Villain Complex [PREVIEW]

Chapter Three

Charlotte Hathaway saw Storm Warning fall from the sky.

Maybe it had been stupid to walk toward the giant stone walls instead of away from them, but they were blocking the route back to her apartment. Her only options were to take a much longer way home, or to wait for Storm Warning to finish fighting Citadel.

She watched the fight from the sidewalk, ignoring the people who pushed past her on their way seek refuge in the shops. The wind picked up, pulling pieces of blue hair free from her ponytail and whipping around the flannel she'd tied at her waist.

It was hard to follow the battle when the two were inside Citadel's walls. But once they returned to the top of the wall towering over the street Charlotte stood on, she couldn't tear her eyes away.

And then Citadel delivered that final blow.

By the time Charlotte's mind caught up with her legs, she was already racing to the end of the street, to the intersection where Storm Warning had fallen. She was nearly there when someone else on the sidewalk grabbed her arm.

"What are you doing?" the woman asked, eyes wide.

Charlotte glanced at her, barely processing what she'd said. "Storm Warning—"

"Citadel is still out there!"

Charlotte looked down the street in time to see Citadel step off a pillar and disappear over the other side of the wall. She yanked her arm free from the woman's grasp and kept running. If Storm Warning was still alive, someone needed to get him help.

He had to be alive, right?

A puddle of rainwater had formed beneath the hero's body. Some of it had to be blood, too. As Charlotte dropped to her knees next to him, she could hardly believe her eyes. Here she was, only feet away from the city's greatest hero. And she was alone.

There was a massive wound across Storm Warning's chest, spilling blood that darkened the front of his suit and stained his cape red.

"Storm Warning?" Charlotte tried. "Can you hear me?" Her eyes stung. Lights from nearby buildings blurred. "Hello?" She dared to rest a hand on his chest. No movement. No breathing.

Charlotte sniffed and dropped her head, resisting the urge to break down entirely but unable to find the strength to stand. What was she doing out here? Storm Warning was beyond saving now. They all were. She needed to get away before Citadel did something worse.

A white glow emanated from the wound in Storm Warning's chest. Charlotte wiped her arm across her face and sniffed again. "Storm—?"

Dark, metallic liquid emerged from the wound and drifted up into the air. The liquid formed a solid sphere a couple of feet above Storm Warning's chest. Frowning, Charlotte reached out to touch it.

It shocked her. She flinched and yanked her hand back. The sphere melted back into liquid and followed her finger. Heart skipping in her chest, she rose to her feet and took a step back from the body. The liquid moved faster now, following until it found the skin of her arm. She gasped at its freezing touch.

Metal sliced through her skin and liquefied again as it sank under the surface. Charlotte yelped in pain. Clutched her arm.

A shadow passed over her. There was movement on top of Citadel's wall. In a panic, Charlotte swung her head, located the closest alley, jumped to her feet, and ran.

"Is someone down there?" a voice called. Citadel.

Charlotte forced her legs to move faster and held her throbbing arm close to her chest. She couldn't feel any blood, but she was too scared to look. The shadows of the alleyway swallowed her.