If Mindy was feeling upset or angry, she hid it well. She acted like nothing had changed between us. She gave me her usual cold look and then whispered something to her friends. That was her basic treatment of me: glares and grimaces, followed by cutting statements, ever since seventh grade when Jack had started paying attention to me. The first time he sat next to me at the movies and slipped his hand in mine, I caught her glaring at me from the row behind us. She hadn’t let up since. I alternated between trying to be tolerant because I figured she had a crush on Jack, and being furious because she was so mean.
I hated being around her, not just because she picked on me, but also because she was evidence of the only time I’d used my super strength by accident. I still squirmed at the memory from this past spring of kicking a soccer ball so hard at Mindy that it might have really hurt her if it had hit her. Luckily for both of us, the ball hit the edge of the soccer goal instead, knocking it over. Not my proudest moment. Since then, I’d worked very hard to control myself around her. I had several little half-moon scars in my palm from clenching my fists so tightly my nails had dug into my flesh.
I slid into my usual desk in the middle of the rows of chairs, trying to ignore Mindy and her gang, but that’s easier said than done with supernormal hearing. Every time Mindy muttered my name, it was like a siren calling my attention to them.
I expected her to be fixated on my role in stopping her brother in the robbery, but she stuck to her usual insults. My lame hair, my lame clothes, my lame backpack, whatever offended her that day.
I slumped down in my chair. Mr. Robinson called for attention and everyone settled down. I caught one last hiss from Mindy. “You think you’re all that, don’t you?”
I looked down at my desk and then let my gaze drift up to focus on her. She was glaring at me, but I thought I saw the sheen of tears in her eyes. I opened my mouth to tell her I was sorry about her brother’s addiction, but snapped it shut so hard I felt my teeth click together at her next words. “But just wait until you see what I have planned for you.”
“Hey, it’s not my fault your brother has a problem.” Oh man, not what I meant to say.
She glared at me and leaned forward. “You bitch.”
“Quiet down,” Mr. Robinson said, and with one last glare at each other we both backed off.
I didn’t need supernormal powers to know Mindy was staring holes into to my back all during class. Normally I enjoyed Lit class despite Mindy’s presence, today not so much. When the bell rang, I wanted to dart from my chair into the hall. I forced myself to get up slowly and casually pull my backpack over one shoulder before strolling out the door.
Mindy followed me. “Hey.”
I gritted my teeth together and turned to face her. “What?”
Before she could say more, Jack walked up. My stomach lurched; was he talking to me now?
“Hey Olivia, hey Mindy,” he said as his gaze flicked back and forth between us before finally settling on me. “You guys okay?”
I shrugged, ready to give Mindy a break just this once, especially since I felt a twinge of guilt over what I’d said about her brother. But she killed any goodwill by saying, “Oh Jack,” in a sad little voice with tears in her eyes.
Jack put a hand on her arm. “I’m sorry about your brother. How’s your family doing?”
She sighed. “They’re okay, I guess.” She lowered her eyes and twisted her hands together. “Walk me to class?” They both had Biology next; naturally I had History on the opposite side of the school.
I started to protest as Jack said, “Of course, but let me talk to Olivia first. I’ll catch up.”
I smirked at her while she walked slowly down the hall. Then I smiled at Jack, happy he was talking to me. “Hi.”
“Hey.” Jack scratched his arm and avoided my eyes. “I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”
I shrugged. “Yeah.” I glanced in the direction Mindy had gone and saw her waiting for Jack. I curled my lip at her and she frowned.
“You should cut her some slack.”
“What?” I said. How dare he assume I wasn’t!
“Well, come on, we saw how bad off her brother is. That can’t be easy to deal with.”
It was fine for him; he’d never been on the receiving end of Mindy’s taunts. She was all sunshine and light when Jack was around.
Mindy chose that moment to call out in a sickly sweet voice.,“Jack? You coming?”
I wanted to throw up.
