Laurel Lance (i_crylikeabird) wrote in we_coexist, @ 2011-05-10 09:32:00 |
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Entry tags: | dinah lance, harry dresden, winifred burkle |
With a Little Help From My Friends (Dinah, Harry, Fred log)
Dinah was late picking Jake up from school. Traffic was horrible and she found herself longing for her bike and the ability to just zip between lanes. The new car was sporty, but definitely couldn’t maneuver like a motorcycle. Then the City was being particularly uncooperative in that the streets just kept changing. She finally made it, long after the last bell had rung. She could only hope that Jake had waited. She didn’t like him walking home alone, but she knew he didn’t always like being driven to and from school. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him or didn’t think he was capable. It was just that she knew the type of monsters that lurked in the City. Some of which he’d already been forced to face, for that matter.
When she parked the car in front of the school and didn’t immediately see Jake, her gut tensed up slightly. But he could have been inside waiting. Could have been in the back. Could have been just out of sight.
After searching the entire school yard and inside the school without finding any sign of him, her panic was beginning to rise.
But still, he’d walked home without incident before. It was possible he was halfway there already. She returned to the car and pulled away slowly, her eyes trained to the sidewalks for any sign of Jake. Maybe if she tried to take the usual way home, she would catch him and be able to drive him the rest of the way. Assuming the City cooperated of course.
She didn’t make it very far away from the school before she spotted something on the sidewalk and smeared in the bushes nearby. It was hard to tell while driving, so she pulled over. Maybe it was nothing, she reassured herself. Maybe...
Dinah stepped out of the car and stopped short as she reached the sidewalk. Her breath caught in her throat. The sidewalk was a mess of blood and footprints that looked like... hyenas. She caught sight of something round and coated in blood. Dinah knelt to pick it up, her hands shaking. Even before she touched it, she was sure of what it was. A plate. One of Jake’s plates, to be exact.
The only reason that plate would be out and bloodied was that Jake had been in trouble. She looked at the paw prints. Perhaps it was some other form of canine, but she knew all too well that Harley Quinn owned a pair of nasty hyenas.
It was likely that Harley was acting on her own, she reassured herself. That wasn’t ideal, but it was better than if... no, she wasn’t even going to think about who else might be involved. Her feet began to move at a run before she could even think about it, following the trail of bloodied footprints and paw prints. She took several turns down side streets, before the trail just abruptly ended at a wall.
The City’s doing, no doubt. Dinah looked around frantically for any way that they might have gotten around the wall, any sign that the City hadn’t just changed the damn streets on her so she would lose the trail.
She had to find him. Had to get to him before Harley could do any more damage. Dinah took off at a run again, following the trail back to her car. She didn’t think to use her phone, didn’t think to call ahead to see if Harry or Fred would be at the office.
She definitely didn’t care if they were busy. Instead, she pulled up to the side by side detective agencies.
Jake had only had the chance to ride in her car once so far-a brief test drive after she’d bought it the day before. Dinah’s hand swept over the seat until she found a few hairs. They were barely visible, given how short his hair was. She could only hope that was enough for Harry’s spell. If not, well, she had to hope that Fred would agree to fire up Barbara’s computers. Just this once.
Dinah approached the door to Harry’s office and tugged at the door knob, just now realizing that it was late enough that he might be home, or could be anywhere but at the office.
----
Harry was still in his office, going over the logs of his latest case. Some attorney was trying to get out of paying his fee, but he had hired Harry Dresden to find his daughter’s missing kitten. Obviously the man had considered hiring a wizard a joke, but now had to cough up almost three grand in time and expenses once Harry had turned up the feline. After disrupting the most disturbing game of poker he’d ever encountered.
The demons running the game hadn’t been happy at the interruption, but were more than willing to let Harry buy in. The wizard had managed to win back the kitten in question, with two more besides. He was wondering about giving one to Fred when Dinah threw open the door.
----
Dinah held up the small lock of hair. She didn’t bother with a proper greeting. There wasn’t time. A sense of urgency pressed in on her, as though every minute spent was another minute that Jake was suffering.
“Jake’s gone. Can you do a locating spell with this?”
Her voice was steady, almost business-like. She didn’t have the luxury of breaking down right now. Not when there were still things she could do to find him.
