"Miss Knight?"
I sighed. "Marie, I told you to call me Kiera. I hate being called Miss Knight."
The maid winked at me. "I'm sorry. It's my job to call you that. Anyway, we don't . . . umm, we don't know how to . . . clean the living room."
I leaned back and peeked around the corner at the destroyed living room. Sigh. "I'll take care of it. My parents had some stuff that would help in case of this scenario. Go home, Marie. I know it's your daughter's birthday. I don't know why you came in the first place." I pushed her out the door. She stopped me before I could shut it all the way.
"Thank you, Kiera," she smiled.
I waved it off. "No problem. I would never keep you like this. Tell Grace happy birthday for me!"
"I will."
I shut the door and puffed air out from my cheeks. I'd forgotten the maids were coming. I would just have to tell them to stay out of the living room. The stairs creaked under my boots as I ran upstairs and grabbed Shadow's gloves. I would be proving if the acid-proof material worked or not.
A bad feeling had taken root in my gut, and I hadn't been able to get rid of it all day. I needed a distraction.
The DJ table was totally wrecked, and not in a cool way. It was burned and melted, tilted on its side. Thankfully, the guy had gotten away safely with his laptop. I took the table and kicked it into smaller pieces, then threw it in a corner. That was now the trash corner. One of the couches was completely destroyed. Oops. Trash corner. I threw in one of the small tables on top of it. Countless red plastic cups went into the trash bag. Eventually, the most destroyed items were all thrown out.
"Hey—what are you doing?"
I whirled around, taking off the gloves in the process and stuffing them in my back pocket. "Hey, Cole!"
"What are you doing?" he repeated, stepping over trash.
"Cleaning up."
"How did you move that stuff by yourself?" He pointed to the trash corner.
I shrugged. "I've told you, I'm stronger than you think."
Cole took my arm and squeezed my biceps. "But there's nothing there."
"Ha-ha. Very funny. How 'bout you make yourself useful and help out for once in your life?" I tossed some latex gloves at his face. "You know, because apparently little old Kiera has no muscle?"
Cole sighed and snapped on the gloves. "Fine. But actually, I came to tell you that the group's coming over."
I furrowed my eyebrows. "Group?"
"You know, Jase and Daniel? Our History group? The project? Ring any bells?"
I wanted so bad to smack him upside the head with the table leg. "Shut up. But seriously, you invited them over?" I didn't even bother to ask how he got either of their numbers. Jase wasn't necessarily in his social circle until just recently and Cole and Daniel had some sort of sworn hatred for each other.
He shrugged nonchalantly, as if welcoming someone you hate into your home was something you did on a daily basis. "Yeah. We've got to get this project done, and I felt bad for the other day in class." He plopped down on the other couch that was undamaged. "I really am sorry, Kiera. I know I was acting childish."
I shook my head. No point trying to correct his use of past tense. "Don't worry about it. Just put up with each other for another week or two and then we're done with the project. Then you'll never have to speak to each other again."
He mumbled something under his breath but I didn't bother asking what. More than likely something about how he'd beat Daniel up one of these days. But based on the security around the young Mr. Cloud, my money wasn't in my best friend's favor. Sorry, Cole.
After finishing up the living room and transporting the junk from the trash corner to the curb, I went up to my room to change. As I threw my gloves with the rest of my super suit, I stared at the cloak for a minute. My stomach wrenched all of a sudden.
I sprinted into the bathroom just in time to pray to the porcelain gods. I heaved out everything I ate that day, plus some. Spitting one last time and washing out my mouth, I took a deep breath. I'd never had a Super reaction that strong before. Something was wrong.
I suited up as fast as possible and ported to the top of the Cloud Tower.
That was before I realized the Cloud Tower was gone and I found myself in a free-fall. I gasped and targeted a new destination. My feet collided with solid concrete and I sighed with relief.
"Hello, Shadow."
I whipped out Winter and had her aimed when I froze. "Empathy."
She didn't even blink. "Sorry. That was probably super freaky of me."
"No," I replied with a sigh of relief. "No, I'm just being paranoid. That's all."
Her eyebrows furrowed and she stepped closer. "Did you feel it too?"
