Aurora held her ID card and called Detective Kirby. She did trust him, and this was her private communicator device secured with more advanced tech than she could imagine. She’d decided it would be best to arrange a quiet arrest for the thugs.

  “Detective Kirby, you’ve got five minutes,” he said when he picked up.

  Aurora expined the situation in a somewhat oblique way - she’d happened upon a home invasion and, when she’d attempted to intervene, things had gone pear-shaped fast. When the conversation concluded, he replied, “All right. Let me make a few calls, I’ll head to the 3rd precinct, meet me on the rooftop. A couple of uniforms will be at your location in less than ten minutes. Make sure your friends are alright and keep an eye open if you don’t want to be there. Just watch things from a distance.”

  “Thank you, Detective. Sorry to have taken up so much of your time tely. I’ll see you on that rooftop soon.” She disconnected the line and looked at her mother and Quinn. “Now we just have to find out how much damage control is possible.” She sighed, walking over to take Goonie’s hand. She squeezed her hand back, just a little weak, thankfully.

  “Did you hear my side of the story while I was talking to Mistral and the Detective?” Aurora asked the two quickly and quietly. The two nodded, getting the general drift of what was happening. “I think at the very least we’ll have to get reinforced doors and windows.”

  Goonie nodded emphatically, and Quinn echoed it. Goonie shooed Aurora away and pushed herself to her feet, a little unsteady.

  “Are you feeling okay? Do you need to go to the hospital?” Aurora asked, chewing her lip. Quinn nodded and looked at her mother, standing to support her. Goonie shooed her away with a warm smile. “It was a shock… and it hurt, but it doesn’t hurt any longer.” She patted the gunshot wound, and winced. “Well… that’s not quite right, but I think it’s healed. Check my back, would you?” she asked Aurora.

  Aurora nodded and checked. There was a hole through the back of her blouse, so it had passed cleanly through, at least. “It’s not in your body anymore. I hope that healing takes care of any potential infection.”

  A shudder went down Aurora’s spine as she thought about what her healing would have done if it hadn’t been through-and-through. Would the wound have sealed around the bullet, or how would that have been dealt with? Was her healing based on her own knowledge, did it work off of pure intuition, or was it the intent that mattered? So many more questions about her powers she’d have to answer.

  Quinn looked at Aurora, gring. “You endangered Mom’s life. What were you thinking?” she practically yelled.

  “Enough, Quinn. I understand your worry,” Goonie looked at Quinn and soothed her with a pat on her shoulder. “I’m fine. It’s true things happened so fast she didn’t think things through first. But no one is perfect, she hasn’t developed the reflexes to respond to a situation like that. She’ll learn.” She looked at Aurora and touched her face gently. “You should get moving. You don’t want to be spotted here so your identity won’t be compromised, right? You’d best get to it.”

  Aurora chewed her lip, and Quinn gritted her teeth slightly. “Don’t I need to be here when they arrest them? To make sure they don’t get free?”

  “We’re fine. You tied them up, Quinn.” Goonie eyed the thugs who were unconscious. “I reckon a couple of tough girls like us can handle these goons if they wake up before they get here. Get going, girl!” Goonie again urged Aurora to go. She hesitated. There would be some questioning they’d have to deal with, but what she was going to be doing wouldn't be any easier to deal with. “We’ll tell them you swooped in and saved us in time. You want to break the back door before you go?” she suggested with typical mirth and good humor.

  “I’d hate to do that... It might be a little insecure living here just while we waited to get it fixed… but I’ll do my best to not cause a lot of damage.” She ran to the back door and studied it for a moment. She pointed her finger and pinpointed a bst on the knob to minimize the damage. The knob resisted but seemed to lose its shape somewhat. Aurora tried the knob—it was still locked firmly. She pointed again and hit it again, repeating until the door opened. At least they wouldn’t have to leave the door wide open. A lock would be easier to repce, and cheaper. Forensics should be satisfied with this.

  Aurora leapt outside and bsted into the air. Behind and below, she saw a couple of police cars on their way. Their sirens were silent, but still fshed. When they came to a stop before the door, Aurora charged off to the 3rd precinct, the closest department to their home.

