Super Heroes (The New Super Humans #4)

by T. M. Franklin

  “He has to!” She saw a woman down the street turn toward them at Chloe's raised voice. Lowering it, she continued, “How can he leave Ethan there if there's a chance to save him?”

  “It's not entirely up to him. The board—”

  “Screw the board!” Chloe paused, swiping her hands over her face. She needed to get control of herself. Too many times in the past months she'd jumped in based on emotion and instinct. But now . . .

  Lives hung in the balance. Ethan's. Hers. The Order's. The world's. Too much was on the line and she had to think clearly. There was a reason she'd been given the visions. She was certain of that now. She was meant to try and rescue Ethan, but she had to think it through.

  Slowly, a plan began to form.

  “Look,” Dr. Barrett said. He stood out in the sunshine, glasses glinting, with Chloe still in the shade of the tree. “I'll speak to the board myself, get authorization to continue my research. In a few months—”

  “Months?” she choked. “We can't wait months.”

  “It's just too dangerous—”

  “I know, all right? I know that.” She faced him with determination. “I know it's dangerous, but I also know I have to get Ethan out. Now, thank you for the information. I really appreciate it—”

  “Chloe—”

  “And I'll make sure Gavin never knows we got it from you,” she said over him. “I promise you that. But we're going after him. We'll get a Crosser—kidnap one if we have to—and we have someone who's willing to serve as a Prison for the Chaos.” She winced, thinking of Gina.

  “That will never work,” Dr. Barrett said, clutching a fist in his hair.

  “It will have to,” Chloe said calmly.

  “You'll never win.”

  “Then we'll go down trying.”

  He stared at her intently for a moment, then walked toward her until he was again under the tree, and she could see his eyes through his glasses. They were gray, and once again, she was struck by that familiar feeling.

  “Then I suppose,” he said on a long sigh. “That I'll go down with you.”

  That hit her like a slap. “What?”

  “The containment unit is my technology,” he said. “And I can operate the Crosswalk.”

  “Are you saying—” she stammered. “You're going to help us?”

  He turned to walk away. “Get some sleep,” he said, all reticence vanishing. “And get your people together. We'll go in tomorrow night.”

  “But—” Chloe couldn't believe what was happening. “What about the danger? And the board?”

  He swiveled around, walking backward with a smirk. “To quote you, screw the board.”

  She followed after him. “You said we need a Crosser!”

  His smirk grew. “That I did.”

  “So you know one?” The hope in her heart began to pulse . . . to spread. “You know a Crosser who will help us?”

  He stopped on the sidewalk until she caught up to him. Then he leaned in with a grin.

  “I already said I'd help you, Chloe,” he said. “And it just so happens that I am a Crosser.”

  “Someday,” Dylan lamented. “Someday, we'll spend a Saturday night at a party, with pizza and dancing and someone drinking too much and passing out in the bathtub. You know, like normal people.”

  Chloe laughed, despite herself. “But this Saturday, Sir, is not that day.”

  “You guys,” Maia grumped, squeezing their hands. “We're invisible, but people can still hear you.”

  They quieted, flanking her as they followed Dr. Barrett down the street toward the WARDEN building. It was around ten o'clock, the moon a thin sliver in the sky, and they were going to rescue Ethan.

  They were going to rescue Ethan.

  Chloe's stomach flipped with nerves at the thought. They'd gone over the plan, and over it, and over it again, but she still worried that something might go wrong. That they would lose this chance—their best chance to get him back.

  Maia had them cloaked in her invisibility, all except for Dr. Barrett. He'd assured them it was not unusual for him to be at WARDEN on the weekend, or at any hour of the day or night. He was a scientist with insomnia, and sometimes his best ideas came to him in the middle of the night. The staff and security would take no notice of him heading to his lab, and he was their best cover. A diversion, if needed.

  If they could trust him. And for some reason, Chloe truly believed they could.

