Free SECRET IDENTITY by Linda Mooney

to wear his Defender uniform, but the rest of him would have changed,
such as his facial features and eye color. Brenda would have noticed the
difference immediately. Hell, she might have recognized him, too, with those
sharp eyes of hers.
    Behind him, he could detect the crime scene investigators
coming in to help. Lee had been sidetracked to another mission when they had
arrived at the police station. Although Lorne knew he’d miss having Lee watch
his back, Luke was still around to assist where he could.
    That was another thing they had to be cautious about,
letting others know they were related. Lee had arrived at the police station
ahead of Lorne. The captain had introduced them, and the two brothers had
shaken hands like strangers. It wasn’t until after Lee had left that Luke had
told him where their little brother was going.
    Lorne wasted no time. He let the police commissioner know he
would be happy to help with the search for the cause of the explosion once all
the victims’ remains were removed. But he had also made it clear that if he
gave an order, everyone had to obey it. “Question me later,” he’d firmly told
them. “But if I say ‘move’, everyone better haul ass for the nearest exit.”
    Okay, Lorne. Now’s your chance to put your powers to the
test.
    And to see if your big brother was right about cotransference, Luke’s voice buzzed in his head.
    It was a theory Luke had proposed not too long ago. Lee’s
powers were more of the mobility type, the way he could change the form of his
body from three dimensional to two, which gave him almost limitless access to
anywhere. So far, no kind of sensors or security alarms were beyond his
capabilities. Hence, he was indispensable to all government agencies worldwide.
Despite his powers, Luke could keep in touch with him, no matter where he was.
    On the other hand, Lorne seemed to have a different kind of
connection with his older sibling. Yes, they were able to keep in mental
contact. And at times Luke could open up a three-way between the brothers. But
Lorne had found he could almost transfer psychic-type vibes to Luke, who would “read”
them.
    They intended to put their theory to the test, using the
factory as their proving ground.
    Boy, I can feel how hyped up you are, Luke commented.
    Lorne couldn’t stop the smile from reaching his lips. Thank
heavens the man could not read his mind, or else Luke would have known why
Lorne was pumped. The eldest could read anybody if he had some sort of direct
contact with them—through the phone was the most common source. Yet he couldn’t
read his brothers. They assumed it was because they all held the Palmer gene,
which designated what powers they would have once they reached a certain age.
    Knowing his secret was safe from Luke, Lorne felt free to
let part of himself continue thinking about Brenda.
    There were three bodies left to recover, which Lorne quickly
handed over to the coroner’s office. If there was anything to be thankful for,
it was the fact that the factory had yet to hire its full, expected compliment
of workers. Same for the lab area, where the brunt of the accident took place.
That, plus it had been a Saturday. Dobbling had deliberately picked a weekend
for its ceremony, so that after the ribbon cutting the media could be taken on
a tour inside without getting in the way or interrupting any of the work going
on.
    Lorne entered the back labs, which no longer resembled any
kind of research facility. What was left of the area was filled with blackened
and charred refuse. The walls still stood, but the ceiling was totally gone.
Carefully, he stepped over, through, and around the debris, keeping his eyes
and himself open for anything that looked out of place, or which beckoned
further examination.
    Yo, bro. What am I looking for again?
    We know we can rule out accident, Luke stated. But
until we can prove it, the cops can’t just take our word for it. So we either
need to find evidence of that,