Chapter 10 The Prelude to the Owl's Madness: The Terrifying Killing of Subadult Owls...
Okay, Isaiah Thomas is still going to stick to his guns.
After all, it's not a big deal.
Although he was even less likely to be honest with Bruce about important matters, Bruce was different from Alfred; he was a minor.
Isaiah Thomas still decides to comprehensively evaluate Bruce's reaction before deciding whether to be more honest with Bruce in the future.
He remained calm and led Bruce straight to the kitchen.
Alfred opened the door.
Thomas Jr. looked back at him.
“I won’t tell him directly,” Alfred said through lip reading. “It’s up to you.”
Thomas Jr. turned his head back expressionlessly.
"Um, what do we need?" Bruce hadn't looked at the list carefully yet, so he didn't know what was written on it and could only follow Thomas.
"Four cups of sugar, please," said Thomas. "And one lemon, to make lemonade."
These things were easy to find, and Alfred laid them all out on the table.
Thomas glanced around and, sure enough, there were no strawberries in the kitchen.
There seem to be some in the storeroom at Wayne Manor, provided Alfred didn't deliberately take them.
He needs to distract Bruce to get the strawberries.
"Bruce, could you wash the lemons for me?"
"Huh? Okay." Bruce followed Thomas's words absentmindedly.
He was currently using one half of his head to think about clues from the Court of Owls, while the other half was frantically trying to figure out how to get into a fight with Thomas.
This is really difficult... Not only do you have to act well, but you also have to convey anger, and you can't even let Tommy know that he's acting.
Tommy could even read Alfred's mind at a glance... God knows how Tommy could tell if Alfred was really angry when he had a stern face, and even distinguish precisely whether it was the mouse that was stealing snacks or Bruce who was stealing snacks that made him angry.
Most importantly, there was no reason at all; Bruce couldn't understand what kind of argument could arise from using some sugar-making ingredients.
Are they really supposed to make candy, then deliberately blow up the whole kitchen, and finally have a huge argument with Alfred to shift the blame?
That's feasible.
Alfred will probably be really angry, and Bruce won't be able to eat anything he likes for a long time to come.
Especially the white chocolate cranberry cookies.
But there was no other way, so Bruce hesitated before saying, "Should we prepare all the fruit?"
This was exactly what Thomas wanted to hear, and he immediately replied, "Sure, Bruce. But I can't reach the counter, so I can't do anything."
Bruce was focused on processing fruit in the kitchen, which gave him the opportunity to sneak into the pantry and rummage through the strawberries.
"I can handle this myself, how do I deal with it?"
Bruce didn't want to see his brother with a knife or anything like that. Now, he was constantly haunted by Thomas Jr., who was wielding all sorts of dangerous and even harmless objects, trying every possible way to kill him.
"First, cut the washed lemons open, remove the seeds, and crush the pulp to extract the juice," Thomas answered without hesitation.
Thanks to the Wayne couple's genes, his body also has a good brain; he can memorize a recipe at a glance.
But Bruce wasn't listening. The owl kept circling in his head, chasing away all the production steps that were trying to get into his head.
After he finished washing the lemons, he had completely forgotten all the steps that Thomas had told him, so he had to ask again, "Can I see the recipe?"
But no one responded to him.
"Tommy?" Bruce didn't hear a response and continued rubbing the lemon in his hand. "Approximately how much lemon juice do we need?"
There was no response.
“Tommy? Thomas Jr.!” Bruce tossed aside the lemon and glanced across the kitchen.
No, he's not here.
Bruce squinted, shook his wet hands, and strode out of the kitchen.
"Isaiah Thomas?"
Alfred had warned Bruce that several people were trying to harm him and Thomas in the past few days.
He grabbed the kitchen knife and swung it twice, almost dropping it, but he couldn't find a more suitable weapon at the moment.
Bruce looked around the carpet on the first floor and it seemed that only Thomas Jr.'s footprints were there.
But he wasn't completely at ease. Holding his breath, he tiptoed and followed the faint marks on the carpet toward the storage room.
He reached out, about to push open the door—
"Bruce?"
