The city streets were even busier than Charlotte expected during her walk back to the apartment. As usual, she was admiring shop windows and plants growing on apartment balconies, but she was also on high alert. While none of the villains had made a move yet, that could change at any moment.

Instead of going straight back to the apartment, Charlotte took a different turn and headed to Dove Park. She wasn't ready to sit alone in her room all night. It would be nice to watch the people walking by for a while.

Dove Park—a small stretch of grass and trees nestled between two buildings—didn't attract many visitors, surprisingly. It offered a view of Beebalm Street at one end, while the other side was hidden away and strangely quiet. The park was also in the perfect place to be flooded with the afternoon sunlight that found its way in between buildings. It was too late for that now, but lights from surrounding windows kept Charlotte from feeling uneasy in the darkness.

As Charlotte sat on one of the benches, watching the last of the light fade from the sky, she couldn't help but think about Julian. It was crazy enough that she'd happen to run into him at both the cafe and the funeral. What were the chances of seeing him again?

She sighed and rested her chin in her hand, trying to convince herself she didn't care that much. She would have given that dollar to anyone who needed it. Admittedly, she'd already seen the guy reaching for his card, and he certainly didn't seem to need the money, but...

Damn it, she'd thought he was cute.

Unfortunately, Spencer figured that out pretty quickly when Charlotte told him the story after running into Julian at the funeral. Spencer insisted he looked like he'd walked right out of a shady organization in a spy movie. Charlotte couldn't really see it. At least Spencer eventually conceded that he was 'sort of pretty.'

What did Julian really think about Charlotte's change in appearance? He hadn't pressed the matter after she'd brushed off his question about her height, but there was no way he believed he'd simply misremembered her, right? Unless he really wasn't paying attention at the cafe.

Based on the fact that she'd broken the door off the microwave—leaving maintenance perplexed—and that carrying the stack of textbooks she'd accumulated felt like lifting a feather, Charlotte definitely had superhuman strength. But she hadn't been able to summon any of Storm Warning's other powers. What if she didn't have them, after all? Maybe whatever that orb was just gave people muscles.

Suddenly aware of how hungry she was, Charlotte stood up, stretched, and glanced up at the sky. The idea of picking up food somewhere was tempting, but she had leftovers to finish.

Ugh. Why had she wandered so far from the apartment? It would take fifteen minutes to get back the usual way.

Or she could cut through alleyways. She'd been too terrified to take them before, even during the day, but she could handle anyone she ran into now, right? The big villains weren't known for hanging out in back alleys.

Charlotte made it a couple of blocks without any trouble. Halfway through a particularly long alley, though, something moved above her. She halted and looked up.

A figure stood at the top of a fire escape. The cape, the mask—Charlotte's heart skipped a beat. "Citadel." Apparently, big villains did sometimes hang out in back alleys. Eyes narrowing, she lifted her fists, though he had to have heard the tremble in her voice. "What do you want?"

Citadel chuckled. He grabbed the railing and jumped over. A pillar of stone broke through the ground in front of Charlotte to catch him and bring him down to her level. "Bold of you to be walking around alone so soon after Storm Warning's death."

"I don't need him to protect me." Charlotte managed a relatively steady tone, but she couldn't stop the slight trembling in her hands. "And doesn't someone as big and powerful as yourself have better things to do than stalk random civilians?"

"I'm flattered."

"Don't be."

"Let's cut to the chase, then." Citadel began circling Charlotte. She turned to follow, not wanting her eyes off him for even a second. "Are you the one who approached Storm Warning's body after he died?" he asked.

"I think you have me mistaken for someone else," Charlotte told him.

"No, I don't think I do."

Stone spikes emerged from the ground, forming a circle around Charlotte. "What the hell?" she exclaimed as they trapped her in a makeshift cell. "Let me go!"

Citadel stopped in front of her and leaned forward. "I think you took something that belonged to Storm Warning," he said, his voice low.

"Oh, and let me guess, you want it?" Charlotte slammed a fist against one of the spikes. To her surprise, a hairline crack appeared. Her victory was short-lived as she realized how many more blows it would take to break even one. And her hand stung with pain where she'd hit the stone.

"I'll do whatever it takes to get my hands on the stormoid," Citadel said. "I'm sure that's not surprising."

Stormoid? Is that what the floaty liquid orb was called? "I don't have it," Charlotte insisted. Was there a chance he'd believe her?

"I don't believe you."

"What makes you say that?" The wind picked up, freeing stray pieces of hair from Charlotte's braid. When Citadel didn't respond, she added, "You don't know anything about me." She hit the closest spike again. A rush of energy flooded her arm as it swung through the air.

Sparks jumped from her hand when it made contact. More cracks ran up the stone. Bigger cracks.

Shit. Of all the times for powers to show up.

Citadel smirked. "Seems I was correct."

"I wouldn't sound so smug, if I were you," Charlotte snapped back. "Storm Warning beat you plenty of times."

"Oh, I'm terrified." His voice was, unsurprisingly, thick with sarcasm. He straightened up and gestured at her. "You clearly have no idea how to use your powers."

"You don't know that!"

Citadel laughed and took a few steps back. He held out his arms. "Strike me down, then."

Charlotte glared at him. What was the secret? Maybe she needed to calm down, but that was hard to do with a supervillain staring her down. She tried bringing back that feeling of energy coursing through her body. Nothing.

"See? You're in over your head," Citadel said, arms lowering. "Now, all we have to do is figure out how to get the stormoid out of you."

"I'll never give it to you." Not that Charlotte even knew how. Could she make the stormoid leave her body if she wanted? Or would Citadel have to cut her open, like he did Storm Warning? The thought sent a chill down her spine. And a buzz of energy.

Bright light flashed overhead, and then a clap of thunder shook the alleyway. Charlotte yelped in surprise. Citadel looked up. Dark clouds were converging above them, far too low for clouds to form naturally.

A second strike of lightning broke through the clouds and hit Citadel. He flew backwards and collided with a wall before sinking to the ground. Charlotte laughed. "How's that for striking you down?"

Citadel pushed himself off the concrete and staggered to his feet. "Not bad." He lifted a hand. The stone spikes surrounding Charlotte grew taller and leaned in, giving her little space to move.

Panic closed in with the spikes. Charlotte did her best to fend it off with a few steadying breaths, then pressed her hands against two of the spikes and pushed. The next thing she knew, electricity was dancing around her, turning the world a blinding white. The air cracked.

The stone spikes exploded, and the light faded a moment later. Charlotte lowered her arms and swept her gaze over the rubble. Citadel took a step back as stray fragments of stone bounced across the ground around him. It was hard to be sure, with half his face hidden, but he looked surprised. Maybe even a little scared, but that could have been wishful thinking on Charlotte's part.

Still, she grinned at him. "You were saying?"

After a moment, Citadel shook his head and laughed. "Well, this should be fun. I do love a challenge." He rose to his full height. "This isn't over." A stone pillar burst from the ground to lift him into the air.

"Sure!" Charlotte called after him. "It's gonna end with you in prison!"

She had no idea if he heard her. He disappeared onto the roof of the building without another word, leaving behind the pillar. Another mess for city workers to clean up. Fists clenched, Charlotte stormed past the pillar to the other end of the alley.

Maybe Citadel wasn't scared of her, yet. But she was going to figure out her powers and make him fear her.