Chapter Four
A vibrant line of crimson was already growing along the eastern horizon when Luna Gatsby arrived on the deserted country road. She was driving Miranda's silver Lexus, and leaned over to throw open the passenger side door. A moment later, a rather disheveled looking superheroine scurried out of the brush line.
"You okay?" Luna asked it the way a mother asks when they pick up a child they don't want to acknowledge has been drinking.
"Yeah, fine," Miranda lied, squirming into the passenger seat.
The toxin seemed to be wearing off, but her skin still felt electrified and even the plush insides of her luxury coupe felt prickly and rough.
After regaining her composure, Miranda had reset her power belt. This had the desired effect of recalibrating the Nandex, and fortunately she'd had enough juice left to leave Vic Walker with a story about the heroine who'd flown away, after he rescued her.
Unfortunately, she hadn't been able to fly much further than just out of sight, before having to set down and call Luna to come pick her up.
Luna was wearing a loose gray sweatshirt, with a pair of big round glasses resting on her cute little nose. The slightly chubby brunette made no attempt to hide her concern as she looked over Miranda.
"Look, I don't want to make a habit of coming to rescue you," Luna said, then let a grin break across her face. "But I do love driving your Lexus." She gunned the engine, spraying gravel as they pulled out onto the highway.
"I got jabbed with a taser tonight," Miranda said. "And it shut down my powers, should that happen?"
Luna did some quick mental calculations. "I mean, it shouldn't," she replied. "I guess a significant enough charge would disrupt the calibration, but nothing your average taser should be capable of."
"I guess it was more than an average taser." The heroine took an odd mix of comfort and unease at the thought.
"So, you delt with the good Dr. Kelvin with no powers?" Luna sounded impressed. "Maybe this wasn't such a stupid plan."
"Well, I had a little help," Miranda admitted. "There was this bounty hunter, who was apparently after him as well, he showed up right about the same time I did."
"A bounty hunter?"
"Yeah."
"So, I'm guessing you didn't get any info on our Mr. The Hammer?"
Miranda peeled off her mask and shook her head.
"So, this guy took him into custody before you could question him?"
"Not exactly."
"What happened?"
"He got away."
Luna burst into laughter. "There was two of you, and you both let him get away?"
"It's not funny," Miranda huffed, crossing her arms. "He was sneaky and had tricks up his sleeve and...look, this wasn't just some back-alley dealer."
"Apparently not," Luna said, still chuckling. "Okay, so what kind of tricks?"
"Well, you know that taser I mentioned," she explained. "It was built into his cane."
"Wait, the guy had a cane?"
"It's not like that," Miranda said quickly. "It was part of the trick, he pretended to be all old and feeble."
"Y'know, I might expect your sweet-self to fall for that," Luna was laughing again. "But I would expect an actual bounty hunter not to be so naïve."
"Yeah, well, he was pretty convincing."
"So, the guy zapped you with an electric cane? That's kinda cool, like real supervillain shit."
"Really, L?"
"No, no, sorry," Luna corrected quickly. "I meant the tech, he has a device capable of discharging enough energy to disrupt your systems and he concealed it in a cane...Kinda gives me a techy-lady-boner."
"Well, I'm glad it's so exciting for you," Miranda said. "Cuz it fucking hurt."
"Right," Luna replied sheepishly. "My bad."
"It's been three days, L," Miranda spat suddenly. "Three days since I trashed Suites's place. Tonight, I beat up a group of date-rapin' frat guys to get the name of their dealer, beat up a couple of roided-up dealers to get an address on their supplier, then I got tased by a crazy old chemist and rescued by some smokin' hot bounty hunter... but I'm not any closer to finding Paisley, or the Hammer. I'm running out of time!" She sank a little further into the passenger seat, glaring out the window at nothing in particular.
It was silent for a long moment before Luna spoke.
"So, he was pretty sexy, huh?"
Miranda looked over, her cheeks flushing pink. "What?"
"Thought I missed that?" Luna's grin nearly reached her ears. "In the middle of all that whining you were just doing, you called that bounty hunter 'smokin' hot'."
"No, I didn't mean -- he wasn't -- I mean, I wasn't, I mean... We were fighting an evil chemist, how would I even notice?"
"Uh huh. So where is he now?"
Miranda heaved a sigh. "He had to call that location into the cops, there was a lot of contraband being stored there. So, he's waiting to make his report, which he assured me, I will be left out of."
"Awfully kind of him."
"He said he was from Warden City, so apparently he's in support of superheroines."
"Lucky for you, maybe he's got a thing for them?"
A faint, girlish smile crept across Miranda's lips. "Something like that..."
"Seriously though," Luna went on. "Finding people is his job, right? Well, you've got two, now three people to find, and he needs to find one of them too. I think you two should team up."
