Sophie nodded to Kate as she saw the drink in her hand when she entered Kate’s office. “You ever get enough?”
“What are you the designated driver? I’m fine.” Kate brought her finger to her nose easily, “See not even drunk.” She walked around her desk with her drink, placed it down and looked at some files. “What are you doing here, Sophie?”
“I was worried about you.”
“You don’t have to be.”
“Really, what is that, like your third drink tonight?”
“Fourth but I’m not really counting.”
“So is this why you haven’t been answering any of my calls or texts? I haven’t seen you in two weeks, Kate. Can I help it if I’m a little concerned?”
“I’m fine.”
“I doubt that. Kate you hide away in your office, when I try to see you you’re not even here.”
“I’ve been busy.”
“Doing what?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“The hell it isn’t. Look Kate, I don’t know what we are to each other anymore but I still care about you. You seem to be holed up and not giving a damn about anything these days. You and your dad haven’t talked in days. He says he hasn’t seen you in a week.”
“You’re talking to my dad about me now?”
“He’s worried about you, we both are. What’s your deal with him hu?”
“Don’t.”
“Don’t what, get involved between you and your dad? What happened, Kate.”
Kate took finished off her drink and went over for another.
“Nothing.”
“Clearly something happened.” As Kate began to pour her fifth drink, Sophie stopped her, “Hey come on.”
Kate brushed it off and poured anyways, taking a long sip.
“Talk to me, what’s going on?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Don’t worry about it? Come on Kate, you haven’t been able to stop drinking tonight and somehow I get the feeling that you haven’t stopped in a while.”
“I don’t have a drinking problem.”
“Then talk to me and tell me what’s going on.”
“Don’t push it, Sophie.”
“Push what, you haven’t told me a damn thing!”
Kate took another drink. She looked down. “You should probably go.”
Sophie looked at her. Knowing she wasn’t about to get any answers she said, “Fine. Call me when you’re ready to talk.”
Rather than watch Sophie leave Kate was the one who turned around and made her way to the balcony of her office. Sophie just watched her. She could see that whatever demons were eating Kate were slowly tearing her apart. She signed and then walked away.
*****
“Wait,” Sophie called out, “just wait, please.”
Batwoman stopped and turned to look at her several nights later.
“I haven’t seen you around in a couple of weeks.” Batwoman stood in silence. “Is it because of what happened at the stadium? I saw what my commander did to you. I’m sorry I was late. I feel awful about that night.”
Batwoman pushed her voice changer on. “Why, what happened wasn’t your fault.”
“Maybe not but still, I should’ve been there to protect you.”
“I can protect myself.”
“I know you can but still, it couldn’t have been easy.
“Well I appreciate that.”
“My boss took me and my partner off the task force. He didn’t trust our judgement, said we were too close.”
“Maybe that’s for the best. Hope you didn’t lose your job again because of me.”
“Thankfully no. Though he no longer trusts me but I can live with that if it means looking out for you.” Batwoman nodded. “Speaking of my partner, we’re no longer together-together. We broke up that same night.”
Batwoman’s eyes looked into hers, a sense of longing but she quickly let that go.
“I’m sorry. What happened?”
“Full disclosure?”
“Only if you want. It’s really none of my business. I shouldn’t have asked.”
“No it’s okay. Honestly, I couldn’t be with someone when there was still someone else in my life. I love her but she can’t seem to let me in.”
“Sophie, I-,”
“I just wish she would you know? I can’t help how I feel and I know she feels it too so that’s how I know it’s real.”
“Maybe she’s too afraid of what you’ll think. The world already hates her. Maybe she thinks it’s easier to keep away.”
“I wish she knew that I don’t hate her. Shouldn’t that be enough?”
Batwoman shook her head, “I um…I have to go.”
“Can you wait for a second, there’s something else.”
“Okay.”
“I need your advice on something.”
“On what?”
“This friend of mine, we’re… well I’m not sure what we are to each other anymore, she’s got this problem.”
“What kind of problem?”
“Her drinking.”
Batwoman froze. She had had this conversation a couple nights ago but as Kate.
“Now I know she can handle herself and I’ve never judged her for it.”
“But you’re judging now?”
“No, no, I’m just concerned about her. You know she’s just not herself and hasn’t been for a while. She’s gotten herself into this funk. I’ve seen her drink plenty but not like this. Something is eating her up inside. I can see it but she won’t talk to me about it. I’m afraid that one of these days she’s going to lean so far off the ledge that she might fall from it.”
“I um…does this friend have a name?”
“Kate Kane.”
“Your bosses daughter.”
“Yeah. I don’t know what to do. I’ve tried talking to her sister about it. Apparently Kate and Jacob have been keeping their distance from one another so that could be part of the problem.”
“You think there’s more to it than that?”
Sophie looked at Batwoman. The pieces were starting to fit: Kate and her dad not on speaking terms, the fact that he’d gone after Batwoman around the time she started to notice the difference in Kate and the fact that Batwoman hadn’t been around in two weeks which was just as long as she’d seen how off Kate was. Okay maybe she was reaching but still she couldn’t help but get a sense that they were all connected somehow.
“I’ll find her,” said Batwoman, “talk to her.”
“You really think she’d listen to you?”
“What have I got to lose? If you care about her that much, and I can see that you do, then I’m sure she’ll know how much it matters.”
“You would do that for me?”
“Considering everything you and I have been through together, I owe you that much.”
“Thank you.”
Batwoman nodded. “I’ll see you around, Sophie.”
