We last read Chapter 5, where Beth got together with her closest friend, Ethan Moore, who doesn’t know of her secret life as Sapphire Angel. They discuss what she’s learned about Xavier Wheldon and StarPrime, and how Wheldon owns a huge piece of land next to the very nuclear power plant his company his attempting to purchase. She also arrived for a meeting with her benefactor, Stanley Devor, to get to the bottom of the attempted kidnapping of Bud Tanner.
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.
Thanks for reading!
Beth stepped into Stanley's study as he rose from his desk chair. The shelves behind him contained a wide array of books, gadgets, and memorabilia, and revealed Stanley's fascination with conspiracy theories, lost civilizations, UFOs, and the like.
He motioned her to one of the guest chairs across the desk. As usual, Stanley struck Beth as a parody of a scatter-brained wizard from a children's storybook. His graying hair shot off in all directions, his wrinkled shirt was only half tucked, and food stains covered his chest and stomach. Wrinkles surrounded wise eyes.
"I absolutely hate having to keep things from Ethan," she sighed as she plopped into the seat.
"It's for the best, Beth."
"I've read John's comic books, so I know," she said with a hint of sarcasm. "But we've told each other everything ever since losing John. I mean, not that you didn't lose..."
Her face turned red at her own inconsiderate words. Stanley gave a thin smile.
"It's okay, Beth. I understand. You need a peer to commiserate with, not an old man like me."
"You're not old!" she protested. "But it is different with him. And I feel so... dirty when I lie to him about Sapphire Angel. Life would be so much easier if I didn't have to dance around it."
"What would happen if someone got even a hint he had an inside track to Sapphire Angel? You'd both be in danger."
"I suppose," she murmured.
"Let's get down to business before Ethan comes back. Mrs Devor will only be able to distract him for so long. I want to hear all about Sapphire Angel's last appearance, and you want to see what I've learned about the Pegasus Club and the shooting there."
"And Bud Tanner."
"Yes, Bud Tanner. First, though, are you spreading yourself too thin? You haven't completely eliminated the gang operating out of the midtown. And the drug cartel north of the city is still out there, too."
"Both organizations are barely functional, thanks to Sapphire Angel. I can finish this Pegasus Club thing before they can retool. So I'm sure."
Stanley nodded. "Then walk me through everything that happened with Bud Tanner, from the beginning."
Beth retold her encounter, leaving nothing out. She repeated Tanner's statements about people being "hell bent" on the sale of Echo Energy to StarPrime, and how those same people were responsible for a shooting at the Pegasus Club.
"You did well," he said. "Life as Sapphire Angel is getting easier for you."
"Except for the part about making good decisions," she grumbled. "I let everybody get away."
Stanley waved a hand. "You made the right choice going after Tanner. Those two guys probably wouldn't have talked anyway."
"I suppose," she said. "What can you tell me about Bud Tanner?"
"Not much. We worked together on a government job long ago. Smart guy. A recluse, but friendly enough. A bit of a privacy nut, to the point of paranoia. He was single back then, but from what I've found he has since married, and he even had a baby girl a few years back. But he's pretty much off the radar as far as the information databases I use."
"I didn't find much on him, either. How about the Pegasus Club?"
"I made some phone calls to some of my contacts," Stanley nodded. "As you learned, Xavier Wheldon, StarPrime's CEO, owns a large piece of property about an hour north of here, out in the middle of nowhere. Its adjacent to the outskirts of Echo's nuclear power plant. He built a majestic lodge on a lake, and people visit the place. He calls it the Pegasus Club."
"Like a nightclub?" Beth asked.
Stanley chuckled. "No, more like a place for a bunch of rich, politically connected men to get together and hunt, fish, and do whatever else wealthy men do when they get away."
"And the shooting happened there?" Beth asked.
"On Wheldon's land, but on the outskirts, a good distance away from the lodge. It was just a few days ago. Hikers found a local in the woods, dead from a gunshot wound. A guy named Joseph Snyder. A carpenter by trade. Just a normal guy who enjoys walking in the woods."
