Bethany Thibodeau shrugged off her jacket, glad to be home after a long day treating wounded superheroes at the Roster's medical centre, which she ran. Once upon a time she'd been out on the streets fighting alongside them, as the masked heroine Panacea, using her powers in the field.
She didn't miss her old life nearly as much as she thought she would. She loved being able to come home at regular hours and spending quality time with Ray, her husband, and Ray Junior, their 3 year old son.
She glanced around their spacious married quarters and was pleased to see that there was a basket of freshly laundered clothes waiting to be put away and it looked as if Ray had even done the vacuuming. She smiled at the image of him, a superhero too, known as Cathode Ray, happily domesticated. It was just one of the many things she loved about him. Their marriage was about team work. Like her, he'd taken a sideways promotion, leaving the field and using his awesome psychometry powers to head up the Roster's Criminal Investigation Division.
His family had become his number one priority and had happily sacrificed his combat role for an office, regular hours and a less risky career path. He'd thrown himself into fatherhood, relishing the role and getting more satisfaction from that than battling evildoers day after day. He was getting pretty handy around the house too and Bethany was pleased to see he'd remembered to pick up some groceries.
She poured herself a glass of juice and went to investigate the muffled giggles emanating from the living room.
"ssshhh..." Ray whispered as his wife entered the room. He was completely hidden behind a wall of packing boxes, set up to resemble the Roster Tower, the building at the heart of the complex in Conurbia where the family lived.
"Ray? RJ?" Bethany glanced around, pretending not to know where the boys were hidden, despite the fact that her son was doing a poor job of hiding, popping his head up to watch his mommy look for them. "Oh, well, I guess they aren't here." She sighed, with a feigned shrug and started to leave.
"Here we are, mommy!" RJ yelled, toppling a cushion that had been acting as a buttress. He crawled out clutching his doudou, or blankie.
"Hey, Beb." Ray said, standing up and looking adorably sheepish. For a few seconds they ignored the kid clambering at their legs and kissed affectionately. Bethany smiled as she brushed a long strand of his dirty blonde hair away from his eyes. "How was your day?"
She loved his slight Louisiana accent, and she shivered as he put a strong arm around her middle and lifted up RJ with the other. "Hey Boo, you have fun with papa?" She said, kissing the top of her son's head. The little boy nodded and started to tell her all about what they'd done that day.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
A short while later, RJ was quietly colouring in at the table and Bethany was fixing dinner. Or at least, she was trying to, her husband kept distracting her by kissing the back of her neck and generally getting in the way.
"Here, taste this.." She said, holding up a spoon.
"Hmmm...tastes good." Ray informed her. His wife was a great cook...as good in the kitchen as she was in the bedroom. He really was a lucky man. He got out of her way and went to help his son put away his stuff and lay the table.
He kept sneaking glances over at his wife, admiring the way she moved, deliberate and poised, the way her eyebrows would raise unconsciously as she thought of something. He never tired of watching her and the little things she did. She was from Boston and there'd been a few people who'd been surprised when they'd gotten together but they contented each other.
He'd first seen her during an attack by a swarm of nanoscarabs, her courage and fire so at odds with her dainty, elfin features. He'd been attracted by her strength of spirit as much as her physical attributes, though those were certainly appealing.
Contrary to most superheroes, he'd been a tad awkward around the opposite sex and it had taken him some time to actually build up the nerve to ask her out. Since then he'd gotten to know and cherish her body as well as her beautiful mind and sense of humour. He was laid back and easy-going but her get-up-and-go attitude complemented his and in their easy intimacy he'd opened up, feeling relaxed and comfortable around her.
"The higher-ups have asked me to meet with Senator Parkhurst tomorrow."
"Do you know what it's about?" Bethany enquired, pausing and unconsciously biting her lip. It was rather unusual for her husband to actually take a case now, rather than simply running the office.
"The Senator is a good friend of the Roster but it must be something big for them to want me to deal with it personally."
Deep down Bethany worried every time Ray took a case. They'd built up a happy, and more importantly safe, world around them now. With her experience on the taskforce she'd seen how quickly things could go bad.
Seeming to read her mind, but simply knowing her, Ray squeezed her hand as she served up the food. He wanted to reassure her; it hurt him whenever she was upset. "I don't deal with Priority A situations anymore, remember. It's probably nothing."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
There was still a bit of time before his appointment with the Senator so Ray was going over the division's caseload with his assistant, Bobby. The fresh-faced teen was hardworking and eager but keen to finish his training and to get out there saving the world.
