Mic Drop (Cape High Series Book 16)

by R. J. Ross

  I land in the apartment building parking lot a few seconds later, looking at the fleet of black SUV's waiting for us. This might be a bit overkill, I think, especially since the entire Liberty family is coming down the stairs. Ken has a gigantic foam finger on one hand and Jack has his illusion watch on. "Really?" I say. "For a junior high aged basketball game?"

  "For your little sister's junior high basketball game," Ken says. "This is important stuff, you know? I was always worried that I'd traumatize Trent by never making it to his games."

  "Instead he traumatized me by never letting me play," Trent says. "So where's your disguise, Max?" he asks, tugging his baseball hat down a little lower.

  I pull my fake glasses out of my pocket. "Ingenious, right?" I say as I put them on. "One minute I'm Maximum, the next I'm a studious looking teenager--"

  "A. K. A. a geek," Jack says, taking the glasses from me and trying them on.

  "Don't break those, they cost me a buck," I warn him. "Besides, there's nothing wrong with being a geek."

  "How would you know? We don't have any geeks in our school," Trent says, taking the glasses from Jack and trying them on as well.

  "I think the healer group qualifies," Jack offers.

  "You're dating their leader," we tell him.

  "Exactly, and they get into all these technical conversations that give me a headache," Jack explains. "Too many brains in that group--not that I have any problem with brains," he adds quickly as Aubrey walks out. "I like brains just fine, as long as I'm not up against them."

  "So you've got a thing against smart heroes?" Trent asks.

  "Is that an oxymoron?" I have to say. "I'm pretty sure that's an oxy--" I stop as Emily and her two doppelgangers walk past, giving me matching dirty looks. "Okay, I'll stop. We were already in trouble with the geek comment, anyway," I have to point out.

  "Geeks are awesome," Emily says, blowing it off. "Besides, they're our biggest fans, so you really shouldn't make fun of them."

  "Your fans are geeks," Jack says to me.

  "So are yours," I say.

  "You have the same fans," Trent says, rolling his eyes. He looks at me a bit more seriously, now. "Are you okay?"

  "I could use some more sleep," I admit, yawning again. "Other than that, I'm fine."

  "He means after the fight with your mom, moron," Jack says. He actually looks a bit concerned, as well.

  "It's fine," I say. "Nico went super villain, too."

  They look at each other, and Trent grins just a little bit. "Somebody needs a hug," he says, starting for me.

  "No hugs!" I say, almost falling over to get away.

  "It's okay, Max, we won't tell your fans you got a hug from Kid Liberty!" Ken calls over to us. I hear several shutters snap discreetly, but I don't see any phones out when I turn to look.

  "You might have super powers, but that doesn't mean your feelings can't be hurt," Trent says dramatically, reaching for me again. I let out a yelp and jump back. Jack starts roaring with laughter as his brother chases me around the parking lot.

  "Someone stop letting him watch after-school specials!" I yell as I race past the group.

  "What in the heck are they doing?" I hear Layne say. I jerk to a stop, only to grunt as Trent wraps his arms around me, almost crushing me. I'm tough, don't get me wrong, but a hug from a tank is dangerous business.

  "They're hugging!" Chet says, laughing his head off.

  "Aren't they enemies, though?"

  "See? A hug helps," Trent tells me, his amusement clear in his voice as he pats me on the back, hard.

  "He's not nearly as cool out of uniform as he is in it," I mutter, tugging out of the hug. "You ready for the game?" I ask her.

  "Um, yeah, I guess," she says, looking nervous. "I mean, if they let me play, that is."

  "If they don't, we'll just have another game here," Trent says.

  "Yeah, but in a real game, you can't hover to make a dunk," she tells him.

  "I wasn't hovering! I was just calculating angles," he says, only to laugh as she stares at him.

  "I thought I said you couldn't use powers for that game," I say. "Is anyone else coming to the game?"

  "Mom and Dad will be down soon," Chet says. "But other than that, I think the Liberties are our bodyguards."

  "I think that's overkill already," Layne says. "How am I going to explain them to my friends?" she asks.

  "Tell them that we're your cousins," Jack says.

