The Indestructibles (Book 2): Breakout Read Online Free

alone.
         

 
     
     
    Chapter 3:
    The Battle of Public Opinion
         
     
          Jane landed outside Ishmael's Donuts in full costume and walked in, feeling, as she always did, more self-conscious among regular people than she did flying into combat. The Tower, or rather the flying, alien space ship which used to be the top floors of the Tower, was visible drifting above the City when she touched down.
          They really needed to figure out what to do about their base, Jane thought. For now it was safe enough, unreachable from the ground as it meandered like an escaped parade float over the City. Neal, the sentient computer program who acted as the Tower's central nervous system, could easily keep the ship moving to stay effortlessly out of the way of commercial aircraft but Jane was beginning to worry. At what point would the residents of the City stop seeing the Tower as a gentle protector and view it more as big brother looking over their shoulders?
          Jane got in line in the coffee shop like anyone else would, feeling ridiculous in her form fitting top, impractical skirt, and cape. Her hair, which became more and more like open flame with each year, made matters even worse, so much so that she'd taken to building up an extensive hat collection for when she was off duty. More than any of the others she dressed like a classic comic book hero, but where Kate looked dangerous up close, Billy mysterious, and Emily almost harmless, Jane felt like an escaped cheerleader when she wasn't on a mission. People stared. She received a mixture of shy glances, jealous sneers, intimidated shrugs, and more. Sitting at a table in the shop, though, a six year-old girl waved to her excitedly and held up a crayon drawing of Jane, as Solar, flying through the sky; a bright yellow sun complete with smiley face rose behind her.
          Well if I have one person who thinks I look like that, who cares what everyone else says, she thought.
          The boy behind the counter was one of the veteran staff members and remained completely unfazed as she ordered an iced coffee. Billy, being some sort of marketing genius and white-collar criminal, had brokered a deal with the coffee chain when they realized none of the Indestructibles had figured out a way to carry cash when they were out in costume. The chain had offered them free coffee whenever they wanted it as long as they showed up in uniform and allowed the staff to post photos on social media depicting the visit. Billy had actually dangled the idea of a corporate sponsorship, which the coffee chain ownership had been willing to agree to, but Jane nixed the idea. Trading coffee for some good publicity was one thing, but cashing in on their name for sponsorship money was a dangerous precedent, she thought.
          Still, they did let Emily "invent" her own coffee, which had become a sensation. The Entropy Emi-latte was a mocha latte with four shots of espresso, whipped cream, and a caramel drizzle that even Jane had to admit was appropriately named. One of those and gravity stopped working appropriately around the person drinking it. The Indestructibles took a vote and allowed Emily to pose for promotional photos for the Emi-latte as long as a huge donation went to charity in lieu of payment. Her ridiculous grin adorned the wall even now, staring back at Jane five times the size of real life.
          "Like Emily's head needs to get any bigger," she said.
          "Better not get into the habit of talking to yourself out loud in public," a familiar voice said. "The tabloids will say you're cracking up."
          The voice belonged to Jon Broadstreet, a local journalist who had somehow become the Indestructibles beat reporter. He seemed too young for the job, with a baby face that he tried to offset by always wearing a shirt and tie, but Billy suspected Jon had scored the gig specifically because he was so young, and both Billy and Emily urged