Fire Hazard: Cape High Book Eight (Cape High Series 8) (11 page)

“You--” I hesitate, wondering why the idea of telling her “no” feels so utterly wrong in this situation.  “You might be the only one of us that can,” I hear myself say.  I place both hands on her shoulders, looking her straight in the eye.  “But when I tell you to do something, you do it, got it?  No questions.  Or if Nico tells you to do something,” I go on, looking at him.  “You talk the others through their fights, will you do it for me?”

He grins.  “Why do you think I gave you the earring?  Trent, Carla, earbuds in.  Jimmi, yours is built into your hood.”

I look over at Flint, who’s just come in with Century.  He looks at us, a frown on his face.  “Should we trust this to a handful of kids?” he asks bluntly.  “Vinny doesn’t even have his head in the game during practice.”

“He’ll have it for this fight,” Nico says so confidently I can’t help but stare at him.  “He’s got more at stake than himself.”

I look at Carla, and then at Jimmi, knowing both of them have never been in a real fight except the one with Tank.  I haven’t either.  It doesn’t matter, I realize.  There’s a reason I’m called second in command of the zoo kids, after all.

I’ll do whatever I have to, to keep my group safe.

***

Jimmi hops on the newly-fixed bike behind Vinny, wrapping her arms around his waist and thinking how much their uniforms work together.  No!  Definitely not something she needs to think about right now.  As soon as they’re finished here she’ll be leaving her home and going halfway across the country to live with strangers--that’s way more important!

“Vinny?” she asks quietly as he starts down the road.

“What?”

“Can I make friends there?  At Cape High?  In the dorms?”

He goes silent for a moment.  “Not with all of them,” he says quietly, “at least, probably not.  It’s difficult to get along with all of the zoo kids, even for me, and I AM one.  But you’ll have Carla and Emily, and I’m sure Aubrey and Zoe and maybe even Adanna will get along with you.  The guys, too.”

“And you?” she asks.

“Sure, if you want,” he says.  “More likely you’ll forget all about me when we get there, though.”

“Yeah, right,” she says with a snort, hiding the hint of rejection she feels.  “Why would I do that?”

“Because Justin lives in the dorms,” he says, “THE Justin.”  She goes silent, stunned.  “He’s single, by the way.  So if you’re looking to replace Tank, I would wait until we get to Cape High.”

Her teeth grit at the condescending tone.  “That’s what you think I’m doing?” she asks coldly.

“It seems like it.”

“You are SUCH a jerk, Vinny,” she snaps, “seriously!”  She’s tempted to get off the bike, but they’re going almost a hundred miles an hour, and the smoothie shop is right in front of them, so she waits until they pull over.  She jumps off as soon as he stops, turning to glare at him.  “I want to be friends, not date you!  But you can’t accept that, can you?  I bet everyone in your life has some sort of big hidden motivation in your head!”  But she had a crush on him, a little voice whispers.  She shoves it aside violently.

“Yeah,” Vinny says, “they do.  Why did you date Tank, anyway?”

She goes silent, not wanting to tell him that, but knowing she might as well.  “Because my dad--all he ever does is get pushed over or ran over or bullied by norms when he’s not in uniform.  He LETS himself be!  I wanted--I wanted a man that wasn’t like that, okay?  I wanted him to see that--that guys don’t have to be such pushovers!  Especially when they’ve got such awesome powers!”

“Maybe it’s
because
he’s got such awesome powers that he lets them do that,” Vinny says quietly.  “Your dad didn’t strike me as a wimp, Jimmi.  Sometimes what people need
isn’t
a guy that’s willing to throw around his powers.”

“Sometimes--not ALL THE TIME!” she says.  “Sometimes you need to assert yourself! You’re doing it right now, you know, by fighting the gang!”

He gets off the bike.  “I’m just finishing a job,” he says calmly, “it’s how I’m paying for my bike.”

He is SO frustrating, she thinks, tempted to kick the bike in question.

***

She is SO irritating, I think as I turn to face the Glowstick Gang.  They’re in the middle of tearing the smoothie shop down brick by brick.  Onlookers are screaming or snapping photos while the police try to stop the gang with foghorns and guns aimed. 

