Part 34 (1/2)

Sadness filled Fiona's eyes.

”Despite what Malefica said, I'm the reason he's dead. I led her straight to him.”

”I miss Travis. I always will. But Malefica's the one responsible. She killed him, Carmen, not you. Even I see that now. I don't blame you anymore.”

KarmaGirl.

I arched an eyebrow.

”Well, maybe just a little bit,” Fiona admitted. ”We'll never be best friends, but I can tolerate your presence now- for Sam's sake.”

”Gee, thanks for the ringing endors.e.m.e.nt.”

Fiona glared at me. This time, though, my temperature didn't shoot up. I used the energy waves in the room to buffer myself from Fiona's heated gaze. There were some advantages to having superpowers.

Finally, I looked away. I was tired. So tired of everything. ”Why are you telling me this? You don't even like me.”

Fiona shrugged. ”I want Sam to be happy, and you seem to make him happy. Give him a chance, Carmen, that's all I'm asking.” She turned on her high heel and flounced away. The ruffles on her dress floated around her like b.u.t.terflies.

All I could do was watch her leave and try to squash the sudden hope that flared up in my shattered heart.

I went back to the newspaper and wrote my story. I waited for the usual e-mail response, packed up my things, and left. I pa.s.sed Henry's empty desk on the way out. He'd been spending less and less of his spare time at the office and more and more of it with Lulu. I was glad the computer whiz wasn't in his chair. I didn't need another superhero telling me how to run my life.

I pulled on my jacket and stepped outside. After the attack, I'd tried to avoid walking home alone late at night. I wasn't afraid of being raped or mugged now. Funny what being dropped into a vat of radioactive waste did for your courage.

I ambled down the streets and brooded. I thought about Sam and the Fearless Five and Sam and Sam some more. I'd been so hurt by Matt. Did I want to take a chance on having my heart broken by another superhero? One who seemed to want my powers just as much as he wanted me? Suddenly, my inner voice screeched.

”Help! Somebody please help me!” a woman's voice rang out.

Somebody was in trouble. I picked up my pace. I turned a corner and found a young woman with her back pressed against the wall. Three men stood in front of the woman, who clutched her purse over her chest.

”Hey! What do you think you're doing?” I shouted.

One of the men glanced over his shoulder. I froze. It was the same man who had tried to rape me all those weeks ago. The same man Striker had reduced to a pile of mush. Why the h.e.l.l was he walking around free as a bird? Maybe he'd taken up the bad ubervillain habit of not staying in prison more than a few days before busting out.

”Well, well, sweet stuff. How are tricks?” the man crooned. He grinned, and I noticed he was missing some of his gold-capped teeth. ”Look's like we're going to get two for the price of one tonight, boys.”

The men laughed. I took a breath to calm my nerves.

Striker wasn't going to swoop in and save me this time. I'd have to do it myself. The leader walked toward me, and I concentrated on him just the way Chief Newman had taught me. Slowly but surely, I spotted wavy lines of psychic energy emanating from his body. Black waves. Just like his soul.

The man drew closer, and I reached for the waves. He put his hand on my chest and drew me toward him. I ducked under the man's body and used his own power to flip him over my shoulder. He hit the sidewalk with a satisfying thud.

Another one of the men came at me. I tapped into his psychic energy and threw him back against the wall. The men shook off their injuries and came at me again. Once more, I used their own power to KarmaGirl.

propel them back into the wall. They slammed against it so hard that bits of crumbled brick broke off.

Dust thickened the air. The men staggered to their feet and lunged at me. For the third time, I sent them flying through the air. This time, they didn't get up.

The other man, seeing what I had done to his two companions, ran away.

I stepped over the groaning men toward the woman. ”Are you okay?”

”I-I-I think so. How did you do that? It was amazing!” The woman's eyes were as big and round as marbles.

”Um, well, I take, um, karate lessons. Karate is all about using your opponent's strength against him.”

”You saved me. You're my hero.” The woman pumped my hand like she was meeting a rock star. ”How can I ever thank you?”

”Call the police and report the men. I bet you're not the first woman they've attacked. And don't walk down the street by yourself at night. This neighborhood is dangerous.

You're just asking for trouble when you do that.” Said the voice of experience. Me.

”I will, and I won't. Thanks again.” The woman whipped out her cell phone.

She dialed 911. I ducked around the corner and hid in the shadows until I saw the flas.h.i.+ng lights of a police car. Once the officer approached the woman, I eased down the street. I had no desire to be identified as the Good Samaritan and explain how I took out two men with my bare hands and scared another one away. My karate story wouldn't cut it with the cops.

”Nicely done, although I would have stuck around for the TV cameras. It's always good to remind people just how n.o.ble and heroic you are,” a low, male voice murmured behind me.

I shrieked and whirled around, ready to do battle once more. To my surprise, Swifte stood behind me. I hadn't even heard the speedy superhero approach.

”What are you doing here?” I asked, wary.

”Nothing much. Just doing my usual patrols. I heard the woman scream and zipped over.” Swifte eyed me. ”And you were on the scene.”

I froze. Had Swifte seen me take out those goons? Had he seen me use powers? Oh G.o.d, was he going to expose me as I'd exposed so many superheroes? For a moment, I couldn't breathe. That'd be some karmic retribution all right.

”Yeah. I got lucky.” I made my voice light and cheery, as though I tackled would-be rapists every day.

”I've been taking karate lessons, you see.”

”Karate. Right.” Swifte started to lean against the side of the building, but thought better of it, given his s.h.i.+mmering white suit. ”What you did back there looked like superpowers to me. Some sort of fancy telekinesis or something.”

”I don't know what you're talking about.” When caught, deny all knowledge.

”Of course you don't,” he said.

We stood there in silence. Finally, Swifte spoke again.

”There's been a lot of talk about you lately, Carmen. The incident at the ice cream factory is all that anyone can think about these days.”

My mouth dropped open. ”How do you know about that?” n.o.body in the media had any idea what had really happened at the factory. Even SNN hadn't broken the story. Police officials, including Chief Newman, had blamed the explosion on gas leaks.

”Word gets around. Most of us superheroes know how you saved the Fearless Five and that Malefica was really the one who killed Tornado. You're no longer public enemy number one among the crowd.”

KarmaGirl.

”Word gets around? Or just you?”