Chapter 4
Chapter four
Mandie
The door clicked shut behind us, sealing us inside my borrowed room.
The sound was soft, almost apologetic, as if the universe itself was trying not to startle me.
I didn’t turn around. Instead, I moved toward the bed, the borrowed sweatpants swishing against my legs with each step, and perched on the edge.
My arms crossed over my chest like a barricade, fingers digging into the soft fabric of the oversized hoodie.
Sebastian didn’t rush. He was calm. Calculated.
"Would you like some water?" His voice was smooth with the kind of tone that probably put his patients at ease. It did the opposite for me.
I shook my head, my gaze fixed on the far wall. The paint was a neutral gray, designed not to offend or distract. It matched my mood. "Something stronger," I muttered.
A pause. Not the kind where someone is deciding whether to comply but deciding how to comply.
"Red or white wine?"
His brown eyes were steady, unreadable. No judgment, no amusement, just that damnable professional detachment. It made me want to throw something.
"Doesn’t matter."
Sebastian retrieved a bottle of red wine. He poured with practiced ease, the deep ruby liquid swirling into the glass without a drop spilled. The man had steady hands. I wondered if that was a superpower or just years of practice, pretending he had his shit together.
He handed me the glass. Our fingers brushed.
A spark. Not a literal one, but the kind that shoots up your arm when you touch someone you shouldn’t want to touch. His skin was warm and dry. No calluses.
I took the glass, fingers curling around the stem a little too tightly. The wine sloshed dangerously close to the rim.
Sebastian didn’t react. He just settled back into the chair, movements deliberate, like he was giving me space to breathe. Like he knew I needed it. Bastard.
I took a sip. The wine was good. Dark cherries. A hint of smoke. It burned a little going down, the alcohol hitting the back of my throat with a warmth that did nothing to ease the knot between my shoulder blades. I swallowed, gulping it down.
He sat with that infuriating ease of his, like he was enjoying brunch with a friend instead of babysitting a kidnapping victim in a superhero hideout. His posture was relaxed, but his eyes were sharp. Always watching. Always assessing.
Sebastian leaned back, fingers steepled in front of him. "Feeling any more relaxed after meeting everyone?"
I snorted. The sound was sharp and ugly in the quiet room. The wine glass clinked against my teeth as I took another aggressive sip. "Meeting everyone only made things more frustrating."
One dark eyebrow lifted. "How so?"
I shot him a look. "You’re seriously asking me that?"
He tilted his head slightly. "I’m asking you to elaborate."
God, he was infuriating. "Fine." I set the glass down on the nightstand a little harder than necessary. Wine sloshed over the rim, pooling on the surface like a dark stain.
"I was kidnapped. Then I was rescued by a guy in a high-tech suit who may or may not have been perving on me while he undressed me. Then I was drugged, brought to God knows where. then I got dumped in a secret lair with a bunch of strangers who all have their own agendas."
"It is all for your—"
"Safety, I know," I snapped. "The point is, I don’t know any of you. For all I know, you are the villains, and I just don't know it yet. And now I’m stuck in a room with you…" I gestured at him. "Who keeps looking at me like I’m some kind of puzzle you’re trying to solve."
Sebastian didn’t flinch. "You’re upset."
"I’m pissed," I corrected.
"Understandable."
I laughed bitterly. "Oh, it’s understandable? Great. Glad we’ve established that."
His lips twitched. A ghost of a smile. "Everything you’re feeling is completely normal."
"Normal? None of this is normal, Doctor Know It All. Hell, I know you are a superhero, but I have no idea which one you even are."
I grabbed the wine glass again, but too hard. It slipped from my hand.
Red wine splattered across the floor, splashing onto a pristine white rug.
"Shit! I'm sorry! I will clean it up," I pleaded, panic flaring.
My fingers twitched toward the mess, but before I could move, Sebastian’s hand lifted. His sleeve rode up just enough to expose his forearm.
Then his arm moved.
Not like muscle and bone, but like liquid. The flesh rippled, shifting, until his entire limb dissolved into a shimmering tendril of water. It stretched toward the spill, absorbing the crimson pool in seconds. The carpet fibers were left pristine, as if the accident had never happened.
I stared. My pulse hammered in my throat.
Sebastian turned toward the sink, his arm still in that impossible, fluid state. The water—his water—swirled in the basin before gurgling down the drain. When he faced me again, his limb had solidified, sleeve falling back into place.
"You’re Liquen," I said, the words scraping out of me.
His brown eyes locked onto mine. "You are correct."
A laugh bubbled up in my chest. Of course he was.
His mouth curved slightly. "And now that we’ve established that, I’ll make you a deal."
I crossed my arms. "I’m not in the mood for games."
"Neither am I." He leaned back against the counter, the picture of effortless control. "You talk. Really talk about what’s eating at you. And in return, I’ll tell you how I got these powers. I am sure you are curious."
My molars ground together. He wanted to trade secrets? Fine. I had nothing left to lose. "Alright."
Sebastian’s gaze didn’t waver. "Tell me the one thing that is bothering you the most."
I exhaled, staring at the spot where the wine used to be. "Probably the fact that I don't know what these crazy villains want with me."
He nodded slowly. "Typically, when these types of criminals target someone, it is either for what they know or who they know."
"I don’t know anything. That’s the problem. I’m nobody. I’m a data analyst. I crunch numbers for a living. The only person who gives a damn about me is my best friend Cassie, and she’s probably worried sick. I don’t have enemies. I don’t have secrets."
My throat tightened at Cassie's name. She was supposed to meet up with me tonight.
His head tilted. "Data analyst. That sounds interesting."
