once she was finished getting off all the days makeup off, she grabbed a towel and patted her face dry. She looked at herself in the mirror.

Her hair was a mess, and her blue eyes sparkled from her crying so much. She shook her head and spoke to herself, "How the fuck did you get yourself into this one Tiffany?"

After a small pep talk, she found her way back into the bedroom. She crawled under the covers and laid in bed looking up at the ceiling. She heard a few voices enter the hallway.

She quickly turned over and pretended to be asleep. She heard the door open and someone walking towards her. She opened her eyes just enough to see who it was. Roman sat on the edge of her bed. He tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. He leaned over and kissed the top of her head.

She watched him walk out of the room and close the door behind him. She laid still for a moment and thought to herself. "What was that?"