HEROES: The Bronx Kid
Characters: Maury, OC, and a familiar face or two
Disclaimer: I own nothing. HEROES characters intellectual property of Tim Kring.
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Bronx, New York City - late October, 1960
Young Maury Parkman had been caught several times before, hustling unsuspecting passersby in his native Bronx for spending cash. This time seemed different. He was doing his usual Three Card Monty scam on a pair of well-dressed gentlemen when Sgt. Matthews strolled by.
Maury eyed him warily as the officer let him finish the game, so he could bust the teen once more. Maury had already developed his telepathy so he knew what Matthews was up to, which, unfortunately, left him distracted enough to let the two men win their latest hand, which he already planned on when he spotted the cop.
"Sorry, kid," one said. "Looks like I keep my money, today."
"Yeah, looks like," Maury replied, trying to keep civil as Matthews approached.
"What'cha doin', buddy?" the sergeant asked casually, not paying much attention to the two men. He put his hand on the teen's shoulder.
"Lemme alone, Matthews," Maury snarled, shrugging him off.
The second man spoke up. "This copper givin' you trouble, kid?"
Maury and Matthews both jerked their attention to the man for different reasons. The officer because of the menace in the man's tone, the young telepath for what the man was thinking he would do to any cop that got in his way. Both knew these were "made men" and things could get dicey.
"Hey, buddy, I'm just lookin' out for the kid," Matthews explained. "Nothin' wrong with that, is there?"
The first man spoke this time. "I dunno, pops, we could use a kid with his...gumption, y'know?"
"He's not interested," Matthews replied sternly. "Leave him be."
"Don't you think the kid should decide?" the man retorted.
"Leave us alone!" Maury shouted, pushing the thought into the two men's heads.
The pair looked stunned for a second, looked at each other, then walked away.
Matthews tightened his grip on Maury's shoulder. "Lucky break, kid," he said. "I warned you before not to mess with guys like that, you'll wind up in trouble," he informed the teen, "or worse."
"I can take care of myself!" Maury protested, jerking away.
"Maury, please," Matthews protested. "You know I told your mother I'd keep an eye on you. Keep you out of trouble. Try to, at least," he corrected himself.
"Then leave me alone so I can make some money for our rent!" he growled in reply.
"Are things that bad, Maury?"
"Lemme alone, you don't know what it's like!" he argued.
Matthews grabbed Maury by the shoulder again and led him to his squad car, all but forcing Maury into the passenger seat. When he sat down behind the wheel, he gripped it for a minute as Maury sat, sulking.
"Look, I know times have been hard since your dad--"
"Don't talk about my dad!" Maury shouted.
"I knew him before your mother did, kid," he replied calmly. "You know he'd be farklempt if he saw you acting like this, much less hustling cards on the street."
"Gotta make money somehow," he snarled.
"Then stay in school, get a part time job to help your mother out," Matthews implored him. "If you want, I can--"
"You can leave me alone!" Maury yelled and jumped out of the man's car.
Ben Matthews sighed as he watched the teen storm down the sidewalk, hopefully headed home. He decided he would check in on Maury and his mother Maeve after his shift. It was almost eight o'clock before he got to the small apartment she shared with her son.
"Ben?" she sighed upon seeing him still in his uniform. "What did Maury get in trouble for this time?"
"He's not home, yet?" he asked as she let him in, ushering him to the kitchenette.
"No, he's out until all hours of late. Ever since--you know," she said.
Ben nodded grimly. "I ran into him this afternoon, probably saved him from some goombas. I thought he would come home after, but--?"
Maeve Parkman sighed again. "No, I haven't seen him since this morning when he left."
"Are things okay?" Ben asked. "I mean, with money and all? He was hustling cards again."
"We're getting by, Ben, thanks for asking," she replied.
"I told Abe I would keep an eye on you two, and I intend to keep that boy out of trouble for both our sakes, but--" he tossed his hands up in frustration.
"He's too proud and stubborn and angry to want your help, I know," she finished. "Abe was the same way. Lord knows we had to be that way, what with the scandal of our marrying and all!" she laughed. It felt good to laugh once again, she thought.
"Heavens forbid the son of a Rabbi and an Irish Catholic shiksa should marry!" he joked, and both laughed.
When they had calmed down, he asked in serious tones. "Do you want me to call that place? I mean, they think they can help or cure him of--you know?"
"Abe could do the same thing, Ben, you know that," she replied. "If he's not having trouble, and it keeps him out of trouble, then why bother?"
"It's not safe out there, any more, Maeve, you know that. Trust me, I'm walking the beat everyday and it's not getting any better. If that's his only chance of getting out of here--"
"I won't send my only son away to be...'cured', Benjamin, and that's final," she scolded him. Upon seeing his hurt expression, she laid her hand on his. "I do thank you for worrying, but you have a family of your own to look out for."
"You are family, Maeve," Ben told her, putting his free hand on top of hers. "Abe, you, Matt, you're my family as much as my own flesh and blood."
"You're too sweet, Ben," she said. He blushed.
Before they could say anything more, Maury burst in and saw the two sitting there, hands entwined. He gave the pair a dirty look and immediately stormed back out.
Maeve and Ben both started after him.
"Maury, wait!" she called as he stomped away.
"I'll go after him, Maeve, talk to him," Ben told her racing after the angry teen.
He caught up to Maury a block down the street. The teen had been crying and dropped down on someone's front steps, lacking any place else to go.
"It's not what you think, kiddo," Ben consoled him.
Maury glared up at the man through his tears.
