I turned, ready to yell at Hellcat when I caught sight of a dozen citizens of Vanguard. Their faces hid behind cellphones and tablets as they recorded a successful confrontation. This is where a hero normally posed, signed a few autographs, and kissed a baby or two.
“Nothing to see here, folks.”
“You have powers,” a young woman claimed. “A hero with powers!”
“Are you sure he’s not a villain?” A nearby man questioned her statement. When it came to heroes, regular Joe’s should question their intentions. But right now, while holding a supervillain, I needed them to disperse.
I started to wave them off, but realized there was a better chance of herding cats.
Hellcat hadn’t moved as she crushed the can before shooting it into a recycling bin. I understood where sheacquired the name. Not the hell part, but the cat. She was as annoying as a sanctimonious feline. When the sirens grew loud enough to drown out the crowd, she signaled for us to vacate.
I set down the kid and pointed at the questioning man. “Make sure he doesn’t get up.”
I stormed toward the alley, elbowing through the growing crowd of superhero fans. There was something demoralizing about a superhero having to walk away. Could I really claim victory when it came to a slapping match with a kid? I’d probably be painted a schoolyard bully by the media, but knowing Vanguard, I’d have the key to the city by brunch.
“You’d be a lot more useful if you could fly.”
“Yeah,” I grumbled, “I’ll get on that.”
“You haven’t said much since you nearly killed a toddler.”
“Hush.”
Hellcat had waited for hours to bring up the incident with the kid. Instead of giving me a ‘good job, champ,’ she’d led me through the city to the rooftop of a redbrick apartment building. I expected more fighting, or at least a chase here and there. Instead, she was the oddest dressed tour guide I had ever seen.
“What were you thinking about when it happened?”
“It?”
She gestured to her arm and made explosion sounds. When I didn’t respond, she plopped herself down on the roof ledge. Swinging her feet sixty feet above the pavement below. I had to admit, the view of the city from this height was beautiful, even if I shared the moment with a lunatic.
“It’s an involved story.”
“Cliff Note’s version.”
“It would give away my identity.”
She froze at the mention of my mundane life. Throughout the night, she checked her phone each time it vibrated. Making sure I couldn’t read over her shoulder, she’d text somebody on the other end. As her heels stopped hitting the ledge, I had to wonder if the texts were related to Hellcat’s alter ego.
“Never give away your identity. Once it’s out, they’ll come from you when you’re not prepared.”
“I’m always?—”
“Or your loved ones.”
Would a villain really travel a thousand miles to take my sister hostage? I pitied the fool who tried. She had more guns than ex-husbands. Once they realized she was going to wear the pants in the relationship, that had them packing. Villains weren’t so different.
But then there were the guys. I bet Bernard could hold his own when boxing with another person, but powers? No,I think he, Alejandro, and Griffin were prime supervillain hostage bait. Then there was the question of Aiden.
“Is that who you’ve been texting?”
She slapped her thigh and let out a laugh. “No. That’s my work phone. The heroes of Vanguard are curious about a new man with abilities.”
“Curious or suspicious?”
“Both,” she admitted.
“You just casually text back and forth? Please tell me there’s a group chat.”
