Asprin, Robert Lynn – Catwoman – Tiger Hunt (With Lynn Abbey)

He didn’t pursue her. He’d spotted the flames by them, and the rigid codes that, for him, separated right and wrong mandated that he search for survivors. Justice wasn’t served at a barbecue. He was in the building, counting casualties, when the fire trucks roared up. It was time to find the window Catwoman used for her escape—the hardworking men and women of Gotham’s uniformed services had precious little use for a loner like him. Life was less complicated when he stayed out of their sights.

In some ways he and Catwoman weren’t all that different.

Batman figured he’d stick around a while longer, until all the uniforms were gone. He hadn’t looked for the body in the alley yet. It rankled him to think that she might have lied to him. If she lied, she lost her protective innocence and he’d have no choice except to hunt her down. So he waited on the rooftop while the cops and the inspector joked with each other over cold coffee and stale doughnuts.

“Jay-sus, will you look at that!” one of them exclaimed, gesturing with his pastry at the sky over Batman’s head. “The Commissioner’s got a burning gut again.”

Batman craned his neck around, already knowing what he’d see: the beam of carbon arc lamp striking the clouds, framing the sign of the bat.

Catwoman could wait. The body in the alley would have to wait. Another servant of justice needed help.

There was no reason Batman couldn’t walk through the front doors of City Hall and ride the elevator to Commissioner Gordon’s office. The officers on duty here, while no less hardworking than their peers in the precincts, understood that the Commissioner’s door was always open for the caped and masked man, and whatever their personal feelings about Batman, they viewed Gordon with a respect that bordered on awe. They knew the signal was beaming. They were watching for him, laying a few bets on who would spot him first.