----
Harry immediately set down the kittens he was holding, and stepped into the middle of the office, gesturing for Dinah to enter with one hand, the other already taking a lump of chalk from his pocket. Once the circle was complete, Harry sat in the center, taking from another pocket a bit of leather thong, a quartz crystal, and some copper wire.
“Give me what you have,” he said, reaching out his hand. “I’ll do what I can.”
---
Dinah passed over the hair and then took a step back, allowing him room to do what was needed. She didn’t notice that she was holding her breath as she waited for the results.
This had to work. He’d found her easily enough on the night when she’d been taken by the vampires, hadn’t he?
And if it didn’t, well... Barbara had been able to track down all sorts of things with those computers of hers. It would just take longer, and time wasn’t a luxury that Jake had.
She tried not to think about what he might be going through just then. Tried not to think about anything except what she would do next if this didn’t work. This was no time to fall apart, she repeated to herself.
----
Harry closed the circle once she stepped back, adding an effort of will. He immediately felt the ambient magic in the air around him crowd inward, trapped within the confines of the design. The hairs at the nape of his neck prickled and stood on end. Harry set the hairs carefully against the crystal, binding them together with the copper wire. He then secured it to one end of the leather thong and held it up, loose to swing like a pendulum.
He began a slow chant of syllables, focusing his mind on Jake. “Interessari, interessarium.” It took a moment, but the crystal shifted and leaned to one side, as if being supported by a steady, silent puff of wind.
That was the direction. Harry released a slow breath. “If we stay on this heading, we’ll be able to track him. It’s just a straight line, not a map or anything, but it’ll lead us direct.” He got to his feet, still carefully holding the leather cord, and picked up his staff. Rather than leave the kittens behind, he scooped them up, tucking them in the roomy pockets of his duster.
“Want to tell me the details on the way?”
----
Dinah released the breath she’d been holding. It wasn’t okay yet. Not by a long shot, but there was hope. She followed Harry out the door.
“Thank you,” she murmured. She held out her hand to him. “Unfortunately, there’s not much that I know yet. If I’m right, Harley Quinn and her hyenas took him. I can only hope that Harley’s acting on her own.” She let that particular fear of the Joker being anywhere near Jake go unsaid.
Once they made it to the street, Dinah looked down at the crystal and the direction it was pointing.
“Is it better to follow on foot, or should we drive?” she asked, as she never had followed Harry along on one of his locating spells.
----
“Driving is fine, we just have to-- no, no, no!” Harry shouted as the crystal lost it’s steady pull and became subject to gravity. “Oh, damnit. That was his hair, right? Would she have any reason to cut his hair? Shave it?” He drew back his fist, nearly throwing the crystal aside in his frustration. “It dissolved the spell. The hairs were cut, swept through some running water, and it’s gone. All we’ve got is a vague direction.”
He looked at Dinah. “Was there anything else? Anything at all?”
----
Dinah’s heart dropped as the crystal stopped pointing. She tried to maintain her calm however. There was still more to be done, she reminded herself. Still a chance...
She hurried to the car and pulled out the bloodied plate. She held it out to Harry.
“Blood, you can use blood, right? I don’t think it belongs to him though. Possibly to Harley, though it might belong to her hyenas. Can you do locating spells with animal blood?”
----
Harry took the plate carefully, looking at the blood and raising his brows in silent surprise at the razor-sharp edge. That explained the blood. He looked at it carefully, hoping, straining.
“I can try, Dinah. But it’s not fresh. I’m not sure what kind of results I can get with dried blood. I’d rather try it back at the lab.” Maybe Bob knew some tricks to working with dry blood that Harry hadn’t figured out yet.
They needed help, that was for certain. Harry missed Murphy, for what seemed the millionth time, and her connections to the police department. They needed more information.
“I can tap some of my resources, but it’ll take some time.”
----
Dinah nodded slowly. She took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“I know you’ll do what you can. Thank you, Harry.”
Tears of frustration stung at the corners of her eyes, but she still didn’t let them fall. Now wasn’t the time for tears, or for the comfort that Harry might offer if she did break down. This wasn’t about her. Nothing mattered right now except finding Jake and bringing him home safely.
Instead, she glanced back at the office.
“I’m going to go see if Fred can get anything useful out of Oracle’s computers. If Barbara were here...” the sentence pained her too much to finish. If Barbara were here, she would already have every bit of information they had on Harley pulled up and would be a calming voice in Dinah’s ear, dispatching her to some lead or other.
