The Ties That Bind Us

CHAPTER 15: Truth

The last thing Selina felt was herself being lifted off the floor. All of the strength she had managed to gather had been quickly swept out of her and her mind began gradually shutting down until there was nothing, only the dark and the silence.

Her survival instincts had never been let so down. She didn't care who carried her, where she was being taken, or how she'd get there. She only wished the complete and utter darkness would take over her so she could hibernate undisturbed in it for however long it took for her body to feel like a body again, for her to feel like herself again.

She was only dragged away from that mental void after what had felt like hours later by the familiar sounds and movements of a car engine. Voices and sirens seemed far distant to her buzzing impaired hearing. Bruce noticed she'd been drifting in and out of consciousness, and she could hear him mumbling as if from afar words of comfort, about how everything was going to be fine or how he was going to take care of her. But she felt so unbelievably wholly exhausted, she felt like there was nothing in the world that could cure her from the general weariness that consumed her.

Bruce carried her inside the apartment as Alfred made room for them to pass and for him to accommodate her on the living room large couch. Her eyes opened briefly when someone flashed lights on them, and she caught a glimpse of Bruce's cowl behind it as he sat down next to her and talked to someone else with a familiar voice in the room. She made an effort to try to look around, but all she could see was a large chandelier hanging from the ceiling, a coffee table, and Batman's cape covering her.

"I think she's waking up, sir," someone mumbled.

She tried to search the origin of the voice, but her eyes stumbled upon her own hands. Copious amounts of blood and white paint covered them, spreading all across her arms and sleeves. Her expression became terrified and her face turned even paler than it already was. An intense and strange feeling of desperation took over her, and if she hadn't been so weak she would've probably given in to that pressing urge and eagerly scraped her own skin off to remove those stains from her.

"Is the bed ready, Alfred?", she heard Bruce ask.

"Yes, master".

"Get this off of me," she managed to slur. Her voice seemed even lower and farther away than those around her. Bruce looked at her surprised at her sudden reaction. "Please, get this off. Just get this off...", she mumbled almost incomprehensibly, trailing off and seeming only partially conscious.

As soon as he saw the agonized expression she displayed, Bruce picked her up again and didn't hesitate to do as she pleaded. She weighed as light as a feather, even though she was practically passed out on his arms. Bruce was getting increasingly anxious at the realization of how bad of a state she was in. His apprehension got even worse when he let her down and started undressing her and was able to see the full extent of her deterioration.

Her ribs were completely apparent. Her wrists were barely covered by skin. She had deep blue and purple stains spread all over her body, some injuries on her legs he could swear looked like bite marks, and even... shapely scars. The one on her ankle in particular gave him the sensation of being punched in the guts with brass knuckles, and he had to grit his teeth to look away from that sick cruel joke. He gulped and quickly decided to brush it off in order to be able to take care of her.

Selina was only slightly aware of what was going on, but when the hot water touched her skin, her mind seemed to light up a bit. She opened her eyes to find only moonlit darkness and Bruce—Batman's chest. He still wore his complete batsuit and was supporting her under the shower and rubbing her body softly with his hands. Not really an elaborate bath, but just enough to get the blood and accumulated dirt off of her. She took a quick peek at the floor and was left a bit nauseous by the sight of the red water that ran down from her.