  "And what about Max?" she asks, pointing at me. "What do I say about him?"

  "Say I'm part of some big brother program," I say, draping an arm over Chet's shoulders. "Your parents think Chet spends too much time in the house."

  "I have asthma," Chet says.

  "You USED to have asthma," Aubrey says. "You're healthy as can be, now. You might think about joining the basketball team, too."

  "I think I'd rather do soccer," he says thoughtfully.

  "Sounds fun!" Trent says. "We'll play a game next week!"

  "Maximum," one of the black suits says, making me look over. "We've arranged for your transportation. If you would all pick a car, we can head out."

  I look over the cars, raising an eyebrow slightly. "Cut it down to the two full sized vans for us and change the color on one--Nico did add the camo effect to them, right?"

  "Yes, sir, at least to two of the fleet, we've brought one of them. He says we need to negotiate for any more."

  "Then we'll take those," I say. "Also, change into civvies, would you? The suits stick out too much. We'll meet you at the game, Ken and Jeanie can drive the vans. Take as few vehicles as for your group as you can."

  "Your father said we were supposed to stay with you for this," he says, only to stop as the Liberties hold out their hands. "But, considering who your drivers will be, I suppose we can make an exception," he says, handing over the keys.

  "Okay, everyone," I say as John and my mother step out of the force field, "let's load up. Black suits, we expect to see you there as soon as we pull into the parking lot, so I suggest you go get changed now."

  "Yes, sir," the spokesman says, saluting.

  We head for the vans, splitting up into two groups. I take my seat in the black one, looking at Layne, who's next to me. "Hey," I say, nudging her, "if you want, I can always bring in a few Greyhounds if your team is losing."

  "You wouldn't!" she says, glaring at me.

  I give her my most villainous grin. "I'll come up with a dramatic speech about the evils of teamwork and good sportsmanship," I tell her, cheerfully. "I'll have to take the roof off, though, to make it work. That's why I like outdoor sports better."

  "You're not going to take the roof off the gym to terrorize junior high schoolers, Max," Ken says from the driver's seat. "You don't have clearance."

  "Yeah, yeah, but you can't see her face right now," I say, laughing as she tries to shove me and fails. "Why don't you join a soccer team with Chet next summer? That'll make it a lot easier on me!"

  "We'd be on two different teams," she says. "He's younger than I am."

  "Still easier, since it'd be outside."

  "We're here," Ken says, pulling to a stop. "Everyone out, stronger ones first. Do we expect anything to happen?" he asks me.

  "No, but we still need to be careful. If he..." I go silent, looking at Layne with a bit of worry. "Nothing will happen," I say more firmly. "But just in case," I add to myself, tapping on my com-bracelet and making sure my external power blocker is on. "Now, let's go play a basketball game." I drop a hand on Layne's back.

  "If they let me play," she says quietly. The look on her face has me fighting the urge to storm in there and flat-out demand that they let her play, or face the consequences. That urge catches me off guard and I blink a few times, calming myself.

  "We'll see," I say. "If they don't, you can blame me."

  She nods. "I will." She's silent for a moment before looking at me. "But you did let me play basketball with super heroes."

  "Was it fun?" I ask.


  "Yeah, it was REALLY fun." She stops, looking at a tall, older woman. "There's the coach," she whispers, reaching down and grabbing my hand. "She's busy, so maybe we should--"

  I tug her along, heading straight for the woman. I open my mind, looking into her thoughts. Plays, stats, and as she sees my little sister, a good dose of worry. "Layne," she says. "Who's your friend?"

  "He's--um--" Layne starts out, looking at me a bit desperately. She's completely forgotten our cover story.

  "I'm family," I say, "Max." I hold out a hand to the woman. "She's been visiting me for the past week--we had a bit of a family emergency. Sorry that we didn't call you earlier, she doesn't have your number."

  "Her family?" she repeats, the worry turning to curiosity.

  "Yes, ma'am," I say. "But everything's better now. She's been worried that she won't be able to play since she missed your last practice."

