Maximum: Catwoman #2

Ambulance sirens were going off down on the world below. Cops were patrolling the beats and getting the homeless off the streets for the night. It was an initiative that the Gotham mayor had tried to focus on get The Narrows cleaned up. She knew that it was more show than substance, because the cops were overwhelmed as it was anyway. The heartbeat of the city could be heard if someone paid attention well enough. Selina’s eyes grew wide as she sprung from her perch and dove into the alley that was below. She heard a child screaming….

“Mommy!!!” The young girl was screaming with tears streaming down her face as her mother lay on the ground in a bloody pool of carnage. Selina did a back-flip and pulled out her bull whip as it snagged a nearby fire escape ladder. Selina did a double somersault from two flights of stairs. She adjusted her night vision goggles and saw a figure standing in the shadows. She ran up to the little girl and picked her up. “Where are you taking me?!” There was a scream of a man’s voice and she turned around. Her whip was still ready as she held the girl close to her body. She flipped the whip out and it snagged the fire escape again and she swung with the girl above the alley.

“Stay here!” Selina commanded her as she opened the window for the girl. She returned to the alley. She turned around just as quickly where she saw a man screaming over the woman… the mother of the little girl that was now dead. “What did you do to that woman!?” She became the Catwoman when she confronted the man with her personae.

“She’s my wife!” He screamed at Catwoman.

“So that gives you the right to kill her?!” The man pulled a gun out of his coat. “Don’t even think about it.” Catwoman looked at the man as she yelled at him. She could see in his eyes with the night vision she had that his eyes were glassy. He was on something. She heard him cock the gun and she did a quick somersault and knocked the gun from the man’s hand. The bullet discharged from the gun as the bullet grazed the man’s cheek and he fell back stunned. He hit his head hard against the brick wall behind him and became completely unconscious. She turned around and saw The Batman behind her as he was holding the little girl. “Why?”

“LOOK AT HER, SHE’S DEAD!!” Catwoman exploded at The Batman.

“You’re a crook!” Was his only response to her?

“Not even close, Bats.” She did a back flip. She knew that he couldn’t keep up with her with a little girl in her arms. Her actions were quick as she flipped out her bullwhip and it snagged a fire escape above the window where The Batman stood. She was able to make her escape just as quickly as she had knocked out the man. She had become Selina in her personae as she headed towards Saint Francis Hospital.

Selina had seen all this before through the eyes of a child herself. She knew that little girl was going to grow up with her out her mother and father and she knew that her life was damned now. Unless there was someone by some miracle going to take care of her, but she doubted that. Her life had seemed to go in a completely new direction. Her acrobatics had given her such a rush, but her state mind of had become muted when she was back in the hospital to see Maggie. She peeled off her hood from her head and put her night vision goggles into the backpack she had brought along. Being a community hospital, the security was very lax. She was able to find Maggie’s room as she slipped in she saw Maggie’s face. She was pretty beaten up, as she was black and blue all over her back and arms that were exposed. Selina smoothed her hair out. She knew that Maggie wasn’t going to see her because she still was in a medical coma and her eyes were swollen shut. Selina cursed herself for not being able to find the monster that had attacked her. She swore that she was going to get whoever it was. Batman clearly thought she was a crook, but she began to think… was she really, truly one?



Innocence is hard to yield for So much is taken and less is given back. James Gordon lit a cigarette as he cursed himself under his breath as he had sworn to himself that he wasn’t able to kick the habit yet. He was reading the forensics report as he took a couple puffs on the cancer stick. Gordon looked over at Renee Montoya who had her hands in her pockets as he looked at Commissioner Gordon. “You know who did it?”

Montoya looked at him as Gordon shrugged. “I haven’t any idea, but we’ve got the best people on it and I think we’ll get somewhere.”

“Yeah like the 10,000 other cases we didn’t solve last year?”
“You really know how to piss on a man’s dreams, don’t you Montoya?” Gordon could easily get annoyed with her, but Montoya had an insight that was akin to the street and he knew that Montoya could keep him connected to the people that may not talk to normal cops. Montoya looked at the picture of his young daughter on his desk. “Is that Babs?”

“Yeah.” Gordon nodded.

“She looks like her mom everyday.”

“Yeah she does.” It was a fact he was grateful for since he had lost Barbara’s mother a long time ago. He took the picture and repositioned on his desk and he sat back down as he looked at Montoya. “What do you got?”

“Age fourteen. Female. Raped and strangled and left for dead, but she fought for every second of her life.” Montoya paused as Gordon cleared his throat.

“Let’s see if we can keep this out of the papers, okay?” Gordon took the cigarette from his mouth as he snubbed it out in the ashtray. Gordon’s cell phone rang as he opened it up. “Gordon.”

