Fire Hazard: Cape High Book Eight (Cape High Series 8) (2 page)

I look at him, raising one eyebrow at this strange pronouncement of faith.  "Really," I drawl.  "Where do you get the idea I can join a group of capes just like that?"

"Because you're second in command of a real group of capes already," he says.  "Compared to the zoo kids this should be a walk in the park."

I frown, still not comfortable with the fact that everyone considers me the second in command.  Even Morgan has said something along those lines.  Honestly, I don't see it.

“This is what Morgan’s out to do, though,” I point out after a moment.  “Don’t you think she’d be a better choice to send in?”

“Not when she needs to steal powers to protect herself,” Nico says.  “The only one she’d have something to steal from is our target.  You come with defense built in, Vinny.  Plus--“  He hesitates, looking at Matermental and Century.  “Can I get a bit of privacy with the boy?” he asks.

The two nod and head out the door, leaving Nico and me alone.  “I know about your father,” he says.

I go still, and then shrug.  “He’s a norm,” I tell him.  “Far as we can tell I inherited this flame-on thing from my ma.  She died just after I was born.  You can’t pull a ‘your dad is in the cape cells’ on me--“

“But he is in prison--the norm prison.”

“So?” I say.  “He got caught stealing a car.  It’s not like I even would have noticed,” I admitted.  “I was in my own prison at the time.  Look, whatever leverage you think you got, you’re wasting your time.  Nobody’s even going to blink if you tell them I’m the kid of a prison inmate.”

“True,” he agrees, “but I can get him out, get him a job.  I’ve heard from Ken that he’s found God.  He’s cleaned up his act, become a model citizen.”

I stare at him, blankly.  “My dad’s a bible thumper now?” I ask, letting out a laugh.  “Man, it’s got to be another story.”  I don’t believe it. Don’t get me wrong--it’s not that I don’t believe there’s honest prison converts out there, I mean, I have to talk with Ken once a week.  He seriously believes in the stuff Christians say.  Because of him, I can actually see someone suddenly believing in God.  It’s
my dad
I don’t believe.  Like I said earlier, Dad’s ALWAYS telling me lies.  It got to where I couldn’t believe a word that came out of his mouth before I got caught by Collector.

“Ken can find out,” he says.  “Honestly, regardless of his personal beliefs, as long as he's cleaned up his act and you help me out, the offer's on the table.  I can get him a job working for the Hall, he’d do well there.  He’d be out of prison and where you could see him regularly.”

“All in exchange for me doing this mission?” I ask.  “So you’re bribing me?”

“Not just for the mission,” he says.  “Don’t lie, kid, I know exactly how much you’re applying yourself to your classes--you’re not.  You want to slide by in life.  Now usually I would let you.  I only put as much effort into your training as you’re willing to, but in your case,” he looks at me for a long moment, “seems a shame.”

I just stare at him blandly.  Inwardly I want to yell, I want to shout at him that I never chose to be a super, that I never chose to be second in command of the zoo kids--and I absolutely never chose to be caught by Collector!  How can I apply myself to something I don't care about?  That I never wanted?

Instead I just shrug, focusing on my father for a moment.  "I don't think it's smart," I say after a moment.  "He'll just lie to you like he did to me all my life.  Find another bribe."

"Ouch," he says, "that’s cold for a flame boy.  Fine, what do you want in exchange for saving the girl AND taking your mentoring seriously?"

What do I want?  I've pretty much given up on wanting anything in life, I never get it.  But... "They're a gang, right?  So I'm going to need a motorcycle," I say, starting to grin.  "I need to look cool to get accepted."

"Fine," he says, “and some cool spy supplies, right?"

"Course," I say, “and a haircut.  I'm going cyberpunk, right?"

"Cyberpunk," Nico repeats as he picks up the picture of the girl wearing glow stick earrings.  "That what they call it?"

I stare at him again.  "You're a technopath and you don't know what Cyberpunk is?"

He shrugs.  "You don't pay much attention to that sort of stuff when you're in the cells.  But you're willing to do it?  For a motorcycle?"

