In the Historia café, Andrea breathed a sigh of
relief, although Mina Rodgers had yet to arrive. She then saw Quinn re-enter.
“Quinn?” she asked.
“Looks like SpiderGirl and the fourth vigilante
showed up and didn’t fight each other,” Quinn said as she sat down next to
Andrea.
“The fourth vigilante’s mentor showed up too,”
Andrea said. “That makes six.”
“But what do you think caused Anders to act like
she did?”
“I’m not sure.”
“I’m not sure either.”
The Enigma arrived on the Historia’s roof and
looked at the time. “Like, it’s still a while before the play goes to
Intermission. She then reflected on what had happened as she observed Lawndale.
The Lynn Anders she had just faced was different to woman she had spoken to
briefly two days earlier. ‘It’s not just the booze,’ she considered. ‘The
situation has broken her, and someone has manipulated her. There’s no proof
that it’s Osborn, of course.’
Mina entered the café not long after Quinn
returned. She saw her brother and went over to him. “Sorry I’m late, my
roommate wanted me to watch what Anders was doing.”
“I’m glad you’re here,” Dewey said. “This is
Andrea.”
“So, one of the vigilantes wants you to look into
what happened with the robot pterodactyl?” she asked.
“Yes. We want to see if the Mall’s security footage
picked up who was controlling it. Ninja Talon said that she and Dafoanairi were
focused on stopping it.”
“I’ll have to think about it,” Mina answered. “It
is quite risky to share my account.”
“You don’t have to answer right away,” Andrea said.
“I’ll get back to you tomorrow,” Mina said.
“You’ll sleep on it, in other words,” Andrea
surmised.
Mina nodded.
As the play went into intermission, Sandi caught up
with Daria before she could enter the café.
“Has something happened?” Daria asked.
“Yes, but not here,” Sandi answered.
“Up on the roof,” Daria decided.
At the same time, Quinn met up with Brittany
backstage.
“Something did happen during the play?”
“Yes,” Quinn answered. “I’ll tell you in the
apartment.”
“That would be easier than the roof.”
Daria looked out over Lawndale as she took in what
Sandi had said. That Lynn Anders had apparently gone off the deep end,
kidnapped Kevin and interrupted Lawndale’s television signals seemed hard to
believe. ‘And yet it happened,’ she thought. “It’s definitely not her by
herself,” she said.
“Do you think it’s Osborn too?” Sandi asked.
“Yes, he manipulated her in her vulnerable state.
He may be responsible for the fake SpiderGirl idea in the first place. But of
course, there’s no proof of that. We need to keep an eye on him.”
“Harry isn’t all that forthcoming, other than the
worries about him.”
“I wouldn’t ask Harry to spy on his own father,”
Daria responded as she turned back to Sandi.
“I know that,” Sandi said. “There is another
thing.”
“What?”
“Mother figured out that you’re Dafoanairi.”
Daria sighed. “And she said that she’d keep my
secret?” she asked rhetorically
Sandi nodded. “As you’re keeping ours.”
“Of course,” Daria said, as she glanced at the
court house clock tower in the distance. The play would resume in another ten
minutes.
Brittany sipped some cocoa as she thought about
what Quinn had revealed. “But, what happens next? Are local journalists
disappearing in Lawndale now?”
“I’m not sure that’s what’s happening,” Quinn said.
“I’d say that Anders may be a one off.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“It’s more the trend.”
“Trend?” Brittany asked. “The Violet Force?”
“The Enigma’s mentor and she’s now active as a
sixth vigilante. There’s a new one around every two weeks at this rate.”
“That is a trend.”
“Like, how long before we’re all stepping on each
other’s toes and contributing further to Lawndale’s chaos?” Quinn asked.
“Or maybe she’ll only be active from time to time.”
“Probably, I’ll talk to Daria about it later. Even
so, more will come out of the woodwork.”
“We’ll deal with it as it comes,” Brittany said.
Quinn cheered up a bit. “Of course, but it’s still
a worry. Not everyone has the same sense of responsibility.”
Brittany could tell she was thinking about her
father again. She placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
“Thanks.”
Peterson and the paramedics dropped Kevin home.
“I know it was SpiderGirl and the other two who got
Kevin out of that cage,” Charlene Thompson said. “But thanks for rescuing him.”
“You’re welcome,” Peterson said. “We’re rarely
thanked in our work.”
“Really?” Charlene asked.
“Unfortunately,” Peterson answered. “People see all
the negatives.”
“I thought he was home, rather than moping about
town.”
“I would keep an eye on him.”
“It’s difficult enough… I’ll see you later,”
Charlene said as she closed the door.
Peterson sighed. It was time to go back to the
Station, in case something else happened.
Sandi went back to the café as the play resumed. ‘I
may as well have dinner here,’ she thought. She was about to go home for dinner
when Anders had interrupted the broadcasts afterall.
