“Don’t speak about Hen like that. It’s your own fault you lost her. Only a moron would let a woman like her go.”
“I don’t give a shit about you or her, but I don’t have to let you come here. Get lost or you’re going to end up in the hospital.”
“Bite me, Buzz. I’m not going anywhere,” I said quickly.
“What did you say to me, you little punk? Do you know who I am? My parents will destroy you. Jesus, I’ll have them buy that shitty apartment you live in and burn it to the ground. Where is Granny gonna live then?”
“Do you know what a cliché it is to threaten me with your money? You don’t have any power at all. Hell, you couldn’t get your parents to do a damn thing!”
He lunged at me, but I didn’t flinch this time. I stood my ground, which seemed to intimidate him all the more. I knew that I was playing a dangerous game. Putting fear into a bully could sometimes backfire, and Buzz seemed like the type who was always one twitch away from total insanity. I wasn’t about to let him get away with this again though. I couldn’t spend my whole year dodging him and the goon squad.
“Just leave me alone,” I grumbled, walking toward the garage door again.
He laughed. “I’m never going to leave you alone. Not until you’ve learned your lesson. That goes for the others too.”
“Are you threatening Hen?” I said.
I didn’t want to fight him and cause another scene. Though I was pretty sure I could take him down, it wouldn’t do anything for the image I was trying to uphold. I didn’t need people knowing who I was or what I could do. It was already dangerous enough with my grandmother and Andy knowing. Plus, Strike had made a promise to Hen. I would leave Buzz for my superhero alter ego, whenever his time came. I stepped away from him as he swung at me.
“You don’t get it, man. You aren’t worth my time. I’m not going to fight you.”
“Yeah,” he said as he lunged again. “Because you’re nothing but a stupid pussy. A real man would fight me.”
“Funny,” I said through clenched teeth. “You talk an awful lot about what a ‘real man’ would do, but how the hell would you know? A real man wouldn’t be such a jackass that his girlfriend leaves him.” I was on a roll. “A real man wouldn’t beat up kids like his own brother just because he could.”
He seemed stunned by my words. I didn’t slow down. “Yeah, you aren’t worth my time. So why don’t you piss off so I can get coffee for my girlfriend and friend?”
I quickly opened the door before I lost my temper and stepped into the garage as I recalled a previous conversation. Buzz, for all his tough talk and wannabe thug lifestyle, couldn’t set foot in Andy’s garage. Travis had made it clear to him one time that it was his domain, and the way Andy told it, Buzz had only broken that rule once before, and Travis had broken his nose. His parents, in turn, took away all his credit cards, something Buzz hated to lose more than Hen.
I jogged up the steps and slammed the thermos down onto the counter as I reached for the coffee pot to refill it. Without thinking, I glanced out the window to the back yard and my heart started to race. Buzz was heading right for Andy and Hen. Neither of them had seen him yet. Nothing good could come from another confrontation with Buzz. I had to change my approach to the situation.
Then, I remembered the promise again. My hands might have been tied as Benji from Oregon, but as Strike, I could bring Buzz’s reign of terror to an end. Strike would make sure that he didn’t ever treat another person like he had Andy. With a smile, I knew just what I had to do as I went to find my jumpsuit. Buzz was about to have the meeting of a lifetime with New York’s newest superhero, one that we would never forget.
Chapter 25
I was getting the hang of putting on my suit in record time. It helped that Andy kept everything in the same spot too. His apartment was starting to feel like a second home to me. Peeking out the door, I made sure that no one was around before running to the side of the house and shooting myself up into the air. I stayed just above the trees and circled the property to make sure that it didn’t look like I was coming from the house.
When they came back into view, Buzz was a foot away from Andy as he shoved him to the ground. My fingers tingled with rage. It only took me a second to land on the ground in front of Andy, protecting him from Buzz as Hen backed away from the situation. I was happy that she was keeping her distance. I didn’t want to worry about her while I was dealing with Buzz. He stumbled away from me, his eyes growing with fear before the rage returned.
