Batman (Nolan-verse) fanfiction.
Summary: Crime is universal. Alex leaves one hellhole for another and hopes that a change of address is enough to hold them off. No particular timeframe but closer to BB than TDK. (Batman/OFC)
A/N: Wow, I am so sorry. Words cannot adequately convey how sorry I am for taking so long with this, and unfortunately I have to admit I lost my muse in addition to succumbing to the busy demands of real life. However, I really wanted to get this out and didn't want to let you guys down with an unfinished story. So here it is, and this is the final chapter.

GHOST TOWN

Chapter 20

In hindsight, it was really something he should have expected.

Alex contacted Darwin's brother on the Sunday. By Tuesday, Darwin was missing.

Bruce made a genuine attempt to track the escapee, getting as far as pinpointing the Greyhound bus out of Gotham that had taken Darwin to Pennsylvania at the very least, but the trail quickly cooled after that. Moreover, as much as he disliked admitting it, a part of him simply wasn't that keen on pursuing, for Alex's sake. She never mentioned it, of course, never once asked him not to do his job, but he could sense that if the preference were available, she'd rather not see Darwin behind bars. No doubt Darwin was also being extra careful to avoid another round with Batman; consequently, he still remained at large.

Two weeks later, news coverage of the jail break has dropped to a minimum. Wanted posters still dot the streets on the occasional telegraph pole, and miscellaneous short articles about Gotham Museum serve as filler in newsprint, but for the most part, Darwin Somerset has moved on in the public psyche as fresher scandals take his place. The latest report on corruption in the DA's office blares loudly from one of the television sets in the Batcave, running like white noise to him while he studies a sewer diagram for the Narrows district. He has his back to the screen. He doesn't watch Harvey Dent announce to the press his resolve to find the mob informant. He doesn't watch Commissioner Loeb make a statement as to doubling police efforts in the crackdown on Maroni and his men. He doesn't have to. Same old routine.

He also doesn't see the slow-moving shadow that passes down the roughly hewn stairs behind him inside the cave. But he hears it.

It's Alex. He'd recognise the sound of her steps anywhere.

"Hey," she says softly from about a foot away.

He turns around. She's dressed in a casual sweater and jeans, her fingers picking idly at the hem of her sleeve. "Is everything OK?" He doesn't like the nervousness in her eyes, isn't even sure why it's there.

"Yeah, everything's fine," she nods but the way she's looking at him doesn't change. She takes a deep breath and he waits for her to continue; her next words come out in a rush. "You're not mad at me, are you?"

The question takes him aback and he can only stare at her with wide-eyed confusion. Where did she get the idea that he was mad at her? "What?"

Alex's expression somehow gets more skittish and she starts wringing her hands in the face of his scrutiny. "Well, I just thought... I kind of thought that -- with the way the whole Darwin thing turned out, you might..." She throws her hands to her side helplessly. "I thought you might feel like I compromise you, or something."

He finally gets it. "No," he shakes his head in an attempt at reassurance and cups his palm against her cheek. "I'm sorry if I've been distant." He feels her lean into his touch, looking up at him with hope and uncertainty swimming in her eyes. "I don't feel that way," he clarifies. "It is something I'm aware of... I know he was your friend, but I didn't purposely let him go. And if I had been able to -- if it came down to it -- I would have caught him and handed him back to the police." He drops his hand and half-turns back to the maps on the table. "Still, it did cross my mind."

"Letting him get away?"

"Not exactly. Just the thought -- that maybe, you wouldn't have wanted me to catch him." He glances at her. Her mouth opens in protest but he continues before she can get a word in. "I know, it's OK, I know you're a fair person and you would have wanted him to face up to his crimes. That's our rational side," he smiles wanly. "But deep down, there are these ties. We all have them. Conflicts of interest, you know."

Alex swallows. Maybe he was right. Deep down, she wouldn't have wanted Darwin caught.

He spreads his hands and lifts his voice a little to change the mood. "So, I've just been busy lately with a suspected kidnapping scheme that's --"

"Bruce," she interrupts him quietly, "am I a conflict of interest?"

He can't answer for a moment, even as the answer already comes to him.

"I don't mean I'll be joining the mob or anything," she goes on, "but if, for whatever reason, the situation arises..."

"Yes. You would be a conflict of interest." He sits down on the edge of the table and gathers her hands into his own. He looks up at her earnestly. "And I'd choose you. Even at the expense of a greater cause -- it's a risk I'm willing to accept. A man isn't an island. I know I work alone for the most part, but there will always be people I'd do anything for. I'd do the same for Alfred. Rachel. Lucius."

Alex nods again, dropping her eyes. Relief, perhaps? Happiness? Gratitude? He can't tell.

"I'm not terribly useful to you," she grins without much humour.

"You keep me sane," he replies firmly. "It's a commendable feat. And," he continues gently, "I'm happiest when I'm with you."

Her face brightens notably. The tiny downturn of her eyes freshens out and the curve of her smile lifts wider. He's surprised by how much it affects him.

"So am I. With you." She leans forward and kisses him chastely on the lips. "Bruce," she starts off hesitantly, "this probably isn't the best timing but..."

He quirks an eyebrow.

"I was kind of thinking of resigning."

