SECRET IDENTITY (5 page)

As for Lee, the first time he had disappeared into thin air
it had shocked all of them, including himself. But when little brother managed
to fold himself into a two-dimensional image no bigger than a business card,
and slip between the cracks in doors, he had gone on to help the government.
Hence he took the name Espionage.

But Lorne had been a late bloomer, and nearly twenty-one
before he got his first inkling of what he was capable of doing. First came the
power of flight, followed by his exponentially increasing strength. When he had
discovered he could project that strength as a nearly impenetrable shield, Luke
had suggested he be the one to take their father’s place and go public. Be the
next superhero. Luke sure couldn’t do it, as his body would be too vulnerable
if exposed. And Lee’s powers were not suitable for saving others. All Lorne had
needed was the right opportunity to present himself while he honed his
abilities. The right opportunity and the media. He just never expected Brenda
McKay to be there when it happened.

He waited for Brenda to plop herself down in a booth before
he slid into the seat opposite. She gave a little cry of surprise to see the
roto-songs jukebox still sitting at the end of the table, and she happily
flipped through the selections.

“Criminy! I can’t believe they still have this! Does it
still work?” She glanced up to read aloud the price. “One song, one quarter. It
was three songs for a quarter in our day.”

“Yeah, and gas cost seventy-nine cents a gallon, too,” Lorne
reminded her with a smile. He tossed her a menu seconds before a young thing in
a pink uniform and white bib apron showed up to take their order.

“You still like your cheeseburgers with tomatoes only?” he
asked.

Brenda stared at him in surprise. “You remember? Yeah.”

“Two cheeseburgers, one with tomatoes only, the other all
the way but dry. And two shakes, one strawberry and one chocolate.”

The waitress nodded as she furiously scribbled their order,
then left.

Lorne eyed the woman across the table and tried to get a
firm grip on his heart. When Luke had announced that Michael McKay was at death’s
door, Lorne had worried about Brenda. Did she have anyone who would comfort her
in her time of emotional need? Was there someone in her life who would
accompany her back to her hometown for the funeral? After calling her to give
her the sad news, he had gone in search of his older brother to find out.

“She’s unattached,” his older brother had informed him
later, giving him a hard stare with those steel gray eyes.

Lorne didn’t ask him how he knew or if he was sure. Luke was
Mr. Mental. With the exception of his two siblings, the man could read anyone’s
mind within a few hundred yards, or even further if he had a direct link to
them, like through a phone call.

Still, he had needed to hear it from her own lips. Even
then, there had been something in her body posture, in her tone of voice, which
had betrayed her. She may not have a boyfriend with her in the flesh at the
moment, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t someone in her life.

He waited for her to drop her two bits into the jukebox and
press the buttons.

B9.

Lorne made a mental note to find out which song she’d chosen
after the Beatle’s tune was over.

“Sooo…tell me about him,” he ventured after the waitress
dropped off their silverware in freshly-rolled napkins, and glasses of water.

“’Bout who?”

Brenda’s eyes were clear and questioning as she took a sip
of water. There was no subterfuge. She was being open and honest with him.

He managed to give her another grin. “Who’s the guy you’re
all bothered about?”

The remark instantly made her face turn beet-red.

Bingo!
There
is
a guy she’s involved with!
Good going, Lorne. Now how do you feel?

Not worth a crap.
He didn’t realize he was scowling
until Brenda gave him a funny look.

“What’s wrong?”

“Huh?”

“You look like someone just ate the last cookie you’d been
hoarding. Why the sour puss?” She took a mental step back as her eyes widened. “Lo!
You think I have a boyfriend?”

“Wellll…”

“Well, I don’t. But I wish I did. Sort of.”

“Sort of?” He chuckled, not knowing if he should be relieved
or worried. “You turned four shades of scarlet, Bren. That tells me there
is
someone in your life. So give! Who is he? Where is he? Why didn’t he come down
here with you? Or is he going to join you later?”

Damn! Why hadn’t he thought of that before? Maybe the guy
was due to join her tomorrow in time for the funeral.

“Lorne, I’m talking about that masked guy in black leather
who showed up at the explosion and saved all our butts.”

