Jeremiah POV

"Jerome tried to kill me. That's the reason I had to leave. He hates me, he always has. My Mom knew that one day he'd succeed that's why she sent me away. I was right. Jerome is evil. He murdered our mother in cold blood Quinn. She love us and he murdered her."

At this, Quinn rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Your kidding me right? Your mother was a horrible and cruel woman. She was always having sex with the men of the circus wether they were married or not. She beat you and your brother whenever she was drunk which was pretty much 24/7."

"She treated your sister worse then an animal. Locking her in a cage and then selling her for money and drugs. The beatings only became worse after you left. I think your confusing your mother with mine. She was no mother to any of you."

"Where was she when her lovers beat the daylights out of the two of you? Where was she when your Uncle dipped your brother's hand in chicken stock and broke my arm? Did she ever defend either one of you? No. She stood by and allowed the three of you to be abused. While she spent her time soused, inebriated, tipsy, plowed, wasted, stoned..."

"Alright, I get it!" I replied with a growl. "My mother was a drunk, but that didn't mean that she deserved to die the way she did. She was after all, still our mother."

"Lets agree to disagree."

"It's not that Jerome killed our mother that scares me. What scares me, is that he's not even the slightest bit remorseful. He's proud of what he did."

Suddenly alarms sounded and I switch the monitor to reveal a car driving up. Two officers get out. "Where the hells the house?" Bullock asks. Then the two officers walk up to the door and push the button.

"James Gorden. I'm here to see Xander Wilde." He says holding up his badge for me to see. I push the button allowing them to enter.

Echo meets them and leads them to where Quinn and I are located. "So this whole joint is underground?" Bullock asks nervously.

"Mr. Wilde values his privacy." Echo replies as she leads them to my office.

"How long has he lived here?" Gorden asks.

"He finished construction six years ago. Echo 496." "Welcome Echo" a computerized female voice replies. "He will see you now." Echo says standing aside to allow the detectives into the room.

"Quinn?" Gorden says in surprise upon seeing Quinn standing near a man who is staring at blueprints.

"Hi."

"Thank you for seeing us Mr. Wilde." Detective Gorden says turning his attention towards me.

"I expected you might come captain." I replied turning around to face them. As expected the Detective raises his gun and points it directly at me. I raise my hands in surrender. Quinn frowns and steps in front of me blocking their path to me.

"My God there's two of them." Bullock says in shock.

"Quinn move out of the way." I whisper to her and she looks at me and shakes her head no.

"I won't let them shoot you." She replies.

"Quinn please. I don't want you to get hurt." Reluctantly Quinn does as I ask. "May I put my hands down now gentleman? Please?"

"Apologies Mr. Wilde you took us by surprise." Gorden replies.

"That's understandable. You can call me Jeremiah. That's the name my mother gave me. You solved her murder Captain Gorden. I owe you a debt of gratitude for that and for putting Jerome in Arkham where he belongs."

Quinn frowned and I could tell that she didn't like my last statement. "He never mentioned you before."

Quinn sighed "he didn't like talking about him after he left us." Quinn replied with a frown.

"Left You where?" Bullock asked a bit confused.

"The circus." I replied. "They hid me to protect me from him. You see, we were always different Jerome and I. From a young age, I had a proficiency for math and design and Jerome for the mutilation of alley cats."

"On our tenth birthday, he held a cake knife to my throat. A few weeks later, he lit my bed on fire. It was like living in a nightmare." Quinn shifted nervously  her face filled with irritation and confusion as I continued. "My mother knew that one day he'd succeed in killing me."

"So one night, my Uncle came to my room while Jerome slept. He told me that he was taking both my sister and I away. I didn't know where we where going but I kissed my mother goodbye told her that I loved her and I never saw her again." I replied.

"He took you to Saint Ignatious."

"I got a new name a new life but I knew in my heart that Jerome would come for me one day."

"Yeah well that day is today pops."

"We have reason to believe that Jerome knows where you are. We need to move you to a safe location. Until we can apprehend him."

"That won't be necessary gentlemen I have spent the bulk of my life preparing for this eventuality. I am safest here in my home."

"Not anymore. Jerome knows the name of your proxie. He got it from your boss just before he executed him."

"I heard about the death of Mr. Allen Hayes it's tragic but the proxie's name I that I gave to Allen was a fake."

