Fear Her Wrath II: Crucible of Glass

Chapter 49

School on Monday was pretty lonely.

Ellie was keeping her distance after our argument over Deadstream. Ben was at the hospital. Oh, and Anaya and me still weren't on speaking terms after what happened at Gennifer's party. I did my best to focus on final exams, which were fast approaching, but mainly ended up thinking about Ben. I'll skip all the angsting I did about how I blamed myself for what happened to him even if he didn't blame me. That came with being a superhero—even if it felt a little more deserved than usual this time. What was really eating at me was my future with Ben. If this relationship was going anywhere—and I hoped it was—I needed to win over his obnoxious younger sister.

So, I texted Ben and asked him for Bella's number. After some cajoling, she agreed to meet me at Heissler's Deli in Brand Hill for a late dinner. It was raining again, and it was nice to not worry about that for once. We were both early—me because of nerves, Bella because she was an overachiever and was always early to everything. I got my usual: a cup of very sweet coffee and a grilled cheese sandwich stacked high with turkey and jalapenos. In what I can only assume was an attempt to shame me for my oversized appetite, Bella ordered a small plate of fries and a glass of water.

(Who orders french fries at a deli?)

We didn't say much as we waited for Serge to finish making our food. Bella and I didn't exactly have that much in common—at least, I thought we didn't, and so did she. We tried a few topics—school, Hmong Town, how Ben was doing—but pretty soon we arrived at my more-than-friendship with Ben, and Bella's very strong opinions against it.

"I have really good reasons not to like you," she said. "You're a bad influence."

"Really?" I said, spinning my cup of coffee nervously with my left hand.

"Yeah," she said. "I have friends at you and Ben's school, you know. They say you're one of those kids who only goes to Sefton because you didn't want to go to Chilltern Banks, and you get really bad grades and miss class all the time, and you quit the basketball team to take up a bunch of violent sports because you're a psychopath. Oh, and didn't you beat up some girl at a party just a few weeks ago? I saw the video."

I nodded reluctantly. Bella went on.

"So yeah, you're not good enough for Ben. I have no idea what he sees in you. You must be a real hussy or something like that. That's the only way I can explain it."

A real hussy. Hmph. I was grateful for her honesty. Okay, maybe that's giving myself too much credit. I was trying to be grateful for her honesty. I was mostly angry at the picture of me she had gotten from her friends. I wondered whether that was really what everyone thought of Maggie Hunt, troubled freshman and ex-basketball star.

"You're... not wrong about most of that," I said cautiously. "Except the part about me being a slut. I've kissed your brother... maybe twice? That's it. We're not... doing it or anything."

Bella didn't look convinced.

"There's something else," I said, leaning forward a little. "And this is a secret, okay? Not like an eighth grade secret that you can tell everyone, but like a real, life-or-death adult secret."

"Stop being condescending," she said. "My teachers all say I'm mature for my age. I can handle whatever your dumb high school secret is."

She had me again—about being condescending, that is; I wasn't about to admit that Bella Vang was "mature for her age." I couldn't figure out how someone as kind and easygoing as Ben could have a sister this stuck-up and judgmental. Either way, it convinced me that I had to tell her the truth.

"You've heard about Nightwrath, right?"

"She's a vigilante," said Bella immediately. "She's supposed to live in the Fen. Benedict talks about her a lot."

I smiled a little at the thought of Ben annoying his sister by talking about me. It gave me just enough courage for the stupid thing I was about to do.

"Well... Ben is friends with her. That's why he got taken. And I know that because she's... me. I'm Nightwrath."

Bella froze with a french fry half-way to her mouth. I was holding my breath—waiting to see how she would take it. But as I watched the wheels turning, I could tell it wasn't going to be good news.

"Of course," she muttered, almost to herself. "That's why that psycho kidnapped Ben. It wasn't random at all, was it? He was trying to get to you, so he grabbed the guy that you..."

Her hands were starting to shake. The uneaten french fry fell back to her plate.

"You're the reason he... he... How dare you? How dare you even look at him after what happened?"

"He knows too," I interjected, but Bella was just getting started.

"He could be dead right now! He could be dead because of you, and you have the nerve to think he should be your boyfriend, and that I should be okay with that? You are insane. You're completely, totally, unbelievably insane!"

"Bella—."

"Stay away from him!" said Bella fiercely. "You... you've done enough damage. If you ever come near him again, I'll tell the police everything. I mean it."

And with that, she snatched up her coat and left, leaving me to pay the bill, reflect on my bad decisions, and finish her french fries.

I was hungry, okay?

It wasn't until I'd finished all the leftover food and started on my second cup of coffee that I texted Benedict.

'Dinner with Bella did NOT go well. We should probably keep our distance for a while. Sorry :('

There was a long pause before he replied. I wondered if he was upset, but in retrospect he was probably having trouble texting because of his hand.

'That really sucks. I missed you today. I should be back at school tomorrow. See you then.'

I sent a monosyllabic reply and turned my phone face-down. Bella, infuriatingly enough, was right. I had done enough damage. Benedict, Ellie... and Simon. I'd beaten the crap out of Simon because of Benedict. Ellie was so traumatized she wasn't willing to help anymore. Nightwrath was leaving a trail of broken people in her wake. I guess deep down, this was exactly what I'd been hoping for—a chance to cut Ben out of my life with a clear conscience. Well, a clear-ish conscience. You always know when you're being selfish, even if you've got noble motives to dress it up.

I made it home about 8:30 p.m. and threw myself onto the couch. Dad had an all-night shift at the hospital, and apart from my cat (who was a very indifferent companion), I was looking at spending the evening alone wallowing in self-pity. Any other night, and the idea of turning on the radio and actually doing my homework might have sounded appealing, but I just kept thinking about Ben, and Simon, and Ellie, and this horrible mess I'd gotten myself into. As if to double down on my own mistakes, I decided to cut all of them out of my career as a vigilante from now on. No more training with Ben. No more Ellie's voice in my ear. Friends were too much of a liability. As long as Psychosis was still scheming in his cell in Rothko, none of them would be safe.

There was someone else, though. Someone Simon—or Psychosis—didn't know about. Someone who could handle himself just as well as I could. Abruptly, I sat up and reached for my phone, earning a disapproving hiss from the cat. After hesitating for a moment, I pressed his number in my contacts and waited.

He picked up almost at once.

"Hey Gabriel. It's me. Uh... you aren't doing anything tonight, are you?"

"Must be both our lucky nights," said the Whippowil. "Get into your costume."

END OF PART II