“No they don’t. People know about The Reaper. Your true identity wasn’t compromised. It’s brilliant, Adam! That mask, the name, it all fits together so perfectly!"
“Howie, my last name is Reaper! Someone will find out!”
“I am sure that you’re not the only one with that last name and there is no way that anyone will make that connection out of thin air, Adam. This is destiny, brother. Don’t you see it? This is what you were meant to do!”
“Absolutely not! It was a mistake! A mistake that won’t happen again,” I said in a harsh whisper.
“You cannot continue to hide from what you are, Adam. You think that mask just happened to be there? You think you just happened to be able to do what you can do? This isn’t a coincidence! This is fate! You need to stop running from it and face what you are.”
“I’m a freak! And I’ve already come to terms with that!” I growled.
“No, you’re a hero!” he shot back. “And there’s nothing you can say to convince me otherwise. Because of you, that lady was able to go home and kiss her kids goodnight. Because of you, she now has a chance, Adam. You should be happy about this. You’ve been given an opportunity to make a real difference.”
“Happy? Why should I be happy?!” I roared. “You think saving some random lady that I really care nothing about is supposed to make me happy? I’m still poor! My father still beats the crap out of my mother every time he gets a chance, and she still refuses to leave him despite the fact that he’s nothing more than a lowlife degenerate! And you know what else, Howie?! My brother is still dead! Did saving her bring my brother back, Howie? If I save enough of them, do I get him back, too?” I spat the last word at him. He looked away, unable to bear the sight of the tears that welled in the corners of my eyes against my will.
“I’m sorry, Adam. I didn’t know,” he said. “You’ve changed, you know? I can see it in your eyes. You’re not just out for vengeance; you’re out for blood. When we catch up to The Suspect, and we will catch up to him—I’ll keep my promise and help you take your vengeance, but I won’t stand by and watch you go to prison for the rest of your life. You’re right. The Reaper can’t save your brother, but he can save you. Taking down The Strangers using alter egos presents a situation where we can still have regular lives when this is over. Use The Reaper to go farther than you can possibly go as Adam. And when it’s over, when The Suspect is dead and Strangers are reduced to nothing, we can go back to our regular lives.”
Though I didn’t want to admit it, he was absolutely right. That was Howie’s M.O., always thinking two to three steps ahead— always right. I didn’t say anything else. I simply nodded and stared into the distance, still thinking about the death of my brother.
“I’ll see you at 3D this afternoon. We’ve got work to do,” Howie said.
I nodded and walked away. A few minutes later, as I reached for the glass door of the main building, I noticed in the door’s reflection a man wearing black sunglass and a black suit seemingly watching me through the window of an adjacent building.
My face grew hot as adrenaline flooded my veins. The wind picked up as I turned to face the man. To my surprise, there was no one there.
As I made my way to class, I couldn’t help but wonder if the man had vanished before I turned around or if he was ever there at all.
24. POWER
THE SUSPECT:
PHASE TWO WAS UNDERWAY. MY SECOND PUBLIC APPERANCE as The Suspect was about to begin and I could not have been more anxious to see my plan unfold.
I stood silently amongst nine of my Strangers inside the poorly lit boy’s locker room of the Irvington High School Gymnasium. I had decided to bring the big guns for this operation. They were my officers, the enforcers that I could count on to keep the peace within my organization and effectively control any situation in the field.
Alpha was a seven-foot tall 400-pound mountain of muscle whose presence alone struck fear in the hearts of my adversaries. Charlie was the loose cannon of the bunch. I wasn’t a huge fan of the red paint that he applied to the Greek Comedy mask that he chose to wear instead of the standard issue Stranger mask, or the black cowboy hat that he wore with his all-black Stranger combat gear. His ability to nail any target with that gigantic six-shooter on his hip, however, made him an exceptionally valuable asset.
Then there was Tango, my right hand man. At only 5’7” he was one of the shortest in the bunch, but he was also by far the deadliest. His only weapons, besides the lethal hands that lay at the ends of his python sized arms, were the two tactical ninja swords held within the sheath strapped to his shirtless back. When The Righteous placed him under my command, I tried to convince him to wear the standard issue Stranger mask, but like Charlie, he preferred to maintain a bit of his individuality. Instead of the emotionless white mask worn by most of my operatives, Tango wore a decorative half-face Venetian masquerade mask that only covered the upper right side of his face.
Our guests silently stared at us in fear as we stood guard over them. Some of them wept as they gazed into the dead eyes of our masks and contemplated the fate that we had in store for them.
It was pathetic. They knew what brought them to this point. They had to know that whatever fate I had in store for them was a fate of their own choosing.
The applause was my signal. The hysterical cheering inside the gym filled the air as the hundreds of Irvington High students that filled the bleachers stood in anticipation of the arrival of our guests.
As I alone emerged from the locker room, their cheers slowly died. I didn’t bring my rifle because I did not wish to cause panic before I had my chance to address the crowd. A confused hush befell the gym as I walked toward the podium set up in the center of the basketball court. Some of them knew the Greek Tragedy mask that I wore upon my face, but even they remained silent as they prayed that my presence was nothing more than a cruel prank.