  When she nded on the roof no one was waiting yet. Aurora sat near the edge, crossing her legs. While she waited, she fiddled with the communicator trying to figure out if or how it might have noted the police activity arriving at her front door but she was interrupted when the door to the roof opened. Aurora looked over her shoulder and flitted up and over.

  Kirby stepped onto the rooftop, eyeing her with his usual measured expression. “I’m not going to ask about this,” he said. “I’m just going to assume that you were otherwise minding your own business when you happened across that home invasion. There’s been a few in that area recently.” He exhaled through his nose, rubbing his temple. “Look,” he said, putting a hand on her shoulder when she nded, “you have to be smart. I understand that when you have your kind of powers, it’s easy to believe you can just save people whenever you want, but sometimes just bzing in turns a votile situation deadly.”

  Aurora nodded seriously. She knew she’d messed up. It was only out of sheer fortune things had turned out for the best.

  Detective Kirby’s phone rang, and he responded, putting it to his ear, “Hello, Detective Kirby. Oh? Thanks. Okay, I’ll be right there.” After a moment, he disconnected the line and spoke to Aurora.

  “Okay, here’s the story so far. Only two of the attackers are conscious right now and probably won’t wake up until tomorrow. The other two look like they’ve had the fear of God put in them and I’d guess they cmmed up before they answered whatever questions you were asking. I don’t mind pying ball this time, Aurora, and no one’s going to cry over some asshole home invaders, but I’m still going to repeat myself and tell you to be careful.” He met her gaze, serious but not unkind. “When you’re ready, they’re in the interview rooms downstairs. If you want to come in with me, or if you want to just go in on your own, tell me when we get there. One of them was the one you caught outside. He says you let him drop from 30,000 feet, as though he’d know.”

  Aurora rolled her eyes. “He’s exaggerating.”

  “Figured,” Kirby muttered.

  He continued, “The other guy is one of the ones who opened fire inside. He himself was babbling about how he’d started shooting so there’s little doubt there.”

  Aurora’s eyes narrowed. She had questions for him.

  Aurora nodded. “The one I dropped admitted they were going to rape the woman they’d followed, along with robbing her. I thought a little scaring was in order. Maybe he’ll think twice about being such a creep.” She sighed, shaking her head. “No, I doubt it…”

  Her fingers tensed around the card as she took a breath. “I’d like to question them both.”

  She wasn’t sure how honest they’d be—criminals weren’t exactly known for their truthfulness. But the bigger concern gnawed at her. What if one of them, conscious or not, had figured out her identity? How could she be sure?

  Kirby studied her for a moment, then pulled out his badge and handed it to her. “Aurora, I’m a cop, it’s pretty much my entire job description to pick out the good ones from the bad ones and you seem like a good one. No, there’s no rhyme or reason to figuring out who is which, sometimes all you have is your gut. And right now my gut is telling me to keep you happy, even if it means coloring outside the lines a bit, so you can go out there tomorrow and do more good than whatever this is today. Hell, half the reason I’m entertaining any of this is because they’re too stupid to ask for a wyer even after we read them their rights. All that being said: You can use my shield,” he said. “Tell them you’re a cop and find out what you need—just don’t rough them up, got it? No matter how Hollywood makes things look, that’s illegal.”

  Maybe what he was doing was too, but Aurora was grateful for his help and accepted the responsibility that came with all the faith he was pcing in her. She accepted it with a smile and focused. She thought about his typical clothes and put on a long coat, blouse, jeans, and boots. She changed her hair color to blonde, but not satisfied with just that, she tried to darken her skin a bit and applied some makeup to give the impression of more age. She wasn’t sure she looked significantly different, but she hoped it made her look professional at least.

  Detective Kirby nodded. “Hmmm, good, but your body nguage is still the same. Otherwise, you look fine. A totally different person aside from the figure. The coat hides that nicely. If you could put on a few pounds, it’d be perfect. Well, go on inside. He’s a little tweaked still, definitely on something. People’s judgment goes into the toilet when they’re on the come-down. Not to mention he’s still freaked out from your little flight together. You should still be able to get what you need out of that one though.”

