Gotham Family Playtime (Part 2)

Soon, the circus performance began. The first few acts were all animal-taming shows, and neither Bruce nor Selene had much interest in them. While the performers entertained the crowd onstage, the two chatted below.

"You said you used to be a street vendor too. Why didn’t you keep doing that? Why did you turn to stealing instead?"

Selene rolled her eyes. "My Young Master, you don’t seriously think being a street vendor is better than stealing, do you?"

Bruce turned to look at Selene. He had wanted to say that at least being a vendor wasn’t against the law, but after spending so much time with Selene, he understood that life at the very bottom of Gotham was probably nothing like he had imagined.

After being with Selene for so long, he had come to recognize a reality: in Gotham, this dark city, some people exhausted every ounce of their strength just staying alive. Talking to them about obeying the law at a time like that was nothing but a joke.

"Actually, those street vendors, cigarette boys, and flower girls have it the worst." Selene sighed, her tone carrying a trace of sympathy. "When I told you about my past, you might have thought Mama Luck, the woman who taught me how to steal, was a bad person. She taught me skills, made me steal, and even hit me before. But honestly, I don’t hate her. I still talk to her on the phone now…"

Bruce looked confused. "You still keep in touch with that thief boss?"

"We don’t talk business. I just ask whether she’s doing well, stuff like that. Just polite small talk. I was a little angry when she tried to take the diamond necklace I stole, but after I cooled down, I still called her…"

Seeing Bruce’s slightly shocked expression, Selene suddenly smiled. "You’re Young Master Wayne. Wherever you go, people fawn over you. As long as they want your money, anyone will humble themselves to please you. But I’m different. The most praise I’ve ever received in my life was when I was learning from Mama Luck."

"She always said I was the most talented child she’d ever seen, that I learned everything quickly. You know, she used to work as a hostess in bars in the East District when she was young. She could flatter someone straight into the clouds. When she was in a good mood, she’d even sing and have me wear the dresses she used to wear when she was young, then dance…"

Selene rested both hands on her knees, took a deep breath, and said, "I know you think I’m pathetic, but she was genuinely pretty good to me."

"You may think it was unforgivable for her to have all sorts of children steal for her, but Mama Luck was actually considered one of the better ones to those kids."

"She had a sharp eye. The children she picked were all talented and could make her plenty of money, so she was fairly generous. Sometimes, she’d even let a little spending money slip through to us…"

"But that old bastard next door was different. He had street vendors and cigarette boys under him. Every bit of money those kids earned had to be handed over to him, and they were searched every day. They absolutely weren’t allowed to hide even a single cent. If they failed to meet the quotas he set, they got beaten viciously."

"He only gave those children leftovers to eat. When he was in a bad mood, he made them go hungry. I once saw a child who tried to run away. He cut off both the child’s feet, and the child bled to death."

Selene shrugged and said to Bruce, "I’m not actually hungry, and I don’t really like pancakes with cheese. But whenever I run into street vendors like that, if I have some money in my pocket, I’ll buy something. Maybe that’ll let them have a full meal tonight."

"You know," Bruce said as he looked into Selene’s eyes, "every time you tell me stories like this, my mood instantly becomes heavy."

Selene smiled, reached out, and touched Bruce’s cheek. "That’s exactly the problem. To you, this is a sad story. But to us, it’s just an ordinary day."

Selene took another deep breath. "Actually, you’ve taught me a lot too. Like that thing you mentioned last time, about connections and such…"

"Thinking back, I seem to remember Mama Luck saying that some of the money she received had to be handed over too. The person she handed it over to also had to hand it over. Anyway, it went up layer by layer until it finally reached one person…"

Bruce narrowed his eyes. "Who?"

Selene shook her head. "I don’t even know Mama Luck’s superior. How would I know who the person at the very top is?"

"Someone is controlling Gotham’s children, isn’t he?"

Selene nodded. "Gotham’s children are actually very easy to control. Most of them are orphans. Either their parents died, or their parents abandoned them. As long as you give them a bite to eat, you can make them do whatever you want."

"And…" Bruce continued, "hardly anyone would give these children trouble. Even high-end nightclubs let cigarette boys come in to sell cigarettes…"

Clearly, he had recalled the places he had visited when he first entered such circles. He had never paid attention before because it was so commonplace, but looking back now, whether at dances, dinners, or banquets, there were always children waiting at the edges of the venue for wealthy people to buy cigarettes from them.

"Exactly. If these children mess something up or make a mistake, all they need to do is put on a pitiful expression, apologize, and beg a few more times. Anyone concerned with appearances won’t make things difficult for them."

Bruce had not expected that a casual chat with Selene would bring such an unexpected gain. There had always been someone in Gotham using a network that stretched down layer by layer to control these children found everywhere.