I nodded. "Made me puke my guts out. Do you know what it is? Or better yet, who it is?" Blaze? No. I got rid of him. He's out of the picture for good. Blaze is in a cell at the Agency and he'll never escape. We're safe. I'm safe.
Empathy shook her head. "I have no idea."
"Glad I could join the girls' night."
Internal groan. I turned around to face the girl in yellow. "If it isn't Super Stupidity."
She narrowed her eyes. "It's Solar Storm, for your information. But then again, you've been living in the dark, haven't you, Shadow?"
"Oh, that was a bad one."
"Mmm. And Empathy, nice to see you here."
Empathy nodded in acknowledgement. "And you, Storm." Empathy, as all of us other Supers know, is probably the most powerful, but she limits herself. She could literally control you and anything around you while reading your thoughts and forcing feelings of confusion on you. Sometimes, I was a little freaked out by her skills, but I was her only friend. The other Supers were too afraid of her, thinking that a young Super could be reckless and stupid. That being a young teenager would play too much into the world of superheroes. But Empathy was probably the most down-to-Earth out of us all. That's why she was my favorite.
Storm glanced at her warily before facing me. "What seems to be the problem?"
I shook my head. "No idea. Everyone seems to be feeling it, though. And if every hero is feeling it—"
"Then that's really bad news," Empathy muttered. "But where is everyone else?"
"If by everyone else you mean me, then here." Riptide grinned at me. "Hello, Shadow."
"Riptide. I don't suppose you know anything?"
He shook his head. "Had this weird muscle spasm thing. I was in the middle of a family dinner when I randomly chucked a handful of mashed potatoes at my great-grandmother's face." He puffed his cheeks up with air and breathed it out slowly. "That will be the end of my family reunion invitations. Not that it's much of a loss."
"We need to find out what's happening," Storm cut in, wearing her business face. "Split up. Riptide, you do your water thing. I'll fly over the city. Shadow and Empathy, you guys take to the streets. I'm sure the other heroes will figure it out and start helping soon enough. Signal if you find anything." With that, she shot up into the air like Superman on crack and zoomed over the city buildings.
Riptide sighed, staring after her. "I wish I could fly."
"Me too," Empathy and I both grumbled.
I teleported into the downtown area, figuring, what better place to start than the place with the most people? I ported from alley to alley, building to building, subway to subway, and found no disturbances. Well, none more than usual. I stopped a theft or two, but those were no fun since all I had to do was literally just stand there and give the thief a look and he or she would give up the purse. I was anxious for some action.
But I shouldn't have been.
It was like riding a rollercoaster. You could see the big drop. You saw it before you even got close to the ride. You knew the unsettling feeling of your stomach being left at the top while the rest of you gets hurtled towards the ground. It was the anticipation of that feeling that was the worst part. And everyone knows: if you worry, you suffer twice.
I stepped out of an alley, finally giving up and porting to the top of a light pole. I'd gotten no signals from the others, though I had seen a few more Supers flying above the city. The citizens knew something was wrong—all of their Supers were out at once, all of them searching for something or someone.
"Shadow!"
I turned to the voice. Riptide was jogging towards me, maneuvering through the crowds of people. He jumped onto the railing just below my light pole. "Still nothing?"
He shook his head. "No." A deep sigh. "I'm getting really nervous. Who do you think it is?"
I spun Winter around my finger in thought. Who could it be? I didn't think Pyro could cause this much of a disturbance and Cyanide and Blaze were both imprisoned. Most of the other villains were more into petty thefts and robberies, and those would barely call on any heroes, much less all of them. Perspiration dotted my forehead and palms. My knee never halted its incessant bouncing. My heart hadn't stopped pounding, and it wasn't from so much teleporting.
I threw Winter as hard as I could, into the night, then slapped the button on my hand. It didn't make any sense. Any of it.
Most of the people around us had walked away and all we were getting now were double-takes. Empathy joined us silently a few minutes later, shaking her head when we gave her questioning looks. I chucked Winter once again.
"Nothing!" The concrete nearly cracked at Solar Storm's sudden landing. "Out of everyone here, we've found nothing! No suspicious people, no leads, no anything!" She paced back and forth, her light blonde hair bouncing with every step. The three of us watched her in silence. "It's not Blaze," she decided. "You just got him, Shadow. And Empathy, you've locked up Cyanide."
