“Hey!” I protested when he tagged me and ran off. I followed, but he was too fast. I lost him only to find Emma and tag her. Again.
I lost track of how many times I tagged and got tagged. All I knew was I was having more fun with my cousins than I had since returning. The only blight was Emma and her frustration at her ineptitude. Every time I got her, I could see her anger growing. I even passed up a few opportunities because I started to feel badly for her.
But since I wanted to win again, I needed the points I could get off her, so when I saw her standing in a corner, gun down, I tagged her. She screamed at me and seemed to disappear. I blinked, and then became aware I was being tagged. I spun around and saw Emma had moved to my other side.
“What, the –”
The lights came up and the music stopped abruptly mid-song. “Emma Brighthall, get out here now!” Uncle Dan was so angry he bit off every word.
I swung my gaze back to Emma. “You used your ability?”
She shrugged, her lips pressed together. Her hands gripped her laser gun so tightly her knuckles were white. “It’s stupid to play without our abilities. For those of us that have them, it’s not like we will ever be in a situation where we can’t use them.”
She turned to walk away but stopped when Lange came up and put a hand on her arm. “Emma, you know why. We can’t predict every situation.”
She just snorted and jerked away from his hand. Without holstering her laser gun, she walked out of the maze to face Uncle Dan’s reprimand.
Lange gave me a half smile. “I think we’re done playing for today.” He slung an arm across my shoulders. “Nice job, good strategy, good reflexes.”
I glowed inside. Lange’s approval meant a lot me.
When we exited the maze, Uncle Dan was speaking to Emma over by the weights area. Uncle Dan punctuated each word by slamming his fist on the palm of his hand. She listened, head down, but I could see her mouth was set in stubborn line and her fists were clenched under her crossed arms.
Zoe tugged my arm. “Come on, it’s best to leave her alone when she gets like this. She’ll sulk for about a day and then get over it.”
“Okay.” I followed Zoe to the locker rooms for a much needed shower. Though we’d only played for twenty minutes, I was hungry and tired. It had been a tough week, dealing with how behind I was, but at least I’d ended the week by impressing my cousins.
Chapter 11
The next two weeks followed the same pattern as my first week: juggling school work and training. I managed to keep up with my homework, but I couldn’t find the time to hang out with Anna.
“Ollie, want come by my house after school and watch the YouTube videos Nate uploaded last night?” Anna and I sat outside for lunch, enjoying a dry but blustery day.
A gust of wind blew away my napkin, and I chased after it, glad of an excuse to delay my answer. I caught it just before it blew over the chain link fence surrounding the lunch yard. When I got back to the table, Anna was staring at me with narrowed, heavily lined eyes.
“Nice run. Been training?” She shoved a lock of hair out of her face.
“Um, well, I’ve been hanging out with my cousins, and they are runners.” I shrugged, pleased that my statement was actually true, just not all the way true.
“Yeah, I’ve noticed you’re spending a lot of time with them.” Anna started shoving trash onto her lunch tray.
I watched her carefully, wondering if her feelings were hurt. “How are things going with Trey? Haven’t you guys been hanging out?” Anna had finally gotten the nerve to talk to the guy she’d liked for a year, Trey Brown. Last she’d told me, they were having a good time.
She gave an impatient shrug. “Yeah, it’s fine. You know, we’re just friends.”
I winced, not only at the words of doom but at her biting tone. “Hey, I’m sorry.” I thought quickly. “I can’t hang out today, but maybe sometime this week?” I had no idea how I would manage to find the time, but I hoped I could.
She nodded, looking a little bit happier.
Finding time to do anything but train and go to school proved harder than I expected. I asked Uncle Dan about coming late or taking a break from training for one night. His response was discouraging. “No Olivia, you have years of catch-up. You can’t afford a night off.”
“But –”
“No, you haven’t earned an extra day off; you’ll have to wait for the next free day.” Uncle Dan frowned as he walked over to one of the equipment lockers. Opening it, he pulled out a large, heavy-looking stand-up punching bag. “Even then, if Alex didn’t force me to give days off to everyone, I’d make you train.” He tucked the punching bag under one arm. “Okay, let’s work on your boxing skills.”
