Dateline: Saturday, April 25, 1981, 6:07 PM, Pacific Daylight Time.

When they got the call from Dash, Violet and Ashley drove over there to get him. Once they got back, the group was faced with a new problem.

"How am I supposed to get back upstairs in this thing?" asked Dash.

"The elevator?" suggested Ashley.

"The building has no elevator," Violet pointed out. "We'll have to carry him up the stairs."

"Not a problem," said Ashley as she lifted the wheelchair with her telekinesis.

"Now, THIS is a first class ride!" exclaimed Dash as the surrogate family entered apartment 31A.

Within 10 minutes, Violet was in the kitchen preparing dinner, Dash was in the living room watching the evening news, and Ashley was listening to Three Blind Mice on their archaic record player. Everything was running smooth like clockwork until…

KNOCK KNOCK.

"I suppose I'll get that," said Violet after scanning the apartment and seeing that nobody else could.

It was Mrs. Von Braun and her husband. "Hallo, Fraulein Parr, so good to see you, is the dinner ready?"

"Mrs. Von Braun, what a surprise, I wasn't expecting you until Sunday!"

"Yes, I know, but my husband insisted we come over today. I hope you don't mind."

"No, not at all, I'll just have to make two hamburgers," Violet said with a phony smile plastered on her face. "Come in, make yourselves at home, act like you own the place. What am I saying? You DO own the place!" Nobody laughed.

"Violet, don't joke around with the landlady, please," Dash said as he wheeled himself over to where Ashley was listening to music. He scratched the record loudly.

"Hey!"

"Look alive, Cohen, we have company!"

"So, is this another tenant for to be living in this apartment?" asked Mr. Von Braun.

"Yes, actually, this is Ashley Cohen, she was recently orphaned and we decided to take her in," explained Violet from the kitchen. "Ashley, this is Mr. Von Braun, our landlord."

"Nice to meet you, sir."

"Over here, Miss Cohen."

"Sorry, you'll have to excuse me, I'm blind as a bat."

"Well, I suppose it's good that you can't see my arm in a sling, or you'd probably make fun of me. Like everyone else has."

Dash thought that it was a little strange that Mr. Von Braun had broken his arm so suddenly. "How did you break your arm, sir?"

"Uh, I, uh, fell…off a ladder. Yeah, that's it, a ladder! And your did you break your leg?"

"Um, I…ALSO fell off a ladder! Yeah, heh, heh, what a coincidence, huh?" Dash was sweating bullets, but thankfully, nobody seemed to notice.

After a while, the five of them were seated at the table enjoying hamburgers and baked potatoes. There was absolutely zero conversation exchanged amongst the group. Ashley was bored to tears, and desperate to hear someone speaking. So she decided to read the minds of those assembled. She started with Mrs. Von Braun.

Hmm, Violet makes a fairly decent baked potato. Then again, potatoes are idiot-proof. These burgers leave something to be desired. The burgers at O'Daniel's are dripping with grease, but they still taste better than Fraulein Parr's.

"Hey! Violet is a great cook!"

"Huh?"

"What?"

Did I say that outloud? Ashley thought. "Nothing!" Hmm, what's on your mind, Python?

Why did she blurt that out like that? Was she reading someone's mind? That girl lacks subtlety.

I know, boss, I'm sorry. Ashley thought-said to Violet.

Knock it off!

All right! I'll just read Dash's mind, then.

Man, this sucks. I won't be able to go in to work on Monday with this broken leg. How pathetic, I'm going to get fired before I even have a full day of work. What am I going to tell Kim?

Last on the list was Mr. Von Braun, and his thoughts were the most shocking of all.

I know I've seen this Ashley Cohen girl somewhere before, but where? Hmm, a blind redhead? Wait a second, she must have been that Blind Tracy girl, the newest member of Alpha Force, who gave me this broken arm. But then, that would mean that Violet is Python and Dash is Rocket! Ha, Ha. Wouldn't that just be poetic justice? A league of super heroes unknowingly supporting the evil wiles of their arch-nemesis…

"OH MY GOD!"

"What is it?" asked Violet.

"I can't say, can we get rid of our guests, politely, please?"

"Uh, sure. Hey, guys, you know we like you…"

"Don't say another word, Violet," said Mr. Von Braun. "We know when it is best to depart. Come, Gretchen, let's go home and have dessert!"

"Ooh!" And with that, the Von Brauns got up and left. When they were gone, Ashley told her teammates what she had discovered.

"JURGEN VON BRAUN, OUR LANDLORD, IS ACTUALLY HERR CANNON!"

"WHAT?"

"I swear I'm not lying! I read his mind!"

"Well, then we have to move!" said Violet.

"To where?" asked Dash. "We can't afford a 30-year mortgage!"

"But we can't stay here! Every time we pay him rent, we'll be supporting his terrorism!"

"There's something else!" Ashley butted in.

"What?"

"He recognized me as Blind Tracy, and from there, he figured out that we are Alpha Force!"

"Oh, no! This is a disaster!"

"I know! So, what are we going to do about it?"

"I say we sleep on it," suggested Dash. "He's not going to be doing anything tonight, so why should we?"

"You make a good point there, bro," said Violet. So, Violet went to her bedroom, changed into her nightclothes, and slept through the night. Ashley slept in Dash's room, while Dash slept in his wheelchair in the living room.

Meanwhile, inside the manager's apartment…

"Hey, Gretchen, I have great news!"

"What is it, Jurgen, my dear?"

"I know the identity of the members of Alpha Force."

"Alpha Force? Oh, that's that new super team you fight against as Herr Cannon, right?"

"Ja, and you won't believe me when I tell you!"

"Try me."

"They are the people in 31A, who we just ate dinner with!"

"You're kidding!"

"I told you that you wouldn't believe me!"

"You know, dear, I really wish you wouldn't destroy the homes of so many innocent people with your massive cannon."

"Darling, I'm doing this for you! Once I destroy all suburban residences, everyone will have to live in an apartment. Then, when I take over all the apartment buildings in the world, you and I will live like the king and queen of the planet!"

"But Jurgen, what about all those people who get killed by your cannon fire?"

"I say good riddance! They wouldn't fit in our buildings anyway!"

"My dear, I had no idea you had such disregard for human life!"

"Oh, you'll get over it, dear. Now, where were we?"

"Oh, I can't tonight, Jurgen. I have such a headache!"

(A/N: WHOO! Finally! I've been waiting to reveal this little bit of information since Chapter 1! All right, I know I dropped enough coded hints in the previous chapters for those with sharp eyes to figure this out, so tell me, who saw this one coming? Anyway, you know where the review button is! BTW, some of you have been reading The Cluedoville Files, and I want to know what you guys think of them, if you don't mind. Hey, hey, hey, Chapter 21 is on the way! See you!)