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15
Nick lay in bed that night, fuller than he’d ever been in his life, though he hadn’t had much of an appetite when he’d sat down at the Caplan table. Mary hadn’t taken no for an answer, and Nick ate what was probably an entire cow’s worth of meatloaf.
The bed was soft, and the room warm, but the sheets were slightly scratchy, and the shadows crawled in weird shapes on the walls. He could never sleep well in unfamiliar places, and with the added stress of everything that had happened, he didn’t think he was going to nod off any time soon. Oh, he was exhausted, but it was to the point of being too tired to actually sleep. It didn’t help that his brain was in overdrive without any sign of slowing.
And to make matters worse, he’d tried to call Seth again, only to have it ring once before going to voicemail. His phone was turned off. Nick thought about calling his aunt or uncle to find out what the hell was going on, but in the end, decided against it. Martha had left a voicemail while he’d been sitting with his father, telling him she loved him, and to call her if he needed anything. They would be by in the next couple of days, she said. And then, weirdly, she ended the message by saying, “I know things may seem a certain way. But there’s a reason for everything, Nicky. I need you to remember that. We love you, and we’ll see you soon.”
He saved the voicemail.
There were texts from Gibby and Jazz while they were at his house, telling him his room smelled likeboy,and that they were absolutely not impressed with how many pairs of tube socks he owned. Jazz also said his bed was comfortable, but when Gibby tried to kiss her while she was sitting on it, she pushed her away, because she wouldn’t do that to Nick. Also, Gibby had just eaten acold piece of pizza from Nick’s fridge, and her breath smelled like onions and olives, and it was disgusting.
He smiled at the messages before locking the phone and setting it on the small nightstand.
He punched the pillow a few times, trying to find a comfortable position to lie in so he could attempt sleep. He pulled the comforter up to his shoulder, lying back down and facing the window, the light from the streetlamps soft through the second-story window.
And then—
There.
Someone stood on the roof of the house across the street.
He fell out of bed with a squawk, cursing as he pulled himself back up toward the window.
The figure was gone.
It was near eleven when he sat up in the bed, rubbing a hand over his face. His head was buzzing. He hadn’t taken a Concentra since the morning before. He’d have to ask Mary or Cap about it. Dad had them locked away at home, but there were the emergency doses at school they could get. He wasn’t going to school for the rest of the week, but maybe someone could get it for him.
He reached over and grabbed the remote to the small TV sitting on top of the bureau of drawers against the wall. It was probably older than Nick, but Mary assured him it worked fine. He didn’t have the heart to tell her he was grounded and couldn’t watch TV.
Maybe he could find some stupid infomercial or a DIY channel that could help bore him to sleep.
He hit the power button.
The screen came to life.
A voice filled the room as a graphic flew across the screen. “Local. Breaking. Weather. Sports. This is… Action News with Steve Davis.”
Steve Davis appeared on-screen behind a desk, smiling widely. Nick had never noticed how his teeth were so big. Or so white. “Good evening,” Steve Davis intoned. “We are continuing to follow the story from earlier today where a building collapsed on the 1600block of Sixth Avenue. In what can only be described as chaos, the skies above Nova City were alight with an ongoing event between the Extraordinaries known as Shadow Star and Pyro Storm. The all-out fight began late last night and went well into the early hours of the morning, during which Shadow Star and Pyro Storm showed each other no mercy. Though no deaths have been reported, the battle between the Extraordinaries did spill into the streets of Nova City, eventually leading to the destruction of a condemned apartment building. As the building collapsed, an officer of the Nova City Police Department was injured.”
Nick’s breath lodged in his throat as his dad’s picture appeared on the screen. He was against a blue background, in uniform. “A police spokesperson has confirmed that Aaron Bell, an officer with NCPD for twenty years, was injured while rescuing a member of the transient population.”
Steven Davis smiled wider. “If that name is familiar, it’s because Officer Bell was involved in an altercation two years ago in which he assaulted a witness in a high-profile case. A detective at the time, Officer Bell did not face charges, but did receive a demotion. The witness filed a lawsuit against Aaron Bell and Nova City, which was settled out of court.”
Nick wanted to punch Steve Davis’s perfect teeth down his throat.
“The spokesperson also said that Officer Bell, while in the intensive care unit, is expected to make a full recovery. Nova City General released a statement, saying Officer Bell is listed in fair condition, though they declined to comment further.”
His dad’s picture disappeared as the camera centered back on Steve Davis. “And now, in an Action News exclusive, we go to Rebecca Firestone.”
The screen switched to a rainswept street corner that Nick vaguely recognized. Rebecca Firestone smiled beatifically. She held an umbrella in one hand and a microphone in the other. “Thank you, Steve. The events of the past twenty-four hours have shown an escalation in the violence between Extraordinaries. In their short yet complex history, Shadow Star and Pyro Storm have been adversarial, but have always managed to keep the ferocity to a minimum. That changed today.”
Rebecca Firestone disappeared when an aerial shot replaced her. It showed a cloud of smoke and dust rising from a collapsed building, debris spilling out onto the street. “This was the scene earlier today when an apartment building collapsed in a fight between Shadow Star and Pyro Storm. Officials say the building was condemned due to structural integrity issues and was scheduled to be demolished last year. However, due to ongoing lawsuits from former tenants and a legal quagmire concerning the replacement of the building, the demolition was postponed indefinitely. In the interim, the Haversford Apartments became a haven for the transient population of Nova City. The city attempted to dissuade people from entering by boarding up the building and placing a fence around it, but Action News has learned that in the last year alone, the fence had to be repaired forty-seven times. A spokesperson for the housing development issued a statement in conjunction with the mayor’s office, stating that while every attempt was made to keep people from entering the building, they, and I quote, ‘can’t be there twenty-four-seven to enforce this.’”
Rebecca Firestone appeared again, eyes sparkling. “And here to explain today’s events is Shadow Star himself.”
Nick almost fell off the bed as the camera shot pulled back.
There, standing in the inky darkness next to Rebecca Firestone, was Shadow Star.