"And that’s not all," Selene continued. "These children form gangs among themselves too. It was already like that when I was young. Competition between people in the same line of work was especially fierce."

"You know some areas have great business, while others don’t. Everyone wants to claim the profitable areas. The adults above fight over turf, and the children below form gangs along with them. We call those gangs the Junior Gangs."

"What gang were you in back then?"

Selene shook her head. "I wasn’t in any gang. That was ground-level business, and I was a thief."

"I didn’t need to occupy any territory to steal. Or rather, if I wanted to go into someone’s territory, I didn’t need to inform them. They couldn’t catch me anyway."

"Everyone in the East District had heard my name, and they still have. They know that when the Black Cat appears on the rooftops, they shouldn’t bother aiming a gun at her, because they can’t hit her. They’d only be wasting bullets."

"Among the Four Great Thieves of the East Coast, only I could move throughout all of Gotham. The others didn’t even dare enter the commercial district, because if those gang leaders with real influence caught them, they’d be finished. But I wasn’t afraid, because I knew they could never catch me."

Whenever Bruce heard Selene talk about her career, he felt a little strange. Selene was a textbook case of rising above the crowd through sheer ability. As he had said before, if she had been even slightly less capable at what she did, she could never have made it this far.

A life story of turning things around through one’s own efforts and living well should have been inspiring, something people could take pride in. But her profession was stealing. The harder she worked, the brighter her prospects became.

The two kept talking about Gotham’s children. Selene’s intelligence from the bottom and Bruce’s intelligence from the top came together as they tried to determine who controlled this network.

Throughout it all, Aisha’s attention remained fixed on the various acts onstage, and for once, she had quieted down.

Suddenly, the lights onstage brightened, and the host announced in an impassioned voice, "Ladies! Gentlemen! Next, we bring you the most thrilling act of all—the flying trapeze performance!!!"

A male and female performer stepped onto the stage. As they climbed higher along the ladders, the host continued his energetic introduction. "I think some of you may have heard of the Grayson Family, once famous across the East Coast. They were once known as the greatest flying trapeze family in America…"

"Some of you may also have heard that members of the previous generation of the Grayson Family fell from great heights after a trapeze accident and were smashed to pieces…"

The host whistled. "But if you ask me, that’s what makes this act exciting. If there were no risk of falling, who’d want to watch this stuff? Right?"

The host’s playful remarks had been meant to stir up the atmosphere, but the tall man named Grayson, who had just stepped onto the platform, clenched his fists.

Just as he was about to begin the performance, he shouted toward the audience, "The Graysons are the greatest flying trapeze family! We—"

At that moment, he saw the circus boss below make a threatening gesture at him. He glanced at his wife beside him, then finally shut his mouth.

The circus boss cursed loudly below, "What the hell is that idiot saying?! Wayne is down there! I knew he’d ruin everything for me, that son of a bitch!"

By then, the Grayson couple had begun their act. A flying trapeze performance was, in essence, swinging through the air while holding onto bars and performing all sorts of twists and flips.

It had to be said that the Grayson couple truly were skilled. They worked together seamlessly, and whether their movements matched or mirrored each other, every motion was a delight to watch. Cheers rang out from the audience.

Aisha watched with great delight. Selene might have been highly skilled, but the manor’s conditions were limited, and Bruce would never agree to let Selene swing around at such heights. This performance, however, satisfied Aisha’s love of watching people move about.

She let out shrill cries and waved constantly at the stage. Bruce held her tightly, afraid she would tumble onto the seat in front, while Selene patted his arm and said, "Give her some water. Her throat sounds hoarse from all that shouting."

Bruce took out a water bottle and was about to give Aisha a drink. At that moment, the two trapeze artists had reached a break in their routine and landed on the platforms. Mrs. Grayson happened to see Aisha waving at her.

The woman looked somewhat haggard, but she returned the gesture with a smile and deliberately waved toward Aisha. Clearly, this overly excited little audience member had won Mrs. Grayson’s affection.

Seeing that she had been noticed, Aisha became even more excited. She lunged forward, trying to wriggle out of Bruce’s arms.

But Bruce was opening the water bottle at the time, and Aisha’s sudden lunge struck his arm, spilling the water all over him.

Bruce wore a helpless expression as he handed Aisha to Selene. "I’m going to the restroom to deal with my clothes."

As Bruce left his seat and headed for the restroom, the circus boss watched everything.

That Grayson had first talked back to him and even punched him. Then, before the performance, he had started spouting nonsense. Grayson’s wife had even deliberately drawn the Wayne Family’s little princess’s attention, making Wayne spill water on himself. If Wayne became dissatisfied because of this, his sponsorship would be completely ruined…

The circus boss’s face grew increasingly grim. His rage had clearly reached its limit. The Grayson couple’s behavior was driving him insane.