A tall, somewhat thin man with deep blue eyes backed away from the podium as I approached. The students in the bleachers began to clamor as I took the microphone.
“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. My thanks for the warm welcome,” I said, my voice electronically distorted by a device implanted within my mask. The crowd fell completely silent as they watched me.
I looked to the slender man that had just relinquished the podium to me. “Before I begin, I would like to thank Matthew Conrad for the excellent work that he has done as the PA announcer for all these years. Please give him a nice round of applause for the dedication that he has shown to your Irvington High Broncos!”
The man’s stare became icy as the crowd applauded him. After a few moments, he stared at the floor as I continued.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I have come to you today in an effort to convey to you the true nature of power.” The crowd had fallen silent again as I paused to add a bit of dramatic effect.
“As the home of the ten time state champion Broncos, you all know a little something about power, don’t you?”
Cheering ensued as the student body’s school pride took hold of my words. I waited until their applause died down before I continued.
“The dictionary says that 'power' is a great or marked ability to act or do and it is because of my understanding of this concept that I now stand before you. Today, we come to take power in circumstances of the greatest conceivable pressure, the pressure of knowing that by not doing so, everything would be lost. Today, we show why if placed in the wrong hands, the unimpeded ability to act or do could lead to the destruction of everything that we hold dear.”
Hushed chatter filled the room as the picture of a young male cheerleader appeared on the large monitor behind me.
“Let us take a moment to remember the tragic passing of Brian. He was one of your own. A fellow Bronco… A fellow Bronco driven to suicide by the very players that he cheered from the sidelines!”
I glared at the crowd through the hollowed eyes of my mask as their chatter increased.
“I wo
uld ask that you all remain seated for the next portion of our demonstration.”
A scream from the crowd rang out as the Irvington High School Boys basketball team emerged from the locker room. The principal and five other faculty members emerged as well, followed closely by The Strangers who held them all at gun point. Tango’s dreadlocked ponytail swayed with each step as he moved to the front of the pack and led them all to the stage in the center of the court. As our guests took the stage, the crowd’s clamoring grew to an uproar.
“You’ll notice that your attempts to dial 911 or any other number for that matter are being disrupted. It would be wise to remain seated and quiet lest I trigger the explosives that are planted beneath your bleachers!” I screamed into the microphone as I withdrew a small handheld detonator from my hip pocket. The terrified crowd yielded to my demands and peered at us through frightened wide eyes.
“Fear not children for you are merely witnesses of the justice that we mean to exact upon the wicked that stand before you,” I said as I dropped to the floor and thrust my index finger at the basketball team and the school officials who now lined the stage.
“Behold, children, as I now present to you…Power!”
I glared at each of the players as I spoke.
“The power to defeat those who would dare oppose their athletic might. The power to win not only games but championships! The power to defeat and trample everything and everyone in their paths…even an innocent male cheerleader who wanted nothing more in life than acceptance!”
I glanced at Brian’s photo on the display, then glared back at the trembling basketball team.
“The power to relentlessly torment. The power to torture! The power to punish!”
I stared angrily into the eyes of the principal whose attempt to hide his fear was failing.
“And the power to stand aside and do absolutely nothing and allow Brian Conrad to feel so helpless that the only viable solution in his mind to ending the pain was to end it all! You are all responsible for his death!” I bellowed.
I shot a glance over at the basketball team. “You for the torment that you put him through.”
I then glanced angrily at each of the faculty members before me. “And you for doing nothing about it. You all had the power to save this boy’s life, yet you willingly chose to end it. You have chosen to abuse your power and therefore that power must be taken!”
The building was dead silent as I retook the stage. I stood toe to toe with the principal. He was much taller than me but my tactical gear and my badass Tragedy mask made me look much more intimidating.
“With the authority bestowed upon me, by The Righteous, I hereby relieve you of your power and transfer it to this man.”
Matthew Conrad took the stage and stood beside me. The principal’s eyes gaped with fear as he stared at the cold eyes of Matthew.
“Take aim, Strangers,” I ordered. They all trained their assault weapons on the basketball players and faculty members.
“Matthew Conrad, as Brian’s father, it is you who should ultimately decide the fate of these individuals. As of this moment, their lives are in your hands just as your son’s life was in theirs. We will leave this place at once if you deem them worthy of forgiveness, but if you wish them to befall the same fate as your beloved Brian, you need but give the order.”
“Matt, think about this! This isn’t what Brian would have wanted!” shouted the principal as sweat drenched his forehead. Matthew’s cold blue eyes seemed to somehow become more frigid as the principal begged for his life. He maintained eye contact with the principal in silence as we all watched.
“Do it,” he finally said with absolutely no emotion in his voice.
25. OR DIE TRYING
ADAM:
THE REST OF THE DAY SEEMED TO CREEP BY. WITHOUT Monica occupying the seat in front of me, classes just seemed purposeless. I expected her not to show due to the death of her father, but walking into class and seeing her empty seat still stung. I didn’t plan to visit her while she was out of school. I told myself that I was giving her the space that she needed as she coped with the loss of her father, but deep down I knew that I was really afraid that she would take one look and me and know that I was responsible for his death.