“The bell’s going to ring soon,” Jack said as if apologizing. “We can talk later.”
“Yeah, sure.” I waved him away, suddenly very tired.
He caught up with Mindy, who gave him a wan little smile as she slid her arm through his. I watched as they walked away until they turned the corner. Once they were out of sight, I leaned against the wall, frowning at my feet.
That had not gone well.
The bell rang; I jerked upright, realizing I was late for class. I ran down the hall, forcing myself to stay at a normal-paced run. I tried to slip into class unnoticed, but Mrs. Gains said, “Olivia, just because you did a good deed does not mean you can be late to class, young lady. You can speak to your fans after school.”
I slid into my seat to the laughter of my classmates. The day was not taking a turn for the better. And I still had supernormal training to look forward to after school.
Chapter 9
The end of the school day came all too quickly. A part of me hoped for a last-minute deluge of homework, maybe a project I had forgotten about, but no luck.
After my last class, I stood out in front of the school, my hands in the pockets of my raincoat, shoulders hunched against the cold drizzle. Hugh pulled up in an old Subaru, with Kevin riding shotgun. I climbed into the backseat, wrinkling my nose at the smell of workout clothes and gear.
“Hello.” Hugh nodded at me in the rearview mirror. He wasn’t quite frowning, but the furrow in his brow indicated he was on the edge of one.
“Hi.” I pulled my hair into a ponytail. I’d already changed into workout clothes in the school locker room.
Kevin turned around in his seat. “So did you get the writing assignment about where you think you’ll be in ten years?” He grinned mischievously when I nodded. “Should be interesting, trying to make up stuff.”
I answered automatically. “Everyone is going to be making up stuff.”
“Not as much as us.”
I frowned at him as I settled back for the ride. He was right; there was no way I could write about wanting to be able to control my abilities so I could lead a normal life.
There were several cars and bicycles parked in front of the warehouse when we arrived. I scanned the vehicles, wondering which one was Emma's. Since she was homeschooled, did she ride with Uncle Dan? Or did she come on her own? I picked at my fingernails while Hugh pulled into the parking spot next to Aunt Kate’s Mini. The guys jumped out of the car quickly, obviously eager to start training, but I sat still, heavy with nerves. Finally Kevin opened the door and pulled me out of the car.
"Ollie, it'll be okay. Really." His smile encouraged me and reminded me that Kevin’s father, Uncle Alex, was on my side as well. I mean, if I had a side, which I didn’t, because it was stupid to think my family was siding for or against me.
I took a deep breath and nodded. I walked between the guys through the door into the workout area.
No longer was the large room dimly lit with idle workout equipment. The clang of weights rang out, and I saw a guy that could only be Lange, Zoe’s older brother, using the leg press with the weight set to 1000 lbs. Kevin waved hello to him. Lange released the leg press, stood up, and came over to greet me.
While the rest of us looked like very fit, athletic normals, Lange looked exactly like what he was: a supernormal and a hero. He was tall, well-muscled (very well-muscled) and had a grin that revealed gleaming white teeth. I could just imagine him on a supernormal recruiting poster, if there were such a thing as rec
ruiting for supernormals.
“Hi, Olivia.” Lange shook my hand firmly. “Glad to have you back.”
I barely remembered Lange from when we were kids since he was seven years older than I was. He hadn’t really paid attention to the younger kids when he visited. Now he was in college and on active supernormal duty. Kevin had told me with obvious admiration about Lange helping out the search and rescue teams in the Columbia Gorge. Apparently he was able to use his abilities discreetly enough to save fallen or lost hikers without causing suspicion.
“Dude, ready for a rematch?” Kevin asked Lange.
Lange just laughed, giving Kevin a ‘come on’ gesture in the direction of the weights area.