The detectives glance at each other sceptically. "Your lying."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Yeah there's something about this guy that's fishy." Bullock replies.

Detective Gorden looks around the room then points to the monitors. "The security cameras outside were  turned on so why are the monitors turned off?"

"I fail to see how that's any of your business. Now if you'll excuse me I'm a very busy man."

"Yeah I'm sure that you are." Gorden replied walking over to where the monitors were.

"Hay don't touch that! That's very sensitive equipment." Much to my dismay Detective Gorden turns on the monitors that display Jerome doing stretches and waving at the monitor.

"Oh I'd say that's pretty sensitive." Bullock replied sarcastically.

Jerome smiles as the camera and get extremely close to it. "Boo!" He says with a laugh.

"You need to take us to your bother." Detective Gorden replied.

"I'm afraid that I can't do that." I replied.

"What if he's nuttier then the other one?" Bullock asks causing me to lose my temper.

"Uh-oh." Quinn replies with a groan. She knows that the one thing that I hate is being compared to my brother.

""I am nothing like Jerome!"

"You want to be put in a cell next to his because that is where this is heading." Gorden replies threateningly but it doesn't faze me in the slightest. Nor does Quinn's plea for me to do as they ask.

"Please Jeremiah, don't make this any worse. Please, just do as they ask." Quinn begged but I ignored her plea.

"And then what Detective? You couldn't hold him. Arkham couldn't hold him. I can. And I will make sure Jerome will  never hurt anyone again. I will make sure that he never escapes."

"No, no, no. Jerome comes with us and if you don't want to make this worse for yourself then I suggest that you stay the hell out of our way!" Gorden replied irritatedly.

Bullock turns his attention to the monitors "woah whoa whoa the loonies are outside." We turn to see a man who looked like a scarecrow, a man wearing a top hat and Echo leading the way.

"No, no, no, no. How did they find me?" Suddenly the lights turned off and alarms started blaring.

"My guess? They followed Jerome here." Gorden replied.

"This is NOT good!" Bullock

"Is there another way out of here?" Gorden asks and I nod.

"Yes but I'm not leaving Echo."

"The loonies will use her against us." Bullock replied.

"She's devoted her life to me, I won't leave her."

At this Quinn growls in frustration and I can see a flash of jealousy in her eyes as I hide a smile.

"Your our top priority. We get you out first and then we will go back for her. Deal?" Gorden replies and reluctantly I agree.

"As a child I was obsessed with labyrinths, so I designed my house like one."

"So this place is a maze?"

"Easy enough to get in I'm the only one who knows the way out. Stay close to me. The maze is built on 100 acres. It has 73 dead ends. I once invited the top maze designers in the country to try and solve it only one did. It took him three days."

"How much farther?"

" Not much farther. We just passed the final switchback point." I replied. Suddenly Ecco rounded the courner and I was relieved to see her. "Ecco Thank God your ok."

"Hay hay, she's hypnotized." Bullock warned me a little too late as Ecco punched me in the gut and shoved me out of the way as she proceeded to attack the two officers. "Ecco it's me." I tried pleading with her but she didn't respond. Instead she grabbed both Quinn and I and began to drag us down the hall.

"What part of she's hypnotized didn't you understand?" Quinn asks me sarcastically.

"Ow. Gorden help! Gorden!" I called to him as Ecco dragged me down the hall. "What are you doing? Where are you taking us?"

"I'm taking you to Jerome." Ecco replied in a monotone voice.

"No. Please he will do horrible things to me." I begged by my pleas fell on deaf ears.

"Stop!" Bullock yelled pointing his gun at Ecco. Who twirled around using the two of us as a shield. Then she shoved us forward and proceeded to attack Bullock.

I wondered where Gorden had disappeared too. Meanwhile, taking Quinn's hands, I started to lead her to the end of the maze. However, she pulled her hand out of my grasp.

"We can't leave them Jeremiah. Ecco might kill them." Quinn said worriedly.

"If we stay then we all die. I'm getting you out of here. Right now your my main priority."

"I can't. I can't leave them." Quinn replied and I could tell that she was struggling with herself. She wanted to escape, but on the other hand she cared about everyone. That was always her downfall. She cared too much.

"Once I know your safe, I will go back for them. Ok?"

Upon seeing the exit sign I sighed in relief until I heard an eerie voice one that I had hoped never to hear again. "Hello brother." With that, Jerome turned the corner.

