Page 73

“Did Simon Burke see you?” Jazz asked.

Nick shook his head. “I don’t think so. Why?”

“He’s scary. At least that’s what my dad says. He’s ruthless. He’ll do anything to get what he wants. I only met him once, but it was a long time ago. He didn’t seem very nice to me.”

“That’s probably how one gets to be a super rich CEO,” Gibby said. “You gotta be able to squash the little guy. Owen’s pretty much on his way already, isn’t he?”

“Hey,” Nick said, feeling weirdly defensive. “Owen’s notthatbad.” He paused, considering. “Okay, maybe he is, but he’s not like his father. That guy gives me the creeps.”

“Sure, Nicky. Whatever you say.” She took a bite of pepperoni and olive. “How’s Phase Two going?”

Phase Two was pretty much dead in the water, but he needed to keep the faith. “There aren’t any meteor showers in the near future. And I think that most of the nuclear power plants near here are probably under armed guard.”

“That’s just unfair,” Jazz said. “Don’t they know all you want is a little radiation poisoning?”

Thank god for Jazz. “Right? It’s not like I’d be hurting anyone.”

“Except for yourself,” Gibby said. “Like, what if instead of giving you powers, it made all your teeth fall out and your eyelids melt?”

“You wouldn’t be able to blink,” Jazz told him. “Or eat solid foods. And you’d probably grow tumors all over your body. I don’t know if I could be seen in public with someone who had no teeth or eyelids and a lot of tumors due to self-inflicted radiation poisoning. I do have a reputation to maintain.”

“Hate to break it to you,” Gibby said, “but your reputation was pretty much shot when you decided to take up with the likes of us. We aren’t exactly the top of the food chain. I don’t even know if we’reonthe food chain.”

“More like the flies that surround the predators at the top of the food chain,” Nick said.

“I suppose,” Jazz said. “But I think it’s better to be real with you than fake with everyone else.”

Nick gaped at her.

“What?” she asked him.

He shook his head slowly. “I just—huh.”

“Is that a goodhuh?”

“Oh yeah. You’re awesome. You sound like a fortune cookie.”

She looked pleased. “Why, thank you. I like the way they taste.”

Gibby grinned at her. “She’s pretty great, right?” She glanced at Nick. “But it’s probably for the best about the meteors and the power plants.”

Well… yeah, but still. “What do you mean?”

She shrugged. “You saw the way Pyro Storm and Shadow Star were going after each other last night. Don’t tell me you didn’t. You turned your TV on as soon as you got home. And licked the screen.”

Nick scowled at her. “What does that have to do with me?”

“It’s dangerous,” Gibby said gently. “The way they were fighting was just… brutal. How could you want to be a part of that?”

“It’s notaboutthat—”

“Of course it is. Maybe not all of it, but it’s a big part. There’s always going to be something bad with all the good. You can’t be a hero without there being a villain.”

“I think he can do it,” Jazz said. “If anyone is capable of it, it’s Nick. He’d probably end up being the best Extraordinary there was.”

“Thankyou, Jazz,” Nick said, glaring at Gibby. “It’s nice to know I have at least one person on my side.”

Gibby shook her head. “Don’t take this the wrong way, okay? But you’re not exactly known for your follow-through.”