Thunderstruck

by Brenda Drake

  Stevie laughed. “I’m not even going to touch that.”

  “Oh, I say we have him meet us at Double Dips after we’re done.”

  “I have homework.”

  Amira bumped her shoulder. “Come on. I’m paying. You can get your favorite sundae.”

  “Fine.” Stevie couldn’t help but smile. “Ice cream bribes win every time.”

  “Good,” Amira said. “Now, we better hurry. That vlog isn’t going to record itself, Comic Cam.”

  Stevie snatched Amira’s elbow and led her down the sidewalk, glancing around them. “What did I say about calling me that around here? I don’t want anyone to know I’m her.”

  “I don’t see why not.” Amira huffed, yanking her arm away from Stevie’s grasp. “Just think how popular you’d be. You have over a million followers. I’ve even seen those posters we had printed stuck inside some lockers around school. You’re famous.”

  “I like staying under the radar.” Stevie tugged the strap to her bag back onto her shoulder. Blake’s silver Prelude drove past, just slow enough for Stevie’s and his eyes to meet, making her stomach rev up with the sound of the engine as he sped around the corner and disappeared from her view. Her Wonder Woman Converse slapped against a puddle in the sidewalk. “Crap.”

  Amira laughed as they turned the corner. “Yeah, you’re not at all interested in him.”

  “Okay, whatever. He’s kind of cute.” Stevie could never hide anything from Amira. They’d been friends since preschool. Amira had been by her side for all her surgeries. Even watched out for Stevie on the playground, warning her not to overexert herself.

  It hadn’t been all good times. There were bad ones, too. Amira had avoided inviting Stevie to things out of fear she’d drop dead or something. Like the time Amira took friends rock climbing on her tenth birthday and hadn’t invited Stevie. She couldn’t blame Amira. Who wouldn’t want to scale up a fake cliff in complete fear for your life? Besides, she didn’t want her limits to keep Amira from doing what she liked. And Amira had made it up to Stevie afterward by throwing a slumber party and including all of Stevie’s favorite games and snacks.

  Soon Stevie wouldn’t be limited anymore. Over winter break, she’d get a brand-new valve and her heart would be stronger.

  They walked two blocks up and turned another corner. Stevie had to do everything in her power not to fall over. Blake’s Prelude was parked against the curb. He rested his back against the car in that easy, catalog model kind of way he tended to do. When he spotted them, he unhitched himself from the door and strolled down the sidewalk to meet them.

  “Hi, Blake,” Amira said with that high-pitched tone she did when she was excited.

  “Hello,” he said.

  Stevie stopped beside Amira. “Hey, what’s up?”

  Tires thumped over the potholed road and a toddler at the playground across the street was having a meltdown. His frantic mother pulled snacks and toys out of an overstuffed bag offering the kid bribes to stop.

  Blake grabbed the back of his neck, glanced down, and then looked up at her. “The thing I wanted to ask you back at school. When you gave me my group assignment…um…I wondered if you would enjoy a movie.”

  “I enjoy them all the time,” she said, her sudden nerves expressing themselves with snark. Trying to soften her tone, she added, “Do you mean with you?”

  “Well, obviously with him.” Amira rolled her eyes before adding, “Why don’t you ask him to meet us at Double Dips later? They have huge sundaes. You two could share one.”

  Stevie gave Amira the eyes that said she would get even later. She gazed up at Blake. “So, you want to meet us after dinner? It’ll be about seven thirty.”

  “I’d love to,” he said.

  “Okay,” Stevie said, excitement twisting her stomach. She’d never admit it to Amira, but she was glad her friend invited him. Extremely nervous, but glad.

  He stood there as if waiting for her to say more.

  She couldn’t explain it, but there was something about him. A warmth surrounded him, a sort of energy sending ripples through the air to her. It hadn’t occurred to her that she was leaning toward him until Amira gave her a questioning look. Stevie straightened and adjusted her bag, trying to focus on anything but Blake.

  “Talk about awkward silence,” Amira said, pulling Stevie out of her trance. “What’s your number and we’ll text you.”

