CHAPTER TWELVE - GOING NOWHERE

The groan of a shifting rooftop panel snapped her out of her thoughts. Taylor froze, her hand drifting to the baton strapped to her thigh. Her eyes narrowed as she caught the faintest flicker of movement in the shadows near the edge of the roof.

“I thought you worked alone,” came a deep, familiar voice, cold and menacing.

Taylor’s grip tightened as Batman stepped into the light, his expression unreadable. His cape flowed behind him like a living shadow, his presence as overwhelming as ever.

“I do,” she said tersely, rising to her feet. “What are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same question,” Batman replied. His gaze flicked to the police radio lying next to her, its soft static barely audible against the sounds of the city below. “You’ve been busy.”

Taylor didn’t bother denying it. “You’re welcome to listen in, but I think you already know who’s behind this mess.”

“Ra’s al Ghul,” he replied, taking another step forward.

The blasé delivery sent a shiver down her spine, even though she already knew as much. “And you’re just letting him operate here? Letting him destabilize Gotham so you can keep your city under control?”

His jaw tightened. “I’ve been… occupied.”

“Really? With that?” Taylor shot back. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’ve been turning a blind eye to a global terrorist using Gotham as a chessboard.”

Batman’s silence was damning, but Taylor wasn’t finished.

“People are dying,” she said, her voice rising. “And you’re too caught up in your shit to give a damn.”

His eyes narrowed, the faintest flicker of disapproval crossing his face. “There are worse threats out there, Swarm Queen. And someone has to deal with them before they become a bigger problem than they already are.”

Taylor folded her arms. “So what’s the plan, then? Wait for him to destroy the city and swoop in at the last second to save it? Hope the League of Assassins just packs up and leaves?”

Batman’s voice was like stone. “You’re out of your depth. This isn’t something you can handle.”

She stepped closer, her frustration boiling over. “I’ve been out of my depth since the moment I stepped into this city. But that hasn’t stopped me from trying.”

For a moment, they stood in silence, the tension between them almost tangible. Then Batman sighed, his shoulders relaxing ever so slightly.

“You want to stop him?” he said. “Fine. But you’ll follow my lead. No improvising, no rogue actions. Ra’s al Ghul is a threat you can’t afford to underestimate.”

Taylor hesitated. Part of her wanted to tell him where he could shove his orders, but she knew he was right. This wasn’t a fight she could win on her own.

“Fine,” she said finally. “But I’m not just going to stand in the background while you do all the work.”

Batman nodded, though his expression remained grim. “Good.”

. . . . .

The smuggling operation was like a Hydra: cut off one head, and two more grew in its place. Every raid and every intercepted shipment seemed to lead them deeper into Gotham’s criminal underworld, yet no closer to severing the roots of the operation.

Taylor sat perched on a water tower overlooking the docks, her hood drawn up against the biting night wind. Robin crouched next to her, his black-and-yellow cape blending with the shadows. She watched as workers unloaded crates from a cargo ship, their movements hurried under the watchful eyes of armed guards.

“Two on the pier, three on the ship,” Taylor murmured, her eyes scanning the scene below. Her swarm was already in motion, tiny bodies flitting across the crates, searching for weak points and mapping the layout.

Robin didn’t respond immediately, his gaze sharp and calculating as he assessed the guards’ patterns. Finally, he spoke. “The ship’s the priority. That’s where they’re keeping the inventory logs. We take those, and we’ll have names, routes, and suppliers.”

Taylor nodded, though she felt the familiar flicker of unease gnawing at her. Her control was still spotty, and the last thing she wanted was to mess up and give Robin another reason to doubt her. Not that he needed one.

“I’ll create a distraction at the pier,” she said. “You handle the ship.”

Robin shot her a sidelong glance, his expression skeptical. “Are you sure you can handle it? Last time—”

“I can handle it,” Taylor snapped, cutting him off. She felt her grip tighten on the edge of the water tower. “Just focus on your part.”

He didn’t argue, which somehow annoyed her more. Without another word, Robin leaped from the tower, landing silently on a nearby rooftop before disappearing over its edge.

Taylor let out a slow breath, sending her swarm forward. The insects swarmed the guards on the pier, crawling into their noses, mouths, and ears, forcing them to swat erratically and flail about. One of the less-swarmed guards cursed, waving his flashlight around as he tried to spot the source of the disturbance.

“Move faster,” she muttered into her comm.

“I’m already on the ship,” Robin replied, his voice clipped.

Taylor moved closer, keeping low as she approached the pier. Her swarm was doing its job, sowing havoc and drawing attention away from Robin’s infiltration. But as she reached the edge of the dock, she caught sight of something that made her stomach drop.

More guards were emerging from a nearby warehouse, rifles in hand. They moved with a precision that screamed military training—mercenaries, not street thugs.

“Robin,” she hissed. “You’ve got company coming your way.”

“Then keep them busy,” he shot back.

Gritting her teeth, Taylor stepped into view, her baton snapping open with a metallic click. The nearest guard turned at the sound, his eyes widening in surprise before she swung the baton into his ribs. He went down with a grunt, but the noise had drawn the attention of the others.

Taylor darted behind a stack of crates, her swarm surging forward to blind and disorient the mercenaries. Bullets ricocheted off the metal containers, sending sharp cracks echoing across the docks. Splinters of wood and bursts of sparks rained down around her, and she ducked lower, her hands pressed to her temples as she struggled to maintain focus. The strain of controlling the swarm was getting to her, the edges of her awareness blurring as she pushed them to their limits.

“Any time now,” she muttered under her breath.

“I’m almost done,” Robin replied.

Taylor gritted her teeth and pressed on, her movements quick and calculated as she weaved between cover, taking down guards one by one. Despite her frustration with Robin’s attitude, she found herself mirroring his fights, her strikes fluidly connecting with each other, her movements more graceful.

Finally, she heard his voice in her ear. “I’ve got the logs. Meet me at the rendezvous point.”

Taylor didn’t bother responding. She focused on disengaging, her swarm covering her retreat as she slipped back into the shadows.

When she reached the rendezvous point—a crumbling warehouse on the edge of the district—Robin was already there, examining a flash drive under the faint light of a portable lamp.

“Good timing,” he said without looking up.

“Don’t push it,” Taylor shot back, though there was no real venom in her tone. She leaned against the wall, catching her breath.

Robin finally looked up, his expression unreadable. “You did good out there. Better than last time.”

Taylor raised an eyebrow. “Was that a compliment?”

“Don’t get used to it,” he replied, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Despite herself, Taylor felt a small sense of satisfaction. Their partnership might not have been ideal, but it was working. And for now, that was enough.