"She checks out," Zoe said, perhaps a bit too harshly. The implication that her mother was less than honest made her angry. "You don't need me to see her at her office, or to have her checked out."

The second she said that, she knew it was useless. Any background check on Michelle Torres would turn up a daughter.

"She's clean and separate from what I'm doing. Your backers will love her. She's the success story from the Triangle."

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"I have very stringent standards for people I work with and Miss Torres' goes through the same vetting process." Red Robin says simply, noting the vehemence with which she comes to Michelle Torres' defense. Is she this girl's caretaker?

He remembers the way he used to defend Bruce against people who bad-mouthed him.

"Wait. She doesn't know what you do with your evenings, does she?" he asks, betting on a hunch.

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Zoe stubbornly didn't respond to the question. "You're the one with stringent standards, and you're wearing the mask. That's a little hypocritical, don't you think?"

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He refusal to answer is really all the answer he requires.

"The mask isn't for /my/ protection. It's for the protection of all the people I've ever worked with and will work with." Red Robin says.

"I've got without one, but those days are behind me now."

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Yeah. Just the sort of answer she'd expect from a mask.

She heard the cops arrive down below to take the cuffed men into custody. She could've said it would take them this long. The cops didn't like coming into the area for legitimate reasons.

"If you got nothing else, it's past my bedtime. If your people are serious about getting help into the area, Michelle Torres is the place to start. She's honest and hardworking. Ask around, people will tell you. Don't mention me. It won't help."

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"Noted." Red Robin says. The kid has way too much attitude for her own good and she doesn't trust anybody. Maybe he's wrong about offering to teach other.

Then again, Marissa was the same way when she arrived; full of piss and fire, ready to fight at the drop of a hat.

"I'll see you tomorrow night." he says, turning toward the edge of the roof. He leaps over the side and glides down to the street, waiting in the shadows.

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Zoe went to the edge of the roof to see he was already gone from sight.

She didn't trust him; she had no reason to yet. If he was looking for a cheap thrill, he was going about it all wrong. She could've directed him to some very accommodating business girls.

The possibility that things could get better in the Triangle without a mass clean up was a chance she had to take.

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