Dawn pulled back, blushing slightly.
“Was that okay?” she asked. “Did I read—”
“What?” I laughed in surprised. “Okay? Dawn…oof!”
Clearly, my words were failing me—an interesting exchange of roles—so I decided to fall back on more reliable means. I reached out and cupped my hands on either side of Dawn’s face, pulling her in close to me. This kiss was different, deeper, more intense. I pulled her body towards mine and…
Whoa there. Better leave something to work up to.
I broke the kiss, pulling back.
“I hope that answers your question.”
In returned, Dawn laughed. I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her closer, sneaking in a kiss on her forehead.
Yeah…this was something I could get used to.
Epilogue
Lucinda Carpenter
When the clock struck 7:55, Lucinda Carpenter stood up from her chair and circled around to the front of her desk. If there was anything that Mr. Barron was known for, it was his punctuality, and every day at 7:55—
The door to the private elevators swung open to reveal a white man in a gray suit. He was in his early fifties and the age suited him. His slate-colored hair made him appear both seasoned and trustworthy, and he walked with the comfortably confident air of someone who was used to things going his way.
“Ah, Miss Carpenter,” he said, nodding at Lucinda as she passed. “Lovely morning, isn’t it?”
“I agree, sir.”
Their first exchange tended to go one of two ways. “Lovely morning” for the days when the weather was good. “Terrible weather out there” when it was bad. Lucinda’s response was always the same.
She always felt like she should be giving him a coffee or something during this exchange, but if there was another thing that Mr. Barron was known for, it was the fact that he never seemed to eat or drink anything. Being his assistant, Lucinda knew this to be false. She brought him his lunch every day, after all. But she had never seen him drink a drop of coffee, even on late nights. A far cry from the multiple cups she had already consumed. She had been in since seven, getting the morning report ready for his arrival.
And now, it was time to deliver it.
Without a word, she followed him past her desk and into his office. The entire left wall was made of windows, showing off the skyline of Bailey City. Lucinda barely glanced at it. The breathtaking view lost its appeal after her first couple of months of working for Mr. Barron, the COO of the Bailey City chapter of SynergyCorp.
She waited for her boss to hang up his jacket on the coat rack and slip his laptop case on top of the desk before speaking.
“Edison Kent’s campaign continues as expected,” she began. “The negative impact experienced when the drones abandoned him was far less damaging than projected, as you expected sir.” Lucinda looked up and nodded to her boss. He accepted her compliment by nodding back.
“Continue on, Miss Carpenter,” he said.
“Although that doesn’t change the fact that his lead over the deputy mayor is slim, within the margin of error. Should we make another donation?”
“No. That’s a lost cause at this point.”
“Right, sir,” Lucinda said, making a note on her tablet, before continuing. “Our investigative team has found more information on the duo commonly known as Captain and Lady Justice.”
“Someone at the hospital spoke?”
Lucinda nodded. “One of the nurses was caught bragging at a bar last night.”
He chuckled. “Of course.”
“Will we be pressing charges for the break-in at Anderson Labs?”
“For now we’ll hold back. Best not to bring any undue attention to it. The duo was popular before taking a bullet for a local business, and any kind of legal action toward them is likely to be viewed with…a certain level of derision.”
“Yes, sir,” Lucinda said, somewhat surprised at the calm in Mr. Barron’s voice. When he had first seen that picture of Lady Justice, standing in their animal research facility at Anderson Labs, well… Lucinda hadn’t even known her boss was cable of losing his temper. If those Costumes had any idea of what lay beneath…
“Anything else?” Mr. Barron’s precise tone cut off Lucinda’s train of thought.
“Ah, yes, sir. We have an update on the Actual Hikari. Last night she was seen breaking up an armed robbery in a small general store.”
“Powers displayed?”
“Nothing beyond the normal.”
“Tell me if that ever changes,” Mr. Barron said, then chuckled. “That news is such a double-edged sword. The fact that she continues to do so well indicates that Project Regen was a success. But every positive news piece about her increases support for Actuals, which is unfortunate.” He shook his head. “Filter more money into anti-Empowered social media. And I know I don’t need to tell you just how discreet that should be.”
“Yes, sir,” Lucinda said, making another note, then hesitated.
“You have thoughts?”
Lucinda winced. She tried so hard to school her expressions, but Mr. Barron seemed to pick up on every hesitation and micro-expression. If it wasn’t for his obvious anti-Empowered stance, she would have suspected that he was a mind reader.
“It’s just…R&D doesn’t consider Project Regen to be a success,” she said.
“Because we weren’t able to duplicate the level of success we had with the Takahashi girl? Makes you wonder if our newest little Actual is more than she appears.” Mr. Barron moved to his feet. He began walking across the office to the window. “Miss Carpenter, please send a message to Dr. Hale.”
“What should it contain?”
“A suggestion to reopen Project Regen, of course.”
“But…the wasted resources,” she said, sputtering. “What could convince them to start up again?” She paused. “Are you planning on bringing in that Empowered girl? If she is truly unique—”
“Miss Takahashi?” Mr. Barron shook his head. “At this point, that would prove to be too messy. I’ve been considering another option, albeit one that does involve the Takahashi bloodline.”
“Sir?” Lucinda felt her face crease in confusion.
“Now, Miss Carpenter,” he said, turning around. “How could you have forgotten that our subject has a brother?”
Hikari and Faultline will return...
Thank you so much for reading Black and Blue, the second book in the Red and Black series. If you enjoyed it, I hope you will consider leaving a review on amazon and/or goodreads. Even if it’s just a couple of sentences, your reviews are such a big help to me.
Black and Blue was a challenging yet rewarding writing experience. I’d like to thank the people who helped me along the way. First off, my beta readers: Tanner Meservier, Kim Kennedy, Meghan Trimpop, and Caleb Orion. I never know what to expect when I send you guys a book, but your feedback is always vital. I’d also like to thank my copy editor Suzanne Johnson, and my proofreader, Leah Brown, for turning Black and Blue into a far more professional product. And of course, my cover artist Hampton Lamoureux of TS95 Studios for bringing Dawn, and now Alex to life.
As you may have surmised, the Red and Black saga does not end here. Next up, we’ll be learning more about Riley’s backstory in my first ever newsletter-exclusive side story. Sign up for my mailing list to receive this novelette, which I hope to release around the new year. After that, it’s all about book three. I’ve already put a ton of hours into the next volume and am so excited to release it to the world. My mailing list subscribers will be the first one to know about the release date.
See you then!
-Nancy
Also by Nancy O'Toole Meservier
Red and Black
https://www.amazon.com/Red-Black-Nancy-OToole-Meservier-ebook/dp/B07DTVZGD7
Dawn Takahashi’s been a fan of superheroes for years. So when she’s granted an impressive powerset of her own, she dives right in. Her first challenge is Faultline.
He’s powerful, smart and, as a henchman for Bailey City’s first supervillain, standing right in her way. But Faultline has a secret. Underneath the mask, Faultline is Alex Gage, a working-class guy trying to scrounge together enough money to help support his sisters. And Dawn and Alex just happen to have a date next week.
What’s a fangirl to do when she unknowingly falls for her nemesis? Will Dawn succeed in her quest to become Bailey City’s first superhero? Find out in the first book in the Red and Black series.
Black and Blue Page 29
