Burn Out (Cape High Series Book 21)

by R. J. Ross

  “So… why’d you dump Jimmi?” he asks. The knife in Vinny’s hand slips, and had he not been a super, he would have cut himself.

  “I didn’t dump her,” Vinny says, not looking at the other teen, “she just dumped me, didn’t you hear?”

  “Oh,” Jonas says. “So… you have trouble talking to girls, too, huh?”

  “I do not have…” Vinny lets out a sigh, “Okay, yes. I have no idea what just happened.”

  “Do you not like her?” Jonas asks.

  “When I first met her, she was dating a real jerk, and in a bad situation, which was partly her fault,” Vinny says. “She only liked me because she thought I came down here to save her.”

  “Nobody saves her, now, though,” Jonas says. “She’s the one that does Morgan’s job, down here, Morgan’s AND Zoe’s, actually. She’s constantly checking on us. She’s the leader, here, and she does a really good job of it. Nobody’s worried about Davis, because everyone knows that she’ll be the first to go save him if he needs it.”

  “Do you like Davis?”

  “He’s a pompous jerk,” Jonas says, “but he’s gotten better, I guess. He’s really good at leading recon, at least he was once he got over himself a little. Well, it’s part that, and part the fact that he just tells us what we need to do, and expects us to figure out how to do it on our own.”

  “He almost killed the planet,” Vinny points out.

  “Yeah, but he was here to fix his mistake, right?” Jonas says. “He seemed to actually enjoy making the foam to stop them. Nobody’s perfect, you know? I see it all the time. Well, sure, physically they might be perfect, but mentally… well, everyone has problems. But hey, if you don’t like her, I’m sure Treble will be happy to hear it.”

  “Who’s Treble?” Vinny asks.

  “The guy that tried to take down Skye to get into South Branch,” Jonas says. “I heard that he tried to get into Central and Nico refused.”

  Vinny snorts. “Yeah, okay.”

  “But someone else will come along,” Jonas says. “Just like someone’s probably going to come along for Alyssa… She still has a crush on Ace, I bet.”

  “Ace is in love with Morgan,” Vinny says as he starts to frost the cake.

  “But he sucks at talking to girls, too, right?”

  ***

  I have my schedule on my commlink, and it’s supposed to light up when I need to head to the next thing. I was going to take Vinny out to lunch, but I’m ignoring that fact. Besides, Cheval has made etouffee, and she’s an excellent cook.

  “So,” she says as she sits down at the table with her own bowl, “what brings you to my humble home, sweetie?”

  I finish my latest bite, sighing happily, and then give her my best smile. “If you’re asking me, it might be because I smelled your cooking,” I say. She laughs, and Whitney rolls her eyes.

  “And what is that look about?” Cheval asks her granddaughter, “My cooking is renowned!”

  “Yes, Noni, but it’s not why she came,” she says. “She’s trying to butter you up, right now.”

  “Hey, I thought you liked my idea!” I say, elbowing her.

  “I did, but you’re acting way too suspicious.”

  “Well, consider me basted,” Cheval tells me, leaning back in her chair and draping an arm over the back. I could learn SO much from her, both in confidence and in body language. “Tell me, little Burnout, what do I need buttered for?”

  “Well…” I say, hesitating for the first time since I had this idea, “my papa is… um…” How can I start stuttering now?

  “Ooooh?” she asks. “What about your papa?”

  “Well,” I say, taking a deep breath and letting it out, “mi mamá died when I was just a baby, but you know how supers are, it seems like just yesterday to him. But here I am, a part of a team, close to graduating, and so on, and I’ll be moving out soon, and I don’t want him to be so lonely when I do. I was thinking of finding him… a friend.” I can tell that I’m blushing by the time I’m finished, because there’s a wicked little smile on her face. She reminds me of a cat that’s playing with a mouse. That turns into a brilliant smile and she claps her hands once.

  “You’re trying to find him a girlfriend!” she says, excitedly. “Oh, how wonderful! I’m game! I’ll make a list of the best women I can think of—”

  “Noni!” Whitney interrupts, “She was talking about you.”