  They climbed the front steps, making sure to stay close to Dr. Barrett. They slipped through the glass doors as quickly as possible, and he waved to the security guard over his shoulder, not even bothering to slow down.

  They didn't either.

  Instead of getting on the elevator, however, Dr. Barrett continued to the locked door at the end of the hall. He typed in a code on the security pad and the door opened with a click. They moved through it and he stopped at a panel on the right. He glanced down the stairway before popping it open.

  “I disabled the heat sensors earlier today,” he said quietly. “Just want to ensure nobody's fixed them.” He examined the wires behind the panel, then, apparently satisfied, replaced the cover. Fortunately, the day had been dry, so there were no wet footprints to give them away. That was one lesson learned.

  Instead of going down the stairs, Dr. Barrett led them through another door and down a dark hallway, motion sensors lighting up sections as he passed beneath them, until he reached an emergency exit at the end. He slid his keycard through a reader and popped the door open, standing out of the way as he held it.

  “Counting to ten,” he murmured. “I sure hope you're there.”

  Chloe hoped so, too. Wren was keeping Beck and Tru out of sight, and they were supposed to be waiting outside of that very door. She felt a brush of air against her left arm.

  “They're in,” she whispered.

  Dr. Barrett nodded, and closed the door. But it stopped short, a foot caught in the gap, then a hand yanking it back open from the outside.

  For a moment, all Chloe could see was a gun, a gun pointed right at Dr. Barrett. Then a slender figure walked through the door behind it, a woman wearing a satisfied grin.

  “You all didn't think you were going to do this without me, did you?”

  Chloe's heart sank.

  Gina.

  “Guys,” Miranda said into the mic, “is everything okay?”

  Dr. Barrett had outfitted them with a high tech communications system, but Miranda hadn't heard anything from them since they entered the building. She was sitting outside of WARDEN in her car, laptop open, scanners firing. Keeping a lookout.

  She sighed. She hated that she was always relegated to keeping a lookout. She understood it, of course. Miranda was the only member of the Order without any power to speak of. It made sense to keep her out of harm's way.

  But that didn't really make her feel any better. Or any more useful.

  “Guys, status report, please,” Miranda said into the mic.

  There was a click, then a voice—but not Chloe's.

  “I don't know what you're talking about.” That was Dr. Barrett, but his voice sounded far away.

  “Oh, I think you do,” a woman's voice said. “Let's stop playing these games, shall we?”

  Miranda inhaled sharply. Oh no. Oh no.

  Gina Talbot was in the building.

  They'd been cocky, worried too much about WARDEN to find Gina much of a threat. She'd said she'd be watching . . . listening. They hadn't taken her seriously enough, and now . . .

  The mic clicked off.

  “Chlo?” Miranda said quietly into her mic. “Are you okay?”

  Nothing.

  Maybe she was still cloaked by Maia and didn't want to give away her position. But that didn't help Miranda to figure out what to do. Her job was to keep an eye out for the police or for any sign that WARDEN had been alerted to their presence. To get them out of there if they were compromised.

  She eyed the post-it note stuck on her dashboard. The ph
one number on it was only in case of emergency.

  Did this qualify?

  They knew there was a chance Gina would be a problem. And Beck had assured them that if she showed up, he'd take care of it.

  Miranda tapped her fingernail on the steering wheel, scanning the area for any threats, any movement at all. Her heart pounded, almost audibly.

  “I'm giving you fifteen minutes,” she said finally. “And if I don't get the all clear from someone, I'm getting you out of there, even if I have to come in myself.”

  She sat back and let out a heavy breath.

  Then she set the timer on her watch.

  Chloe was silent as she listened to Miranda over the comm, as was everyone else on the team. Their invisibility was their only advantage at this point, and one they didn't want to lose by announcing their positions.

  “Who are you?” Dr. Barrett hissed. “You're not allowed in here. I'll call security—”

  Gina pressed the gun against his forehead and he froze, swallowing thickly.