  Aurora took a breath and stepped to the door. As she reached for it, her communicator went off. She pulled it from one of the coat pockets—Mistral!

  “I have to take this quickly.” Aurora apologized, leaning against the door as she answered. “Mistral. How’d yours go?”

  “It was actually quite a fight. I’ll tell you ter if you want. What’s going on with you? I called about you. Are things okay?”

  “I’m about to go into an interview room at the precinct to question them,” Aurora said, keeping her words vague. Even though she trusted Kirby, she wasn’t about to risk slipping up with someone else listening in.

  “Don’t worry too much. You have a lot going on over there,” Mistral reassured her. “First of all, if it happened as fast as you said, they’re probably not sure what they saw, so you might want to lead them a little if they seem unsure. Second, since you’re new, no one really knows what your powers are, so teleportation could be possible in their minds. Maybe you teleported in, swapped pces with someone on site. Keep them uncertain.”

  Aurora nodded, absorbing the advice.

  “And finally, if they weren’t there for you specifically, they had no idea what they were walking into. You need to figure out why they were there, why they opened fire when you arrived—whether they intended to kill anyone. That’s your goal.”

  Aurora bit her lip. “Except I may have said something in the heat of the moment. That’s very possible. I’m new to this. I don’t think I was too specific, but after she was shot, I just lost my reason for a moment.”

  “Just be cool. It’s your city, right? Throw a little Avenger attitude in there.” Mistral’s voice shifted to a gruff rasp, mimicking the Midnight Avenger. “Like, ‘What made you think you’d get away with that in my city? I am the st bell. I am midnight. I am the AVENGER!’”

  Aurora giggled as Mistral coughed dramatically.

  “I know that’s not you,” Mistral said, her voice returning to normal. “But misdirection won’t hurt. If you think you need backup, seriously, call Andromeda or Dragonmage. She’s a fell-magic type like us, but Dragonmage is a full member. He might be easier to reach. I can help convince him, assuming I’m free should you decide to contact him.”

  “Right… thanks, Mistral. I’m thinking about interrogating them as a detective first. I want to get what they saw out of them. Detective Kirby is helping me with that. If that fails, I might just try putting on my Avenger voice. I was certainly vengeful enough. Definitely not my usual sunny self, anyway. I’ll let you know how it goes.”

  “Okay,” Mistral replied. “I’ll be waiting.” The call disconnected.

  Aurora took a deep breath.

  Detective Kirby patted her on the shoulder. “I’ll make sure the intercom doesn’t accidentally turn on while you’re growling at them,” he assured her. “Go do what you need to do.”

  Aurora nodded, following him down the stairs and into a hallway. In no time, she stood before the interrogation room. Taking a final breath, she opened the door and stepped inside, reminding herself to change her voice a little. Her powers wouldn’t help her there, but a shift in tone and body nguage could.

  Alone in the room was the shooter. It was pretty obvious it was only the cuffs that were keeping him from bouncing off the wall given how much nervous energy he was giving off. “I wanna make a statement about the crazy woman who bsted the hell outta me. That’s not self-defense. That’s like crazy vij-ntee stuff.”

  Aurora settled into the chair across from him, forcing herself to rex. She mimicked Kirby’s posture, leaning back slightly with an air of nonchance. “Alright, what do you want to say?” She watched him closely.

  “Look, I went into the wrong house… we did. The door was open, then the next thing I know, there’s a fsh of light, and I hear someone start shooting, so I start shooting ‘cause I think I’m getting shot at. And all of a sudden, this chick with wings is there, and she starts bsting everything moving. She shot me in the chest and in the leg and then on the ass!”

  Aurora couldn’t help but smirk. “In the ass, you say. How inappropriate.” She leaned forward, csping her hands. “And that’s all? You didn’t see anything else? That’s your statement?”

  “Well, yeah, her shooting me in the ass is proof I was not a threat, so she shot me in the ass, and that means money,” he nodded.

