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Trick backed up, sneering at Joan. “Working with the Supers? Really, Joanie? After everything we’ve been through?”

“You fucked up big time,” Joan growled. “That woman means more to me than you’ll ever know.”

“Enough to forget your loyalties? Our code?”

“I don’t owe you a thing.” She veered toward Sadie. “Shitheads like you have kept me in this life far too long.”

“Perry kept you in this life,” Trick scoffed.

“And now it’s time for all of us to get out. Only you’ll be locked up for a very, very long time.”

Joan paused in front of Sadie. Her familiar lips, the worry in her amber eyes. “Hey, sweetheart,” she said.

She shot a fireball at Trick’s feet, causing him to jump.

“I’m really sorry for everything. I should’ve been honest from the start.”

She shot another fireball at his ass. He howled.

“I know I don’t deserve a second chance,” Joan said. “Especially not after you’ve seen all this.”

A sharp flame blazed from her palm. It slammed into Trick’s chest, knocking him over.

“But I really, really like you. And I think we could work through some stuff. If you want to try.”

Sadie’s heart swelled. Joan was rescuing her. She was working with the Supers. She was…

…the reason Sadie was in this mess. Trick had used her as bait. She tried to say, “I got kidnapped because of you,” but that was not what came out.

“What?” Joan said.

Mark hastened over. “I got this.”

He touched a finger to the duct tape. It froze and crumbled off Sadie’s mouth. She drew in a deep breath. The air tasted of smoke and cold and electricity.

Trick started to get up. Joan lasered her eyes at him. A tall inferno encircled him.

“Isn’t he going to get burned?” Sadie asked.

“Nah,” Joan said. “Our suits are resistant to stuff like that.”

Race stood with them for a few moments, then gestured at the fire circle. “Are you done playing with him?”

Joan’s eyes narrowed. “He’s all yours.”

Breeze walked over and blew a big gust of wind to extinguish the flames. Race wasted no time wrapping Trick in full-body ropes.

Sadie shook her head, which felt like her own again. At some point, Trick had changed. He was much shorter, and his face wasn’t remotely chiseled, and he looked more like a Melvin. Were those fake muscles built into his suit?

Thewhomp-whomp-whompof an approaching helicopter sounded nearby. Could be the police, could be the press.

Flight scooped him up and flew off, Trick’s wails echoing farther and farther away.

“Good riddance, piece of shit,” Joan said.

“Make sure he’s contained in a way that blocks him from doing mind control,” Breeze said to Race.

“We do know how to properly secure Villains,” Race said. That made Breeze rapidly retreat.