I frowned. "Hey, I helped!"
"Joule disappeared a while ago." And by that, she means that she took her down a couple weeks ago. "And Jetstream retired recently. Who? Who could it be?"
"CITIZENS OF CRYPTIC CITY."
I shot to my feet, which, let me tell you, is a complicated action when standing on a street lamp. My heart sunk down to my stomach. Every screen in the city, from the giant one in the square to the one at the movie theater, was giving the same face. The face of a man I'd never seen before, with salt-and-pepper hair and a mustache. Was he the cause of our disturbance?
Storm shot up in the air a few feet beside me, cursing under her breath. "It couldn't be—"
The man on the screen smiled. "I AM PHANTOM, LEADER OF THE ROGUE SOCIETY. JUST A QUICK ANNOUNCEMENT BEFORE YOU ALL GO BACK TO YOUR BORING AND MEANINGLESS LIVES." Someone from the background stepped forward. A red-masked face entered the screen. My blood boiled. Blaze.
"I'M BACK, MY FRIENDS! AND I AM NEW AND IMPROVED." He gave everyone a smile that sent a shiver down my spine. A bad one. "AND I'M COMING FOR YOU, SHADOW. DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME."
The screens went blank. As if on puppet strings, everyone in the square turned to me, still standing on the light pole with my hands curled into fists. Even the three Supers beside me were looking up at me in concern.
I teleported home, into my room, where I could feel safe. I slipped into my clothes I'd been in before when I remembered that I still had to work on that project tonight. Deep sigh.
A knock came to my door. "Kiera!"
"What?"
"Jase is here!"
"I'm coming." I shoved my suit into a dark corner of my closet, then shut the door and turned out the light. When I got downstairs to the kitchen, Jase was sitting at the table, awkwardly spinning his phone around while Cole stared at him intently. "Hey, Jase."
He looked up, relief flooding his face. "Kiera! What's up?"
"Nothing much. Want anything to drink?"
"Got Coke?"
I pulled out two cans from the fridge and tossed him one. "Let's get this thing done."
Cole sat up from the counter. "But Daniel's not here yet."
I raised an eyebrow. "And that's upsetting because . . ."
"Because if he doesn't have to do any work, then why should we put his name on the project?"
"He lives farther away than Jase does. Give him a few minutes."
Cole's eyes narrowed. "How do you know where he lives?"
"Doesn't everyone? I mean, it's the biggest house in the city, Cole." I frowned. "What's going on with you?"
He shook his head. "Nothing. It's nothing."
I decided not to push it. If Cole had pushed me every time I had a secret, then he would know about my being Shadow and he'd probably be dead.
The bell rang. I stood. "See? I'm sure that's him now." I jogged to the front door and swung it open. "Hey, Da—you're not Daniel."
Ty West smirked. "Thanks, I know."
"Ty," I breathed. I glanced behind me to make sure neither Cole nor Jase had followed me, then shut the door behind me. "What are you doing here?"
He shoved his hands in the pockets of his dark leather jacket. "I just came to check on you. Make sure you were alright after the whole thing downtown. With Blaze being back and stuff."
I sighed and crossed my arms, staring across the front lawn to the expensive fountain Cole's parents had added years ago. Cole had insisted in putting goldfish in it. They multiplied faster than rabbits. "I'm not alright, but I'm safe if that's what you mean."
He nodded in understanding. "I don't know how he got out, Kiera, but I can promise you that we'll get him back behind bars, where he belongs. And this time, he won't get away." His eyes darkened in what I guessed to be anger. "He almost killed Lauren and hundreds of other people. I want him gone almost as much as you do."
I took a shaky breath and pursed my lips. "I appreciate it, Ty, but I feel like this is something I have to do alone. I can't have more people I care about hurt by this guy, and most of all, the people they care about." I faced him. "Do you know what would happen to Lauren if I let you get hurt? Or vice versa? I don't even want to imagine it, and top that off with the pain and the guilt that I would have myself."
"I understand." No, Ty, I don't think you do. "But I just want you to remember that we have your back. All of us. Even Solar Storm, who I know you hate. And to quote High School Musical, we're all in this together." He smiled. "We're all on the same side, Kiera. The right side."