“But –” I started to protest again, resentful over his disregard for anything not related to training.
“Olivia, that’s enough.” Uncle Dan set the punching bag down, making sure it was stable before giving me a stern look. “Your focus shouldn’t be on your normal life but on honing your supernormal skills and finally doing something important.” He braced the back of the punching bag with his hands. “Now stop being silly and show me how hard you can hit this bag.” He seemed unaware that I was furious. Or maybe that was his plan? Uncle Dan was hard to read.
I sighed and wrapped tape around my knuckles, and then I tried as hard as I could punch the bag enough to knock Uncle Dan over. Even when I hit the bag hard enough to punch a hole in it, Uncle Dan barely shifted. He regarded the ruined bag thoughtfully. “Yes, you certainly need to work on your strength.”
I gaped at him as he carried the bag out the large door at the loading dock and tossed it into the garbage bin.
He came back, dusting off his hands “Okay, now we need to…” And that was how the week went. Uncle Dan was oblivious to my personal life while he focused on finding all my weaknesses. According to him, there wasn’t much I was good at doing, though he acknowledged that I was improving. My significant ability showed no hint of manifesting, and I could tell my aunt and uncles were getting worried. I tried not to let it bother me, but it was hard not to fret when I was alone. Luckily, the combination of school and training didn’t leave me a lot of time for brooding.
We didn’t play laser tag again. I blamed Emma, but no one mentioned her outburst or her punishment. She didn’t have a lot to say to me, and I was okay with that.
I managed to sneak in some time with Anna on Sunday afternoon. We watched a few episodes of Orphan Black while debating who the coolest clone was.
On the third Friday, Kevin popped up in front of me once Uncle Dan called an end to training.
“So, sometimes after Friday workouts we go out for a while. You know, dinner and stuff." He cocked his head in query. "It’s just the cousins, no ‘rents. Wanna come?” He finished in a not-quite challenging tone; he knew he was asking me to spend time with people I was probably sick of seeing.
I considered his offer. On one hand, I was so over hanging around people who were at turns condescending or overly kind about my lesser skills. On the other hand, if I was going to become more comfortable with my cousins, I needed to spend time with them outside of the warehouse. "Okay, sure." I pinched a bit of my sweaty T shirt and held it away from my body. “I should probably change first, though."
“Cool!" Kevin said. “I’ll tell the others. We usually meet at ¿Por Qué No? on Hawthorne around six."
"Sure," I answered, and Kevin bounced away. I saw him appear in front of Lange, who nodded at me after Kevin was done talking.
When Kevin spoke to Zoe, her initial reaction was predictable. She shoved her bangs back from her sweaty forehead and frowned at me. Then she just shrugged and rolled her eyes. I couldn’t resist curling my lip in a sneer at her. To my surprise, she grinned before grabbing her workout bag and heading out the door.
I didn’t hang around to see Emma’s reaction. I couldn’t help thinking of Mindy when Emma was sneering at me over my latest display of weakness. I was doi
ng my best to ignore both girls. It was harder with Emma, though. We were friends once. Now we obviously weren’t, and it stung.
Occasionally I’d look up to see Emma watching me, absently pulling on her ear, a habit I recognized from childhood. The mannerism usually meant she was anxious about something. I had my theories about the source of her anxiety now. Most of them involved me in some way.
After I left the warehouse, I caught the bus home, showered, and changed into jeans and a black sweater before locating Dad in his office. "I'm going out with friends." Over the past three weeks, I’d given Dad different reasons for being late. I’d told him I was joining a couple of study groups, watching Anna try out for a play, or taking up running. It was nice giving him a true reason for going out.
Dad gave me a thoughtful look and I almost thought he was going to ask for more information, but his phone rang. He answered it while waving goodbye to me.
Despite the misty rain, I decided to walk to ¿Por Qué No?, a local Tex-Mex restaurant. In the summer, the popular hangout, with its outside seating, was always crowded, but on a rainy fall evening the wait was shorter.