  “I don't think you will,” Gina said with a tilt of her head. “Otherwise Chloe Blake and the others won't get to where they're going.” She smiled at his shocked expression. “Oh yeah, I know about that. I know everything.”

  Chloe had to stop this. “Gina, leave him alone.”

  Her grin widened. “Ah, I knew you were around here somewhere.” She kept the gun pointed at Dr. Barrett, but moved back a fraction. “Now, I suggest you have your little invisible friend make me disappear before someone takes notice.” She waited, eyebrows raised.

  They had no choice. Every second Gina was out in the open holding a gun at Dr. Barrett was one second closer they got to discovery.

  “Maia,” Chloe said quietly. One breath later, Gina vanished.

  “Nice,” Gina said.

  Chloe let out a frustrated huff. “You're here,” she said. “Now shut up so we don't get caught.”

  “No problem,” Gina replied. “And you all just remember I have Dr. Barrett here in my sights, so don't get any ideas.”

  They made it to the Crosswalk without any further incident, and Dr. Barrett held the door open to let them all pass, once he'd keyed in the security code.

  “I've disabled the cameras in here,” he said. “They all know I'm paranoid about my research, so it's not that unusual. You’re all free to reappear.”

  With that, Maia released her gift and Chloe could once again see Gina Talbot pointing a gun at the back of Dr. Barrett's head. After a few seconds, Beck, Tru, and Wren joined regular time, as well.

  “There are my loving children,” Gina said with a smile. “I was wondering if I'd see you here.”

  “I was hoping you wouldn't,” Beck growled in reply.

  “Ah, now, is that any way to speak to your mother?”

  “You're no—” He cut off when Wren touched his arm and stepped back, ignoring Gina.

  Dr. Barrett seemed to do the same, moving from one workstation to another.

  “What can we do to help?” Chloe asked.

  He blinked at her for a second, as if he'd forgotten she was there. “Yes, yes,” he said, distractedly. “You—” He pointed at Beck. “Watch this screen, let me know when this line gets here. Got it?”

  Beck nodded and took a seat at the monitor.

  Dr. Barrett placed them each at spots around the room, instructing them with terse, focused words. Chloe followed behind him, eyeing Gina carefully as she stood, back against the wall, watching them all with narrowed eyes.

  Dr. Barrett sat on a tall stool, typing quickly as he focused on a diagram on the computer screen. “Can’t believe I’m doing this,” he muttered to himself as he worked. “I haven’t Crossed in years. I must be out of my mind.”

  Chloe took in his profile, straight nose, thick brow, small scar at the corner of his eye. The familiarity that was still there, although now that she knew him, it wasn't as surprising. Still, there was something about him.

  “Why are you doing this?” she asked.

  His fingers faltered. “What?”

  “Why are you helping us? Helping me?”

  Dr. Barrett started typing again, and for a moment Chloe wondered if he was going to answer. Then, he turned his full attention on her.

  “I knew your mother.”

  That was not what she expected, and she was certain the little gasp that escaped her proved it.

  “It was years ago, when they were trying to recruit her for WARDEN,” he explained. “We became . . . close.” He cleared his throat. “We were friends,” he clarified. “One day she came to me and told me that someday a girl would ask for my help. And she asked me to help her, protect her . . . protect you. She said it was important. She—” He turned back to his computer and started typing again. “She asked me to promise. And I did.”

  Lights turned on around the platform and the pad in the center glowed pale purple, a low, rumbling sound filling the room. Dr. Barrett pressed a button and a sixty-second countdown began on a large screen overhead.

  “So my mother had a vision that I would come to you?” Chloe asked. “How did you—”

  “We don't really have time for this right now,” Dr. Barrett said shortly. Then he took a deep breath and gave her a small smile. “We'll talk about it after this is all done, okay?”

  Chloe nodded, still a little stunned, and he led her to a locked cabinet. He opened it with a thumbprint, and removed a metal cylinder, about a foot tall and half that in diameter.