He nearly dropped his glass of water. Or would have, except
that the glass cracked under the pressure his hand exerted on it. Glass
fragments and water went everywhere, dousing the table and soaking their shirts.
She gave a little cry of surprise at the miniature geyser flying toward her.

Lorne saw the bits of glass heading directly for her face
and eyes. Instantly his body reverted, taking on his powers like cement
solidifying. He gestured with the same hand that had accidentally crushed the
glass, and the needle-sharp slivers bounced harmlessly off of the invisible
wall he’d erected in front of her face.

It was over in seconds. Quickly, he looked down at his
sodden t-shirt as he willed himself back to normalcy. It took another couple of
seconds for his eyes to resume their usual gray color as he prayed she’d been
too surprised to notice.

“Lorne!”

“Sorry! I-I guess the glass had a crack, and I didn’t notice,”
he apologized.

A waitress hurried over to help pick up the pieces. “What
happened? Are you all right?”

“The glass was defective,” Brenda explained, wiping at her
blouse. She gave a little giggle. “It’s a good thing it was just water.”

“Yeah.”

They finished mopping up and cleaning away the rest of the
wet mess. Once the waitress left, Lorne leaned back in the booth. “Okay. Now
you’re going to have to tell me all of it, Brenda. Didn’t you just meet the
guy?”

“Well, yeah.”

“I mean, he saved you, but have you had a chance to talk to
him? Get to know him a little?”

“No, not yet.”

“Have you seen him since the explosion?”

“No.”

“Do you know his name? What does he call himself?”

“I don’t know,” she confessed, blushing again.

He rubbed his chin, which reminded him he had stubble, but
it was a deliberate part of the package that made up Lorne Palmer. “But you
already have a soft spot for him, is that it?”

The blush came back to her face, though not as strongly as
the first time. “I’m no different than a hundred million other females,” she
weakly protested.

“Has this guy, whatever he calls himself, has he shown up
anywhere else since the explosion?”

“Not that I’m aware of. Of course, that doesn’t mean he can’t
be over in some remote part of Russia, or Australia, or some other part of the
world, saving lives and all.” She thanked the waitress, who brought them fresh
glasses and wrapped utensils.

“What’s his power? Other than the superhuman strength?”

“He flies,” she reminded him. “Didn’t you notice that on the
broadcast?”

“Oh, yeah, that’s right. Anything else?”

“Not really, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have other
abilities.”

Lorne cocked his head at her. “You mean the flying and ultrastrength
aren’t enough for you?”

He was teasing her, and she knew it. Brenda laughed.

“Look, I’m just thrilled I was one of the first people who
got to see him. I mean, think about it! A new superhero! I don’t remember much
about Infinity. I was too young. All I know about him is what I’ve seen on TV,
and in the documentaries and newspaper articles. I never got to meet him in
person.”

Oh, yes, you did
.
You just never knew who
he was at the time.
“So, do you think the world is ready for another
superhero?” he asked aloud.

“I think the world is crying out for one,” Brenda said. “I
don’t know where this guy has been all this time, or why he chose to make
himself known at the factory explosion, but I’m glad he did.”

The waitress delivered their hamburgers, momentarily ceasing
conversation. Lorne waited until he’d covered his french fries with ketchup
before he approached the subject again.

“This guy, he must have made quite an impression on you,
didn’t he?”

He was silently answered with another blush. Her spoken
answer took him totally by surprise.

“I think he woke up every cell in my body.”

It was a good thing the ketchup bottle was made of plastic.
Lorne gave her a wide-eyed stare. “He what?”

Slowly shaking her head, Brenda also wiped her mouth, giving
herself a moment to swallow first. “I said, I think he woke up every cell in my
body. It was incredible, Lorne! He landed by the van and opened the door, and
the moment I saw him standing there, it was as if someone turned on an enormous
generator somewhere. The man was dressed entirely in black. Even his hair was
black. And his eyes were the most incredible blue color. It was like he glowed
with a white light!”

“Maybe it was a reflection of some kind.”