  “Oh, oh… I…” Cheval says, looking flustered. I’ve never seen her look flustered before. It’s so cute! “Well… sweetie, I’m flattered, but I’m sure I’m far too old for your papa—”

  “He’s almost ninety,” I say. “If you don’t remember him from the past, it’s because he was a super in Mexico for a while before coming up here.”

  Her jaw drops slightly, and she looks stunned. “He doesn’t LOOK that old,” she says, “but then again, you look like a baby to me…”

  “It’s the S-class thing,” I say. “Papa, Century, Superior, they all look a lot younger than they are. Even Mastermental does, because I think he might be the oldest of them all.”

  “I see,” she says, although she seems even more flustered, now. “But sweetie pie, you do realize that I’m…” she lowers her voice, as if about to share a deep secret, “an ex-villain.”

  I stare at her. “Cheval,” I say, “you’re an ex-HALL villain. Besides, he’s constantly hanging out with PRESENT villains, since he goes out of his way to track the Deadly Darlin’s down, all the time.”

  “Does he have feelings for them?” she asks.

  “Yes, fatherly feelings,” I say, waving it off. “I understand why, they aren’t at their full potential because they constantly eat junk food. We try to feed them good food whenever we can.”

  She laughs. “Oh, that does sound like you, sweetie,” she says, reaching out and placing her hand on mine. “You’re a good girl, no, a good woman, Jimmi.”

  “He’s the one that raised me that way,” I say, proudly. I never thought I would claim that, but I can, now. “So will you go on one date? Nothing big, out to coffee or lunch would be fine! I just want him to start thinking about it.”

  “I’ll… okay, one date,” she says, “but I’ll also make a list of women that are single and looking.”

  “I’ve got a list, already,” I say, holding up my phone. “It has every non-married super female in the Hall listed. I’ve already crossed off a few who I know won’t work.”

  “Like who?” Whitney asks.

  “Marigold,” I say, “and Negatia.”

  “Why did you do that?” Cheval asks.

  “I already have one Hall that I’m supposed to inherit, I have no desire for a second one,” I say.

  “You could handle it!” Whitney says faithfully.

  “But who would WANT to?” I ask. My phone dings and I look at it, getting to my feet. “Lo siento, I need to be going. I have to meet with the Nemeses before the fight this afternoon. I would invite you, but we had to go through a lot of red tape just to get on the filming site.” Whitney stands, wrapping her arms around my waist.

  “Be careful, okay?” she says.

  “Oh, the girls would never hurt me,” I say, hugging her back with a wide smile.

  “I know, but it’s still a fight!” she says.

  “You want an autograph, don’t you,” I accuse her.

  “The woman playing Skye is my FAVORITE actress!” she says, shamelessly. “You can get one, right?”

  “I’ll see what I can do,” I say. “I’ll tell Papa, Cheval! Leave it all to me and I’ll arrange for a great date!”

  She’s still laughing as I leave the house and jump into the air.

  ***

  “So,” Walter says, glancing at the boy in the backseat by using the rearview mirror, “I should introduce myself properly…”

  “Walt, I think I should handle this,” Lydia says, touching his arm. “Davis, this is… well, I don’t know how to put it—”

  “He’s my father, right
?” Davis says, surprising her. “The resemblance is obvious, Mother. So where have you been these past thirteen years?”

  “Ah, yes, there’s a reason they claim you’re a super genius,” Walter says.

  “The reason they claim it is probably because of you, right?” Davis points out. “It wasn’t because of my mother, or my uncle, even if my uncle is supposed to be a genius in his own right. I wouldn’t know, I’ve only known an impostor, and he didn’t qualify as brilliant.”

  Walter watches him for a moment before smirking slightly. “So it’s true.”

  “Walt?” Lydia asks. “If this is about his intellect—”

  “No, darling, what’s true is that he IS a super genius. Of course we’ll keep that fact to ourselves. The supers have no claim to him, yet, and I would prefer to keep it that way. Life is much easier for one of our types when we don’t stand out.”

  “Walt… are you saying that you’re…” Lydia starts out, staring at him.

