Money itself is valueless. It simply represents the ability to obtain that which is valuable--food, housing, gold, diamonds and so on. 
- — Catwoman
Catwoman (Volume 2) #74 is an issue of the series Catwoman (Volume 2) with a cover date of November, 1999.
Synopsis for "A Slight Detour"
Catwoman shows the stolen discs to Al and Lewis, and she refers to them as "money," items of barter that represent the ability to obtain things that are valuable. Her henchman, however, are angry with her for letting Mookie sacrifice himself. Catwoman shows them that Mookie is alive and resting in the hotel bedroom.
Catwoman reveals that Mookie has a superpower--kinetic energy passes harmlessly through him. It does make him feel high, though, which is why he enjoys setting off explosions so much.
In Gotham City, Oracle still can't believe Batman trusts Catwoman even after she murdered Selina Kyle. Batman knows the truth behind that story, but he doesn't tell Oracle. Instead he invents several possible scenarios in which Catwoman never killed Selina Kyle.
Oracle then gets an alert that Catwoman successfully stole the discs, but she is offering them to the highest bidder on the internet. Batman isn't surprised at all. He smiles and says, "What did you expect? She's a cat."
Elsewhere, while driving down the road, Mercy Graves contacts her employer and notifies him of the auction. He tells her to buy those discs at any cost. He knows the discs might be copies of the originals, but that won't matter if Catwoman is dead.
Maxi Zeus is also interested the discs, and he plans to steal them from Catwoman using information his henchman Mr. Mercury has learned from his sister's second cousin, Catwoman's henchman Al.
At their headquarters, the Hardcases, Inc., use their abilities to learn of Catwoman's next step. They learn that she is going to make the trade with the buyer at the top of the World Trade Center that night at midnight.
Catwoman and her crew are already at the World Trade Center. She tells her crew to stay on one tower and watch a package, which she says holds the discs, while she goes to make the deal on the other tower. Al distracts Lewis by speculating he has a shot with her, even though he's already married, so only Mookie notices Maxie Zeus and his followers arrive. The Hardcases also make it there then and demand the discs in the name of their rightful owner, Bruce Wayne.
A firefight breaks out. Al and Lewis take cover, but Mookie stands in between the two sides and holds up the package, saying that Catwoman told them to protect it. Conway kicks it out of his hands as the Hardcases overpower Maxie Zeus's crew.
When all is said and done, the New York City Police Department apprehend everyone involved including Catwoman's crew. The Hardcases find a tape instead of the discs inside the package, and Nastacio presses 'play' and listens to a recording of Catwoman telling him he fell for her bait. The real exchange is happening in a small vehicle impound under the Brooklyn Bridge. She tells them that if everything has gone right, she's already gone, but if something goes wrong... perhaps they can catch something.
Catwoman and Mercy have already exchanged the packages. Catwoman opens the case Mercy gave her, and a blast of phosphorus temporarily blinds her as Mercy aims her gun. Catwoman lashes out with her whip and manages to move Mercy's arm, saving her own life. Mercy yanks Catwoman's whip and pulls her flying through the air, then punches her when she's within arm's-reach.
The Hardcases arrive and demand the stolen property. The Hardcases are no match for Mercy Graves, however, who takes them all down without breaking a sweat. Catwoman is still blinded and tries to move herself out of the way, but she is shot by Mercy and falls into the East River.
Mercy jumps into her car with the discs, and she nearly mows down Nastacio when the Hardcases' leader tries to stop her. Mercy calls her employer and tells him that she has the discs, but Catwoman might have survived. Her employer tells Mercy to forget her because they have more important matters to deal with.
Appearing in "A Slight Detour"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Mookie
- Al
- Lewis
Antagonists:
- Maxie Zeus
- Mr. Mercury
- Jerry
- Leo (Single appearance; dies)
- Hardcases, Inc.
- Vincent Nastacio
- Natasha White
- Billy Wu
- Rosalie Hernandez
- Eddie Conway
- Mercy Graves
Other Characters:
- Oracle
- Batman
- Lex Luthor (Behind the scenes)
- New York City Police Department
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Notes
- The events of this issue take place after Catwoman #73. No Man's Land continues in Robin #68.
- This issue is reprinted in Batman: No Man's Land (2011/2012 Edition) Vol 2.
