Page 20 of Seductive Architect (Grunts of Vanguard #2)

The bar filled with ringing. Every man went for their phone, but I already knew the source. The HeroApp? had sent out an alarm. Prism had returned to Synergy. Instead of sneaking in and blinding security cameras, he had made a spectacle of himself. He wanted attention, all eyes on him.

Claim the encounter. My phone sent out an alert, telling every hero to stand down. I couldn’t explain it, but my… ugh… gut said I was missing an obvious connection. It was time to find out about his involvement with Synergy.

“It’s Prism. He’s at work,” Hudson said.

“I’m sure he’s part of my… conspiracy .”

“Good luck?”

I took the final swig of beer and stood up. It’d only take me a few seconds to put on the suit and fly to Synergy. After everything we put on the table, I wasn’t leaving Hudson alone. I caused the turmoil and might very well be the only person who understood what he was going through.

“I don’t want you alone tonight.” Not after that bomb I dropped.

I held out my hand.

Care to join me?

“Can I do this?”

Hudson tightened his grip on my neck as I flew upside down.

He asked dozens of questions when I suited up.

An average person would have squealed when I grabbed them and blasted off.

Hudson relied on his above-average strength to hold on.

Maybe he could fly? But I hoped not. I much preferred him pressed against my body, even if my suit separated us.

I sat down in front of the shattered windows. “Ricardo’s insurance is going to be pissed.” It probably wasn’t the smartest tactic to bring Hudson, but I didn’t want to abandon him. Our date night had taken a weird twist… I grinned. It was still technically a date.

I stopped him from walking through the glass.

“You can’t let him see you.” I put a finger to his temple.

With a gentle nudge, the nanites pulled away from my finger, rushing across his face.

A second later, he had a black mask surrounding his eyes and going halfway down his nose. “This should work.”

He snatched his phone and snapped a photo of himself, inspecting it. “I’m a hero.”

“No,” I corrected. “You’re a civilian. Stay behind me and don’t do anything stupid.” As soon as I said it, I might as well have tempted fate. Before tonight ended, he’d do something stupid. Those were the rules.

Hudson hesitated at the door, glancing at me as if he needed permission to go in.

He could have walked through any of the windows, but he clutched the handle.

With a sharp jerk, the whole thing tore free.

He let go, startled, taking a quick step back.

Pointing at himself and then the door, he made an audible gasp.

“I did that?”

In the lobby, a white light filled the space. If Prism thought I’d make the same mistakes twice, he had another thing coming. My visor filtered out the light, making his attempt at blinding me for naught. Meanwhile, Hudson staggered, rubbing his eyes.

The jetpack fired, and I flew inside. I’d smack Prism around for a bit.

We’d do an uncanny amount of property damage, and then I’d drop him off at the police station.

Hudson and I could end the evening at my place, curled up on the couch as I…

I shook my head, reminding myself that Hudson was a person of interest and not my boyfriend. Or maybe he could be?—

“I was expecting the big one. At least he’d prove a challenge.”

He and Hole needed to team up. While Hole was a walking shadow, Prism’s entire body glowed white.

He almost shimmered, as if his body couldn’t contain the light.

It made for a nifty costume, though I wondered if this meant he was standing there naked?

I let repulsors in my gauntlets glow, ready for his first move.

“You’ll do. I hope you’ve…”

I rolled my eyes as he rattled on. Prism wanted to talk. Great. Supervillains loved lengthy monologues where they revealed their childhood traumas. Good grief, the world sucked. Get over it. I always preferred the ones that just slugged it out.

“Why are you here?”

“I hear Synergy has a special interest in heroes. I wanted to investigate.”

Plausible. Tech operations were three times more likely to be attacked. Villains wanted a way to enhance their abilities or steal the weapons for themselves. Prism struck me as the type who wanted to be a one-man army. At least this time, he hadn’t brought his henchmen.

“You’re not getting anywhere near their tech.”

“I think I already have.”

Wait, what? A beam of white shot out of his chest. I spun about to see it bathing Hudson in a brilliant light.

Prism knew Hudson’s secret? Even Hudson held up his hands, confused by the statement.

There were no such things as coincidences.

Dammit, it had been a ploy to bring my newly liberated friend.

I leapt into the air, the jetpack firing for extra height. Drawing back my fist, I prepared to slam my knuckles into the baddie’s face. He fired the first laser as I barrel-rolled out of the way. The second struck my shoulder, cutting through my suit. I growled at the pain before I clocked him.

Prism stumbled. His entire body strobed, trying to disorient. My visor continued adjusting, his illuminance barely that of a light bulb. He lobbed a red sphere. I tossed up my forearms as it exploded. The suit held me in place, compensating for the force of his bomb.

“What do you know about him?” I barked.

“Protective?”

When I dropped my arms, I didn’t have time to react as he snapped a neon pink whip of light around my neck.

My hands passed through, impossible to grab.

It tightened, causing my suit to dent. It was strong, but not impenetrable.