“And if that doesn’t work, I’m just going to suit up and punch my way through every criminal in town until I find one with information that could help.”
She tried to force a half-smile at that, and then turned away from Harry and approached the entrance to Angel Investigations. Since it was after normal business hours, she knocked first.
----
Fred didn’t have Angel’s super hearing, well, vampire Angel’s super hearing. She doubted human Angel had super hearing, not that anyone was asking. It would take a few knocks before she realized that wasn’t something coming from some underworld secret hiding spot. Not that she thought that, but...
She yanked on a robe, having recently gotten out of the shower. Her trip through the City the previous day had been an interesting one, ending with Dean. He was cute, but he wasn’t Sam. Then again, Sam wasn’t here. She was beginning to wonder about her ability to crush on the heroes. She’d have to get a handle on that.
Quickly she climbed the stairs and walked carefully to the door. Just a little peak before she pulled the door open, brows raised in question. “Dinah? What’s wrong?” The question seemed like the right one, seeing as people didn’t make it a habit of dropping by.
---
“Sorry to interrupt,” Dinah apologized as she realized Fred’s hair was soaking wet and she was wearing nothing but a bathrobe. “Jake’s been kidnapped. I was hoping you could help me figure out if Oracle’s computers have anything that could help find him.”
Dinah tried to keep the urgency in her voice to a minimum, not wanting to pressure Fred. Letting Harry see her anxiety to get things done quickly, but she and Fred had only spoken a few times and it wasn’t fair of her to bang on Fred’s door and demand help.
Even if she had no qualms about banging on every door in the City, if she thought it might help.
“Please?” she asked, her voice raw with emotion for just that brief word.
----
Fred looked at Dinah for a moment; it was possibly a hard look to read. There wasn’t a smile, or shock, but a strange set determination. She nodded slightly.
“I guess you’re at Harry’s?” Fred pointed in the direction Harry’s offices had been the last time she’d walked by them. “Go back. I’ll be there as soon as I get dressed. I don’t know if I’m going to figure anything out, but I’ll help.”
It wasn’t that she felt like she owed Dinah anything, or that she wanted to help Dinah. It was that Fred understood what it was like to be whisked away. She hadn’t been kidnapped, but she had been taken to a strange and hostile land. She didn’t think anyone should have to live through what she did. She started to turn then stopped and looked back at Dinah.
“Who’s Jake?”
----
Dinah realized that she must not have ever mentioned Jake to Fred. It was even more that she’d offered to help without knowing who Jake was. She drew in a breath.
“My son,” she said in explanation. “He’s twelve years old and... if I’m right about who took him...” she couldn’t finish the sentence, couldn’t let herself go too far down that line of thinking. “Let’s just say that the sooner we get him back, the better.”
She stepped away from the door and tried to give Fred a grateful smile.
“I’ll go next door and give you time to get dressed. I’d appreciate anything you can do to help me out with those computers. Hopefully they’ll have something.”
----
Fred nodded with an understanding smile. They’d taken some interesting cases, what few she’d been able to work, with Angel Investigations, so she knew a thing or two about....okay, so she really didn’t know much of anything, but she could do in a pinch. She had the brains to follow logical steps.
“I’ll be there right away.” Fred started to close the door, then turned back. “Have to say you look pretty good for all you’ve been through and to have a kid, though I don’t really remember seeing a kid in the volume I read. Maybe you’re from a different universe. Well, the one I read and the one you are. I’ll think about that later. Bye.”
The genius closed the door without slamming it and rushed down the stairs to get into something resembling decent. She didn’t know what she’d be doing, so she went with jeans, tee, jacket, tennies - the normal everyday stuff. But, she remembered to get a pencil; a pencil could save lives, especially if there were vampires around.
----
Dinah stared at the door for a minute and then turned and walked back to Harry’s office. She resisted the urge to just pace out in the parking lot. Every minute standing still felt like a minute wasted. But still, she needed to tap any and all resources she could. That would make sure that she found Jake as fast as possible.
While it was tempting to just rush off into the night without a plan and, as she’d told Harry, beat up every two bit thug she could find until she found one with information, that wasn’t going to be as effective as organizing and pulling together a team to work on finding Jake.
Developing strategies and coordinating a team to do things in the most effective way was something she was very good at. She had been the leader of the Justice League for awhile, as well as being the leader in the field with the Birds. But she didn’t do well when it was a child that she cared deeply about on the line.