I hesitate, an evil thought running through my mind.  “Hey, Nico?” I ask, touching my earring.

“Yeah, kid?”

“Can I get one of those laughing gas cannons?  The best thing I can do against this crowd is knock out the slower ones.”

“Sure, pop up the seat of your bike,” he says.  My eyes widen in surprise and I walk over to the bike, ignoring the flash of speed that races towards me.  A heavy arm shoots out, catching Speed before he gets to me and clothes-lining him to the ground.

“No you don’t,” Trent says in full Kid Liberty uniform.  “The big battle between leaders takes place AFTER we take out the small fries.”

Speed gets to his feet, brushing himself off.  “Aren’t you the leader, though?” he asks.

The seat of my bike pops open and a tiny version of the gun Ace had shot off sits there.  Beside it are five different canisters, each marked with a ridiculous looking symbol.  “Which one is it?”

“Not the one with the skull and crossbones,” he drawls.  “Use the one with the freaky looking clown face.”

“Alright,” I say, sliding the canister into the mini-canon and aiming it at the smoothie shop remains, where most of the group is starting to notice us.  “Carla, Jimmi, Kid, hold your breath,” I say, then pull the trigger.

“What--” Jimmi starts out, only to blink as Carla grabs her and runs off at top speed.  The canister hits and starts to spin, spreading the strange gas through the entire area.  Even the cops and the onlookers will be affected, but I don’t care, I think as I hold my breath.  I’m not sure it’ll even affect me and Kid, honestly, since we’ve been through it before, but better safe than sorry.  I watch with a hint of satisfaction as the gang and the crowd slowly drop to the ground.  One cop even curls up around his gun on the concrete, snoring loudly.

“Is he allowed to do that?” I hear Century ask over the earring.

“Why not?” Nico says.  “If there’s a quick way to take out the weaker ones without killing them, I say go for it.”

“Seeing as you’re the one that equipped him for it in the first place,” I hear Flint say.  “Century, you didn’t notice that when you got it licensed?”

“I didn’t expect them to arm a seventeen year old kid,” Century mutters.  “What kind of cape are you raising that boy to be, anyway?” he demands.

“A leader,” Nico says simply.  “If you’re nicer to the kid, you might have a chance at borrowing him later on.”

The cloud has settled somewhat.  “Carla!” I say over the com.  “Grab the unconscious guys in black and pile them to the right. Jimmi, take their powers before they wake up.  The ones that are still awake are the ones we’ll have more trouble with.”

“Sir, yes sir!” Carla says cheerfully, racing back and starting to work.

“Trent, the gang members that are woozy, tripping over themselves, or that sort of thing, knock them out,” I say.  It’s only Speed that looks like he’s starting to recover already.  Trent trudges into the mass of bodies, punching one here and there and laying them out.  “Carla, take the ones Trent takes out,” I order.

“Okay!”

“How are you doing, Jimmi?” I call.

“They’re all amped to the max, I can’t hold it all!” she says.

“Take your shoes off,” I say.

“What?”

“Do not question me when we’re in the middle of a battle!” I snarl, only to wonder what’s gotten into me.  “Take your shoes off, direct it into the ground, not all of it--”

“Vin, they’re waking up,” Trent says.

I curse.  “Jimmi, boost Carla,” I say, knowing I’m going to regret it.

“Oh
yeah!
” Carla cheers happily.  I feel a breeze and almost am thrown over by it.  She’s been boosted.

“Now boost me,” I say, seeing Speed, fighting Trent.  Trent is keeping up--somewhat.  “I’ll take Speed on while you boost Trent.  Once Trent is boosted we’ve got this in the bag--”

“I don’t want boosted,” Trent says, slamming a fist through the air.  It hits nothing, but I see Speed rush into him, literally pushing him back with a flurry of punches.

“Why not?”

“Because it would be like saying these fakers are tougher than Max,” Trent says, hitting the air so hard that the pressure sends Speed backwards.  “I won’t insult Max like that.”

“Fine, then boost me,” I say.  “I haven’t gotten anyone to compare them with and I want this over quick.”

