Chapter Four
Field Work
Barbara awoke early the next morning from a dreamless sleep. To her displeasure, her first thoughts were centered on the footage from the night before. The raw, pornographic footage that was a candid window into her close friend's sex life. Helena Bertinelli was having sex with one of her male students. But she hadn't entered into that twisted relationship of her own volition. No, Helena was being manipulated somehow. Whether it was hypnosis or some other form of mind control, Barbara knew in her gut that it had everything to do with the peculiar ring she now wore.
The ring itself was almost bland, a trait that only added to how strange it was. A simple band of what appeared to be dark, glossy stone. Barbara had no idea what it was made from, only that it was a black mineral that glimmered in the light, catching one's eye even from across a classroom.
That was exactly how Barbara noticed another ring as she passed a fellow teacher in the hall. She quickly turned on her heel, calling out to stop her colleague. Barbara needed to confirm that it wasn't simply her eyes playing tricks.
Barbara's suspicions were proven correct as the black, glossy ring taunted her from its spot on the fellow teacher's left hand. She recognized the woman as the history teacher whose classroom was directly across the hall from her own. Miss Annabelle Jameson, "Belle" for short.
Belle was a short woman, though only an inch or two shorter than Barbara herself, with smooth, lovely dark skin. She had narrow eyes of rich amber and a small button nose. High cheekbones and full lips - painted black - evoked the look of foreign royalty. Her face was framed by a neat bob cut of silky smooth black hair. She could have easily been a model. But Belle was no skinny waif. Her body could only be described as
womanly
. Her hips fanned
outwards
from a narrow waist and poured down into legs that even Zatanna would envy. And judging from the way her blouse valiantly contained the proud swell of her chest, Belle easily gave Power Girl some competition as well.
On top of that, she was dressed to
kill
. A high-waisted black pencil skirt hugged her legs like a second skin with pearl buttons going up the left side. Her top was a chic blouse, white silk and sleeveless. Her boots were black knee-highs with block heels and
gleamed
in the light, recently shined.
Barbara only needed to look at Miss Jameson for half a second in order to conclude the worst. She was a perfect target for the Brotherhood stooges: Young, beautiful, and female.
And in close proximity to their little hunting ground.
Though Barbara had only spoken with Belle a few times since assuming the alias Barbara Morgan, she knew for a fact that Belle hadn't been wearing the black ring last week. Which meant she had been targeted by the Brotherhood
recently
.
"Look who decided to get all dressed up!" Barbara lauded the other woman's outfit with a fake smile. "What's the occasion?"
Belle smiled radiated supreme confidence, as if the compliment was predestined. "No occasion. If you've got it, flaunt it."
"Well, you've certainly got it. Hit any club in downtown Gotham and you'll be beating men off with a stick."
"That's the idea, sister." Belle's lips pursed into a kittenish smirk, her eyes taking on a mischievous glint. "Minus the stick of course."
"Your ring is gorgeous. Where'd you get it?" Barbara inwardly winced at her lack of subtlety.
"Oh, this?" Belle held out her left hand, fingers splayed wide to show off her ring. The devious spark in her eyes was gone, replaced with a glassy, dreamy look. Belle now looked more like a lovestruck girl than a knockout of a woman. "It's a gift. My boyfriend just gave it to me last Sunday. He's got one also, so we match."
Barbara simply nodded. "Sounds serious."
Belle shot her a brief look, her eyes now unreadable as she turned her gaze down at the black, glossy stone.
"It's not that kind of ring." She said after a moment. "But yeah, it's pretty serious. It's supposed to represent our connection. Isn't that romantic?"
"I'm practically swooning." Barbara forced another smile. "Can I see it?"
"No."
"No?"
Belle blinked, pulling her hand back towards her body. She closed her slender fingers into a small fist, the glimmering band positioned right under her chin.
"I mean... You can see it just fine from right there, can't you?"
Barbara had to stop herself from frowning. Pressing the issue now would only cause problems later, she reminded herself. The redhead nodded, bowing her head apologetically.
"You're right. Sorry. Forget I asked." Barbara exhaled softly through her nose, but the frustration still held tight on her mind.
Belle waved her off, snorting. "It's not an issue. Water under the bridge, yeah? I'll see you at lunch."
The other woman turned on her heel and continued down the hallway, hips rocking side to side as if she was on a model runway. Barbara watched her go for a short time before narrowing her eyes.
"Miss Jameson?" She called out to her fellow teacher once more. Belle half-turned to face Barbara, black lips pursed and one brow raised. Barbara jerked her thumb back over her shoulder. "Isn't your classroom this way?"
Belle blinked. "Oh. Yes, I forgot to print out study guides for my second period class. I'm heading down to the computer lab right now. I'm only going to be a few minutes late. Nothing to worry about."
"Gotcha. Take care." Barbara nodded and watched the other woman turn a corner and vanish from sight. She only waited a moment before moving to follow.
The computer labs aren't that way either...