Absolute Power (Book 1): Origins Read Online Free PDF Page A

can't control yourself, and you're not to be trusted.  No one listens to a mad man screaming in the street.”
    “And sometimes no one listens unless you scream,” Phillip said.  “And what are you going to do, bide your time till Rodgers quits and then take his place?”  The two men had unconsciously crossed the room to shout in each other's face.  Phillip checked himself, looked around and took a step back.  “I don't even know what I'm arguing about.  Up until thirty minutes ago I was towing the company line, ready to protect and serve.  Then I saw my friend Petr die...”
    “Then use the story to explain why these amendments are wrong,” Porter said.  “If you run off and hide, no one will know.”
    “A line has been crossed, John,” Phillip said.  “By everyone.”
    “It’s not too late to change things,” Porter tried, but the words only spurred Phillip on.
    “Exactly.”
    Porter rubbed his face and scratched his hair.  It was a sign that he was giving in; all Phillip had to do was give him room to think.
    “What about your friend?” Porter asked.  Phillip didn't catch his meaning, so he clarified, “The one with that Board.”
    “I was going to use him stateside,” Phillip explained.  “But as of now I have no way to get there.”
    Porter laughed and shook his head as he guessed the plan.  “You really want to hide in my luggage, all the way to New York?” He asked Elena.
     
One Week Later, New York
     
    An abnormal fog was pushing in from the ocean.  It made it difficult for Porter to find the warehouse in the dark.  As he drove the small sedan down the docks, he swore.  Sometimes it would be nice if coincidences stayed coincidences.  The odds that a fog would come in at the same time this meeting was scheduled were slim.  What it said to Porter was that there were a lot of Super-Humans out there running under the radar.  He was a little embarrassed that the idea hadn't occurred to him before.  Now that the Free Flight laws made it illegal to be an unregistered Super-Human, this underground organization would gather more recruits.
    Porter pulled up to a building marked nine and got out of his car.  He found the door unlocked and slipped inside.  For anyone else, showing up to a secret location without backup was stupid.  At least Porter knew he wouldn't die, but there were worst things.  He hoped that the people Phillip trusted were actually trustworthy.
    Near the front of the warehouse, Porter found a crowbar and took it with him.  His belongings, along with Phillip and Misses Florian were being stored here.  Phillip spent the better part of twenty-four hours remodeling the container; air vents, sound baffling, and a way to discard waste.  Porter didn't envy the two of them with a baby, having to spend a week in a six by six box.  It was smaller than the cell they'd be put in if they got caught.
    He walked along rows and rows of wood crates.  His boots echoed off the concrete ground.  The container he was looking for was on his right and at the bottom of a large stack.  Luckily they weren't literally boxed in.  Porter knocked seven times on the wood boards.  Five knocks came back from the inside and Porter returned the code with three more.  He jammed the crowbar in between the boards of the crate and pulled.  The wood splintered, then came free.  One corner of the box opened and Porter went around doing the other.  After that, gravity and Phillip finished the rest.
    Phillip looked terrible. His beard was coming in thick, and his skin was pale.  The interior of the box reeked almost as badly as Phillip.  Elena stayed where she was in the crate, holding the baby.
    “Have a pleasant trip?”  Porter smiled.
    “I could see how you might think you’re funny,” Phillip said, “But you're not.  Is my guy here?”
    “Somewhere,” Porter answered.  “Probably waiting to make sure it’s not a trap.  Want to go take a look around?”  He asked Phillip,