When Sin had been taken, she’d been unable to think of anything but getting to her. As a result, her rescue attempt had been sloppy and had mostly been achieved through a series of luck and the fact that she had more of a lead with that then she did with this situation.
That thought was the only thing keeping her rooted here, to these side by side offices. Wanting to do things right, wanting to make sure she got Jake back instead of just keeping busy at things that might or might not get him back.
Since she had to wait anyway, she had time to observe what was polite this time. So instead of barging in, she knocked on Harry’s door and waited for him to answer.
----
It took a moment, but Harry finally got to the door and opened it, leaning against the wall beside it. The temperature in the office had dropped several degrees, and there was ice on the windows, clinging to the sleeves of Harry’s duster, and in a circle on the wooden floor.
“Better stand outside for a minute,” he said, stepping out the door and shutting it behind him. “It’s a little cold in there.”
He still shivered a bit, tucking his hands into his pockets to warm them against the kittens still sleeping within. “Had to call in a favor. I might be able to get something with the blood, if it comes through.”
Harry reached for Dinah’s hand. “What did Fred say?”
---
Dinah took the offered hand clasped it with both of hers, attempting to warm up the icy skin. She met Harry’s eyes for a moment, registering what the cold and ‘calling in a favor’ must have meant.
“She’s going to try. She just needs to get dressed and she’ll be right over.”
Standing still was not helping in keeping her emotions in check. Dinah’s voice shook slightly on the last few words.
“The Joker was poking around the flower shop a few weeks ago. I didn’t recognize him until it was too late. I think he heard me talking to Jake. If he’s involved...” she sighed and looked down. “He got me once. Years ago. He’s only gotten more violent and unpredictable since then.”
She looked up at him again.
“But the hyenas belong to Harley. It’s possible she’s working on her own. Not that I want her to have him either, but... Harley might go easy on him because he’s a kid.”
----
Harry squeezed her hand. “We’ll find him, Dinah. No matter what, we’ll get him back.” He wrapped his other arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. He could feel her emotions, tense, nearly making her tremble with the intensity of them. He remembered Charity, when Molly had been abducted into Faerie, and shut his eyes briefly. There was nothing in the world more fierce than a mother trying to protect her child.
“I promise, I’ll do everything in my power to help you.”
-----
Dinah leaned against Harry for just the moment, taking solace in his presence. She nodded against him.
“I know you will,” she whispered.
She did know. If it was anyone but Jake, she would have told him unequivocally not to make any dangerous deals with the faeries, not to put himself at risk. Instead, she settled for just asking. She didn’t have the energy to argue against something that might help.
And at the moment, she was willing to make absolutely any personal sacrifice she could to get him back safely. That didn’t mean she wanted Harry to do the same, but she wasn’t up to being hypocritical and talking anyone out of something that might help Jake.
“Just... be careful, okay? Please.”
She could only hope that they’d find him in time, before whatever Harley had planned got really nasty.
It was Harley, she decided. Harley, acting alone. It had to be.
----
Harry knew what she was asking, and what she wasn’t. He’d known it himself, when Maggie had been taken. The rest of the world could go burn, so long as he would have Maggie with him to roast marshmallows in the flames.
“Careful as ever,” he murmured into her ear. He was more than willing to go through the fire in order to get Dinah’s son back to her.
---
“Somehow that doesn’t make me feel better,” Dinah said with a joyless laugh.
She pulled back and looked up at Harry, holding his gaze. She squeezed his arm lightly.
“This isn’t gift of the magi here. I need you both safe.”
----
Fred came out in time to catch them getting close. She nearly stepped back inside to give them a moment, but there really wasn’t time to spare her own feelings. She’d more or less accepted this, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t a little jealous. Just a tiny bit. Always the bridesmaid never the bride, or more always the human cow never the sacrificial princess.
The brainy female gave a soft cough to let them know they weren’t alone anymore. “So, computers? What exactly do you know? What evidence did you have? Do we need to take pictures? Maybe we can plot a trajectory, figure out possibly where they went next? Which isn’t going to be easy, but if I have the number crunching power, might be able to figure out something.” Fred gave the pair her most reassuring smile. No sign of the jealous self-pitying.
“Also, did you know I think there’s a talking cat whose name is Jake?” As if now was the right time for sort of random trivia.
