Aberrant Trilogy 1: Super Charged (18 page)

“I think it can sense energy,” I reply. “If you look downstairs do you see signatures for my grandparents?”

Mae glances around, her gaze aimed at the floor.

“I do,” she says. “Your grandmother is in the living room, and your grandfather is out in the garage working on his truck some more.” She looks back at me. “What’s so special about this other than that it can do this sort of thing?”

“Well,” I say, taking her by the arm. I guide her into the hallway and down to the spare bedroom. “I was experimenting with this thing the other night and saw a signature without a name inside this bedroom wall.”

We both stare at it. Mae’s mouth opens and she walks around the wall a few times, reaching out to feel it.

“Do you see it?” I ask.

She nods.

“What is it?”

I shrug. “I don’t know. I thought it might have been a mouse or something, but if it hasn’t moved at all, that means it might be something stationary. I thought the visor could only detect living energy signatures. But, this one could be inanimate.”

Mae looks back at me and suddenly points at my chest.

“Whoa, hold on a second.”

She steps towards me and reaches for my neck.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

She suddenly reaches out and takes the chain around my neck, tugging the Vestige out from beneath my shirt.

“The Vestige,” she says. “It’s glowing like crazy when I look at it through the visor.”

She lowers the visor from her eyes and hands it to me.

“See?”

I try on the visor and look down at the Vestige in my hand. She’s right. It’s glowing just like a living person does. Still, there is no name on the signature. It’s just a bunch of x marks.

“Bizarre,” I say. Then I take the visor off and my eyes widen. “You don’t think that the shard of the Vestige is hidden inside this wall, do you?”

Mae is about to answer when suddenly we hear a scream come from downstairs.

We both stare at each other. The scream unmistakably came from my grandmother.

I throw the visor back on and look down at the floor.

The signature for my grandfather is still in the garage, though he’s now hurrying out the door and heading for the house. Down in the living room I can see my grandmother. However, there’s another signature down there and the name on it makes my blood run cold.

Bill Flagrant
.

30

Hide

I hurry to the top of the stairs with Mae close behind me. As we get closer we can hear voices, but I strain to hear what’s being said. They are too far away to make out the actual words. Bill Flagrant is yelling at Grandma, demanding something. Grandma sounds terrified.

“We need to go do something!” Mae whispers in my ear.

I agree, but as we creep further down the stairs I peer around the corner and get a glimpse into the living room. Grandma is cornered against the far wall and Bill Flagrant is standing with his back to us, but I can clearly see him brandishing a gun - the same one he used at the publishing house.

It feels like I am paralyzed.

“Nobody caught him…” I mutter under my breath. He escaped the police after we flew away.

Mae grabs me by the shoulder and shakes me.

“Shaun!” she says. “You have to do something! You have powers, for goodness sake. Use them!”

The fear has settled into my stomach, making me feel sick. But, I know that Mae is right. I need courage.

I go to walk down the steps when suddenly I’m stopped by the sound of the front door opening. In walks Grandpa and he steps between us and the living room.

I was going to use my blasting powers before, but now I don’t have a clear shot. It’s too dangerous to even try maneuvering a ball of energy past Grandpa, so I stand down while Grandpa starts to confront Flagrant.

Mae and I listen intently as heated words are exchanged.

I can’t imagine what’s going through Grandpa’s mind right now - or even Grandma’s. I would be terrified if a random man came into my house and terrorized me with a gun. How did he even find me here, I wonder?

But, suddenly I hear Grandpa say something that I would have never expected.

“What are you doing here, Bill?”

I fall back a little on the stairs.

Bill?
I think.
He’s talking as if he knows Bill Flagrant.

Then another thought crosses my mind.

Maybe he
does
know the man. It isn’t something I would have guessed, since Mom didn’t know Flagrant at all. But, Grandpa confirms it by the way he’s speaking.

Flagrant turns and aims the gun at Grandpa’s chest, though he stands sideways so that he can keep an eye on both Grandpa and Grandma at the same time.

“Surprised to see me?” he says with a smile. “They let me out of prison early. On good behavior.”