"Yeah, don't have much of a choice, really, now do I?" I say dryly.

He nods and heads out the door, leaving me in his science room all alone.  For a moment I look around, wondering what I've just gotten myself into, then I shrug and head out.  I've got to tell the others, right?

***

"So you're just leaving?" Carla asks as we sit in the main room of the dorm.  I'm sitting on a chair with a towel covering my shirt as Banshee shaves off half of my black hair.  She's going to leave the top long, which is why it's sticking straight up in a ridiculous pony tail, but everything from the crown down is going to be buzzed short.  Jack is waiting to the side with a needle and a few other things--he's going to pierce my ears.  WHY I let him talk me into that, I'm still wondering.

"It's a mission," I say, not willing to shrug because I don't want my hair messed up.  "I've got no clue how long it's going to take, but... can't exactly turn down two Hall Leaders."

"You could if you were a super villain," Jack says, playing with one of the eerily glowing earrings that Nico made for me.  "How do these things work, anyway?" he asks as he puts one down.  It stops glowing.

"They're like my bracelet," Morgan says from the couch.  "They run off of the super's power.  I bet they do more than just glow."

"Huh," he says.  Why he's so willing to help with this, I've got no idea.  He goes on, "Dad said to give you this."  He tosses me a simple black mask.  "Nico said to give you this," he goes on, tossing me a black smartphone.  "It's got everyone's numbers on it, under fake names.  Mine's Tin man, Trent's Leo, Ace's Oz, Dad's Kenny, Nico's Nick, you should be able to figure most of them out."

I catch it, looking it over.  It's custom, with a glowing red flame design on the back.  "Thanks," I say.  "How about my motorcycle?"

"Nico and Zoe are building it, I'm going to go there next and do the exterior," he says.  "Flames or something else?"

"Flames.  I'm not hiding my powers for this," I say, feeling a bit uncomfortable with the school bully going to such lengths to give me a hand.  "What do I owe you for it?" I ask, positive there's something in it for him.

He hesitates, playing with the earrings for a moment before speaking.  "I want your debut," he says.

"What?"  He just totally threw me for a loop.

"Your official debut--I want to be the villain.  It'd be awesome," he says, grinning at me.  "I know Max wants it, but I'm calling it before he does.  We've seen your stats, man.  We've been arguing over who gets it for over a week, now.  Even Ace seemed interested.  And now that you're goin' for official mentoring you'll be in the photo-op any day, now."

"Oh," I say a bit lamely, "that."

"He'll beat you," Carla says, startling me.  For a moment I'm positive she's talking to me.  Shockingly, though, she's looking at Jack with a positively ferocious expression.  "He'll wipe the floor with you."

"Carla," I say.

"We'll see," Jack says.  "It'll be interesting, either way.  But I've got it, right?  Your debut?" he asks as Banshee undoes the ponytail, pulls the towel off and hands me a mirror.  I stare at myself for a second, pushing the long hair up to see all of the buzzed part.  Jack steps forward, pulling an ice cube out of a cup.  "I've got two earrings, you want both?" he asks me.

Do I?  He looks WAY too comfortable with the idea of sticking a needle through my ear, I think.  "Yeah, I guess," I say.  I'm positive I'm going to regret it--both the piercings and the debut.

***

"Now, son," Century says as he drops down into a large, plush chair on his personal jet.  Why does a superhero that can fly need a jet?  Because his secret identity is a massively rich cattle baron or something, as far as I can tell.  Maybe it's oil, he didn't say, but it doesn't matter, I think as I look around, this thing is PLUSH.  "You're going to be living with Flame as his nephew--he's not too happy about it, honestly, but he owes his life to Alonso just like the rest of us.  Plus, they live in the same neighborhood.  You're there to try and get you on the straight road and away from bad influences."

"Okay," I say.  There’s not much else I CAN say.  "I guess if they ask I can tell them about Jack and Max or something," I add with a shrug.

