Hidden inheritance

Chapter 23: Miss the boat, you'll miss the alien

Rats were running in the streets, attracted by the smell of the baked goods he stole. Too easy to absorb the burning iron on the plate, no one would get near him and it'd be too easy to scare everyone away once he had what he needed. Alan would always be curious as to how he managed to bring dinner like this, but never got much of an answer.

Of course, other than actual rats, he was bound to find the other kind of rats.

"Long time no see, Kevin."

"Where have ya been, freak? Been boring without you around for fun. How 'bout you hand that sweet stuff over then we'll chat."

It was inevitable, he could spend only so much time hiding in New York before those idiots were back. And no Tennyson in sight meant he could get rid of them this time with no interruption.

"I've been stealing cars and running away from the cops, as usual." said Kevin. "Oh, and before I forget, wanna see my new moves?"

He dropped the bags he had with him and absorbed the stones on the ground, which did shock the bullies a bit. They were used to seeing him charge up with electricity, not change color by touching anything. Then one punch to the first bully's nose warned them he was back stronger than before.

"He's even more of a freak now! Get him!"

It wasn't easy getting used to his new power, and the rock on him felt quite heavy to wear, but he'd have to do with it. His hand took the form of a spiky ball, ready to strike down. Some of his opponents dodged as his hand hit the ground, creating a huge crack.

They looked scared, definitely ready to run away, but he was nowhere near done. He cracked his knuckles as they gathered in front of him. "Had enough yet?" One of them raised a bat, proving it wasn't the case. Fair enough, he didn't make himself clear.

He charged against the gang and grabbed one, bigger than him, before throwing him on the wall, making the idiot scream in pain. What were they expecting, getting to a freak like him? They were asking for a beatdown.

They all started running for their lives, those he took down crawling towards the end of the alley into the streets.

"What? It was just getting fun! Come on, get back here you-"

"Kevin?!"

Kevin's eyes widened, and he turned away from the bullies to look to the side, where Alan was staring at him with a frightened expression. Did... did he see him in action?

Did he see him use his powers? Did he see what he could do? Would he tell anyone?

"Can you keep a secret?"

For a reason he ignored, Ben's voice resonated again inside his head.

And for another reason he ignored, he ran away.

..............................................................................................................................

They had to stay on their toes, lest they wanted the Tennysons to notice them.

"It's for his own good. Falling asleep in class, missing homework, he needs to stay down a bit after what goes on at school."

They could hear the man who was apparently Ben's adoptive father, Carl, speak to someone. They supposed something happened while their liege was studying, though they had to stay undetected if they wanted to listen. Ben's room was close, but they had to make sure he was alone before checking in on him.

"Missing one weekend with him shouldn't be the end of the world, should it?" said a female voice, which they assumed to be Ben's adoptive mother, Sarah or Sandra if they remembered well. "Ben spent the entire summer with his grandfather and his cousin, but have you seen how he acted when we told him he'd spend the weekend at home?"