George R.R. Martin - [Wild Cards 18] by Inside Straight Read Free Book Online Page A

of the spray caught him.
    “Stop standing there and help!” Curveball shot back.
    Grabbing hold of the nozzle and pinning it down while Curveball attempted to wrestle with the hose, Drummer Boy muttered, “This is great. This is just great.”
    The baby’s crying seemed to get louder.
    They managed to maneuver the fire hose in place to spray water at the blazing windows, but by this time the flames were monstrous, engulfing the building. Shouting continued to emanate from within—more people needing rescue. They didn’t have much time, and the minutes dragged painfully.
    Then Curveball said, “Oh my God.” She cupped her hands to her face and shouted, “Hardhat! He’s gonna jump! The guy’s jumping!”
    From one of the third-story windows, a man was climbing over the sill. Hardhat came running. “Where?”
    “To the right!”
    Drummer Boy dropped the hose and made a dash for the window, as if he could actually catch a falling body, but it was too late. Hardhat only laid one of his I beams down before the victim landed.
    “Motherfucker!” Hardhat shouted. Drummer Boy gave an angry shake of an arm.
    They had no way of getting inside. They couldn’t pull anyone out.
    “Would somebody
do
something?” Curveball yelled. She kept saying that.
    Hardhat, sweat and soot smearing his face, turned on her. “What the fuck you want me to do? Blow pixie dust out my ass? I’ve
been
doing something!”
    Gardener tried to step in. “Arguing isn’t going to help anything.”
    “At least we’re good at
that,”
Hive said, and he actually smiled.
    Then they all started shouting at each other.
    Some team
, Ana thought.
    “Maybe I can make it look like we’re doing a good job,” Wild Fox said, flicking his fox tail. Suddenly, another Wild Fox—a young Asian guy with floppy black hair and a quirky grin, fur-covered fox ears, and a luxurious fox tail poking out the back of his jeans, swishing like a banner behind him—ran from the building, carrying the latest teen pop star in his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and planted dozens of kisses on him.
    Ana looked at him. “I thought your illusions don’t show up on camera. That isn’t going to help us.”
    He frowned. “Crap.” The vision before them popped out of existence.
    Then, an air horn blared. The flow of water from the fire hose slowed and stopped, cut off from another source. Floodlights snapped on, drowning the area in blazing white light. The seven Hearts squinted against the glare.
    Inside the building, the fires died as the feeds from gas nozzles shut off. Four people walked from the building—perfectly safe, uninjured. They were stuntmen, wearing protective suits and helmets. A fifth climbed off the stunt mat set up at the side of the building. Hollywood magic at its finest. They removed their masks and smirked at the seven aces as they passed. The three who’d actually been rescued weren’t any less accusing.
    From a side doorway leading into the Hollywood backlot, a woman emerged. She wore designer jeans and a fitted, cream-colored blouse. With her statuesque frame and long brunette hair, she was already stunning, but one feature stood out above all the others: her wings, mottled white and beige, spectacular even folded back.
    Peregrine crossed her arms and regarded the seven would-be heroes, who avoided her gaze. “That was a little underwhelming. But I think I’ll save any more criticism for the judges. Go home and wait for your next call.”
    A half-dozen cameras captured the failure from every angle.
    Team Hearts had their own Humvee for use during the show, tricked out and painted with their logo. The marketing gurus had thought of everything.
    Hardhat drove, and for a long time no one said a word.
    Finally, Hive broke the silence. “Well. That could have gone better.”
    Crammed into his seat in back, Drummer Boy snorted a laugh.
    After that, the seven passengers glared silently out their own windows. The camera planted in the