Red Masked Heroine

by Dee J. Stone

  “Nick.”

  “Some people—”

  “Nick.”

  I look up and find every object in her room floating in the air. A few, like her jewelry box that she never uses, crash into the door, smashing to bits.

  She places her hand in mine. “You need to relax. Don’t let it get to you.”

  I close my eyes and try to regulate my breathing. “I don’t care what she says. I just don’t want people to believe her.”

  More smashing. Maddie squeezes my hand. “Calm down. Just think good things.”

  “Don’t want to.”

  “You’re going to destroy my room.”

  My eyes open and I look around. She’s right. Her room is getting destroyed. “Sorry.” I take in a deep breath, then let it out.

  “It’s okay. I don’t really need those things anyway.”

  I nod.

  “We need to stop her before she turns the whole world against you.” She opens the laptop and starts typing.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I’m thinking if I should comment on what a disgusting person she is or hack her computer and delete the blog.”

  I put my hand on hers. “Don’t do any of that. Let’s just forget about this. If people hate me, then…then I won’t be a hero anymore. Maybe Mom’s right and I should stop with all this.”

  She looks into my eyes. “Do you know how many lives you saved three days ago? All those people on the train and the station would be dead.”

  She’s right. I know she is. But why’s it so hard to believe her? Why do I care if the public likes me? I want to help them. That’s all that matters.

  Maddie’s being so good to me and I really love her. She needs to know what happened yesterday. “A girl kissed me.”

  “I know.”

  “Oh.”

  She makes a face. “Stupid girls. I hate them.”

  I laugh. “How many times do we have to go over the fact that you’re a girl, too?”

  She rolls her eyes. “I mean I hate stupid girls. You know, the ones who do what that girl did to you yesterday.”

  “She wants to be my girlfriend. Not that I’m okay with what she did because I’m not, but you can’t really blame her, can you? Isn’t it normal to want to date a celebrity? Guy or girl. Haven’t you ever fantasized about dating your favorite actor?”

  She gives me a look like I’ve lost my mind. “No, why would I fantasize about something like that?”

  “Because it’s normal to?”

  “Who did you fantasize about?”

  I sink on the bed. “Not gonna tell you.”

  She pouts. “Come on, Nick. We’ve been friends since forever and you never told me who your celebrity crush is?”

  I throw my hands up. “Fine. I used to fantasize I was dating Ember Wildes.”

  “From that dragon movie?”

  I shrug. “It was during my dragon phase.”

  “She’s one of the worse actresses ever.”

  I frown. I don’t remember her being a bad actress.

  She shakes her head in disbelief as she gets to her feet. “This is a useless conversation. Let’s go snooping in case my mom decides to come home early.”

  I stand. “Where do we start?”

  “Her office.”

  As we make our way down the stairs, I don’t leave Maddie alone. I name different actors, because I know she’s lying to me. It’s impossible that she never dreamed about dating a celebrity.

  When she reaches the last step, she whirls around and gets in my face. “I didn’t have a celebrity crush because I was always crushing on you.”

  I just stare at her.

  “Now you know. Can we please go?” She downs the last step and turns the corner to her mom’s office.

  I follow her, my head in a daze. Maddie was interested in me for years? How could I have missed it?

  “You’re still thinking about it,” Maddie says when we walk into the office. She makes a move toward the desk. I put my hand on her arm.

  “Maddie, stop.”

  She turns to me.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Because you thought girls were icky.”

  I almost forgot about that. When I was like, seven, Mom tried to get me to play with the neighbors. I refused to play with girls because I thought that would turn me into a girl. But it was different with Maddie. To me, she wasn’t just a girl. She was…Maddie. Weird, but true.

  “And after that?” I ask. “Once we got older?”

  She pulls away. “You were interested in other girls. Can we stop talking about this? It was so long ago and doesn’t matter. We’re together now.”

