The Powerful Pride of an Immortal (Immortal Supers Book 4)

by Kurtis Eckstein

  I did the one thing I knew everyone needed.

  I went downstairs, began cooking lunch, and pretended like nothing was different. Pretended like everything was exactly the same as it had been a few days ago. And, within about half an hour, once we were all sitting down at the kitchen table and socializing, the awkwardness and tension vanished completely.

  It was business as usual. I showed Lily and Freya affection like usual, and I treated Lexi and Heidi exactly the same.

  And I fully intended on treating everyone the same, until the day in the near future when either sister requested I take her on a date, or otherwise communicated she had a desire to move the relationship further than where it currently was.

  Definitely not today though. After all, not even a full twenty-four hours had passed since an extremely traumatic event occurred.

  It was crazy to even think that Freya and Lily decided to talk about it now. But I supposed that the relevance of the topic was why they didn’t wait to bring it up – because we would have avoided all this if Heidi was satisfied in her relationship with me.

  And, in my opinion, while the day when our relationships progressed couldn’t come soon enough, I was also more than happy to patiently wait. If anything, letting this new arrangement be out in the open as our new reality, without anything actually changing, would give everyone time to truly feel comfortable about it and not feel rushed.

  However, there was one thing I felt like needed to happen to fully solidify that nothing was different at this point.

  Speaking generally to everyone, I voiced my concern.

  Freya was sitting behind me with Eden in her arms in the recliner. Rose was right at her side focused on the baby. Lexi was sitting to my left next to Lily, and then Heidi was sitting at the other end of the table, facing me, as if she’d intentionally put as much physical distance between us as possible.

  I cleared my throat, looking more in Lily and Lexi’s direction. “So, I kind of promised Heidi that I’d watch a movie or show with her, and that she’d get to choose.” I focused specifically on her, my expression apologetic. “I feel bad we missed out on that. But the offer’s still available if you want to do that tonight. Completely up to you.”

  Heidi looked a little uncomfortable for half a second, before it dawned on her that everything that just came out of my mouth was completely normal. I hadn’t said or suggested anything that I wouldn’t have done a day ago. She then glanced around at everyone before meeting my gaze and responding with a mischievous grin.

  “Yeah, definitely. Cuz I plan on putting that promise to the test.”

  I smiled warmly in return.

  14: Getting Settled

  Heidi Stockton

  April 19, 2735 – 5 Days Later – Afternoon

  For five days now, life had been normal. Even after the terrifying incident on Saturday and the painfully awkward conversations on Sunday, where one of Heidi’s deepest wishes came true, the last week had been pretty much…normal.

  Sam was cool.

  Lily was cool. Freya was cool. Everyone was just cool.

  After everything that happened over the weekend, Heidi’s older sister did not want to stay home and do nothing. She wanted to go out there and do her part to be ready, in the event they tracked this terrorist bastard down.

  Which meant, Lexi and Sam began going to work again on Wednesday, with everyone else likewise proceeding normally each day. Heidi played with Rose, Rose helped out with Eden, Freya and Lily took care of the baby and helped keep the house clean. They all socialized, enjoyed each other’s company, Heidi cooked lunch and often made dinner too.

  And then, Sam and Lexi would come home and spend time with everyone.

  Normal.

  But now that it was Friday, Heidi was seriously considering breaking away from ‘normal’ a little. Partly, because she sincerely wanted to go on a date with Sam, but also because she didn’t want to be a victim. She didn’t want what happened to ruin her life entirely and make her terrified to even get out of bed. She wanted to be like her older sister, who was already back at work.

  But she couldn’t do it alone.

  No way in hell was she going anywhere alone.

  Or rather, anywhere without Sam.

  However, before she finally worked up the courage to ask Lily and Freya about it, she first needed to deliver the Chinese food in her hands upstairs to Winter, after picking it up from the delivery guy at the gate. The chick had been in the house since Sunday, and she’d barely stepped foot outside of the spare room next to Heidi’s bedroom.

