Authors Note: I apologize that this fiction is so poorly written. I'm sort of lost with it. I know what I want to happen, and I know how to get there … it's just boring to write at times. I want to finish it though, so I'll trudge onward. I do apologize though, for this poor chapter. It's badly written and badly thought through.

Ghosts in the Closet

By: The BatThing

Chapter Fifteen:

Tim wiped a hand across his forehead, watching Dick a few feet down the hall. He waited for a few seconds till his older brother gave him the signal, and then – he took off. The two ran down the hall in silence, not even the sound of their footsteps could be heard, pattering against the stone.

They came to a new hall and both pressed against the wall. Nobody was around – nobody was anywhere. No doubt Sigmund Hedda knew that they had escaped, and there was little doubt that he was unprepared. The man that had caught the Batman was going to be hard to bring down.

That was for sure.

"Contact Barbara?" Tim whispered.

"What's the point? Don't know where we are." Dick answered, glancing at Tim and then back down the hall. "Come on."

The two started their run again, doing their best to find an exit, find someone – right now anything would be good.

"Where the shit is everybody?" Dick said a few moments later as they came to a dead end. Both exchanged glances, neither unsure what to do right now. "Bruce said … he said to find a way out and get help. Fuck that."

"We're going to save him first, right."

Dick nodded, frowning a bit. "Well, that was my original plan – but right now I'm sort of … lost."

"Lost." Tim said aloud, glancing across the empty hall. "They probably have camera's here."

"Probably."

"So they can see what we're doing and hear what we're saying."

"Figured as much." Dick gave a rough laugh and smiled at Tim out of the blue. "Lets go, we'll figure something out. They can't just leave us here to roam the halls forever. Sooner or later, something will have to happen."

Tim didn't much care for the plan, but ok. Dick would make sure things went ok, after all – it was Dick.

"Escaped?" The Joker didn't look amused. For a few second she stood there, looking like he was considering killing Sigmund, but then clicked his fingers together and started to laugh. "Siggy, Siggy, you're in over your head, aren't you?"

Two-Face ignored what the clown was saying and leaned against the wall, looking far from worried about the situation. If he was mad, it didn't show. "Why are you telling us? You want to die?"

Sigmund had no desire for any of that. If he was going to die he knew better than to let it be at the hands of mad men. Clearing his throat and running a hand across his chest, he shook his head. "I was hoping to have your … assistance."

"You tell us to come here and now you want us to work for you? Haha! Sigmund my friend, you are insane." Joker waggled his finger in the air, his smile as wide as it could be. "I'm thinking maybe rope. Or wait – unoriginal. Harv already pulled that one! Haha!"

"The two boys – Nightwing and Robin, as you know them – they're currently running about, lost and trapped. If you were to … if you were to greet them. My guard can show you where to go."

Harvey Dent flipped his coin, catching it and casting his eyesight to see what it said. The Joker was looking too, giggling a bit as he did so. "You have guards."

"This is an offer." Sigmund explained. "My guards can … well." He didn't appear as nervous as he should be. "The boys figured out my weakness."

"Shouldn't have a weakness, Siggy. I don't!" Joker put a hand on Two-Face's shoulder and gave an evil grin. "I saw what the coin said, Harv. I saw it, I saw it!"

"Shut up, clown."

"So are we going?"

Harvey glared.

"Boss?" A guard watched as Two-Face and Joker went on past, down a hall, as if leaving. He looked at his employer, Sigmund, and wondered what was going on. After all, from the looks of things – everything was going down the drain. Which was good. He wanted things to flop, sick of being blackmailed with his wife and mother, sick of working for this mad man.

"Is Karl awake yet?"

"No."

"Then I'll make the calls." Sigmund smiled at the guard and pointed after the two insane criminals headed down the hall. "Get a group of men; send them to kill those two. Tell them to wait till they have caught the boys, and then send them in."

"D-dead? But what about the money?"

Sigmund gave another smile and shrugged. "Karl was an idiot; I'm taking care of things from now on. I have a feeling that Two-Face or the Joker doesn't have any intention of giving me the money once they have what they want." He smiled as he watched the guard move away and clasped his hands together. This was good. He'd be known all across Gotham City after this. He'd bring down the Batman, Nightwing, Robin, Two-Face, and the Joker. This was good.

"Damn! Damn!" Dick gave the wall a kick and shook his head. "They're screwing with us. Somehow they managed to trap us in here. We're just as good as we were in the cell." He glanced up to the ceiling and cursed again. "I know we've been here before."

"But how? Why can't we just go back the way we came?"

Dick was pressing against a wall, as if expecting to find a door. He shrugged his shoulders. "You tell me where we came in and we'll do just that. Fuck. Bruce is going to be so pissed when he finds out that we've …"

Tim looked away, trying to retrace his steps in his mind. They had run around so much – but still. That shouldn't keep them from finding the way they had come in, or at least an exit. This was a trap, and he had a feeling Dick knew that as well as he did. "You think Bruce is ok?"

"He's Batman, he'll be fine." Dick didn't sound so sure.

"Oh boooys!"

The two froze at the voice that echoed across the hall, bouncing off the walls, vibrating it seemed. They didn't look at each other, but both knew whose voice that was. They both knew what it meant.

"Nighty-Night! Where'd you go off to? Your boss is going to be ticked when he finds out that you've been running in circles rather than saving the day! I thought he trained you better!!"

Tim took a step back and finally looked to his older brother. "We should hide?"

Dick shook his head. "No. We're going to finish this. It's the opening we've been waiting for. Let's go."

"Buh-but." Tim didn't finish, he slowly nodded against his better judgment.

When Karl awoke he was disoriented, lost and confused. What was going on, and where was he? Slowly sitting up he was surprised to find Bruce Wayne collapsed against the floor a few feet away.

Oh god no! What was he doing here? What was he doing in the cell with the man he was trying to kill? With the man whose children he had attempted to sell off to insane criminals? Backing away slowly, Karl glanced around, expecting to see a guard. There was none.

Not a single person to help him out.

Grinding his teeth together he grasped the bars and glared into the empty space. "Damn you Sigmund, damn you to hell!"

The billionaire behind him stirred a bit, but nothing more. It was enough to scare the man locked in the cell though. He cast a careful eye on the figure and pressed against the bars, wondering how much of the tranquilizer the unmasked Dark Knight had received. Hopefully enough to keep him out till Karl could figure a way to escape.

Wishful thinking.

If Batman couldn't escape this place then how could he?

Planting himself on the floor, Karl put a hand to his face, thinking about the events, thinking about his life. What was he doing here? What had he been thinking? Revenge on the Batman?

Revenge on the Batman.

Kill him.

"I can't." Karl whispered. "I'm not brave enough, that's why I – that's why I hired Sigmund. He was supposed to take care of this whole thing."

Shouldn't have trusted anyone but yourself.

"I realize that now. Damn."

To be continued …