I made a mental note to upgrade if I were going to take on top-tier bad guys.

The whip loosened as a couch slammed into Prism.

Hudson picked up one of the chairs, his eyes going wide in disbelief.

“I don’t want you to…” Unlike before, I could hear snippets of his code.

It still moved at lightning speed, but I could pick out bits.

Angles. Strategy. Percentages. Whatever fueled Hudson had broken down the scene into mathematics.

A bolt of purple light fired at him, but he slid out of the way. When the next fired, he was already leaping out of the way. A guy his size shouldn’t be able to move like that. He flipped over the next, hurling the chair as he landed. In the perfect arc, he smacked into Prism.

“Looks like I’ll have to kill you and your sidekick.”

Did Hudson’s programming change in stressful situations? His response could be triggered by adrenaline or perhaps seeing me in danger? After tonight, I wanted to ask him if he’d let me in… in the most literal sense possible.

Prism’s whip reformed, and he swung it over his head. Hudson completely ignored my earlier warnings and charged Prism. Compartments on the top of my gauntlets opened, firing tiny missiles. I hadn’t finished my upgrades, but I had enough arsenal to combat the walking flashlight.

With one hand, he fired bolts that smashed the missiles… just as I anticipated. Each burst into black smoke, coating his body. Using Drew’s abilities for inspiration, the black spread around his body, dimming the light. At least now, half his abilities were null and void.

The whip came swinging, still glowing a vivid neon pink.

Hudson dove, dodging it by fractions of an inch.

He rolled to his feet and spun about, sweeping Prism’s feet out from under him.

Before he could smash against the tile, Hudson carried his momentum forward, slamming the heel of his foot against Prism’s chest. Even as the whip made another pass, he jumped, tucking his legs up so Prism missed.

When Prism got to his feet, the black casing cracked.

He tried slamming a fist into Hudson, but he blocked it with ease.

The uppercut had Prism flying backward. I tried focusing on the fight, but the pain in my shoulder coursed through my body.

What started as a minor burning had turned into a searing pain.

My gauntlets detached, firing like rockets. Prism dodged the first, but the second gripped his wrist, holding him against a column. I dropped to my knees, redirecting the other gauntlet to join its companion. If we secured him, then we could begin?—

The black coating his body shattered, the light filling the lobby. He held his hands forward, ready to obliterate me. At the last second, Hudson slammed his knuckles against Prism’s face, knocking the white away. Prism’s mask faltered, and I could see half of his face.

“Senator?”

He covered his face as his body grew brighter. I knew a self-destruct scenario when I saw one. The gauntlets let go of Prism’s arms, turning and latching onto Hudson’s shoulders, forcing him toward me. I grabbed him, spinning about as I cradled his body.

The silent blast sent us tumbling. Even through clenched eyes, the light burned.

I did my best to protect Hudson as the nanites screamed.

The suit overheated, and I found it difficult to communicate with the machines.

Try as I might, they couldn’t throw up a shield.

If I were Prism, this would be the opportunity to rush in and deal a finishing blow.

We rolled along the floor. As we came to a stop, I pushed off Hudson, landing on my back with a thud. Raising both hands, the suit's forearms didn’t respond. There’d be no missiles, snares, or sonic weapons. We’d duke it out like a bar fight… if the multi-colored orbs vanished.

The vizor’s feed remained white static, making it impossible to see the impending killing blow. I tapped the side, and the nanites receded, exposing my face. I’d have Connie scrub all the cameras right after I…

“He’s gone?” I had a thousand questions.

Hudson groaned. I knelt over him as I tried to force the orbs away. I couldn’t rely on the visor, so I did a manual inspection for broken bones. When I reached his thigh, he giggled. It seemed everything remained where it should be.

“I didn’t know I could do that.” He lifted his head, his breathing still hard. “How’d I do?”

My hand ran along his jawline, giving him a pat on the cheek.

“Looks like you have a future as a hero.” I turned back to the column, half expecting to see the villain creeping about.

Hudson had saved me. While I was covered in technology, allowing me to go toe-to-toe with the bad guys, Hudson managed with his bare hands.

“You did great.” It’d be poor form to kiss him as a thanks, didn’t stop me from wanting it. I had been so focused on his origin, I neglected the man lying on the floor. My gut had been right about this, but now the identity of Prism posed a long list of questions.

“We need to run.”

“Why? ”

“It’s a superhero thing. Know when to stay and pose. Know when to flee.”

With my suit on the fritz, we’d have to flee on foot. I wouldn’t be carrying Hudson through the air. Fleeing the scene on foot might not be the most graceful thing, but then again, there wasn’t much about this job that seemed glamorous these days.

Sirens screamed in the distance. “Come on, we need to go.”

When I helped him to his feet, he groaned. I couldn’t leave him alone, especially not after that last sucker punch. I wanted to make sure he wasn’t bleeding internally, and dropping him off at the hospital wasn’t an option.

“My place isn’t far from here.”