The Batman

It didn't make sense.

No matter how much he looked at it, the recent situation in Gotham, all the moving pieces and the various outcomes, none of it added up. There were still so many unanswered questions, so many things hidden by the shadows of the night that even he did not know. He looked, he searched, he tore apart the city for answers and still, nothing.

There was something dangerous lurking within the False Face Society.

Something more dangerous than Black Mask.

That alone put him on edge.

Roman Sionis had been dangerous, very dangerous. He had taken over from his father Richard and made a mark that put him on the map instantly. Then over the course of the years, Roman did on numerous occasions what no crime lord in Gotham had ever accomplished, ruled Gotham City in its totality.

Just doing so once would have made Black Mask one of the most cunning and dangerous men in Gotham, but he had done so on a number of occasions. Every time he tore him from his position of power, Roman always came back stronger than ever. A common thing really for the criminals of Gotham, is they never stayed down for long.

But, Roman had been defeated, outsmarted and outmanoeuvred by a new Black Mask. He should have been even more cunning and dangerous than his predecessor, that was how it went in Gotham. The strong devoured the weak, and so, many, including himself had watched the False Face Society closely. They had all waited to see how the new Black Mask would act and he responded in a way that many expected.

After his seamless takeover of the False Face Society and implementation of new lieutenants, Black Mask went to work in stabilising his various establishments and companies. But then the Street Demonz struck and he had not expected them to do much, no one had.

Except, that's exactly what they did.

They destabilised the False Face Society with inside information and left the False Face Society weakened. As he said, the strong devoured the weak in Gotham and the moment the False Face Society showed weakness, rival crime lords capitalised upon this instantly. Yet, Black Mask did not show the previous cunning and intelligence that had allowed him to outsmart his predecessor.

That alone was something that caught his and no doubt, many others' attention.

Certainly, the new Black Mask's success over Roman could be purely attributed to careful planning and patience. But an intelligent mind was required to take advantage of all those opportunities and to lay the groundwork for such a smooth takeover. A mind that would have been able to come up with solutions necessary to fight off rival competitors despite being caught off-guard.

Something that was proven with how quickly the Street Demonz and the traitor, White Mask were dealt with.

Quick and efficient, just like how Roman Sionis was dealt with.

It was clear to him that Black Mask was not the real brains behind the operations and perhaps, was nothing more than just a figurehead. Not an impossibility, guys like Carmine Falcone had assassins coming after them constantly, no one knew about it because his security had become one of the best in the world as a result of these constant attacks.

Didn't stop rivals from planting car bombs, sending out hitmen, hiring mercenaries and bribing staff to poison him every day.

Carmine was too public of a figure to just slink away, but Black Mask was in a unique situation to be able to do just that. It was in his opinion, highly likely that the Black Mask everyone thought was in charge, was just a figurehead put in place to take the target off the back of the real one.

That individual being the young teen he was looking at now as he was escorted into a police car.

"Names Jacob, no known last name," Robin spoke over the radio from his position in the Batcave. "Age seventeen should be serving a life sentence in prison for seven counts of murder when he was fifteen. Only, when arrested, he never turned up to the police and just disappeared off the face of the earth. Turns out, of those seven students he killed, one was actually a peddler for Black Mask, reportedly."

Batman hummed. "So, he was picked up by Black Mask and recruited to become his accountant. Someone the new Black Mask kept on." That in of itself was unusual, usually new crime lords like to really clean house after a hostile takeover, getting rid of old accountants that they couldn't trust and the like. Which meant Jacob was valuable enough for the new Black Mask to keep around. 'Or he is the new Black Mask.'

"He got top grades in all his classes, a certified genius from the looks of things." Robin continued to list off the details on the reports, knowing exactly what Batman would want to hear. "But, his medical records are extensive. The guy shouldn't have survived to see his first birthday due to numerous medical conditions. The number of surgeries he has undergone has left his body basically crippled."

'Leaving him to rely only upon developing his mind.' Batman deduced, some of the pieces starting to fall into place. He had no definitive proof right now, but he was certain that the person behind the success of the False Face Society was this Jacob.

The time in which he joined the False Face Society was before the fall of the False Face Society, long enough for someone of his intelligence to lay the groundwork to takeover. Possessing a fragile body, he would also need someone to take the brunt of the danger, hence a body double to stand in as the figurehead of the False Face Society while he ran things from behind the scenes.

But also, he was born and raised in Gotham.

Gotham didn't make many upstanding citizens, especially not those born in the East End and eventually, everyone became corrupted by the evil that lurked in every corner of the city. Even he could not deny that he struggled endlessly to stop himself, he had already stared too long into the abyss and he could feel its gaze upon him at all times.

There was no escape for him.

But his circumstances were different to Jacob's, Batman had no doubt that he was the real brains behind the False Face Society and he would not stop till he found the proof he needed. In the meantime, he would watch the upcoming trial and continue his search into the False Face Society to find all the proof he needed.

Jacob may have turned himself in, claiming to want to help bring down the False Face Society, but Batman didn't buy it for a second. Except, he could not deny that it was an intelligent move.

The Street Demonz attack and the current predicament that the False Face Society was in left it weakened and in serious trouble. Many members of it were seemingly coming out of the woodwork and willing to work with the police, knowing full well that they'd be picked up by other crime lords for the information they had.

Jacob was just another name on the list, another drop in the ocean.

But a drop that Batman would not let out of his sight.

"What of his family?" Batman questioned.

"Pretty standard for someone of the East End," Robin replied. "Father, one of many prospects. Mother a prostitute that died six years ago, beaten to death by one of her clients that liked to get rough..."

"And?"

Robin sighed. "And the police reports say that a child witnessed it all from a cupboard in the same room."