Masked (Superheros Undercover Book 1)

by J. D. Wright

  Superheroes UnderCover? Is that what S.U.C. really stood for? Superheroes and villains had existed since long before his birth. His father had been district attorney for over a decade, and Nick had never heard of Superheroes UnderCover. And S.I.C.? Sick? What was up with all of the terrible acronyms? Who were these people?

  There were three links on the list of websites recommended. One was Super Outfitters, for supercuts and accessories. Another was Super Weaponry, which obviously sold weapons. And the last was Super Gadgets. Apparently, all of the stores for superheroes had “super” in the name.

  And speaking of names, the letter mentioned only using his super name. He didn’t have one. How did one decide on a super name, anyway? And after he chose a name, got a suit, and attended this class, would he suddenly become a superhero? The idea was enough to make him nauseous.

  His father fought crime, but in the courtroom, not on the streets. A mind-reading superpower wasn’t exactly the best ability to have when going against hardened criminals. He couldn’t fly, didn’t have super strength, or the power to make fire. What the hell was he supposed to do? Read a criminal’s mind and try to get ahead of him, somehow? Thwart plans before they started? Actually, that just might work…

  Before he could convince himself otherwise, he opened another tab on his browser and went to the supersuit website. After about an hour of playing around with it, he went to the weapons site. The options were endless and he couldn’t make a single decision. He didn’t know what a superhero needed on his suit or what weapons were the best choice.

  This is hopeless. Nick closed the computer lid and went back to his homework with supersuits, masks, and swords running through his mind for the rest of the night.

  Chapter Nine

  Vada waited by the back doors of the school on Wednesday morning, hoping to catch Henley before she went to class. If she even came to school at all. Vada couldn’t be sure that she would. Henley had been ignoring her calls and texts, and Henley’s mother had complained about her daughter’s behavior when Vada called her house that morning.

  Something was wrong with her friend and Vada refused to give up without finding out what it was and trying to help her. She owed that much to Henley. They had been friends since middle school when the both of them had needed someone to lean on during the awkward pre-teen years. They had gravitated toward each other in the library, bonding over Harry Potter books and Oreos.

  Henley’s behavior now was concerning. And while Vada hoped it was just a phase, she had a sneaking suspicion that it was something more serious. The change had happened suddenly and there was no good explanation for it. James might not want to believe that the cause was supernatural, but Vada wasn’t so sure.

  A car screeched into the parking lot and Vada recognized the green Nissan. It parked in the spot, albeit fairly crookedly. Henley got out of the car wearing a pair of tight jeans, strappy emerald green halter-top, and high-heeled boots that came almost to her knees. From the halter-top that bared her shoulders, it seemed that Henley’s breaking of the school dress code was ongoing.

  “Good morning,” Vada chirped, hoping to hide the worry in her voice. “I’m glad you’re here. I wanted to—”

  “Do you want to go to the mall later?” Henley cut in, talking while she reapplied her lipstick. “I saw a new jacket in the window at Pizazz and I want it.”

  “Pizazz? Henley, that jacket probably costs like two hundred bucks! Why don’t we try—”

  “Don’t worry about the money, Vada. I can probably talk the store down to half or…free. I’m good like that.” She gave Vada a once-over from head to toe. “You could use some new stuff too. I’m sure we could find something even you will approve of.”

  “I can’t afford anything from the mall, Henley. You know that. But I wanted to ask you—”

  “I already told you not to worry about the money.” Henley rolled her eyes.

  “That’s not what I wanted to—”

  “Stop, Vada! Whatever it is, I don’t want to hear it. Are you coming to the damn mall or not?”

  “Not.” Vada stepped closer. “I don’t know what’s gotten into you lately, but I don’t like it. You’re acting like a total bitch and I don’t deserve this from you.”

  The bell rang before either of them could get another word in. Vada marched into the school and Henley glared at her back until she disappeared behind the closed door.

  Alone outside, Henley propped her hand on her hip and considered her options. She could go to class and sit through a boring lecture while trying to avoid Vada’s judgmental gaze for the entire day. Or she could go to the mall and work her charm on the salesperson in Pizazz and probably walk away with much more than just the jacket.

  With a shrug, she spun on her heel and strolled back toward her car. She was reaching into the back pocket of her jeans for her car key when she heard a rumble and saw someone fast approaching. The dark blur slowed to a roll and stopped behind her car. The motorcycle was new, or appeared to be from the shine on the chrome and black. The rider, matching the bike in all black, reached up and took his helmet off.

  “Well, well,” Victor said, smiling. “If it isn’t the princess.”

  “Princess?” Henley raised her brow.

  “Lover of the prince, of course. Oh, come on now. It’s hardly been a week since our conversation at Nick’s party. Don’t pretend you don’t remember.”

  “I remember.” Henley smiled wide and walked to the back of her car, leaning against the trunk. “But I don’t give a shit about the prince anymore.”

  “I had a feeling you wouldn’t. Not after meeting me.”

  When Victor winked, Henley felt a flush that reached all the way down between her thighs. She resisted the urge to clamp her legs together. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing what his smooth voice, sly smile, and knowing eyes were doing to her.