  “Number?” he asked.

  “For your cell phone,” Amira said.

  His gaze landed on Stevie. She tightened her grip on the straps of her backpack, trying to will away the shivers running across her skin.

  “I haven’t one,” Blake said.

  Amira’s forehead creased as she studied him. “Boy, you need to get one. How can anyone get a hold of you? Anyway, we should go.” She turned to Stevie. “We have that thing. Remember? And your mom won’t let you go out later until you finish your homework.”

  “Oh, right, that thing.” Stevie took a few steps back, as if the distance could break the pull he had on her. “I’ll see you later, then?”

  He nodded. “All right. I’ll be there promptly at seven thirty.”

  Promptly? Stevie pressed her lips together to stop a laugh from escaping. “You don’t have to be early. There’s some wiggle room. Amira is always late.”

  “Funny.” Amira huffed. This time it was Amira taking a hold of Stevie’s arm and leading her down the uneven concrete.

  “See you later,” Stevie sent over her shoulder.

  “I look forward to it,” Blake said.

  Amira leaned close to Stevie as they rushed along the sidewalk. “You have it bad.”

  “I do not.” Stevie glanced over her shoulder. Blake hadn’t moved. He just stood there, watching their retreat. She smiled. “Well, maybe just a little.”

  “A little.” Amira drew out a long sigh. “Sure.”

  Blake Foster was going to make life difficult for Stevie. She was sure of it. And dating was not part of her high school plan. Getting a 4.0 or better was. She had to work her ass off if she was going to get into Stanford, not to mention the scholarships she’d need to earn to actually go. She may have had heart surgery, but her competition had performed it…probably on deserving orphans or something. Oh no, boys like Blake Foster were definitely not in the picture.

  But those eyes, his muscled body that no teenage guy had a right to have, and that mysterious silence left her wanting to learn more about him.

  Stevie’s breasts could barely fit inside the Wonder Woman costume Amira’s mother had made. Which was saying a lot about how Mrs. Jordan regarded Stevie’s bustline. Nonexistent.

  Stevie tugged the top up. “There’s no way this is going to cover anything.”

  “It’s not supposed to cover much,” Amira said, unwrapping a package.

  “What are those?”

  Amira walked over to Stevie with the flesh-looking moons jiggling in her hands. “Breast enhancers.”

  “Hell, no.” Stevie shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m not wearing those. There’s not even enough room in here for my girls.”

  “Come on. You know we go for authenticity.” Amira glanced around the warehouse as if there were someone there to agree with her. “And the cleavage will hide your scar, too.”

  “We have makeup for that.” She was losing the fight. Amira was always pushing her to stop wearing shirts with high necklines. Her main staple were graphic tees or shirts with swoop collars.

  If Stevie’s dad came by the warehouse today and saw her dressed in something skimpier than a bathing suit, he’d blow a fuse. He had agreed to let Stevie use the space to record her vlog, but only on Sundays and Mondays when it was closed. “Whose idea was it to review this comic book, anyway?” Stevie asked.

  “We did. It was a joint decision. Remember? Besides, the pay is good.” Amira went for Stevie’s left breast.

  Stevie stepped back.

  “Hey,” Amira protested. “You agreed.”


  “Seriously? You’re not touching me. Give me that.”

  Amira heaved a sigh and handed her the silicone mound, which Stevie slipped under the breastplate of the costume. After inserting both, Stevie tugged on the long, wavy black wig and secured the gold headband.

  Amira stood back, studying Stevie’s cosplay outfit. “You look so hot. If you dressed this way for school, you’d have all the guys falling over you. You should wear this one for the comic con.”

  “You say that about every outfit,” Stevie said, checking herself out in the full-length mirror her dad had nailed to his office door. “I thought you wanted me to go as Black Canary.”

  “I changed my mind.” Amira picked up the tube of adhesive next to her makeup case. “Your eyelash slipped. Let me fix it and we’ll start recording.”

  “Why do I need fake eyelashes, anyway?” Stevie sat on the metal stool in the middle of the room. “I wear a mask.”