  "We missed you on Wednesday," the woman says to Layne. "I'll give your parents my number for the next time an emergency comes up. Now go get changed, you need to stretch," she orders with a little smile.

  Layne's face lights up. "Thank you, Coach!" she says before racing off to the back. I jerk, suddenly realizing she's going to be out of my sight for a bit.

  "Are you really a family member?" the coach asks me, looking at me sharply, "because I almost swear I recognize you..."

  "I just have one of those faces," I lie with an easy smile. This is stupid. I've been telling them that I'd cut this tie, and here I am claiming it. She looks behind me suddenly, and I turn, seeing my mother and John walking towards us.

  "Coach Mellie," my mother says. "I'm so sorry we didn't call earlier."

  "Your... relative was just explaining," the coach says.

  My mother looks at me with a hint of surprise. "Yes," she says, "I'm glad. We had a little mishap--"

  "A family emergency," I say.

  "Yes," she agrees.

  "It's not something we really feel we can talk about just yet," John says, "but Layne was really sad she missed your last practice."

  "I'm sorry, I was prying," the coach says, abruptly realizing she was being overly nosy. "Don't worry, Layne will be playing. She's one of our best."

  "We appreciate it," John says. My eyes go back to the direction Layne went and I open my mind, searching. I find her quickly--she's talking with her teammates. She's fine.

  "I'm just going to sit with the guys," I tell them, heading for where the Liberty family is standing next to the bleachers.

  "It'll hold, I promise," I hear Ken saying as I get close enough. "Just don't sit right next to one another."

  I drop down on the bleacher. "Oh, come on, guys, don't tell me you're scared of aluminum!"

  "Can I hit him?" Jack asks.

  "Don't you control metal?" I go on. "Can't you just reinforce it with your powers?"

  The entire group looks at him. "Max, you're still a pain in the--"

  "No need for name calling just because he's right," Ken says quietly. "Now sit down, we're drawing attention to ourselves. Max, how's your sister?"

  "She's getting changed in the lockers," I say, not quite able to hide my tenseness over that fact. "Emily, could you--" I say.

  "On it!" she says, heading out. That's better, I think, leaning back and relaxing. Emily will guard the lockers and call if anything happens. Now all we need to do is sit back and enjoy the game. I dare to glance around, catching sight of several black suits in civvies loitering in the crowd. Yeah, this is going to be fine. Most likely we're being overly paranoid.

  I hope.

  ***

  "Layne?" Emily says as she enters the mostly empty locker room. "Are you still in here?"

  "No," Layne says from one of the stalls.

  "You're not?"

  "No, I'm not," she says.

  "Is there a problem?" Emily asks, leaning against the neighboring stall. "Everyone's already out there. I think they're waiting for you."

  "It's embarrassing," Layne says.

  "What?"

  "You're--you're YOU and your boyfriend is HIM and all of them are out there to watch--to watch me," Layne says, opening the door. "And we're not that good of a team even by normal standards," she adds. "It's bad enough that Max came, right, but what if we lose?" she asks in a whisper. "Or what if I fall on my face? Or what if I do something really embarrassing and it's seen by the entire family? I'll never live it down!"

  "Cold feet?" Emily offers.

  "Cold EVERYTHING," Layne says. "I was really looking forward to this game, but now I'm positive that I'm going to screw up."

  "Do you really think we care if you win?" Emily asks a bit blankly.

  "I CARE!"

  "Well, sure you do," Emily says quickly, trying to think of the best way to put it. "But you're doing something Trent always dreamed of doing before we started going to our school. He's not watching just to judge whether you're a good player or not, I promise. None of them are, but Trent's probably the most excited."

  "Then... why is he excited?"

  "Because he gets to watch you do what he used to dream about doing," Emily explains. "The real thing--not one that has rules about breaking equipment involved. He always wanted to play normal sports. Why else would he work so hard to set up the after-school program? Heck, both him and Max are huge sports fans. And you know what?"

  "What?"

  "They're stronger than the professional players. It doesn't stop them from tail-gating and throwing parties. Don't worry about what they think, Layne. They're pretty simple minded when it comes to stuff they enjoy. Now, are you feeling better?" she asks.

