The Weaver's Web, Book II: Chapter 2

Dad was… subdued when he heard the news. “That’s great, Taylor!” he said.

Dad had been subdued ever since Mom had died. Just like me.

I wonder if getting out helped… I shook my head. Dad was trying. And he was still talking.

“Maybe we should go out and celebrate,” he said. “On the Boardwalk.”

“Wilson’s?” I asked. That had been a place where we’d have fun, when Mom was alive. For a moment, I wondered if I’d made a mistake. But something flickered over Dad’s face.

“That’d be great,” he replied.

As he turned, I heard him whisper. Once, I couldn’t have heard it, but I’d trained myself and…

“Annette would have been proud,” was all he said.

Would she? I wondered.

But when we got into the car, Dad paused. “Taylor, I… your mother didn’t exactly want to talk to you about this, not before you were older, but now… She she worked with a cape, when she was younger.”

I glanced over at him, as the lights from the street lamps played over his face. A storm had rolled in and out, so the air was crisp and the roads gleamed with puddles.

A bad omen, at least in the Bay. Even if Leviathan’s attacks had become less damaging over time, too many immigrants remembered the day the storms had rolled into Japan. And even those who claimed to not fear, had internalized some of that supernatural dread.

And so the streets were emptier, at least up here. They would be more crowded on the boardwalk and downtown, where crowds gave the illusion of security.

I had studied most of the capes in town, but… “Who?” I asked. “Not Marquis. I doubt Mom would have agreed with his position.”

“She wasn’t local. It was Lustrum.”

I didn’t say anything for a moment. I hadn’t studied every cape in detail, but I knew enough. “The Birdcage inmate?”

“Yes.” He shook his head. “Annette joined up with her when she was… Things were different back then. There was a spate of masters, mostly low level, but there had been several cases of—“

“Like Heartbreaker.” I nodded.

“Yes. Lustrum’s group started out as a mutual protection club, but it got… more radical, especially as more capes joined up. And she didn’t try to control things. I never met her personally, but Annette said… she was very angry, and she never said why.”

Because it would give others leverage. Not to mention that I doubt many capes enjoy remembering the day they got their powers.

“The Baltimore Riots,” I said. “Or the Castration Caper, if you follow PHO.”

Dad winced. “Not the name I’d choose. Annette had left before then, but she always believed there had been a Master involved pushing Lustrum and her group to greater actions.”

I didn’t reply. It would make sense that Mom would want to think the best of anyone she had associated with but…

But from what I’d seen of their propaganda, you could substitute ‘men’ for ‘non-whites’ and be able to drop one of Kaiser’s speeches into her later meetings. It wouldn’t be the first time someone had become more radical with age.

“But she wanted me to tell you something if you ever became a cape.” He shook his head. “I had honestly forgotten about it until… well.”

“What was it?”

“Remember Taylor, thou art mortal.”

I couldn’t help it. I laughed. “Mom said that.”

“She was a literature professor,” he said. Then sighed, and I could see the depression settle over Dad again, banishing the smile he’d had. Then he shook his head. “But she was right. Unless you’re Alexandria, remember that you’re not invulnerable.”

“I’m not, and I’m very aware of that,” I said. “You weren’t home last week when I hit my thumb with a hammer. That brought my vulnerability home dramatically.”

“How much did you curse?”

“You learned well from Kurt, Father, and I learned well from you.”

Dad shook his head as we turned the corner , and headed down to Wilson’s.

Wilson’s was a diner, set up above the Boardwalk, about three blocks off the shore. Far enough that most tourists assumed Hookwolf would waylay them on the way to eat. Which meant that this was where locals came when they wanted to get a bite to eat, where they could see the bay, and pay non-tourist trap prices.

Dad parked the car, and we walked in. I tagged everyone, just in case, but I also focused on using my own senses.

I can’t depend on my bugs. There are plenty of people who might notice. So The Investigator has to be able to show she’s using her own senses. I have to be able to do that, well enough to convince… everyone.

We sat down and ordered, and for a few moments I waited for the inevitable interruption. After all, if you stuck to PHO and movies, this would be the time that Lung came crashing in.

But he didn’t. I started on the salad and looked out to the bay, the gentle slope giving us a full view of the Rig, its fields gleaming in the night.

You could run a hundred PRT teams for the cost of the Rig. But that meant that less well-defended positions would be attacked first. I shook my head and almost started talking about it but—

Dad didn’t talk about it. So I won’t. No business, just… “How’s Maria?”

“Kurt and Lacey are talking about adoption,” Dad said. “But they’re worried about the situation. Maria is… terrified that she’ll be sent home.”

Well, a bit of business. “I might be able to help. I’ve had some… talks with Carol Dallon.”

“Brandish?” Dad blinked. “Taylor?”

“I… it’s not cape matters, but legal matters.” I shrugged. “I can’t say anything just yet, but this has nothing to do with any parahumans. I was just seeking her opinion to help me with learning some of the ins and outs of the law. But she might be able to point Kurt and Lacey to a legitimate attorney.”

“Isn’t that terrible,” Dad murmured. “You need someone to help find an honest attorney…” he shook his head.

“It…” I paused, thinking of my reading. “It’s not that most attorneys or even people are bad. Even the membership of the Empire is tiny compared to the population of the city. It’s just that a bad person, if you don’t stop him, can do more damage than you’d think he should be able to.” Timmis does damage because he appeals to the desperate and greedy, who probably were already told the truth they didn’t want to hear.  Emma, Sophia and Madison had been able to make my life hell—and most of the kids… hadn’t stopped them. But they hadn’t joined in. Did that make them better, or worse?

“So, are you ready for Arcadia?” Dad asked.

“I’ve been there for tutoring, but…” I shrugged. “It’ll be different.”

“Chance to make new friends?” Dad asked. “Even if you have a job, having friends outside of it can be… important.”

“I’ll see.” I shrugged. “Or maybe I’ll protect them from Aisha.”

Dad shook his head. “I think that comes under the heading of remembering your are but mortal, Taylor.”

I laughed. It was a little thing, but for right now, we could just enjoy a meal, father and daughter. I could see the shadows in Dad’s eyes, as he once or twice looked over to an empty chair, but… We were talking about nothing, but talking still.

And it was good.