going to pay for the damage he caused to that convenience store or if the people who own it will.”
Tara's tone was as a sharp as a knife. I probably should have expected it, but it still annoyed me a little.
So I said, “Hey, Bolt saved that man's life. So what if he ended up causing a little property damage in the process? Isn't it important that he saved an innocent person and helped put a criminal behind bars?”
“It's a big deal for the people who run that store,” said Tara, her tone as cold as ever. “They might not even have the money to fix it, or if they do, it will take a long time and might force them to close the store for a while, which will cost them money and maybe their entire livelihood.”
“Well, I think it's great we have a new neohero right here in town anyway,” I said. “Don't you feel safer knowing that we have such a strong and brave hero here willing to fight crime and protect us from supervillains?”
“That's what the police are for,” said Tara. She shot me an irritated glare. “And who cares about some new neohero? We get new neoheroes literally all the time. Did you hear about that one guy in China who blew up that factory full of workers with his mind?”
“Oh, uh, no, I didn't,” I said. “Did anyone survive?”
“No,” said Tara, again without looking at me. “Like I said, neoheroes just cause way more trouble than they're worth. I wish they would all go away.”
Tara's bluntness left me temporarily speechless. I had always known that she didn't like neoheroes very much, but her criticisms felt far more personal now. But I didn't know what to say.
So I just shrugged and said, “All right. But next time you're in trouble, I hope you don't cry out for Bolt or some other neohero to save you.”
“Don't worry,” said Tara. “I won't.”
Something about her tone made me so angry that I was going to shout at her, but then Malcolm said, “Hey, let's not fight. Why don't we agree to disagree on this issue like we always do whenever we talk about it?”
Malcolm's conciliatory tone managed to break through the haze of my anger. I could think more clearly now and I realized that I had been crushing my empty water bottle in my hands with my super strength. I stopped doing that before anyone noticed.
“So,” I said, looking at Malcolm and pointedly ignoring Tara, “who do you think is most likely Bolt?”
“I'm thinking one of the players on the football team,” said Malcolm, glancing over at the table where the school's athletes ate. “I mean, Bolt moved pretty fast and he is obviously really strong. It's either Josh or Reyes, because they're the strongest and fastest members of the football team.”
I nodded, glad that Malcolm apparently didn't think of me as a potential candidate. He apparently wasn't paying attention to my suit-up watch, which made sense, because it was usually hidden underneath my suit whenever I put it on. Still, I turned it around on my wrist anyway, away from Malcolm, just so he wouldn't notice it.
“Well, whoever it is, I'm sure that this won't be the last we'll hear of him,” I said. “Maybe he'll even become Silvers' defender.”
“Yeah, but wouldn't it be awesome if you knew who Bolt was?” said Malcolm in excitement. “Then you could legitimately say you are friends with a real neohero, instead of all that fake crap you see people brag about online about how they have dinner with Omega Man every Friday like they're good friends or something.”
I was almost tempted to tell him here and now that I was Bolt, but I refrained from doing so, because I was sure that Dad would just save Master Chaos the trouble and kill me himself if I blew my secret identity like this. Of course, he might just kill me anyway after school, but I didn't want to push it.
“Yeah, that would be cool,” I said. Then I looked around. “Say, have you heard anything about Robert Candle? I'm not really concerned about him, but I haven't heard any
Tara's tone was as a sharp as a knife. I probably should have expected it, but it still annoyed me a little.
So I said, “Hey, Bolt saved that man's life. So what if he ended up causing a little property damage in the process? Isn't it important that he saved an innocent person and helped put a criminal behind bars?”
“It's a big deal for the people who run that store,” said Tara, her tone as cold as ever. “They might not even have the money to fix it, or if they do, it will take a long time and might force them to close the store for a while, which will cost them money and maybe their entire livelihood.”
“Well, I think it's great we have a new neohero right here in town anyway,” I said. “Don't you feel safer knowing that we have such a strong and brave hero here willing to fight crime and protect us from supervillains?”
“That's what the police are for,” said Tara. She shot me an irritated glare. “And who cares about some new neohero? We get new neoheroes literally all the time. Did you hear about that one guy in China who blew up that factory full of workers with his mind?”
“Oh, uh, no, I didn't,” I said. “Did anyone survive?”
“No,” said Tara, again without looking at me. “Like I said, neoheroes just cause way more trouble than they're worth. I wish they would all go away.”
Tara's bluntness left me temporarily speechless. I had always known that she didn't like neoheroes very much, but her criticisms felt far more personal now. But I didn't know what to say.
So I just shrugged and said, “All right. But next time you're in trouble, I hope you don't cry out for Bolt or some other neohero to save you.”
“Don't worry,” said Tara. “I won't.”
Something about her tone made me so angry that I was going to shout at her, but then Malcolm said, “Hey, let's not fight. Why don't we agree to disagree on this issue like we always do whenever we talk about it?”
Malcolm's conciliatory tone managed to break through the haze of my anger. I could think more clearly now and I realized that I had been crushing my empty water bottle in my hands with my super strength. I stopped doing that before anyone noticed.
“So,” I said, looking at Malcolm and pointedly ignoring Tara, “who do you think is most likely Bolt?”
“I'm thinking one of the players on the football team,” said Malcolm, glancing over at the table where the school's athletes ate. “I mean, Bolt moved pretty fast and he is obviously really strong. It's either Josh or Reyes, because they're the strongest and fastest members of the football team.”
I nodded, glad that Malcolm apparently didn't think of me as a potential candidate. He apparently wasn't paying attention to my suit-up watch, which made sense, because it was usually hidden underneath my suit whenever I put it on. Still, I turned it around on my wrist anyway, away from Malcolm, just so he wouldn't notice it.
“Well, whoever it is, I'm sure that this won't be the last we'll hear of him,” I said. “Maybe he'll even become Silvers' defender.”
“Yeah, but wouldn't it be awesome if you knew who Bolt was?” said Malcolm in excitement. “Then you could legitimately say you are friends with a real neohero, instead of all that fake crap you see people brag about online about how they have dinner with Omega Man every Friday like they're good friends or something.”
I was almost tempted to tell him here and now that I was Bolt, but I refrained from doing so, because I was sure that Dad would just save Master Chaos the trouble and kill me himself if I blew my secret identity like this. Of course, he might just kill me anyway after school, but I didn't want to push it.
“Yeah, that would be cool,” I said. Then I looked around. “Say, have you heard anything about Robert Candle? I'm not really concerned about him, but I haven't heard any
Similar Books