  “Are you going to class?” he asked, nodding toward the school.

  “Nah. I have better things to do. How about you? Shouldn’t you be inside like a good boy?”

  Victor smirked. “I think we both know I’m far from a good boy.” He lifted his helmet up toward her. “Hop on.”

  “And go where?”

  “Aww…that’s cute. You’re scared.”

  Henley snatched the helmet and shoved it onto her head. “I’m not scared. I was curious. I don’t really know you, you know. How do I know you won’t drive me somewhere and try to take advantage of me?”

  “Didn’t say I wouldn’t. I guess you’ll just have to trust me.”

  Henley stepped forward and tipped her head down until they were a breath away from each other. “I don’t trust you. I don’t really trust anyone.”

  Victor laughed and spun around to restart his bike. “Good. Stay that way.”

  Henley climbed on behind him and wrapped her arms around his leather jacket. She might speak with an unshaken confidence, but she had never been on a motorcycle. The idea of riding one was just as terrifying as it was thrilling. She clenched his back between her legs and held on tight as he revved up the bike, leaned forward, and took off out of the lot.

  The ride was smoother than Henley had anticipated. She eventually loosened her death grip on Victor just enough to lift her head and look at the buildings as they passed by. The helmet and Victor’s body blocked some of the wind, but she still felt weightless as the bike jumped a small hill and flew through the air.

  “Whoooo!” Henley shouted.

  Her smile was permanently plastered to her face. The longer they rode, the more she enjoyed it. She had no idea where they were going, and frankly, she didn’t care. This was the most carefree that she had felt in months. Her heart raced and adrenaline rushed through her veins. This was better than anything she had ever experienced.

  Victor slowed and turned the motorcycle into an alley. But instead of parking, he continued forward. Suddenly, a door at the end of the alley began to slide up. He drove straight into the brick building and ont
o a small elevator.

  When the bike stopped, Henley swung her leg over and jumped off. “That was awesome!”

  Victor laughed. “I’m glad you approve.” Without pushing any buttons, the elevator began to lower into the ground.

  “Where are we?”

  “Can you keep a secret?”

  Henley’s smile began to fade. “Depends on the secret.”

  “I’ll bet you have a few secrets of your own.”

  “Maybe.”

  Victor took Henley’s hand and guided her around the bike as they lowered. She bit her lip and felt the hair rise on her arm, partly from the cool air, but mostly because she was nervous as to where he was taking her. Victor was still a mystery to her. What she knew of him was mainly rumors, but for some unexplained reason, she felt drawn to him in a way that she never had Nick or any other boy. Ever.

  The elevator stopped and what Henley saw next took her breath away. There were tables upon tables of glass contraptions and equipment. Some were large globes filled with different colors of luminous liquids that flowed through swirling and looping tubes from one container to the next, connecting the tables like one intricate system. The room smelled of chemicals in the same way that her school’s lab did during one of their experiments. The two walls to either side of them were lined with shelves containing the same liquids, bottled and labeled with numbers.

  “What is all of this?” she asked, mesmerized as she walked among the tables and surveyed the glowing liquids as they flowed, bubbled, and steamed. “Did you make this?”

  “Me?” Victor chuckled. “No. This is my dad’s stuff. He’s the brain behind the operation. I’m just the distributor.”

  Henley turned to face him. “That drug you gave me, did it come from here?”

  “Maybe.”

  She paused for a minute before asking, “What exactly was in it?”

  Victor wasn’t surprised by the question. “Why do you ask?”

  He walked over to a table that held vials of the drug in question. He picked one up and turned it over, watching the liquid shimmer in the glass. Then he replaced the vial and waited for her to reply.

  “I asked you first.”

  “Sorry, sugar. You want answers, you have to answer mine.”

  Henley turned away and pretended to look at the table beside her. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

  “Try me. You’d be surprised what I will believe.”

  “I’ve been…” She walked over to a wall with hanging papers of formulas that she couldn’t even begin to understand. She took a deep breath and spun back toward him. “I’ve been able to do something that I couldn’t do before. But like I told you, you won’t believe me if I tell you.”

  Victor moved closer and didn’t stop until he had her pinned to the wall behind her. His rough hands trailed up her sides and wrapped around her back, pulling her body close. She looked up into his round eyes, which were as dark brown as his hair, and felt the intense need to meet him halfway.

  And so she did, leaning up on her toes as he lowered his head. Their lips met like a hard punch to the gut. The first kiss was quick, just to test the water. But the next had the both of them opening their mouths, tongues clashing and dueling for control. Fingers wandered over her silky top and Victor’s hands filled with her plump breasts while he rubbed her nipples to peaks through her shirt and bra.

  “Tell me,” he urged.

  “I can…” Henley gasped for air between kisses. “I can make people do things. Just by telling them to.”

  “Is that so?” Victor bit his lip, glad to have charmed it out of her. “What kinds of things?”

  “Lots of things.” She smiled. “I can make them say things, give me things, do things for me…do things to me…” She licked her lips and thought about the young man from next door and how he had bent to her will just two nights ago.