Hugh led me to the classroom where I came face to face with Emma. To my surprise, she was at least a head taller than me. When we were seven, we were same height. I even remembered our mothers measuring us against each other. Now she was tall and angular with a flat chest and few curves. Her black hair was in a pixie cut framing her face, making her hazel eyes look very large. She stared at me with a cool gaze, her hands on her hips.
Zoe came over to stand beside her. Together they seem to be a united unwelcoming committee.
Unsure how to start, I did what I do best. I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind. “Wow, you're really tall." Nice, Olivia, very profound.
Emma drew her eyebrows down. She said, “Well … you're really short." Her voice was flat and cold.
“I guess it's all a matter of perspective."
Zoe rolled her eyes at both of us. “Whatever." I thought I saw the edges of her mouth twitch in a small smile.
Emma tapped her fingers against her thigh and frowned. “Are you really back? Are you really going to train?”
“I am.” I didn’t add that it was just until I got my abilities under control. Her attitude made me want to challenge her to a workout competition like when we were little, but I held back. For now. Instead I blurted out the question most on my mind since yesterday when I found out my significant ability was late. “So, what did your ability turn out to be?”
Emma’s face went dark, and, surprised at her reaction, I stepped back, afraid she was going to punch me. Her voice came out just a little shaky. “It’s really rude to ask about someone’s abilities.”
“What?” I was astonished. “Why?”
“You’d know if you’d stuck around, instead of hiding,” Emma snapped back.
“Look” Vibrating with anger, I jumped directly in front of my taller cousin, ready to fight. She didn’t back down.
Zoe shoved her way between us. “Stop it.” She pushed us apart by the simple means of putting a hand on each of our chests and straightening her arms. I staggered back but kept my eyes on Emma, watching for her next move. Zoe faced Emma. “Leave Olivia alone. Give her a chance to acclimate before you start picking on her.” Zoe faced me. “Olivia, it’s an old fashioned rule, but some supernormals” – her eyes flickered to Emma, then back to mine – “still follow it. It’s based on the old days when some supernormals believed your special ability could also be exploited as your greatest weakness.” She shrugged. “Not everyone believes it, but it’s probably best to avoid asking, for the moment.”
Emma frowned and crossed her arms, looking recalcitrant.
“Oh. Well, then I guess…” I fumbled, feeling small and gauche, like I’d asked someone about an illness they didn’t wish to discuss. “Um, sorry.” I gave Emma a wry smile which she didn’t return.
Our brilliant conversation was interrupted by Uncle Dan. He came over with a tablet in hand, apparently oblivious to the tension in the air. “Zoe, Emma, get started. You both have your training schedules." They nodded and started to walk away; Emma ignored me, but Zoe flashed me a small smile. “And Emma” – she turned to Uncle Dan expectantly – “work on your timing in the agility course. I've noticed you slacking off lately."
For just a second, I thought I saw fury pass across Emma's face, but it was gone so quickly that I decided I’d imagined it. After all, I really didn't know her expressions anymore. She nodded and followed Zoe to the agility course.
I drew several deep breaths to calm myself, a technique I’d had to perfect over the years to keep from instinctively using my supernormal abilities. Now I used it to keep from going after Emma and starting a fight I may not be able to win yet.
“Olivia." Uncle Dan pointed to one of the chairs facing the projection board. I dutifully sat down, feeling calmer. Though I had mixed feelings about being back in the family fold, I was curious to see what kind of training program Uncle Dan had in store for me. Would I get to work out up on the rafters, learning to swing through the rope forest? Would I get to practice holding my breath in the tank that was now full of water? I sat down in anticipation.
He pressed a key on a laptop. “I made a list of the areas you'll need to work on." He regarded the list on the projection screen thoughtfully. “As you can see, the list is extensive. But I would expect that, given your delinquency in training."