“Hey Jim.” It was Harvey Dent. Dent’s voice seemed a bit strained and stressed.

“Where you at Dent?” Gordon sighed, as he knew this would keep him late for dinner yet again. He hated that he never seemed to have dinner with his daughter on a regular basis.

“Big Jack and Jim at my side, Jim!” Dent laughed in a drunken stupor. He knew that Dent had been going through a lot, but he was glad that the press didn’t get a hold of Dent like this.

“I’ll be right over, Harvey.” Gordon got up as he looked at Montoya. “Make sure you get me some answers, Montoya we’ve got a long week if we need to get some answers as soon as possible.”

Renee nodded as she took her cellphone from her from his pocket of her coat. “Sure thing, Jim.” She winked and Gordon dismissed her.

Gordon went to the squad car and went over to Dent’s townhouse. He knocked on the door and found that it was cracked open. Dent did live in the good part of town, but this wasn’t like him at all. He knew that Dent had been going through a lot, but this was even stranger than the phone conversation he had with him. “Harvey?” He looked around as he walked in. “Dent?” He called again as he opened Dent would just come out and greet him. Gordon walked to Dent’s office and looked around and didn’t see him. He finally went to the bedroom and saw Dent sprawled out on the bed. He saw a note that was opened on the nightstand. Gordon took out his glasses from his pocket and squinted in the muted light as he read the note.

Mr. D.A.,
I know what you’re doing. I am not going to let you get away with it either.

The note was unsigned, but Gordon guessed that Dent had put himself in some sort of trouble. He didn’t want to guess what that was yet, but he decided to call a friend at the precinct that would pick up Dent and take him to Saint Francis Hospital. He hoped and prayed that this would stay out of the media until he could get some answers from Dent about it.



Selina Kyle had spent her life by living by one rule since she was a girl in that orphanage that Maggie came from, by living frugally as she could. Selina had put her mind to work as she donned the black leather suit that hugged her curves very well. The streets were always alive with activity. Selina knew that she was taking the path that she felt would bring Maggie’s rapist to justice, but living on the edge and by the law of the streets brought excitement to her life. She felt more alive more than ever on the streets, but the sense of urgency crept into her soul as she was fighting against time to keep what happened to Maggie from happening to anyone else. Catwoman had decided to do some snooping as she headed to the administrative building of Saint Francis Hospital. She ducked inside the building from the window that just happened to be open on one of the higher floors. She looked around as she landed with a thud to see if anyone happened to be working late. She didn’t see anyone. She turned on the flashlight from her small backpack and saw a computer still on. It was probably some secretary that was going to come back early in the morning and finish her work. Selina took out a USB memorystick and put into the USB port and watched as the password crack found the password within seconds.

“Heavybits.” She smirked. “Nice.” She whispered to herself. She began to look for anything that might tell her anything. She saw a name that surprised her almost instantly. “What the hell are you doing…” She said to herself. She realized what she saw could ruin a man’s life forever, but justice for Maggie demanded she follow-up on it. She clutched her fists and gathered the items back into her backpack. She knew that she would need to confront him for Maggie’s safety.




Harvey Dent lived on two sides of the law. On one hand he was responsible for the prosecution those that would harm others and on the other hand he had to keep up a public image because his fate was in the hands of the voters. Results were news and the news was what the young district attorney needed to keep the voters satisfied. By being able to balance those things proved to be difficult at times. The element of crime wasn’t easy to stop.

He had come from the hospital with no media attention that he was grateful for. He knew that Gordon could just have left him to his own vices and who knew what story would have shown up in the Gotham Times. He had his attention drawn to the files that were scattered all over his desk. He sat down and looked for an absolution that always seemed like it was fleeting. Deep down Harvey knew results came from hard work and guts… and a little luck. He opened a folder when he felt a fist come down on his face which made him fall out his chair as blood poured out of his nose. Catwoman had taken him completely by surprise and he recoiled quickly.

“No! Wait! Stop!” He heaved in a couple of breaths. She looked at him with her teeth grit and her eyes through her goggles were trained on with a deadly fury in her voice as she responded to him.

“You attacked a girl and raped her!” Catwoman raised he hand as she prepared to hit him again.

Dent shook his head fiercely as he responded. “No! I didn’t!”

Catwoman sent a fist to his face as he crumpled down again after he had tried to stand up. “How do you explain all these scratches you went to the ER with?!” She growled at him.

“I was drunk. It was my cover for the media just in case.” Dent was shaking from fear. He opened his shirt and showed her his arms that were free from scratches and scars. “I have no idea what you’re talking about!” Blood was pouring from his nose and then his mouth. She grabbed his arm to examine it for herself. She knew she had fallen into a trap or she had had misconceptions about him. She looked at him and narrowed her eyes.

