Rocky Road (Cape High Series Book 18)

by R. J. Ross

  “You’re just saying that,” I say.

  “No, I’m not,” she says. “I just spoke without thinking. I mean, I can’t imagine carrying the Liberty name. People would always look at me and compare me to Trent, and Jack, and you. I’m good at what I do, I won’t lie, but I will never be in that class. I’ll never be a tank. So… if I take the niece position, I can get all the love and cookies, and none of the responsibility!” she says with an impish grin, throwing herself into Jeanie’s arms as Jeanie laughs.

  “I’ll take it!” Jeanie says, hugging her gently.

  “Emily’s not a tank,” I point out.

  “Yeah, but there are four of her,” Malina says, “AND they all can teleport to different places at the same time. You don’t get much more impressive than that. Well, unless you’re a Superior. But we don’t have to worry about getting offered THAT name.” She stops, clearly seeing something on my face. “What?”

  “Um… nah, I think it was just a joke,” I say.

  “What was just a joke?” she asks.

  “Superior offered,” I say, a bit sheepishly.

  “Superior offered what?” Malina asks.

  “To adopt me, I think. Or he might have been offering to let Nico or Liz adopt me, I’m not sure, really. He just offered the Superior name. That’s pretty stupid, if you ask me, I can’t even fly. Of course Nico sort of offered, too, but… nah.”

  Jeanie is staring at me, her mouth slightly open with surprise, but it closes and her expression turns thoughtful. “Oh, we should be going, shouldn’t we?” she says, abruptly, turning back to the wheel. “Seatbelts, girls! We’re on our way, now!” I almost say something, because I REALLY doubt any kind of car crash could hurt me, but I don’t. I just buckle my seatbelt and pull out my phone as Malina brings up the game on the wall. “Also, don’t forget to look out the window while we’re going! This is your opportunity to see a nice chunk of the land you’ll be protecting soon!”

  “We won’t!” Malina says. I’m already sorting my equipment, intent on getting more gold.

  ***

  *Somewhere in the Frozen North*

  The items are… usable. The clothing is a bit bulky, but considering how the norms fear the cold, Atlanti’s not surprised. The food, of course, was what she was really after. Yes, she caught some fish, but you can only live off of fish for so long, even if you are an octopus shifter. She’d started craving other things around the second week. Crackers, cookies, all of those things she’d ignored when she first was captured. Now, she’s addicted to carbs. It’s a terrible secret. She would KILL for a chocolate cake. As it is, she’s devouring a prepackaged cupcake with so much gusto that she almost feels embarrassed.

  She’d been planning on throwing the ship back on shore. She’d had it all planned out—she would sink it, just enough to get on board and relieve them of a few things, and then get rid of it before anything might leak into her ocean. Unfortunately, another super had showed up before she could. That was strange. She’d thought that coming up this high would put her out of the Hall’s reach. What was stranger, though, was that she hadn’t recognized the lady that pulled the ship up. You’d have thought a woman that large would be recognizable—especially since pulling a sunken, water-filled ship out of the water wasn’t easy, even for most capes. This woman had done it with such ease that Atlanti had almost blown her cover out of shock.

  She stops as she hears the wind change, and sinks into the shadows of the nearest snow dune, her camouflage kicking in, and her skin shifting to the whites and grays around her. There are two men overhead, flying through the snow as if it isn’t even a dusting.

  “So you think we’ve got an intruder?” one asks. “Considering the distance from the town, we’re looking in the wrong area, Superior.”

  “I realize that,” Superior—wait, Atlanti thinks, isn’t he dead? “But I’ve already gotten a call from Isotonic. He’s threatening to send in a group of capes to search our area.”

  “A group?”

  “A group,” Superior agrees grimly. “He’s trying to get on my nerves. He’s got two cape finders that he can use, and we all know it.”

  “You can’t exactly blame him,” the other cape says. “You as good as kicked the Hall out of the Arctic Circle. What kind of cape is it, do you know?”

  “He said something about a water type. I wasn’t paying much attention at the time.”