"Will you listen to yourself? 'Super villain'? 'Team up'?" Miranda began. "Even if that wasn't totally crazy-"
"-Crazier than a gorgeous blonde bombshell flying around the city and fighting crime in blue spandex?" Luna interjected.
"Even if," Miranda insisted. "I doubt I'll ever even see him again."
Chapter Five
"M- m- miss R-R-Ran-ran -dee, ca-ca-can I a-ask y-you so-som-thing?"
As the homeless man who everyone called Stuttering Bob approached, his eyes flickered over her nervously. Even when she tried to dress down, Miranda was a head turner. As usual the blue RCFP Volunteer shirt clung snug to the curves of her breasts. A pair of white denim shorts left her long legs deliciously bare, all the way down to a stylish pair of red, white and yellow tennis shoes. Her shiny blonde hair was tied back in a ponytail and tucked through the back of an all-white Warden City Wardens' baseball cap.
"Of course, Bob, what is it?" Miranda smiled easily and put a hand on his shoulder.
He was one of the scruffier regulars at the Riverside City Food Pantry. His salt and pepper hair and beard were both inordinately long, and bushy in a way that would scoff at a comb or brush, even if he tried to use one. And whatever clothes he owned, he wore all at once at all times.
"I-I-I-I kno-know you he-h-h-help peop-eople g-g-get in-in-in -to tr-tr-treat- m-me-ment."
She only half listened as he stammered into his question. Not out of disrespect, she was actually quite fond of the man, but Miranda did have other things on her mind. A foul mood had settled over the clients at Riverside City Food Pantry. The last couple days there was a noticeable edge in the air.
"I w-wan-wa-wanna g-g-get so-bb-sober b-b-bu-ut it-t-t-t's jus-u-ust too ha-a-a-ard arr-rou-rou-ound here."
Of course, it was hard for Miranda not to assume it came from the disappearances. Her friend Paisley was not the only one. Although no one was talking much about them.
"I wu-wa-was wo-wo-wonder-wondering i-if y-y-you c-c-could h-el-el help me g-ge-get into a p-p-pro-ro- a rehab- in-in another c-c-c-city." he finally got out.
"Oh, Bob I'm really proud of you for wanting to do this," she replied, giving him a moment of full attention. "Of course, I'm just a volunteer here but we can go talk to Allen, and we'll definitely help you get whatever you need."
Stuttering Bob frowned and launched into a stammered explanation about how Allen had never really liked him, and probably wouldn't want to help him so if she could just...
There was a slight commotion across the room as someone came in the front door. Miranda glanced that way and her pretty green eyes went wide and round at the sight of none other than Vic Walker.
He was unmistakable; the tan skin with those sharp, stern features and cropped black hair. His broad shoulders connected to arms with sleek, sculpted muscles. And he was still wearing that bullet proof vest, with dark jeans and boots.
"What is he doing here?" she murmured.
Stuttering Bob followed her gaze.
The bounty hunter was talking to a few people standing close to the entry way. One of them shrugged and left in a hurry. Vic showed the others a piece of paper. They examined it, then pointed towards her.
He turned and started forward with a purpose. The look in his eyes was so intense, Miranda felt the breath catch in her throat a little.
"Robert Scott!" he shouted. "Turn around and put your hands on your head."
"Shit!" Stuttering Bob spat. He turned to Miranda, immediately frantic. "Thanks for always being nice to me." Then he bolted towards the back doors.
"Don't make me chase you," Vic yelled.
Miranda blinked, looking back and forth between them. "Hold on, what's going on?"
She moved towards Vic, starting to speak but he only shoved that sheet of paper in her face and broke into a run.
Miranda recoiled, reflexively snatching the paper, then turned to sprint after them.
All three charged through the doors at the back of the cafeteria. Stuttering Bob scrambled down the hallway which led past the pantry storage facilities and out to the back parking lot. Vic gained on him steadily, with Miranda close behind, both at dead sprints.
Just as Bob burst out the back doors, the bounty hunter launched into the air and slammed into him like a freight train. Miranda watched them both tumble to the ground. Vic already twisting Bob's arm behind his back.
Instinctively she grabbed at the bounty hunter's shoulder and arm. "Hey, take it-" she stammered slightly feeling his muscles flexing, "-easy. Um, he -there must be some misunder-"
"Back off, lady!" the bounty hunter barked, and shrugged her off with enough force to knock Miranda on her butt in the parking lot.
She blinked in surprise, and her face immediately got hot. Handcuffs were already clicking around Bob's wrists, quick and efficient, and almost before she realized Vic had shoved her down.
"You just lay right here and don't move, Robert!" Vic straightened and turned towards her. "Shit, I'm sorry," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "Heat of the moment, you know."
