WHEN THEY ALL LAUNCHED I BECAME THEIR GOD

Chapter 4

His voice came out steady, cold.

Everyone who'd looked down on him, everyone who'd called him worthless because he hadn't awakened an ability, everyone who'd treated him like trash - they were going to learn what a mistake that was.

But first, Emma.

Damian walked out of the warehouse into the late afternoon sun. His daughter was home alone. She was only four years old, too young to understand why her mother never spent time with her, too young to know that Megan had just tried to have her father killed.

He pulled out his phone - cracked screen, held together with tape - and called a cab.

Twenty minutes later, he walked through the door of the small apartment he'd been renting on the east side. The place was barely eight hundred square feet, one bedroom that Emma and her mother slept in while he took the couch. The paint was peeling, the carpet was stained, and the heater only worked half the time.

But it was home.

“Daddy!”

Emma came running from her room, her stuffed rabbit dragging on the floor behind her. She crashed into his legs, hugging him tight.

Damian dropped to one knee and pulled her close. His chest ached, but not from injuries anymore. From the realization that he'd almost left her alone in this world.

“Hey, baby girl.”

“You're late." Emma pulled back, her small face scrunched in a pout. “You said you'd be home for dinner.”

“I know. I'm sorry.” He brushed her hair back from her forehead. “Something came up.”

She studied his face with the kind of intensity only small children managed. “You look different.”

“Different how?”

“I don't know. Just different.” She tilted her head. “Did you get new glasses?”

Damian smiled despite everything. “No, sweetie. Same old me.”

Emma seemed satisfied with that. She grabbed his hand. “I'm hungry. Can we have mac and cheese?”

“Sure.”

As Damian stood, Emma looked around. “Where's Mommy?”

The question hit harder than Maxwell's guards had. Damian kept his voice gentle. “Mommy had to go away for a while.”

“Oh.” Emma didn't seem surprised. She'd learned early that her mother was never around. “Okay.”

She skipped toward the kitchen, already moving on to more important things like whether they had the dinosaur-shaped pasta or the regular kind.

Damian followed, his heart heavy. Megan hadn't just abandoned him. She'd abandoned their daughter without a second thought. Called Emma a mistake, said she didn't care if the girl starved.

His hands curled into fists, she was going to regret that.

But before Damian could start making dinner, he heard voices outside the apartment door. Loud, aggressive voices.

Then someone pounded on the door hard enough to rattle the frame.

“Open up! I know you're in there!”

Damian recognized that voice. Derek Cross. Megan's younger brother.

Emma looked up, her eyes wide. “Who's that?”

“Stay in your room, Emma.”

“But—”

“Now, baby. Please.”

Something in his tone made her obey. She grabbed her rabbit and ran to her bedroom, closing the door behind her.

Immediately Damian walked to the front door and opened it.

Derek stood in the hallway with two other men Damian didn't recognize. Derek was mid-twenties, dressed in designer clothes that probably cost more than Damian's monthly rent. His hair was gelled back, his watch gleamed gold, and his expression was pure contempt.

“What are you doing here?” Derek's lip curled. “My sister already divorced you. You've got no right to this place anymore.”

Damian leaned against the doorframe. “This is my apartment. I've been paying rent on it for three years.”

“Wrong.” Derek pulled out his phone, showing Damian a legal document. “The lease is in Megan's name. She signed it over to me this morning. You're trespassing.”

Damian's eyes narrowed. “She can't do that. I paid for—”

“You paid for jack shit.” Derek stepped closer, invading Damian's space. “Everything you had came from the Cross family's generosity. My parents felt sorry for you, so they let Megan marry down. Now that she's awakened and moving up in the world, we're cutting dead weight.” He gestured at the apartment. “This place is going on the market tomorrow. I've already got buyers lined up.”

“There's a child living here.”

“That kid isn't my problem. She isn't Megan's problem either.” Derek's smile was nasty. “Social services can deal with her. Or maybe she'll end up in foster care like you did. Full circle, right?”

At that moment the two men with Derek laughed.

Damian felt something cold settle in his chest. Not anger - anger was hot and loud. This was different. This was the kind of cold that made decisions without emotion.

“You're selling the apartment,” Damian said slowly. “What about the house? The one on Maple Street?”

Derek's smirk widened. “That dump? Already listed. Should sell by the end of the week.”

“I paid for sixty percent of this house.”

“Prove it.” Derek crossed his arms. “You paid cash, didn't you? No paper trail, no receipts. My sister's name is on the deed. Legally, it's all hers. Which means it's all mine now.”

Damian had worked himself to exhaustion for that house. Eighty-hour weeks doing construction, roofing, whatever paid. He'd saved every dollar, paid in cash because the banks wouldn't give him a loan without credit history.

And now Derek was taking it all.

“You've got twenty-four hours to clear out,” Derek said. “After that, I'm changing the locks and dumping whatever's left on the curb.” He turned to leave, then paused. “Oh, and Damian? Don't bother trying to fight this. You're nobody. You've got no power, no money, no family. The Cross family can bury you in legal fees before you even step foot in a courtroom.”