Chapter 243: Subtlety Shattered
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The car rolled to a natural stop outside the restaurant, sleek black doors clicking open. Three men stepped out, neat suits, though they still looked like criminal but not the casual Gotham’s filth. One of them wore a mask, smooth, jet-black, skull-like in its shape. Arthur didn’t even need to squint.
"Roman Sionis," Arthur muttered to Didi, his tone matter-of-fact. "A well-known crime boss. Looks like he’s out for dinner as well."
Didi didn’t even turn her head. She swirled the wine in her glass, watching the liquid catch her reflection. Not a flicker of interest crossed her face. "Mm." That was all.
Black Mask and his two men entered, their polished shoes striking against the floor. Heads turned. Conversations quieted. The maître d’ stammered, but Roman simply placed a gloved hand on his shoulder, and the man shrank back like a puppet with cut strings. Roman strolled across the room and slid into the booth beside the old bald man Arthur had noticed earlier.
Arthur’s eyes sharpened. "Seems like someone influential, that old man." he murmured.
From across the room, Kara and Raven stiffened.
Raven’s voice was sharp but hushed. "What the hell is this guy doing here?"
Kara kept her head down, lips barely moving. "I’m listening. We’ll find out."
The two of them remained in disguise, hats and glasses on, pretending to study their menus while their ears strained toward the scene.
Arthur didn’t have to strain. His senses tuned in with deadly precision, pulling Roman’s words across the distance as if he were seated at the same table.
Black Mask leaned forward, voice rich with venomous charm.
"Judge Kincaid. Your Honor. I’m flattered you agreed to meet me tonight. Honestly, I half-expected you’d already run to Blüdhaven by now. It’s been a mess around here lately Afterall... well scratch that, it’s been a mess everywhere."
The judge’s hands trembled as he adjusted his napkin, his smile brittle. "Still here, Roman. Still presiding. But I have limits. This... arrangement...it has to stop."
Roman repeated the word softly, letting it hang. "Limits."
Kincaid swallowed hard, pressing on. "Gordon’s men are circling. The Bureau’s breathing down my neck, and clearly someone else in the shadows is trying to reach me as well. I can’t keep fixing trials. Can’t keep signing warrants in your favor. If I keep covering for you, I’ll be the one in prison. My career, my pension, my name...gone."
Black Mask leaned back, the drumming of his fingers on the table like the ticking of a clock. "Your name, Harold, is mine. I own every verdict you write. I own the criminals you let walk free. Every deal, every ruling...your gavel came down because I told you where to strike. Without me, you’re nothing. Just another tired old man in a robe."
Kincaid’s pride flared, his jaw tightening. "I’ve bent the law for you long enough. You think you’re untouchable? You’re a mask, Sionis. A mask and a gun. You’re no better than Joker was. No better than the freaks that crawl out of Arkham every month. Remember that."
The restaurant froze. Even the clinking of cutlery ceased.
Arthur heard every heartbeat spike, every breath catch.
Black Mask tilted his head slowly, the hollow sockets of the mask boring into the old man’s soul. His voice came quiet, seething. "Say that again."
The judge’s lips trembled, but the words still came. "You’re nothing. Just another freak."
Arthur leaned back in his chair, a small, knowing smile tugging at his lips. "You see, Bruce... this is why we can never be on the same page when it comes this.."
Didi smirked faintly, eyes never leaving Arthur.
The pistol appeared in Roman’s hand like sleight of hand black steel glinting in the low light. The room inhaled as one. The crack of the gunshot shattered the silence, louder than thunder in the hush.
But the bullet didn’t strike its mark. It pinged off something..someone
.Kara stood there, cape flowing, glasses and hat discarded. The slug clattered uselessly to the marble floor.
For a moment, the entire restaurant gasped. Waiters dove for cover. Patrons screamed and scrambled, chairs screeching against the floor as the mass exodus began.
Black Mask staggered back a half-step, the gun still raised. "What the.."
Judge Kincaid nearly toppled over the table in shock. "Supergirl?!"
From their corner, Raven sighed, dragging a hand across her face. "So much for subtlety."
Kara ignored her, glaring at Black Mask. "Really? In public? You want to execute a judge in the middle of dinner service?"
Arthur, meanwhile, didn’t even rise. He reached calmly for his glass, swirling the liquid once before taking a sip, his gaze unmoved from Didi across the table.
"Shouldn’t you... intervene?" Didi asked lightly, arching a brow as the chaos swelled around them.
Arthur exhaled slowly, setting his glass down. His tone was casual, almost weary. "No. Let her handle it. She seems eager."
Didi laughed softly, resting her chin on her hand again, perfectly unbothered while Gotham’s elite scrambled around them. "Let us see how it plays out."
Arthur smirked faintly, watching Kara square her shoulders "Yeah.."
Roman’s masked face tilted back, his voice cutting through the chaos with disbelief.
"I can’t believe this! Supergirl here, of all places. How lucky can this fool be!" He jerked his head toward Judge Kincaid, who was practically crawling under the table, sweat streaming down his temple.
The sneer in Roman’s voice turned sharp as a blade. "Kill them both."
At once, the two suited men moved like clockwork, slipping submachine guns from beneath their jackets. The restaurant erupted into screams as the muzzles flashed. A storm of bullets roared across the table glass shattered, silverware flew, chandeliers trembled above.
Kara stood her ground. The rounds tore into her, sparks bursting against her skin only to fall uselessly to the ground. She didn’t move, didn’t step back. With a look of annoyance, she reached toward the judge, covering him with her body as she let the rounds bounce away harmlessly.
At the same time, Raven remained seated, her eyes glowing violet for a brief second. A dark shimmer wrapped around her body, a shield that absorbed the stray rounds. She exhaled, unimpressed. "Typical Gotham evening."
At their corner table, Arthur raised his glass and took a slow sip, calm despite everything around him. The air thundered with gunfire and panic, but his attention remained on the taste of the drink. Until
Crack.
A stray bullet whipped past the chaos, striking the back of his head. The glass slipped from his hand, wine spilling across the table. The bullet crumpled like cheap tin against his skull, clattering uselessly onto the floor.
Arthur froze for a moment, blinking at the spilled drink on his sleeve. The restaurant might as well have gone silent again.
Didi burst into laughter pure, unrestrained, doubled-over laughter. "Oh, Arthur," she gasped between fits, eyes bright with mischief. "Did that really piss you off."
Arthur stood up slowly, shoulders tense, his jaw tight with irritation. He brushed his sleeve, the red liquid dripping like blood though it was only wine. His voice came low, annoyed but sharp as a knife.
"All right... that’s it."
Kara had already moved, the speed of her hands can’t even be followed. She seized the submachine guns, bending the steel around the gunmen’s wrists like twisted shackles. The men yelped, the weapons fused to their arms like bracelets, impossible to drop. They stumbled back, crying out in pain and shock.
Roman’s attention, however, snapped past Kara. His masked eyes locked onto Arthur as the man stepped forward from his table, his movements calm but with dangerous intent..
He held his breath.
Roman stiffened, his voice faltering for the first time. "You’re... you’re that..."
Arthur’s gaze cut his very soul. No need for words yet. Just the steady advance with that look of irritation written all over his face.
/-\
If you Like this story! Check out my other stories! Solo leveling in Westeros.
&
If you wish to read more or simply support me than check out my patreon at
"
You can Get Access to 3 More Chapters OR 7 More Chapters if you want