amaotonovel Chapter 3841 The Nameless Bat (1)
Chapter 3841 The Nameless Bat (1)
Chapter 3841 The Nameless Bat (Part 11)
"Boss, something's happened!" An agent rushed into the office and shouted to Natasha, "The head of Wayne Enterprises' information security department has died in his suburban villa. The GCPD (Gotham Police Department) is helpless. They called the FBI for backup, but the FBI is pointing the finger at our arrest three days ago."
“You mean, they think our people were trying to silence us?” Natasha narrowed her eyes. “They couldn’t have been unaware that the President was also present, could they? Wait… of course they knew. They did it on purpose.”
Natasha immediately waved and said, "Field team, come with me!"
A group of agents rushed into the underground parking lot. Soon, several inconspicuous black cars drove out of the parking lot and sped to the scene of the crime.
The night sky was illuminated by the lights of police cars and ambulances. Orange police tape, battered by a recent downpour, lay scattered on the ground. Through the layers of vehicles, Natasha saw an orange comfort blanket draped over a little girl. From her subordinates' reports in the car, Natasha knew this was the deceased's daughter.
As she approached the police cordon, two officers wearing jackets emblazoned with large bright yellow "FBI" logos walked over. Natasha flashed her badges at them, crossed the cordon without a word, and strode inside.
As she walked, she thought to herself: she knew this job wouldn't be so simple. If it was just about stalling the superheroes, there would be no need to call her over.
The president's power is the sharpest knife in Arkham Batman's hand; no one can remain indifferent when it's held to their throat. Even Superman is no exception. Their attachment to worldly life means they are bound hand and foot, trapped by Batman.
There's no need to call on Black Widow for this kind of work; any experienced agent could do it. And the special task force that's been assembled has no shortage of such people; any one of them could complete the mission perfectly.
The fact that Batman from Arkham would travel across the universe to find Natasha means that there are some tasks that only she can do.
Natasha was on high alert. She equipped herself with the "Widow's Sting," gripped the guns in both hands, kept her arms close to her body and turned sideways toward the house.
Several police officers stood at the door. They didn't recognize Natasha, but they recognized her professional spies' gear. They assumed she was an FBI agent and didn't stop her from going in.
Natasha entered the house and saw some bloodstains on the carpet on the first floor. She looked up and saw bloodstains on the stairs next to her. It appeared that the victim had been attacked upstairs, stumbled down to the first floor, and was stabbed to death on the carpet.
Natasha heard intermittent sobbing coming from the first-floor bedroom. She frowned slightly and hurried over.
Several FBI agents were surrounding a crying woman. The woman appeared completely distraught, crouching on the ground, trembling uncontrollably, unable to move. The doctor nearby could only wait helplessly until she calmed down a bit before he could take her out.
"How unprofessional!" Natasha cursed.
"Come in!" she shouted to her subordinates waiting outside the door. "Take this woman out and make sure you see her get into the ambulance before you leave!"
Natasha's agents burst in. They pushed open the bedroom door and reached for the woman. A young doctor nearby shouted, "Wait! She's a bit emotional right now, you can't..."
"This is a crime scene, not a hospital. All unauthorized personnel must leave immediately!" Natasha yelled at him, then turned her attention to the FBI agents, "What happened to your training courses?!"
“There are reporters outside,” one of the leaders said. “If you let her go out and break down crying like that, she’ll be on the front page the next day.”
"The dead man was a manager at Wayne Enterprises. No matter what anyone here does now, this news will be headline news. Take him away!"
Natasha took two steps back, allowing her subordinates to drag the woman out. But just as they were dragging the woman across the doorway, she suddenly pulled a gun from under her skirt.
boom!Boom!
Natasha rolled swiftly to dodge the first shot, but was hit in the calf by the second. Seemingly oblivious, she straightened herself, knelt on one knee, and raised her gun with both hands.
boom!
A bullet struck her squarely in the chest, knocking her down. Agents rushed over to subdue her. Natasha stood up, reached her fingers into the wound on her calf, dug out the bullet, and tossed it aside—a movement as nimb as taking off a high heel.
The FBI agent in the room looked very grim.
Natasha ignored her wounds and quickly walked out of the room. She watched as the woman was put into a police car, her face darker than the rainy night.
Soon, several more police cars arrived. Natasha noticed that Schiller was also wearing a standard-issue windbreaker, but the zipper was undone. He stood in front of the police line, chatting with officers from the local police station, one hand pulling the slightly long hem of his jacket back, his hand in his trouser pocket, the hot coffee in his other hand steaming slightly.
Then he crossed the cordon, went to the ambulance, said a few words to the driver, a few words to the doctor, and finally came to the little girl.