---
Dinah took a step away from Harry and focused on Fred and the barrage of questions. She ignored the trivia, not really concerned with the idea of a talking cat at the moment.
“I know where he was taken. I think there might have been an ATM across the street, which would mean there’s a chance Oracle’s computer could tap into the security camera footage so we can confirm what happened. So far, the only evidence I found was one of Jake’s plates-his defensive weapons-covered in blood. There were also hyena footprints, which I think means that Harley Quinn was responsible for taking him. I’m hoping we can confirm that and perhaps search through the City’s news archives for any mention of Harley that might lead to her whereabouts.”
She glanced over at Harry apologetically.
“Unfortunately, I think it’s best if you look into your resources while I show Fred the computers.”
It was a bit of a sore spot for Dinah, having to tell her boyfriend that he couldn’t visit her apartment. But she couldn’t take chances with Oracle’s computers. Not with how strongly Harry tended to affect technology.
----
Harry nodded. “Good idea. The way I’m feeling right now, I don’t think any computers would survive me.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll be in the lab for a while, so I’ll call you if I get any information.”
It was a way to let her know he wouldn’t be available by phone for a while, and would likely be doing some highly sensitive magic and thus unable to answer a phone if need be.
“If you need me, come to the house. Mouse can get me if there’s trouble.”
------
Fred felt a little for Harry and Dinah; she didn’t know that Dinah lived so close to the computers, but she did know what Harry could do to some really nice equipment - pop flash bang didn’t seem to be the right word for it. She’d never seem him blow out a fuse, but she could guess. If he packed power like he said he did.
“You could show me where it is, and get me in, and I can work alone. I do alone work rather well.” See, she was trying to be nice. “Oh! Can we take Mouse?!?” Fred did like the horse dog. He was a good big dog, the kind that Fred would have love to have. Maybe.
“I bet he’d behave. Right?” She looked between the two of them. “Not that this is a time to walk a dog or anything. Sorry.”
----
While Dinah could understand Fred’s enthusiasm for Mouse-because really, how could anyone not love Mouse?-she really didn’t want to take any more detours, even to pick up Harry’s dog.
“Um. Maybe we could get to work and I could swing by Harry’s and pick up Mouse a little later?” Dinah offered. “I’d feel better if we could get things started first though.”
She gave Fred an apologetic, if forced, smile. She didn’t want to sound ungrateful, but every minute they spent not looking for answers was a minute longer that Jake was in Harley’s hands. Or worse.
But she wasn’t going to think about the worse option, she reminded herself.
Instead, she was going to show Fred the Clock Tower, get dressed for some recon work of her own, and go looking for answers.
----
Harry gave Fred an apologetic smile. “I’m gonna need him first, for a bit. And to watch my back while I’m working the lab. But definitely come by when you two find anything.”
He gave Fred a hug with a friendly kiss on the cheek, then Dinah got a stronger hug and a kiss on the lips. “We’ll get him, D. We will.” Then he squeezed her hand and headed to the Blue Beetle, mentally going through his plans.
---
Fred shrugged, knowing that it was a silly thing to want a pup along, but the big guy was rather comforting in an odd way. He didn’t seem to mind the babble, and he actually listened. Not that other people didn’t, but it was different with the beast of a dog.
She wasn’t expecting the hug, nor the kiss on the cheek. So, Harry didn’t get much of one back. All she could really do was blink, then turn her head when the two champions kissed. It seemed like the thing to do.
“Well, to the computers.” She took a step then paused. “How are we getting here?”
----
“My car is this way,” Dinah said, with a gesture to the new car.
She led Fred over to where it was parked and got in. Once they were both settled in the car, she pulled out of the parking spot and headed in the direction of the Clock Tower. Remembering Fred’s confusion from before, she decided that now would be a good time to explain the situation with Jake.
“Jake was Barbara’s adopted son, back when she was in the City. Then... something happened. I’m not sure why or how, but he fell asleep and went somewhere. When he woke up back in the City, he didn’t realize how much time had passed. Or that Barbara-and everyone else he knew and cared about-was gone.”
She frowned at the memory. It still hurt to think about waking up as he had, with everything changed around him.
“So, he got stuck with me,” she continued. “He’s a really good kid. Sweet, kind. Talented. He came from a rough world and sometimes talking to him is like talking to someone three times his age. But there are times when you see that glimmer of... well, it’s like he’s been through so much and in some ways it hasn’t affected him like it would others.” She sighed, trying not to think about where he was now. “I would have adopted him myself, but I didn’t want to dissolve Barbara’s adoption. I mean, just in case she came back here. I know he misses her.”