  “Yeah. It just bothers me that you never told me. I hate that you were hurt.” I kept chasing girls when all along she was into me. Is she worried that will happen again? I wish she’d understand that I’d never choose another girl over her. She’s Maddie.

  “I wasn’t hurt. You start with that cabinet.” She points to drawers that probably hold millions of files. “And I’ll start with the desk.”

  I open the first drawer. Melissa’s all tidy and neat. I’d better make sure to put everything back the way I found it. I pull out file after file, but don’t seem to get anything. All these documents are about old cases and all these laws that I’ve got no clue what they’re talking about.

  “What is all this?” I ask.

  “Mom wanted to be a lawyer, but it never worked out.”

  “Or she was a lawyer before she joined the organization.”

  Maddie holds up her hands helplessly. “I don’t know. There’s a lot about my mom that I don’t know. And my dad, too. None of his stuff is here, though. It’s like he never existed.”

  “Did you ask your mom about him?”

  She shakes her head. “Talking about my dad is like murdering someone. I’d go to jail for it. In Mom’s eyes.”

  I poke through more files that are practically putting me to sleep. “What happened between them?”

  “They fought a lot. And then one day Dad moved out. Just like that.”

  I put the file back in its place and wrap my arm around Maddie. “I remember how you lied that you were okay with it. Then—”

  “I climbed into your room and cried.”

  “You said you didn’t believe in love.”

  She pulls out of the hold. “I didn’t. I knew I felt something for you, but I didn’t think it was love. I thought I was crazy.”

  “Do you now?” I ask. “Do you believe in love?”

  She bends forward and presses her lips to mine. Then she rests her head on my chest. “I know what I feel for you is strong. Sometimes it suffocates me. I think it’s love.”

  I kiss her. “I love you more than anything.”

  She breaks free. “Enough of this mushy stuff. Let’s get back to work.”

  “You really know how to kill a moment, Mads.”

  Her cheeks get red. “Sorry. It’s just hard for me sometimes.”

  I take her hands in mine. They’re a little warm. Maybe because of her powers. When she feels something I’m sure they surface. “I get it, but don’t push me away. I’m here for you. I always will be.”

  Her smile is small. “Same with you. Now can we get to work?”

  An hour passes and we don’t find anything. “How can there not be anything?” Maddie asks. “She keeps everything here.” She snorts. “Even her high school essays.”

  Something beeps. Maddie pulls out her phone. “Crap. She’s coming home. I set my phone to notify me whenever she’s close to the house. In case.”

  That feels wrong, but we don’t exactly trust her mom right now.

  “Quick,” she says. “We need to put everything back the way we found it.”

  “Didn’t you say she wasn’t supposed to be home until tomorrow morning?”

  She sighs. “It was an interview for a new job, but they must have chosen someone else. Sometimes I wish Mom would have just finished law school so we co
uld be…” She shakes her head. I know where she was going. She was going to say rich. “Now she’s stuck working at the stupid desk job that pays nothing. And Step Loser is even worse.”

  I move closer to her. “Maddie—”

  “I tracked her all day, so I know she was telling the truth. Though I guess that company could be a cover up for the organization. But I did research on it and it seems legit. Hurry, let’s finish before she comes home.”

  Like we’re zapped with lightning speed, we zoom to make sure everything is where it was. When we’re done, Maddie examines the place. If she doesn’t find something to her liking, she quickly fixes it.

  Once we’re sure the place is as it should be, we leave the office and go up to Maddie’s room. She lies down on the bed and I scoot close to her.

  “Go invisible,” she says. “Your mom’s not the only one who doesn’t allow the opposite gender in their kids’ room.”

  I do that and take her hand.

  “I don’t want to talk about it,” Maddie says.

  “About what?”

  “The money and job thing. My mom and stepdad suck at getting jobs.”

  Quiet. I let go of her hand, and she’s back visible.

  “Nick? Do you think my mom’s a fugitive or something? What if she changed her identity because she was affiliated with that group? All those experiments couldn’t have been legal.”

