Free The Push Chronicles (Book 3): Incorruptible by J.B. Garner Page A

I think is obvious to everyone here at this table."  She turned to the desk-mounted map and tapped the Plaza.  "That would get the right kind of attention, I think."
     
    I stared down at the uniform laid out on the bed and wondered if this wasn't becoming the real addiction.  The reinforced motorcycle leathers, almost garish in their white and blue coloration, had become a second skin over the months I had worn them and just the thought of suiting up once more sent a shiver up my spine.  I picked up the domino mask and looked into its empty eyeholes.  Would I ever put this down?  Maybe a better question would be if I would be allowed to put it down.
    No more recriminations, no more doubt.  I had to get back to work.
    Even though this was a brand new suit, it seemed to fit like a well-worn glove.  The leather creaked as I made a fist.  This was good.  This was right.  As I stuck the mask to my face, letting the spirit gum set, there was a knock at my door.
    "It's open."
    Medusa came into the room as she opened the door.  Her serpentine eyes gave me a look up and down.
    "Welcome back, Indy."
    "Thanks, Meds."  I let myself have a small smile.  "Let's start saving the world again, shall we?"
     
    The hardest part of our initial plan was getting everyone into the right place without raising anyone's alarms.  The fact was that subtlety was hard for the Pushed, especially if they didn't have any powers to assist them in being so.  By their very nature and that Pulse they gave off, the Pushed attracted, no, demanded attention.  Still, with a little work, it could be done.
    For myself and Quentin, it had been simple, if stifling, to wear coats over our more distinctive clothing.  Between that and helmets, we looked no different than any other motorcyclists out for a drive.   That, of course, exposed me to the changes that had overtaken the city while I had been put out of action.
    The striking things weren't the obvious changes.  It only made sense that, in the continuing state of emergency, all traffic was scarce.  Many businesses would be disrupted and who knows what kind of economic system the Crusaders were enforcing.  The only places I saw with any real concentration of people were cafes, restaurants, any place that was a point of food distribution.  At least people were getting fed.
    No, the real things that put me on edge were the subtle things.  There were still police on the streets, but few of them work badges or normal uniforms, not to mention the heavier firepower they carried.  The people that did roam the streets looked down, never at others, and made little, if any, conversation.  Even the ever-present cellphone seemed to have been silenced.  What had been a bustling, vibrant city seemed to have been repopulated with shuffling masses of sheep.
    We parked our bikes in a parking structure a block away from the Bank of America Plaza.  It was surprisingly empty, I noticed, as we walked out to the street.
    "Fuel rationing," Quentin said offhandedly.  "Sorry, I saw you staring around and figured..."  He shrugged.
    "Excellent deduction.  Dead on, actually."  I stopped for a moment at the exit and stayed in the dim lights of the building.  It was late afternoon now and the sun was starting to descend, throwing shadows everywhere.  "You're pretty perceptive."
    "It's a gift, I guess."  He perked.  "Frost just touched down on the rooftop here."
    I gave him a dubious glance and listened to my earpiece.  A moment later, it crackled to life.
    "I've perched," Frost rumbled softly.  "I shall try to get closer, but we dragons are not precisely sneaky."
    Quentin gave me a huge smirk.
    "Understood."  I cut my mic.  Voltage and Medusa were currently intangible electricity bouncing between the lines, out of contact.  My watch said we still had a minute and twenty-three seconds until go time.
    "How?"
    "Good ears."
    "Anything else I should know?"
    "Just alert, I guess."
    "Smart ass."
    That time was