NOAH & CLAIRE BENNET
NEW YORK
"How're you doing in there Claire-Bear?"
Claire glanced in the mirror as her dad rapped his knuckles against the bathroom door to check on her. "I'm fine, dad. Just washing my face." She realized that she had been in the bathroom for longer than necessary, but for some reason she just wasn't ready to emerge yet. When she did she knew that she would be sitting on one bed in the cramped hotel room while her dad sat on the other, staring her down and waiting for her to 'talk' about how she was feeling and all that psychological crap. She couldn't handle that right now. It had been almost two hours since she had seen her uncle, her hero, blow up in the sky, but she hadn't cried yet. She felt like she should have been sobbing, but every time she wanted to her throat tightened and her eyes felt unnaturally dry. She decided it was her body's way of dealing with the pain, and perhaps it was better at this moment, because once she started she was certain she wouldn't be able to stop.
"I was thinking maybe I'd order some room service. Are you hungry?" He called through the door.
She rolled her eyes. Good one, he's using food to bribe me out of hiding. Fortunately for her dad, she was starving. Something about trying to save the world and then watching your own personal hero go nuclear in the atmosphere really set off a person's appetite. "Yea, I could definitely eat something."
"Want to come out and take a look at the menu?"
"I'll be out in a sec." Claire replied. She shut off the faucet and pressed her face into a fluffy white towel.
When she finally worked up the nerve to emerge from the sanctuary of the bathroom, her father was browsing through the room service menu while sitting on one of the small beds in the room. He glanced up at his little girl with a wide smile.
"Feeling a little better, Claire-Bear?"
Claire winced at the nickname, but masked her irritation with a practiced smile. How do I express to him how I'm feeling? She loved her father and he was trying to be there for her, but at this moment the endearing childhood nickname frustrated her inexplicably. She wanted him to be serious and harsh and tell her that everything was not okay and life was a disaster right now and that it may not get any better. She knew he wouldn't though. He would smile and offer her hugs and pretend that everything was fine no matter what happened. She had to love him for how much he cared, even if it was driving her crazy.
"What are you hungry for?" Mr. Bennett asked as she sat on the second bed in the room.
"Anything."
"Pizza?" Mr. Bennett suggested, picking out what he knew to be his daughter's comfort food. "With ice cream for dessert?"
She sighed. "Sure, that sounds good."
"All right, I'll order it then. Would you like anything else? Some soda or juice?"
"Sure, whatever." Claire leaned back against the headrest and crossed her arms over her stomach.
"Claire, do you want to talk about it?"
"No dad, I don't. I thought we decided to wait until tomorrow."
"We were going to discuss a plan tomorrow. We can still discuss how you're feeling though, tonight."
"No, thank you." Claire answered with a little bit of bitterness to her tone. She noticed that her dad's kind smile faltered and her guilt overpowered her bad mood. "I'm sorry daddy. Today has been insane." She sighed. "This whole month has been insane. Peter…" Thinking of him brought that aching dryness to her throat again, but she cleared her throat and tried to find the strength to continue. "Peter meant a lot to me, it's more than just the fact that he's related to me. He is my hero and he cares…I knew that he truly cared about me. He made me feel safe and now he's gone." She hated saying it, but setting herself up for the unrealistic possibility of him being okay, was too impossible for her to fathom at the moment. She couldn't bear to build her hopes up so high just to have them crushed.
"For now…"
"Dad, I appreciate the optimism, but I need realism right now." Claire told him firmly. "I don't know if Peter is ever coming back. Even if Peter miraculously manages to regenerate, it isn't a possibility for Nathan." She faltered slightly. "I didn't even like him very much, but he was my dad, like my actual biological dad, and now I'll never even get a chance to know him." Claire shook her head, quickly pulling herself together, tears were not on her agenda for that night. "I'm just going to need some time to process everything, okay?"
"Okay." Her dad nodded. "I'll order the pizza."
"Thank you." Claire smiled at his understanding and flipped on the television as a distraction as her dad dialed room service. Silently she began to formulate a plan. I'm sorry daddy, I know it will hurt you and you won't understand, but hopefully in time you will realize that I know what I'm doing.
ANGELA PETRELLI
SOMEWHERE OVER THE ATLANTIC OCEAN
Angela Petrelli had been boarding the private jet with her son, preparing to fly a safe distance away from the city when he changed his mind. Years of plans and preparations ruined due to a split second emotional decision. She had had concerns about his weakness, but everyone involved in the scheme had been so positive that he was the right choice.
