Work Text:
CASE ID: GCSS-437-005
CASE FILE: JASON PETER TODD-WAYNE
LOCATION: WAYNE MANOR, 10.1 KM N.E. OF GOTHAM CITY
TIME: 2:57 P.M.
[TRANSCRIPT STARTED]
DESIDERO: Let me help you with that.
[MUFFLED SOUNDS]
DESIDERO: …You looked a little pale, everything ‘aight? Beautiful necklace by the way.
WAYNE: Yeah. Sorry, I rushed back from the conference as fast as I could. It’s my mother-in-law’s.
[MIC TAPPING SOUNDS]
WAYNE: Is the mic working?
DESIDERO: Yes, uh… thanks for agreeing to this interview with me, Mrs. Wayne. It’s a surprise, really. I didn’t expect you to show up early. I was told by Mr Pennyworth that you won’t be here until five.
WAYNE: It’s fine. You’re not a reporter. This is necessary for your job, I understand. Though I apologise for missing you last time.
DESIDERO: Shall we start, Mrs. Wayne?
WAYNE: [COUGH] Dr. Hill-Wayne, please. Dr. Wayne shall suffice. Please address me as such, I’ve earned my doctorate. Wouldn’t want it go to waste.
DESIDERO: Yes, yes. Sorry—Dr. Wayne. [COUGH] Let’s start.
WAYNE: ‘Kay.
DESIDERO: How long have you been married to Bruce Wayne?
WAYNE: [SIGHS] Well… almost ten years, I’d say.
[BRIEF PAUSE]
WAYNE: We met through work. I was… in my early thirties, and I just came to Gotham for a new job at his company.
DESIDERO: You were the…
WAYNE: The senior assistant engineer. I worked in the R&D department, and I married him shortly after that.
DESIDERO: Quite a fast progression, don’t you think?
[A BRIEF PAUSE]
WAYNE: We’ve been through a lot together. I’m sure you heard the news back then. And… we both know we found the right person to spend the rest of our lives with.
DESIDERO: Yes, a lot is a generous way to describe it.
WAYNE: Hmm?
DESIDERO: You two decided to adopt Richard Grayson roughly four months into the marriage, considering Mr. Wayne’s reputation—
WAYNE: I know what you’re implying. Yes, my husband was a playboy, whatever you call it. But people change all the time, Mr. Desidero. I’m sure you’re well-versed with that. Despite what the rumours say, he remained faithful to me throughout our marriage.
DESIDERO: Dr. Wayne—
WAYNE: I’m not saying my husband is perfect. He’s not. But I can assure you with my life… that he tried his best with our kids. I donno what you wanna paint him as, but abusive is not the word in this house.
[LONG PAUSE]
DESIDERO: Dr. Wayne, I need to talk to you about what went wrong with Jason Todd.
[A BRIEF PAUSE]
WAYNE: Jason Todd-Wayne. Please remember that.
DESIDERO: Yes, sorry. But I’d like to hear it from you, for the record.
[LONG PAUSE]
WAYNE: There’s nothing much to s—say.
DESIDERO: Surely you can tell us how he ended up in Ethiopia, or why you and your husband didn’t tag along, letting a fifteen-year-old boy fly across the globe alone.
[LONG PAUSE]
[RATTLING SOUND]
DESIDERO: Dr. Wayne, forgive me if I’m curt, but it’s not a good look on your end.
WAYNE: …What do you mean by that?
DESIDERO: Dick and Tim sang high praises about both of you, yes. But the political tensions and police corruption following Jason’s death—
WAYNE: Ah, yes. The conspiracies. I heard of it, yes. But time has passed, Mr. Desidero. My family has been through so, so much since then. I’d appreciate it if we skip this question.
DESIDERO: Even if you don’t want to confirm or deny it?
WAYNE: I would like to move on from this. My son is… was a wonderful, intelligent, caring, kind boy. He was so much more than a boy who died in Ethiopia. Not a footnote in your documents, or a hot topic of the night on conspiracy podcasts with attached sponsorships, or whatever [THUMPING SOUND] th—those fucking true-crime stories they’ve been milkin’ online.
[A BRIEF PAUSE]
WAYNE: My son loves his biological mother. He cared about her. That’s why he went and searched for her, and he died knowing who she was. That’s what matters for me. You may see the boy on the streets who got lucked out, or the utterly false rumours of alleged abuse, but we gave him a home. He was happy and thriving under our care. Shall I fax you a copy of his grades?
DESIDERO: [HEAVY BREATHING]
WAYNE: My husband may be crying to you about his guilt, but you will never get that from me. We made a mistake in letting him go alone, yes. We’ve learned our lesson. My son’s death was not in vain. We mourn him every single fucking day, and we will mourn him for the rest of our lives, until I join him beside his grave.
[A BRIEF PAUSE]
WAYNE: I guess this is what happens when we’re too private with our lives, all this bullshit about my husband abusing our kids. But Mr. Desidero, you have no fucking idea how painful it was for us.
DESIDERO: I’m very sorry, Dr. Wayne—
WAYNE: You’re a father yourself?
[A BRIEF PAUSE]
DESIDERO: … Yes.
WAYNE: Then I’m sure you can imagine what it felt like to hold your son’s bloodied, bruised, unrecognisable body in your arms. I still have nightmares to this day. Do you know how I felt, hearing my son was reduced to nothing… but an accusation against his adoptive father? Do you really care about him?
[LONG PAUSE]
WAYNE: You don’t have to sugarcoat this. I’m aware of our influence in this city. [RATTLING SOUND] But the only thing I ask from you right now, is to drop the subpoena against my husband, and leave my family alone.
WAYNE: As long as I’m alive, I’ll never let you taint Jason’s legacy this way.
[LONG PAUSE]
WAYNE: [RUSTLING SOUND] I had enough of people thinking they knew everything about our family. If you wanna write something, just remember that Jason was the brightest kid. And we loved him no matter what he'd done.
[RUSTLING SOUND]
[A BRIEF PAUSE]
WAYNE: Now, I think we’re done here.
[MUFFLING SOUND FROM A DISTANCE]
UNKNOWN: [MUFFLED] —uce, you okay?
UNKNOWN: [MUFFLED] —honey?
[THUMPING SOUND]
WAYNE: Sorry, my husband needs me. Alfred will send you off. Thank you for your time, Mr. Desidero. Take care.
[MUFFLING SOUND]
UNKNOWN: Yes, Madame. Right this way, Mr. Desidero.
DESIDERO: …Thanks, Dr. Wayne.
[TRANSCRIPT ENDED]