Thanks very much reviewers, especially the new ones.
And especially the regulars.
Especially everyone.
Yes.
Thanks anyway to Nny11, princessmoi, TheFLHurricane aka Dash from i-kronos, CF12, manicalpha and lilaeth.
It's always nice to get reviews and yours were very nice.
Anyway, onwards, onwards.
And things get serious.
Enjoy! Love LJ xXx
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Throw Me. Chapter Ten. Make A Scene
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"He didn't?" Bob allows for a short time of shock before turning to his wife and taking control of the situation. "Where was he last?"
Helen is staring blankly at her distraught friend and takes a while to respond.
"Uh – he went to take the fire...Municiberg – South Street. Number forty...forty – " Helen trails off. Looking at Honey, she realises with some horror how that could be her standing, despairing, with no way of knowing when she'd see Bob again. Or even Vi, Dash or Jack-Jack.
"Seven. Forty-seven, I remember now. Okay, let's get down there and start looking," Bob asserts firmly. Honey looks at him and nods slightly, wiping her eyes.
"Bob – he could have finished it in five minutes and moved on to another situation," Helen murmurs uncertainly.
"Well it's the best place to start – we have to do something," Bob whispers back, emphasising 'something' with a glance at the frantic Honey.
"Yes – yes of course," Helen shakes herself and takes a breath. "Honey, we're going to go find Lucius – do you think you can keep an eye on the kids? They're really not much trouble."
"That's fine, I'm fine – you're going to find him?" Honey looks to both Helen and Bob who nod together. They quickly grab their suits and are at the door when Violet and Dash catch up to them.
"Mom, Dad – can't we come? We could help look," Dash asks but Helen, still holding in her mind the realisation of how easily all this could slip away, replies shortly.
"No. It's not safe."
"Your mother's right, kids," Bob cuts in as Violet and Dash begin to protest. "It's too dangerous and, until we know exactly what's going on, we want you to stay right here."
Violet and Dash shrink back from the door, grumbling and flashing dark looks.
"Promise me you'll stay here, promise me." Helen looks from Dash to Vi.
"We promise." They mumble in reluctant unison as their parents, satisfied with their oath, disappear out the front door.
Bob and Helen arrive at the crime scene and stand, open-mouthed at the smouldering wreckage – a few floors stay standing, but only just.
"He just didn't come back out." An officer appears next to them.
"Why did he go back in?" Helen finds her voice.
"Heard someone else – someone was calling."
"And what about them?" Bob presses further. "Did they survive?"
The officer shrugs. "No bodies were recovered. Neighbours say everyone is accounted for – there was no-one else."
"Can we - ?" Helen asks, finally, approaching the charred rubble. The officer obligingly lifts the tape and allows them in.
"Watch it; it's shaky." he calls after them.
Violet didn't know what to say. Dash was fine with most situations; he could talk about literally anything for hours and once did – two hours on the subject of toothpicks until Vi gagged him. What was she doing now? She sat tensely in the living room and all she could think about is that they might be waiting to find out whether or not an old family friend is dead or not.
The phone rang. Thank God. She leapt to her feet to gratefully answer it.
"Hello?" she greets, breathlessly.
"Hello – Vi? It's Francis."
"Oh, hey Francis. What's up?"
"I, uh, thought you might like to know that, uh, Tony's out today," Francis told her distractedly.
"Okay." Violet answered shortly. "That's it?"
"Yes. That's it. See you in school," he spoke quietly, shyly, as ever before putting the phone down. Violet stared at the receiver for a while before replacing it. What a weird guy.
"Bob – have you got a torch?" Helen whispers in the creaking building. In response, he kicks aside some of the debris on the floor and finds a small torch buried underneath. Flicking it on, they gaze around at the groaning skeletal structure of the building. It is barely standing.
"I don't like it," he comments, waving the beam of torchlight around. "It's suspicious."
"Well that's why we're here," she replies, hopping lightly over the wreckage. They creep softly over the blackened floors, saying nothing further, until:
"Helen – over here." Bob hisses through the empty building.
"Oh my god," she murmurs as she arrives by his side.
Illuminated in the narrow torchlight, pair of slightly scorched gloves lie on the ash covered floor.
"Lucius' gloves..."
"He couldn't have burnt to death, he couldn't have," Bob insists as Helen looks at him. "He wouldn't. He's too good for that."
"So where is he?" she asks. He shrugs.
"He can't be far – just keep looking," he replies, optimistically.
The pair of them begin to wander off in opposite directions, scanning the floor for anything else.
"Ouch." Bob trips suddenly on a scorched chair leg. The suddenly movement makes the wall next to him crumble slightly and, above their heads, the beams tremble.
"Helen..."
Helen looks up and then looks back to her husband with fear in her eyes.
"Bob – get out of here. Get out." she calls urgently.
"No, I can hold it up for a while, you get out."
"Don't be stupid, you know I can slip out at any time – get out of here now," she orders him.
But he doesn't move. And she doesn't move. With her final plea for him to leave, the ceiling begins to collapse...
"What's that noise?" Dash sits up suddenly and Violet turns to him, cocking her head. Honey is now asleep on the couch and Jack-Jack is busy making pyramids of bricks to knock down.
There's a beeping noise somewhere in the house. Violet and Dash follow the electronic beeping to their parent's bedroom where, in a drawer, an outdated clamshell device lies amongst t-shirts and vests. Imprinted on it is the old Elastigirl logo.
"Lucius had one of these in his place," Violet remembers. "It's so the police can contact the supers about stuff that happens."
Dash tentatively presses the catch release button and the contraption springs open to show a screen and some buttons.
"Hello Elastigirl," an electronic voice greets the two children. "Robbery – at Western View Junior High. Coordinates 18H."
Dash glances at his big sister. "That's your school," he reminds her.
"Yeah, so what?" Violet snaps, defensively.
"But your jailbird boyfriend is locked up," he says without thinking and then shuts his mouth quickly, waiting for his sister to attack him after that comment.
"No. He's out today." she replies softly.
"Bob – get OUT!" Helen yells desperately, but her words are lost in the torrent of plaster, brick and wood that comes crashing down on top of her.
The flood of rubble seems to go on for ages and as the dust settles, someone coughs. Helen looks up from where she is crouched in a tiny ball on the floor to see Bob standing above her, shielding her from the falling debris.
"Why didn't you go?" they ask each other, simultaneously. Bob grins.
"Are you crazy? Just because you're small doesn't mean you can escape getting crushed with this –" he bends down and lets a huge slab of concrete slide off his back.
"I – I just..." Helen stammers, wordlessly. He smiles at her.
"Are you alright? Is something up – you haven't been your usual rational self lately?"
Helen sighs. "Doesn't it scare you? It scares me – thinking that this could easily be me looking for any trace of you in piles of wreckage, late at night."
"Yes. It does," he answers and dusts the ash and gravel off his shoulders. "Even more so when you decide you'd like to stay in a collapsing building. Honey, it'll be alright."
He picks her up as she nods and smiles at him, shaking the dust from her hair.
"We should get back – tell them what we found," she says eventually. Bob sighs.
"Yeah. They'll be wondering."
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