“Gotta go, lover boy.” She jumped from the window that she had pounced him from.

As he got himself up off the floor he reached into his pocket and took out a double-headed coin with one scarred side. He flipped the coin in his right hand as he whispered to himself. “Looks like I got a new pet.” His voice was low and gruff and it was nothing like his personae he used in public. “Daddy needs to spay that little kitty.” He had to shake himself out of his transformation. “I can’t do this… Not now.” He got up and dusted himself and cleaned the blood off his mouth. Catwoman had come to pay him a visit… it was true she existed.



Alex Knox flipped back his fedora as he was practicing throwing wads of paper into the waste paper basket. A shadow crept over his practice as he looked up and saw a keenly dressed woman with long black hair that was kept in a ponytail. Her olive skin complexion gave her an exoticism about her. “Umm, can I help you?” Knox stood up and watched her as she watched him with a smile of her own.

The woman’s green eyes trailed him and then to the window where the sunlight lit up her attractive silhouette. “Yes, Mr. Knox. My name is Irena Dubrovna.” She took her hand from her side and offered to Knox. He took her hand and shook it.

“Oh right!” he sat up straight at his desk. He invited her to sit down with a gesture of his hand. “I didn’t think we were going to meet.”

Dubrovna sat down and folded her long legs right in front of Knox. Knox couldn’t help but stare at her for a moment. “I haven’t been here for very long, Mr. Knox.”

“For how long?” He watched her.

“A few months at least.” She smoothed her the skirt of her dress out. “I knew you were doing the story on the Catwoman so I thought my information would help you.”

Knox scrambled for a pad of paper and a pencil and nodded. “Go ahead.”

“Well, Mr. Knox, I know you’ve been following this story for a few months now.” She paused. “What I about to tell you must not be told but it is to gain your trust.” Knox raised an eyebrow. “My sister was brutally attacked and raped and I am looking for him.”

“What has that got to do with Catwoman?” He responded.

“I know who she is.” She looked him with all seriousness she could muster.

Knox looked stunned as he watched her. “You know who she is?!”

“Of course I do. I am she.” She looked at him no smile and looking at him.

Knox raised his eyebrows and shook his head. “You’re filling me full of BS.”

“No, and I will tell you why I am telling you this…”




Bingo Wallace was the big boss that controlled things in The Narrows and what he said was the law. He had the cops paid off and there was nothing he didn’t know, but having a cop in his pocket allowed him to do have his finger on the pulse of the entire city. Wallace was watching the Gotham Knights on TV when he heard the phone ring. He almost decided to ignore the ring of the phone when he decided to answer it. “Yes.”

“Boss that chick you wanted to talk to Irena Dubrovna is here now.” He raised an eyebrow. His message had gotten through pretty quickly as he decided to meet with her. “I’ll be right there, Charlie.”
He arrived a few minutes later at the Italian restaurant he owned in The Narrows. It was one of the few visible places in the neighbourhood that he wasn’t afraid to be seen at. “Well, I didn’t think I was going to see you again so soon.” He smiled as he offered to hug her.

Dubrovna didn’t recoil as she hugged him. “I am sorry I couldn’t get back to you sooner, I had to have a chat with a friend of mine.”

“Oh anyone I know?” Wallace offered a cup of coffee.

“No, I doubt it.” She smirked.

“Ahh, well your mysteries were always your trademark.” He chuckled as he watched her.

“I don’t have many mysteries, Bings.” She put her hand on his hand. “You ever thought about us?”

“No, I knew you weren’t interested in that, besides I thought I could ask you to help me again.” He took out a cigar and started to light it.

“Not that, Bings.” She recoiled, as she hated the smell of cigars. “I don’t do that business anymore, besides I was hoping you’d help get to the bottom of a mystery that I am willing to tell you.”

“Oh and what’s that?” He raised an eyebrow.

She took out a newspaper and put it on his table with the headline story written by Alex Knox. “CATWOMAN APPEALS TO CITY TO HELP FIND RAPIST.”

“Do you know who did this?” She looked at him.

“Nah, I mean I think I might why is it important to you?” He raised an eyebrow as he looked at her.

“I know this little girl. She was nearly killed.” She looked at him.

“Eh, I don’t care about this, Irena.” He looked at her and realized that she wasn’t going to help him after all.

“What if I…” She leaned and kissed him deeply. Bingo didn’t pull back as he wanted to sleep with her, but everyone knew he was happily married.