For that matter, Dinah missed Barbara too. But that thought was left hanging in the silence, unexpressed but almost tangible all the same.
----
“I’m sure you both miss her. She is Oracle. I think that’s what Cassie called her. It’s Cassie, or Cassandra? I get that sort of thing mixed up. I only knew Batgirl, Commissioner Gordon’s niece, daughter, some sort of relation.” Fred settled in and watched the buildings go by.
“Who do you think to him? Jake? Did you get pictures of the scene? Do you think it’s someone you know, or someone he knows, or someone you both know, which would mean it’s someone you met in the City, or you both met in the City, which means it’s probably someone new. Or maybe it’s not someone he knew, but...” Fred slowed down and looked at Dinah. “You’re not alone. That’s the main thing. You’re not working this alone, and he knows that he’s not alone. Being alone is very scary.” Fred was speaking from experience.
“I’m sure he knows that you’re looking for him, and you’ll do anything you can to get him back.” Fred smiled reassuringly, and she wasn’t that bad at it. She was good for smiles, most times, many times.
----
“It’s Cass. She goes by Cass, usually,” Dinah answered. “And Barbara was Jim’s niece by blood, but he adopted her as his daughter. I suppose it’s good she’s still back home, because I’m not sure how he would do if she just up and disappeared.”
For once that day, the City streets were cooperating and she pulled onto the street with the Clock Tower.
“Like I said before, the hyenas make me think it was Harley, but I’m hoping we can confirm that with that ATM security camera footage. I didn’t have a camera with me to take pictures of the scene, but when I go out, I can take one and bring pictures back to you.”
Dinah returned Fred’s reassuring smile with a grateful one of her own. She pulled the car into the parking lot and then looked over at Fred.
“Thank you, Fred. For helping. You’re right-it’s good to not be alone in this.”
----
“Cass. Right. She was nice. Never had a taco. I felt bad for her. Everyone should have a taco.” Nothing like going off on a tangent, but she was good at that. Her mind was still on the issue at hand; Dinah didn’t need to worry about that. She turned her attention fully on Dinah, listening. There was a little nod at the hyenas, not that Fred knew how Dinah knew that exactly, but she wasn’t going to be rude about it.
“Pictures are good, but the scene is probably compromised. I learned that from watching tv. I’ve never really worked a crime scene.” Fred shrugged. “Do they still say that? The City’s odd about what I can and can’t have. But, it doesn’t seem to mind my working on computers that aren’t mine. Just not sure how long whatever I do to them will work. I want you to know I’ll do whatever I can for as long as I can. I know that’s not very reassuring, but the City is odd. Which is an understatement you’ve probably come to realize.”
Fred waited for Dinah to get out before she followed suit. “I’ll do my best.”
----
Dinah nodded.
“I understand. I mean, not necessarily about the City and how it works, but I understand if there’s not a whole lot you can do. Whatever help you can give...”
She led Fred up to the Clock Tower apartment. Once there, she pressed her hand against the panel and waited for the handprint scan to register before speaking into the voice recognition. Once the elevator doors opened, Dinah stepped in and beckoned for Fred to follow.
She looked over at Fred as the elevator rose.
“Harley Quinn is Joker’s girlfriend. Not sure how much you’ve read or if you’ve heard of him, but he’s the most twisted, evil, criminal I’ve met. There’s a chance that you helping me could set you in his sights. If that happens, I’ll do whatever I can to protect you. But...” she gestured helplessly, as if referring to the current situation at hand, and her failure to protect Jake.
“I’m hoping it’s just Harley, acting on her own. She’s been known to do that sometimes. But if you don’t want to take the risk, I wouldn’t blame you at all. Just say the word-at any point during this-and I’ll take you right back home.”
She looked at the doors as the elevator dinged and they swung open to reveal the room lined with computers. The City must have kept the technology up to date, not that Dinah would have known the difference. She still couldn’t tell a Mac from a PC, let alone the cutting edge tech of the current year from the cutting edge tech from a decade ago.
She waited for Fred to respond, not wanting to push the other woman into anything and worrying that maybe she should have given the warning and the opt-out choice before she took Fred all the way up here.