Halfway Heroes

by Dustin Martin

  Chapter 34—Better Odds

  The tall buildings Lydia knew so well. The street names she had often passed by. Even seeing the sign marking the city limits elated her. She was home. Home at last. She nearly bowled over the other passengers exiting the bus when it stopped. She could’ve kissed the pavement, but her momentary joy was squashed in favor of her mission. She had to save her parents.

  But where to start searching? There had been no mention of where her parents were being held.

  “Okay,” she said, turning to Jando as they headed into the bus terminal. “We need to find my parents. Wherever they are, that’s where Heather will be. By now, she’s supposedly contacted Sylvia.”

  “Basically, wherever your parents are, Sylvia will be there,” Jando said. “Got it.”

  She faced Aidan. “Alright. Rooke. I went to his lab on a field trip once. So I think you take this street and turn right after two, three blocks? They’ll be a pizza place on the corner, so you’ll know. You’ll want to get on the bus there.”

  The distinct siren of a police car interrupted her directions. The car sped by the bus terminal. Three more followed. Lydia ran outside. She saw the last of the cars flying around a corner. She strained her ears and heard a gathering of emergency vehicles nearby. Connecting the dots, she raced down the sidewalk.

  Lydia, Jando, and Aidan followed the sounds of the blaring sirens, arriving where the cacophonous noise was loudest: the area surrounding the Evergreen Bank. The building was cordoned off from the general public. Police cars, ambulances, and a fire truck built a solid wall around the steep front stairway. People, rubbernecking, crowded the sidewalks.

  Lydia panted, looking over the scene. Her parents were here. They had to be here.

  “There’s no way you’ll get through that,” Aidan said. He and Jando, next to her, were catching their breaths.

  “I have to try,” Lydia said. She strode forward, staying back from the crowd. At first there didn’t appear to be anyway through. Too many bystanders were shoving others aside to witness whatever was happening, while stragglers were fleeing the bank, running into the arms of EMTs and officers. News crews were having a field day, capturing everything they could on film. Lydia jogged around to the back, hoping there would be an entrance. Jando and Aidan followed her.

  Fortunately, there was a secluded door, away from the confusion out front. It was in a rear parking lot. Unfortunately, two police cars were blocking the only opening in the parking lot’s high wall. A pair of officers stood inside the parking lot, scanning the area and chatting occasionally.

  Lydia was followed by the others, and they all snapped their backs to the wall. She didn’t have a good view, but the cops had their backs turned. It appeared that there was no way to reach the door without distracting them.

  “This is no good,” Aidan said, leaning forward to check things out. “The wall is probably nine feet tall.” Lydia saw no spots for any possible footholds. “Even if we could make it to the top, they might see us climb over,” he said.

  “I can’t smash through the wall either, without drawing the cops’ attention,” Lydia said.

  “Why don’t you try another door?” Aidan asked.

  “I’m not sure if there is one,” she replied. “Did you see a fire escape or something on the side of the building?”

  He shook his head. “But if there is one, I bet there’ll be a cop watching it.”

  “Forget this,” Jando said. “I’m not messing around with cops and getting shot. I’m going.”

  “Fine,” Aidan said. “Shame to lose you.”

  “Yeah, right.”

  “No, no, I’m serious,” Aidan said. “We could really use your invisibility. And then there’s the news’ crews out front.”

  “What about them?” Jando asked, crossing his arms.

  “Well, just that they’ll hail whoever comes out as a hero, film them, put them in the spotlight.”

  “All the fame and notoriety,” Lydia added.

  Aidan shook his head. “But you’re right. It is too dangerous. So go ahead and wait.”

  Jando wagged his finger. “Ah, I see what you’re doing. Nice try, but it’s not going to work.” His grin was wavering.

  “I’m not doing anything,” Aidan said.

  “Sorry, but this isn’t worth sticking my neck out for. Not even for a pretty girl,” Jando said, stepping away.

  “What about two?”

  Jando stiffened. “What do you mean?”

  “I’m only thinking about all the girls who will be watching. How many do you think, Lydia? Dozens? Hundreds? Thousands? Maybe the whole state watching? Perhaps the country? You know what they say about brave heroes, being showered with praise and affection.” Aidan smiled at Lydia. His lips moved a little, silently counting down.