Delinquency? Interesting way to put seven years of ignoring family and heritage. It sounded like Uncle Dan had always assumed I would come back. I tucked that thought away to think about later. For now, I focused on Uncle Dan’s training requirements for new supernormals. It was pretty much everything: gaining speed and endurance, working on the agility course, swimming, seeing how long I could stay under water, and a variety of other skill sets he deemed necessary for a supernormal. I wondered why he even bothered with a list when every workout in the world was on it.
“Well, I guess I should get started," I said, more just to have something to say in response to the overwhelming list of things I wasn’t good at. “What’s first?"
The answer turned out to be boring. Apparently he just wanted me to run on the treadmill for as long as I could. Deflated by such an anticlimactic training session, I went to the treadmill and started running. I guess I expected something more like testing if I could fly. Okay, I would run. And I did run and run, for what seemed like forever.
The thing about running, especially when it's not that hard, is that you can watch what is going on around you. And watch I did.
Kevin and Lange were apparently having a contest over who could lift the most weight on each weight machine. From what I could tell, Lange won most of the time, but Kevin was catching up. Lange even looked impressed when Kevin set the barbells to 1500 lbs. Kevin gritted his teeth and was sweating by the time he finished. Lange just smiled and added another 500 lbs, which he lifted with some effort but still quickly and smoothly. Kevin threw up his hands and rolled his eyes, conceding the contest with a grin.
After a while, Hugh came over carrying three practice swords. The guys began a three-way sword fight that was graceful and violent. It looked fun. I wanted to join in, but I saw Uncle Dan watching me and taking notes, so I turned my attention back to running. I was pleased to see I’d run five miles in twenty minutes.
Uncle Dan turned his attention to another task, and I kept running while watching my cousins train.
Zoe swung from rope to rope across the room almost continuously, taking different paths each time. I caught my breath in fear a few times as she swung from one rope to another, letting go of the first rope before she was close to the second rope. Somehow she caught the next rope every time.
Emma completed her agility course, earning a nod from Uncle Dan. I couldn't figure out what she was doing next. She stood at a table near the middle of the room, and Uncle Alex stood next to her, holding a iPad. He touched several spots on the screen, then looked up and nodded at her. Suddenly a glass vase appeared on the table, and Emma stood panting beside the table. The sequence repeated, this time with a book.
It took several rounds of this before I decided either she was finding these objects with her mind or she could stop time long enough to grab all of the objects from somewhere else. Uncle Alex seemed pleased with her progress. When he released her, she was smiling. Uncle Dan came over
to check with Uncle Alex, both looking at the tablet and talking quietly while Emma stood nearby with her hands clasped behind her back and her head down, no longer smiling. Uncle Dan said something to her that made her wince, but she nodded in apparent agreement while clenching her hand in a fist behind her back.
Watching Emma display her significant ability made me wonder about the rest of the family’s unique abilities. As a kid, my mom didn’t tell me what her siblings’ significant abilities were; I guess because of the rule Zoe had mentioned earlier. I only knew about Mom’s because I got to do some training with her. Emma and I had once talked about how cool it would be if we had complementary abilities. Now hers had manifested and mine might never. I sighed and focused on running, hoping to push away my worries.
After a couple of hours passed, Aunt Kate called time. “Everyone gather in the classroom. Grab some water and relax."
I pressed the stop button on the treadmill and was surprised to discover I’d run twenty six miles in two hours. I staggered a little bit coming off the treadmill. It felt strange to walk after all that running.
Uncle Dan came over with his tablet to check my stats. I waited for his congratulations on my speed, but he merely said, “You’ll get stronger in time."
Stung, I followed him to the classroom where Kevin saved a seat for me. He said quietly, “It’s okay, you'll get faster."
“I did a marathon in two hours. That seems pretty fast."
Zoe was listening while she poured some water. She snorted. “Told you she had a lot of catching up to do."
“Zoe, let it go," Lange said, annoyed. “Olivia, we can all pretty much run a marathon in about 30 to 45 minutes." He gave a lopsided grin at my astonished look.
The Supernormal Legacy (Book 1): Dormant Page 7