Natasha saw him sit down next to the little girl. They chatted for a few moments, and Schiller helped the little girl adjust her comfort blanket before walking towards the house with light steps and a calm expression, as if he were taking a stroll in his own backyard.
Seemingly surprised to see Natasha here, Schiller paused in his tracks. Natasha raised an eyebrow at him. Schiller tilted his head back, finished the rest of his coffee, crushed the cup, and casually tossed it into the nearby trash can.
“This doesn’t seem to be within the CIA’s scope of work, does it?” Schiller said.
“Yes, I wouldn’t be here if someone wasn’t trying to frame us,” Natasha said.
Schiller's nose twitched, then he looked Natasha up and down and said, "You're injured? You can get injured while investigating a murder case?"
"If you had come any later, my wound would have healed by now." Natasha stretched out one leg; although there was still blood on her pants, the wound underneath was almost healed.
"Who fired the shot? The killer?"
“It could be a victim’s family member, or it could be the perpetrator; I’m not sure,” Natasha said. “But I’m certain that she was after me.”
“That’s strange, you’ve only been here a few days,” Schiller said. “They’ve staged a murder, framed you, lured you here, and then shot you. It seems the killer really wants you dead.”
“I just regret accepting Batman’s invitation so easily,” Natasha said, leaning against the door. “I knew he wouldn’t come here for anything good.”
“But this bad thing happened way too fast.” Schiller also turned around, and together with Natasha, they leaned against the house, staring at the police and secret agents coming and going in front of them.
“Wayne Corporation Information Security Department…” Schiller quietly repeated the victim’s information. “If you want to frame you to silence you, this person is a good choice. He’s of mid-level rank, but quite important, and has easy access to some classified information.”
“That’s the crux of the matter,” Natasha said. “Three days after the arrest, the head of Wayne Enterprises’ information security department was murdered. It looks like we were trying to silence him. But our arrest was ordered by the president; they wanted to implicate the president. They staged a cover-up to make people think the president was trying to silence him.”
“That’s a good plan,” Schiller said. “Because you can’t announce to the public who you’re arresting. It will always be a secret operation. People won’t know the stakes involved, so they’ll naturally think it’s the president purging Wayne Enterprises.”
“If I’m not mistaken, there’s more than one victim,” Schiller said, glancing back at the house. “If two more people die, it will not only destabilize Wayne Enterprises, but also pin the blame on the president. Two birds with one stone. But the only thing I don’t understand is, why would someone shoot at you?”
“I’ve been thinking about that too,” Natasha said, looking down at the ground. “No matter how important my role is in Batman’s plans, I’ve only been here a few days. I’m pretty sure no one can find any information about me. I look like just a gun Batman needs. No normal person would bother with an agent they can easily find a replacement for after killing. Unless…”
“Unless they know you’re different,” Schiller said, tapping the ground with his toes. “Unless they know that besides being an agent of the Special Airborne Task Force, you’re also the President’s mistress.”
“But Batman and I aren’t in this universe…” Natasha stopped abruptly. She looked up sharply and said, “Green Arrow, Oliver Queen. Only he knows about my relationship with Batman.”
“The kids in the office all think I’m trying to get you to go out with me. I haven’t revealed anything to Superman or Wonder Woman. Only Green Arrow, when he was taken to Wayne Enterprises to meet with Batman, I told him that I slept with Batman.”
"But why would he assassinate you just because of your close relationship with Batman? Does he like Batman too?"
Natasha frowned deeply, then slowly shook her head and said, "Green Arrow doesn't seem like the type to assassinate people. I'll have to ask him."
Natasha strode towards her car. Schiller followed closely behind, saying, "I'll drive."
Natasha knew she had a lot to think about and might not be able to concentrate on driving, so she didn't refuse and sat in the passenger seat. She quickly fell into deep thought until a sudden stop caused her knee to be bumped.
Natasha turned to look at Schiller, but suddenly heard a gunshot outside the car window. Instinctively, she ducked under the seat and looked back in the direction of the gunshot. A hooded man rushed into the alley.
Schiller had already gotten out of the driver's seat. He fired two shots in that direction, but missed because the other party ran too fast and didn't linger. He got back into the driver's seat.
“It seems someone is indeed targeting you,” Schiller said, “but it doesn’t look like Oliver Quinn. With his money, he could find a much better hitman. The two who attacked you were too amateurish.”
Natasha also looked out the car window. The alleyway where the attacker had hastily dodged was dotted with a puddle at the intersection. If she wasn't mistaken, the attacker had stepped into it. This meant there must have been footprints in the alley.
Natasha pressed a button on her earpiece, instructing her subordinate to investigate. When the car returned to base, she got out first and quickly walked to the interrogation room. Schiller, on the other hand, returned to his office. He turned on his computer, the screen's light once again illuminating his face.