Clouds covered the crescent moon and blocked out the stars, making the night an inky blackness. Rain threatened to fall but had held off so far tonight. The early summer air still held some of the heat from the day.

Selina Kyle sat on top of one of the buildings overlooking the train depot. Sweat made her leather catsuit stick to her skin uncomfortably. She'd had to ditch her mask over an hour ago to stop from passing out. Glancing over at Vengeance, she wondered how he could stand the heat in that heavy Kevlar suit.

Huffing, Selina stood up and paced across the roof. "I'm so bored! Where are they? It's been over three hours!"

Vengeance, kneeling against the low wall surrounding the roof, lowered his night-vision binoculars. "Reconnaissance can sometimes take a long time. This was your tip, Selina, but I can handle it if you want to go."

Sighing, Selina plopped back down next to him. "Valerie said she'd overheard these goons at the club planning on bringing in the new 'merchandise' here tonight. She was sure he meant new girls getting trafficked."

"There's definitely been chatter about slave trafficking so it's a legitimate tip. But they could have changed the date, time or location." He turned back to the binoculars.

Reluctant to leave him alone to investigate her own tip, her restlessness spurred on her curiosity. She desperately wanted to know more about this secretive man who stirred up all these feelings inside her. Reaching out, she grabbed the binoculars out of his hands roughly.

"Hey!" He let her take them, but grumbled at her. "You could have asked."

She peered through them, marveling at the view the night vision provided. All the little details of the train tracks, the road next to it, the run-down building on the other side, it all came into sharp focus. "V, you've always got the best toys. You've got to tell me who's bankrolling you."

He remained silent, his usual answer to her questions. His eyes continued scanning the area despite no longer having night vision.

"Is it Bruce Wayne?"

Most people wouldn't have noticed any reaction, but Selina saw the clench of his jaw, heard the slightest hitch of his breath.

"What makes you think that?" he asked nonchalantly.

Selina smiled at him, excited to at least get some kind of answer. "Because you always get so tense when I mention his name. He's got to be involved in all this somehow. I know you grew up rich so I figured you two might have gone to school together or vacationed on each other's' yachts or some shit like that."

"Thought you hated Bruce Wayne. He's a white, privileged asshole."

She shrugged. "I don't know. Ever since I came back from Bludhaven, he's like one of the only rich people making any effort. Actually came out of his tower to meet with the new mayor about donating money to help the city. I also heard a rumor that almost all of the supplies anonymously donated to the shelters came from him. I mean, if he is bankrolling you, and I know how much you care for this city, how bad can he be?" She paused, biting her lip to stop from smiling. "Plus, he's pretty hot."

Vengeance snorted and rolled his eyes away from her.

"Aww, don't be jealous, V," she purred, inching closer to him. "You know he could never compete with my affections for you." She reached out, turned his face towards her and kissed him sweetly on the lips.

It took him a moment to respond, still seeming unsure about physical contact that didn't involve his fists. She'd kissed him twice since returning from Bludhaven, both initiated by her. He wanted to, no denying that, but something held him back. She couldn't tell what, but it most likely was also the reason he backed away when things got really hot and heavy.

His mouth opened to her, allowing her tongue to slip past his lips. He tasted good, like he'd eaten berries before coming out here. His tongue swirled around hers as his arm snaked around her waist. He pulled her flush against him. A thrill flashed through her body. She moaned into his mouth.

The sound of a truck lumbering up the road disturbed the moment.

They leapt apart from each other, still panting with their lips tingling. Vengeance held his hand out to her and she immediately handed him the night-vision goggles. In unison, they crouched behind the wall around the roof and watched intently.

The truck stopped at the run-down building and three men exited the cab. One went around to the back, another went into the building while the last lit a cigarette and typed on his phone. As the back of the truck rolled open, the cries of female voices echoed up to them.

Moving quickly, Vengeance clipped a grappling hook to himself and secured the other side to the wall. "I'll take out the men. You get the women to safety." Then he leapt off the side of the building.

"Show off," she muttered but then grinned. She climbed down the fire escape, not bothering to use the stairs but using her acrobatic skill to descend floor by floor on the outside. She landed not too far behind him. She couldn't help being impressed as he took out the guy with the cigarette in one blow. The man crumbled like a rag at the Batman's feet.

As she ran towards the back of the truck, the crying grew louder. She heard the other man yelling at them.

"Get out there! If you even dare to take a step in the wrong direction, I'll shoot ya in the back," he threatened.

Selina almost ran into the first woman who climbed out of the truck. More like a girl. She couldn't have been older than eighteen. Dirt streaked her clothes and face, blond hair hanging limply around her face. She shrunk away from Selina.

A black girl with braided hair came next. Her eyes widened when she caught sight of Selina. The blond girl wrapped an arm around her fellow prisoner.

Selina put her finger to her lips, asking for silence.

The girls nodded.

Selina slipped past a girl with fiery red hair and the palest skin she'd ever seen. Someone had hit this girl, part of her face mottled purple. It sparked anger inside her. Selina climbed into the van, zeroing in on the man in the corner.

He had his back to her, bent over a tiny Asian girl laying on the floor. "If you don't get up now, you ain't never getting up again," he growled.

To the girl's credit, she lashed out with her foot and kicked his thigh. Looking only about fifteen years old, she didn't do any real damage, but Selina admired her tenacity.

The man raised his fist up, about to smash it down into her face. He never got the chance.

Selina pulled her newest weapon from where it lay hooked at her hip. She lashed out with it, the whip wrapping around his arm. Before he could react, Selina yanked hard on her end of the whip.

He flew backward and landed with a loud thump on his back. A gasp escaped him as the wind got knocked out of him. As he caught his breath, he tried to pry the whip off his arm until Selina stood over him. He scrambled to pull his gun out instead but she kicked him hard in the head before he could even get it out of the holster. He fell into unconsciousness.

Gun fire rang out from the building. The girls around her jumped, some crying out.

Selina pushed back any worry, knowing Vengeance could take care of himself. She wrapped one of the zip ties Vengeance gave her earlier around the unconsciousness guy's wrists. As she stood up, she briefly debated kicking him in the balls for his treatment of the girls, but one of the girls spoke up.

"Are you here to rescue us?" asked the Asian girl timidly.

"You got it, Honey."

"Are you here with him?"

"Him?"

"The Batman."

Selina smiled. "Yeah, we're a team."

The girl's eyes widened. "What do they call you?"

Selina made a split decision, saying the name she'd been toying with. "Catwoman."

Choking back tears, the girl said, "Thank you, Catwoman."