Belle Fury: Manhatten Ten, Book 3 (8 page)

“Mama.” As I shook, so did my bedside lamp. I wasn’t going to shatter another one. “I’m not moving home, I’m not getting married and I’m never having children. I’m going to have casual sex until I dry up and then I’ll get cats.”

“I don’t know why I try to save you.” Her voice filled with the same horror as the day I’d announced I was taking a dance scholarship to the biggest “heckhole” on Earth. “You’ll fail and you’ll come begging your parents for forgiveness.”

My breaths sped and the chandelier shook.
Enough.

“I’m the best dancer in the country. Don’t you ever spit on my hard work and call me a failure.”

I hurled the phone into the bathroom. The case cracked open and the battery skittered under the claw-foot tub.

Good riddance.

I should’ve known and I shouldn’t have answered. Mama had hated every blessed decision I’d made since I dared to leave home. Anything outside of Georgia was a mystery, and a place so big and far away as New York City had to be a den of evil. That I didn’t go to church and refused to sacrifice my career to become a breeder made me actual hellspawn.

I flopped back on the bed and tried to control my breathing. I could talk a good game, but that’s all it was.

I was no dancer now.

Maybe I was super, but I was no hero. That had to be earned, and I didn’t see myself out catching criminals in
pointe
slippers.

What was I supposed to do with the rest of my life?

I scrunched my eyes.
She won’t ever be right
. I’d been turned down for more roles than I could remember. I’d lived in a one-bedroom with five other girls trying to make it in the city. I’d fallen so hard I saw my dreams break in front of me.

Every time I got back up.
 

I would own these powers and make them into something I could be proud of. And I wouldn’t cry.
 

I wiped my eyes.
Nope. Not crying.

After I took off my makeup and brushed my teeth, I pretended to sleep. As I lay in bed, routines and memories looped through my mind. My first performance, when Mama wouldn’t do my makeup like the other girls, because
her daughter
wasn’t looking like some hussy. A thousand battles to keep dancing, and the elation and terror of my first weeks training in New York. Worst of all, my last time on stage, and all that sheet music fluttering like snow.

Amazing how not sleeping brought up every memory I’d tried to forget. At 4:18 I gave up.

I slipped into some practice clothes, grabbed my iPod and a giant bottle of water from Ryan’s fridge and headed downstairs. No sense in wasting time.

A low target riddled with bullet holes and charred marks served as a substitute
barre
. As I stretched and moved through my positions, I concentrated on the energy inside me, pulling it all the way out through my fingers and toes.

It deepened my stretch. I could bend lower and lift higher than before. The moves were ingrained into my muscle memory. They were supposed to look effortless to the audience, but they’d never felt that way until now.

That thought pushed me through the morning. Maybe I could push it farther. Tap something new.

After I burned through technique, I guzzled water and popped in my headphones. My stomach turned as I flipped through the songs. Three quarters were pieces from shows, and I wasn’t ready for those memories. Shuffle would send me into an emotional tailspin.

I needed something more free form. Music where I could just dance out all my frustrations and—

Hip-hop. My savior.

The beat pounded through my ear buds and I let myself go. It got easier to sense the flow of power inside and to direct it where I wanted. When I focused the whirlwind of energy into my legs, I could jump twice my height and soar halfway across the stadium. In my hands, the power formed bullets or bursts with the flick of my fingers.

When my hip-hop started repeating, I figured I should take a break. It had to be close to lunchtime, and that was an excessive workout, even for me. I should’ve brought a towel.

The elevator chugged its way up and opened on one of the office floors. Angel jumped. She’d changed into workout clothes and carried a mat. “Belle! You headed to yoga?”

“I think I forgot.” I wasn’t sure where I’d been headed. Probably to check in with Ryan.

“Well, come anyway.” Angel punched the button. “How’s everything going?”

“I’m learning.” At least I hadn’t destroyed anything today.

“This will help. Ivory struggled with controlling her powers for a long time.” We stepped onto the roof for another flurry of unseasonable snowflakes.

Ivory stood on top of the safety barrier, stretching her arms and looking out over Manhattan like she owned it. I folded my arms against the cold and against the sight of her. Heights only bothered me as much as the next girl, but
that
was asking to splat on the pavement. Did she have any fear in her?

“You’re making us dizzy.” Angel spread her mat.

Ivory hopped down. “The sky’s so clear today. Look.” She pulled me over to the ledge, and I let her as long as she didn’t make me climb up. “Taste the air. Breathe.”

Sun glinted from the glass of a thousand buildings. I caught a whiff of exhaust and grease, but that was the city. Underneath, the air was cool and crisp. I filled my lungs and let out my breath, wishing all my uncertainty could fly away with it.

Ivory had spread out a third mat for me. “Have you practiced yoga before?”

“I’ve done some Vinyasa classes…” But not at all recently.

“That will help you.” Ivory took position on her mat, and I copied Angel when she did the same.

“Focus on your breath.” Ivory closed her eyes. “Feel the power inside you, but don’t reach for it. Simply sense it. Feel for its edges and understand it as you breathe in and out.”

Might as well give it a try. With more deep breaths, my pulse slowed, and the quiet revealed the chaos inside me.

My power whirled and flickered, never stilling. It was a deep well of constant motion. As we moved through the slow warm-up, I focused my breath on the whirlwind.

Relax
.

The outer tangles smoothed. The center of my power spun onward as inexorable as the sun, but its motion evened out.
This
was the level of control I needed every day.

I moved through the poses in Zen mode, not even caring what we did. It was all about my breath and my body.

“…and let it out.” Ivory’s last
whoosh
of breath broke my concentration.