  Certainly, Winter used the bathroom and stuff, but the only other place she ever really went was down the stairs to exit the front door, either to receive her fast food deliveries or to leave the house for a couple of hours.

  Heidi had no clue how the chick ate so much, because she was just as tall as Sam and yet skinny as a rail. And that was saying something, because Heidi was a big eater herself. Yet here Heidi was, carrying three huge plastic bags full of Chinese food. It was enough to feed everyone else, and then some.

  However, Heidi wasn’t really surprised that a delivery guy showed up just now, because it seemed Winter had been scheduling orders for the same times every day. The only weird thing was Winter didn’t come down herself to get it this time.

  Once Heidi got to the top of the stairs, she finally had to set the bags down, because they were sincerely heavy for her. She then walked over past the sectional sofa and knocked on her door.

  No answer.

  She knocked again a little louder, only for it to pop open.

  Heidi looked up at her in surprise, again forgetting just how tall the chick was, especially up close like this. Heidi was the shortest in the house, not counting Rose, making this woman a good five inches taller. Really, five inches wasn’t that bad, but Heidi was just so used to not having to ‘look up’ at anyone else from this distance, except Sam.

  Winter was wearing a dark-gray camisole shirt, and pink shiny gym shorts, her shoulders and legs covered in a thick flat layer of white striped fur. The only visible areas where there wasn’t fur was her chest, neck, face, and most of her arms.

  Heidi tried not to focus on it, worried she’d offend the girl who could probably take her out before she even knew what happened.

  Winter’s expression was apologetic, looking like she’d just woken up, even though it was the middle of the afternoon. “Sorry. I fell asleep. Thank you for getting that for me.”

  “Sure,” Heidi agreed, backing up as Winter went to grab the bags, her eyes automatically falling to the fur on her legs. She quickly looked the other way, back into the room.

  The spare bedroom was actually kind of messy, despite the lack of furniture. Sam had gone out and purchased a mattress for their guest, which was lying directly on the floor, and then also gotten her a foldout table and chair.

  Yet there were clothes strewn about, as well as a trash bag full of garbage from previous deliveries sitting in the corner. She also had a laptop that was sitting on the floor next to the bed, the cord running to the nearest outlet.

  When Winter walked past with the last bag, Heidi noticed a clear plastic container with Crab Rangoon in it – Heidi’s favorite.

  Instantly, Winter stopped and readjusted the bag in her arms, only to grab the container and hand it to her.

  “Here.”

  Heidi looked at her in surprise. “Oh, no. That’s okay. I don’t want to take your food.”

  “Well, I would prefer to have a few myself,” Winter admitted. “But you can at least take a couple. You did get my delivery for me.”

  Heidi held her pale green gaze for a moment. “You sure?”

  Winter nodded. “Yes.”

  She couldn’t help but smile in response, accepting the container and grabbing two out of it while Winter finished putting the bag in the room. She then handed it back, only for the chick to give her a small smile while beginning to close the door.

  “Thanks again,” Winte
r repeated, not waiting for a response.

  Heidi stared at the door for a moment.

  Strange. And kind of intimidating when she wasn’t smiling, but she seemed nice enough.

  After taking a minute to eat the treat, she headed back downstairs, took a deep breath, and then walked into the kitchen.

  She knew Freya had gone to put Eden in her crib, but she was already back, sitting in the recliner, while Lily was making a couple cups of coffee.

  “Where’s Rose?” Heidi wondered.

  Freya smiled. “She wanted to watch Eden sleep.”

  Heidi grinned. The affection Rose had for the little baby was adorable. She then cleared her throat, suddenly feeling nervous again.

  “Hey, would you be okay if I asked Sam to take me to see a movie when he gets home?”

  Both of them looked at her in alarm.

  Heidi felt the blood drain from her face. “O-Or, not.”