When I arrived, my cousins were already in line. It was the first time I’d seen Lange and Emma in regular clothes. Lange wore jeans, a black T-shirt, a leather jacket, and motorcycle boots. Several women were checking him out. A couple looked like they were about to drool.
Emma’s appearance startled me. She was decked out in black pants, a black shirt, a long black coat, and Doc Martens. She’d outlined her eyes with black eyeliner. Somehow, I hadn’t expected her to be a Goth girl.
We stood near the counter, waiting for our order to be taken by the multi-tattooed, heavily pierced woman. I surveyed the various large bottles lining the order counter, containing different kinds of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. I couldn’t usually tell the difference, but as we got closer to the bar I wrinkled my nose at the smell of the alcohol in some of the bottles. My sense of smell had gotten more sensitive, even in just the past weeks.
Lange passed me a menu and I passed it right back to him. I already knew what I was getting – my usual three carne asada soft tacos, with guacamole and chips on the side. When I got to the front of the line to order, I realized I was starving, so I changed it from three tacos to six. I noticed the rest of my cousins were ordering meals just as hearty as mine. All the training lent itself to large appetites.
Dinner was eaten to a chorus of chiding and insults, mostly between Kevin and Lange, though Zoe tossed in a few jibes. Hugh drew obstacle course ideas on his napkin and showed them to Lange, who waved them away, saying, "Hey, let it alone. We get to relax for a day."
“We do?” Maybe Anna was free and we could hang out some more.
Emma answered. “We get some Saturdays off. Usually when the ‘rents have visitors." She shrugged. “However I don't suggest spending the day in bed. It doesn't hurt to be seen working out, you know, running, swimming. Or patrolling."
Her look was challenging. I hadn't been assigned to patrol yet. I assumed Uncle Dan was still determining if I was able to patrol. I met her look with a challenging glare of my own.
Kevin cleared his throat. “Speaking of patrolling, they still don’t know who blew up Vera.”
Hugh frowned. “Yeah.” He tapped his fork on his plate with a thoughtful expression.
Emma leaned forward, her mouth pressed into a thin line.
Kevin sighed. He used a tortilla to scoop up the last of the salsa. “Aunt Kate is mystified. And a little obsessed with this stick of wood she thinks is a clue. She thinks it’s got some kind of writing on it.”
Lange made a face. “Great. Now we’re all in for it.” He leaned forward with a mock serious look on his face and said in a fair imitation of his mother’s voice, “Children, never forget that we must always be on guard for evil. Anything can be the tip of the evil iceberg.” He grinned.
Kevin started laughing. “Evil iceberg?”
I joined him and noticed that everyone else relaxed except Emma, who frowned down at her plate and pushed some loose tomatoes around with her fork. She looked up. “You shouldn’t make fun of Aunt Kate.”
Lange gave Emma’s shoulder a light push. “Loosen up, kiddo. My mom needs to be taken with a little dose of humor sometimes.” Lange nodded at the rest of us. “When she calls on us, we’ll be there, and she knows it.”
Emma stared at him, while I tried to figure out why she felt off to me, out of step from the rest of us. Out of everyone, it should have been me who was the odd one out, but instead I felt like I belonged with these people. It was nice to have nothing to hide for once.
When we were done eating, Lange leaned back in his seat with a mischievous grin. “Who’s up for a little adventure?"
Kevin laughed and leaned forward with an excited look on his face. Hugh looked thoughtful, and Emma sighed. Zoe mirrored her brother and leaned back in her chair, saying, "Oh yeah, what do you have in mind?"
Lange slid his gaze to me. “Well, nothing too crazy, considering our newest member. How about we see what the city looks like from the Steel Bridge?"
The view from the Steel Bridge? That didn't sound very challenging. They really must be dialing it down for me.
As we left the restaurant and walked down the street, I asked Kevin, “Won’t your mom wonder where you are?” It occurred to me I didn’t know if my aunt and uncles’ spouses knew about, well, everything. I vaguely remembered that Aunt Kate’s husband, Uncle Peter, was an ER doctor, but I couldn’t even picture the faces of my other aunts, Susannah and Rebecca.