Before Sophie could get in another word, Batwoman used her grappling hook and flew into the night but not before using her new tool that she’d had Luke create for her cowl, x-ray vision. A new necessity despite how cool it would have been prior now it had become a tool to look out for any Crow agents.
*****
“Rough night,” Mary asked when she saw Kate pouring a drink.
“You could say that.”
Mary stopped her, “No, hey, come on.”
Kate put down the drink and walked over to the couch. “Not you too.”
“What do you mean not me too?”
“Sophie came over a couple nights ago and called me out on my drinking. Then just a few hours she had Batwoman come and talk to me.”
“Then maybe you should listen. If Sophie trusted Batwoman about this then shouldn’t it count for something?”
“I don’t know,” she replied as she got up and walked over to stand behind her desk. “I don’t know anything anymore, Mary. All I know is that my dad hates me and I am so angry at him. I am angry every single minute of every single day. I’ve pulled away from him before but not like this and he has no idea why.”
“Then don’t give into it.”
“What?”
“You drink to de-stress, to avoid thinking about your problems or deal with your emotions.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
“That all depends. It’s your go-to, Kate, and while it may help for a little while it doesn’t solve anything, not really. I know you, you are so much more than this. You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for sometimes. I know, I know you’re such a badass but you don’t need any sort of crutch.”
The two remained silent.
“Anyways,” said Mary, “that’s all I’m saying. And if you won’t listen to me or to yourself then maybe listen to Sophie.”
Mary nodded and walked out of the office.
Kate went over to where she kept her liquor glass. As she picked it up she sighed then stopped to look at it. There was every point to drink it but now none at all. She placed it down and instead pulled out her phone.
*****
Kate smiled at her spot at the empty bar the following morning.
“Drink?” Kate asked.
Sophie took a seat, “I’m good thanks.”
“It’s sparkling water, I promise.”
Sophie took the one that was poured out for her and took a swig not that she needed to test Kate’s judgement. “Thanks. So why did you call me here, Kate?”
“I wanted to apologize. I was out of line the last time we talked. I know you were just trying to help.”
“And which time was that?”
Kate swallowed an empty swallow and then took a sip of her drink. “Batwoman came to see me last night,” she admitted.
Kate and Sophie looked at each other as if knowing the same secret.
“Um,” said Sophie, “really?”
“Yeah. She didn’t say it but somehow I got the feeling you were involved.”
“I don’t know what you’re-,”
“No, hey it’s okay. I kind of figured it was you since Batwoman was talking about the same thing we talked about.”
“Kate, I’m sorry, I was out of line.”
“No you weren’t. Look I’m not saying I have a drinking problem.”
“And I’m not saying that either.”
“But I think we both know I can do better.”
Sophie nodded, “Yeah. Kate, I have to ask and I want a straight up answer.”
“Okay.”
“I’ve seen you drink before but nothing to this extreme. It has to do with your dad doesn’t it?”
Kate nodded.
“Does it have anything to do with what happened a couple weeks ago.”
“I don’t-,”
“Full disclosure, I think we both know the answer to that question.”
Kate remained silent for a moment.
“Look,” said Sophie, “You don’t have to come out and fully admit it but I want you to know that no matter what I’ve got your back.”
Kate looked into her non-alcoholic drink. “How did you find out?”
“Things just started adding up. I keep getting whiplash. At first I was certain it was you but then I started to have my doubts.”
“And now?”
“Now I know the truth about who you really are.”
“Does that bother you?”
“Not so much anymore.”
“You knowing my secret puts a target on your back, you know that right?”
“Maybe it doesn’t have to. Plausible deniability. All I see and all I know is Kate Kane. I don’t know who Batwoman is.”
Kate just nodded and decided to redirect their conversation. “My dad hates me, Sophie.”
Sophie placed a hand on Kate’s, “Hey, he doesn’t hate you. He hates Batwoman.”
Kate slightly smiled, “Mary said the same thing.”
Sophie smiled back, “Then we’re on the same page. You don’t have to do this to yourself. Your dad has already taken enough from you don’t let him take away your humanity too.”
“I can’t even look at him without getting flashbacks of him betraying me the way he did. I know he doesn’t know it was me but still, me knowing is enough. What am I supposed to do, go back to being the daughter I once was?”
“I can’t tell you what to do there Kate. I don’t know if you found out but I told my mom I was gay.”
Kate nodded, “Julia might’ve said something.”
“Figures.”
“She didn’t take it well right?”
“Right. So I get where you’re coming from but you and your dad, as hard as you try to push him away you two still always manage to work things out.”
“It’s different this time, Soph. It’s like whatever line that kept us together just snapped. I thought about telling him who I was sometime in the future but now I doubt that will ever happen and I’m not sure I want it to anymore.”
“Maybe not but you don’t have to keep torturing yourself every night with alcohol. I know you can take it and I know I’ve never judged or questioned it before. I’m just worried about you, Kate.”
Kate nodded, “I know.” She turned to look at her. “I promise here on out no more drinking. I want to be better, better for you. I owe you that much.”
“No you don’t owe me. You owe it to yourself.”
“I’m glad you know about me.”
“Me too. So who else knows exactly?”
Kate smiled, “Too many but Luke and Mary are the only ones that matter.”
“Should’ve figured it would be those two. So no more drinking?”
“No more drinking. Come on, there’s some place I want to show you.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
Once they were outside Kate handed Sophie her helmet and the two got on, Sophie holding on to the back of her.
“Just like old times.”
“Only better.”
Sophie placed the helmet on and Kate rode off.