"How dare you rummage through my house without my permission, even move in? Bruce Wayne!! You goddamn impudent bastard!!! I should have shot you before I left! Only when you're lying in a hospital will you behave!!!"
Bruce was taken aback. He had been surprised when he first saw Selina, but he did not expect that instead of a joyous reunion, Selina had come to settle scores with him.
It wasn't out of concern for Bruce's mental state that Selina had rushed back so decisively. She had simply heard from Maggie that Bruce was tidying up her room with plans to move in, which had infuriated her enough to return.
Swearing profusely, Selina said, "You goddamn ill-mannered rich man! Do you have any idea how this will make it impossible for me to hang out in the East District! Boyfriend?? Even if you were my husband, you can't move into my apartment! The apartment I rent is for me only, everybody else can fuck off!!!"
In her anger, Selina dragged Bruce through the streets of the East District to her former apartment. Upon entering the apartment, they bumped into the landlord descending the stairs.
The landlord was visibly shocked but Selina didn't miss a beat. She walked up to him and slapped him across the face leaving three streaks of blood on his cheek.
"Hoff!! You're dumber than a mole, blinder than a mole rat!! I should have shot your mother before leaving, then watched you sob your way home!! Shove her ashes up the crotch of the old brothel keeper next door!!"
"Selina! Have you gone mad?!" Hoff yelled back. "It was you who invited a stranger home and allowed him to stay there!"
Selina pointed at Hoff's nose with her index finger, painted with black nail varnish, and told him, "You dare let the thieves from the East District into my apartment! Tomorrow I'll hang your son's head on my balcony!!!"
"I've said this all along, it was because your boyfriend moved in without asking, he's not from around here, you should be well aware..."
Selina extended her other hand and slapped Hoff across the face, saying, "Since when did I say I no longer live here?! You're going to meddle when I bring guys home for the night?! Why don't you mind your own business about your wife blowing black guys?!!!"
The sound of their arguing echoed through the hallway, bringing out numerous heads to see what the ruckus was. When they saw it was Selina and Hoff having a row, many of them immediately retreated. After a while, an old man stepped out and said:
"Enough! Enough, will you?! Where do you find this energy for fighting? As I see it, Selina popped out for a couple of days and brought a man back home to stay, is it a big deal? Not like it caused any real trouble."
"But if everyone starts to act like her, who knows when some lunatic will decide to blow up my building?!" Hoff said defiantly.
Arms crossed, Selina responded sarcastically, "Really now? You didn't care when the dirty spirit on the third floor started bringing women home, or when the green-haired man on the fifth floor solicited prostitutes five times in three days! And you, you smelly old gambler, quit playing the saint. You think I don't know? A month ago, your son killed a girl in his room..."
"What do you want then?!" Hoff said with a stern face. "I've already rented your apartment to someone else, there's no way you're staying here again, so you'd better get out!"
Selina turned around, snatched the umbrella from Bruce's hand and swung it at Hoff. Hoff was caught off guard and could only raise his arms to protect his face.
As she beat him, Selina yelled, "Filthy, rule-breaking bugger! Tonight, I will make sure your deeds are known throughout the East District!!!"
The old man hurriedly rushed forward to intervene. He said, "Selina! Stop it! You're causing such a ruckus, no one can get any sleep..."
"Hoff! Hoff! You're just going to let her create a scene like this? If I were you, I'd just refund her rent. Don't you make enough money?!"
"This damned rogue, this whore!" Hoff managed to curse while being hit. The old man continued, "You know she's a whore! Aren't you afraid she'll end up in the boss's bed one day? She'll blow you away with a single shot!"
Suddenly, four scratches appeared on Hoff's back. Seeing blood, the onlookers in the hallway quickly rushed forward to intervene.
In the end, Hoff's clothes were in shreds while Selina's hair was in a mess. She took deep breaths and collected her hair back together, saying:
"I've only been gone a few days, and you dare to challenge me. If you don't give me an explanation today, I'll smash all the glass here!"
Hoff, panting heavily, managed to say, "Selina, you... you crazy woman..."
"Have I just gone mad now?!" Selina raised her voice. "I've been around here for years, don't act like you've only just met me today?!!"
With that, she lunged at Hoff again, intending to tear at his clothes. Hoff's wife came running out too, but she didn't stand a chance against Selina. Hoff's son, barely a teenager, didn't dare to approach. None of the residents could stop a rampaging Selina.
Meanwhile, Bruce had been shoved to the side. Forget about trying to stop Selina, he couldn't even stop the people who were trying to break up the fight.
