Paul Dini - Harley Quinn - Mad Love

CONTENTS

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HARLEY QUINN

PAUL DINI AND PAT CADIGAN

Based on the comic book by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm

Harley Quinn created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm

TITAN BOOKS

HARLEY QUINN: MAD LOVE

Hardback ISBN: 9781785658136

Ebook ISBN: 9781785658143

Published by Titan Books

A division of Titan Publishing Group Ltd

144 Southwark Street, London SE1 0UP

www.titanbooks.com

First edition: November 2018

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

Copyright 2018 DC Comics.

BATMAN and all related characters and elements & DC Comics.

WB SHIELD: & Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (s18)

TIBO41544

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.

Designed by Crow Books.

This is for all the women
who met Mr. Wrong
and said,
This is the man for me!
(Hey, it coulda been worseit coulda been forever.)
P.C.

To Arleen Sorkin
for giving Harley Quinn
her voice, heart and soul on screen,
and to Pat Cadigan,
who gave her the same in this book.
P.D.

PROLOGUE

The story of Harley Quinn begins with a heist in a New York nightclub.

Given whom the world knows Harley Quinn to be, this may seem only fitting, perhaps expected. But as it happens, Harley Quinn wasnt involved. She wasnt even there at the time. Nonetheless, each life touches another. Nothing happens in a vacuum; the effects of every deed ripple outward.

The nightclub in question was called Pulsar and it was the place to be after dark on a Fridaynoisy, crowded, jumping. Good music, good company, good feelings, good riddance to another work-weekit was all so good, nobody noticed the crew breaking into the owners office. The owner herself was having a good time, not in the club but several floors up in her private apartment, with a particularly attractive gentleman caller. She didnt worry about being robbed; she had insurance.

Robbers, however, dont get insurance of any kind. Nor is there any compensation when a job goes wrong, as it did on this night. The robbers cracked the safe expecting it to be filled with money, bonds, and jewels; instead, they found the cupboard was bare.

The crew had had a solid plan drawn up for them by an experienced professional as payment for an outstanding debt. Said professional knew all about the safe, the office, and how to avoid Pulsar security. He also knew the owner would be more concerned with running her fingers through the long, silky hair of her gentleman caller than running the nightclub. On Friday nights, Pulsar ran itself anyway; you opened the doors and the wage-slaves came in to spend money on drinks and bar snacks till closing at three a.m. Other refreshments were also availablenothing says Were having some fun now! like Bolivian Marching Powder or super-Xbut that was someone elses business, nothing to worry about on a usual night.

Unfortunately, the DEA and local law enforcement had picked this night to execute a raid. They swarmed in, killing the buzz along with the music just as the robbers discovered all their efforts had been for nothing.

Pointing at the empty safe and shrugging isnt a get-out-of-federal-custody-free card. The robbers had no choice but to shoot their way out, which was the last thing they wanted to do. Shooting cops was the best way to summon the wrath of the entire NYC police department in all its full, unrestrained glory. The feds could have whatever was left. If there was anything left.

But nobody wanted to go to jail, either. The robbers fled with nothing to show for their efforts but regret and some painful gunshot wounds for the mob doctor.

Harleen Quinzel played no part in this; she was seven years old and it was already past her bedtime when the robbers heard the police sirens. The following day, while everyone was lying low and Pulsars owner was filling out insurance forms and letting her lawyer handle the cops, Harleen Quinzel was at Coney Island with her daddy.

This was the best day ever, and Harleen felt like shed waited forever for it. She and her daddy had spent a lot more time together back when her parents had only had her. But then her baby brother had come along. The baby was cute but, boy, could he cry. Her daddy explained how he was totally helpless and needed a lot of attention, and he was sorry about that, but he and Mommy would make it up to her. She just had to be patient, be a good girl and help out.

So she was patient, she was a good girl and helped whenever Mommy needed her, and right around the time she thought Mommy and Daddy might make things up to her, they brought another baby brother home. Now there were two of them, and all she could do was go on being good and helping out. But Daddy said they were going to make it up to her. Daddy promised.

Then they went to the hospital and brought home yet another baby brother, for a grand total of three. Three baby brothers.

It was hard to believe that her parents really thought her having so many baby brothers was a good idea. But then, grown-ups could be so weird.

If theyd asked Harleen, shed have suggested going to the movies or seeing the Ice Capades at Madison Square Garden. But what she really wanted was for Daddy to take her to Coney Island for the day, just the two of them. Daddy never got all bent out of shape about how many hot dogs and caramel apples she ate, and he wasnt afraid to go on the Wonder Wheel with her. When Mommy was there, shed get after Harleen for dripping mustard on her shirt or having sticky hands from cotton candy or not wanting the rest of the apple after the caramel part was gone.

She knew Mommy couldnt help it; it was how mommies were. Daddy was different. But now that they had all those baby brothers, it seemed like he was always working and never got a day off. He would apologize to Harleen and tell her theyd have some fun together as soon as he could make the time, something really, really good. He usually said it as he was going out the door.

At least he and Mommy had quit giving her baby brothers. That was something to be glad about. But now Harleen was starting to think that Daddy was working so much, hed forgotten how to do anything else. And worse, maybe he would rather work than be with her and Mommy and the three very loud baby brothers.