  Freya shook her head, glancing at Lily, before giving her an apologetic look. “Sorry. Of course you can do that, Heidi. I think we were just shocked that you’d want to.”

  “Yeah,” Lily agreed. “After everything, we kind of figured that going to a theater would be the last thing you’d want to do.”

  Heidi relaxed a little. “Yeah, well in a weird way it all feels like a dream. A horrifying dream, but still like a dream. I guess maybe because I didn’t get hurt at all.” She took a deep breath. “But I am still scared. I think that if Sam takes me to see a movie, maybe even the same movie, then it will help me get over it.”

  Freya and Lily exchanged another glance, prompting Lily to smile.

  “Of course. I think that’s a great idea.”

  ❖ ❖ ❖

  Sam Archer

  April 19, 2735 – Current Day – Afternoon

  Damn. After three days of this, with today being Friday, I had to admit that a lot of Lexi’s job was kind of boring. Usually she had to spend the first half of the day reading intelligence report after intelligence report, to keep up with current events and issues that might come up. Although, the good thing was that every report was relevant.

  They had a super named Vivian who was sort of an information-absorbing technopath, with her job being to sort through the ridiculous amount of intelligence coming in every day, and make sure the right people saw the right stuff. Even though she worked at this location, due to geographic proximity, she actually sorted the reports for multiple offices.

  I’d only really seen her a handful of times, and the few occasions when she wasn’t busy, she usually had her nose in a book.

  The second part of the day, which was really just the last three hours, could involve a lot of things. Superheroes were required to stay physically fit, and it was important they practice and hone their superpowers. Both of these things were provided at work, which was why they had a gym and pool, as well as why they provided superpower coaches to help guide supers in learning how to unlock the potential of their abilities.

  Years ago, Lexi spent six months learning how to use her electromagnetic specter, having three different coaches help her out. Of course, they knew she was capable of it, due to her evaluation, but developing that capacity took time.

  I was also going to probably start working with a coach as well, once my damn evaluation came through. Although, it really just depended on what I could do. But I still had a little over a week to go, because at this point I felt like they were going to put it off until they ran out of time.

  A part of me was also worried that they were taking this long because they wanted to try to be cryptic about what I was capable of, so that I’d read their nonsense and not have a clue what they were trying to say.

  But, only time would tell.

  Currently, I was spotting Lexi while she lifted weights, not being too interested in working up a sweat myself at the moment, even though I wasn’t sure when the last time I had broken a sweat was. Honestly, considering I had Lily’s ability now, it was very likely it was no longer possible for me to sweat. And similarly, no sweat meant no natural body odor from not showering, not that I intended on reducing how often I cleaned up.

  Still, it was kind of crazy to think about that. One of the reasons I enjoyed going down on Lily was because her natural scent was sincerely pleasant thanks to her lack of body odor and frequently elevated temperature.

  Thus, it was strange to think that I might likewise never smell again no matter how active I was.

  Usually Lexi used the weight machines to exercise, so that she didn’t have to worry about having a spotter, but I wanted her to give free weights a try, since there were a lot of muscles involved in stabilizing that just didn’t get activated when using machines.

  Lexi definitely had no problem with that. If anything, she was loving every second of having me so close to her while her toned body glistened from all the effort she was putting in. I wasn’t sure what it was, but there was something about working out that made the chemistry between us intensify.

  Granted, I was sure that her wearing only a sports bra and skintight leggings, both looking super smooth to the touch, probably helped in that department. Especially with her toned stomach being plainly visible, just begging me to touch it to make that sexy belly flinch.

  Shit, there was a part of me that totally wanted to climb on top of her while she was on the bench and do it right there. Might not be the most comfortable, but it would certainly make for an interesting and spontaneous adventure…if it weren’t for the fact that other people were around.

  Thankfully, one of those people wasn’t Radley though.

  The guy had been around of course, but he avoided all eye contact and pretty much ignored me entirely. Which was perfectly fine with me.