  “Because it has eyeholes and you can see them.” Amira removed the lash from Stevie’s lid, dabbed fresh glue on it, and reapplied it. “There.”

  “Thanks.” Stevie blinked several times, the latex smell from the glue making her eyes water.

  “Did you bring your aunt’s necklace?” Amira asked, screwing the top of the adhesive tube back on.

  “It’s on the table.”

  Amira snatched up Stevie’s ornate, metal jewelry box and lifted the lid. “You should wear it. The gold accents would look cool with this costume.”

  A sharp pain scratched at Stevie’s heart, and she stood still waiting for it to pass.

  Stevie frowned at Amira, steadying her breaths to keep the pain at bay. “It wouldn’t go with this outfit at all. It would work better with a Thor character. My aunt got it in Norway or something. Besides, Wonder Woman doesn’t wear a necklace. Did you hit your head?” The horn charm looked expensive and ancient. Stevie couldn’t figure out why her aunt had left it to her. Her dad said it was worth a lot. Maybe it was the gold it was made from and the fact that it was really old, but it definitely wasn’t because of how it looked.

  The box was beautiful, though. It had two ravens on it, Huginn and Muninn. Her aunt had told her the birds belonged to Odin. They traveled Midgard, bringing back information to the Norse god. As a kid, Stevie had always been fascinated by her aunt’s stories about Norse mythology. It was this love of complex origins and myths that had gotten her into comics in the first place. Sighing, Stevie closed the lid and shoved the box back in her backpack.

  The pain in her chest subsided and she took a deep breath and released it.

  “You ready?’ Stevie found her mark on the floor. The cross, made out of black electrical tape, was coming up on the ends. She covered it with her red boots. Behind her was a pull-down screen of Gotham City that her mother had painted for them.

  Amira set the parasol lamp to the side of Stevie, plugged in the lights, and adjusted the two soft box lights in front of her before getting behind the camera resting on a tripod. As Amira adjusted the shot, Stevie ran through her script one more time.

  “All set,” Amira said, checking her phone. “It’s almost seven. Let me know when you’re ready.”

  Stevie rolled her neck from side to side. Something thumped against the Dumpster outside. “That had to hurt. Poor kitty.” The feral creatures were always raiding the trash for throwaways from Sam’s Fish Market next door.

  “That sounded bigger than a cat.” Amira placed her phone on the desk and leaned over the top to peer through the multicolored windows. “Why does your dad have these painted? You can’t see a thing.”

  “Privacy, I guess,” Stevie said. “And to keep birds from crashing into them. I think.”

  “Well, it just leaves it open for someone to sneak up on you.” Amira straightened and returned to the camera. “Go ahead. We’re running late. One… Two…” She mouthed “three” and pointed at Stevie to go.

  “Hello,” Stevie overexaggerated. Her online persona was a happy personality amplified. “If you can’t guess who I’m dressed as tonight, you’re on the wrong channel. Today on Comic Cam, we’re going to be talking about the just released Wonder Woman: Blood Ties.” She paused to allow for a cutting spot so Amira could add in the Comic Cam introduction.

  “If you haven’t read it yet, why are you even watching this? Click pause and get your butt to the comic store. There will be spoilers.” She rested for a few beats. “All right, let’s do this. I have mixed fillings about this one, which makes me so sad. I like my Wonder Woman on the kick-ass side. I think she was way too wimpy in this issue…”

  After recording tons of clips so that Amira would have plenty for editing, they packed up their things then put them in the storage closet Stevie’s dad let them use.

  Stevie put the last soft box light in and shut the door. “I’m going to go change—”

  Something broke through the window, glass clinking to the ground.

  “Oh my God,” Amira whispered. “What was that?”

  Stevie raised her index finger to her lips, crept over to the door, and eased it open. A dim light hung over the many shelves holding different size boxes in the warehouse. She contemplated dashing for the section that held the baseball bat inventory, but was too scared to move. Besides, the front door was closer.

  Amira startled Stevie when she came up to her side.

  “Don’t sneak up like that,” Stevie hiss-whispered. “You’ll give me a heart attack.”