"Nathan don't even think about going after her." Angela's ferocious black eyes had stared down her eldest son as though she were trying to burn the compassion out of him.
"Mom, this isn't about her," Nathan argued.
"Do you honestly expect me to believe that you are not thinking about running after your smart-mouth illegitimate daughter, right now?" Angela snapped.
Nathan frowned at her bluntness. "No. I'm thinking about Peter. He is my brother, and what we're doing…what you want me to do…it isn't right."
"It's politics Nathan."
"No mom, this isn't about politics. This is about family and what is right." Nathan took a step away from her.
"Nathan, stop." She reached out to him as he moved further away from the jet. "Think of Heidi and the boys. Think about the world they live in…you are responsible for making this city a better place for them."
"By letting my baby brother blow up a city?" Nathan shook his head. "Heidi wouldn't love me for being that man."
"Nathan think about this."
"I have thought about it. And do you know what I've decided? I'm being stupid and immature and cowardly…my sixteen-year-old daughter is more capable than I am of realizing what to do. She is willing to do what is impossible for the better good. What kind of dad would I be if I let her make that choice?" Nathan took another step back.
"Nathan, no…" Angela panicked as she realized that she was losing her son.
"Sorry mom, I have to save the world." He gave her a perfect politician grin and launched himself into the air.
Reliving her son's escape, Angela silently cursed him now as she gazed out of the window in her private jet, which was headed for Paris, France. For so many years she had been diligent in her duty to train her eldest son to be careful, political, confident, and most of all, easily pliable to her wishes. Peter had always been more difficult. He was too sweet-tempered and kind-hearted to be involved in her or Nathan's campaign manners. The legal life was not for him. He chose to be a nurse, desperately trying to make everyone's lives better even in their dying moments, which was quite perfect really, considering the end she planned for him.
When Linderman had first approached Angela with the plan to destroy New York City in order to control the rebuilding process politically and economically, she had been hesitant to agree. Involving her sons in such a deep plan could be dangerous to their family unit. After weeks of discussing the details with Linderman and his associates though, she realized that his vision of the future was sublime and she felt proud to be a part of it, and further more to involve her children in it. Nathan was only ten at that time. Peter was still a toddler. Even at their young ages though, she knew that their destines were bigger than they could ever understand. She knew that they wouldn't accept it and so she never told them. She never even told them about their gifts. It was something that they had to learn about in their own time so they could develop them in their own way. Peter had obviously embraced his much more easily, but Nathan had known about his longer; longer perhaps than even she would ever know. He was an expert at keeping secrets when he wanted to.
When Linderman had finally filled Nathan in on his planned future, Nathan had accepted it exactly as a trained politician. Angela couldn't have been more proud of his reaction, but she should have known that deep down he was too much like his brother. He let the people in his life have too much influence on his emotions. She should have seen that he would fail in his duty. She should have been prepared, but her love for her sons blinded what she knew was true.
The chirping of her cell phone pulled Angela from her hopeless reverie. With a brief glance at the caller ID, she flipped open the phone. "I am on my way."
"And Nathan?"
Angela expertly hid the emotion from her voice. "He is not with me. He went to stop Peter."
"Peter was not stopped though. He exploded. Not as we would have liked of course, but he did explode."
"Yes, I am aware." Angela sighed. "I saw the explosion happen from the window of my jet."
"You do realize that this probably means that Nathan is dead."
"Not necessarily."
"If Peter was unable to control his abilities, Nathan would have had to fly him in the sky, undoubtedly being caught in the explosion."
"I know." Angela was trying not to face the fact that both of her sons were most likely dead. "Do we have a new plan since this explosion did not go well."
"Linderman is dead."
"Yes, I am aware of that fact." Angela gasped. "Though, it is an unfortunate situation, we must move on. Have we learned how he died yet?"
"At this time we do not have the specifics, but it clearly changes things. We will be convening as soon as you arrive to discuss what to do next."
"Very well, I will see you shortly."
"One more question…"
"Yes?"
"What do you intend to tell Nathan's family?"
Angela hesitated. "Until we know that he is dead for certain I will tell them nothing. Heidi and the boys are in DC. Nathan was supposed to have been joining them this evening. When he doesn't show, she'll assume he was caught up with work."
"And when we learn that he is dead?"
"If we learn that he is dead, I will tell Heidi that there was an accident, perhaps a plane crash. She will be devastated, but she will never know the truth." Angela decided swiftly.
"Fine." And with a click the caller hung up, leaving Angela alone again with her thoughts.