  “A water type, huh? It’s not exactly my strong suit…”

  “Mine, either,” Superior says.

  “You should be better than I am. But either of us would be more suitable than Kris… but I’d have thought a man-hunt might appeal to you. You’ve been restless, lately. Just last week you decided we should have spaceship races on a monthly basis.”

  “That was a perfectly good idea,” Superior says. “I still think it’s worth trying. But I have something more interesting to do, now.”

  “What have you got?”

  “I’m getting a handful of capes to train, Avalanche’s granddaughter, both Liberty boys, and maybe a few others.”

  “Sounds interesting,” Cosmic says. “Mind if I come over during your training sessions?”

  “I was expecting it.”

  They fly off, leaving Atlanti to realize that she hadn’t breathed in the last three minutes. She takes in a breath of air, finally moving from her hiding spot. The Superior? No, not possible. He’s supposed to be dead! Why hadn’t she heard anything about him living? And who was that other guy? Or the woman that lifted the boat? Had she accidentally squirmed her way into a very dangerous situation?

  She takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Well, they couldn’t be that impressive. They’d just flown right past her without even noticing. She doesn’t have time to worry about that, she thinks, trying to calm down. The state of her waters has gotten worse since she was put away. Rampant littering, plastic—she HATES plastic. She’d found sea creatures dead from trying to eat plastic bags, thinking they were jellyfish. She’d found coral reefs dying. And on top of that, the ice of the Arctic is melting, rapidly, because of them—because of the humans that don’t care for this planet, the world is dying!

  The tears threaten to fall. No. She can’t be sentimental right now. She has to focus. Those supers, from their conversation, they’re living up here, right? If they’re living up here, they could be damaging what little ice is left! She won’t allow it. She CAN’T allow it. She has to follow them and see just what sort of damage they’re doing, and how to stop it.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  “I hate to call you up unannounced, Diamond Dust,” Nico says, his tone clearly saying that he’s not telling the truth. “But I thought I’d give you a head’s up.”

  “I have a gig tomorrow—no, it’s past midnight, so it’ll be tonight, Nico, so this had better be good,” Diamond says, yawning in his face. “If you’ve been dumped and need a new ring to win her back, I’m planning on charging double—”

  “Everything on that front is going fine. You’re invited to the wedding, by the way.”

  She opens her mouth, and then closes it, obviously rethinking what she’d been about to say. “I’ll think about it,” she says, absently touching the watch around her wrist, “JUST because I’m a fan of Lady Rose.”

  “Then I’ll make sure you get an official handmade invite—Summer’s been going a bit crazy with glitter, lately.”

  “You’re both supers,” Diamond has to point out.

  “That doesn’t mean you can’t play with a hot glue gun, apparently. I offered to send out drones, but she only accepted that offer if they’re delivering her handmade stuff. Don’t ask me, the moment she told people, every woman in the family went insane.”

  She laughs at the look on his face. “So is that the important message?” she asks.

  “No,” he says. “Star Spangled is headed your way with Sandra.”

  She jerks, and sways just a tiny bit with the shock. That in itself is enough to show how stunned she is
. It’s extremely hard to sway a rock mimic. “Why?” she asks, woodenly.

  “Because it got out that we know who you are,” Nico says, “and I want her to meet you before she becomes an official Liberty.”

  She goes silent, her mind swirling as she tries to figure out what to do. “I need to pack,” she says.

  “Going to run?” he asks.

  “What other choice do I have?”

  “Meet her. Give her and Jeanie your blessing, and go on with your life,” he says. “I’m not asking you to turn your daughter over to a monster, Diamond. I’m telling you that the girl will be in one of the best, most stable, super families in the world. She’ll probably be a hero by the time she’s sixteen.”

  “A hero,” she repeats.

  “She’s actually still deciding,” Nico admits. “The running idea is that she’ll switch back and forth whenever she feels like it. With brothers like Kid Liberty and Cold Steel, it makes sense.”

