Batman laughed, a harsh bark of amusement. They didn't get it. Of course they didn't, they thought that he was just one man with a vendetta and they didn't realize to what lengths he was able to go and had already gone in his work to protect the city. "Arkham's probably isn't the security," he said. "It's a combination of politics and the patients. Whether insane, or criminally insane, they're still mental patients. Once their deemed recovered, they can be released if the doctors and board rule in their favor.
"More often though, it's simply that the criminals are infinitely smarter and craftier than the doctors, nurses, orderlies, and security employed there. Turnover there is high, because people are afraid, and people die, but once again," he said. "You prove my point. You are not prepared for Gotham, because you don't understand her. I do. There's a reason I try to keep people from getting involved here; I've spent fourteen years learning what works, and what doesn't, and watching others bite off more than they can chew. You say I'm the expert, then don't underestimate me, or my methods. You don't know me."
And they didn't. She was right that he was fighting a war, and he himself had said that he preferred to work alone. The truth was far less simple though, as in reality, he had a great many allies, and knew that if he fell, there would be someone to pick up the mantle and carry on his mission to protect Gotham from the morass that threatened to engulf it. "As long as Gotham has need of Batman," he promised quietly. "He will be here." And when he fell, if he did it alone, his legacy would survive him.
He wanted time to weigh the pros and cons of the matter before making a decision. To have more time than a few minutes on the rooftop to think about the implications and what it would mean for him and for Gotham. And for his family. He wanted to plan. "It won't take me long," he stated. It wouldn't - he just needed some distance and perspective.
On an impulse, he asked her, "Whom else have you asked?"