  Victor smiled. “Someone’s been naughty.”

  “You have no idea.”

  “I have some idea.” He released her and stepped back.

  Before Henley could protest the absence of his warm, firm body, he was tugging her arm behind him as he crossed the room.

  “I have one more thing to show you,” he said, stopping beside the wall.

  Henley studied the space, but all she saw were more tacked papers filled with scribbles of numbers and letters. She didn’t have time to ask, though. Victor leaned forward and peered into a small hole in the wall. A bright light flashed through the hole and suddenly the entire wall began to lower into the floor.

  Behind it, floor and ceiling lights turned on, leading into the room a few feet at a time. Soon, the entire space was visible. In the center of the furthest wall was a tall glass case containing a stained lab coat and helmet of some sort. She recognized the helmet immediately. It was that of Dr. Chem, a notorious supervillain.

  She remembered him because a lot of people had died in an explosion Dr. Chem was credited for over a decade ago, including a few superheroes. It made national news and the man responsible had been plastered all over the television screen for months. They still held a memorial each year to remember the fallen.

  “When you say that your dad is the brains behind the operation,” Henley said, turning around, “do you mean to tell me that your dad is him? You are Dr. Chem’s son?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Holy shit.”

  Victor laughed. “So you’ve heard of him?”

  It was her turn to laugh. “You’re kidding, right? Your father is one of the most famous villains of all time, Victor.”

  “Supervillain. Don’t let him hear you forget to say the “super” part. My dad is a lot of things, but humble isn’t one of them.”

  Henley walked around and looked at the rest of the room. There were other lab coats and helmets but they were a lot cleaner than the one inside the case. The walls were filled with gadgets she didn’t recognize, hanging on hooks or sitting on shelves.

  “Wait.” She froze in place. “If your father is a supervillain, and supervillains pass on their powers, does that mean that you’re…”

  “A super too?” he offered, filling in the rest of her sentence. “Perhaps.”

  “Victor. Give me one straight answer. I answered your question, now answer mine.”

  He stepped closer and spun her around to face him. Then he grabbed her waist and lifted her up, carrying her to a table in the corner of the secret room. He sat her down but stayed between her legs. His eyes met hers and he held them for a moment.

  “I was born with a power, yes. It’s not anything like my dad’s. He’s a superchemist. I’m not.”

  Henley leaned closer to him, her breasts rubbing against his chest. “What’s your power?”

  “Rapid acceleration.”

  “What?”

  “Speed, Henley,” he said, smiling. “I have superspeed.”

  “You mean like…you can run really fast?”

  “Something like that.”

  She thought about his power for a moment. “Is that how you disappeared so quickly at the party? When I turned around, you were gone.”

  “I don’t use my power in public. Well, I mean when I’m not in disguise. And you should be more careful with your power too.”

  She balked. “You believe me?”

  “Of course I do. I knew before I saw you at the school. You’re not a hard girl to find, Henley.”

  “Stalking is rude, Victor.”

  He smiled. “So is stealing over $700 worth of jewelry from a store, but I didn’t see you bat an eye at that.”

  She narrowed her eyes and let out a small growl. He really had been following her if he knew about her shopping trip the day before. The emerald green earrings she wore now were scored from that outing.

  “Don’t worry your sexy head,” he purred, leaning in and capturing her bottom lip between his teeth. He sucked on it until she whimpered, then he let go and smiled. “I can keep a secret too.”

  “But what are y
ou saying? That my ability is like yours? How is that possible?”

  “That drug you took,” he said, nodding toward the lab, “changed you. It altered your genetic makeup. I can’t go into the details because I don’t understand any of that science bullshit, but I can tell you that once you drank that vial, you became one of us. You’re a super now, Henley. And your power…it’s called persuasion. It’s a good one to have.”

  “It isn’t that great,” she returned, rolling her eyes. “It doesn’t always work. Believe me, I’ve tried. That idiot bouncer at the club last night wouldn’t let me in.”

  “That’s because not every brain is impressionable. Some are more than others and some not at all. Normals are one thing, but there are even things that superhumans can do to block mind control and persuasion. But you can get stronger, be stronger. I can help you.”

  “How?”

  “Lots of ways, but I need you to promise me something, first.”

  Henley stared into his eyes, trying to decide if she should trust him. He had given her a drug and changed her without her permission. Then he followed her for who knows how long. She knew his father’s ruthless reputation, and she didn’t know enough about Victor to decide how close she should get to him.

  “What promise?”

  “I will help you to tap into all of your power. We’ll create your own super identity, which will give you the freedom to do whatever you want. I can make you stronger.”

  “And the catch?”

  Victor glanced behind him and turned back. “Henley, you have to promise not to tell my father that you took the drug.”

  “Why?”

  “I’ll explain more later, but you can’t let him know. If he asks, promise you’ll lie and tell him you were born with your power. I don’t care what you say—just not the truth.”

  “And if I do this, if I promise not to tell your father, you’ll help me?”

  “Yes. I will.” He clutched her waist and pulled her closer. “I will help you turn every head in this city and make even the mayor do your bidding. You’ll be unstoppable.”