"Don't let on that they're actually Maximum and Cold Steel," he warns.  "Or better yet, make them think you're lying.  I can see that.  But whatever you do, don't let it on that you're a Cape High kid.  Rumors have gotten out about your school--and a lot of the kids in my area are getting a bit... bitter about it," he admits.

"Send them over," I say.  "Nico will test them and bring them in if they're good enough."

"That's easy to say, son, but not so easy to convince the parents about," he says.  "There's a lot of tradition in the South Branch, part of it being my fault, I admit.  Hard to teach an old dog like me new tricks.  But if you convince me that you're actually learning something in that school of yours, I might consider it."

"In other words, you're one of the biggest obstacles," I say bluntly.  It startles a laugh out of him.

"Now I won't say that I am, nor will I say that I'm not," he says in that good ole boy drawl of his.  "Consider yourself a trial run."

Great
.  Not only does my future hinge on this stupid mission, my school's reputation does as well.  I scowl, thinking of all the people who would be better for this job.  Several of them stand out in my mind.  "I'm not the best of the school," I tell him as we start to move.  The plane is lifting off, taking me halfway across the country, where I know absolutely no one, "I'm not even close."

"But there's a reason your principal chose you, don't you think?" he says.

I shrug, looking out the window instead of answering that.  I'm not sure I know why Nico chose me, other than the whole mentoring thing.  "So... Flameblaster, he's not happy about this?" I ask.

"I'm not going to lie--Flame's a confirmed bachelor.  He doesn't much like... anyone, really."

"Great."  I think for a moment before asking the one thing that’s been bothering me.  “How come you don’t think they’re cape kids?”

“That large of a group of teenagers with powers appearing, it doesn’t happen--especially in one area.  We would have heard or seen at least a handful of them in their emergence.  Teen capes don’t have that good of control--Jimmi kept blowing out her neighborhood’s power on a daily basis when she turned thirteen.  No, it’s something else--a drug or something.  Whatever it is, we’ll find out after you get Jimmi out of there.”

We fall into silence as he opens another folder and starts reading.  I hesitate, watching the world below for a moment before opening my own folder.  Here I am, half shaved head, earrings (the holes healed as soon as they were made, Jack was impressed by how they burned to heal), black, baggy jeans and a tank-top, reading a manila folder across from a rich man.  It's an incongruous image, I already know.

Jimena interests me.  I spend a moment looking at her picture, taking in the glowing eyes, the cat-eared hoodie, and the t-shirt that proudly proclaims "Burn" across her chest.  What is she trying to prove?

Here's the thing I've learned after spending so much time with the zoo kids.  Everyone is out to prove something.  They might not even know what that thing is, but they're out to prove it--that they're in control, that they're strong, that everyone else is untrustworthy. I've seen hints of all of that just in my own group.  Of course it makes sense--they didn't have any control in the zoo.  They were put on display like toys or animals.  So was I.  The difference is that I decided a long time ago that I didn't have to prove anything to anyone.  I was happy with that choice, you know?  Nothing to prove, nothing to stand up for...

So why am I stuck with the job of proving Cape High to an entire branch of the Hall?  I'm going to fail, I think, still staring at the picture of Jimena.  I'm going to fail and Nico's going to toss me out on my butt--and more importantly, take that absolutely sweet motorcycle in the storage bay away.  Not to mention everyone I care about will go on without me.

I let out a yelp as the manila folder starts to smoke before catching on fire.  I grab my water bottle and pour it on the folder.

"Problem?" Century asks mildly.

"None whatsoever," I lie.

"Hey, Vinny?"

I jerk, looking around to see if Carla snuck on when I wasn't watching.  Century is looking at me with a raised eyebrow.  "Did you hear that?" I ask him.

"Yeah, your earring is talking," he says before going back to his folder.

"Oh."  I reach up and touch one of the earrings curiously.  "What is it, Carla?" I ask.

"Tell Lance that I'm second in command while you're gone!" she says.  "He says he is, but he's not--I am!"

"Carla, you're the youngest in the group," I point out.

"So?  I'm the most responsible!"