The Forbidden Trilogy(250)

He'd tried, but without his para-powers, what good was he?

Enough of that. That's what started this mess to begin with. Drake refused to sit around feeling sorry for himself. Plenty of people without para-powers beat fate and survived against all odds in extraordinary situations. If they could do it, so could he.

He felt the drug still in his system, pushing him to weakness, so he did the only thing he knew to do: he dropped to his hands and did as many push-ups as he could. Before losing his para-power, he'd always kept in top physical shape. He'd been a fool to let go of that after everything happened. No more. With or without powers, Drake would be the best version of himself he could be. He'd save the woman he loved and their child. He wouldn't let them down again—even if Sam never wanted to be with him again, he'd be there for her and Ana in whatever way they needed.

Sweat soaked through his shirt as he pushed himself. After fifty, he stopped and rested, pulling off his shirt to dry off the moisture.

In the corner, Toby sat, quiet and sad. If it hadn't been for that kid, Drake would probably be dead now.

He walked over and sat next to the boy, wrapping an arm around him. "Thank you. This time, you saved me."

Toby scowled. "So what? Like it helped. Your girlfriend got captured. And you didn't tell me you had a baby. Man, that blows. They got both your girls. We need to bounce from this shithole, yo!"

"You're right. We do." He stood and walked to the tall bars. They weren't thick. If he had his para-powers he could snap them, but he didn't, so it was time to think outside the box. "You know what else you were right about?"

"What?"

"Every hero does need a sidekick."

Toby smiled. "See, the hero learns."

Drake smiled as an idea came to him, one inspired by watching too many Jackie Chan films. "You don't get it. You're the hero, Toby." He looked down at his sweat-soaked shirt. "Hey, Mary, come over here?"

She glanced side to side, then walked toward him. "What do you need me for?"

"I need your shirt."

She stepped back, clutching her silk clothing. "No way. I'm not undressing... here."

Drake grinned. "You can have my shirt. Don't worry."

She paused, then slipped her blouse off and snatched up Drake's shirt, putting it on in a split second.

"Thank you." Drake rubbed the blouse over his body, covering it in sweat, then spun it into a coil and tied it around two of the bars.

This just might work.





Chapter 118 - Lucy



Lucy looked up from Hunter and stared at Drake. What's he doing?

He wrapped Mary's shirt around two bars and started twisting. It took Lucy a second, but she almost laughed when she figured out the reference. She'd seen that in a Jackie Chan movie. He'd peed on his shirt and then did what Drake was doing to pull the bars in the cell together in order to escape. She really hoped he hadn't peed on Mary's shirt.

Didn't Myth Busters prove that it didn't work?

But it was working. Drake's muscles bulged and rippled in the sun as he twisted harder, bending the metal to his will. He looked surprised that he'd made progress. He gestured to Mary. "Come over here for a sec."

She didn't look thrilled as she sauntered over to him. They talked quietly, then Mary sashayed—there really was no other word for how she moved her hips and stuck out her breasts—over to the other side and whistled to the bored guard. Even without powers, Mary was a force of nature. Her breasts heaved in her tight shirt as she flipped her long blond hair away from the side of her neck that wasn't burned.

In what was almost a purr, she asked, "Could you please bring me some water?" She fanned herself dramatically. "It's so hot in here."

Coming from anyone else, that whole move would have been laughable, but Mary was a pro. She had the guard panting like an obedient dog. He grinned and bobbed his head, then scurried away to do her bidding. What power she wielded even without para-powers.

Lucy looked to Hunter to see if he was as enthralled with her as everyone else, but he was looking at Lucy. She flushed under his gaze and focused back on Drake, who continued to work on the bars.

He looked up. "I need some help."

Lucy was about to offer when Hunter stood, pulling off his shirt. "I got it."

"Thanks, but I can't use your shirt. Silk's better. Just help me twist." Together, they worked the bars apart, to create a gap big enough to slip through. Lucy locked the image in her mind of the two very sexy men shirtless and flexing their muscles. She wasn't at all interested in Drake, but she had to admit, the picture her mind took of them could have sold calendars.

Their small gang gathered around while the guys pulled, and Mary kept a lookout for the returning guard. The rest had joined Simmons and her team for the baby massacre.