Cat Attack!

My neighbor has a cat who is...troubled. Apparently this cat had a very traumatic kittenhood, and as a result suffers from some emotional confusion. This cat doesn't run away or hide or anything like that. When you walk in to feed her (if you were, for example, cat-sitting while the neighbor was out of town) she rubs up against your legs and purrs loudly and rolls over on the floor and displays her belly. But if you reach down to pet this cat, it will rip the flesh off of your bones. I know this cat well, having fed her many times, and I know better than to pet her. We have come to an understanding where I will sit with her and talk to her and maybe even poke her with a long stick, but I never, EVER touch her.

But then this week, on the sixth day of a seven day cat-sitting stretch, I was reaching down to pick up her food bowl and she rubbed her face against my hand. I froze. She rubbed my hand some more and my heart was filled with a warm, proud, happiness that I finally had gained this animal's trust. Then whatever is wrong with her switched back on and she attacked my hand with three of her paws and all of her teeth, shredding into my skin. I was totally asking for it. I should have known better. And for the last two days my hand has been red, swollen and bruised, prompting my co-workers to encourage me to visit the ER. I'm not going to, though. I'm too ashamed.

Does this cat LOOK like an agent of death???: