The Distort Arc: Cape High Books 1-4 (Cape High Series Omnibus)

by R. J. Ross

  "Hey, it worked, right? Nobody showed up and kidnapped you!" he says.

  "Because we're on the top floor of a building surrounded by killer lasers," I say.

  "And I was there!" he says.

  I stare at him. When that doesn't work I poke him again. Then again. "You're such a pain," I complain when he just grins up at me.

  "I like you," he says.

  "Yeah, yeah, you like everyone, though."

  "Not like I like you," he says, looking serious.

  I stare back at him for a long moment, feeling completely thrown off. He's going to start laughing soon, right? It's a joke, right? He can't like me! Like--like me! I know Emily said that, but-- "You're just confused," I tell him finally. "Maybe you got hit in the head during that fight and just didn't notice."

  "I'm not confused," he says. "I really like you. I think you're a lot of fun to hang out with, both in your human form and your cub form, and you're dishonest, sure, but only in a way--like you like to lecture us on how bad you are and how heroes and villains are supposed to be, but I think you're loosening up, you know?"

  What do I say? Why is it hard to think right now?? My hands are clammy and I feel like I'm going to start hyperventilating any moment now--what do I say to this? "I--" I start out slowly. What comes after that word? Think, Adanna! "I... don't..."

  "Stop!" he says, holding up a hand in front of my face. "Stop right now, because I already know what you're going to say."

  He does? Why don't I?

  "You're going to tell me that you don't like me, that I'm too lazy, that I'm too short, that you think I'm crazy right now because I'm going to be a hero and you're going to be a villain and it would never work out--" he says, reading thoughts that should be going through my mind but really aren't. "But I think you're wrong," he finishes.

  "What?"

  "You're wrong. One, I'm growing, not lazy. I think Trent's right and I'm solar powered, it makes sense in a weird way. Two, I'm going to get taller! I mean, look at my dad and mom, there's no way they'll have a midget for a kid, right? In a year, maybe two, I'm going to be taller than you, no problem," he says. "So... I probably should have waited until then to do this, huh?"

  He just turned himself down for me, possibly? I don't know! I'm still completely thrown off right now, don't expect actual logical thought out of me right now!

  "And three!" he goes on, "I might be technically a hero in what I'm going to do, but it's not like people will even know my name. I'm not going to be the type of hero that's wearing a cape or even seen most of the time, you know? I figure I'll go in wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, do what needs done, and walk out again without anyone even noticing until later. It's not like you'd be dating Kid Liberty or whatever, see? So you can't say no because of those things. You need to come up with something else."

  "I--" I say again, because he's looking at me so expectantly. "I'm... not... really... sure what to say," I admit, not looking at him. "Can I think about it?" Because he just wiped out the only arguments I could possibly have come up with at this moment, and coming up with new ones means being able to think logically, which, as we're all aware of by now, isn't going to happen!

  "I don't know if I should let you," he admits. "I mean, knowing you, you'll just come up with some ridiculous reason that I can't argue against and then I'll be stuck. But at least you're not jumping out the window like Zoe did with Max, so maybe it's not quite as bad as it could be."

  "Zoe jumped out a window?" I ask.

  "Yeah," Sunny says. "She was really dramatic before they started dating."

  "As long as I don't jump out any windows, can I think about it?" I ask. "Otherwise I'm absolutely going to say no, just because that's even pushier than forcing me into that nap," I point out.

  "Alright, I'll let you think about it," he says with a reluctant sigh.

  Nico's bedroom door opens and he steps into the room. "Well, then, are you two the only ones up?"

  "Yeah," Sunny says.

  Nico heads for Zoe's door, knocking on it twice. "Wake up," he says. "It's past time we eat." He heads to the kitchen when we hear people moving around in the room, digging through the fridge. "We've got... ketchup. And something green," he says, looking at us. "I'm going to go get some pizzas."

  "I'll go with--" I start out.

  "No you won't," he says. "You're staying right here."

  "But he's locked up, so it's over, right?" I say, heading for him. "And you'll be there, right? Please?" I glance back at Sunny, who looks innocent as can be. "I'm not used to being surrounded by walls all the time," I add, not able to say that I need to get away from Sunny so I can think.

  I see him hesitate, then glance at Sunny and sigh. "Fine," he says. "But you do exactly what I tell you to do, no questions, got it?"

  "I got it," I say.

  "Let's go," he says, heading for the door.

  "But--" Sunny starts out.

  "She'll be fine," Nico says. "Don't worry, I'm with her, right?" We step out of the apartment before he can protest and I let out a tiny sigh of relief. Now, don't get me wrong, I know this is sort of like jumping out the window, but being stuck in there with him watching me with big, expectant green eyes seems more than I can handle at the moment. I need to think, okay?

  We stop on the next floor, where Nico takes orders and cash for pizza to bring in, then head out of the building, taking the lighted steps and out of the security system. It's only then that Nico speaks, draping an arm over my shoulders. "So," he says, "he's getting to you, huh?"

  "You heard that?" I ask guiltily.

  "Every word. But I saw it coming," he says, making me glance up at him in surprise. "Listen, Cub, there's only a handful of super kids in the world, half of them are males, one of them is his sister, and one other is dating his best friend. But," he goes on before I can say something, "that's got nothing to do with this."

  "What?"

  "Not a thing," Nico says. "What this is all about is he's a fifteen year old boy with an extremely cute girl that he sees on a daily basis and has a lot of fun with--especially in her cat form. So, your best hope, if you don't want him chasing you around, is that some other cute super girl shows up and distracts him. Unless you really hate him, that is. To the point where you beat some sense into him."

  “I--“ I say, stunned that he’s actually even suggesting that I beat up his only son. “You really are a super villain,” I say after a second.

  He laughs. “Oh, Sunny’s a lot tougher than he looks. You might throw him for a loop, but it won’t be because of pain. He’ll feel betrayed, sure, but you’re a super villain in the making. You’ve already warned them all several times that it might happen, right?”

  “But--“ I say, looking down.

  “Think about it before you make any decisions,” he says. “Don’t forget, you are Cub.”

  “No I’m not--“ I protest, looking up at him. He’s looking around, watching the shadows.

  “You are Cub,” Nico repeats. “If they really have a problem with it when your brother’s older, just beat your brother. You can do it easily enough. If you truly want your family’s name and title, take it,” he says, turning to look me in the eyes. “Show them just how much you deserve it.”

  “But I'm female,” I say.

  “Who cares?” he asks, going back to his shadow searching. “You worked hard for that title. You were acceptable as an heir before your brother was born, right? Well if you exceed as much as I know you will, you’ll be acceptable even after it. But none of this bowing down, none of this letting people take what you want or force what they want on you. You're a super villain, you do what you want.”

  I’m so shocked that I barely even notice him pushing me behind him and stepping forward, his hands coming up in a strangely dangerous motion. “Come out, come out, wherever you are,” he says. “If you’re after my little kitty, the least you can do is show your face.”

  Arms wrap around me tightly and I'm dragged down through the
concrete below, only able to make a small squeak of surprise before I find myself in the sewers. It stinks, I think as I twist, shoving my elbow into the gut of my attacker. It goes through thin air.

  "I have to do this, kid," Shadowman says. "He took everything I've got. Everything! Even the funds hidden overseas! If I want to get it back I have to--"

  A loud booming sound comes and a hole the size of a small car appears a few feet away above us. "I warned you, Shadowman," Nico says in a hauntingly calm tone as he drops down into the sewers through the hole. "I told you what would happen."

  Shadowman grabs me, holding me up like a shield in front of him. "You can't kill me, Nico, not if you can't find me," he says, starting to take a step back. Everything hanging on the walls start shaking. The air starts swirling with items, pieces of metal, a cone shaped lightbulb, all being pulled from the walls and ceiling as Nico pulls out a handful of other items from his pocket. They swirl over his hand, taking form in seconds. It looks like a toy gun when it lands in Nico's hand, with the lightbulb aimed at Shadowman.

