Chapter 78: Trails of Gotham Part 2

After answering the few short questions Vicki Vale had for him, Arias and the group left the airport. However, he didn't immediately return to his residential building. Instead, he took a separate vehicle with Slade driving and went in another direction—towards Gotham PD headquarters.

Upon arriving there, he was at least pleased that no media personnel were around, so he could casually walk out and head into the building. His destination? The commissioner's office.

He was escorted there without a fuss by one of the officers, who, of course, had a very positive opinion of Arias and even asked for a photo as if he were a celebrity.

Arias entertained the compliments and praise he was receiving from the various people present in the building until he arrived at Gordon's office, where the officer escorting him announced his presence before opening the door.

"Commissioner, you have a visitor," he said while opening the door and coming through with Arias in tow.

Gordon was currently facing one of the storage cases, rummaging through what seemed to be files. But he wasn't alone in the office, because seated in a guest chair not far from him, Barbara, his daughter, was the first to turn towards the officer and Arias.

She showed a complex look when she saw Arias but said nothing and quickly glanced away, looking in her father's direction. Gordon had yet to notice who the guest was, so he spoke while keeping his gaze and focus on what he was doing.

"I already told you, Martinez, I'm off today. I just need to collect a few things. Can't it wait until Monday?" Gordon asked while sighing in a somewhat tired manner.

Before the officer could enlighten Gordon on who his guest was, Arias decided to speak up first. "If I came at a bad time, we can indeed speak another day."

Gordon could recognize Arias's unique accent immediately. He quickly turned around and stopped rummaging through drawers, smiling awkwardly.

"Oh? It's you. Never mind, then. Thank you, Martinez, you can excuse us. Ah, Barbara, dear, can I find you in the lounge or car?" He cleared his throat and gestured for Arias to take the seat Barbara had occupied.

Officer Martinez gave a nod and left, and while Barbara was about to do the same, Arias shook his head while showing a small smile. "No need, I don't need much of your time. I only wanted to drop off these documents regarding Wonder Woman since I wanted her to be a part of Gotham's special task force."

Arias walked over and stood to Barbara's right-hand side before dropping off a medium-sized folder on the table. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye but still said nothing.

'What do I say…' she asked herself while clenching her fists nervously. She didn't understand why she suddenly felt anxious around him.

She wondered whether it was due to him knowing her secret or just the fact that he was right about so many things she had denied. She had no idea where things stood between them, so much so that she couldn't even contact him.

It was better pretending like nothing happened, but over the past days, it became hard to ignore his presence. Be it on social media, television, or even her father and friends, Arias was always a topic of interest. And whenever he was brought up, she would feel incredibly strange and uncomfortable.

Ignorant of his daughter's thoughts and troubles, Jim smiled at Arias and collected the folder, nodding. "You're just full of surprises. Well, I'll make sure everything is processed as quickly as possible. I don't know much about her, but I'll trust your judgment."

Without even realizing it himself, Jim had developed some trust towards Arias and his actions. Before, the task force was only agreed upon due to the support from the late mayor and other departments of Gotham that Arias manipulated in his favor.

This time, though, Jim was willing to trust Arias's choice on what could be considered a major change for Gotham.

Arias was very much aware of the change in attitude Jim now had towards him. Because of this, Arias could confidently say that Gotham was partially under his control.

Why partially? Because Bruce Wayne was still a very big threat to what he was building, especially after discovering his identity. Aside from Bruce, Lex Luthor was also clearly trying to establish himself in Gotham. Now that Arias had shown he wasn't easy to deal with, Lex would be cautious towards him.

For Gotham to be fully his, he needed to deal with those two individuals. And he already had an idea of how to get to one of them.

"Actually, there was something else. Remember Catwoman? I heard her trial date was pushed far forward due to the many cases Gotham already has on its plate. This made me think, why not include her as well in the task force, on a probationary basis? From what I know, her crimes are mostly theft and smuggling, something she can pay back towards the city by working in the force, like Harley. What do you think?"

Gordon closed the folder he was reading and scratched his chin in thought. He couldn't really think of any negatives besides the possibility of her trying to escape. But in his mind, Harley was a far more dangerous person, and yet Arias had her under control.

"I don't see why not. She's been denied bail so far, and she was scheduled to be transported to a correctional facility until a trial date could be made for her. See Officer Martinez again; he can take you to her. If she agrees, then I'll handle the paperwork on Monday."

Arias nodded approvingly while showing a reserved expression, as if he were doing Gordon a favor. "That works for me."

Having reached a conclusion, Gordon realized that he was so engrossed in the conversation that he forgot to introduce Barbara.

"Oh, where are my manners? This is my daughter Barbara; I'm sure I don't need to say who you are to her."

The introduction was brief, and Arias went along with it while giving Barbara a glance. "Pleasure to meet you, young lady. Well, I'll be on my way, Commissioner." Despite the minor age gap between the two, Arias spoke formally because he didn't want Gordon getting any worries.

He knew that Barbara was precious to him, so Arias needed to be careful about how he handled the dynamic. With Wonder Woman now in his grasp, he didn't really see the need for Barbara anymore, hence his lack of moves towards her.

Immediately after the short introduction, Arias turned to leave the office. Barbara showed some hesitation at first but soon quickly stood from her seat and spoke up.

"Uh, Mr. Markovic, I wanted to ask… Um… Do you offer internships?"