The front door opened and Cole's head poked out. "I thought you'd been kidnapped or something." He caught sight of Ty. "Who's this?"
Riptide stepped forward with his hand out. "West. Ty West."
Cole shook it. "Cole Winston."
"I'd better go, Kiera," Ty said, stepping down one of the stairs. "Just remember what I said. I'll see you around."
"Bye, Ty."
He stepped into his convertible, a black Camaro, and drove off with the engine roaring. As soon as he turned off to the main road, a new car came rolling through our driveway, leaving no time for Cole to ask questions. But by the look he gave me, I knew I was in for quite the interrogation later.
_________________________
"Midas didn't have a cape."
"Yes he did! See, look?" Daniel shoved his phone in Cole's face. On it was a picture of Midas, a superhero from the seventies. In the picture, Midas had a cape flowing behind him. But, considering I've been in the Agency's Hall of Fame, I knew for a fact that Midas didn't have a cape. He hated capes, according to people working there. I didn't have a clue as to where Daniel got that picture.
Cole scowled and shoved the phone out of his face, scooting away from my desk where Daniel was sitting. We'd transferred to my room after realizing that I had the only working printer in the house. Plus, the Wi-Fi signal was right above my room. Score. "Midas did not have a cape."
"Yes he did!"
"Guys," I cut in. "Sorry, Daniel, but Midas actually didn't have a cape. He claimed that they messed with his powers and slowed him down when he was flying."
Daniel's shoulders drooped. "Whatever." He started looking up more heroes.
As Cole silently basked in his victory, I started cutting out some of the pictures of old Supers. Honestly, I was really enjoying this project. I'd never taken the time to research other Supers and their nemeses. I was even getting ideas to fight off some of the villains from them. Yeah, I'm classy like that.
"Hey, knock it off!"
Daniel sighed deeply. "What am I doing, Winston?"
"You keep not-so-subtly throwing away my pictures I'm printing out." Cole narrowed his eyes.
"How did you see it? It was one picture!"
"I could murder you with more nonchalance."
I pointed my scissors at them and they froze. "I'll play rock-paper-scissors the hard way. Pick your poison."
Cole backed away. "Don't be too careful. You might miss Cloud."
I glared at him. "I had another victim in mind."
He gave a squeak of horror. I went back to cutting out the pictures as they printed them off. Jase sat quietly in the corner of my room working on the essay layout. I went to sit next to him. "How's it coming along?"
He glanced up, then grinned at me. "Probably better than you guys are getting on."
I bit my lip. "I've never seen Cole be so rude or childish." I shook my head. "Probably something stupid."
Jase snorted. "Do you really not know what it is, Kiera?"
"No . . . should I?"
"Eh."
"What is it?"
He leaned closer to me and whispered in a dramatic tone, "It's a girl."
"You just made that sound like a birth announcement balloon. Who's the girl?"
Jase sighed and returned to his essay, adjusting the screen. "You'll just have to find out." My heart sunk at the thought of Cole getting with another girl. It's not like it was anything new, and I had to remind myself of that. Cole could only make out with so many girls before I stopped liking him. The worst part was, I didn't know how I could stop liking him. I hadn't thought of him as just a friend in so long that I didn't even know how to anymore. I didn't see how I could just drop him out of my life.
When I looked at him, I saw my past, my present, and my future, whether it was as best friends or something more. With me, he only saw a past. One that made him who he is, but not who he will be.
Jase looked up after he noticed I hadn't moved. "You okay, Kiera?"
"Not really." This was too much. Between school and saving the city, I didn't have the time or energy to consider a romantic life, however little its chances of survival were. "I've got too much going on in my life."
Jase smiled gently at me and patted my hand. "I think we all have a lot on our shoulders right about now." He studied me and I felt like he could see every single one of my secrets. I unconsciously found myself emptying my mind, like I learned to do with mind-reading villains. "But some of us carry more than others."
He still thinks I'm Shadow. I didn't know how I could possibly convince him that I wasn't Shadow. I cleared my throat. "I'm getting more drinks. Anyone want one?"
"Me," all three boys yelled at once.
I jumped down the stairs, eager to get myself away from that entire situation. Cole and Daniel were acting like they were reenacting their terrible twos and Jase just knew too much. Or rather assumed too much. I had to do something that could prove that I wasn't Shadow.