The martial arts he had learned were of no use in this chaotic street brawl. The more skills he had, the more blows he would receive.
But Selina was clearly a skilled brawler. Regardless of how many people tried to pull her back, she kept going for Hoff.
Her small build meant she couldn't pin down Hoff, a larger man. So, she made full use of her sharp nails and teeth, aiming repeatedly for his existing injuries. The skin around the four wounds on his back was almost ripped off by Selina.
"Hoff! Hoff!" Someone called out, "Don't you know that this wildcat has always been crazy? Why did you rent her room out to others?!"
"Why don't you hurry up and pay her back the rent!" Another person chimed in, "It's just a few dozen dollars. If she really sets her sights on you, the medical expenses will be much more than that!"
The onlookers all agreed, until Hoff couldn't stand it anymore and yelled, "Stop! Selina!!!"
Out of breath, Selina waved her hand, flicking off the fresh blood on her fingertips. She glared at Hoff and said, "Return my money, or else, you and your family will pay for it!"
Hissingly clutching his wound, Hoff instructed his wife to bring the money. His wife returned with a large bill, much more than the rent due.
Selina snatched it instantly, saying, "This baby is mine! Stay away from me, or I'll gouge out your eyes!"
As she spoke, she stepped backward, and when she reached Bruce, she grabbed him and ran away. Hoff chased after them but couldn't keep up with their speed.
When they reached a dark alley, Selina finally stopped, leaning on her knees and catching her breath.
After a while, she straightened up, one hand holding the bill, and the other holding her middle and ring fingers together, flicking the end of the bill. Listening to the crisp sound, she laughed and said, "I've just returned and already had such a big gain, such luck!"
Then, she turned to Bruce and said, "I really don't understand, facing such a coward like Hoff, how did he drive you away?"
By this time, Bruce had already awakened from his philosophical contemplation because he had fallen into another kind of shock. He had never seen such a shrewish Catwoman before.
In the past, Selina had not appeared very dominant in front of him. For the most part, it was Batman who took the lead, and Selina would act coquettishly with him. When they discussed matters, she was usually soft-spoken, acting like a kitten purring in its owner's arms.
But today, Bruce deeply realized that he might have misunderstood Catwoman. Set aside whether she acted coy or not, was this really a house cat? Why did she seem more like a tigress?
Bruce had never heard Selina speak in such a coarse voice, at least ten times coarser than her usual speech. Her tone was high, her voice loud, and she cursed without any hesitation, throwing out filthy words like they were free, her words cutting deeper than those of a dozen people in the corridor.
But at this moment, Selina snuggled up to him again and said, "Ok, since I've got the rent back, I won't blame you. But in the future, you can't just barge into my house. My house is mine. If you want a place to sleep, go back to your own home..."
Hearing her soft voice, Bruce felt as if everything that happened just now was an illusion. At this moment, Selina noticed the wound on his face, took a sharp breath, and cupping his face, she said, "My God! Darling, what happened to you?"
Selina sniffed and gasped, "You didn't get splashed by those chemical reagents, did you?... Oh, did it splash on your face? What have you been doing?!"
Selina stepped back, looking Bruce up and down, then noticed that something was different about his attire.
Specifically, the shoes he was wearing. Selina remembered that Bruce normally wore leather shoes, the kind with shiny, polished uppers. What was with these rainboots on his feet, which looked like something a typical East District resident would wear?
"Where did you buy these boots?" Selina squatted down for a look and asked, "Why did you buy these bootleg goods?... Were you tricked by someone?"
Sensing that something was wrong, Selina stood up, put her hands on her hips, and asked with a stare, "What have you been up to this past month? Tell me now!"
Bruce didn't really want to say, because he had vaguely sensed what the problem might be. Men often have an extra sense of pride when facing a beautiful woman, so Bruce felt a little guilty when facing Selina like this.
However, as the coldness in Selina's eyes intensified and Bruce remembered Hoff's sorry state, he decided it was best to tell the whole truth.
"I've been living in the slums for over a month."
Selina nodded, not showing any surprise, as Maggie had already told her about this.
Then, Selina looked confused and asked, "You've only been living there for just over a month, how did you let yourself go like this? Did something happen to you? Did that madman called Joker come looking for trouble again? Did he hurt you?"
Bruce didn't know how to start, but he still shook his head and said, "No... not only did he not hurt me, he actually helped me."
Selina's expression became even more puzzled. Looking at Bruce's somewhat haggard state, she said, "Okay, I'll ask and you answer. First of all, where did these shoes come from?"
"I bought them."
"How much did they cost?"
"Five dollars."
"How much??!!!???"