“Jack will be offended,” Trent says, sounding amused before falling silent.  Speed has changed targets.  He’s heading straight for Jimmi, who’s still busy taking the powers from his friends.

“ENOUGH!” Speed bellows, lifting a fist.  If he hits her at that speed--I stop thinking, lighting up like a torch and rushing forward, slamming straight into him before he reaches her.  His clothes catch on fire and he screams.

“The box!” he bellows.  “OPEN THE BOX!”

I glance over just in time to see a kid that had been hiding in the crowd get to his feet unsteadily and stumble over to a simple box near the edge of the shop.  Speed slips out from my hold and races over, grabbing something from inside.  It looks like a glow-stick bracelet, I think blankly as he pulls it on.  He hits his wrist against his leg and I see the glass bracelet crack. 

He starts to glow, much like Tank had when he applied the energy directly.  He reaches into the box again, pulling out a second bracelet.  He slips that on his other wrist, repeating the process.  “I’m not going down without a fight,” he says, looking straight at me.

“Let’s get this over with,” I say, jumping from one foot to the other for a second before launching myself straight at him.  He disappears before I reach him and I twist, only to blink as I’m caught in the middle of a twister.  It’s sucking away my oxygen--

I hear Speed grunt and watch as he’s tossed out of his tracks, sent slamming into the ruins of the smoothie shop.  Carla is standing there, a dangerous look on her face as she turns to him.  “I don’t think so,” the little thirteen year old says.  She disappears, and I see Speed’s body jerk again, his head going backwards.  Blood comes foaming from his lips.  “NO ONE HURTS MY FAMILY!” she bellows over the com.  I think Nico tweaked hers so we can understand her when she’s going that fast, because it sounds slower than usual.  I see the indents of punches on his chest without seeing her actually hitting him.

“CARLA! STOP!” I bellow.  She’s going to kill him, I think, racing forward.  “Stop!  You’ve won!”

I grab wildly, catching her only because I think she wants to be.  Her eyes are full of tears and when I pull her into a hug she starts wailing.  “I couldn’t stand it!” she sobs.  “Not again!  You kept--you kept fainting ‘cause--’cause of--”

“Jimmi, drain him,” I say over my shoulder to the stunned looking girl.  She nods and heads over to Speed, leaving me holding the sobbing speedster.  “Carla,” I say as she buries her face in my chest, shaking with sobs.  “Carla, it’s okay,” I say, patting the back of her head.  It’s a bit stunning--we’ve fought all these years, but here she is freaking out over a guy taking my oxygen.

“Not bad,” I hear Nico say.  “Century, bring in your black suits and clean them up, would you?  I would say that was wrapped up in a very clean manner.  Good job, Vinny.”

“Speed’s going to be a bit messed up,” I tell him honestly.  “Carla didn’t hold back, but as far as I can tell he’s not dead.  Jimmi, get those bracelets off of him after you’ve drained them.  Kid, can you grab the box?”

“Already on it,” Trent says.

I look down at Carla, who’s still sniffling pathetically against my new uniform.  I pick her up, sliding an arm under her knees to carry her away from the still sleeping crowd.  “Hey,” I say softly, making her glance up.  “Thank you.”

She leans against my chest and wipes away her tears.  “I... used to watch,” she whispers.  “We all did, when you tried to burn your way out.  And--and you--” she starts crying again and I feel a bittersweet smile pull at my lips.

“I know,” I say, “but we’re out, now.  There’s plenty of air here, and if another speedster ever shows up, you’ve got my back, right?”  She nods.  “We’re family, right?”

She looks up at me, a little smile breaking through the tears.  “Like brother and sister?” she asks.

“Yeah, like brother and sister,” I agree.  “Which means I still claim the right to give you a hard time,” I add.

“You... you’re a really good leader,” she says quietly.  “We made a good team, you and me and Trent and Jimmi, right?”

“Yeah,” I say, simply because we had.  Of course we wouldn’t have had to if Jimmi had been brought to Cape High before she got involved in this sort of thing, I think.  I don’t say it, though.  Instead I put Carla down, patting her on the head.  “You going to be okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.  But I’m still feeling jittery--can I go for a run?” she asks, starting to bounce where she’s standing.  Oh right, she was boosted.