  "Yeah, I guess," Layne says. "I'm almost done, so you can go on in, okay? I just need a little time to alone, to focus."

  Emily hesitates for a moment before nodding. "You're going to do fine," she says to the younger girl. "Now go get your game face on." She heads out of the locker area and into the gym.

  ***

  "She should be here," Phoebe says quietly as she and Massteria walk right through the front entrance. There are guards, she notes, seeing them standing around trying to look casual. She can hear their thoughts. Several of them feel awkward doing their job in plain clothes, others feel relieved they don't have to wear a tie. They walk right past them, without even hesitating. Not even her greatest fan would pick her out when she's made up like this. A few discreetly placed latex prosthetics, several layers of makeup, and wigs have her father and her looking like completely different people.

  "Of course she is," her father says. "This is where the big game is, right?"

  "But what if he doesn't let her come?" Phoebe asks.

  "Then we step back and try again. Now where would a player be?" he asks.

  "Either in the gym, or in the lockers," Phoebe says, casually turning down a hall after looking at a nearby map. "I'll check the lockers," she says, "you look in the gym. There are... possible intruders here."

  "Yes, yes there are," he says, walking right past one. "Thrilling, isn't it?"

  "You're so bad," she says, almost giggling. "I used to dream of you coming to my special events, you know, all the plays that I starred in, all the sporting events."

  "I'm sorry, precious," he says. "I'll make up for it, I promise, after we find the girl."

  Phoebe nods and heads for the hallway entrance to the locker rooms, slipping in and heading for the mirror. She checks her wig while opening her mind slightly to try and find the girl. After a second her eyes widen and she turns, a brilliant smile crossing her face. "Who would have guessed?" she says, seeing a girl in uniform tying her shoes. "You're just the one I've been looking for."

  The girl looks up, her mouth opening to ask what she means. Before she can even form the first syllable, though, Phoebe grabs her, looking her in the eyes and dropping a hypnotic suggestion. "You can come with me," she says.

  Layne stares at her, slack-jawed for a moment. "I can come with you," she says.

  "Good girl. But first, time to change."
r />   A few seconds later, she's walking out with her "daughter," heading straight for Massteria and the back door. The wig she'd been wearing looks good on the girl, she thinks with a little smile. And as they reach the exit, Massteria reaches up, pulling the fire alarm with a matching smile on his lips.

  ***

  "Okay," I say, getting to my feet as the sprinklers go off. "Grab the family, we're out of here."

  "What if it's just a prank?" Jack asks. Trying to move through the large crowd is like trying to swim up-stream. I growl under my breath, trying not to hurt the people I'm attempting to get past. There are kids screaming and a general panic in the air, but it's not psychic incited. I would have noticed if it was something like that. It probably WAS just a prank, but I can't take chances.

  "CHET!" I yell. "LAYNE! WHERE ARE YOU?"

  "She was in the locker--" Emily says. "I'll go find her, she was just finishing up." She heads into the locker room, only to groan a second later. "Max, we've got a problem," she says. "I don't see her. Have any of the black suits seen her?"

  "No sir, not that we know of," one of the black suits says over the com-link.

  "Okay, that's it," I say. Ken grabs my shoulder, stopping me. "I've got to find her." He hands me a mask. "Oh. Right." I slip off my glasses and toss the mask on before jumping into the air.

  "It's MAXIMUM!" someone yells. "HE'S DOING THIS!"

  The screaming grows louder and I wince. Usually I appreciate this sort of reaction, but I don't have time for this. "LAYNE!" I yell. When there's no response I go as high as I can, scanning the room for sight of my little sister. She's not here. I race out the door, searching the entire building as quickly as I can.

  "Max, we've got the rest of your family, have you found Layne?"

  "She's not here," I say, opening my mind.

  'Hello, Maximum,' a man whispers in my mind. 'Sorry we can't meet face to face at the moment, I've got my hands full. But I'm sure you know what I'm about to say.'

  'Give me back Layne,' I reply as forcefully as I can. I see several of the norms clamp their hands over their ears.

  'You have great power but little control,' he says. 'We'll work on that.'