  Instead, it was actually Nick and Tyrone, with Nick doing Jujitsu or something inside a special room that had sensors on the wall to detect the changes in air pressure. It was basically a speed and strength measuring system for supers who were over-the-top strong like my friend – an alternative to them working on improving without breaking shit.

  Tyrone was standing outside the large window, cheering him on, seeming sincerely impressed and excited about the numbers popping up next to the door. Kind of made me curious too.

  However, just as I considered going over there to learn more about it, someone else entered the large gym, not wearing workout clothing.

  It was Benjamin, the guy with stark red hair, who also happened to have an affinity for insects and loved to talk about his GMO Hornets.

  “Hey Sam,” he called out. “Jackie sent me for you. She wants you to stop by her office before you leave for the day. Said she messaged you, but you didn’t respond.”

  I knew someone had messaged me earlier, but I didn’t bother checking it right away, and then forgot. Most of the messages I received weren’t urgent anyway. And if Freya or Lily ever called with an emergency, then it was programmed to sound with an extremely shrill alarm tone.

  “Okay, will do,” I replied. “I think we’re just about done.”

  He nodded and left, as was his usual behavior. He wasn’t awkward or anything to talk to, and he was very outgoing and animated during lunch and such, definitely reminding me of some dude from a rock band, but when he was in work-mode, he usually kind of skipped over pleasantries.

  Lexi sat up on the bench, breathing heavily after working a couple of lower-weight dumbbells. She was pretty spent at this point, and was doing everything with lighter weights now just to get in that little extra.

  After a second, she sucked in a deep breath. “I’ll go ahead and shower, if you want to go see what Jackie wants,” she suggested. “That way, we should both be done about the same time.”

  “Sure,” I agreed. We still hadn’t really done anything even remotely intimate, even after being officially given the green light to progress our relationship, so I simply gave her a light hug and took off to change clothes.

  I was knocking on Jackie’s door about five minutes later.

&
nbsp; “Come in.”

  “Hey, you wanted to see me?”

  Jackie looked up at me with a smile. “Yes. Please close the door behind you.”

  I did so, and then took a seat, glancing around the room at the various potted plants before giving her my attention.

  “How are things going so far?” she wondered pleasantly, folding her hands over each other on the desk.

  “Fine. Lots of reading, but otherwise fine.”

  She nodded sympathetically. “Yes, you wouldn’t imagine the number of heroes that walk through our doors the first time only to discover the bulk of the work wasn’t what they were expecting. But, the scarcity of missions is partly indicative of the quality and effectiveness of our work.”

  I nodded. “So what did you want to talk about?”

  Her smile became a little strained. “I actually wanted to speak to you about Lexi. Or more specifically, about you spending time in her private office. I don’t have a problem with that arrangement, but I would like to ask that you keep all your behavior professional.”

  I looked at her in shock. “Well, of course. And we have.” I paused. “Wait. Why are you even bringing this up?”

  She finally frowned. “We’ve had a complaint.”

  My eyes narrowed. “Radley Lockhart?” I assumed, knowing his full name now.

  She didn’t respond, but she didn’t need to. Technically, she should probably say something about not being able to disclose the identity of the person, but I knew it wouldn’t be anyone else. No one else cared, except him.

  I continued. “Did you hear about what happened the first day I was here?” I wondered.

  She nodded with another strained smile. “Yes. I understand that he attacked you and you stopped him.”

  I shook my head. “Not exactly. I didn’t do anything at first. Mrs. Knight was still here and I let her shield stop him. In fact, I wasn’t planning on doing anything at all, and I even tried to get him to calm down by clarifying that Lexi and I weren’t together. That’s why he was angry. He misinterpreted seeing me holding onto her arm – I grabbed it to steady myself when Tyrone showed me his ability. And Lexi told him to back off and that me holding her arm was fine, but he wouldn’t listen.”