Ablaze {Marvel} ||2||

22. Chicago

I had my hand over my mouth, deep in thought, as I stared at the flat-screen TV in one of the sitting rooms. This was the fifth attack in a month.

Something was going on. These couldn't be random.

I licked my lips. Was S.H.I.E.L.D. all over this? They had to believe what I was thinking, that these weren't random attacks. All of them remained in the United States, just in different states. The first attack had been in Texas, leaving two fatalities. The second had been in Massachusetts, the body count had been a little higher there. Colorado took a hit, the fatality count was a medium rate. One of the Carolinas—South, I believe—got hit with an attack too. The fifth one had been last week, and the news was still broadcasting it. Wisconsin had been hit in the most recent attack.

"Authorities in Wisconsin are still looking into the explosion that left seven people dead last week," the middle-aged female broadcaster said. The makeup she wore made her age even further. "This marks the fifth attack on the US in a month. It's beginning to appear as though these attacks aren't coincidental. But, authorities in the states hit have yet to find a connection between the five attacks. We will keep you updated when we receive any new information."

I bit down on my thumbnail now. S.H.I.E.L.D. had to be looking into these attacks. The broadcaster hadn't said the words "bomb" or "explosion", but those are what all the attacks had been. Well, that's what the police concluded anyway.

My phone buzzed on the couch beside me. I peeked at the text.

Still alive?

It was Seth. He hadn't bothered me until it'd been one week since I'd been injected with the serum. At one week, I hadn't had any incidents. Weeks two and three were the same. At week four, still no episodes. The only thing that hadn't gone on was me testing out my powers. I was still a little shaky about using them again, since the last few times I'd tried to, they'd faulted. A life had been taken.

Still going strong.

Good to hear. Should anything come up again, tell me immediately.

My phone buzzed again, and I growled a bit. But instead of it being Seth, it was Tony.

Mind joining us for a sec?

I quirked my lips before I typed back: For what?

Tony's response: How current is your knowledge of current events?

My response: Where are you in the tower?

One of the upper levels.

Be right up.

I lucked out on my guess as to what floor Tony was situated on. I entered the big area, seeing holographic images of all five separate attacks on the United States. All were still-photos though, no video. In front of some of the imaging was Bruce, who was beside Tony. Both were examining the photos.

"All right, so I'm not the only one whose attention this caught," I said conversationally as I crossed the room to the guys.

"No, you're not." Of all people's voices to hear, and I had Clint's. He was on one of the imaging screens. "How've you been, Kiara?"

"Good." I was honestly getting sick of hearing that question. "So, what do you have for us?"

"We think we might know where the next attack is going to be."