“I’ve heard about you,” I said quickly.
I stopped talking mid-sentence. My voice sounded different. It was deeper with a slight accent. One that I had heard around New York since arriving. My brain clicked. Andy must have tinkered with the suit to disguise my voice. I would have to thank him after this was all over.
“You’re Strike,” he said.
“And you’re Buzz, am I right? The guy who thinks he’s so big and tough? Well let’s go, then.”
“Why are you here, looking out for that nerd?” he blurted out.
I laughed, the foreign noise sounding so strange. “I’m not just looking out for him, and I’ll be stopping by on rare occasions because I’ve made you my pet project, Buzz.” I took a step closer to him, letting the electricity course through my hand. I had to admit, it felt good to finally see the fear in his eyes. He deserved a taste of his own medicine. I continued to walk closer to him as he backed away from me. “Everywhere you go, I’ll be watching you. Every kid you make miserable, I’ll find out and I’ll get justice for them. It’s entitled, spoiled brats like you who make this world suck. So, what’s it going to be?”
Buzz looked away from me and back to Andy, where he was getting back to his feet. My friend smiled as he looked at Buzz. It was the break that I had been waiting for. Buzz lunged for Andy, but this time, I didn’t stop him gently. A thin bolt of lightning shot out of my hand and landed right in his stomach. It wouldn’t cause any real damage, but he would be feeling it for several weeks to come as he flew backward through the air and landed squarely on his ass. Without flinching, I shot another bolt near his feet, and he quickly jumped.
“This isn’t over!” he screamed as he ran away.
That wasn’t good enough for me. I needed it to be over. All of us did. Shooting myself into the air, I swung around and flew so low that I could grab ahold of his shirt collar. I scooped him up off the ground and dropped him back near Hen and Andy. She gasped in shock as he ran in her direction. I quickly planted myself between them and sent another small bolt of power at him. Instantly, he froze.
“What do you want from me?” he said, his voice full of rage and fear.
“I want this to end. Now,” I commanded. “I want you to leave these two and the other one alone forever. You aren’t leaving here until I’m sure that I’ll never have to deal with you again, because I promise you that next time, I won’t be this nice.”
“Fine!” he shouted. “Whatever! I won’t go near them. Now let me go.”
“You didn’t say the magic word.” I couldn’t resist.
He glared at me through clenched teeth and said, “May I please go?”
Grinning, I nodded my head. “Fine, but remember, they won’t find your body if I drop you in the middle of the ocean, got it?”
Buzz nodded his head vigorously. Of course, I would never do something like that to him, but he didn’t need to know that. I had to use every fear tactic I could to make sure that he would stay away from them. He bolted around me and ran for the house, but this time, I didn’t chase after him. There was no point. I’d done what I came to do. Hen ran over to me, and I quickly stepped away from her, hovering in the air a few feet out of her reach.
“Thanks,” muttered Andy, still favoring his side.
“Are you okay?” I asked him.
He nodded. “I’m good. You should get out of here though. I’m sure that rat is going to be running to my parents any second.”
�
��My thoughts exactly.” I turned to Hen. “Hope that was helpful.”
“It was,” she said. “Will we see you again? My boyfriend is just in the garage, you know. He would love to meet you!”
“Maybe another time,” I said carefully. “Keep yourself safe and stay out of danger.”
Before either of them could hold me up any longer, I took off, following the same zigzag flight pattern from before. When my mask vibrated and a low hum told me Andy was online, I let out a sigh of relief.
“Hey,” he whispered. “Hen is in the bathroom, but she’s wondering where you’re hiding.”
“Yeah, sorry. I didn’t really think that part through.”
“Don’t worry about it. I told her you ran to get coffee from the main house, but it will only buy you a few minutes. Listen, I stashed an extra set of clothing in the bushes behind the main house. Get there and get back here, fast!”