  When Aidan stopped counting, Jando ran forward to the corner and slapped his hands onto the sidewalk. The slabs of concrete disappeared rapidly, one by one, until his ability reached the police cars. Gritting his teeth and scrunching his face, he peeked around the corner at the cars and the policemen. The cars became invisible.

  “I can’t hold this position, can’t distract them, for too long,” Jando said. “So hurry up, Flyboy. Get over the wall.” The cops fumbled about, bewildered by their missing cars. He had certainly caught their attention.

  Aidan gulped and looked up at the imposing wall. Lydia grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “You don’t have to do this either. You can leave if you want,” she said.

  He shook his head. “Let’s just get this over with so you can take me to Rooke.”

  They dropped their backpacks. Aidan’s feet left the ground, steadily rising until only his tiptoes draped against the concrete. Then he was hovering one, two feet off the sidewalk. He grabbed Lydia’s other hand, and they gradually ascended into the air. Jando stayed on the ground out of sight of the cops.

  Aidan stopped. He shook his head and shut his eyes. “I can’t,” he said. “I can’t do it.”

  “Yes, you can,” Lydia said. “There’s only a little more to go.” In truth, they had cleared less than half of the wall.

  “I can’t,” he said. He started to drift downward.

  “Hurry!” Jando grunted. Lydia checked the corner. The cops had bumped into the invisible cars and couldn’t stop gaping at what was happening. They climbed over their cars unsteadily and started to examine the invisible trail.

  Lydia looked up at Aidan. “Stay still,” she said. She climbed up his torso, trying not to step on his face. Aidan, straining to keep from plummeting to the ground, held her feet in his hands.

  “Man, how much do you weigh?!” he asked.

  “Muscle weighs more than fat,” she said. She jumped, fighting for a good grip. Grabbing the wall’s lip, she scrambled up the side and propelled herself on top of the wall. There was a large van on the other side that would be easy to jump down on. She spun around and leaned down. “Take my hand.”

  Aidan hovered in the air, biting his lip. Lydia hissed, “Take my hand!” He stretched out his arm. Lydia clasped hands with him. “I got you. I got you. Don’t worry,” she said, hauling him up. “Don’t look at the ground. Look up. Look at me. Look at the sky.”

  After Aidan was on the wall, too, she beckoned Jando over. “Come on! Quick!” He retreated from the sidewalk, allowing the disappeared slabs and cars to return. Then he threw the backpacks up to her.

  “Look!” one of the baffled cops said. “Are you seeing this? I’m not going crazy. You’re seeing this, right? The cars and the sidewalk were gone—and now they’re back!”

  Jando leapt for Lydia’s hands, but was just out of arm’s reach. “Hold my legs,” Lydia told Aidan. “Don’t look down.” He wrapped his arms around her legs, lowering her closer to Jando. She grabbed Jando’s hands and lifted him up. She pushed him over the wall, then Aidan yanked her back to the top of the wall.

  “Move!” she whispered. She and Aidan grabbed their backpacks. The trio jumped, landing on the ro
of of the van, slid down the windshield, and landed on the ground. They bolted for the door to the bank.

  There was a keypad next to it, but Lydia ripped open the door.

  Once they were inside the bank, Lydia looked around. She could just hear the sounds of the sirens outside, but in here the wide halls were as dark and silent as a tomb. She picked a direction at random and started walking, creeping carefully down the hall. Aidan and Jando followed close behind her. As they continued, Lydia heard muffling cries from a nearby room.

  When they came to the door where the noise was the loudest, Lydia turned to Jando. He placed his hand on the doorknob and the entire door disappeared. Inside were two security guards. They looked shocked to see the young people.

  The hands of both guards were duct-taped together and held a small green device, just visible inside the tape.

  “Is that a grenade?” Aidan asked.

  “Yes!” Jando yelled. He pulled away, making the door visible again. “Run!”

  All three sprinted away from the door. But Lydia stopped in the middle of the hall. She’d noticed something odd. After much convincing on her part, Jando and she crept back to the door. He made it vanish again.