I did my best to tune out the chatter about my alter ego, The Reaper. There were those that thought it was all a big hoax. Those who thought it was real didn’t know what to make of him. Some called him a hero while others considered him dangerous.
I couldn’t help but laugh when I heard that talk show hosts were on the air lobbying for The Reaper to stop by for interviews. For a moment, I was somewhat intrigued by the commercial potential of my new alter ego, but I buried the idea as quickly as I thought of it.
HOWIE AND JASON WERE ALREADY AT 3D WHEN I ARRIVED. As I entered, I noticed that they had installed a great deal of new equipment, most of which I knew nothing about.
I could tell by the look on Jason’s face that Howie had told him my secret. Howie didn’t look at me as my eyes burned daggers in him.
“You said you wouldn’t tell anyone,” I growled.
Jason stepped forward. “It’s not a big deal, Adam.”
“It is a big deal! You couldn’t possibly imagine how big a deal this is!” I shouted.
“Buddy, I’m on your side! I’m not saying I know what it’s like to be you, but I know what it’s like to be different.”
I glared at Howie again.
“Who else knows? Who else did you tell?!”
Howie remained silent.
Jason firmly straightened his posture and stood directly in front of me.
“Adam, that guy right there would do anything for you. So will I! The only reason he told me a thing is because he knows that if you plan on succeeding in taking down The Strangers, you’ll need me. And he knows without the shadow of a doubt that I am the one person he could tell that wouldn’t run straight to the police. We’re all in this together, Adam. Regardless of what you look like or what you can do, you’re never going to be accepted by 100 percent of people in this world, but you can be damn sure that you will always be accepted by 100 percent of the people in this room.”
Jason always knew the right things to say. Howie breathed a sigh of relief as the tension in the room dissipated.
Jason and I exchanged a firm handshake. As we looked into each other’s eyes, I pulled him in for a hug. It was in that moment that I realized just how great my friends truly were. I never realized just how much I could count on them until I saw how they each dealt with my secret. I thought for sure that anyone who found out about what I could do would run for the hills. Not only were these two accepting of my abnormal nature, but they were also willing to join me in the trenches despite the fact that they weren’t nearly as durable as I was.
“The Reaper, huh?” Jason said with a smile as we walked over to the conference table. “I like it.”
“You don’t think it’s kind of cheesy?” I asked as I took a seat at the table.
“Are you kidding me? It’s totally badass. Not quite as badass as this though,” Jason said as he reached under the table and quickly tossed something over to me.
My hands instinctively shot out and caught the item. I stared down at a sleek full-face gas mask. The image of a white skull was painted over the metallic black surface of the mask. Jason was right. It was the most badass thing I had ever seen.
“I figured you could use an upgrade from the ski mask.” Jason grinned. “Look,” he continued as he pulled out a second mask, “I’ve got one too.”
His mask was similar to mine except his had an Ace of Spades design painted across the right side and it only had one filter at bottom center instead of two on each side like my mask.
“So what’s your name?” I asked as I marveled at his mask.
“That’s easy. I’m Ace,” Jason exclaimed before pointing to Howie, who was now seated at the end of the conference table. “And oh yeah, that’s Echo,”
“Reaper,
Ace, and Echo, huh? So I suppose we’re a crime fighting team now?” I asked jokingly.
“I prefer Ace, Reaper, and Echo. And yes, we are a team,” Jason replied.
“Am I supposed to be okay with being last in each billing? And why am I the only one without a cool mask?!” Howie grinned.
“You want a mask? Cool, I’ll trade you my mask for all of this sweet equipment that you have at your disposal,” Jason replied.
“Never mind,” Howie said, grinning as he eyed his new toys.
We all burst into laughter. That moment felt good. I had been through so much turmoil over the past few days that I had almost forgotten the refreshing feeling of an innocent moment of laughter among friends.
“So, what’s our name?” I finally asked as the laughter died down.
“We’re the O.D.T.,” Howie said with a huge grin on his face. Something told me he that came up with the name.
“O.D.T.? What does that mean?” I asked.
“Officially, it stands for Operational Defense Team, but it also means ‘Or Die Trying,’ because that’s exactly how far Jason and I are willing to go in order to make sure The Suspect pays for what happened to your brother,” Howie said firmly.
The mention of PJ stung but I held myself together and silently nodded my head.
“Are you ready for the suits?” Jason asked excitedly.
“No way!” I exclaimed, excited to see what he had in store.
In less than twenty minutes we were in our full gear. I was so excited that I wanted to take pictures. My all black body armor and extra long hooded overcoat worked perfectly with the Reaper theme.
Jason’s sleek black body armor was similar to mine but his was noticeably lighter. The extra long head band that he wore with his combat gear plus the sword sheathed on his hip made him look like the SWAT team version of a ninja. The contrast of his sleek jet-black body armor worked well with the white Ace of Spades painted on his mask. I couldn’t help but wish I had my own katana when he unsheathed the one on his side. All three of us marveled at the beautifully crafted blade as he held it before him. It was so shiny that an almost otherworldly glow seemed to emanate from it.
Savior (The Savior Series Book 1) Page 11