Chapter 1
Alfred Pennyworth approached the front door of Wayne Manor. Master Damian had broken the camera again. It wasn't that he was in any danger. He had a gun within arm's reach at all times and had trained Batman and his Robins.
-What do you wish, Miss...?
Alfred's breath froze in his chest and a sharp pain ran through his heart. Before him was Martha Wayne, Mr. Bruce's mother. The wife of one of his best friends. For a second he was transported to a time where everything was simpler and Martha was returning from the garden after cutting fresh roses for the dining room table.
She would smile mischievously and make a witty remark.
But memories are fleeting and Alfred was soon dragged back into reality. This woman was much younger than Martha Wayne at the time of her death. Also her hair had a stronger curl and it seemed like she didn't smile much. Her hair was not brown, like Martha's, but black. And her eyes were such a vivid green that they surprised Alfred. She also had a way of moving that Alfred recognized, he knew those steps, those gestures very well. Alfred recognized a soldier returning home from the battlefield
-This is Wayne Manor? - British accent. Near London, Surrey or Berkshire, maybe another region, but he wasn't sure. Scottish traces, surely acquired in adolescence.
-Yeah. May I ask you what you want?
-This is going to sound very crazy. But I found out a few weeks ago that I was adopted and…. When I met my biological mother she told me that my father was… Bruce Wayne
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Alfred left a cup of tea in front of the stranger. He had already called Mr. Bruce and the company doctor. If what this woman said was true, she would be the main heir to Wayne Industries and his billions, above young master Damian. Master Damian would take it well, in his own way.
-I don't know your name, miss.
-My birth name is Megan Kyle. But my adoptive parents named me Dorea Lily Potter-Black.
-Selina Kyle's daughter? – The girl nodded her head. Alfred thought that Mr. Bruce should start letting him choose his dates. He would choose good women who weren't villains. Two years ago, Mr. Bruce had brought Mr. Damian, son of Talia Al Ghul, the daughter of the leader of a gang of assassins. And now there was this girl, the daughter of Selina Kyle, also known as the thief Catwoman.
-I was born in Arkham. Nobody believed my mother. They thought they were delusions, manipulations to get help, but…. I have to continue somewhere. I don't need Mr. Wayne's money.
Alfred faced the young woman's gaze.
-Don't you need any money?
-My adoptive parents were very rich. I will not need to work in my life and maybe in a thousand more. I also inherited a few noble titles, including a dukedom.
-And how did a couple of rich English nobles adopt a girl who was born within the walls of Arkham? – Alfred wrote on his to-do list to find out everything possible about the birth.
-My parents went to a fortune teller who told them to adopt a girl who would be born at the death of the seventh month in the city protected by the bat. That night I was the only girl put into the system on Gothan. – Dorea smiled sadly. – They were very superstitious in a way. And they loved me very much
Alfred was about to speak when a man entered the kitchen.
-Mister Tim, stop stealing our food. You live in the university residence
-But you cook very…. – Tim stood up and looked at Miss Dorea. - Is this a new charity project for Bruce?
-No, Miss Dorea is the daughter of Mrs. Selina and she claims to be the daughter of Mr. Bruce. – The young man started laughing out loud.
-First Damian, our pretty little bird, and now this sweetness. Bruce should learn to keep it in his pants. – The young man extended his hand to Dorea with a seductive smile. Red Robin would sing with a canary voice if he touched Miss Dorea, before or after the DNA test. – Tim Drake, Bruce Wayne's third pupil and the most handsome. Criminology student at Gotham University
- Pupil, does he have pupils?
-It is a program that I created to help orphans guide themselves in life by raising them as my children. – Alfred was still shaking when he saw Mr. Bruce emerge from the shadows, this time with the doctor following him. Only Alfred could notice how he stopped when he saw Miss Dorea. It was like seeing Mrs. Martha alive again and sitting at the kitchen table. Like so many afternoons when young Master Bruce returned from school, with a cup of tea and a smile on his lips. – I imagine you are Dorea
-Yeah
They both looked at each other in silence for a few seconds before the doctor left a device on the table.
-This wonder is the new DNA analyzer created by Wayne Industries. Its results are 80% better than any analysis machine that can be found in any clinic in the world. And they only take twenty minutes.
-Of course, that will not convince the lawyers and the board of directors, I am sure that they will demand at least six more tests done by six different laboratories. – Bruce sat on the other side of the table from Miss Dorea. Putting distance between them and allowing him to observe her. – They demanded the same with Damian
-Damian?
-Two years ago, a former lover introduced me to my biological son. I guess this is the same situation. Only you are older and a woman. – The man opened his mouth when the doctor used a swab to take a sample. Then he approached Dorea and did the same. - Where are your parents? If you were placed in the foster care system they should be around here with you. Not leaving you alone
-They died when I was fifteen months old. After that my mother's sister raised me. But we didn't get along, so I went to boarding school in the Scottish highlands until I graduated three years ago. Now I'm doing my master's work in... Well... Old Norse languages, runes and so on.