  “Well, don’t say shit like that.” Amira peeked over Stevie’s shoulder. “Is it your dad?”

  “Yeah, like my dad would break a window.” Even so, Stevie hoped it was her dad and not some thieves who may kill Stevie and Amira for getting in their way. “It came from the other side of the warehouse. We’re going out the front. Stay close behind me and don’t make any noise.”

  “I don’t like this.” Amira’s voice was a barely audible squeak.

  “Me, neither. Maybe it was a bird or something. They’re always hitting the unpainted windows up front.” Stevie squeezed through the half-opened office door with Amira clutching her arm, and together they eased to the exit. Stevie’s eyes darted around the massive room. Fear gripped her, and she hoped no one would jump out at them as they crossed to the front door.

  The cold air rushed her as she darted outside with Amira and ran to her mom’s Ford Escape.

  Remote. She glanced at the warehouse.

  Stevie pulled Amira down with her into a squat, putting the Escape between them and the door. “I forgot the key fob.”

  “You forgot it?” Amira whined. “We’re going to die.”

  “No we’re not.” Stevie looked around at the buildings surrounding them. They were all closed. “Listen, I don’t have my phone. Do you have yours?”

  A worried look crossed Amira’s face as she patted her pockets. “No. Shit. I must’ve left it on your dad’s desk.”

  “Then we’re walking,” Stevie said, standing.

  “But my phone.” Amira got up.

  Stevie wanted to shake her. “Seriously. You’re worried about your phone right now? We’ll come back for them once we get help.”

  Just as Stevie turned to head down the parking lot, something crashed through the warehouse window and thumped onto the pavement. She pulled Amira back down behind the Escape. After a deep breath, she eased up and looked over the hood.

  A wolf?

  “Get under the car,” Stevie snapped, pushing on Amira’s back.

  Amira slid under just as bolts of lightning shot across the sky.

  Stevie paused. Flashes of light came down from the sky and converged in one spot. Her eyes followed them to a figure on the asphalt dressed in a black hoodie holding what looked to be Thor’s hammer.

  What the hell? Stevie shook her head. I’m seeing things. Maybe I need to cool it with the comics for a while…you know, if I survive this.

  A large wolf came around the corner of the car. And it smelled bad. Like rotting teeth or something.
It was bigger than any she’d ever seen. Not that she had ever gotten up close to one before. She’d only seen them on television and in photographs. If this one stood on its hind legs, it would be much taller than a six-foot man.

  Its back was hunched and wide, the muscles under its matted fur twitching. Red eyes turned on her, and it snarled.

  The hooded guy rushed the animal. “Get under the auto,” he said with a deep, raspy voice.

  Stevie scrambled under. Her breath, heavy and painful, pushed her heart to work harder. Amira’s eyes were wide as she stared at Stevie. More flashes of light went off around the Escape. Next came a loud thwank, followed by an animal’s whimper, and then another thwank. Then came the sound of heavy paws retreating.

  Stevie waited there, listening, trying to catch her breath and calm her racing heart.

  “Are you okay?” Amira asked, like she always did whenever she thought Stevie’s heart was failing.

  “I’m fine. Did you see that guy?”

  “Um, obviously not,” Amira said. “I’ve been under here the entire time. I did see some huge paws, though.”

  Pebbles dug into Stevie’s palms, and the costume she wore was uncomfortable. The panty-like shorts were tight against her crotch, the boots pinched her feet, and the wig itched. She wanted to strip there, but she was too afraid to move.

  Amira scooched closer to Stevie, gravel crunching under her boots. “I’m scared. What are we going to do?”

  It was quiet for several minutes, so Stevie stuck her head out from under the car to see what was going on. There was no one there. No wolf, either. She pushed herself out and glanced around. Nothing.

  The guy and wolf were gone.

  þrír

  Blake chased the wolf along the streets. He had to stop the creature before it reached mortals. Its paws pounded hard against the pavement, the sound of it like thunder hitting the side of the buildings. He gripped the handle of the hammer, raising it above his head, readying to strike the beast.