  I wish I had the answers to all our questions. “We need to find those documents. You think she shredded them?”

  Maddie shakes her head. “My mother keeps everything.”

  “Then it must be in the house.”

  She gets on one elbow, slamming it into my face.

  “Ow! My eye.”

  “Sorry. I’m trying to figure out where she would keep those documents.” Her eyebrows furrow. “Maybe the attic?”

  “You think?”

  “I’ve never seen anything up there. It’s used for storage. My old toys and clothes. There are no papers there.”

  I sit up, a bit too sharply and we crash into one another. Maddie flies to the other end of the bed, but stops herself midair before she can hit to the floor.

  She’s still hovering a few feet above the rug when the door slams, along with a, “Maddie?”

  Maddie drops to the floor like a dead log. “My mom.”

  I make sure I’m invisible.

  “Maddie?” her mom calls. She peeks her head in the room. “There you are. Why didn’t you answer me?”

  “I did,” Maddie lies. “You just didn’t hear me.”

  Her mom nods like she doesn’t believe her. “Have you been hanging out with Nick?”

  Maddie sits up sharply. “Why are you asking me that?”

  “Just curious.”

  No, it’s curious why she brought me up.

  Maddie narrows her eyes at her mom. “Was there something else you wanted?”

  Her mom looks taken aback by Maddie’s harsh tone. Maddie’s not sweet to her mom, but she’s never been so…cold.

  Melissa doesn’t look guilty or suspicious at all. In fact, she seems a little…sad. Depressed. Maybe it’s because of the job thing.

  Wait a minute. If she was part of that organization, wouldn’t she have money? Or is all of that a façade? Man, this is too confusing.

  “No,” Maddie’s mom says. “Good night, honey.” She shuts the door behind her.

  I turn visible and sit up. Once I tell Maddie what I was thinking about, she frowns. “She did seem a little off.”

  “So you realized it, too.”

  Maddie sighs. “We’re never going to get answers until we find the documents,” she says. “Go home before your mom freaks out. When the coast is clear, I’ll check out the attic and tell you if I find anything.”

  I give her a kiss and fly out the window.

  Chapter Eleven

  Mr. Torres, my algebra teacher, is handing out our marked test papers on Monday. I stare out the window, trying not to psych myself out. I studied for the test. Maybe not as much as I should have. Hopefully I didn’t fail. I don’t want to disappoint my parents again. Plus, the better I get at school, the closer I’ll get to being a hero again. Sure Mom can’t stop me, but I don’t like defying her. What kind of role model would I be to Kaylee if I disrespect our mom?

  “Madeline Randall.” Mr. Torres gives Maddie her paper. “Good job. Highest grade in the class.”

  Maddie smiles shyly as she looks over her paper.

  The teacher makes his way toward me. When he reaches my desk, he places my paper down. “Good work, Nicholas.” He walks to the next kid.

  I don’t want to look. Can’t look.

  I ask Maddie to peek at my paper.

  “Is it bad?” I ask.

  “Look for yourself.”

  I peer down. In big red letters it says, “Ninety-three,” on top of the page.

  Without thinking, I jump to my feet. “Yes!”

  The whole class, including the teacher, stop what they’re doing and stare at me. I sit down. “Sorry.”

  A few kids chuckle. Some girls smile at me. A few, like Nicole and Brandon, are annoyed. Actually, Nicole looks disgusted with me. Yeah, well I’m disgusted with her.

  Mr. Torres gives us a few minutes to review our tests and go to him for questions or complaints. Maddie grabs my paper and examines it. “You did good, Nick. You should be proud of yourself.”

  “That test is not mine,” I say. “Can’t be.”

  Laughing lightly, she slaps the test to my chest. “That’s what happens when you study, smarty.”

  I can’t help the smile that takes over my face. “And once I pull my grades up in all my classes, Mom will give me permission to be a superhero and I won’t have to sneak behind her back.”

