"Axel!"
Selina's voice cut through the room like ice. She collapsed onto the sofa opposite, letting her body slump heavily. Eyes closed, she spoke, exhausted.
"Do you remember what you said to me last night, pinching my face? I just… gave Falcone a few harsh blows to his face. My home… it's gone. My sister didn't even get the chance to kill me before I killed her. My father didn't finish me off before I escaped. The woman I loved most died in my house, and the one who caused it… might be another person I care about. So much has happened since I've been away from you. I remember there was a liquor cabinet here. Want a drink?"
She opened her eyes slowly, looking at Axel with those sharp, piercing eyes that never failed to unsettle him.
Axel smirked faintly and nodded.
"Give me gin. Don't ask why—gin suits tonight."
"You…" Selina rolled her eyes but didn't argue. She stood and retrieved two bottles from the cabinet herself, tossing one to Axel before twisting the cap and taking a long, greedy gulp.
Axel raised his bottle in acknowledgment and downed his own in one motion. When they set their bottles down, Selina propped herself against the desk, her face unreadable.
"The bomb at my house," she began, voice calm, "was almost certainly Liv's doing. She knew I wasn't there. The target wasn't me… it was my lover. But Liv is also my lover. I don't know what to do. If you were me, Axel… would you kill Liv? Or take everything she owns and send her far away from Gotham, for the sake of your past with her?"
She tilted her head and drank another long gulp.
Axel frowned, confusion flashing across his features.
"When you came back, didn't you check the club first? Looks like you have no choice. Bad news: Liv's dead. Didn't die peacefully either. Good news: she was still saying she loved you when she died."
Pfft! Whiskey sprayed across Axel's face.
"Oh, damn it, my eyes!" He rubbed furiously, tears stinging. Even a man like Axel couldn't escape basic human sensitivity.
Selina watched him struggle, a hint of disbelief in her voice.
"What did you say? Liv… how could she…?"
"She was with the Court of Owls, tried to kill your father. Retaliation. That's it."
Selina's jaw dropped, and she slumped by the desk like a ragdoll. Axel's mind clicked into realization.
"Wait—what the hell did you just say? Your sister didn't even get a chance to kill you before you killed her… you killed Sophia?"
He moved to Selina's side and gently tossed her onto the sofa.
She scoffed, nodding.
"Yes. I killed her. Worried about her? Don't. She didn't die peacefully, and there's no good news here. She didn't even think of you before she died. Didn't expect a scoundrel like you to care about someone like her."
Axel rolled his eyes irritably.
"Are you stupid? I'm not worried about her. I'm worried about my own reputation."
He sat beside her, running his hands over her long legs.
"Two days in Gotham, a few women I've been with, and two are dead. If any others run into trouble… what kind of curse would that make me? If everyone I touch ends up dead, what woman wants to have fun with me? Wait, I need confirmation."
Axel pulled out his phone and called Oswald. The man, mid-surgery, groaned in despair but answered.
"… my surgery's almost done."
"Good. Use the next half hour to check the status of every woman I've been with. Alive or dead."
Oswald groaned, his hand slamming the operating table.
"Seriously? While I'm in surgery, you want me to investigate every woman you've slept with? Bosses are all the same. Damn it!"
He shook it off and set to work.
Selina stretched on the sofa, leather-clad legs draped over Axel's lap. Hours later, Oswald called back.
"Boss, Falcone killed all the dancers you were with before he left the club, took your belongings. Sophia? Killed by Selina herself. There's Haino Lawrence… she ran a blockade in Smallville, killed two soldiers. Reporters filmed everything. Parents declared her mentally ill, sent her to a Central City hospital. She'll reach her new room in about six hours."
"I know." Axel hung up, mood darkening.
Selina lifted her head lazily.
"So… everyone you've been with ends badly. Not one survivor?"
"Except one who's gone insane. The rest? Dead."
Axel pinched her soft cheek and lifted her from the sofa.
"You look depressed too. Thinking of suicide? Stick your ass out, I'll help."
Slap. Selina swatted him, then leaned back, kicking his thigh with her heel.
"I've loved women one after another, never satisfied. Men… never tried. Tang, are men better than women?"
"Don't ask me that. Never tried men myself. But seriously… since you killed the daughter Falcone gave me, you owe me one."
Axel clamped her neck with one hand, pressing her face against the sofa. With the other, he ripped off her Catwoman suit.
Tomorrow at noon, Axel's book would officially release. All bosses were welcome, and Ban would provide a full update.