Daddy's Girl: Cape High Book Five (8 page)

We pull to a stop in front of the canyon and I slide out of my car, heading silently for the entrance to the campus dorms.  Before I get there, though, a hand lands on my shoulder and I turn, looking up at Nico.  "Listen," he says seriously.  "I'm not going to say you should forget about him and go on with your life, that's pretty much impossible, but don't start thinking he's just misunderstood, either."

I open my mouth, wanting to argue, but close it again as he goes on, "Every single person in the cells, they did something that warranted it."

"Even you?" I ask.

He hesitates and looks at the yellow tape that surrounds the massive Death Canyon.  "See that?" he asks, motioning to it.  "I caused that.  I was pretty sure there wasn't anything or anyone there at the time, but who can say for sure?" he asks.  "It didn't really occur to me at the time, honestly.  I wanted the extra space, so I made it.  The norms are still worried that they're being poisoned by radiation, or that whoever made the hole in the first place will come back and hit an inhabited area."

"Plus, when you have a super villain capable of building a weapon of mass destruction that actually works this well, well, you sort of have to hide him away until the norms forget about him," Mastermental says, heading for us.  "Now, as payment for this favor," he goes on, looking at Nico.  "You owe several reporters a press release--IN uniform, if you would."

Nico looks like he wants to protest, but his jaw only tightens a bit as he lets go of my shoulder.  "Go on in," he says.  "I'm sure the zoo kids are going to want to ask a ton of questions."

Yeah, but do I have any answers for them?  I bite back that reply as he starts talking with Mastermental, arguing over the logic of a press release.  Reluctantly I lift my hand to the panel that shoots up and head inside. 

***

A lot of things are bothering him, Nico admits as he steps into the back part of the Hall.  Firstly, that he has to get an entirely new uniform.  That bothers him a lot.  Okay, maybe the word "bother" isn't the right one.  "Irritates" fits the situation much better.  It irritates him that he's got to get a uniform.  It irritates him that he's got a press release already lined up for him within a few hours, as well.  What bothers him, though, was what happened with Morgan and Shawn.  Something about that meeting is stuck in his mind and he can't quite get rid of it.

He completely ignores the black suits as he heads for the elevator, only glancing at Mega curiously as he sees the man standing in front of the statue in the middle of the main room.  The statue of the original Hall.  Nico hates it, since Superior is right smack dab in the middle of the monstrosity.

"You'd think you'd never seen it before," Nico comments, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms over his chest as he waits for the elevator to get to his floor.

"Yeah... I mean, of course I have," Mega says a bit sharply.  He looks at Nico.  "What are you doing here?"

"What you were so intent on earlier--the press release.  But they won't let me go without a uniform."

"I see, that makes sense."

Nico stares at him, wondering why he isn't gloating more.  Mega seemed to think it was his duty to convert him into a proper super hero whenever he had nothing better to do, but this... "You feeling okay?" he asks.

Mega looks at him sharply.  "Of course I am."

The elevator dings and the doors slide open, leaving Nico with no choice but to step on.  He does, turning to watch the other male for a long moment as the doors take their time closing.  Something seems extremely odd about Mega, he decides with a slight frown.  Probably all that movie talk throwing him off.  They were supposed to start it soon, weren't they?

God help them all when the world realizes that Superior isn't dead, after all.  The very thought of word getting out makes him cringe, images of his father on the big screen flashing through his mind.  Mega is completely forgotten by the time the door opens and he steps out.

"Mr. Technico?" a woman at a desk asks.  "You're here for fitting?"

"Unfortunately," he drawls.

"Please follow me," she says, standing and heading for the back.  He's almost positive he's not going to enjoy this.

***

I stare up at the dorm for a moment--too long, actually, because the door opens and Carla rushes out, tackling me to the ground.  "You were gone FOREVER!" she yells, hugging me tightly before jumping back to her feet and grabbing my hand.  "Where'd you go?  What'd you do?  Did you bring me back something?"

"Carla!" I say.  "At least let me get my breath back!"  I let her pull me to my feet and into the dorms, only half paying attention to all the kids that move in to surround us.  What do I tell them?  What is there to tell them?

"You okay?"

I jerk at the question, looking up at where Justin is coming down the stairs.  It was him that asked it, right?  It sure sounded like him, but why is he even--oh, never mind.

"Yeah," I say.  "I'm okay.  I just... I dunno, need some time to think, okay, guys?" I say.  The group parts, letting me go through and up the stairs.  As soon as I reach Justin, though, my wrist is grabbed.

"You don't look okay," he says almost silently.  I look him straight in the eyes.

"I will be," I say.  "And grabbing me like that is dangerous."

"I'm so used to you stealing my voice I don't care," he says as he lets go.  I head up the stairs, trying to erase that little moment from my mind.  He'll probably regret that statement when I get stronger, I think as I reach my dorm room.  He'll accidentally grab me and get knocked out--

I totally forgot I had a roommate, I realize belatedly as I open the door and see Noelle sitting in front of my laptop.  For some reason that sight makes me feel nervous.  I wonder why.  "You should ask before using other people's things," I mutter as I cross over to my bed and lay down. 

"I didn't break it," she says a bit too quickly, scooting her chair away from the desk.  "Um..."

"What?" I demand when she doesn't go on.

"You're crying."

"Brilliant observation," I mutter, wiping at the tears that kept escaping me.  "Now forget you noticed."  I roll over, laying on my stomach and turning my head away from her.  I can't get the image of Dad's face out of my mind, of his hand coming up and touching the glass, of how he kept saying how me being happy is the same as him being happy--from behind a glass wall.  Memories are crowding my mind and the tears are falling in earnest.  I almost don't feel the bed dip behind me until I feel pressure against my side.

