The story opens with Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent arriving at Wayne manor. Alfred informs them that mister Wayne is not home and may not be back for some time. Dent is intentionally abrasive towards Alfred. He obviously intends to wait it out until Alfred reminds them that it is Valentine’s Day. Gordon and Dent suddenly remember that neither of them has gotten anything for their wives and immediately depart.

The Roman is visiting the grave of his son Alberto. Batman confronts him, asking if his lifestyle is worth all of the lives he has destroyed. Falcone becomes enraged and points a gun at Batman. Catwoman appears and strikes Falcone’s gun hand with one of her bolos. Batman is curious about any possible connection between her and the Falcone crime organization. He chases her down in the snowy cemetery and they have a brief exchange of words.

Bruce Wayne meets Selina Kyle at the opera. A peddler comes by selling roses. Selina buys one for Bruce. The rose pricks his finger. Somehow neither Wayne or Kyle notice that the green-robed vendor has extremely pale skin and has leaves coming out the back of her robe where a normal woman would have hair.

Salvadore Maroni pays out Dent’s assistant Vernon in the kitchen of his restaurant. Meanwhile, in front of the restaurant, the security that Maroni hired to stand outside have decided to sit in a car to avoid the cold. The car full of mobsters is suddenly riddled with bullets killing everyone inside. The car explodes, in front of it are Holiday’s signature untraceable handgun and a heart shaped box of chocolates. Maroni storms into the front of his restaurant. He finds a room full of corpses and another heart shaped box of chocolates. He is enraged and accepts what he sees as Holiday’s decleration of war.

Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent arrive home late. They both present their wives with heart shaped boxes of chocolates that are remarkably similar to the ones that Holiday left at the scene of the murders.

Bruce Wayne arrives home. He ignores Alfred at the door and walks through the house with his nose buried in the rose that Selina bought him. He wanders into the courtyard where Poison Ivy is waiting for him.