think it was Pyro Storm.”
Damn right. “What else could it be? The one Extraordinary who can manipulate fire and suddenly, a raging inferno goes out by itself? Come on.”
Owen’s brow furrowed. “I don’t know, Nicky, but let’s say you’re right. Let’s say he did put out the fire. On the other hand, what if he started it too?”
Nick shook his head. “That’s the thing. He didn’t. It was faulty wiring on multiple levels. It turns out the electrical contractors cut major corners. An investigation by the city showed it wasn’t the first time either. They found instances of malfeasance in twelve other construction projects. Multiple lawsuits came out of it. The contracting firm closed, and people are in jail because of what they did.”
“That doesn’t mean he didn’t have anything to do with it,” Owen pointed out.
“So, he coincidentally picked a building where obvious blame could be placed on something else?”
“Or he knew that it could be,” Owen said. “Look, Nick. I get what you’re saying. Maybe Pyro Storm did put out that fire. But that doesn’t mean he’s good.”
Nick frowned. “I’m not trying to say he is. I’m trying to show you he was here first. The fire happened three weeks before the first reported sightings of Shadow Star. And there are other fires that go back further, months even, when the fire was put out in a way that can’t be explained.”
Owen shrugged. “Okay. Let’s say you’re right. So what?”
Nick gaped at him. “So what? How can you say—”
“What’s the point?” Owen asked, waving a hand at the papers on Nick’s bed. “What are you trying to prove? So what if Pyro Storm was here first. Why does it matter?”
Nick looked down at the bed, his thoughts a storm. “I don’t … know.”
“I get it, Nick. I really do. I mean, you fixate, you know? That’s part of who you are. You get attached to things, and it’s like you get these blinders on. It’s endearing. Mostly.”
Endearing. He’d been called that before, but it’d never sounded good. “Thanks.”
“I’m not trying to be a jerk,” Owen said gently. “Just telling it like it is. I want to know why it matters so much to you. So Pyro Storm was here first. Or maybe Shadow Star was. Or maybe they both got here at the same time. Any way you look at it, it doesn’t change how things are now, right? Did you ever stop to think what would happen if they were both villains?”
Nick shook his head furiously. “That’s not how these things work. There is a hero, and then there’s his opposite. It’s how it’s always been.”
“Life isn’t a comic book, Nick. There isn’t always good and evil.”
“I know that, but it’s—”
“Who would your opposite be?”
Nick blinked. “What?”
Owen cocked his head. “You want to be an Extraordinary, right? That’s the whole point of your little game.”
What a dick. “It’s not a game—”
“Let’s say you succeed. Who would your opposite be? It’d have to be someone really terrible, wouldn’t it? Because you’re so good.”
Nick laughed nervously. He’d never really considered that before. It made sense. If he was going to be a hero, he’d need someone as an antagonistic foil. A yang to his yin. “I’m not that good. Ask my dad.”
Owen reached out and squeezed Nick’s hand before pulling away again. “Maybe he doesn’t understand.”
“What do you mean?”
Owen shrugged. “You. How your mind works. How you see things. I think most people don’t get it. I mean, here you are, working your ass off trying to be something more, and what’s it getting you?”
Alarm bells blared in Nick’s head. “Oh, hey. No. It’s not that bad, I guess. He’s—”
Owen snorted. “You’re essentially a prisoner in your own house.”
“Well … yeah. That’s kind of what being grounded means.”
“But aren’t you old enough and smart enough to make your own decisions?”
Oh boy. “I’m sixteen years old. I jumped into a dirty river wearing a ring I bought on the internet from a drag queen. That’s empirical evidence that I shouldn’t be trusted with pretty much anything.”
Owen’s smile was dazzling. “Misguided, then. But your heart was in the right place. You wanted to become something more than what you are. I understand that, Nick. I do. Probably better than anyone. Dear ol’ Dad straps a gun to his waist and a badge to his chest and goes to work every day knowing there’s a chance he might not come home. And that’s scary. So you, in all your wisdom, try to