“Penny for your thoughts?” Donna asked when she had
come up to the counter.
“Just thinking about what’s going on,” Sandi
answered.
“It is a lot,” Donna admitted.
“But it could be worse.”
Daria thought about the situation as the play went
on.
‘What is Osborn up to?’ She wondered. She was sure
of one thing; that Oscorp presented a threat, not just to Lawndale, but to the
country at large. ‘I don’t know where he would stop.’
As the play ended, the Historia was filled with
speculation about what had happened earlier in the evening. Quinn, Daria and
Jane sat in a corner of the café after ordering supper. “So, you caught up with
the fourth vigilante earlier?” Jane asked.
“The Enigma,” Quinn said.
“Really?” Jane asked, feigning surprise.
“Yes,” Daria said. “She told Quinn and a few others
in the play the night you were abducted.”
‘That makes sense,’ Jane thought. “So, the Enigma
caught up with you earlier?”
“Yes,” Daria answered. “She couldn’t just locate
Anders, as there are three Emergency Alert Stations around Lawndale, one of
which is on the way to Oakwood and there is also one next to Lawndale Flats.”
“So, she brought in her mentor?” Quinn asked.
Daria nodded. “The mentor went to the west while
she went to the east, but Anders turned out to be in the one in the middle, and
the rest was shown on that broadcast. I guess I’ll be asking Samara if she
taped that too.”
“Someone probably did,” Jane responded.
“But it’s a bit late to be making more calls
tonight, even if it’s Saturday,” Daria said.
“First thing tomorrow?” Quinn asked.
“Not first thing, it’ll be Sunday,” Daria said.
“We’ll wait to mid afternoon.”
“And I bet your mother’s going to be wanting to
talk to you when you get home.”
Daria sighed. “Of course.”
At the same time, Andrea caught up with Brttany in
another corner. “Mina said that she would think about it overnight,” Andrea
said.
“That’s good news,” Brittany said.
Andrea could tell she was thinking about something.
“Did SpiderGIrl tell you something earlier?”
Brittany nodded. “That the fourth vigilante’s
mentor was there when she helped rescue Kevin from Anders.”
“I did see a fourth person there, other than
SpiderGirl, the fourth vigilante and the policewoman.”
“Probably Officer Peterson.”
“Peterson?” Andrea asked. “You know her?”
“As much as I can know her when I occasionally meet
her as Talon.”
“Of course.”
“But Spidey has known her a lot longer,” Brittany
answered.
“From the beginning?”
“I don’t think so, but certainly before I started.
But there’s another thing. She suspects Spidey’s identity.”
“She does?” Andrea asked with surprised. “But she
wouldn’t have known SpiderGirl like I knew you.”
“Of course not,” Brittany said, “But that’s the
fact.”
Andrea thought about it. She had promised to keep
Brittany’s secret, but she wasn’t sure about Peterson.
Quinn and Daria got home to find their mother
waiting for them, as expected.
“I was watching something when Anders interrupted
the broadcasts. It changes things,” she said.
“I knew you would say that,” Quinn said.
“She’s certain to be fired now, if she hasn’t
already,” Daria added.
“But now that I have seen SpiderGirl in action, I
must say that whoever she is must be brave,” their mother said.
‘Thanks, Mom,’ Quinn thought, although she knew
that she still wouldn’t tell her and Daria anything. ‘It’s enough that Brit
knows.’
“That’s obvious,” Daria commented.
“But someone else must be behind it. It’s not like
she would have done it on her own,” their mother said.
“It could be Osborn,” Daria added.
“Maybe, but there’s no proof,” their mother said.
“That’s true,” Daria said.
“I know you’re investigating what’s going on, but
trying to investigate Oscorp could be dangerous.”
“I’m aware of that,” Daria said as she went up the
stairs.
Quinn leaned against the stairs and ran a hand
through one of her pigtails. “I also know it’s dangerous,” she said.
“Is it because of William?” Helen asked
“That is part of it. You know Daria, always
standing for what she thinks is right.”
“That is a part of her that hasn’t changed.”
Quinn yawned. “Goodnight.”
But Quinn didn’t go to bed just yet as she still
wanted to write in her journal about the rescue of Kevin, the Violet Force and
what had caused Lynn Anders to do what she did.
SpiderGirl awoke and crawled out onto the roof at
the usual time. Lawndale sounded as it usually did at that hour. She pondered
the situation. ‘Maybe there is a way I can tell my story without risk,’ she
wondered. ‘But I’ll need to talk to Talon first and see what she thinks about
it.’
Lawndale Sun-Herald
Sunday, March 4, 2001
The Fall of Lynn Anders
Lynn Anders awoke in the Police cell with a massive
hangover and winced at the early morning light that was coming in through the
barred window. She groaned as she remembered what she could remember about her
conversation with Norman Osborn in the afternoon.
“You ruined my life, Norman!” she cried out.
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