Kevin shook his head as he pulled on his jacket. “Nah, they know we go out after training on Fridays.” He shrugged. “They get that usual rules don’t apply.”
Thus answering my unspoken question of whether or not their normal parents knew. I wondered why Mom never told Dad. It would be a lot easier if I didn’t have to keep making up reasons for being home late.
Hugh looked back at us with a smirk. “However, little Kevin still has to be home by midnight.”
Kevin shoved his brother in the arm, but Hugh jumped back and then grabbed Kevin in a headlock. Lange started laughing as he pulled the brothers apart. Kevin stuck out his tongue at Hugh, who looked away with a superior air.
I found myself wishing I had a sister who I could tussle with and still be friends. I snuck a regretful glance at Emma. She watched the guys with an exasperated expression which changed to a frown when she saw me watching her.
“Come on guys. If we’re going to get Kevin home by midnight, we should hurry up.” Emma zipped up her jacket in preparation to run.
“Aw, Emma, not you too,” Kevin said in a mournful voice.
It was dark and misty enough off the main streets in the neighborhoods that we could run faster than a normal. I followed behind my cousins, once again aware of how weak I was compared to them. It was humbling and annoying at the same time. I was used to being the strongest person around, and furthermore, I was used to having to hide that strength. Now it was all I could do to keep up as Lange led the way to the waterfront.
The Steel Bridge was my favorite of the many bridges spanning the Willamette River between the east and west sides of Portland. I liked how the middle of the bridge lifted like a lid being pulled up for ships to pass under it. Both car and light rail traffic travelled over the bridge, with an upper and lower bridge for pedestrians. When I was a kid, if a MAX light rail train was crossing at the same time as our car, I pretended we were racing. There was a time I thought the coolest job would be to live in the big machinery house controlling the bridge lift.
¿Por Qué No? was a good eighty blocks from the Steel Bridge. My cousins and I were standing at the east side bridge entrance in about fifteen minutes. I arrived last but not by that much. As I stood panting, my breath coming out in puffs of air, I wondered if we were going to stand on the upper or lower pedestrian bridge. The bridge loomed over us, the top obscured by misty rain. The two towers containing the lifting mechan
ism between them were like sentries guarding the river below them. Though I couldn’t see them right now, I knew cables spanned the gap between the towers. There wasn’t much traffic – car, bicycle, or pedestrian.
To my astonishment, my cousins crossed the traffic lanes to stand at the base of the eastern tower. Zoe began climbing the girder, obviously intending to crawl up to the very top. No one else was surprised. In fact, they all followed without question.
Kevin glanced at me before beginning his ascent. “Come on."
“Really? We're going to climb the bridge?" The steel tower seemed to rise up into the darkness. I tried not to show my apprehension.
Kevin looked up the length of the steel beams. “Well, yeah. What did you think we were going to do, just stand here and look around?"
I didn’t have a good answer; instead I waved him on and prepared to follow while trying to ignore the pounding of my heart. I gripped the metal, cold and slick under my hands. With a deep breath, I pulled my body up the side of the tower. I climbed without looking back, each step, each pull of my arms giving me confidence when I didn’t fall to the ground. I reached the top sooner than I expected and took a gulping breath. My cousins waited for me on the platform, some sitting, some standing. Lining the rim were four railed ledges, creating a square. No one else seemed to notice the constant, chilling wind trying to push us from our perch.
I barely had time to attempt to relax before Emma stood up, smirking at me. I felt my eyebrows pull together as I frowned at her, thinking, Now what?
“Ready?” she asked, looking at the rest of the cousins.
Kevin grinned. “Oh yes, let’s go into circus acrobat mode.” He bounced on the balls of his feet with excitement.
His words clued me into Emma’s plan and I turned my gaze to the cables stretching between the towers, feeling my stomach sink. The cables swayed in the wind, and though I knew the steel was strong enough to lift the weight of the bridge, they looked insubstantial in the mist. I clenched my teeth and forced myself not to shiver. Supernormal or not, I wasn’t sure I could manage the delicate balance necessary to walk from tower to tower via the cables.
The Supernormal Legacy (Book 1): Dormant Page 9