Ben dropped down beside the teen. "I stopped by to see if you were okay, we were just talking." After a moment's silence, he whispered, "I know what you can do. See for yourself, Maury."
Maury's head jerked up in surprise. "What? How?"
Ben smiled. "Your dad could do it, too. Not a lot of secrets between your dad and me, kid."
Maury hung his head. "I'm a freak."
Ben put his arm around the teen. "No, no you're not. You're not a freak, and neither was your father," he comforted. "You're special. That's a good thing, kiddo. Not many get to be special in this world."
Maury smirked, then jerked his head up, his face gone white. "Get down!"
Ben barely had time to respond before he saw the car slow down and a gun barrel pointed at them. Maury had already dove for cover behind the parked car in front of them. Ben moved to follow when he heard a double clap of thunder, a buzzing by his ear and then a searing pain in his left shoulder. He rolled over Maury to shield the teen from any more bullets, and hit his head on the streetlight post.
Maury heard the tires screech as the car pulled away. "NO!" he screamed as he rose to see the car turn the corner. He reached out with his mind and two more thunderclaps rang out as the car disappeared around the corner. A metal crunch could be heard immediately after as the car careened into another around the corner.
The third man in the car quietly slipped out before anyone saw him. He cautiously made his way to an alley and doubled back to see who had caused the driver and gunman to suddenly decide to shoot each other. He saw the husky teen crying over the fallen police officer. He ran a hand through his blond hair and decided to inquire of his police contacts later who was shot and confirm who he was with. After all, he had encountered many powerful people in his long life, this one could prove useful to him for a few years.
Maury didn't hear the neighbors' shouts as the noise drew attention. He had knelt back down over the still, bleeding body of his father's friend. "No. no-no-no-NO!" he cried, pounding the man's chest. "You can't leave me, too!" he cried. He bent over, hugging the man's chest and whimpered, "No, dad, don't leave me!"
Ben regained consciousness for a moment and heard this last comment. "Ain't yer dad, kid. 'm not done, yet," he mumbled before blacking out.
Sirens soon cut the night as the neighbors had called for help when they saw it was a police officer who had been shot. Maury wouldn't leave his side until he was forced to at the hospital's surgery ward.
-
Ben woke up to light streaming in the window and a woman in white hovering over him. "Whur'm I?" he grunted as he blinked his eyes to adjust to the bright light. "M'ry?"
"In the hospital, Mr. Matthews," she answered. "About time you woke up, the doctor was getting worried," she said before nodding her head towards the other side of the bed. "Among others."
Ben didn't catch the nod, but asked in his raspy voice, "how long?"
"You came in two nights ago, gunshot wound to the left shoulder, shattered your collar bone, and a concussion."
"Ouch." He said, then winced as real pain shot through his shoulder, confirming the damage there.
"Your son hasn't even left your side," she pointed to the teen sleeping in a chair on the other side of his bed before leaving the pair alone.
"Son?" he asked in confusion and slowly turned to see Maury, now woken by the conversation. "Hey, kiddo. Shouldn't you be in school?"
"'s Saturday," he mumbled, still half-asleep.
"Temple then?"
Maury frowned.
Ben Matthews studied the teen for a minute. "You okay?"
Maury looked away and shrugged.
Ben sighed. "I remember your mom and I were talking before," he began. "Your dad had heard about this place out west. They claim they can help people like you."
"I'm not leaving mom," he said defiantly.
"I'll look after your mother, kid," he said. "It's not safe around here any more. You could have been killed."
Maury returned his gaze. "You could have been."
"I wasn't," he said. "Because of you, I wasn't."
Maury fought a smile, but Ben caught his lip twitching.
"Don't stay here, wasting your life away, kiddo," Ben implored him. "This is your chance to get out, make something of yourself. Do some good in the world with your, you know, talents."
"Don't wanna," he grumbled.
"All the more reason to get out, Maury." He grabbed the teen's hand resting by his. "Do something with your life. Make your dad proud."
Maury rolled his eyes.
"Listen to your Uncle Ben, kiddo," he implored. "You have a powerful ability, and with it comes a powerful responsibility. Not just to yourself, but to those around you. You know this, and you know what you have to do."
-
Early January, 1961
Maury Parkman boarded the Greyhound bus headed west. He still wasn't sure where he was going. He didn't feel like talking to anyone and sat towards the back without thinking. Ben had invited his mother, Maeve, to stay with his family for the time being, so Maury wouldn't worry while he was gone.
A young black man had followed him on the bus, getting a stern look from the driver. He nodded and made his way to the rear as well. He saw the white teen sitting alone, further back than he should have been. "Want some company?" he asked.
"Not really," Maury mumbled back.
The black man glanced up and saw the driver watching him in the mirror. He decided to sit by this sullen teen, to avoid being thrown off. "Hope you don't mind mine, then," he said, settling down in the empty seat.
Maury barely gave him a passing glance. There was a blond man standing outside the bus, watching it. Watching...him?
"My name is Charles. I'm from Harlem. Where are you headed?"
"Maury, from the Bronx," he replied sullenly. "Not sure, really, someplace out west. It's called 'Coyote Sands'."
"What a coincidence, so am I," he grinned.
Maury finally turned to face the slightly older man and looked into his warm, smiling face and kind eyes. Maybe this trip won't be so bad after all, he thought to himself.
"Maybe it won't at that," Charles replied with a wink. "After all, it's a new year, a new decade, even a new President. Time all around for new beginnings all around, don't you think?"
Tbc____________