Chapter 19 #2
“I don’t want to diminish your accomplishment.” I could do this. Check my words, keep my ego out of it. A little restraint, and I could navigate the situation. “But your article about Blaze is misinformation and slander.” Jesus, there was something wrong with me.
Aiden’s eyes hardened, and the tension seized his muscles until I thought he might throw a punch. “You can’t just be happy for me, can you?”
“What happened to the truth?” Revelations had done this to him. William had done this to him. I wanted to march over to the editor and jab him in the nose. It wasn’t a party until somebody bled.
“You—”
I shook my head. “No, Aiden. I’m proud of you. To be honest, I’m impressed with your determination. You see danger as an opportunity. You’re not reckless, but you don’t shy away from a challenge. And despite all that drive, there’s still this sweet man underneath.”
“You can’t sugarcoat it, Xander.”
“I’m not done.” I straightened my back. Holding out my hand, I waited for him to reach out. He eyed it before staring me in the eye. I took his hesitation as permission and gripped his forearm.
“You saved me. I’m inconsequential in that.
Hanging from a ledge, this arm reached down to save me.
” I squeezed his forearm. “You left an impression. I couldn’t shake you.
But it was in your apartment where you revealed the source of that bravery.
The truth, Aiden. I thought it was hokey, but what you just put out into the world…
” I shook my head. “That was ambition pushing aside a core value.”
Aiden jerked his arm away. There were tears forming in his eyes. I had struck a nerve. Aiden might not see it, but I was reaching into a hole, trying to save him from falling. This was more dangerous than dying. I just hoped I could pull him to safety.
“Why…” He stared at the ceiling, trying to stop the tears from flowing. “Why are you so invested in this story?”
“I… I don’t want to see you sell your values.
” Come on, Xander. That is only part of the reason and you know it.
I didn’t do feelings well, they were harder than saving a life.
At least a dying patient had protocol. Right now, I felt as if I were searching for words I had only seen in a novel.
“You got my attention when you came back for me. But—” Do it, Xander.
Just do it. “But I fell for that idealistic man. That’s when I decided I wanted to chase you for more than a roll in the hay. ”
Violins played in the background as women in beautiful dresses moved about the room.
It wasn’t the setting for somebody to be crying.
Yet, here we were, me making the man I cared about spring a leak.
I couldn’t remember the last time I admitted I cared about somebody.
Not like this. It made me uncomfortable, but if it left an impression, I’d suck up my discomfort.
“I hear what you’re saying.” He chewed his bottom lip, and in another context, it’d be sexy. But I could tell my words weren’t hitting home. “They’re pretty words. But something struck a nerve with you, and I can’t figure it out. What are you hiding?”
I could feel the suit against my skin. It was ready to transform, to reveal that I wasn’t who I said.
With a silent “no,” it stopped. Hellcat had warned me against sharing my identity.
Was revealing it to Aiden selfish? I tried to rationalize hiding, that I could carry the world on my shoulders. Alone.
Try as I might, I couldn’t shake the image of him reaching for me. Aiden had risked life and limb. The least I could do was return the favor.
I turned so that Aiden blocked the view of any potential onlooker. I locked eyes with him before eyeing my hand. He scrunched his brow before following my gaze.
The cuff of my suit jacket liquified. It wrapped around my hand, coating it in the signature black latex.
He let out a gasp. But I wasn’t done. I turned my hand over and let a flame pool in my palm, tiny, barely visible.
With a shake, the suit returned to normal and any evidence of my superhero persona vanished.
“I don’t understand,” he whispered.
“I couldn’t risk putting you in jeopardy.”
“You lied.” It wasn’t the reaction I hoped for, but I deserved it nonetheless. “While I was chasing Bl—you—struggling to keep my job, you just stood by.”
I don’t know what I expected. Perhaps some sort of relief, a hug, maybe a thrill of dating a superhero, but I got confusion and anger. I understood why Hellcat pushed me to keep my identity under wraps.
“You’re a killer.”
Shit, bad just went to worse.
The clinking of glasses halted our conversation’s descent.
A man continued tapping the side of his glass as he took to the stage that held the quartet.
The jet black hair, tailored suit, air of superiority, all gave away Damien Vex’s identity.
