Page 60 of Supernova

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“ARE YOU SURERuby’s not home?” said Max, keeping so close to Adrian as they made their way down the sidewalk that he kept stepping on the backs of Adrian’s heels.

“Of course she’s not home. I sent her a message two hours ago,” said Adrian. “I wouldn’t put her at risk.”

“Okay, but… what if one of her brothers is secretly a prodigy and no one knows about it yet? Or one of her neighbors? Or—”

“They’re not,” said Adrian. “Her brothers idolize the Renegades. If they’d shown even a hint of superpowers, they would make sure we all knew about it. As for neighbors, once we have you inside the apartment, you’ll be fine. No prodigies are going to come near you, so you won’t have to worry about accidentally stealing powers from them, okay?”

Max said nothing, and Adrian could easily picture his doubtful expression.

“Hey, it’s going to be all right,” said Adrian. He tossed an arm around Max’s neck, pulling him to his side. The boy groaned andstruggled, but only half-heartedly. “Ruby’s family agreed to this. No one wants to see you stuck in a quarantine again. And once I discuss it with Hugh and Simon, I’m sure they’ll see reason.”

“They’re going to be so mad.”

“I know. But they’ll get over it. And”—Adrian paused in front of a five-story apartment complex with a rugged brick facade—“here we are. The famous Tucker residence.”

“Famous how?” said Max, warily eyeing the rows of tall windows, the fire escape, the few balconies that were only wide enough to hold a handful of potted plants.

“Because it’s the home of Red Assassin and her twin brother sidekicks. Come on.”

Max followed him into the building and up the first flight of stairs. Aged but elegant wallpaper and lit sconces lined the walls of the narrow hallway. Adrian paused in front of Ruby’s apartment and was about to knock when the door swung open, revealing two identical boys, only a little older than Max. Their faces were bright with excitement, each of them donning the Renegade uniform costumes their mom and grandma had made them for the Sidekick Olympics.

Adrian had finally thought to ask Ruby how to tell the twins apart, and though it took him a moment to remember, her explanation quickly made sense. Jade’s hair was longer and shaggy around the ears, while Sterling kept his cropped a bit shorter. He’d started referring to him as Short Sterling in his head, even though the boys were the same height.

“You made it!” said Jade, while Sterling yelled over his shoulder, “Mom! Grandma! They’re here!”

“Come on, come on.” Jade waved his hand, ushering them inside.“This is so cool. Ruby said you stole Ace Anarchy’s power? Is that true?”

“And you can levitate?” asked Sterling.

“And turn invisible, like the Dread Warden, right?” added Jade.

“Do you have superstrength like the Captain? If you got shot in the heart, would you die?”

“Dude.” Jade smacked his brother on the shoulder. “He was just in the hospital for being stabbed. What do you think?”

“Hey, what’s this?” Ignoring his brother, Sterling pointed at the small cage Max was clutching.

“Boys, boys, give them some space!” said their mom, bustling in from a back room. She smiled apologetically at Adrian. “If you couldn’t tell, they were a little bit excited when we told them about our new houseguest. You must be Max. Ruby’s told us so much about you. It’s such a pleasure to finally meet. And lovely to see you again, Adrian.”

Max graciously accepted her handshake, but Adrian could tell he was nervous and flustered by the attention from the twins.

“Boys, why don’t you show Max to your room so he can get settled in? You can have Ruby’s bed, or fight these two mongrels for the top bunk. Dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes. Adrian, are you joining us?”

Adrian grimaced. “I could…,” he said, glancing at Max, “but I’m supposed to meet up with the rest of the team to start the next phase of our Anarchist investigation.”

“I’ll be fine,” said Max, still nervous, but doing his best to pretend he wasn’t. “Where is Ruby going to stay while I’m here?”

“With Danna,” said Mrs. Tucker, “and Oscar’s mom said she’s welcome there as well if necessary.”

“We have plenty of guest rooms at the mayor’s mansion, too,” said Adrian. “And there’s always open dorms at headquarters.”

Mrs. Tucker clasped her hands. “She’ll be fine. We’re all happy to have you here, Max, and you can stay as long as you need to. Jade, Sterling?” She tipped her chin toward the back of the apartment.

“Yeah, come on!” yelled Jade, bounding down the hallway. “Room’s this way.”

“Is that thingreal?” said Sterling, who hadn’t stopped gawking at Turbo.

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