Chapter 9
The next few days are quiet. There are no more names on the list and Steve actually gets a full nights rest. There’s nothing left to do but investigate the lead on the Luger pistols. Superman must have made good on his promise to mention them to Clark because only a few days later Steve sees Clark with a book on German weaponry of the 20th century.
Steve reads the title with a grin.
“The Greatest Weapons of the Greatest Generation?” Steve asks.
“I’m looking into something for Superman,” Clark says, “but you’re military, do you know much about Lugar Pistols?”
“Only that they went out of style decades ago and were never used by the American military,” Steve says, “if you’re looking for one you probably want to search for collectors not military personnel.”
“Collectors or museums,” Lois says, “My grandpa was in the war. He used to drag us all over the place to museums with collections from the war.”
“Museum curators might even know local collectors.” Steve adds.
“Good, I’ll make a few calls, see what I can find.
Steve and Jimmy help Clark spend the rest of the afternoon finding museums with an exhibit on World War Two. Halfway through the day Lois drags Clark off to interview the police regarding the latest arrests. They come back looking satisfied, Lois in particular looks pleased.
“What are you so happy about?” Jimmy asks.
“Guess who got an interview with one of the detainees from last night?” Lois says proudly.
“They just let you talk to a prisoner on a major open investigation?” Steve asks.
“Yes, well not technically, Clark interviewed the officer while I slipped away to the ladies room and must have gotten lost because instead I just happened to find Hanson’s cell.”
“Makes sense. I assume the ladies room is right next to where they keep the violent offenders,” Steve says dryly. From his desk Clark turns a snort into a cough.
“Laugh if you want but it was worth it. Hanson not only saw The Captain helping Superman, he had a whole conversation with him. It seems The Captain has a bit of temper problem.”
“He was talking to a Nazi,” Steve says, “I can’t say I blame the guy if he was a bit edgy.”
“Superman doesn’t lose his temper.” Lois says.
“Superman never fought in World War Two.”
“And neither has The Captain. Have you heard any descriptions of him, he can’t be older than 30.”
Steve opens his mouth and then shuts it. He’s an old man and nobody knows that here. Granted though people knew he was old back home, nobody really understood what that meant either. It wasn’t just about having gray hair of brittle bones. It was about society moving on without him. It was walking down a street from his childhood and realizing that he didn’t recognize it anymore. It was looking for Mr. Williams drugstore and finding it closed because Mr. Williams passed away decades ago. It was making a joke about Carry Grant that nobody ever got. Bucky understood. So did Peggy the few times she was lucid enough to carry on a conversation with him. But he didn’t have them with him here.
Clark’s phone rings.
“Clark Kent…yes…it’s for an article, I’m…yes…3 PM tomorrow works for me.” Clark says. He hangs up, “That was Emmanuel Greks calling me back. He runs the World War Two exhibit at Metropolis Museum of History. He’s willing to meet with us tomorrow.”
Mind if I come with you?” Steve asks. He’s sure Superman will fill him in if Clark learns anything important but he hates waiting on the sidelines while others are on the frontline. Lois and Clark stare at him. He supposes it is unusual for a political cartoonist to do field work.
“I’m trying to tie my political cartoons in with this Nazi case that’s breaking. It would really help,” Steve says.
“I don’t have a problem with it,” Clark shrugs and Lois nods.
That night Steve is feeling restless. There are no more names on the list and there’s not much he can do on the Lugar pistol lead. Still he finds himself grabbing his shield and deflecting Jimmy’s request to order pizza for dinner to watch the sunset on a roof in the middle of Metropolis. He won’t be out long, he tells himself. He just wants to burn off a little energy and make sure things are quiet. An hour or two and then he’ll be back in time to watch the end of the baseball game with Jimmy.
The city is quiet. There’s a distant sound of sirens, but before Steve can do anything there’s a flash of red across the sky and the sirens go quiet. Steve is about to head back. His presence isn’t needed and there’s a chill in the air that says fall is coming. He’s almost to Jimmy’s apartment where he knows pizza, baseball, and good company are waiting for him when he catches something out of the corner of his eye.
Steve does a double take at the broad shoulders and black cape. Since when did Batman leave Gotham? Batman’s staring up at the sky from his perch on the rooftop. Looking for Superman, no doubt. Steve could offer his assistance, perhaps Batman has another lead on the Nazis from Gotham, but something holds him back. Batman’s face is set in a deep scowl and Steve’s gut tells him to observe before getting involved. Steve’s been in enough firefights to listen to his gut. He finds an out of the way perch where he can watch and listen in.
“Superman,” Batman says in a low voice, “I know you can hear me.”
He sounds impatient and he paces on the rooftop like a caged animal. Superman lands next to him and Steve is pleased to see that Superman looks just as surprised to see Batman here as he is.
“Batman?” Superman asks.
“Clark Kent.” Batman says stiffly and Steve perks up. He isn’t sure how he feels about someone like Batman knowing who Clark is. There’s something dangerous about Batman that Steve would prefer he stay very far away from his friends.
“What?” Superman sputters.
“That’s your name.” Batman says and Steve nearly falls off his perch. Batman has to be joking. Does Batman even know how to joke?