  Lydia had seen a string hanging freely in the air, tied in a loop closest to them and ending at the grenade the guards were holding. There was another door into the room. Following the wall around, she found that the other door’s doorknob into the room was missing. With no other option left, she kicked the door open. Wham! Lydia winced at the noise. She swiftly untied the string from the door, using the most meticulous precision her clammy hands were capable of, lest she pull the string too far. Then she ripped off the tape from the guards’ hands.

  As Aidan and Jando walked in, the guards stood. “Thanks,” one said.

  “What happened?” Lydia asked.

  “This big guy—I’m talking big,” the other guard said, raising his arms up, “came in waving a gun. He nearly killed us, but decided to tie us up instead. If you kids hadn’t come along, someone else might’ve set the grenade off.”

  “Where are they now?” Lydia asked.

  The guards shrugged. “Can’t say. They shut down our security and the lights.” One pointed at the blank video monitors on the wall.

  “I did hear gunfire awhile ago coming from the vault,” the other guard said. “They might be down—” He stopped and looked at them. “Hey, how did you get in here anyway? This area is off-limits to the public.”

  She glanced at Aidan and Jando. Then she waved her hand in a dismissive motion and said, “We’ll explain later, okay? Right now you two need to get out. Use the back door. Some cops are already out there.”

  “No, we should be helping out.” They drew their pistols.

  “And do what? Be turned into a bomb waiting to go off again?” Aidan asked. “Yeah, big help there.” The guards looked down. Lydia pushed Aidan aside.

  “Look, you’ve already helped. Get to the cops and tell them everything,” Lydia said, urging them to the door.

  “Alright. Good luck.”

  Aidan pocketed the grenade. “What?” he asked when Jando looked at him. “You never know. It could come in handy.”

  They continued on down the hallway. Lydia gasped when they almost stumbled upon a bullet-riddled body. The wounds and shocked, dead eyes were too much. Lydia focused on the ceiling as they passed by the corpse. Aidan and Jando turned away from the sight as well.

  As Lydia neared the end of the hall, Aidan held her back. He nodded at Jando. Lydia held Jando’s hand and, disappearing, leaned out from the corner. The next hallway was clear. She let go of his hand and reappeared.

  They found their way to the lobby. From there, they passed by a security station where one guard was passed out. Another was leaning against the wall, holding his arm and leg. “They went that way,” the guard hissed, pointing at an open gate. “Stay away from there.”

  When they passed through the gate, they ran face-first into Sylvia’s gun. Lydia stared down the barrel of the pistol, then the gloved hands holding it, and finally up at Sylvia.

  “Great,” Sylvia said, holstering her gun. “Arthur called me this morning, but I had hoped—what are you three doing here?”

  “Saving my parents,” Lydia said.

  “Well, get out of here. The situation is under control,” Sylvia said. She unclipped a walkie-talkie from her belt and looked away. “Hey, Rogers. I’m sending three civilians outside.” Then she held her fingers over the speaker.

  “Yes, I can see you have everything handled,” Aidan said, leaning around the corner. Lydia joined him. Three downed guards were lying in the hall, not moving at all.

  “Look, they already have several hostages from what I can tell, and I don’t need them to get three more,” Sylvia said.

  “I’m not leaving without my parents,” Lydia said. “I didn’t come all this way to turn back now. We’re coming with you, like it or not.”

  “Four against three is better odds,” Aidan pointed out.

  “Except, assuming it’s who I think did this, two of them are pretty dangerous and the third I have no information on,” Sylvia countered.

  “Please,” Jando said, rolling his eyes. “I’m pretty dangerous.” Yet his wobbling knees spoke otherwise.

  Sylvia ground her teeth, but threw up her hands in the end. “Fine. I don’t have time to argue. But follow my lead and do exactly what I say. They only wanted me.” She faced Lydia. “They certainly don’t need to know you’re here.” She took out her pistol, pointing it upward.

  The group crept down the hallway, stepping around the bodies. Lydia’s stomach felt worse with each bloody mess she saw.

  “You three alright?” Sylvia asked. Lydia nodded. Aidan was staring at the floor and Jando was keeping his eyes forward.

