Matthew K. Manning - Catwomans Nine Lives

Catwoman loved this type of job. Up on the 37th floor of the Wilshire Point Building, there werent any drooling guard dogs. There were no glowing red lasers or state-of-the-art motion sensors. For Catwoman, there just wasnt anything difficult about robbing a high-rise apartment.

She inspected the whip tied around her waist. It still held tight. After changing into her costume, she had used it to rappel the short distance from the buildings rooftop. Getting into the actual building was easy.

As Selina Kyle, Catwoman never had any trouble with front desk security guards. Shed simply flash a smile and make up an excuse about wanting to surprise a friend who lived there. The guards usually just waved her on by to the elevators. They never saw her as much of a threat. But they never saw her claws...

It had been far too long since she had gotten a chance to use those claws. Back when she was working on smaller jobs, Catwoman had to use every tool in the book. But these days, she rarely needed to reach into her bag of tricks to get things done. Take tonight, for example. The window to the 37th-floor penthouse was not only unlocked, but it was also halfway open.

No one living in a high-rise apartment expects a visitor to come calling from the window. In other words, the wealthiest citizens of Gotham City thought their personal ivory towers gave them security. That fact just made it easier for Catwoman to waltz into their living rooms and take whatever she wanted.

Unfortunately for Catwoman, that sense of false security was contagious and had caused her to drop her guard. The moment she felt the strong hand on her shoulder, she realized who it was. Only one person was capable of sneaking up on her.

While it annoyed her that Batman had interrupted her heist, she couldnt help but smile. Despite the trouble he always caused, Catwoman was always glad to see Batman.

Put it back, Selina, Batman said.

Instead, Catwoman turned around and faced him, clutching the statue in her hands.

Its been a while, Batman, Catwoman said. It seems like you never come around anymore.

Put it back, Batman repeated. Or well have a problem.

Catwoman began to walk toward the open window. She knew Batman wouldnt stop her quite yet. Hed wait until there was no other choice before acting.

Batman was always hoping Selina would change. He was always giving her the chance to make the right decision. And she was always disappointing him.

We have plenty of problems already, Batman, she said. So whats one more problem added to our dysfunctional little relationship?

The two of us dont have a relationship, Batman said.

Selina paused at the window then turned around to face Batman again. One of his hands had moved to his Utility Belt near where he kept his Batarangs. That meant one thing: Catwoman had taken this as far as he was willing to let her. If she stepped out the window, she was inviting a fight.

Catwoman chuckled. The scene reminded her of an old-fashioned standoff in a Western movie, only without the guns. In Gotham City, apparently High Noon began at midnight. And Catwoman loved a good showdown.

With a smile and a wink, she backflipped out the window.

The heavy night air raced up to meet Catwoman as she fell. She twisted her body into a dive. Then she lashed her whip out with her right hand.

The end of the whip found the head of a gargoyle and wrapped around it. Suddenly, Catwomans fall transformed into a swing. Her whip released its hold and latched onto another gargoyles neck.

She soared from building to building, searching for a good place to land.

Catwoman landed softly and immediately began running.

By this point in her career, Catwoman was used to the feel of Gotham Citys rooftops beneath her feet. So the loose shingles on the Mayfair building didnt even give her a seconds pause. Neither did the smooth finish of the courthouses ledge.

And from the sound of the footsteps following her, she knew the same could be said for Batman.

For Selina Kyle, this was as good as it got. The thrill of the chase made her life as Catwoman worthwhile. And while she was intent on ditching Batman, she wasnt in a hurry to see that happen.

After all, this was the fun part.

She jumped from the corner of the courthouses marble ledge and lashed her whip at the air in front of her.

The whips tip wrapped around the sign of a florists storefront, and Catwoman was swinging again. She built up speed as her whip detached from the sign. Before her feet landed on the loose, dried tar of the building across the street, there was a moment of weightlessness. It was like she was a part of the night air itself. She loved that feeling most of all.

But then her feet hit the roof, and she was grounded again. Without looking behind her, Catwoman could tell that Batman was gaining on her. His footsteps were light. They could only be heard with a trained ear, but Catwoman had two of those. He was definitely getting closer. Too close.

It was time to end the chase. Its a good thing I planned for this, she said to herself.

Without slowing down for even a second, Catwoman jumped off another ledge. She aimed her body at a boarded-up window of the third floor of a building across the street. Catwoman curled herself into a tight ball and braced for impact.

The boards snapped against her weight as she broke into the building. She came to a rolling stop inside the apartment. It was abandoned just like it had been when she inspected it last week. Everything was going according to her plan.

She lashed her whip at the boards on the windows on the other side of the room, and they broke beneath the lash.

She heard them hitting the ground of the alley behind the building. Quickly, Catwoman ducked into the nearby closet. She held her breath and listened. And waited.

Even from inside the closet, she heard the quiet padding of Batmans boots in the apartment. By now, he was seeing the broken boards of the window across the room.

She could hear him run across the apartments creaky old floor.

And then she heard another board break as Batman continued out the window. The plan had worked as well as Catwoman had hoped: he thought shed simply passed through the building without stopping.