  “Really, Lydia,” he says, “you need to work on your acting.”

  “That’s exactly what my brother tells me, all the time,” she admits, laughing. “Of course I knew what you were. I followed your career as soon as I was old enough to read.” She wraps an arm around his, hugging it happily. “You should have seen how our boy blew away all of his tutors. He has so much promise, I couldn’t just LEAVE him in that silly school. Can you believe that they actually encouraged him to play video games?”

  “It wasn’t just a video game,” Davis says quietly, so quietly that his mother doesn’t hear him.

  “What was it, then?” Walter asks him. “I’ve heard that you have a very interesting principal at that school. I’m sure whatever technology you encountered was fascinating.”

  “It was okay,” Davis says.

  “Do you need to wear glasses?” Walter asks.

  Davis goes still, and then he smiles, innocently. “I don’t,” he says, “but if we’re going to convince the world that I’m not a super, wearing glasses will help. Supers never have bad vision, right?”

  “I see,” Walter says as the boy brings out his phone and starts tapping on it. He hadn’t gotten an answer about the game, but he hadn’t expected it. His son is smart, smart enough to not trust a stranger, even if they are related by blood.

  “Davis, was that sarcasm?” Lydia asks, turning to glare at her son.

  “No, Mother, that was honesty,” Davis says. “The supers know exactly what I am. If they really wanted to keep me in the school, they would have shown the norms their proof. They don’t like me, there.”

  Lydia’s mouth opens and closes a few times as she tries to come up with a rebuttal. “You know that isn’t true! They said you were showing great leadership abilities.”

  “They lied to you,” Davis says. “Really, Mother, you of all people should know that I could never get along with children my own age. I’m just a problem child that they were happy to hand back to his parents.”

  “That’s because they’re jealous of how much smarter you are,” Lydia tells him, giving up on trying to placate him. “Intelligence is always intimidating to the ones that don’t have it.”

  Davis nods and puts his phone away, looking out the window. It’s a clear sign that this conversation is over. After a second, though, he looks at his phone again.

  “Is someone texting you?” Walter asks.

  “Of course they aren’t,” Davis says. Walter watches him for a second before focusing on his driving. The boy is lying. He smiles slightly and wonders if Lydia is still young enough to have another child. The world can always do with more geniuses.

  CHAPTER THREE

  I glare at my phone, seeing the single word text response from Davis. Okay, yes, I know he won’t be able to say too much, but he could at least write more than a word, right? I’m worried about him! I’m also worried about what he’s going to get up to while he’s not being supervised, I admit. He was under my watch when he did the whole blowing up the nanobytes thing, so what will happen when he ISN’T? I let out a heavy sigh as I walk into the farmhouse where my new teammates live. “Dolly! Ruckus! I’m here!” I call out, shrugging off my coat and hanging it on the hanger. “Are we going to try plotting out the show again?”

  “It never works,” Ruckus says from the couch. I walk into the front room, seeing her munching on cereal straight out of the box and wearing her pajamas, still.

  “Were you doing extra patrols again?” I ask, since it’s obvious she just woke up.

  “We’ve been getting reports of trafficking near the border,” she says, yawning. “Century said I might as well give my assistance to the cops. I started a few nights ago. It’s been… satisfying.”

  “Good,” I say, dropping down next to her, and leaning my head on her shoulder.

  “What’s wrong with you?” she asks, and I know she finds this awkward, I just don’t care.

  “What ISN’T wrong with me?” I say. “They sent a twelve-year-old kid to do undercover work. Sure, he’s technically family with the guy they’re observing, but he’s still a kid! And then Vinny is here, but that’s a bad thing because I told him I’m not going to like him anymore, and I’m trying to get Papa a girlfriend, but the one I picked out seemed shocked by the idea, which is REALLY weird, because she just… just OOZES appeal. I mean, seriously, I’m planning on taking lessons from her if I can ever talk her into teaching me how she does it.”

  “Oozes?” she repeats, laughing.