Thomas's voice came from behind him.
Bruce was startled, and the knife slipped from his wet hand and fell onto the carpet.
"You can't hold a knife like that." Thomas tried to crouch down to pick up the knife, but Bruce stopped him.
What are you holding in your hand?
“Strawberries,” Thomas said, holding up the bag in his hand, “Alfred probably forgot to prepare them, so I rummaged through the storeroom and luckily found them.”
Thomas Jr. gave a very comprehensive answer.
But something's not right.
Based on Bruce's understanding of Isaiah Thomas, he would say as few words as possible, answering all questions but also refusing to answer others.
Isaiah Thomas was a bit too proactive today.
"Could you please let me see the recipe?"
“Of course.” Thomas took out a folded piece of paper from his clothes and handed it to Bruce without a second thought.
This was the recipe he had copied and modified in the storeroom with paper and pen. Imitating other people's handwriting was not difficult for Thomas, let alone imitating Alfred's. Over the years, he had learned every little hand quirk of Alfred's when he wrote.
Even if this young body cannot perfectly control the pen, without other handwriting for comparison, even Bruce wouldn't be able to tell the difference...
"Tommy, this wasn't written by Alfred, was it?"
Thomas paused as he walked toward the kitchen.
He suspected Bruce was bluffing him.
"Of course, it wasn't Alfred who wrote it, it was me?"
Bruce rubbed the last few words with his dry wrist, the undried ink spreading out.
“I have no doubt that you are a genius, Tommy,” Bruce said abruptly, “but I don’t want you to waste your talents on lying to me.”
Thomas Jr. didn't say anything; he remained silent like a statue.
"So what did you go through all this trouble for?" Bruce asked him. "Just for strawberry-flavored candy?"
That's absolutely impossible. Something big must have caused Isaiah Thomas to go through such trouble.
But what important thing could possibly be in those damn strawberry candies?
"...Sorry, Bruce."
"You don't feel sorry at all," Bruce said, genuinely getting angry. "You just regret not using blotting paper to absorb the ink!"
Isaiah Thomas couldn't refute it.
"What is it all about? Why won't you tell me even this little thing? I know you have a lot of secrets, Tommy. But..." Bruce rubbed his hair in frustration, "I... I'm your brother, we should be the closest people in the world. You don't trust me, do you?"
Yes, he really didn't trust Bruce.
Strictly speaking, Isaiah Thomas doesn't trust anyone, including himself.
Trust is a luxury.
Bruce was even angrier by his acquiescence.
How many more things are you hiding from me?
"a lot of."
"You'll never tell me?"
"Maybe."
“At least tell me,” his eyes almost pleaded, “at least tell me why this time?”
Thomas Jr. did not say anything.
“I understand,” he said. “I don’t know if you’ve changed too, or if I’ve never known you at all.”
Bruce seemed hurt.
He once thought that he and Isaiah Thomas would be the closest allies in the world.
Thomas thought Bruce was going to have a big fight with him, but to his surprise, Bruce just walked away in silence.
This was their first Cold War.
That evening, Alfred approached Thomas: “Was it really necessary to make such a scene, young Thomas? I thought you could easily get through this crisis without actually angering Bruce—but you’re deliberately provoking him and making it look like two kids arguing.”
“It’s necessary, Alfred.” Thomas fiddled with his pen. “First, only a fool would trust me, and Bruce shouldn’t be a fool.”
"Secondly, I have never had unrealistic expectations of living past thirty, and it's best if there are no hindrances in our family relationships."
This was their first cold war, which lasted only one night. The next day, they acted as if nothing had happened, still worrying about each other and caring for one another as much as before.
But this incident has also caused some impact.
It will be difficult for them to rebuild "trust".
This was just a trigger. Bruce originally thought that Thomas's uniqueness was an unspoken secret between the two of them, and that they should have been natural allies.
However, Isaiah Thomas himself denied this.
Therefore, Bruce did not tell Thomas about his plans to fight crime and evil.
Thomas only found out he was leaving Gotham when he was about to leave, handing over the contract and all his shares to Thomas Jr.
Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, who knows?
Thomas sincerely hoped he would never return; every Gotham he observed was a mess.
He offered his heartfelt congratulations to Bruce on his departure from this quagmire and sincerely expressed his views on Gotham, hoping that he would take Alfred with him.
Bruce seemed angry, but it was no use.
Finally, the two had an argument.
Unfortunately, since Bruce was leaving, he couldn't control how Thomas could do whatever he wanted with this poor city.
Besides, he had no idea what Thomas was up to. If he had known, he might have taken Thomas along to prevent him from wreaking havoc in Gotham City.
-
Thomas has three goals.
Wayne Enterprises, the Gotham City mob, and the Court of Owls.
The best target would be Wayne Enterprises.
Bruce handed him the knife himself; it was too late to do anything now.
No sooner had Bruce left than Thomas slipped himself into the upper echelons of Wayne Enterprises. During the day, he busied himself working for Wayne Enterprises, and at night he donned the Night Owl armor he'd prepared beforehand to intimidate any disobedient executives within the company.
The results were remarkable; clearly, they were all terrified of ropeless bungee jumping.
It's just too easy; it's not challenging at all.
Thomas thus consolidated most of Wayne Enterprises' power within a month. The feeling of having what was rightfully his own slightly satisfied the owl's terrifying lust for control.
But that's not enough. There's still one person missing, someone who isn't obedient enough and isn't under the control of Night Owl...
-
For the past month, everyone at Wayne Group has been in a state of panic.
At first, no one took this newcomer seriously. In past board meetings, he was always his older brother's sidekick, very quiet and never spoke. The information gathered by private investigators also indicated that Thomas Wayne Jr. was autistic. Despite his handsome face, excellent grades, and top-notch family background, no one wanted to associate with him. He was extremely timid and showed no reaction when isolated.
Most of the executives and shareholders planned to take advantage of Thomas's unstable position to completely sideline him and make a fortune.
But immediately everyone stopped laughing.
Thomas Wayne himself didn't seem to cause any trouble, but as soon as he arrived, some shareholders took the initiative to sell their shares to him, and some "not very ethical" executives also resigned.
If you can't even see the conspiracy behind this, then you shouldn't be in Gotham.
A guilty conscience is like a mouse, desperately trying to escape Wayne Enterprises and avoid being purged by the owl.
Some guilty people will run away with their buckets, while others with a clear conscience will continue to work as usual.
Lucius Fox, he is a good man with a clear conscience.
Because Lucius had a clear conscience, he was completely unprepared when Thomas appeared in his office.
The young chairman, who also served as the newly appointed CEO, seemed to be in poor health. He didn't take off his leather hat after entering the room and was still wearing a pair of black leather gloves.
He stood beside Lucius's desk, seemingly having waited for a while, idly rolling the paper in his hand into a tube.
"Mr. Wayne, is there anything I can help you with?" Lucius took off his coat and hung it on the coat rack. "Where's the secretary?"
Thomas's blue eyes looked at Lucius, making Lucius feel uneasy.
"What's wrong, Mr. Wayne?"
“Lucius Fox,” Thomas said with a slight smile, “you are suspected of misappropriating company property and producing our patented products without authorization… This is enough for me to send you to Blackgate Jail.”
"I hope to resolve this matter today. Whether you continue as president of Wayne Enterprises or go to Blackgate Prison is entirely up to you."
A note from the author:
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I searched online, but I still couldn't figure out whether Lucius is the president, CEO, or CEO/president. However, I personally think that given Lucius's terrifying need for control, he'll definitely be the CEO himself. So that's how it's set up. If any kind soul finds any errors, please let me know, and I'll correct them immediately. [doge emoji with rose in hand]
At this point, Xiao Zong should not have been an adult yet, but he already had income. In some states in the United States, the age of 16 is considered the age of adulthood if one has income, so I followed that rule.
A sub-adult owl would be a game-changer for Gotham now... his power armor could even hold its own against WW.
While watching the movie, I discovered that this owl appears serious on the surface but is actually wicked and even smirks, quite often (more than the Ultimate Man).
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