New World Disorder

Chapter Eleven

He held the two upset female family members for five minutes before they regained their composure.

"What happened Oran?" his mother asked. He told her the truth. Everything up to his escape on the roof. Then he introduced Pulsar as a separate person that flew him to a different roof to recover. "By the time I got back to the alley to check on Kirstin and Eric the fight was over, and the cops were everywhere. They saw me and sent me here."

"You were covered in blood," Kirstin started.

"Don't exaggerate," Oran chided. He did not want Mom more upset than she was. "I had a few cuts and scrapes, but they healed up before I even got to the hospital. Now I'm fully healed and feeling better than ever."

"So, you did get powers?" Mariela asked. "Were they from the Hypertap explosion?"

"Probably," he agreed. "I've been slowly discovering them over the past two weeks. I haven't had anything new pop up in a few days so this may be it."

"Why didn't you tell me?" his mother demanded. Oran thought she was whipsawing from fear to anger.

"I wasn't sure what was going on. I was still fuzzy from the accident when the kidnapping happened. Then I was scared." Oran replied, trying to calm her while he justified his actions. "I'm sure I would have told you soon. I was still trying to figure it all out."

"I think everyone saw." Kirstin said. "Someone had fed the cameras in the alley into the club monitors. I guess Korda wanted to make an example of you? Everyone had to see you go down for that to happen."

"Korda?" Mariela inquired of her daughter, her anger looking for a new target.

"Nikolai Korda is called the Don of Westminster Academy," Oran explained to take his mother's ire off of Kirstin. "They say he's the son of someone high up in the Bratva. He supposedly runs the drug trade at the school, and some other stuff too. But no one has proven it and he's never been arrested or even in trouble as far as I know."

"He was one of the boys in the alley?"

"He was probably the leader of them. One of the super villains also knew him and spoke to him. I don't know if there is a connection." Oran shrugged, which reminded him he was still in his hospital gown.

"I don't suppose you brought me any clothes?" he asked, plucking at the gown.

"I did!" Kirstin chirped and pulled a t-shirt and jeans out of her bag.

"Thanks. Give me a minute." He rushed into the bathroom before either could protest. He heard Mariela and Kirstin talking about her interactions with Jock and Eric in regards to Jonas Thaler.

"Mrs. Thaler has a plot of land upstate that your father really wants. He might have thought that you dating her son would make the deal easier, but I'm sure he would not have wanted Eric to push you into anything you did not want to do. Especially anything sexual." Mariela caressed the girl's cheek. "You're his little princess, even if you are almost all grown up."

Pope was disgusted to see such an otherwise strong woman be so blind about her husband. But he had seen it before. He knew he would not be able to change her mind easily, if he could manage it at all. He said nothing as he came out after changing.

Oran had declined to return to the bed and sat in one of five chairs in the room. He was situated at a table with his phone out, looking for media reports of the night's events when Dr. Hart, the physician that had treated him after the accident, knocked and let himself into the room. He raised his eyebrow to see Oran dressed and out of bed. "How are you feeling Mr. Bry?" he asked.