  “Still… a hero,” she says, shaking her head as her mind tries to wrap around it. “Do you know who she is, Nico?” she asks, leaning forward.

  “She’s a future Liberty,” he says firmly.

  “Who just happens to come from two long lines of super villains.”

  There’s a pause, as Nico’s the one that has to digest the information. “Two?” he says.

  “Her daddy is Reaper,” Diamond says, “not that he knows anything about it.”

  “You’re saying that she’s the daughter of a rock mimic and a grim reaper?” he asks.

  “He doesn’t really kill them,” she says, blowing it off. “He just makes it look like they’re dead, and you know it. He’s a glorified retirement agent.”

  “But his father wasn’t,” Nico says.

  “Or his father before him, or so on, just like with all of the villain lines. Tell me, Nico, does she have her daddy’s abilities, too?”

  “Not from the scans I’ve seen.”

  “Thank God,” she says, letting out the breath she’s been holding. “I need to pack.”

  “Just get it over with, Diamond,” he says. “You have a gig tonight, right? Well, she’ll be there just in time to see it.”

  She hangs up without replying.

  ***

  We wound up pulling into a field to sleep last night, so it’s about three in the afternoon as the RV pulls to a stop. I finish eating my mid-afternoon snack and look over as Jeanie stands. “Well, girls, since I’m a working super, it’s always polite to check in with the local Hall when you enter their territory. This should be a wonderful learning experience, as well!”

  I look at Malina, Malina looks at me. I don’t know much of anything about Marigold, honestly. “Rocco isn’t… um, happy with Marigold,” Malina points out as she puts her snack down. “Is she as mean as she seems to be?”

  “Well…” Jeanie says, and I can almost see her trying to figure out what to say. “Marigold is… rather… a bit of an old-school hero. She’s a good woman, and a wonderful Hall leader, but…”

  “She’s a hard woman to deal with?” Malina says.

  “Yes, unfortunately,” Jeanie says. “But she’s not a BAD woman. I think it’s very difficult to be a female Hall leader.”

  “Isn’t she a tank?” Malina asks.

  “So we even have gender bias in supers?” I ask. “It figures.”

  “No, well… somewhat,” Jeanie admits. “You see, the Hall Leaders are all from a very different generation. Mastermental and Century are over a hundred years old, and I believe Isotonic is approaching it. Marigold, as well, is from a very different time. I think, because she was a tank in a time when women were written off as the… weaker sex,” she clearly is phrasing this very carefully, “she had to prove herself twice as much as I ever had to, possibly more. But because she proved herself, and did so magnificently, tank females are respected just as much as our male counterparts, or… well, close,” she says, honest to a fault.

  “Is Negatia hard like that?” Malina asks.

  “Oh, no,” Jeanie says. “Negatia is tough in a much different manner.”

  We all jump as someone knocks on the door. Jeanie puts on her mask before she opens the door, smiling at the black suits carrying guns at their sides. “Hi!”

  “This is a private parking lot, ma’am,” the man says. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

  She ignores him, pulling up her purse and digging through it. “Ma’am, we really need you to—” the female black suit starts out, only to stop as Jeanie pulls out a card and presses her finger to a small spot. A small hologram of her in full uniform appears.

  “My name is Star Spangled,” she says, still smiling. “I’ve come to introduce some of my girls to Marigold. Do I still need to move?”

  “No, ma’am!” the female black suit says quickly, breaking into a brilliant smile. “Come right in! And may I say, it’s an HONOR to meet you!” She salutes, grinning from ear to ear as she moves out of the way. “I’m your biggest fan.”

  “Why thank you!” Jeanie says. “Girls, masks on, please.”

  I notice that the male black suit is just staring in wonder, with his jaw slightly dropped. I think the fact that Jeanie’s wearing a blouse and a pair of jeans might have something to do with it. She doesn’t look like a super heroine is supposed to look—she looks like the type of athlete that gets their picture put on cereal boxes. The female black suit elbows her partner, and he closes his mouth.

  I step out of the RV, hiding behind my masked illusion, happily. Malina hops out right behind me, looking around curiously.