“No it’s not,” Superman says, clearly flusters. He’s a poor liar. “Who told you that?”
Batman scoffs, “Nobody told me. I worked it out on my own shortly after you started showing up in news reports.”
“Why?” Superman asks wavering between annoyed and flustered. The more flustered he gets the more Steve sees Clark beneath the red cap and giant ‘S’. The way he crosses his arms and hunches over himself protectively is a move Steve has seen more than once in the bullpen.
“I needed to make sure you weren’t a threat. I assessed that you weren’t and let you continue unbothered.” Batman says. Steve raises an eyebrow. He’s not sure he approves of Batman’s prying in the name of the greater good. It reminds him too much of Fury and shield.
“Thanks for that.” Clark says, landing firmly on annoyed, “are you going to tell me who you are?”
Batman doesn’t answer. Steve wonders just how much research Batman did on Clark Kent, as he’s quite certain that if he wanted to Clark could suss out Batman’s identity without even having to resort to x-ray vision.
“I could find out.” Superman says.
“You could, but you won’t. That’s not really your style.” Batman says confidently. He’s right, it’s not Clark’s style to invade other people’s privacy like that. He’s too decent of a guy. In ordinary circumstances Steve would like to think of himself as too decent of a guy to do something like that too, but a tiny voice in his head that sounds a lot like Natasha makes a note to do some further research on Gotham’s Dark Knight and Steve doesn’t correct it.
“Are you going to tell me why you’re here at least?” Clark asks.
“It’s about The Captain.” Batman says and Steve leans forward, intrigued.
“What about him? Do you want to find him and tell him you know his secret identity too?”
“That’s the problem,” Batman growls, “I don’t.”
“What?” Clark asks.
“You heard me. I don’t know. He comes out of nowhere. He’s clearly well trained and experienced but I can’t find any record of him anywhere. There’s no reports, no witnesses, no clues.” Batman paces, growing more agitated, “It doesn’t make sense. A man with his skill level doesn’t appear out of nowhere.”
“And why does this matter?” Clark asks.
“Because, if I don’t know who he is, I can’t assess how much of a risk he is.” Batman snaps. Steve’s lips quirk into a half smile. It’s a good thing Batman has no way to get ahold of the risk assessment General Ross surely has on him.
“Risk? The Captain isn’t a risk. He saved my life. He took down a Nazi cell.” Clark says.
“Yes, how very convenient that he shows up right when you needed him. Almost like he planned it. Saving Superman’s life, right in front of the Daily Planet. You have to admit that’s rather good PR for him.” Batman says.
“You’re paranoid.”
“And you’re too trusting.”
“He’s giving me no reason not to trust him,” Clark huffs, “ and if he ever does, I’ll handle it.”
“Handle it.” Batman scowls, “you shouldn’t wait until things go wrong to start worrying about how to handle it.”
“Don’t tell me what to do in my own city.” Clark says crossing his arms.
“Then don’t put millions of lives at risk because you made the mistake of trusting the wrong person.” Batman says stepping into Clark’s personal space. Clark stiffens but doesn’t step back. Steve can feel the tension all the way from his shadowed hiding spot. This could end in a fight. He decides to intervene before heat vision and baterangs start flying.
“Evening Gentlemen,” Steve says jumping down from his perch and landing between them. Both jerk in surprise.
“I hope I’m not interrupting something,” he says.
“No Captain. No problem.” Clark says not taking his eyes off Batman. Batman remains silent.
“Good, any updates from Gotham on the Nazi cells?” Steve asks. Batman hesitates like he doesn’t want to answer, but finally says, “Most of the cells have been raided or are being monitored. We’re still trying to pin down who the contacts were between Gotham and Metropolis.”
“Have any of the weapons you’ve come across have modifications made to them?” Steve asks.
“Not that I’ve seen,” Batman says tightly, like every piece of intel he’s giving Steve is painful.
“Keep an eye out for them. We’ve seen some interesting design changes and I want to know if the modifications are coming out of Gotham.”
Batman bristles at the direct command but dips his head in acknowledgment.
“Well, I think this was productive. Keep us informed on how things are going in Gotham and we’ll keep you updated on Metropolis,” Steve says, “and if this meeting is over we should all head out. I don’t plan on spending all night on a roof and I suggest you boys don’t either.” Steve says just to watch Batman’s jaw clench at being called a boy.
“I should get going.” Clark says and Batman grunts, spinning around heading towards the ledge. Steve could let it end there. He knows Batman will never stop trying to figure out who he is and given enough time he’ll uncover it eventually. Steve doesn’t really care. Having a secret identity is a novel experience and he enjoys the privacy it provides, but he was a public figure once and he can do it again if he has to. Still, he can’t help causing a little mischief for Batman.
“Batman,” he says and waits for Batman to stop, “If you want to learn more about me, you might want to brush up on your World War Two history.”
It’s a terrible, wonderful, perfect clue. One that will send Batman on a wild goose chase, searching through countless history books for a name that doesn’t exist here. A private joke that Batman can’t possibly understand, that is only amusing for Steve. Batman stares at him and then leaps, disappearing into the night. Behind him Steve hears the whoosh of Clark taking off. Steve is alone, a small smile playing across his face.