He stares at her. It's possibly the last thing he expected to hear and takes almost a full minute for him to process. "Sick of me already?" His tone is kept light, in jest, but fails to keep down a shadow of self-doubt.

"No, silly. I meant I want to take up teaching again. I miss it. You know, having a pack of brats to rule over and discipline with an iron fist," she smiles wryly. "I'm not going to be a secretary forever."

"I guess not." He acknowledges that this is an outcome he'd contemplated, though one he'd never really delved into. Of course, she wouldn't want to be stuck in a secretarial position when it wasn't the career path she'd chosen. It wasn't personal, not really. It's ridiculous for him to feel as though she's leaving.

"It's not like I'm leaving."

That's right. It suddenly dawns on him in a burst of energy. "Then stay. Here, at the Manor."

"You mean...?"

"Yes. It's the least you can do, if I'm not going to see you at the office anymore," he cajoles. He's gotten used to seeing her every day that he doesn't want it to come to an end. He realises he has an even stronger desire to see her on his pillow every morning. Curled up with a book by his fireplace. Taking strolls in his garden. It's a vision he can't let go. "Come on, you're not that attached to your apartment, are you?"

"No, I mean, it's just... I wouldn't be imposing at all?"

He can scarcely believe she still sounds so uncertain. "Imposing? Alex, please. I want you to impose. Alfred would love the extra company in the house."

Alex laughs, and in that moment, anything Bruce had been doing earlier is forgotten completely as he's captivated by the sound. "Sounds great, then." She wraps her arms around him in a hug, laying her head on his shoulder. "I love you, Bruce."

It's whispered out, barely audible, and he thinks for a second he imagined it. But it lingers in his ear the way phantom words never can, and a lump rises in his throat.

She glances up at him, hopeful and scared at the same time. He smiles back.

"I love you, Alex."

He knows what it is now.

THE END

Massive A/N: That's all folks and thank you for reading! I apologise if this chapter isn't up to the same standards as my other chapters, but I hope it brings closure (to you, as well as me).

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Batman belongs to DC Comics/Warner Brothers and was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. Batman Begins and The Dark Knight were born of the creative minds of Christopher Nolan and Co.

Characters -- you'll know the ones from the movie-verse.

Originals: Alex Reilly, Evelyn Van Patten, Robert & Antonio Yakavetta, Bianca Middleton, Natalya Milicevic, Chloe Lockhart-Graham, Darwin Somerset.

Plot -- Alex's background incorporates aspects of The Boondock Saints. The Yakavetta mafia belongs to that world but I've spawned Robert & Antonio for the purposes of this story. The Saints have also been borrowed for their history.

Below is the list of references featured in this story. I have actually been dropping them quite liberally in parts, but some are obscure.

1. Evelyn / Van Patten - American Psycho
2. [ch1] "I have a lunch meeting [with Cliff Huxtable] at the Four Seasons in twenty minutes" - American Psycho
3. [ch2] Stark Industries - Iron Man
4. [ch2] Valentino suits - American Psycho
5. Yakavetta / The Saints - The Boondock Saints
6. [ch3/4] West 81st Street / 11th floor - American Psycho
7. [ch4] Dorsia / squid ravioli - American Psycho
8. [ch6] "protected from up on high by the prince of darkness" / Kint - The Usual Suspects
9. [ch7] Caldlow - The Prestige
10. [ch7] "[I'm] sorry for a lot of things" - The Prestige
11. [ch8] "There's no coke!" - The Usual Suspects
12. [ch9] Pierce & Pierce - American Psycho
13. [ch9] "[Jean,] would you like to accompany me to dinner? That is, if you're not doing anything" - American Psycho
14. [ch9] Barcadia / red snapper - American Psycho
15. [ch9] "what's wrong with that? It's totally disease-free" - American Psycho
16. [ch13] Detective Greenly - The Boondock Saints
17. [ch13] "there is an idea of a [Patrick Bateman]" - American Psycho
18. [ch16] Phil Collins - American Psycho
19. [ch16] "well, actually, that's none of your business" - American Psycho
20. [ch16] "that's fabulous, that's rich" - American Psycho
21. [ch16] "beehive of activity" - American Psycho
22. [ch18] Pastels / best pizza according to Donald Trump - American Psycho (book)
23. [ch18] "ruined [my] girlish figure in one fell swoop" - The Boondock Saints (deleted scene)
24. [ch18] "your friends are my friends, and my friends are your friends" - American Psycho
24. [ch19] "that's the way of the world" - Smokin' Aces

Yeah, there's definitely an excessive amount of American Psycho in there. What can I say, it's such a quotable movie/book! A personal favourite.

Author's Blueprints:
(AKA my intentions for this story)

This was, ultimately, a story about Batman getting the girl. Not Bruce Wayne, charming though he is, but the Bat. I'm following from the notion that Batman is a truer reflection of his character (as expressed by Rachel at the end of Batman Begins where she says "Bruce Wayne" is his mask) and therefore, found it more fitting for the romance to flow from this route -- girl comes to fall in love with who he is as the Dark Knight, while rebuffing the public persona of Bruce Wayne (at the start, anyway).

Thank you readers!

I wouldn't have had the motivation to finish this without you guys. Thank you all for the kind and supportive words; your reviews are very much treasured.