“I can’t.” He shook his head. “I gotta go.” He stood up. “Listen, I hear things.” He paused, as he wasn’t sure if he should tell her anything, but he decided what was the harm. “I don’t think there’s not any reason to tell you that Big Sammy might have been the one that raped that girl.”
“Who’s Big Sammy?” She raised an eyebrow.

“He’s sorta shadowy guy.” He shrugged. “He just does this annoying flip of this coin. A double headed coin.”

Dubrovna looked at him and tried to think of who that might be, but she just decided to let Bingo go for now. “Well I should go too, Bings. I’ll be back soon though. Think about us would you?”

“I always do.” He did lean in and kissed her. Irena caressed his face as they kissed for a couple minutes and he squeezed her hands and then he decided to leave it at that. She clenched her fist as she realized she was no closer than what she thought she would be.



The morning sun shown on her face as she blinked a couple times, and she looked around and saw Selina’s face. “Sel?” She blinked as she winced from the pain that was nagging at her.

“I am here, Maggie.” Selina took her hand and smiled as she looked into Maggie’s eyes. “Do you remember what happened to you?”

“No… How did I get here?” She looked at Selina as she tried to focus on sitting up but her body wouldn’t respond to her thoughts. She winced in pain Selina put a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t try to get up… you were raped and almost killed.”

“I don’t remember that.”

“I know, but I am trying to get to the bottom of it.”

“Why? How?” Maggie winced in pain again as she realized that she was getting tired again.

“Why don’t you get some rest.” She put her hand through her hair. “I’ll be back tomorrow.”

“Okay… I love you Selina.”

“I love you too.” Selina pat her head and felt tears fall from her eyes as she dried them. She left the room and realized that this was harder on her than she thought. The adventure she felt just a few months ago had turned into a nightmare. She needed someone that could help her through this and she thought about Slam Bradley.

Selina took out her cell phone and put into a call to Slam’s phone at this office and the phone just rang a couple times when he answered.

“Talk to me.”

“Hi Slam, it’s me.” She smiled when she heard his voice.

“Oh hey kiddo, where you at?”

“Just watching Maggie… she was attacked.” Selina’s tone turned serious.

“Yeah I know been trying to get some info about it, but this nut’s tough to crack.” Slam could sense that she was worried. “How bad is she?”

“She’s bad but she finally woke up today.”

“That’s good. How are you holding up?”

“Not so good.” She admitted. “Can I see you?”

“Of course, Kitten.” He said. “You want me to come to you?”

“No, I’ll be over there in a few minutes.”

“Okay. See you soon then.” Slam said as he hung up. Selina closed her cell and realized that for the first time she was feeling loneliness and it wasn’t a feeling that she wanted to feel again, but the life she lived… made it difficult to think of having anyone in her life much less having a family. She packed her backpack up and headed towards Slam’s office. She knew that seeing him always picked up her spirits, but she felt like anything could happen. She finally made it to his office that he had. Slam had decided to retire from the force and open a private detective business in The Narrows. East Gotham was full of crime, cockroaches and cases. It was the three “Cs” that made life interesting.

Selina knocked on his door and she heard him call for her. “Com’on in.”

She walked in and looked around and saw him cleaning off his desk. “Keeping busy?” She grinned as she walked over and hugged him.

“Not much lately.” He hugged her back. “You doing okay?”

“Yeah I am now.” She admitted.

“So what is going on with you lately? You don’t answer your phone anymore.” Bradley was good at chastising her like a father would a daughter.

“I don’t know why…” She sighed. “I just needed to see you.”

“Well, I am glad I could be here for you then.”


Slam held her hand. “So you here for a visit or something else?”

“I need help… I am trying to find Maggie’s attacker.” Selina looked him in the eyes.

“You still doing your circus act?” Slam crossed his arms as he listened to her.

“I have to Slam! No one can do what I can do!” She protested his statement.

“Selina… Irena… Catwoman.. I am not sure what I am supposed to call you.” He looked her into the eyes.

“You used to call me lover..” Selina crossed her arms in front of her body as she turned around and was looking for comfort but all she was getting was cross-examined.

“Look, Kitten, I am sorry. I shouldn’t be like this, but I am just worried about you.”

“I know you are, but it’s hard you know?”

“Yeah trust me. I know.” Slam put his arms around her again and embraced her. “Tell you what I’ll help you find this guy… But I need you to start trust me again.”

She rested against him and sighed. “I never did stop.”

“Yeah, well I need to know that for sure.”

“How?” She turned around to face him.

“Let’s talk about that over dinner… we’ve got a lot of catching up to do.” He took her hand as the two of them walked out of the office and she knew she could confide in him and that she finally and ally she needed… Things would be better.

She hoped.