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Nick choked on a laugh, though his eyes were wet. “He’s pretty much the only thing standing between me and total annihilation.”

Officer Rookie chuckled. “I haven’t been around long, Nick. Still on probation. You know how it is.”

“I know, Officer Rookie.”

“But your dad. He… I don’t know everything that happened. Before. People talk, but I don’t listen. You know? Not my thing.”

“Yeah,” Nick said, staring out the window.

“All I care about is that I trust your dad to have my back anytime. Okay? No matter what. He’s a good man.”

Nick nodded, leaning his head against the cool glass. It was still raining.

“I don’t know him all that well, but I do know him enough to say he’s proud of you. I know you’ve been through some crap. The both of you. And I get it, probably better than you might think. But you can always tell how proud he is of you. Talks about you all the time.”

Nick balled his hands into fists in his lap.

“Thought you should know he thinks the world of you. You’re a good kid, Nick. Even if you did smell like my grandad’s cow pasture the first time I met you.”

“Please, Officer Rookie,” Nick muttered. “I kind of already have a boyfriend. And we talked about this. I’m only sixteen. It’s illegal.”

Officer Rookie sighed.

But when they reached an intersection that was backed up for almost an entire city block, he switched on the lights and siren and drove on the sidewalk, so Nick thought he wasn’t that bad.

Cap was waiting for him just inside the automatic doors of the hospital. Officer Rookie told him he’d go park and see him in a bit. Nick barely managed to shut the passenger door behind him before he took off toward the entrance.

Cap smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes. “Is he okay?” Nick demanded, out of breath.

Cap nodded. “He will be. Everyone’s optimistic. Got his bell rung. Knocked him out. Couple of broken ribs.” He hesitated. Then, “One punctured his lung, and it collapsed, but youknowthat’s something they can fix, Nick. Right? You know that?”

Oh, sure. Nick knew that. Nick knew all sorts of things when it came to injuries. Product of being a cop’s kid. In the mystical time known as Before, Dad would regale him with stories of grotesque injuries he’d seen on the job, much to Mom’s dismay. Traffic accidents, a guy who’d been wearing flip-flops when he’d had to lay down his motorcycle to avoid a collision and lost a bunch of his toes, a guy getting three of his teeth literally punched down his throat.

Then Before had become After, and it… well. Nothing had been the same After, but Dad didn’t talk as much about his job anymore. Not when he’d had to tell Nick that it’d been quick for her, that she hadn’t suffered, that she was there one moment then gone the next. Nick had struggled to understand the horror of it all, but he’d gotten there. Eventually.

So yeah. He knew what Cap meant, all right.

“He looks bad,” Cap said quietly. “That’s what you’re gonna think when you see him. It looks worse than it actually is. It’s the bruising, okay? The swelling. He’s got a breathing tube helping him out for now, but it’s only because of the lung. It’ll be out before you know it. When he wakes up, he’s going to be cranky, I can tell you that much. Busted some ribs myself years back. Hurts like a son ofa bitch, and there’s not a whole lot you can do about it. It’ll heal. You still have to breathe, right?”

Nick nodded, unable to speak around the lump in his throat.

Cap dropped a heavy hand on his shoulder, squeezing tightly. “He’s strong, Nick. So strong. And he’s got a lot to fight for. He’s not going anywhere. I can promise you that.”

Nick wanted to shove Cap’s hand away, because no one could promise that. No one could say they would stay forever. Maybe Cap didn’t understand, and it wasn’t his fault, but Nick couldn’t help but feel irrationally furious.Shehadn’t made any promises, but Nick knew she’d have fought as hard as she could to stay with them. Yes, it’d been fast, it’d been over quick, she hadn’tsuffered,but even though she hadn’t made a promise out loud, it shouldn’t have needed to be said.

“What happened?” Nick whispered.

“We can talk about that later, Nicky. You don’t need to—”

“Please.”

Cap sighed. “It was the Extraordinaries. I don’t know—something happened. I’ve never seen them like this. Shadow Star. Pyro Storm. We don’t know what set them off, but they were going after each other in ways they hadn’t before. There was a condemned apartment building. Down near Sixth and Torrance. Big transient population. It’s not the best place, Nick. And that building should have been torn down a long time ago, but it’s been delayed for years. Bureaucratic nonsense.”

Dad had been brave, Cap told him. He wouldn’t expect anything less from one of his officers. They’d been inside the apartment building, trying to get the homeless people to safety, the sounds of the Extraordinaries attacking each other echoing through the streets. His dad had been one of the last people in the apartment building, checking to make sure they’d gotten everyone out. He’d found a woman huddling in a corner, bent over what looked like a pile of dirty rags.

It turned out to be a baby.

She’d been terrified, unable to move. Until Dad picked up her baby. Then she came to life, snatching the child out of his arms. He’d pulled them toward the front of the building.