"I'm sorry," Noelle whispers.

I can't think of anything to say.  I turn my head so I can see her.  She's sitting on the bed with her back to me, but so close we're touching.  It's hard not to, though, since it's a pretty narrow bed.  It's just... I have no idea what to do about this situation.  And, I decide, I'm too depressed right now to care.  "I... I miss my family," she whispers.  "Even if in a way they're here, they're not them.  They don't know me.  I want to go home.  I just want to go home."

"At least you have a home to go to," I say hoarsely.

"Where did you go?  Is that what's making you cry?" she asks.

I turn away again, staring at the wall for a moment as I debate on whether I should talk to her.  Is she an assassin from the future?  I doubt it.  I mean, she sounds like she's close to crying, too.  "To see my father," I say.  "I went to see my father."

"But--isn't that a good thing?" she asks.  "You went home--"

"No, I went to see my dad," I say, my tone strained.  "There's a difference."

"Oh," she says quietly.  I hear her overly fluffy skirt rustle as she moves a bit and I glance over at her again.

"Is that outfit
what everyone's wearing in your time?" I ask, wanting to change the subject.

"No... not exactly," she says, tugging at the skirt a bit self consciously.  "It's just... I want to be a time traveler.  I mean, I've got the watch and everything--so I thought I should start dressing like one."

"Time travelers dress in steampunk?" I ask.  "How many time travelers are there in your time?"

"Um... one."

"Who is it?"

"Me?"

"So... you're dressing how you think time travelers should dress," I sum up.

"Well if I'm the only one I need to set the fashion precedent!" she says, sticking her nose up in the air even as she squirms.  It startles a laugh out of me, one that sounds a bit congested thanks to the crying I've been doing.  "That's what Dad said, too," she says quietly.  "He made fun of me for an entire day before... before saying I look adorable and hugging me."

"You miss him?" I ask.

"Yeah," she admits.  "And my mom and my grandpa--I miss them all.  But... this isn't about me.  What is your father doing
instead of being at home?" she asks, squirming so she's looking at me.  "Is it important?"

I stare at her for a moment.  "You know how you said there's things you can't tell me?  That means you're good at keeping secrets, right?"

"Yeah, I have to be," she admits.

"Then my dad... he's in the Cape Cells."

The door bursts open and half of the dorm falls in with shocked expressions on their faces.  Whoops.

***

Silver and navy blue.  That's what they've stuck him in, Nico thinks with a hint of disgust as he looks down at his new uniform.  At least it's not red and gold, he consoles himself. He managed to avoid the cape entirely, telling the tailors that if they put a cape on him he would shred it, regardless of what material it was made out of.  There'd been a long discussion of whether a shredded cape would be acceptable in a Hall member, but finally they gave in.  Mostly because they realized just how much he'd look like Superior if he had one.  Not that he doesn't already, he thinks in disgust as he glances at the mirror. 

He's supposed to step onto the stage any moment now, to tell the press who he is and how he's turned his life around and become a good guy, yadda yadda, all that stuff.  It makes him cringe just thinking of becoming the "Hall's Prodigal Son."  He c
an already see the newspaper headlines. 

He glances up as the door of his little changing room opens and Mastermental steps in.  The shorter man looks him over, nodding after a moment.  "Nice," he says.  "The circuit lines are a nice touch," he adds, looking at the silver lines that cover the dark blue uniform.  "Do they actually do anything?"

"Not a thing," Nico drawls, bringing up his hand.  "But the gloves do.  I put them together myself."

"And what DO they do that you need gloves for?" Mastermental asks.

"Instant holographic television," Nico says cheerfully, lifting his hands palm upwards and bringing up a screen in front of him.  "I can get every single television channel on EARTH with these suckers.  Plus I can use it as a computer monitor if I need to show people things."

"I see," Mastermental says.  "Now I need to go introduce you, please refrain from cursing, being too politically incorrect and commenting on the general stupidity of the masses."

"Yeah, yeah," Nico says.

"Or the not so general stupidity of the press," Mastermental adds before leaving the room.  Nico lets out a sigh and follows him, waiting behind the curtain as Mastermental introduces him.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, I know rumors have been rampant in the past few weeks.  I am here to quell those rumors by saying," insert dramatic pause, "they are all true.  The once dangerous super villain has joined the side of good.  I am pleased to introduce you all to the newest member of the main branch of the Hall, Technico."

Short and sweet, and leaving him with a million questions to answer, Nico thinks in irritation as he steps out from the curtain and into the flashing lights.  Mastermental walks past him.  "Do restrain yourself from killing cameras this time, won't you?"

"Can I mention the school?"

"I don't see why not.  It'll cause a massive shock to the norm population, which means more publicity, which, of course, means more students coming to get in.  Then we'll introduce entrance testing to make it truly elite."

"Fine," Nico says, stepping up to the podium.  He looks over the crowd, then stares at Mega, who's standing in the back with his arms crossed over his chest.  Is he acting as security?  The thought is forgotten as another bright light flashes in front of his eyes.

***

We're surrounding the television, practically sitting on top of each other as we watch the interview.  Thankfully it had interrupted what was rapidly turning into a grill session.  Even Noelle and Justin are sitting on the edges of the group, waiting to see what Nico says in his interview.

"I've never seen him in uniform before," Blackjack says from the chair he's claimed.  "I know he had one before, though.  Did you ever go up against him back in the day, Banshee?"

"Once or twice," Banshee says.

"How'd it go?"

"Why do you think I chose to focus on Panther, instead?" she drawls.  "Of all the villains at the time, Nico was the hardest to deal with.  It took all of Central Hall to catch him the one time we did."