  At the stairs, they descended one floor and reached the end of a hall. Sylvia held the other three back. The room ahead, full of security deposit boxes, was darker than the others. Sylvia had her back to the wall, inching along to peer around the corner.

  She took off one of her gloves and pressed her fingers to the wall, touching the tiles as if checking for a pulse.

  Jando leaned over to speak in Lydia’s ear. “Sylvia’s—,” he began, tapping his ear.

  “Yes,” Lydia said, “I know she feels the vibrations through her fingertips.”

  Sylvia shushed them and continued to feel around. After a minute, she shook her head and spoke into her walkie-talkie.

  “I count eight hostages, but I can’t be sure.” She shook her head. “I don’t like this. Why set this whole thing up? This is more like a robbery. They want to be out of here quickly. Yet on the call they made to the police they said they set up what are likely bombs of some kind. Plus they hole up in the vault? There’s something else going on.”

  “Like what?” Lydia asked.

  “I don’t know. That’s what worries me,” Sylvia said. “Knowing these two, it’ll be a surprise. I hate surprises.”

  “Did you say bombs?” Jando asked. “Nobody mentioned bombs. I’m out.”

  Sylvia held him against the wall. “Stay put. You want them to see you?” She ran her hand over the wall again. She sighed, frustrated. “I can’t pinpoint them well enough.”

  “I have an idea,” Lydia said. She dropped her backpack to the ground and rummaged through it. She took out her camera, quickly assembled it, and swapped places with Sylvia. Lydia beckoned Jando over and he helped her lean into the room. Completely invisible, Lydia held the camera out as far into the space as she could.

  “Almost,” she whispered. The camera slowly focused. Then she snapped a picture.

  The flash lit up the room. Jando pulled her back. Lydia fumbled with the camera, checking the settings. The automatic flash was turned on.

  “Who’s there?” Heather’s voice called out sharply. “Show yourself now.”

  Lydia quickly displayed the camera’s picture to Sylvia. Several rows of security deposit boxes were arranged d
own the length of the forty-foot-square room, each row separated two feet from the next. The ceiling hung low above the tops of the rows. The only light poured from the vault. The hostages were arranged in the vault, separated and restrained with tape. One person, unarmed, was walking among them. He or she sported a happy clown mask, painted with blue teardrops falling down apple-tinted cheeks. Money was scattered about haphazardly on the floor of the vault. None of the cash appeared to have been stolen.

  A larger man was patrolling outside the vault, his clown mask bright and happy. “Finster,” Sylvia identified. He stood tall against the vault door and held a pistol.

  In front of him was an alert woman. Heather, Lydia thought. She, too, was armed with a pistol and a grumpy clown mask. All three wore blue jumpers.

  “Not bad,” Jando said, complimenting Lydia on the photo.

  “Rogers,” Sylvia said, holding the walkie-talkie. “We found them. Toxic, Mountain, and the third perp are in the vault with eight hostages.”

  “Show yourself now or I will start killing these people,” Heather called out through the wall.

  “Stay here,” Sylvia mouthed, holding up her hand. She carefully walked out. Lydia saw the beam of a flashlight trained on Sylvia.

  “About time you arrived,” Heather said. “Give me your gun and walkie-talkie. On the ground.” Sylvia dropped her pistol and walkie-talkie and kicked both over. Heather stomped on the walkie-talkie.

  “Sylvia! It’s been too long! How lovely to see you!” a booming voice said. Lydia assumed it belonged to Finster.

  Sylvia stepped out of Lydia’s sight. Jando held Lydia out to watch the scene unfold outside the vault. Heather stepped between the rows of security deposit boxes, shining the flashlight away from the entrance.

  “Now I’m getting out of here,” Jando said.

  Aidan pushed him in his place and dropped his backpack beside Lydia’s. “They’ll see you. You committed to your fame. Now earn it.”

  Once the criminals no longer watched the entrance, Jando made Aidan and Lydia invisible and they all scurried into the darkness of the room. They slipped around the rows of security deposit boxes. Lydia tried not to breathe or make any sound. Yet the more she tried to contain herself, the louder her panting became. Her heart hammered in her chest, afraid that Finster or Heather would round on them at any moment, with a gun in their faces.