“That was intense.” Angel took a swig of water.

“I needed that.” I rolled my neck in a slow circle. “This happens every day?”

“I do a sunrise session as well.” Ivory grinned. “You’re welcome to join tomorrow.”

“I might.” If every session made me feel this good, I’d become a yogini in no time.

“At least join us for lunch,” Angel said.

“Where to?” My stomach rumbled. I’d take anything at this point.

“Just the cafeteria.” She led our little group the elevator.

Ivory nodded. “It’s quite good.”

When we rolled into their “cafeteria” I wasn’t disappointed or surprised. Sushi station. A chef tossing fresh pizza dough. Mongolian grill. The place was a gourmet buffet. We didn’t exactly cut the line, but a sudden space appeared for us in the crowd of workers. Angel showed me how to order on the touchscreen menu.

By the time we got our table by the windows, the wait staff had poured us lemon water and my chicken Caesar wrap was delivered on a platter.

Angel had a massive Cobb salad, and Ivory had…some sort of questionable red meat. I didn’t want to look too closely. Her predatory grin was back. “They didn’t overcook it today.”

Angel faux-gagged. “Do I have to remind you? Every time you order that, it’s forever sealed into my memory.”

“It’s delicious.”
 

I bit into my wrap and it tasted like heaven. It was Caesar, for Christ’s sake. They probably rolled the tortillas out on a virgin’s stomach and spiced the dressing with unicorn tears.

“So any suggestions for our book club, Belle? We need outside help.” Angel had turned away from Ivory and the meat-stravaganza.

“You have a book club?” That was so…normal.

“We just finished
Gone Girl
, but Nil and Thunder almost brawled about it, so we’re looking for something less controversial.”

“The guys are in it?”

“God, no.” Angel shuddered. “We kicked Panther out for inappropriate behavior and Thunder’s probably quitting for good, so just the one. We’d love another female member.”

“Am I staying here that long?” No one had broached any long-term plans with me. I’d assumed I was back to my own devices once I stopped being a danger to the populace.
 

“As long as you need to. We have jurisdiction over all supers, and that includes providing asylum, so you’re welcome for as long as you want to stay.”

Ivory sliced her steak into pieces. “You should consider joining the Ten.”

Hadn’t we already covered that? “Not a good idea.” And I wasn’t getting the sense that you could just walk into the office and join the club. None of these supers understood how amazing the Ten were to someone used to normal things. I’d always been too busy for TV and magazines, but now that I’d been introduced, even I recognized their faces from billboards. The Ten weren’t so much a group of heroes as
the
group of heroes.
 

“We can talk about that later.” Angel waved with her fork. “It’s so unusual for someone to come into their powers so late, and with who you are…the paparazzi will make you miserable. We’ll get you off of Ruin’s floor and you can work on figuring things out once you’re into your own space.”

“Can you get me a
barre
for the stadium?” If I was going to be here long-term I needed to get outfitted. Scary thought.
 

Was this really where I belonged? I’d never had the kind of girlfriends who lunched and did book club, but these ladies were hardly housewives.
 

Why was it so comfortable? It wasn’t real life.

“Sure.” Angel pulled out her phone. “I can get you anything else you need.”

We chatted as we finished our lunches. Panther padded into the cafeteria in actual panther form, butting his head under Ivory’s arm. She scratched his head with love in her eyes and slipped him a piece of meat. Angel lectured him in Spanish as she texted away on her phone. When it rang, she answered in Russian.

This was their reality. Apparently it was about to be mine.

Chapter Eight

Red Ruin

All morning I clicked between work and the video of Belle. Work flew. Fifteen minutes of soul-crushing FBI bureaucracy, a glimpse of Belle spinning like a top. A bullshit e-mail chain for another lawsuit against Steel, and then Belle, almost hovering, her clothes fluttering around her like wings.

That kind of spirit didn’t come around often.
 

I pushed through lunch, trying to get ahead of the workload. Shit flew as fast as I could shovel, but I was not having it. Couldn’t any of these government douchebags solve a problem?

“Ryan?” Belle poked her head in. “You didn’t answer when I knocked…”

“Come in.” I minimized the crime scene photos filling my monitor. She didn’t need that on her mind. “How was your morning?”

“Productive.” She set one of the caf’s to-go boxes on my desk. “Figured you’d be working. Angel said you liked the teriyaki bacon burger.” Belle shook her head. “Before this, I thought my ballet studio was awesome for putting in a water cooler.”

“Perks.” I salivated, and not just for the burger. In her flowing skirt and spandex, she looked like some burlesque angel.

“I’ve been thinking.” Belle hadn’t moved from my side of the desk. I wanted to grab her and sling her over my lap, but Angel would have my ass if I busted the office again. “If I’m going to be here a while…”

“Yeah?” God, I hoped she was. We were only starting to get to know each other.

“I’d like to make the most of it.” She grabbed the armrests and leaned in, her breath heated my ear. “What do you think?”

This woman. Damn.

That quick and I had Belle in my arms. She pulled my hair back and pressed her lips to mine. My hands fisted in her hair, drawing her closer. Both of us were all gasps and heat. I needed to slow down, but I wanted her too bad to care.
 

“Time out.” Belle broke our kiss when the lights flickered. She backed away and took a deep breath. “We’re gonna have to continue this later.”

I kicked the wall, rolling my chair back to my desk. No other way to hide the hard-on. “That better be a promise.”

“Have a nice afternoon.” Belle finger-waved on the way out. I put my head down on the desk.

It was like that all week.
 

All. Week. And the more I got to know about Belle, the more I wanted her. Her determination made me want to be a better hero. Hell, a better person.