We last read Chapter 19, in which Sapphire Angel avoids guards and continues to. trail Chief Biggins and Xavier Wheldon, the CEO of StarPrime. The men, along with Wheldon’s bodyguard, head deeper into the forest and arrive at a tall, rectangular building. Sapphire Angel waits in hiding, entering the building after the men leave. While she explores the building, the men discover her vehicle hidden along the road. The bodyguard, Jake Rockford, sends the other two men away and turns back to hunt Sapphire Angel. Inside the building, she discovers a pile of cinderblocks on the first floor, and another stack of cinderblocks on the roof. As she descends the spiral staircase from the roof, Rockford surprises her, tripping her and sending her tumbling down the stairs.
This is the second story, so if you want to start from the very beginning, you can jump over to book 1, and begin with the Prologue of Sapphire Angel, Superheroine. Or to start at the beginning of book 2 (this story), click over to the Prologue of Power Play.
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Sapphire Angel bounced off the remaining steps until she hit the bottom, her back and head whipping into the concrete floor. Hard. A groan escaped her lips as the room spun around her. Disoriented, and with her tousled blond hair covering her eyes, she almost didn't see a boot flying toward her face. She twisted to her side, avoiding the worst of the kick, but still absorbing a glancing blow to the side of her head.
The dazed heroine stumbled to her feet, quicker than was humanly possible, but just in time to receive a kick to her chest. The kick smashed her back into the wall and left her wheezing, fighting for her breath. As she felt for the wall behind her, trying to steady herself, she made out the blurry image of a man coming at her. He swept one arm between her legs and the other under her shoulder, like a parent might lift a misbehaving child off the ground. He held her sideways in the air and thrust her into the wall, crushing into her with his body. She dangled in his grasp, feeling the pulse of his muscles through the thin fabric of her costume, before he flung her back down onto the concrete.
She landed hard on her back, wincing, but didn't have time to consider the pain as another kick smashed into her ribs, spinning her onto her stomach. The battered heroine lay face down, wheezing for air and pawing her gloved hands on the ground. Disbelief raced through her mind as she tried to comprehend that this man was punishing her. He had caught her by surprise and wasn't giving her a chance to regroup. She gritted her teeth. She wouldn't let him beat her.
"You're not so tough," he said, sending another kick into her ribs. She grunted, but seized the foot before he could pull it back. With pain throbbing in her back, head, and ribs, and with her breath nearly gone, she tugged and twisted. Her attacker went down, slamming into the floor. The heroine got her first good look at him. Wheldon's bodyguard. He appeared bigger up close, sprawled on the floor. She popped to her feet, ignoring her pain and her unsteady vision. The bodyguard was scampering to his feet, too, but somehow she was quicker.
When he was halfway up, she lashed up with a kick, connecting with the underside of his jaw. Her attack lifted him off of his feet, sending him onto his back again. He coughed and fought for breath, but she wasn't about to let him find it. She darted to his side, bent down, and sent two right jabs to the center of his face.
Even though she had used only a portion of her strength, the jabs connected with the force of a championship prizefighter. As she stood, the man's expression slackened and his breathing became labored. His arms and legs twitched, as if he might try to lift himself from the ground. Sapphire Angel pushed him back down with the toe of her boot. He lay under her groaning, and gave no resistance as she reached into her boot, pulled out two zip ties, and bound his ankles and wrists.
Kneeling next to him, she grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him toward her.
"What is this place?" she asked.
His glassy eyes came into focus.
"Fuck you!" he said, his speech slightly slurred.
Sapphire Angel put a gloved finger to his lips.
"Shhh..." she said. "I know you're upset at losing to little old me, but that's no way to talk to a lady."
"I'm not telling you shit. And any minute now, an army of men will descend on this place."
Beth stared at the man, assessing him. His eyes, even in their dazed state, told her everything. He wouldn't be talking. Unlike many other criminals she questioned, who often spilled information as if under a spell, his face was set in determination.
"When that army gets here, they'll find you all tied up," Sapphire Angel said, a playful grin forming on her mouth. "Make sure you tell them who beat you."
Rockford snarled a string of obscenities behind her as the stunning superheroine headed out the door, and he was still yelling when she reached the exit of the building. Once outside, she gazed off into the woods. With the possible arrival of reinforcements, her visit to the shooting site would have to wait for another night. But she did have one other stop to make.
Conner Bennett raised his head from the pillow, certain he had heard something over the television droning across the room. He had fallen asleep on the sofa again. An old movie he didn't recognize was playing, and cars raced across the screen.
He let his eyes adjust to the darkness in his living room, and then he saw her. Standing just a few feet away, almost like an apparition, was a slender woman. Even in the darkness she shimmered. His eyes started at her supermodel legs, went past her short skirt and flat stomach, and worked their way up from there, taking in her lithe and feminine physique. Shadows played across her features in the dark room, but she was alluringly beautiful.
