Chapter Three
Apparition stood in front of the bathroom mirror of their extended stay hotel room, using her ability to blur her freckles out of existence.
She concentrated on the spots, smoothing them and lightening them until they disappeared into the rest of her skin.
No, it wasn’t any better, plus there was no way she could maintain the concentration needed to keep them disappeared for a full work shift.
People would notice if her freckles popped in and out over the course of the day—or maybe not. It wasn’t like anyone looked at her.
“I still think you should’ve used your ability to create a new look rather than going into this as yourself.”
She started at her father’s gruff voice and spun to face him where he now leaned against the frame of the bathroom door.
“You know I can’t maintain a full form illusion for that long, Dad.
” It took years of practice to know a particular illusion well enough to keep it up without concentration, and the only one she’d had that much time to develop was the one she used while committing actual crimes.
She couldn’t very well show up to work looking like that.
“It’s a stamina issue. If you’d spent more time practicing instead of wasting your time doodling and watching Youtube videos, you’d probably have built up your ability to where you could use it constantly rather than in short bursts.
” He turned away. “If you didn’t need your phone for this mission, I’d take it away until you’ve mastered that.
Probably will when we’re done, though I’ll reconsider it if you do your part well. ”
Mythcreant settled his baseball cap over his brown curls and fished in his pocket for his sunglasses. “It’s about time to go.”
Apparition shrugged on her fleece jacket. “You don’t have to come with me to work, Dad. I know the way, and it only increases the risk that we’ll be seen together.”
He hesitated then reached into his pocket. “I have a specific job for you today.” He held up a black disk roughly the size of a peanut butter cup. “I bought this off a hacker friend. Cost me a bundle, so don’t lose it.”
He placed it in her hand.
“What is it?” she asked.
“It’s a phone cloner. It needs to go right up against the phone but only for about five seconds.
That’s all it takes for it to get a line on the device.
I need you to get a hold of Surge’s phone without him knowing .
.. and he needs to get it back afterwards.
No point in cloning a phone he’s not using anymore because he thinks he lost it. ”
Apparition’s blood ran cold. “Dad, he’s only in the coffee shop for the time it takes to order and pick up his coffee and I’m behind the counter. He’s not going to give me his phone—”
“You’re a chick. He’s a dude. You’ll figure something out.” Her father winked at her in a way that made her queasy. “When we first met, your mom coulda got me to do just about anything.”
She wished he wouldn’t talk about her mom like that.
She supposed he meant it to be romantic, that he’d loved her .
.. but there was something about his voice, how he sounded more like he was talking about a meal he’d consumed rather than a person he’d interacted with, that made her uneasy.
She tucked the circle into her pants pocket. “I’ll do my best.”
Arriving at work, Apparition kept her head down and avoided the other employees as much as possible.
On her break, she pulled a notepad out of her pocket and doodled cute animals to keep herself calm.
It didn’t help much. The phone cloner weighed heavily in her pocket.
There was no way she’d be able to do what her father wanted, and when she didn’t, he’d be mad.
What if he really took her phone? It wasn’t as if she needed it to talk to people—she didn’t have any friends—but it was her only window to the outside world.
Youtube videos, drawing tutorials, pictures of kittens and puppies.
Maybe they didn’t mean much to an average person, but to Apparition they were her one foothold in normalcy.
When she emerged from the break room, she found the coffee shop empty of customers. Ethan nodded to her. “It’s pretty dead right now. You got the counter. I want to finish an inventory of the walk-in before the rush starts.”
“Okay,” she said.
She paced back and forth for a little while then leaned against the counter, sketching an aardvark onto the notepad next to the register.
I need to think of a plan before Surge gets here. Thankfully he’s a creature of habit. I’ve got at least an hour—
The doorbell rang. She looked up and her jaw dropped.
Shawn smiled at her, shifting the straps of a laptop bag that hung from his shoulder. “Hi, Nikki.”
“You’re early!” the words slipped out before she could stop them.
His brow furrowed, but his mouth remained quirked in a pleasant expression. “I didn’t realize I had an appointment.”
“It’s just that the other employees say you always come in about the same time every day for your double Americano.”
His posture tensed. “Were you asking them about me?”