  Aurora’s expression darkened. She leaned in further, voice lowering. “One of your companions confessed to attempted theft and rape. At the very least, that makes you an accessory to the crime. What do you have to say about that?”

  “Hey, I don’t know what no one said. All I know is that we were looking to crash at a friend’s house, and we had the wrong house. Totally innocent,” he said, shrugging. “I weren’t there for no rape or anything like that.”

  “Kicking in the front door of your friend’s pce?” Aurora replied dryly, shaking her head. “You’re bringing a whole new meaning to house crashing. Must be pretty popur with the stupid crowd these days, huh?” She shrugged. “I can’t think of anyone smart who’d be happy about it—especially not here in San Isidro.”

  Aurora stood and walked toward the door. “You think about how stupid you really want to py this.” She opened it and stepped out, shutting it behind her.

  That felt better.

  Kirby was waiting outside. She met his gaze, feeling steadier now. “I got most of what I needed from that one. They’re pying dumb, for ck of a better word, trying to cim they didn’t intend to break into the home. How about the other conscious one?”

  Kirby nodded and gestured for her to follow him to the next room. The moment she stepped in, she recognized him—the one she’d dropped from the sky. He was clutching an ice pack to his jaw, looking far more subdued than the first.

  Aurora settled into the chair across from him, affecting the same confident demeanor. She let a beat of silence pass before finally speaking.

  “Alright. What’s your story? Got slugged, eh?” Aurora asked, settling down in the chair in front of him.

  The man repeated the same story told before, though a little calmer this time. He hadn’t changed it for the police. That was something, at least. But Aurora wasn’t letting him off easy.

  “Tell me more. We’ve heard this already.” She growled slightly, pressing him.

  “Yeah…” The guy shook his head, shifting uncomfortably. “Okay, we heard about the home invasions, since that bitch at the cafe kicked us out for taking a little hit while we was orderin’. Folks should be able to take a hit wherever they want, we got rights too, ya know. So we decided to go teach her a lesson. Beat her up a little, steal some valuables. Maybe mess with her a little… we didn’t know she had a family, and all of a sudden that superhero was there, bsting everyone like crazy.”

  Aurora’s stomach clenched at how casually he admitted to it. No shame, no hesitation—just some messed-up justification in his head.

  “I see…” she nodded, keeping her expression neutral. “So she was on you pretty quick, huh? I hear you’re the only one that managed to get away. That true? You must be pretty quick yourself.”

  “Yeah, I took off as soon as she started going nuts,” he said. “I din’ do nothing.”

  “But she caught you anyway. You remember much about that?” Aurora pressed.

  His jaw twitched. “She coerced a confession. All I know is I’m tied up, she brings me up so high I can barely breathe, and she makes me say I broke into her house, but that’s totally not true. We were at that chick’s house from the cafe.”

  Aurora tilted her head, feigning curiosity. “I see,” she mused. “Y’know, I hear it’s a trend for superheroes to use ‘street talk’ to communicate better with people on their level. Instead of saying my city, one might say this is MY HOUSE—all dramatic-like.” She let that sink in before continuing. “Think she was just being territorial like you all are?”

  “I don’t know, and I don’t care. I take back everything she made me say,” he spat, crossing his arms.

  Aurora shook her head, unimpressed. “You can’t do that, because you started with your confession—pretty candidly stating what you were there to do.” She chuckled, the sound sharp. “A word of advice. If you, by some miracle, get through this without a conviction, I highly recommend not breaking into any more dies’ homes. And definitely not shooting up any more women—IN MY HOUSE!”

  She spped her hands on the table, leaning in with an intensity that made him flinch.

  “Do you understand?”

  “Yeah… if I get off, no more crime for me, ever,” he muttered. The way he said it made it clear he was lying through his teeth.

  Aurora smirked. “Heh… first smart thing you’ve said all night.” She waved a dismissive hand and stepped out.

  Once the door was firmly shut behind her, she let a small, satisfied smile slip through. That had gone better than she expected. She passed Detective Kirby’s badge back to him, grateful she hadn’t even needed it. The guys had been so rattled that they were ready to believe anyone who walked through that door was a cop.