  “Oozes,” I agree, giving her a grin. “I mean, she’s got this way of moving that’s just… it’s awesome. Adanna turns into a CAT and she doesn’t move that way!” I’m getting distracted. “I guess the reason she’s NOT surrounded by guys is because she’s one of the… ah, what did Rocco call them? RED-C’s.”

  “Red seas?” she asks.

  “Retired, extremely dangerous capes,” I explain.

  “Okay, I’ll bite,” she says, motioning to the empty floor in front of her, “show me how she moves.”

  “See, I just explained that that’s why I need to take lessons, but I don’t need to take them, anymore, because I gave up on romance!” I declare, only to stand. “But it’s something like this…” I try my best to saunter across the front room, only to stop as she begins roaring with laughter.

  “You look like your underwear’s too tight,” she tells me. I groan, dropping back onto the couch.

  “Where’s Dolly?” I ask.

  “Doing her makeup, like usual,” she says. “So what makes you think your dad would be good with a Red-C?”

  “He needs someone not normal,” I say. “Someone that won’t pass away as early as… as mamá did. I mean, I want him to love someone, and if it’s another norm, I guess it wouldn’t be bad, but it also wouldn’t be the best.”

  “I would offer myself, but he treated me like a little girl,” she admits.

  “Because you’re barely older than I am, in his eyes,” I say. “He treats the Darlin’s the same way, and both Ariel and Jersey are twice as old as you are, I think, but there’s no way he can do that to Cheval.”

  “Cheval?” I hear Dolly squeak from the bathroom before she rushes in with her lipstick in her hand. “You’re trying to set Voltdrain up with Cheval?”

  “Is there something wrong with that idea?” I ask, stunned. I don’t think I’ve EVER seen Dolly without lipstick on, before. That’s like, a sign of the apocalypse, right?

  “I’M HER BIGGEST FAN!” she says, jumping up and down with excitement. “And I’m a big fan of Voltdrain—well, not AS big a fan as I used to be, that glowing stuff was nasty, but I’m still a fan! It would be the biggest power couple since—since America’s Son and Star Spangled!”

  “Who’s Cheval?” Ruckus asks. We both stare at her for a moment before I pull out my phone and bring up a video of her work in the past.

  “THIS is Cheval,” I say. “She’s one of the first ethnic villains ever shown on television.”

  “Well that explains how she m
oves like that,” Ruckus says after a long moment of watching. “Anyone that can wear that uniform in public has GOT to be oozing with something to pull it off.”

  “Self-confidence!” Dolly declares. “But she’s right about that outfit. That uniform is TERRIBLE. I really can’t understand the seventies.” We both look at her, pointedly eying the fifties style outfit she’s wearing. “There is a HUGE difference between fifties and seventies,” she defends herself.

  “About twenty years?” Ruckus offers. “And you want to pair up that woman with your father?” she asks me.

  “Is there something wrong with that idea?” I ask.

  “Well…” she says, thinking about it, “Don’t you think she’d be a bit… overwhelming? Your papa’s a really nice guy, but he’s…”

  “A bit of a pushover?” I offer. “I used to think that, too, but… well, you’d have to meet her in real life. She’s a grandmother, now. She loves to bake cakes, and teaches at our school.”

  “I want to come to your school,” Dolly says. “PLEASE let me come to your school! I’ll sit in the back and everything, but I have to go! Even if it’s only that one single class!”

  “Ask Nico, he’ll probably say yes,” I say, “but right now we need to get to work, right? Have you heard from the Darlin’s?”

  The wall lights up, showing Skye wearing her own merchandise, complete with her face on the t-shirt that’s over her usual uniform. She poses, right in front of the teaser poster from her upcoming movie, and then yells, “DORIS! Get over here! We’re POSING!”

  “I’m coming!” I hear Ariel call out. “I have to fix my hair so it looks like the poster, first! It keeps wanting to drip.”

  “I’m not doing that,” Doris says. “Did you see the chick they got to play me? She’s a stick. I don’t agree with trying to make me out as a weakling in my human form,” she complains as she steps into sight. “Look at this six pack, LOOK!” she tells us, pulling up her uniform top to show off her stomach muscles.