  She gives me a look. “Or you can get into a good college.”

  I wave my hand. “Superheroes don’t need college.”

  She rolls her eyes. “We should celebrate tonight. Maybe go to—”

  She stops talking when a loud giggle is heard from the other end of the room. Nicole, surrounded by her posse, is looking at something on her phone. Their eyes dart in my direction. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out they’re reading the blog.

  “That does it.” Maddie’s on her feet.

  I grab her hand, but quickly let go. It feels like I touched a pot of boiling water. Aw, man. Her hand’s burning up. “Maddie!”

  It’s too late, she’s already there. “Take it down, Nicole.”

  Nicole ignores her. She and her friends giggle some more.

  I rush to them and this time grab Maddie’s arm. It’s just as hot as her hand and I flinch away.

  “I said take it down, Nicole.”

  Is that fire searing in her eyes?

  “Maddie,” I hiss. “Stop it.”

  She’s not listening to me. “Do you have any idea how much good Nick does? Why would you taint his name when all he wants to do is protect the world? Are you that bothered that he dumped you?”

  Nicole’s gaze lifts and she glares at Maddie. “He didn’t dump me. I dumped him. And no, I’m not bothered. I want to show the world what a liar he is.” She narrows her eyes. “And we don’t want or need his protection.”

  Once again, I reach for Maddie, but she gets in Nicole’s face. “You’d better hope the day doesn’t come where you or your family will need his help.” She turns on her heels and stomps back to her seat.

  “You’re crazy,” I say as I sit down. “And your eyes are on fire.”

  Her eyes widen and she touches her face. “Ow.”

  “Yeah, and you’re burning up. You might want to be careful next time you go after someone.”

  “You’re mad at me.”

  “Yeah. I told you I don’t care about that dumb blog. She’s not going to change, so why bother?”

  Maddie crosses her arms over her chest. “This is bullying all over again and you’re not doing anything about it. What happened to standing up for yourself? How are kids
going to learn from you?” She takes out her book.

  “Threatening is not the right way to go about it.”

  She drops the book. “Then how?”

  I shrug because I’ve got no clue. “Did you find anything in your attic?” I ask.

  She shakes her head.

  “Maybe we can—”

  “I want to read now. You figure out how to deal with the whole Nicole thing.”

  “There’s nothing to deal with. People get criticized all the time. The only way for the world to see she’s the liar and not me is for them to witness it themselves.”

  She rolls her eyes. “Fine, so let’s wait for a tragedy to strike…” She stops talking when her watch beeps. “Speak of the devil.”

  “How the hell did you do that?”

  She looks at her watch. “Oh, no. Bank robbery. There are three gunmen and they have hostages.” She swallows. “One was shot.”

  I get to my feet. “I’m going.”

  “Get your uniform and mask so I can communicate with you.”

  “No time for that.”

  “What if you need help?”

  I shake my head. “I’ll be fine.”

  Mr. Torres is too busy dealing with the students complaining about their grades that he doesn’t see me slip out the door.

  I zoom as fast as I can to the bank. The place is surrounded with cops who are trying to negotiate with the gunmen.

  The place is on lockdown. I can’t just barge in. They might shoot. Heck, any sound might make them shoot. I need to figure out a way to get in unnoticed.

  Keeping myself invisible, I circle the building, searching for any kind of opening. There doesn’t seem to be one. Two gunmen are holding guns at the hostages while the other, who seems to be the leader, is talking to them. I can’t her what he’s saying, but the people look terrified.

  Is it money they’re after? Then why don’t they just take it? Something’s wrong here.

  One woman’s got tears in her eyes as she clutches a little boy. He’s shaking so bad it looks like he’s having a seizure. Oh, man. He is having a seizure. The gunmen are getting annoyed with him. It looks like one’s ordering the mom to shut him up.

  I circle the building some more and find a window that’s far from the gunmen. It should give me enough time to knock them out before they even notice I’m here.