“Hello sir. This is Mag-eek. In case you didn’t recognize her, she’s a super hero.”
“T’anks for the heads up. I’m Charlie. Nice to meet you.” He goes down on one knee, studies the vest, and pales.
“You should go. Sebastian, right?”
I nod but the girl smiles at me with such trust, I can’t leave. “You get us both out. We trust you.” I hand him my electronics knowing they could set off the device.
On the nearest corner, in front of a bookstore, a man in the crowd raises his hand. Exactly like Sam said, his eyes glow. So, it’s true. He’s no doubt got some weird trait where his irises reflect the light. Still, it’s fucking nuts.
The dude nods at several others and a small army circles about. Busy, the bomb specialist misses all the action. He unzips her outerwear two notches and I pale as the top part of a cell phone sticks out. Shit. The explosives can be detonated remotely.
Hey God, if you’re watchin’? I sure could use a little divine intervention.
The breeze changes, clouds fill in overhead, and when thunder rumbles. Stacy smiles. “Storm’s an X-girl too. I bet she’s coming to the rescue.”
“That’s right cutie.” The technician cuts one white wire and I cringe.
“My uncle Jack is over there.” She points. “He’s a witch, too. He has fire power. Me too.”
“Da kid has a vivid imagination, huh?” Sweat rolls down Charlie’s face as he drags the zipper another two inches.
“Yeah.” I swallow hard, hoping it’s not my last. “If I don’t make it, tell my wife I love her.”
He glances between his eyebrows. “We’re all getting out of here. No worries.”
“Don’t move, honey.” The cop bites his lower lip and cuts another wire. Then, he takes a knife to the side seam and slowly removes the explosives.
“Go, go, go!” A whole team of guys pulls us away while the tech puts the vest in a kind of dumpster on wheels.
I don’t need to be asked twice. I grab Stacy’s hand and race her to a waiting police car. Buckling her in, I look forward into the rearview mirror and gasp. The driver is none other than Mr. Glowy-Eyes himself.
While I’m distracted, the little girl squirms away, leans over the front seat, and gives him a big hug. “Hi Uncle Jack.”
“Hey there, Magique. Best you put on your seatbelt. Go on, now.” Fialko crawls through traffic and as I belt his niece in, I can’t help but wonder what the fuck he’s up to.
Without warning, an explosion erupts and sends us into the air, creating an enormous crater in the street.
The vehicle lands hard and flips onto its side as the back windshield explodes.
Jack turns and throws a flaming grenade out the hole in the rear. “Get her out of here.”
I kick the door and unlatch the little girl’s seatbelt. Protecting her with my body I dash behind a van parked nearest to us.
Chapter 9
Sam
When the subway doors open, it takes all my strength to pass through a tidal wave of people pushing in the opposite direction.
Mask on, I pray they’re all clear of covid but I’ll worry about getting sick another day. Right now, I need to locate my husband. The GPS says his last known position was a block south of where I exit the tunnel.
Up on the sidewalk, an ear-shattering explosion to the east causes more pandemonium. A hoard of screaming costumed characters force me to the center of the street.
The smoke acts as my beacon and I run, praying Suds isn’t hurt. A huge hole in the pavement indicates I’ve arrived at ground zero. Gunshots echo off the buildings as a fireball streaks over my head and lands on the opposite sidewalk.
Someone deserves a lot of credit. Those flaming Molotov cocktail thingies are scary as shit but not as frightening as the barrel of an automatic weapon pointing at my partner crouched behind a van.
Because no one has looked my way, I have a short window of opportunity. I need to get this right. Taking a deep breath, I steady my right wrist with my left hand and ease the trigger back.