"You ask Robyn out yet?" Ray enquired. It was blatantly obvious to the whole world that the boy had feelings for the young girl who worked at the Roster's admin department. Some of the division were ribbing him about it but Ray's interest was just friendly concern. He liked the kid, he reminded him of himself at that age.
"Er no..." Bobby shifted nervously. He looked up to Ray and trusted him. That wasn't it. The guy was approachable and good-natured and had always given him good advice. "I just want her to know...how much I really like her..." He stammered, confiding in his mentor.
"Bobby!" Ray exclaimed with amused impatience. "She's an empath and even if she wasn't, she'd have to be blind not to notice the gooey eyes you make at her!"
Bobby laughed along with his boss. There was something laughable at the whole situation. He resolved right then and there to ask her out tonight. Ray's approval had been just what he needed.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
There was a knock on the door and then Parkhurst entered without waiting for permission. He was a big man, muscle turned to fat, but carried it well. Ray had never met him in person but had caught some television appearances. His politics were a bit too far to the Right for Ray's liking but his support for the Roster of Superheroes had been unwavering.
The man was big and blusterous, clearly used to things going his own way and looking down on others. Today he seemed out of sorts. Sure he was good at hiding his unease but Ray, even without his psychic powers, was used to reading people.
"I'm being blackmailed." The senator said gruffly, without making any introductions or being asked to take a seat. He tossed a disk over Ray's desk and promptly lit his cigar.
Ray frowned as the smoke filled the room but said nothing. He rolled up his shirt sleeves and cold, electric blue sparks flared up, sparking harmlessly up and down his hands and forearms. Parkhurst scowled, his personal disgust at mutants and freaks never getting in the way of his politics.
"I'm a psychometrist. That means I have, amongst others, the ability to read people and objects through touch, discern their history, sometimes, but mostly not, their futures..."Ray trailed off, the other man was not paying him any attention, preferring to gaze out the window.
Ray shrugged and touched the DVD with his left hand, feeling his link with it stabilise and held out his other hand as it surged with psionic energy. He got his name, Cathode Ray, from the ability to convert his extrasensory perceptions into images, which he could project around him.
Slowly an image formed in the air over his desk, the picture quality as good as the latest HD technology. The image shifted, as the footage on the disk was projected.
Ray felt his cheeks redden as the sounds of sex filled the room and he realised he was watching the senator, bound and gagged, get ridden by a voluptuous young woman. Hastily, feeling tainted, he pulled his sinister hand from the disk and stopping the playback.
"I can certainly see why you wouldn't want anyone seeing this." He stated calmly. Inside he had mixed emotions. The senator was a married man and his lover in the tape was certainly not his wife. In his career he'd seen plenty of things that were wrong but adultery ranked up there. He couldn't even imagine cheating on Bethany.
"I never had sex with that woman." Parkhurst growled. "I'm not saying I've never fucked around but I've only ever been with women from a discrete...service..."
"That is you on the tape." Ray stated flatly. "Do you mind if....?" He continued gesturing to suggest touching Parkhurst's shoulder. The older man grunted his reluctant consent. This way Ray would be able to tell if he was lying. "You don't recognise the woman?"
"No. I have no idea who she is and have no idea how or when this...encounter...happened."
The man, however dislikeable, was telling the truth.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Shortly after the senator left, with Ray's every assurance that he'd get to the bottom for the matter, Bobby entered the office and found his boss looking at the image of the naked young woman.
"Geez, Mr Thibodeau..." The young man croaked, feeling his cheeks flush. He really should have knocked but he'd never walked in and found his boss looking at naked women before. He tried to stop his eyes wandering from the girl's face down to her lascivious body but he couldn't help himself.
Feeling caught doing something he shouldn't have been Ray cleared his throat and closed the image. Sure the girl was incredibly hot, but he didn't check out other women. Bethany was the only woman he wanted. "Her name is Hayley Duvall. Find out everything you can about her."
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"You sure you don't want me to come with you, Mr Thibodeau?" Bobby enquired.
"No. I can handle a simple blackmail case. You and Robyn go out and have a good time." Ray ordered, a mock stern expression on his face.