  "Do you know what I am?" Nico asks. "I know a lot of people don't nowadays. They've either forgotten or never knew in the first place. But I'm the one that designed the first power blocker collar. And this? I call it a PED. Power emission disrupter. That means if you step through that wall I'll fire. Whatever piece of you is in the wall will go solid. Now I'm not sure myself what will happen, whether it'll get stuck or something worse, but I'm really interested to find out."

  "I'll hurt her, I really will," Shadowman says, but he's trembling. "Collector wiped me out, I've got nothing left to live for, Technico."

  "Money?" Technico roars. "You're doing this for MONEY? You're trying to give away my best friend's daughter for MONEY--oh, I'm not even going to wait," he says, pulling the trigger. The light flashes, blinding me, and I blink, missing the fist that slams into my kidnapper's face that quickly. I'm grabbed and pulled away. "Where does he keep them, Shadowman? If you tell me I might not kill you," Nico says, strolling after the man he just sent flying.

  Shadowman manages to whimper somehow. His face is totally messed up, his nose is broken, I bet his jaw is, too. It's amazing he's still conscious.

  "Where does he keep the other cape brats you kidnapped," Nico demands, grabbing him by the shirt and hauling him up. "The ones on display." He stops, then reaches into Shadowman's pocket, pulling out his phone. "Actually, since I broke your jaw why don't I find out for myself?" he says, tossing Shadowman into the nasty water.

  This, I think, staring at the scene, this is a super villain. Ruthless, taking what you want, regardless of who stands in your way. His words are echoing in my mind, telling me that if I'm truly going to be a super villain I need to take my name back, even if it means running over my own little brother. If necessary, use a nasty trick like taking someone's powers away before beating on them--

  I...

  Is that how I'm supposed to deal with Sunny? It'd keep him from bothering me, it'd keep him from getting strange ideas that make me feel nervous and hunted, it'd keep him from interrupting my personal training time, it'd keep him from... from letting me ride on his shoulder and lecture him in whatever form I'm in. It'd keep him from smiling at me, or laughing or--

  I feel hollow. I can't even imagine using that type of approach with Sunny, much less my little brother. Cubby, who kisses me on the lips whenever he thinks he can get away with it. Cubby, who does the sticky dance with me and looks so proud of himself when he does whatever new thing I show him to do. Cubby who loves me so much that he cries when I leave...

  "Your powers should be back by now," Nico says idly. "But I'm keeping this," he adds, holding up the phone. "Come on, Cub--"

  "Not Cub," I say. "I'm not Cub. I'm Adanna."

  Nico looks at me, a little smile pulling at his lips, much to my surprise. The gun falls apart, the pieces falling into the sewer water. "Good," he says. "Let's go."

  "I don't--I don't agree with what you just did," I say.

  "I didn't hit him that hard," Nico says, walking over and wrapping an arm around my waist. "If I had hit him at full strength I would have killed him. As it is, he'll heal up soon enough." I nod, looking at the man still in the sewer water, and wrap an arm around his waist before Nico flies up through the hole he created earlier.

  He's right, after all. He just punched through two feet of concrete to get to us, he really could have killed him. It just... still seemed a nasty thing to do. I find myself looking at the hole as long as I can see it while he flies--to the pizza place.

  He really just did that. (What is with the males in this family? They're always doing outrageous things, as if it were perfectly normal!)

  I'm staring up at the red and white sign blankly at this very moment, and now he's pulling me into the restaurant, like this is perfectly normal. "Nico--" I say. "Shouldn't we--you know--be going to the zoo?" I ask, not able to come up with a better way to call it.

  "I'll send Liz and Taurus," he says, heading for the counter. "They could use a date."

  "A date?" I repeat. "How is going to save who knows how many people from a psychopath collector a date?"

  "What, don't think it's dramatic enough to keep Liz's attention?" he asks, pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket and giving his order to a rather worried looking man behind the counter.