Quinn and I turned around to try and head back but found the way blocked by Jerome's cronies. "Hi how you've been. You look the same. To think I use to be the handsome one."

"How did you find your way through the maze?" I ask in confusion.

"Oh bro. We might not look the same but we still think the same. Plus you always use to draw those stupid things all the time when we were kids. I paid attention." Jerome replied. "Hay hat head, take Craine kill Jimbo and his bearded sidekick and find my baby sister."

Before they left, he whispered something in hat head as he called him ear. The man nodded and I couldn't help but wonder what he had told him. After the two of them left to follow Jerome's orders Jerome turned his attention back to me and smiled. "I've been waiting for this moment for the past fifteen years."

"Ever since you packed to your stuff and disappeared into the middle of the night like a coward." He paused and looked behind me and I realized that he was staring directly at Quinn. "Quinn what a surprise."

"I should have known sooner that I'd find you here with him." Jerome replied with a slight growl. "Hay now we are all together just like old times." Jerome replied pointing the gun towards me.

"Your insane."

"Yeah." Jerome replies with a nod.

"I tried telling mom but she didn't want to listen. You blame me for everything that has gone wrong in your life but the truth is Jerome, that you were born bad."

"Jeremiah that's not true and you know it!" Quinn scolded me and I sighed. Why couldn't she see that I was telling the truth?

"Humm. Born bad. Right so that's why you made everyone think that I tried to kill you."

"We both know..." Jerome cut me off before I could finish my sentence.

"What was it again? I put a blade to your throat? No no no... I lit you on fire."

"We both know you wanted too!" I replied defensively.

"Yeah well, that was a funny story now wasn't it?" Jerome replied sarcastically.

"Ok so maybe it didn't happen exactly that way..." I admitted.

"How could you make something like that up?" Quinn demanded her eyes filled with hurt.

"I didn't have a choice and I was right. You kill our mother." I replied sadly Jerome just smiled.

"She did deserve it though. After that whore hid you away she gave up on me. Poisoned by your lies. You took everyone I ever loved away from me!" Jerome growled. Quinn stepped in the way so that she stood directly in the middle of us as if playing a mediator.

"I didn't believe the stories Jerome. In fact, I tried to convince your mother that they were just that. Stories. That there was no way you were capable of doing what Jeremiah had claimed and I was right wasn't I Jeremiah?" Quinn asked turning toward me. I didn't reply.

"Still My own flesh and blood betrayed me! I guess it's like what they say, we all can go insane after just one bad day. With you guess it's more like one bad spray. You'll see."

"What are you going to do to me Jerome?"

"Come on, I'm going to kill you of course. But first I'm going to drive you mad. Don't worry, You won't be alone all of Gotham will be joining you."

"What about our little sister and Quinn are going going to drive them mad too?"

"Of course not. They are family."

"Jeremiah's your family too." Quinn replied but Jerome shook his head no. "He lost the right to be called family the moment he ran away and changed his name. Leaving our baby sister to be abused by our Uncle. Leaving me with our mother who because of his lies began to hate me."

"Must go! Must go! They're after me and the scarecrow!" We heard the mad hatter exclaim as he rushed towards the exit carrying Bella who was cradled in his arms whimpering. Jerome grabbed Craine's arm and nodded toward Quinn.

Craine understood immediately what Jerome wanted and He doused Quinn with knockout gas. She immediately slumped to the floor out cold. As the scarecrow picked her unconscious body up off the floor, Jerome put me in a headlock .

"Stay where you are or I'll splatter Bro-ski." Jerome replied holding me by the throat and pointing his gun at my head.

"No you won't. If you were going to kill him you'd have done it by now." Gorden replied.

"Your right as usual Jimbo. I'll See you later." Jerome replied giving me a kiss in the cheek before shoving me towards Detective Jim and his partner.

A little while later Detective Gorden was escorting me into the Gotham GCPD everyone turned and looked at us. "Detective?" A pretty lady asked in concern.

"It's alright. This is Jeremiah Valeska. Jerome's twin brother. He needs to be taken into protective custody."

"Alright, follow me." The lady said taking my arm.

"Thank you detective. I wouldn't be alive if it wasn't for you."

"Jerome told his brother that his plan was to turn Gotham Mad. How the hell does he plan to do that Harvey?"

"I don't know. I thought it already was." Harvey replied.

WC 2711