“No. Uh-uh. I was tingling all over.” She flexed a hand as
she stared at it. “I can still feel it, sort of, and it’s been nearly a week.”

“Maybe it had something to do with his power,” Lorne suggested,
but immediately dismissed it. He had used his power to prevent the glass
fragments from cutting her face, and she had not shown any reaction. Besides,
why hadn’t he felt any kind of reciprocal electrical sensation when he had
walked over to her?

“Maybe.”

Another minute or two passed in comfortable eating silence.
Lorne watched her devour her meal, but it was all mechanical. Her mind was
definitely elsewhere, and he didn’t need three guesses to figure out who was
occupying her thoughts.

In a way, he felt flattered. But on the other hand, he was
becoming jealous…of himself?

This is nuts.

“Hey, Bren.”

She paused to look up at him.

“What are you going to do the next time you see this guy?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, are you going to tell him how much he turns you on?”

“Lorne!”

“Well?” He laughed. “Hey, give the guy a break! Maybe he
feels the same way.”

“Yeah. Right.”

Odd how a double positive could result in a negative.

“Hey, you know us guys. We need a little incentive.”

“We’re not talking about a normal, red-blooded American guy
here, Lo. There’s no telling where the man came from. I can’t just walk up to
him and say, ‘Hello. You’ve just melted my thong. Can I have your number?’”

“Why not?” Lorne challenged, amused by the sudden turn of
events. “How do you know he’s American? Maybe he’s from another country. Did he
have an accent?”

Brenda’s eyes rolled north as she thought back. “Noooo.”

“Maybe he’s an alien from outer space. Would he turn you off
if he was?”

“Lorne.”

“Maybe he’s not even alive. Maybe he’s a cyborg of some
kind. A robot from the future. Or maybe he’s a
man
from the future.”

“Now you’re being silly,” she accused him. “Let’s get
serious here.”

“Awright, then. So why won’t you consider giving him a
little moral boost next time you two cross paths? Start it off by introducing
yourself, then asking him what his name is. Hey, you never know what might
happen.”

He watched closely as she stuck a french fry in her mouth
and nibbled on it. She had a look on her face he knew all too well.

But before he could remark on it, Brenda said, “I may not
see him again. It’s a big world.”

It was a remark that sounded nothing like the Brenda McKay
he’d grown up with, and he told her so.

“Imagine that. Little Bren’s finally met a guy who leaves
her speechless. Give me a red pen so I can circle this day on the calendar.”

She smiled almost shyly, then burst into giggles and threw
her half-eaten french fry at him. He tossed it back at her, and a brief,
impromptu food fight ensued. In light of what tomorrow would bring, it felt
good to hear her laughing again.

He didn’t know how much of his advice she would follow. It
would all depend upon the circumstances. Brenda had slim hopes she would get
the chance to meet her new superhero again, but that could easily be arranged.

What he was really looking forward to was seeing how close
she would allow him to get to her as The Defender.

Emotionally, physically, and especially romantically close.

Chapter 6

Funeral

“You need to shave, dude.”

Lorne gave his brother a surprised look, then turned to
stare at himself in the bathroom mirror. Dark suit, neat tie, dress
shirt—check. Hair combed and tied back, teeth brushed, nails clipped—check.

Glancing up at his brother’s reflection, he shrugged. “No
can do, bro. Lorne’s going to have to stay a bit scruffy until this whole
Defender thing is settled between me and Brenda.”

Luke made a face, which basically told Lorne it was his
choice, and left. As if Lorne’s stomach wasn’t already doing flip-flops.

Today was going to be hell to get through. It wasn’t enough
that this was Mike McKay’s funeral. That alone was going to tear their hearts
out of their chests. But it was the first funeral any of the Palmer boys had
attended since the death of their mother, and the memories would be unavoidable.

Logan Palmer, a.k.a. Infinity, had been the world’s
protector for nearly twenty years, as well as husband to Lisa Palmer. Except
the world would never know that. Their superhero of yesteryear had “disappeared”
one day sixteen years ago, never to return. After waiting months, then years
for the man to return, Earth had finally resolved itself to the fact that
Infinity would not be returning.