  “Thank you, Detective,” she said earnestly. “You’re a great friend. I think I got everything I needed.”

  Kirby nodded, slipping his badge back into his coat. “Alright, I’ll let my people know they can question them if they need to. You need anything else?”

  “On this? I’m good.” Aurora exhaled, her mind already shifting back to the bigger problem. “Did you receive my email just prior to the break-in occurrence? About that missing boy at the camp?”

  “Yeah, I was just looking into it when you called.” Kirby checked his watch. “I’m already pulling some serious OT and who needs sleep anyway, so I’ll keep digging into Bruce.”

  “Thank you again, Detective.” Aurora smiled, the exhaustion of the night finally weighing on her. “I need to be on about my business for the night. I still have a few calls to make.”

  She extended a hand, and Kirby took it, shaking firmly. He then gestured for her to follow him up the stairs. The two walked in companionable silence until they reached the rooftop.

  Aurora let out a slow breath as she dropped her disguise, her usual appearance slipping back into pce. Concentrating on maintaining it for so long had been more annoying than she anticipated.

  Kirby leaned against the rooftop railing and smirked. “I’d like to think we’re friends,” he said. “And though we’re new friends, I want you to know you can trust me.” He met her gaze with an unwavering sincerity. “I’m never gonna pry into anything, but if I find out something about you, I’ll make sure you hear it first. And unless it interferes with a criminal investigation, I’ll do what I can to keep it from becoming a problem for you.”

  Aurora nodded, appreciating the gesture. “That means a lot.”

  “But,” he continued, holding up a finger, “I do have one favor to ask for all this confidence.”

  Aurora blinked. “Oh?”

  Kirby kept his expression dead serious. “I have a single son. If you’re single too, would you mind giving him a call? He’s a very polite and handsome kid.”

  Aurora’s eyes widened.

  Wait, what?!

  She opened her mouth—only for Kirby to burst into ughter, nearly doubling over. “I’m sorry, I’m totally kidding,” he wheezed. “I do have a kid but he’s with my ex-wife down south, doesn’t take a detective to figure out I was married to the job more than her. Seriously though, I just want to be a dependable ally in this fight against crime.”

  Aurora let out a relieved ugh, shaking her head. “Oh my God, you got me.”

  Kirby wiped his eyes, still chuckling. “That’s what I was going for. You seem like a pretty easy mark for those kinds of jokes.” He straightened up, exhaling. “Anyway, when I find something on that camp, you’ll be the first to know. And don’t worry—you’ll get a shot at bringing them down when the time comes.”

  Aurora grinned. “Thanks again, Detective. You really are a great friend.”

  She turned to leave, but he stopped her with a smirk. “Before you go—don’t let this get around, but cybercrimes fgged something weird. You’ve been making the rounds online.”

  Aurora frowned. “What do you mean?”

  Kirby pulled out his phone and tapped a few times before showing her the screen. “You seen ‘Angel Fights Angel’ yet? Someone took footage of that building colpse in Seaside and edited it to make it look like you were fighting some crazy vilin and took her down with the colpse.”

  Aurora’s mouth dropped open. “Are you kidding me?”

  “Dead serious.” Kirby shrugged. “Some people love twisting the narrative. You might wanna check it out yourself.”

  She rubbed her forehead. “Unbelievable… I consider the Crane to be the best job I’ve done so far as a superhero. Damage to private property aside, which was probably going to happen anyway.” She sighed. “But I guess people will always be people. At least I know there are some kind folks out there putting the real footage online.”

  Kirby smirked. “Yeah, but don’t let me keep you. We both have things to do.” He stifled a yawn. “Don’t you worry, I’ll figure out what that camp’s doing, and when we move, you’ll be right there with us.”

  Aurora nodded. “I appreciate that, Detective.”

  She shook his hand one st time before stepping to the edge of the rooftop. With a powerful leap, she shot into the night sky, streaking toward home.

  Her family still weighed heavily on her mind.

  Would they even stay there tonight? The lock was broken—even if she’d minimized the damage, the house wasn’t secure. And in San Isidro, that was a problem.

  She pushed forward, intent on finding out what they’d decided.