“It looks like you’re keeping up with that standing,” says Grandpa, motioning to the gun. But, Flagrant holds the gun higher.

“Don’t try anything,” he says. “You know what I’ve come to get.”

Grandpa shakes his head.

“You’re not going to find it because the Vestige is long gone.”

Mae grips my arm tightly.

“The Vestige?” she whispers to me. “Your grandfather knows about the Vestige?”

I don’t say anything back. I’m too busy listening to what’s being said and trying to process it as quickly as possible.

“You’re lying to me,” says Flagrant. “The Vestige is here. I know it is because I can feel it. Turn it over to me now.”

Grandpa lets out a laugh.

“I’m telling you the truth,” he says. “The Vestige is not here. I haven’t seen it since Jeff was in high school. Whatever he did with it, it isn’t here.” He holds up a hand, slowly moving it towards the gun. “Come on, now. You don’t need that gun. Listen to me, Bill. You’re better than this. Don’t you want your freedom? Don’t you want to start over?”

“I am starting over,” says Flagrant, practically spitting the words at Grandpa. “I’m starting by taking what I should have been given twenty years ago. Now, either you hand it over willingly, or I will take it by force.”

Whatever Flagrant might be thinking, I know for a fact that Grandpa is telling the truth. He doesn’t know where the Vestige is because if he did know, he would have talked to me about it. I’m the only one in this house besides Mae who knows that the Vestige is hanging around my neck.

I need to do something.

I man up, put the visor on, and come the rest of the way down the stairs, announcing myself.

“Point that gun away from my grandparents,” I demand.

When Grandpa turns to me his eyes widen.

“Shaun?” he says. “Get out of here!”

“It’s okay, Grandpa,” I say, holding up my hands. “I’m armed.”

I flex my fingers in front of me and Flagrant gives me a wry smile.

“And here I thought I was going to have to work for it,” he says. “Instead you come right to me.”

“And you came right to me,” I say. “How did you find me?”

“I knew there were only two place you could be,” Flagrant replies. “Your mother’s house, or your grandparents’s house. Last time I checked, you haven’t lived at your mother’s house for weeks.”

My eyes widen.

“How did you know that?”

Flagrant scoffs at me.

“It’s amazing what constant use of the internet can do to dull the senses,” he says. “The first place I stopped when I was released from prison was the library. I had a lot of news to catch up on. Imagine my surprise when I run into you at the publishing house, complete with the Vestige. I would have completed my quest right then and there, but you knew how to fly.” He glares at me. “So, I went back to the news and found an article listing you as one of a handful of students who were suspended. From there I found your home address and paid your mother a visit.”

I practically yell at the man.

“If you did anything to hurt my mother -” I start, but Flagrant laughs.

“Don’t worry. She’s fine. I merely slipped in and out. No need to sound the alarm…until I have my powers back. By then I will be unstoppable. Now, hand me the Vestige and I will let you all live.”

He pulls back the hammer on the gun and aims it at Grandpa once more. Behind Flagrant, Grandma is crying silently, her hands gripped together tightly.

While Flagrant’s eyes are locked on me, I can see Grandpa moving his hands into place. Before I can stop him, he makes a grab for the gun and manages to wrap his hands around it.

“Shaun, duck!” he says, and he tries to wrestle the gun from Flagrant.

I crouch to the ground just as the sound of a bullet being fired fills the living room, and then I hear a scream behind me.

“Mae!” I yell, turning to look back at the staircase.

There is a smoking bullet hole in the wall that Mae is hiding behind.

I’m torn. Do I check on Mae, or do I help Grandpa?

It’s killing me inside, but I turn back to help Grandpa. If we can stop Flagrant, then we can put an end to this once and for all.

However, when I go to help, I see Flagrant yank his gun out of Grandpa’s grasp, and he slashes the gun sideways. The handle of the gun strikes Grandpa in the side of the head and splits open his skin. Crimson blood begins to pour down the side of his face and he falls backwards, reaching up to the wound.

“Ed!” yells Grandma. She pushes past Flagrant to crouch beside Grandpa.

Flagrant doesn’t even notice. He stares me dead in the eye and glares.