  “This is the containment unit,” he said. “I may need your help with it while I'm holding the portal open.” He showed her a control panel on the side. “You'll need to enter this code while Wren does her part at the terminal over there.” He pressed a numerical code and a light turned from red to green.

  “Got it?” he asked.

  “I think so.”

  He reset the cylinder and had her enter the code while he watched.

  “Good,” he said, glancing at the countdown.

  Thirty seconds.

  “It's at the line,” Beck called out.

  “Good,” Dr. Barrett said again as he climbed up onto the platform. “Now come with me. You'll have to get Ethan out. There's no one to reopen the portal once we're through, so I'll need to straddle both dimensions to keep it open.”

  “What about me?” Gina asked.

  He glanced at Chloe, but all she could do was shrug.

  “Go through once the portal opens,” he replies. “You're sure you want to do this?”

  Gina's eyes glittered. “Just open the portal, old man,” she said. “I know what I'm doing.”

  The numbers on the screen flashed, and Gina edged closer to the platform, her heart pounding as she waited.

  Five . . . four . . .

  Finally, finally she was here, moments away from getting what she wanted . . . what she needed. Getting back everything she had lost, everything that was so brutally ripped away, leaving her weak and scarred and alone.

  Three . . . two . . . one.

  The rumbling in the room grew to a roar, and the scientist stiffened, his arms extended, and his head thrown back. She wasn't sure what was happening, what exactly she was looking for, but she held her breath in anticipation.

  Then, she saw it. First, a little pinprick of darkness just under Dr. Barrett's left hand, then it grew larger, a spinning ball of black moving into position behind him.

  “Increase the output,” he shouted at Wren.

  “What?” She floundered at her control panel.

  “The red slider! Move it up until the counter says point-five-five-zero.”

  The girl did what she was told and the black ball grew larger . . . and larger . . . until Gina could see that it wasn't a ball at all, but a swirling, black vortex.

  “Yes,” she murmured. She started to climb onto the platform, but Dr. Barrett's head snapped up.

  “Not yet!” he yelled over the increasing din. “The portal isn't stable!”

  Gina stopped, one foot on the pl
atform, her fingers clammy around the gun, and she let out a breathy laugh.

  She could feel It.

  Eyes focused on the portal, she waited, ready. She was so ready.

  The vortex grew even larger, until it reached the tips of the scientist's outstretched fingers—from the top of his head to the soles of his feet. It was like he was at the mouth of a cave that extended behind him into the darkness.

  Into another world.

  Then, a tiny spot of light appeared in the center of the darkness, and it too began to grow.

  “That's him!” Chloe cried, and Gina could see that she was right. Through the portal, as though down a long, spiraling tunnel, she could see the boy surrounded in darkness, and wrapped in ribbons of light.

  It reached out to her . . . called to her . . . and the raw power It sent her way nearly dropped her to the floor.

  “Now!” Dr. Barrett shouted, and Gina didn't wait another second.

  She ran for the portal, shoved Beck out of the way, and jumped.

  Wren adjusted a knob on the control panel, but sprang to her feet when Beck started after Gina, hand glowing and murder in his eyes.

  “Wait!” she shouted, and time stopped. Gina was already through the portal, and Wren could see her outline in the light emanating from Ethan's bonds. The portal itself was frozen in time as well, the twisting spiral reaching out behind Dr. Barrett in a curving tunnel. Beck stood, one foot extended past the opening, his fists clenched, and Wren knew he planned to get to Gina, no matter the cost.

  She got up and wound her way past Chloe and Maia, who both stood wearing identical expressions of shock and worry. Climbing up onto the platform, she avoided touching Dr. Barrett and reached out to wrap her fingers around Beck's wrist.

  After a moment, he stumbled forward, then back, blinking as he realized that he was the only one moving.

  “What are you doing?” he asked Wren. “I need to go after her.”

  “You need to take a moment,” she replied. “You're angry, and I get that. But you can't do this.”