Sapphire Angel. The famous superheroine was unmistakable, but what was she doing here? Or was he still asleep and dreaming the whole thing? He rubbed his eyes, and when he refocused, she was still there. She stood closer, right next to the sofa. He looked up at her, his heart pounding. He was looking upon the face of an angel.
"Sapphire Angel?" he asked, soaking up her subtle curves with his eyes as his still sluggish mind fought to keep up with his vision. He tried to push himself up on his elbows.
Sapphire Angel used a gloved hand to push him back down. He gasped at the touch.
She nodded as she kneeled next to him. "Just listen," she said in a steady, confident whisper. She looked down at him, an almost playful smile on her mouth. Her hair hung down toward him, a few soft tendrils brushing against his face. "I have something for you." She was so close now he could hear her breath between her words. This was unreal.
He raised an eyebrow as she turned and tossed a manilla folder onto the foot of his sofa, by his feet.
"I'm looking into StarPrime, too," she explained, still speaking in a whisper as she turned back to him. "You can do things officially, that I can't."
Conner looked at her, confused. "What do you want me to do?"
The beautiful superheroine made a "shhh..." sound and put one gloved finger to her lips, and one to his. Her touch felt like a jolt of electricity running through him. She nodded toward the folder. "That should help your investigation. It contains information on McGraw, the suspended officer."
Conner looked down at the folder. When he looked back up at Sapphire Angel, she had risen. He already ached for her to be close to him again. Instead, she turned and walked toward his patio door. He admired her figure from behind, noticing her amazing legs, and the way her skirt teased him, simultaneously highlighting and hiding her fantastic body. He gawked at how her costume hugged her curves, and how the v-shaped opening on her back revealed her flawless skin.
"Wait!" he called after her. "We should work together! Let me know how to get in touch with you."
Sapphire Angel gave him another playful smile over her shoulder. "I'll get in touch with you if I need you."
And with that she was gone, slipping out the door, and sliding it closed. Conner looked at the spot where she had just been standing, hardly able to believe it. He stumbled to his feet, ran to the door, and flung it open.
He lumbered onto the porch, his eyes peering into the darkness. There was no sign of her. His heart pounded furiously as incomprehension flooded his mind. He had been visited by the mysterious and beautiful Sapphire Angel, but now she was gone.
Xavier Wheldon sat in his office, fuming. Harper and Sapphire Angel were both sticking their noses into his business. He understood Harper poking around, but what had attracted the superheroine's attention?
Rockford had returned two hours after they had separated, looking like he had been through a heavyweight fight. His face was swollen, and he had a black eye. He had been rubbing his jaw, and opening and closing his mouth as if trying to pop something back into place.
Wheldon would not have believed his indestructible bodyguard if the man hadn't been so embarrassed. Wheldon had heard tales of the woman's exploits, but had figured them to be exaggerated. He wouldn't doubt Sapphire Angel any longer.
Rockford gave Wheldon a rundown of what had happened, from taking the superheroine by surprise, to pummeling her, to having her shrug off his attacks and turn the tables on him. The disbelief in the bodyguard's voice was clear, as was his anger at losing to Sapphire Angel.
Wheldon shook his head and swore. One woman had defeated his best man and now knew about the building in the woods. Wheldon doubted she could piece together his plan just from what she had seen, but she was still a concern. He thought again of turning Raven Tristan on the superheroine, but again rejected the idea. Not yet. Harper was the more immediate threat, in a position to influence the sale, and he needed to deal with her first. If Sapphire Angel got closer to piecing things together, that might change, but for now the focus was on Harper. He would have Rockford do his homework, though, so the bodyguard would be better prepared if he ever tangled with the costumed woman again.
Wheldon glanced at the trophies in the surrounding cases. He imagined a souvenir from Sapphire Angel hanging in one of the cases. Perhaps her entire costume. That would be the ultimate trophy, surpassing his greatest acquisitions. But he could not allow such dreams of conquest to distract him from his purpose. Yet.
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Okay, I would do ANYTHING to be Conner in that one scene with Sapphire Angel, like....not even joking. Also, it’s kind of weird how she reacts differently to him depending on the persona. Beth, although initially cold, distant, and aloof, still looked out for him, but saw him as nothing more than an investigation partner than anything else. Sapphire Angel, on the other hand, seemed a lot more....I don’t know.....I guess “alluring” could be the word for it. She actively got close to him, made physical contact, gave that “smile”......then again, I guess she’d have to act at least a little bit different so Conner wouldn’t have the slightest clue who she was, but still.
On to the next chapter!