Heroes at Heart

Fourteen: Max Owens

I didn't want to believe it. I refused to look. But Clare's strangled gasp meant that she had seen what I had been too afraid to acknowledge.

"Vinicus," I whispered.

If I had had super-speed, or the ability to heal people, maybe things would have ended differently. If I had had telepathy, I would have been able to tell that he was in pain. If I had had literally any other powers than the ones I did, I would've been able to save him.

But I was me. And there was nothing I could do.

The three of us ran over to Vinicus, praying he was still alive.

"He's breathing," Clare observed. "He's okay."

"He's far from okay." My mother shook her head, kneeling down next to the villain.

Vinicus' face was paler than usual, his green eyes seemingly muted. He looked... scared. In the short time I had known him, I have never seen Vinicus Cauldwell absolutely afraid of anything. Until now. He didn't want to die.

Vinicus attempted to smile at us, but it faltered within seconds. Something was very wrong.

"Vinicus," my mother started. "Before I had Max, I was going to school to be a doctor. Now, I don't remember much. But if you'd let me take a look at your wound, I might be able to help you."

Vinicus shook his head slowly. "It's not going to be anything you've seen before." His voice was quiet, as if he were out of breath. "Her power, she," he paused for a moment. "She shoots something. I thought it was a gun. She did the same with my father." He then turned to look at me. "I guess... she's one of us."

Vinicus winced in pain, as my mother carefully removed his jacket.

"You saved my son," she said quietly. "I have to try."

Vinicus gave a single nod, before turning toward my sister. "Clare," he started, "don't look."

Clare obliged, burying her face in my suit as I pulled her toward me. Whatever we were about to see wasn't going to be pretty.

Vinicus' white t-shirt was stained with blood, which had previously been hidden by his dark jacket. I silently cursed myself for not thinking about his black clothes being able to hide anything going wrong underneath.

Mother lifted his shirt to reveal the damage caused by Nora's powers.

Streaks of red that looked like veins twisted and crossed a central point of pure black. The veins were ever so slowly spreading outward, as if whatever had infected him was trying to make its way over his entire body. The black appeared to be bleeding into the red, pulsing and throbbing as it went.

"O-kay," my mother finally said.

Vinicus chuckled softly. "Told you so."

I didn't realize I had been crying, until Vinicus' eyes widened as they met my own.

"Hey, kid," he said with a sad smile, pulling his shirt back down as he slowly forced himself to sit up. "Come here." The super-villain patted the ground next to him, as I began to walk over.

As I sat down on the floor, Vinicus placed a gloved hand on my shoulder. Probably both to comfort me, and steady himself.

"Look, before I go—" he started, a small yet devious smile crossing his face. "You're gonna have to pay to have my window fixed."

My eyes widened in surprise, as Vinicus let out a gentle laugh.

"I'm just messing with you, kid."

I tried to laugh in response, but through my tears, it came out resembling a sob.

"Hey," Vinicus started quietly, "I just need to tell you that, no matter what happens with Nora and the city, you can't seek revenge."

"But—" I interjected.

"Shh," he continued, placing his index finger on his lips. There was a moment of silence, before he began to talk again.

"Listen, I know better than anyone what losing someone does to you. You're gonna be sad, and angry, and everything in between." Vinicus paused to take a breath. He was clearly getting weaker, and all of this talking wasn't helping. Part of me wanted to beg him to stop, but the other part knew that he needed to go on.

"But no matter what, you can't take it out on them. Otherwise you end up a villain, like me."

"I never thought of you as a villain. Not once I got to know you, at least."

Vinicus smiled, seemingly taken aback by my opinion of him. "Heroes move on, Max. They go on to do big things. Villains don't. The world isn't going to remember me like you will. I never proved myself to be a hero to them." Vinicus looked down. "Or to myself."

We sat in silence for a moment or two. I tried not to think about what the world would be like without Vinicus Cauldwell. But I knew, unfortunately, I would find out soon enough.

"You're a good kid, Max," Vinicus finally said. "I doubted you in the beginning. You were so young, I thought 'he can't possibly be a superhero'. You proved me wrong."

I returned his smile, when a new look came over his face. I could see the strings of red making their way slowly up to his neck. Vinicus Cauldwell was dying.

"Take care of your family, Max. And no matter what Nora says," he paused, out of breath. "You're a hero to me."

"You're a hero to me too," I whispered.
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I was there when he died. Everything moved in slow motion. Vinicus fell to the ground, his black hair flowing like water around his head, his green eyes closing for the last time.

It was as if I had blinked, and he was gone.