Without saying a word, I understood why Griffin hated the man.
I half expected Sebastian to follow, or at least be standing near the man as he assumed a position atop his soapbox.
I respected him more when he was nowhere to be found.
William, however, gracefully rode Damien’s coattails, standing in the front row, basking in his master’s radiance.
I wanted nothing more than to strike the guy in the throat.
He was the one who put the garbage in Aiden’s head.
“Vanguard City has become chaotic, to say the least,” Damien said, projecting his voice over the crowd. “But I’m glad to see that in our darkest hour, we can gather and hold up a light against this darkness.”
The room filled with soft claps. Was I the only one who found it arrogant that this man was catering to Vanguard’s elite by saying this party was a way of fighting back the chaos in the streets?
It was downright stupid, and I had to choke back a snide remark.
Eyeing Aiden, I watched as he hesitated, giving a single clap before stopping.
“Tonight, we celebrate the newest issue of Revelations. In a world where heroes have all but vanished, you might think we’d be nervous. How can we expose these titans when there are no more left?” There were murmurs. Apparently, amongst this crowd, it had been a point of gossip.
“But fear not.” He raised his glass in the air. “Thanks to our newest reporter, we have found a way to weather the storm. Aiden Scott has done a fabulous job of revealing the dark underbelly of Vanguard’s last…” he stressed the air quotes, “hero.”
He gave a bow in our direction and I watched as Aiden’s cheeks turned bright red.
This blogger-turned-journalist had finally stepped into the big leagues, and not only that, he was being honored.
It was a massive step for him, even if I thought it was in the wrong direction. I clapped out of respect for Aiden.
“Tomorrow the issue…” Damien’s words trailed off.
He seemed to scour the crowd, his cocky expression wavering.
“The issue hits newsstands tomorrow, so let’s celebrate tonight.
” He rushed the last sentence, quick to reach the end.
Even as his sycophants applauded, he exited the stage.
Something was wrong, but he was the only one to be aware.
I searched for William and found his right-hand man had also escaped into the crowd.
Damien made his way toward the exit. I grabbed Aiden’s hand. “Aiden, something is wrong. We need to get out of here.”
“No.” With a sharp jerk, he pulled his hand free.
I was about to argue when I caught sight of the black mist spreading along the floor. I’m sure there were a dozen reasons for it, but at a magazine specializing in superheroes and with Aiden, all signs pointed to a supervillain with a grudge.
“It’s Smoke.”
“I don’t know what game you’re playing at.”
Several of the other patrons were pointing at the floor. They had a look of glee on their faces, as if it might be special effects to help make the evening more enchanting. It was true what they said about the rich. Not one of them had an ounce of common sense.
The mist collected, rising from the ground until it took on a human shape.
A bolt of black slammed into my chest before I could scream a warning.
I shot backward, hitting a wall with enough force it crumbled about me.
Whatever was on the other side softened the blow, giving me a chance to gain my bearings.
The coat closet. It wasn’t exactly a phone booth, but it’d do. Screams filled the main hall as Vanguard’s wealthiest citizens found themselves inside a battleground. I wish I didn’t have to save them all, but at least Aiden and Sebastian were worth the effort. Perhaps they weren’t all bad. Maybe.
“You picked a fight with the wrong hero.” I rose from the bed of furs, hovering in the air as the suit transformed.
The fine materials transformed into my skintight suit.
Black leather hugged my body until it ended with the mask wrapping around my face.
It was time to show Aiden that I wasn’t the villain William claimed.
“Smoke,” I shouted. “SMOKE!”
I pushed through the wall to find that at least half of the patrons had already fled through the entrance.
However, like always, Aiden found himself a bit too close to the danger.
Smoke was chasing people, scaring them as if he were a kid in a Halloween costume.
This wasn’t about robbing them, or even revenge.
That jerk simply wanted to terrorize Vanguard.
“Does Vanguard’s newest villain want to tango?”
Who wrote their dialogue? Honestly, this was straight out of a B-rate superhero movie. “No. Its newest hero wants to beat the crap out of its douchiest villain.”
“Going to kill me?” He raised into the air, the smoke billowing from where his legs should have been. It was the powered way of puffing out his chest, but nothing about it impressed me. “Just like you murdered Dozer?”