“Thanks. I don’t know what I’d do without you,” I told him. “You’re one kickass best friend.”
“Dude, you just saved my life from that psycho. We can make up later, but right now, your girl is asking questions!”
“Right,” I said as I swooped past the house too fast for anyone to see. “See you in two.”
I changed quickly and stuck the jumpsuit into a cupboard as I grabbed a fresh pot of coffee from the main kitchen and slipped back outside. Hen came running into my arms when she saw me, almost spilling the coffee as I set it down on the table.
“You missed it!” she said. “Again! He was here! It was the most amazing thing ever!”
“Who?” I said cluelessly. “What?”
“Strike! He came back here! I don’t know how he knew where to find Buzz, but he stepped in and saved our rears right as Buzz was starting to lose his crap!”
“Sorry I missed it,” I muttered.
Hen frowned. “Where were you? I mean, what took you so long? It’s a little weird is all.”
“Yeah,” I said, swallowing back the lie. “Sorry. I got distracted talking with one of the cooks inside. It looked like she was making her sauce the same way that my grandmother does. I never knew how much older women would talk your ear off.”
“Aw,” she said, taking my hand and kissing my cheek. “You’re such a good guy. Maybe you can see him next time.”
“That doesn’t seem likely. I mean, why would he ever come back here?”
Hen shrugged her shoulders but turned to Andy, who was looking at the ground and fidgeting. “Oh, I don’t know. It was strange, though, that he seemed to know you, Andy. Anything you want to share?”
Andy started to turn red. “Nope. I’m good.”
“And another thing, his voice was different than it was last night. Now, I don’t know about you, but I don’t know many people with that kind of technology.”
“Maybe he goes to college or something around here.”
“Or maybe he’s got a friend on the inside who knows how to do everything for him.”
“What are you saying?” I said. My heart was racing. I could barely breathe. How could I keep Hen safe if she knew who I really was?
She grinned. “I think I know what’s going on here.”
“You do?” Andy and I both asked at the same time.
Hen nodded, a knowing grin crossing her lips. “Andy knows who Strike is!”
I let out a sigh of relief, but it was fleeting as Andy shook his head vigorously. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
“Lies!” she said with a laugh. “It makes perfect sense! I don’t know who Strike really is, but I would guess it’s someone you know or someone who came to you after they got powers. What do you think, Benji?”
“I guess I never really thought about it much,” I said carefully. “I think that if Strike is friends with Andy, then he’s one lucky guy. Andy is the smartest kid of our generation. If anyone is watching Strike back and helping him kick ass, I’m happy it’s Andy. Aren’t you?”
“Yeah,” she said confidently. “And don’t worry, Andy. I won’t share your secret.”
“Thanks?” he said, still in a daze. “I think I need more coffee.”
We all joined Andy in laughter as we sat down around the kitchen island for another cup. I let Hen retell the story of everything that happened and saw just how much she admired Strike. Her eyes never left mine, though, and I knew that no matter what kind of adrenaline rush the hero gave her, she was with me all the way. After coffee, Hen and I decided to go back into town. She needed art supplies and Andy said he had some ‘secret, Strike stuff’ he needed to do.
Holding Hen’s hand as we walked through central park felt as natural as breathing to me. I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to have her and the others in my life. My heart was racing as I watched her smile at an old couple sitting on a park bench. They were so in love. The second the thought crossed my mind, my heart started to race. I knew what was going on with me and I had to tell her. There was no way she could be a part of Strike’s life, but I didn’t want her leaving Benji’s.
“Hey, Hen?” I said softly. The racing in my heart grew stronger. I thought I would faint I was so nervous. “There’s something I have to tell you.”
She turned and smiled at me. “Sure thing, what’s up?”
I cleared my throat, looking for Strike’s courage and Benji’s words. “Well, I know that we haven’t known each other all that long, but I feel like I know who you are. I hope this isn’t too sudden, but I have to tell you something. I have to tell you the truth.”