  “This is one of the Halls you should be considering, Malina,” Jeanie says as she heads for the building. The parking lot we’re leaving is full of black cars. It’s pretty boring, really. The building is a little more exciting. It has the East Hall Logo above the door. We stop at a door, and Jeanie motions to us. “You have some form of identification, right, girls?”

  “It’s built into our com-bracelets, now,” Malina says, holding up hers. “All we need to do is press a finger here, see, Sandra?” she says, standing on tiptoe to show me how.

  “Yeah, got it,” I say. I hear the black suits following us jerk at the sound of my voice. “Remind me to ask for a voice modulator when we get home, would you?” I mutter, feeling embarrassed now that I know they’re watching me.

  “I like your voice,” Malina says. “It has character.”

  “It’s pleasantly husky, sweetie, I love it,” Jeanie says as the doors open and we step into a room full of black suits with guns. She smiles at them, holding up her card. “We have identification,” she says.

  “Stand down!” the male black suit behind us snaps. “You’re speaking to Star Spangled.”

  “Marigold is on her way,” one of the other suits says. “Check their ID,” he orders, motioning someone forward.

  I touch my com-bracelet, only to groan as an image of my REAL form appears floating over it. Several guns cock at the difference, and I look at Jeanie. “Do I have to?” I ask.

  “Sweetie, very soon you’re going to be a household name,” she says, motioning me to go on.

  I sigh and turn off my illusion, earning several stunned looks and even more guns lowering. “I would say take a picture, but Zoe already pulled that one on me,” I say to them, darkly. “If it didn’t clue you in, you’re staring.”

  “Diamond Dust?” I hear someone whisper.

  “No, Diamond Dust is more of a rose quartz,” another replies. “This one’s a lot younger, too.”

  “You don’t think—”

  “Atten-TION!” a woman snaps. Every black suit in the room straightens and salutes as a large, brassy haired woman walks past them. “Star Spangled, it’s a pleasure, as always,” she says, breaking into a smile and holding out a hand as she comes closer. She stops, abruptly, as she sees me and Malina. I know she knows exactly who I am as her eyes focus on me. She nods, ever so slightly, before turning her attention on Malina. “Well, well, well.”

&
nbsp; “I would like to introduce you to these two adorable girls, Marigold,” Jeanie says, moving so she can place a hand on my shoulder and on Malina’s. “This is Malina, I take it you’ve already heard of her.”

  “I have,” Marigold says, holding out a hand to Malina. “I would like to be the first to formally welcome you to the East Hall.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Malina says. Marigold has to lean over just so Malina can reach her hand. It’s like David versus Goliath, I think with amusement. Marigold could make two of Malina, almost. “I thought I could check out your beaches?”

  “I would be honored if you would,” Marigold says. “In fact, I can arrange for a tour for you all, if you want.”

  “Actually,” Jeanie says, “we would like to do something else, first. Tomorrow would be a lovely day to spend at the beach, don’t you think, girls? Perhaps we can charter a boat!”

  I say nothing. Marigold is looking at me again, a cautious expression on her face. “She called just this morning,” she says silently. “Technico gave her a heads up.”

  “And?” Jeanie asks.

  “She… reluctantly invites you to watch her work, tonight. She’s lined up to be foiled in a gem heist downtown. I can send you the address to your phone.”

  “Thank you,” Jeanie says, smiling. “Has Technico told you about America’s Son and me?”

  “That you want to adopt her?” Marigold asks.

  “I’m standing right here, you know,” I say, making them both look over at me. “I might not have Lance’s hearing, but I’m not deaf.”

  “Perhaps we should take this conversation somewhere… more private?” Jeanie offers.

  “I’d be happy to,” Marigold says. “If you’d follow me, I’ll take you to my office.”

  We follow her, and Malina reaches up, wrapping her hand as much as she can around mine. It doesn’t hold much. I tug free and tap on my bracelet, turning my illusion back on. “Nice watch,” Marigold says, glancing at me. “I bet it makes life a lot easier.”