“ Hey, mom.”

“Yea?” 

“Whatever happened to Uncle ?”

His mom looks disturbed for a moment at the comment. It was years later but it was still sensitive for her. 

“He.. he messed with the wrong people.”

The boy made a face at the comment. He knew his uncle well, in fact, he preached often on how to avoid trouble in Gotham. Uncle would have his small sermons on how the boy was born with a target on his back, and boys who look like him often don't live past 21. 

“ How?”

She sighs. “As you know uncle helped those of the community find others who went missing,” she pauses, ensuring the preteen was listening. “ You have to keep this between us, my love. I can only take so much loss.”

“ Promise.” 

“ As you know the Brown’s boy went missing after school. I think it was because he came across one of the Sullivan kids and made a comment,” she interrupted with a gasp. The Sullivans were not to be bothered. Especially in Gotham.

It was sort of an open secret of what crime families, gangs, and syndicates resided in the city. The top dog crime royalty for the majority of the city is the Falcone’s. The Sullivans were a branch family of the Falcone. 

Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

They were originally penniless immigrants hailing from Ireland. Through the years they grew bitter and desperate. Mickey and Donald Sullivan approached Carmen Falcone in person, swearing loyalty and their “services”. When asked what their services were they answered simply, death. They were tested time and time again over the last decade, assassinating with efficiency and silence. They were so confident they brought every Sullivan in Lower Gotham to their makeshift ‘family’. At their true precipice The Moxons - a rising family who were also under the Falcones- tried to hire them to clean up the Falcons. They wanted to have a smooth takeover. Idiocy. Mickey and Donald immediately told Carmen Falcone and asked, nigh begging to show their loyalty. 

The Moxons disappeared the next day. From root to stem. Every known and unknown child, woman, and associate. Simply gone.

The day after that they were elevated to Gotham royalty. Vassals of the Falcones. To this day they were one of the most efficient death squads in the city. 

“ I know.” she solemnly says. “ Your uncle just wanted the body, closure for the Browns. Eventually, the Sullivans found out he was poking his nose where it shouldn't be. And he,” her voice fails her. It cracks with pain, “ disappeared.”

He wasn't stupid. As his mother's eyes water, he understands the lesson being taught. What would keep him alive in this hellhole. It was something his uncle repeatedly taught him for years. If only he followed his own advice.

The boy voiced out, “ Keep your head down and your ears shut. You might make it past 21.”

His mom knew the words. A stillness permeated the living room. The news channel’s fear-mongering almost caught his errant thoughts.

“ Mom, why do we stay here?”

He didn't mean to, but the family TV time already turned sour. He watches as his mom gathers herself and scrunches her eyes. 

“ Love, do you know what it means to ask for help?”  

The counter question threw him off kilter for a second but he indulged, “ To reach out and pray.”

She shuts down that line of thinking quickly, “ You know we don't pray. Y’know what it means? It’s magic. It’s to ask for a smidge of mercy from the world. It means you're weak and asking for strength. Once you do, things won't ever feel the same. Your father did that for the Waynes.” She once again pauses. It irks him a little on how dramatic she has to be all the time.

“ And?” It must’ve not done much. Seeing as he’s dead and all.

She thins her lips. “I'll tell you more when you're older.” It’s always been apparent that she evades questions regarding dad. 

His mom holds his hand and smooches him on the cheek. “ Just make sure to always ask for that help when you need it, no matter the consequences of debt. Also, you stink, take a shower and take your black ass to bed.”

He rolls his eyes, the couch creaks as he hops off and heads over to his bathroom. He knows there's no use pressing, lest she becomes more dramatic.

“ Love you!” he calls out.

“ Love you too.” She sings.