Oh, gosh, I’m going to blow this. He’s got to be suspicious now.
“I’m just trying to get a handle on the regulars is all.” She forced an unconcerned shrug. “Double Americano as always?”
His shoulders slumped. “Yeah.”
She started to ring him up.
“Actually, I’m planning to get some studying done here today,” he said quickly. “Do you think I can get the wifi password?”
“It’s at the bottom of your receipt.”
Not very observant for a superhero.
“Oh, yeah, duh.” He shifted from foot to foot before moving to stand before the baked goods case. “So, uh, since I’m going to be hanging out a while, maybe I should get something to eat while I work. What would you recommend?”
Apparition bit her bottom lip. Why was he being so weird? Well, keeping him there would make it easier to get her mission done. “I don’t really know. It’s only my second day, and I haven’t had a chance to try everything.”
He placed his laptop bag on the nearest table. “That’s okay. I’ll trust your judgment. Pick something for me that looks good.”
Apparition stared at the case. Was this some sort of test? Father always ordered for them when they got takeout. She’d never had to make the choice for herself, let alone for someone else. “Um, I guess chocolate is always a safe bet, right?” She picked up a chocolate chip muffin. “This okay?”
“Great.” His smile widened. A quiver cut through her.
She set the muffin on one of the little plates and passed it to him before finishing the transaction and starting on his drink. He settled into his chair and set up his laptop. By the time she’d finished the Americano, he was staring intently at the screen.
She cupped her hands around the warm paper cup. His phone sat on the table beside his laptop. The phone she needed to get a hold of ...
She walked over to his table and placed the coffee cup beside his laptop. Her fingers twitched. Could she sweep the phone off the table into her apron pocket without him noticing? Before she could attempt it, he looked up, his dark eyes meeting hers. She shied back.
“Thanks. You didn’t have to bring it over. I would’ve gotten it.” He picked up the cup.
“It’s slow. I had nothing better to do.” She backed away.
Ethan wandered into the room but ignored both her and Shawn, instead going over his clipboard notes to prepare an order.
A few more customers came and went. A pair of women settled into a corner table to chat happily about their favorite TV show.
Apparition tried not to stare at them. Maybe TV could be the trick she needed to learn how to relate to people.
The way the friends talked about the characters made it seem like they really cared about that—and due to the shared interest they cared about each other.
Apparition’s father’s hotel room had a TV.
Usually he kept it on the news channels—muted but watching the ticker tape for any information about DOSA activity.
Maybe if she showed him she’d been practicing her powers, he’d let her watch something else.
Maybe even that show the ladies were talking about.
“Excuse me.”
Apparition jumped and spun around. Shawn leaned over the counter. “I’m sorry, but I’ve got to use the bathroom. Would you mind watching my stuff?”
She stiffened. “Me?”
“I’ll only be a minute. You don’t really have to do anything. Just shout if someone goes near my laptop and phone.”
Phone!
“Oh, yeah, definitely. It’s an honor,” she burst out.
His eyebrows arched.
She forced a laugh. “I’ll watch your stuff.”
“Thanks.” He sauntered off.
She drew a deep breath. How lucky could she be? Also, how had he survived this long as a hero being this stupidly trusting?
As soon as the bathroom door closed behind him, she checked to see if Ethan was still involved with his order form before picking up a rag and ambling out into the dining area.
She wiped down the table next to Shawn’s to give herself a reason for lingering around it, glanced around, then popped the cloner out of her pocket and snapped it onto the screen of his phone.
She wiped down one more table, counting to ten in her head.
Shawn didn’t emerge. Ethan didn’t look up. The customers in the corner were still squeeing about the proposal scene in their show.
Too easy. What if this is some sort of trap?
Trap or not, it was too late to back out now. She returned to Shawn’s table and pried the cloner off his phone. She tapped the power button, revealing a lockscreen with an image of a sad-eyed basset hound. From what she could tell, there was no way to know if the cloning had worked.
I did what Dad said. If it didn’t work, it’s the device, not me.
With these brave thoughts, she moved on to wipe down several more tables.
Shawn returned and shot her a quick, “Thanks,” before settling in front of his computer.