"It isn't. There are hundreds of other analysts who know the same things I do. Hell, Cassie has been there longer than I have. If they wanted something, I know, they would go after her. She is the smart one."
"You’re smart too."
"I guess. In my own way."
"And there is no one else who would worry about you?"
I scoffed. "My ex-boyfriend, Teddy. I left him six months ago. When he finds out I'm missing, he will probably just say he hopes they find me and then start banging some European model."
"You really don't think he would care?"
"Are you kidding me? He didn't care when I was with him. He certainly won't care that I am gone. He didn't even call after I left our apartment. Hell, he probably thinks I am still living there."
"You didn't break up with him in person?"
"Nope. When I realized he was cheating on me, I packed my bags and left. He was on one of his adventures in France with his 'college buddies,' and I had enough."
"That is a terrible relationship. You were smart to move on."
"Smartest decision I ever made."
"You see, that is something you and I can relate to. Actually, something you can relate to with most of the gentlemen in this building."
"What, you all got shitty ex-boyfriends?"
Sebastian's face didn't react. "Not sure if you noticed, but our leader here, Quantum Knight… he is a bit absent. Don't get me wrong, I am grateful for him. He used his fortune to build this headquarters. He brought us together. But he is constantly disappearing."
"Maybe he is cheating on you guys with some other superheroes."
"He tries to do too much. Doesn't trust us to help him. That can make some of us feel helpless. Like there is something outside our control."
Shit. He had a point.
"I do hate when things go wrong, and there is nothing I can do about it," I admitted.
"We all do. That is why we should stick with what we can control."
There was a long pause. Then I asked what I really wanted to know.
"How did you get your powers?"
"A deal is a deal," he said. "I was experiencing a moral crisis, so I took a leave of absence from Columbia University, where I was working as a professor. I spent some time at a cabin in the Catskills."
"I always wanted to go there."
"It is pleasant. One night, I rowed a small boat out to the middle of the lake to watch the stars. I fell asleep and woke up well into the night. A noise startled me. A high-pitched screeching."
He paused, like the memory was physical.
"Next thing I know, this space matter came into sight.
It was bright orange, maybe the size of a tennis ball, falling out of the sky.
It crashed into the lake, turning the water a lava color, destroying my boat.
I sank. The water was too thick for me to swim.
I was under before I could scream for help. "
He took a sip of wine from the bottle.
"I woke up in the morning. The lake didn't have a single drop of water left. It was all inside of me. I tested my DNA back at the university. Whatever fell out of the sky made the lake fuse with me at a molecular level. I became the 'living memory' of that water."
Fuck.
Sebastian took a deep breath. "My apologies, but I believe we have covered enough ground for today. May I inspect your stitches, and we shall resume our dialogue in the morning?"
I nodded and lay back.
I could feel Sebastian’s breath as he leaned over me. His fingers were warm against my skin, tracing the edge of the stitches along my side with a precision that made my stomach tighten. My shirt rode up just enough to expose the curve of my hip. I could feel his gaze lingering there.
"Does it hurt?" His voice was low, clinical.
I exhaled, shifting slightly to let the fabric slide another inch higher. "Not as much as your bedside manner."
A flicker of amusement crossed his face. His fingers pressed a little firmer. "You’re healing well. The nanites in the thread are accelerating cell regeneration."
"Fancy." I watched his throat work as he swallowed. "You ever use those powers for anything fun, Doc? Or is it all just cleaning up wine spills and fighting bad guys?"
That got his attention. His brown eyes snapped to mine. "What is that supposed to mean?"
I smirked. "I think you know. You’ve got this whole tortured genius thing going on. The brooding, the precision. I bet even a guy like you enjoys letting loose once in a while."
His jaw tightened. "This isn’t appropriate."
"No?" I reached out, brushing the inside of his wrist. His pulse jumped. "What would be appropriate? You telling me to lie still while you play doctor? You could take me home right now. Drop me off at my friend’s place. No one would have to know."
His breath hitched. "That’s not how this works."
"Who cares?" I tilted my head, lips parting. "You’re the one who can slip through walls. You could get me out of here in five minutes. Be my hero, Sebastian." I played with his hair. "Unless you don't want to save me."
It was now or never, so I kissed him. He tasted like wine and something electric. His hand gripped my hip, digging into the soft flesh, and I could feel the heat of him, the way his body tensed like he was fighting himself.
I won.
For a second.
Then the door clicked open.
"Doc—" Roger’s voice cut through the air like a blade.
We froze.
"Matt’s having night terrors again," Roger announced as he entered. "It is worse than last time. We need you."
Sebastian jerked away from me like I’d burned him. His chest heaved, lips swollen. He looked undone. He glanced at me, then Roger, calculating the damage.
I didn’t sit up. I stayed sprawled, arm behind my head, lips tight with frustration.
Sebastian exhaled sharply. "I’ll be right there."
Roger leaned against the doorframe, effortless charm back in place. One eyebrow quirked. "Everything okay in here?"
"Fine," Sebastian bit out. "I was just… examining Ms. Weaver's stitches. She is progressing nicely."
Roger’s smirk mirrored mine. "Uh-huh." He pushed off the frame. "Don’t take too long, Doc. Matt’s tearing his room apart."
Sebastian looked over at me before whispering, "Perhaps tomorrow, during our session, I can tell you my superhero origin story."
"You already told me that," I reminded him.
"No. I told you how I got my powers. I didn't tell you why I became a hero."
He didn't look at me again as he followed Roger out. The door shut with a quiet click, leaving me alone in the sudden silence.
I let out a slow breath, pressing my fingers to my lips.
They were still tingling.
Goddamn.