-Awesome. A good resume for a twenty-one year old girl
-Twenty. I graduated before boarding school. – Dorea blushed and the doctor finished turning on the machine.
-Now we only have to wait about twenty minutes. Can I order a cup of coffee or should I accept a cup of tea?
-The teapot is ready. – Alfred nodded his head.
-The tea is magnificent. Bergamot, raspberry, a touch of chamomile,…-Miss Dorea brought the cup to her nose. – Pink pepper and a little lavender flower honey.
-Awesome. – Alfred was really impressed by that display of taste. The bad thing about the gentlemen was that they had no real taste for hot drinks other than coffee.
-I am English. We know about tea
-How did you discover that you were adopted? If your parents were dead it must have been difficult to find out. – Mr. Bruce was looking at her carefully. Learning from body language
-My parents' house was destroyed in an explosion and their personal belongings were left in a storage room. I recently decided to organize them and found my adoption certificate among some legal papers.
She remained silent. Alfred knew what he felt. Even today he still cringes when he finds things from Mr. Bruce's parents. Seeing the objects of those you loved was very painful.
-And you were born in Arkham? – Tim sat near Dorea. And Alfred didn't like it. If Master Tim behaved like this, he would have to recruit Master Damian to protect Miss Dorea from the three wolves. Also known as Tim, Jason and Dick, the three pupils who had broken up with their girlfriends some time ago and were single.
-Were you listening to us?
-I'm studying to be a criminalist, darling. It caught my attention when I heard about Arkham. It's not a place that people here like to mention. – Great truth, Arkham was the great taboo of Gotham
Miss Dorea nodded and brushed her hair away from her forehead, revealing the pale lines of a small lightning bolt-shaped scar that broke the perfection of her skin. Alfred couldn't figure out that he had caused the wound, only that it was a very old scar.
-Yes, I was born in Arkham. In my mother's cell, since she refused to ask for help with the birth and subsequent care. They found me when I cried and less than an hour later I was in the system. And less than twenty-four hours later they had adopted me.
-You went to Arkham to talk to your mother. As far as I know, Selina has been imprisoned by Batman again after she failed to steal some diamonds from the Gotham Museum.
-Yes – The girl nodded her head.
-How is she? – Master Bruce's concern was real. Selina was a sore spot in his life. Alfred still kept in a safe the ring that his son planned to give to that young woman to ask him to marry her... All before he revealed that Selina was a thief and she was after a set of jewelry that belonged to Mrs. Martha. Mr. Bruce was devastated for weeks
-She seemed happy to see me. I wonder about my life, if I was happy,…. They told me not to get too close to her, that she had already run away before and that she could use me as her next escape plan. – Alfred understood. Arkham rarely allowed visitors, so this fragile-looking girl had had to go through bureaucratic hell just to have her first conversation with her mother. Less than five minutes and the warning that she would be manipulated.
It was not an ideal situation to establish links
-If I have to be honest. I didn't think she was... Well... Crazy. At least not enough to enter a psychiatric hospital.
-She's not there for that. It is there because that is the place this city uses to imprison powerful and difficult to deal with individuals. Selina is classified as one of those individuals. Her agility, her intelligence, and her strength make her too dangerous to be in a normal prison. – Mr. Bruce knew it well, for years he had fought for another place to be created for villains who were not crazy enough to need Arkham, and that way Arkham's resources would be allocated to the individuals who really needed them, like the joker
A beep caught everyone's attention and the doctor approached the machine's screen.
-Congratulations, Mr. Wayne. You have a beautiful daughter
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Damian was looking at his father and his sister seven years older than him.
-Father, I think it's time for you to have a vasectomy. We cannot allow more illegitimate children to continue to arise around you. My inheritance will come to nothing. – Although Damian had to admit that he was happy that his sister looked like him. Although her skin was pale, her eyes and hair were very similar colors to his.
-The company's board of directors said the same thing after I called them to tell them. And stop worrying about your inheritance, I plan to live to be 114 just to prevent you from inheriting.
Damian looked at his sister. She had the sharp edge of a fighter. And she seemed sweet and kind, something she hadn't seen much of, as if she had kept her heart through many challenges. She, too, was elegant, the kind a person learned with manners classes. She moved almost like a predator, similar to Damian's mother, but with less confidence than Talia.
And she was also very pretty.
And that was a problem
Dumb, Dumber and Dumbest were single and were real playboys as fathers. So he didn't doubt that they would try to make a move on his newly discovered sister.
Besides… Damian's eyes examined his sister's body and he became angry. He was sure that the trio of idiots would make a move. He needed allies…Alfred and Jon. And ask his grandfather for advice. He also had to delay when Dumber and Dumbest met Dorea.
The front door opened and Father turned to look at the two men entering. Damian knew this was Tim's fault, without a doubt.
-Bruce! What is it that we have heard about you having an illegitimate daughter?
The trio of fools were gathered and Damian decided to go get his swords to threaten the idiots.