My phone buzzed from my back pocket as soon as I snatched four sodas from the fridge. I realized how much soda we'd had, and it reminded me the real reason why I had to run around fighting and saving the city.
I pulled out my phone and saw Lauren's contact name. "Lauren?" I asked as soon as I brought it up to my ear. "Are you hurt? Is someone attacking? Please don't tell me it's another water park incident . . ."
Lauren giggled from the other end and I sighed with relief. Usually people don't giggle when they're being held at gunpoint, so I took it that everything was safe. "No, Kiera, I'm fine and so is everyone else here. We're still cleaning up some of the mess from Blaze, but otherwise we're fine. I called to ask you something . . ."
I raised one eyebrow. It took many hours in front of a mirror to learn how to do that. "And that is?"
"I need to know what to wear tomorrow." I could practically see her smiling with glee.
"Lauren, where are you going tomorrow?" I smiled, already knowing the answer.
"On a date with Ty!"
I shrieked with joy. "Lauren, that's amazing!"
"I know, right? He's taking me out to eat at the Silver Platter and then we're going to the aquarium! Which, now that I think about it, is kind of ironic considering he's Riptide . . ."
"Kiera!"
I turned to the entrance of the kitchen, where Cole was standing and looking a little pale. "Yeah?"
"Why did you scream?"
"I screamed?" Whoops.
He sighed. "Never mind." His footsteps went back upstairs.
"Who was that?" Lauren asked.
"Just Cole. But Lauren that sounds like it'll be so much fun. When is it?"
"Tomorrow night. He picks me up at seven, which I think is a little late for dinner because I can't survive seven hours after my lunch break without a meal. But who cares?! I'm going on a date with Ty!" She sighed dreamily and I couldn't stop myself from smiling wider.
"I'm so happy for you, Lauren."
"So, you know what this means?"
"What?"
"You get to go shopping with me tomorrow."
Oh, boy. The last time I'd gone shopping with Lauren was on Black Friday, when I was getting a pair of nice heels for Sienna for Christmas when Harriet Young grabbed them at the same time. Unfortunately, my natural Shadow instincts kicked in and ended up with a heel stuck in the wall and my permanent ban from Macy's. Good times, I tell you.
"Fine," I sighed. "But no Macy's."
"I know. You're banned from Macy's. And Francesca's. And—"
"Okay, fine! I'll see you tomorrow."
"I'll pick you up at seven."
"I have school."
"Not anymore. Hugs and kisses!" The line went dead.
I couldn't miss school. I had to help work on the project in History. But then again, it could force Cole and Daniel to overcome their differences and get their part done . . . or it could just result in disaster since they only seemed to listen to me. Jase didn't really seem like the guy to break up a fight.
Oh, well.
I won't be there, so it won't be my problem.
I took the drinks upstairs to my room and they all looked up as I came into the room. "What took you so long?" Jase asked.
"Sorry, I was on the phone with a friend." I tossed them each their drinks.
"Who?" Cole frowned.
"Her name's Lauren. I don't think you know her. She's graduated."
"So a college girl," Daniel wagged his eyebrows. "I'm in."
Cole stared at him in disgust, which I found ironic considering he's hooked up with quite a few college girls. Hypocrite.
"She's going on a date and I'm going shopping with her tomorrow morning for dresses."
"Tomorrow morning?"
I looked up. "Yes, Cole. That's what I said."
"But you have school."
"I know that."
"And you're just going to skip?"
I rolled my eyes. "Yes, father. Calm down. The worst that'll happen is that I get a bunch of schoolwork to make up. We all know that I don't have a life, so I'll have plenty of time to make it up. Plus, Lauren's one of my best friends. She's been through a lot, and I think this will be good for her." I picked up the pictures I was supposed to cut out. "Sometimes, being selfless every once in a while is all people need."
"I have a bad feeling about this, Kiera."
"Don't. How about this—if we get done before school's over—" which I knew was next to impossible when it came to Lauren "—I'll come back to school. Deal?"
He sighed. "It's better than nothing." We were caught in an awkward staring match. My Lord, he is something to look at.
Daniel waved a hand in front of my face, looking annoyed. "Hey, lovebirds, let's finish this project up then you can go make out."
