"This is very disturbing, Skylar," Jamal said after I finished playing the video recording of Rhea's revelations. "This could spell trouble for all of us, even you, now that we know what's going on with Kendall."

"I agree," Dominic intoned, looking thoughtful. "It would explain why Kendall was acting lofty today and how she was being aggressive towards the bad guys during her mission. Still, we need to think about what to do next."

Sure enough, I had called a meeting with the guys as well as Principal and Vice-Principal Lewis as I knew that I had to share the video with them. And the reactions from them (especially Jorge and Drake) were priceless yet shockingly dangerous. I knew that I had lit a fuse and fanned the flames, but it was a risk I was willing to take.

"Well, I'm only sorry for showing this to you all because I knew of the consequences," I replied. "But I couldn't just sit around and wait for something to happen. Even more so, given the circumstances. Right now, we need to think of a way to confront Kendall and-"

"We can't do that, Sky," Rogelio interrupted. "Other than you, Jorge, and Drake, Kendall is the hottest topic of Dallas as she's mainly the PR woman of the gang. She basically holds sway over the media regarding the team. How else did you manage to land on the covers of the magazine and the front pages of the newspapers? If we go forward with this, it might paint you as the bad guy."

I looked down, knowing that he was right. "That's true," I replied.

"And we don't have any proof whether or not Kendall was behind the bombing," Dominic added. "For all we know, someone else might have a grudge against you, Skylar. We can't rule out Greenlee since she has the biggest grudge of all- you having Drake and Jorge as your future husbands while she wanted them for herself. Not to mention what's been said by Rhea herself regarding Westin."

Drake nodded as he faced me. "We also need to point out that Jeannine, Greenlee, and Kendall themselves has had the hots for myself, Jorge, and even Dominic since freshman year," he told me. "That's when we became superheroes and started the YHA."

"Good to know," I commented, "but if I can ask, did you guys had any feelings for the girls at all?"

Brian, who had remained silent until now, shook his head. "I'm seeing someone from my church," he explained. "Jamal's dating one of the members from the drill team while Dominic's keeping his focus on being a hero and his grades. But back to the matter at hand, we do need to figure out what we have to do regarding Kendall. If what's been said by McNeil is true, then things could go out of hand."

Principal Lewis stood up. "You all need to be careful when you do have a plan in hand," he intoned, giving us concerned looks before he faced me. "Especially you, Skylar. If things do fall apart, you could either become the perfect patsy or the sacrificial lamb. The main thing you all can do right now is leave it up to the authorities."

"Leave what to the authorities?"

All eyes turned to the newly-arrived Velocity as we watched her turn back into her teenage persona. "What are you doing here?" Jorge exclaimed. "The meeting is mainly for us guys and the Lewises only."

Kendall snorted. "Ain't no meeting complete without me," she shot back. "Now, what's going on around here and why is everyone looking at me like I robbed a bank?"

The air turned cold as I took a deep breath to think about what I needed to say. "Kendall, do you have any animosity against me joining the team?" I asked, keeping my voice calm and even.

"Wait, what? Skylar, I might have been a bit hard on you before Homecoming week, but I want you to be on the team. What's going on? Why were you asking me this?"

"It's because of something that I heard from Rhea, something alongside the lines of the late Jeannine Westin and Greenlee Sammons and how you were friends with them. And let's just say that Rhea knew that you thought I wasn't meant to be a hero."

"Sounds like that McNeil chick's been playing this game with you, even with her and Finnessey gone," Kendall answered flippantly, waving her hand in dismissal of the rumor. "You can't believe those kind of rumors, Skylar, even if they're true."

I inhaled sharply. "So the allegations were true then."

"I didn't say that, Skylar. But in a way...they might as well be. Little wonder that your two gal pals got what they deserved."

It was as if the air was vacuumed out of the room at that sentence. "Kendall, I need to know the truth," I said tersely. "Did you plant the bomb in the car that my parents, Shandra, and Rhea were in?"

Kendall gave me a bone-chilling grin, eyes lit in mischief. "How else would it make you be more compliant into making you choose?" she answered. "Your parents were cool people and they weren't part of the plan, but those two little nobodies were trying to play the wrong kind of game with me. They were getting too close and knew too much for their own good. They had to go, Skylar. And now that you know the truth, it's time for you to pay."

Before I could react, the lights suddenly went out before I felt something prick at my bare skin. The last thing I remembered was hearing Jorge and Drake screaming my name before the darkness greeted me once again.

Cumulative word-count so far: 31085 words.

Don't even think about getting comfortable just yet. The final chapters of this story are close at hand and I intend to go out with a bang and a half! Stay tuned!

Vote.
Comment.
Share.
Follow.
Add.
FAN!