"Foul play?"
"It depends on your definition of foul play," Stanley said with a shrug. "The local police were quick to call it a hunting accident. I couldn't reach the investigating officer, so my info came from the local police chief. He's basing it on ballistics. He says the slug they recovered was a very common hunting rifle calibre. Hunters are common up there, even out of season. But they haven't found the shooter and have no suspects. According to their supposed investigation, it was a crime, but at this point it looks like they're not going with premeditated murder."
"That doesn't jibe with Tanner's words," Beth said, shaking her head. "He specifically mentioned 'the people' responsible for the shooting. Plural. And I got the distinct impression from him it related to the sale of Echo Energy. But it makes no sense. Echo was dying. Who would kill over it?"
"I don't know," Stanley said. "And for once I'm not sure where to look."
"I've already put in a public records request with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Pennsylvania Office of Corporate Oversight, so I can get up to speed about the sale. But I'm not holding my breath. They'll take forever, and I seriously doubt they will have a nice report identifying the killer."
"That all assumes Bud Tanner is right," Stanley said. "I probably can't help you with the NRC, but I have some well-placed contacts in the state government. Perhaps I can grease the skids for you, so you get a response from the OCO. I might even get someone to talk to you."
"Under what pretense?"
"A story. That's why you went to see Tanner in the first place, right?"
"It was, although that seems less important now than sorting this out."
"I'll see what I can do. My contacts usually can help."
"You always have contacts."
Stanley smiled. "When you get old, you know lots of people."
It was more than just Stanley's age. He had developed an extensive network of contacts and resources across the Commonwealth and beyond.
"If you could try, that would be great," she said. "And I've asked my editor, too. She's pretty connected herself. I also want to go check out the shooting scene tomorrow. I'm sure any evidence is gone, but I want to visualize the place."
"Not tomorrow," Stanley said. "It will be a washout. Hard rain in the morning, and probably still too damp in the afternoon. You'll need to wait another day. I'll see what I can do with the OCO, though. But are you sure you want to pursue this? There might be nothing to it. It's not your job to get to the bottom of every dirty deal out there."
At that moment, Mrs. Devor's voice came through the door.
"Dinner!" she called.
"I need to do this, Stanley. I can't get the look of Bud Tanner's face out of my head. I have to help."
"Of course you do. You wouldn't be you otherwise. Let's take it one step at a time. I'll work on getting your foot in the door with the Pennsylvania OCA. Now let's go eat dinner."
Stanley rose, but Beth remained seated, staring at the wall.
"What is it, Beth?"
"I just have a feeling about this," she said, biting her lip. "That here I am, somehow in the middle of something important again."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, Stanley, that this smells like something bigger. First there was the whole Fizzure thing last year, and now this. Even when I'm not hunting down trouble, I seem to attract coincidences."
"Maybe they're not coincidences. You've been destined for great things since the day you were born."
Beth cocked her head and gave Stanley a questioning look.
"What I mean," he explained, "is I've never met someone with your innate knack for connecting the dots of supposed coincidences. And I've never met someone with your tenacity. Put that intuition and determination together in the same person and they become unstoppable."
She stared at him, and a thought came to her, unbidden. Not a new thought. Did he know more about her powers and origins as Sapphire Angel than she did? She had asked him before, and he had pled ignorance. She had no real reason to suspect more, but couldn't shake the feeling. As she considered his comment, there was a knock at the door.
"Dinner is getting cold," she heard Mrs. Devor say from outside the office.
"We're coming," Stanley said, waving for Beth to go.
As she rose and headed toward the kitchen, Beth couldn't get Stanley's words out of her head.
You've been destined for great things since the day you were born.
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Destined for great things since the day you were born....? If that faiIs to describe Sapphire AngeI, I truIy do not know what wiII. She has been an amazing protagonist thus far!