My jaw dropped. "I wouldn't—Cole and I—we aren't—mind your own business, Cloud!"
He smirked, but frustration lurked in his eyes. "Whatever. Let's do a few more things then we can be done for the night." He went back to cutting out parts of the essay to glue to the poster board. It was a boring project, but who cares?
After another half hour, Jase finally stood up and stretched. I was surprised to see a hint of muscle below his T-shirt. "I'm done for the night, guys."
"I'll walk you to the door," I said, brushing off bits of dried glue from my hands. "I'm done, too."
I opened the door to find it raining a little bit. Ugh. Rain. I stayed just inside the doorway while Jase stepped outside, pulling his hood up. He smiled at me. "Thanks for having us over, Kiera, even if we are a pain in the . . . butt."
I rolled my eyes. "It's not you I'm complaining about. I just wish they would grow up a little."
Jase smiled sadly and shook his head. "I'll see you around, Kiera." He gave me a quick and surprising hug before sprinting to his car in the rain. I started to back away from the outdoors when I ran into something hard behind me. I turned and was face to face with Daniel. Well, more like face to chest.
Daniel stepped back with a half-smile. "I'm going to leave too." He stepped around me and took Jase's place. "Thanks for inviting me."
"It wasn't me that invited you." That came out meaner than I meant. "I mean—"
He laughed. "No, I know what you mean." He sighed. "I find myself saying this to you a lot, Kiera, but I'm sorry for being so childish and rude. I can't help it. It's just something about Cole Winston that makes me . . . wary."
That took me by surprise. No, not surprise. Shock was more like it. "Wary? Why would he make you wary?" It's not like Cole was a bad person. I'd never heard of anything worse than a one night stand from him. He wasn't into theft or drugs or anything, and I think I would know if a murder victim were lying in my basement.
Daniel waved it off like it was nothing. "I don't know. Forget I even said anything."
I held my breath. Daniel Cloud was a mysterious case. I mean, he'd been almost murdered at least three times in the past week or two and he seemed calm as ever. Maybe even calmer than normal. Going over to a friend's house to work on a school project for fun is not usually a side effect of a near death experience. He and Cole had something in common, and it wasn't a good thing whatever it was. According to Jase, they were fighting over a girl. Lucky damsel.
Daniel grinned boyishly, a dimple appearing in his cheek. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'll see you at school?"
I nodded.
He leaned in so quickly I didn't even have time to react. His lips pressed against my cheek for a moment, then he pulled away with the same grin. "Bye, Kiera."
I cleared my throat, trying to calm my quick breaths. "See ya." Now, I may have a long-lasting crush on Cole, but you try having the hottest guy in school kiss you and not hyperventilate.
I shut the door before the rain could get in and ran up to my room. Cole was still laying across my bed on his stomach, appearing to be asleep. I opened my door silently, then ran on the tips of my toes and jumped on top of him. He shrieked like a little girl and I busted out laughing.
"What was that for?"
"Well, since I usually run and jump onto my bed, technically you're the one in my way."
"Whatever." He watched me for a second. "Why are you blushing?"
My hands quickly went to my cheeks. "I don't know, why am I blushing?" Don't assume anything, Cole!
He sat up slowly, still staring at me with his electric blue eyes. "What did he do?"
"Who?"
"Daniel. Did he . . . kiss you?"
This time, I could feel myself blushing. Why am I blushing? "No . . ."
"You've never been a great liar, Kiera."
If only you knew how wrong you are. "Yes."
"He kissed you?" He looked like a cartoon character with his face all red. All he was missing was the steam coming from his nose and ears.
"Just on the cheek," I whispered. Why am I whispering? What's happening to you, Kiera?
"His lips still came in contact with you," Cole growled.
"Why's this such a problem, Cole? Do you have something to tell me?" Oh, now that was pretty dang risky of me. You go, Kiera.
His eyes widened, probably thinking the same things as me. "I—I just . . . I don't want you getting hurt, Kiera."
"Oh."
Cole watched me for another second, then stood and walked out of my room.
I collapsed against my bed. What a fantastic end to another fantastic day.
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Hey, friends. Here's another chapter. Please vote and comment; it makes me happy when I see them :)