It was just paint, but Adrian couldn’t recall ever being so proud of any of his art. When he stepped into the room, he imagined he could smell the heady fragrance of wildflowers. He could hear the squawks of native birds and the thrum of a thousand insects. He could feel the humidity on his skin.
He had just opened a can of paint, intending to finish some of the highlights on a cluster of ferns, when a brusque voice echoed through the house.
“ADRIAN!”
He froze.
It had been a long, long time since he’d heard Hugh yell like that.
Setting down his paintbrush, he made his way hesitantly up the stairs.
He found his dads in their office on the second floor, huddled around a shared tablet on the large mahogany desk.
“You called?”
They both looked up at him, momentarily speechless.
Hugh launched to his feet and jabbed a finger at the tablet. “What were you thinking?”
Adrian took a step back. “Excuse me?”
Simon held up the tablet for Adrian to see. “Would you care to explain this to us?”
Adrian approached them hesitantly, watching the screen. It was security footage of Max’s quarantine, and—
“I … was going to tell you about that.”
“I should hope so,” said Hugh, still on the verge of yelling. He spread his arms wide, a gesture of frustration that Adrian hadn’t seen from him in a long time. “How could you just…？ Why would you … What were you thinking?”
“Adrian,” said Simon, with much more patience, “did you…” He trailed off. Squared his shoulders. Started again. “Did you sacrifice your powers … so you could be closer to Max?”
Adrian gaped at him. The way he said it, Adrian could tell that he thought the idea was both ludicrous and also enviable. Like maybe he’d considered doing exactly that more times than he would admit.
“No,” Adrian said. “I didn’t sacrifice my powers.”
“Then what is happening in this video?” said Hugh. “The poor security guard on duty nearly had a heart attack when he saw this.”
Adrian rubbed a hand over his hair. “I’m sorry. I … I was going to talk to you about that—”
“We’re talking about it now,” snapped Hugh.
“Would you stop yelling?” Adrian said.
Hugh glowered, but then deflated, at least a little. “Sorry.”
Adrian sighed. “I … figured out a way to be immune to Max.”
“No one is immune to Max,” said Hugh.
Adrian frowned. “You’re immune to Max.”
His voice rose again. “And I’m the only one. Now, try again. The truth this time.”
“I found this thing in the vaults,” Adrian said, more forcefully now. “It’s called the Vitality Charm. It’s this old medallion that’s said to protect against pretty much anything that weakens a person, like poison or disease. And I thought … well, maybe it would work against Max’s powers too. And it did. It does.”
Hugh and Simon exchanged doubtful looks.
“It’s the truth.” He gestured at the tablet. “I’m wearing the charm in the video. You can see it.”
“What do you mean you found it?” said Simon.
“I was getting that puppet for Winston Pratt, and Snapshot was there, talking about it with that guy, um, Callum. I did some research and learned what it could do, and I just … I figured it would work.” He focused on Simon. “I have the charm downstairs. I was going to give it to you. You can wear it and you’ll be able to see Max, just like I did. You can get close to him and nothing will happen to you.”
“Adrian, that’s … that’s impossible,” said Simon.
“It’s in the video!” He gestured at the tablet. “I wouldn’t lie about this.”
“But how did you know?” started Hugh.
“It was a hunch I had. And it worked.”
Hugh rocked back on his heels and a silence filled the office.
“Immunity,” Simon finally murmured. “From Max?”
Adrian hooked his thumbs on his pockets. “And … other things too.”
“Poisons and diseases,” said Hugh, “and Max.”
Adrian scratched behind his neck. “I don’t know this for sure, but … I think it might also protect from … something like … Agent N.”
Their expressions mirrored each other. Disbelief, but also intrigue.
“How did we not know about this?” said Hugh.
Adrian shrugged. “I figured since we have so many prodigy healers, no one really worries that much about fending off poisons and diseases. The medallion had never been checked out by any Renegade, not since the database was created. It just must not have seemed important.”
“Well, it will now,” said Hugh. “Something like this … I never thought…”
For a moment, Simon looked almost proud. And … hopeful. “That was really brave, Adrian.”
“Thanks,” Adrian muttered, even as his heart swelled.
Hugh leaned against the windowsill. “We need to talk about this. About what it could mean, for Max and for Agent N. For now, don’t tell anyone else about this … Vitality Charm, okay?”
“Yeah, sure, of course,” said Adrian. “Except I already told Nova.”
Hugh rolled his eyes. “Of course you did. Well, tell her not to tell anyone else, all right?”
Adrian nodded, even though there was a tinge of disappointment that came with the words. He’d been excited to tell Oscar and the others. He tucked his hands into his pockets and swayed impatiently. “So, was that all?”
His dads traded another look, and Adrian bristled on the inside. What was with all the silent looks these days? Didn’t they know he could see them?
Then they both sighed, practically in unison.
“Yes,” said Hugh. “That was all.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
NOVA WAS NEARLY finished cleaning up the disaster when a chime echoed through the vault. She cocked her head, frowning. It sounded like the alert from the reception desk, but … it was far too early for someone to be there, wasn’t it?
She waited until she heard the chime a second time, then sighed and headed to the front of the warehouse.
A girl was standing at the checkout desk, drumming her fingers on the counter.
Nova’s feet stalled.
Genissa Clark’s ice-blue eyes met Nova’s, then swept down the length of the mop. Her lips curled, just a tiny bit. “First you go from patrols to administration duty, and now they’ve demoted you all the way down to janitorial? Your family must be so proud.”
Nova’s teeth ground—more at Genissa’s flippant mention of her family than the pretentious attempt at an insult.
During her time masquerading as a Renegade, Nova had been forced to admit that many Renegades had good intentions, even if they were part of a harmful social hierarchy. But she had also become even more aware that many Renegades craved authority over those they deemed inferior, and Frostbite was among the worst. Back when the Anarchists had lived in the subway tunnels, Frostbite’s team paid frequent visits—mocking the Anarchists, destroying their property, wasting their resources … all in the name of “keeping the peace.” Nova despised her and her team more than she despised most Renegades.