  I stare at him so long that he hands me a pile of pizza boxes before I come up with something to say. "I doubt it's going to work." Yes, that's what I came up with. Okay, probably not the best response, but really, I've said already that he's strange. "Wait, Taurus and Liz are dating?" I ask.

  "About the same way you and Sunny are dating, but even less," Nico says bluntly, carrying more boxes and motioning for me to go out the door. "He likes her, she ignores him, for the most part."

  "Then why are you sending them together?"

  "Why not?" he asks, starting down the road.

  "What about the other problem?" I ask. "Your brother."

  "I've been thinking about that, too," he says. "I need to do a little bit of research, then I'm going to hunt them down before they get a chance to run again."

  "How?"

  "Energy outputs in uninhabited, rundown areas," he says as we reach the apartment building. He makes me go in first, and I press my hand to the panel, wondering why it's shaking. I stare at it for a second. "Go on, Adanna," he says gently.

  "My hand is shaking," I say in confusion.

  "I know it is."

  "Why's it shaking?"

  "Because you were almost kidnapped," he says, gently pushing me forward. I step on the lighted footprints, a thought flashing through my mind.

  "You knew," I accuse him as I step through the door.

  "Knew what?" he asks innocently.

  "You knew that he'd gotten free. Didn't you? That he would come after me again. Is that why you let me come along?" I ask. "Did you use me as bait?"

  "Did you get hurt?" he asks, looking at me closely.

  "No--but--"

  "Do you really think I would put you in a position that could get you hurt?" he asks. "I've told you before, Adanna, you're extremely important to me."

  Somehow I think there's more, though. I watch him closely, getting a bland expression in return. "But," he goes on, "thanks to you, we're going to save a lot more people. Probably, considering Shadowman's talents, a lot of cape kids like yourself."

  For just a few moments of me being surprised, we were going to save people, basically. I think about the cats at home, picturing myself in a cage like that for who knows how long, and I nod. "Yeah," I say quietly. "It was worth it."

  "You're a very good kid," he says, equally quietly.

  I give him a little smile. "I'm super," I agree.

  ***

  Dinner came and went, people filtering into the apartment, then going their own way, the adults heading out to take care of the little "zoo." All except Nico and Summer.

  Nico sits on the roof of the apartment building, his elb
ows resting on his knees as he stares up at the stars. There's something off about him, Summer thinks as she steps out of the apartment and onto the roof. He looks pale, stressed. She had wondered why he was so willing to set up the television for a movie night for the kids, even with Zoe watching. The chance of his television blowing up (which she had heard plenty about already) hadn't even seemed to occur to him.

  "It's a nice night," she says, making him look up. "But considering how long I was under, any night where I can see the stars is a nice night."

  He looks back up at them, not speaking, so she walks over, sitting down next to him. "Nico, it's been a long time, but you're still the same," she says. "Whenever something almost goes seriously wrong you always act like you'd planned it ahead of time."

  "I almost lost Cub," he says, not looking at her. "He grabbed her and was underground before I even saw him. I should have killed him. I almost did, but she was just watching it all, committing it to memory, thinking that this is what a true super villain is like--Summer, I almost lost her. It could have been Zoe or Sunny or--"

  A shudder runs through his body, so strongly that she can feel it from where she sits. There's nothing else she can do, she thinks as she wraps her arms around his shoulders. He leans into her all too easily, taking a deep breath and wrapping his arms around her, as well. "I should have killed him. I told him I would."

  "Would you want Zoe seeing you do something like that?" she asks softly.

  "No. I don't want Cub seeing it either. But I can still hunt him down when they aren't watching--"

  "No," she says. "You did the right thing."

  "I left a hole in the street," he says. "We might need to tell Double M about it before too many cars fall in."

  "Okay, maybe not entirely the right thing," she says dryly, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his smartphone to send a text to Double M. "But that can be fixed, and won't get you tossed back in the Cape Cells."

  "I didn't have time to find a sewer drain," he says.

  "I know," she says, lacing her fingers through his hair. Why is she forgiving him so easily, she wonders. Why is she letting him slide back into her heart as if the hole was just waiting for him?