Hen looked concerned. “You can tell me anything, Benji.”
“Well, then, here it goes,” I said. “I love you!” I blurted out. “I’ve loved you from the very first second that I met you. It broke my heart when Buzz treated you like crap. I know it’s sudden, but—”
My words were silenced by her lips on mine. I wrapped my arms around her, letting myself melt into her body as the world stopped spinning around us. With a racing heart, I begrudgingly broke away from her and took a deep breath. I had been expecting a dozen different outcomes, but nothing like that.
“Oh, Benji! I was too scared to say it before because I didn’t want you to think I was rushing, but I love you too! I knew that you were going to change my life,” she said softly.
“Really?” I replied in shock.
Hen laughed and threw her arms around me again. “Really!”
“Whoa,” I said. “Wow. I’m the luckiest man in the world.”
She jumped down and took my hand again, laughing as we walked through the park with not a care in the world. I had been through hell for the past six months, but as we walked, I knew that my parents were watching over me. I had finally found my happiness in Hen. Moreover, I had found my purpose in Strike.
Three Months Later
I would never get enough of watching Hen as she bounced in the air. I knew that she was having a blast. Ever since Strike had come into our lives, things seemed to constantly be changing for the better. After her first encounter with my alter ego, Hen was accepted back into the group of cheerleaders, though she kept her distance from them socially now. She was too busy after school for them anyway. Between the working scholarship she had at the art history museum and studying for college entrance exams, there wasn’t any time.
On the rare few nights a week that we got to spend together, she always came to Andy’s house with me. Thinking about my friend made me smile. Tonight, after the game, we would be going out on a very special date. Andy and Travis were planning on joining us. I shook my head and smiled. Their romance would be one for the record books. I’d never seen parents more willing and accepting of their son’s love life choice. It shocked Andy when he told them and they were thrilled. I loved hearing the story every time.
Hen finished her routine and jogged over to the bleachers where I was sitting. She jumped up and kissed my cheek. Quickly turning my head, I caught her lips and held the kiss for a second longer before my pocket started to vibrate. Damn, it always
happened just as things were getting good. She winked at me as the other girls beckoned her back over.
“Don’t stay out too late, okay? We have plans,” she said quickly.
“I wouldn’t think of it,” I promised her.
It was our routine. She thought I ran packages for an all-night pharmacy. The lie hurt, but there was no other way. Maybe someday, I could tell her the truth, but for now, things didn’t need to change. I walked away from the bleachers and answered my second phone. I headed into the woods and already had my clothing stuffed in my book bag, along with my shoes, by the time Andy started to talk.
“Hey, you’ve got a robbery in progress on the south side. Two perps are making a run for it on foot. What do you think? Do we have time?”
“Of course we do,” I said with a laugh. “Meeting me there?”
“You’d better believe it. Gotta be back in an hour though. I’ll send a car for Hen and we can meet her back here.”
“Great,” I groaned. “Give her and Travis more time to gang up on us.”
“Hey,” he said as I heard his jetpack fire up in the background. “It could be worse. You could have a real job right now.”
“And you could still be single,” I said as I skidded to a halt once I was far away enough from the school. “Ready?” I asked him.
“I was born ready,” he said quickly. “See you in five.”
I grinned. “Twenty bucks says I beat you there.”
“You’re on,” he said.
I hung up and tucked my phone into the hidden pocket on my jumpsuit. Stashing my bag behind a brush pile, I took a deep breath and catapulted myself into the air. As I took to the sky, I thought one last time about my parents. I knew that wherever they were, they would be proud. I was helping people. I was a hero. I was Strike.
About the Author
Maxwell Blake writes fun, thrilling, page-turning superhero fiction. He has always grown up reading comics, watching them turn into tv shows and movies. He always wanted to be able to make his own for others to read.
The City Superhero (Book 1): Rise Of The Super Strike Page 19