“I heard a scream,” he says. “You’ve got a friend back there, don’t you?”

“If you hurt Mae…” I say.

Then I shoot a blast of energy at Flagrant. I don’t even care about doing damage to the house or being in an enclosed space. I need to put this guy down, right now.

The blast of energy zips through the air, making a screeching noise, and it strikes Flagrant in the shoulder. He cries out and his hand lets go of the gun. The energy pulls the gun backwards and it skitters under the couch.

Now that he’s unarmed, I go and make a dive for him. My arms catch him around the waist like a football player and I tackle him to the ground. It takes him a moment after being stunned by the energy before he truly puts up a fight. I almost thought it was going to be an easy takedown.

But, Flagrant starts to wrestle me back and I realize quickly that he is much stronger at hand-to-hand than he looks.

I have him by the wrists, pinning him down, but he is able to lift his arms back up and shoves me backwards. I am only crouching on my toes, so I lose my balance and fall on my back.

Then Flagrant is on his feet and descends upon me.

I scream, kicking at him as hard as I can. One knee catches him in the stomach, but he recovers in a few moments.

“You’ll get no mercy from me now!” he yells. Then, before I can even move my arms to guard my chest, Flagrant slashes out with his hand and yanks the chain around my neck. It goes tight then comes apart, taking the Vestige with it.

I scramble to catch the necklace, but Flagrant it too fast. He twirls the chain until it is wrapped around his hand and the Vestige lands in his open palm.

“Yes!” he yells, his voice filling the room. “Yes! At last!”

I barely have time to blink before Flagrant’s name changes in the visor and now displays as The Drone. He then uses his first power. He is standing in front of me one moment, then in a blur he’s crouching in front of me, with his face itches from mine.

“Time to take care of your little friend,” he says.

Then, in a split second, his body blurs and he’s over at the stairs. Mae lets out another scream and Flagrant yanks her down the stairs. I can see that the bullet that was shot has struck her in the arm. Her shirt is all blood-stained.

“Mae!” I yell, getting to my feet. But, I feel absolutely normal now. There’s no way I can help her from here without the Vestige. My energy reading has gone down to zero.

Flagrant crushes her to his chest and pins her there. Then he laughs.

“I think it’s time for a dip in the lake,” he says. Then he zooms out of the house, taking Mae with him.

31

The Shard

“Call the police!” I yell to Grandma as I book it out the front door. It’s such a stupid idea since what can police do against a superhero? But, it’s the only thing we can do.

The sun is setting beyond the trees and in ten minutes it will be pitch black, which will make it hard to see anything going on. I will lose Flagrant.

Then I remember.

I rely on the visor now. I can see a huge spike in energy to my right. I turn and start to follow it. It’s out by the trees.

My modified shoes slam against the grass as I hurry to the tree line. I scan the area frantically, looking for any sign of Flagrant and Mae. The energy signal is coming from over here, but I see nothing. Could the visor be going haywire?

Suddenly Flagrant’s voice calls out.

“Looking for me?”

The voice is coming from above me. I tilt my head back and am shocked to see Flagrant up in the air with Mae. She’s struggling between holding onto him so as not to fall to the ground and also trying to get away from him at the same time.

“So, you can fly, too?” I shout.

“There are many things I can do,” says Flagrant with a grin. “How about I show them to you?”

He holds out his free hand and hooks his fingers into a claw shape. My eyes widen as I see a glowing pin of light appear between his fingers and grow until it is a shimmering orb of energy like the ones I can make.

“You’re not so special now, are you, Shaun?” says Flagrant, spinning the energy in the air like a basketball. Mae struggles beside him.

“No!” she says. “Leave him alone!”

This just eggs Flagrant on even more. He locks his eyes on me and yells, “Catch!”

Then the ball of light comes hurtling downwards at me.

If I had the Vestige I could have easily caught the energy. But, I’m normal now, so I have to sprint to the side to avoid being struck by the whirling purple ball. It slams into the ground where I was just standing and leaves a crater the size of a small jacuzzi in its wake.

Mae continues to scream as Flagrant launches another ball of energy. Then another. I’m running like a mad man to keep out of his path.