Read Online My Brother is a Superhero by David Solomons - Free Book Online Page B

about the story on Star Lad she planned to write that afternoon, while I contemplated picking her pocket, but rejected that on the basis that I’m not a nimble-fingered Victorian street urchin. Serge left us at the next stop. Only two more to go before ours. I needed a miracle.
    Actually, what I needed was an alien invasion.
    I’d often thought that if I were an evil alien overlord I’d commence my invasion of Earth with a massive electromagnetic pulse that would neutralise every electrical device on the planet. The people of Earth wouldbe at my mercy, planetary defences down, power grid on the fritz, the whole world unable even to make a slice of toast. Not that making toast would be the first thing on the minds of the panicking humans as my mighty galactic mothership disgorged atmospheric strike fighters to rain evil alien destruction across the planet, blasting strategic targets. Like my school. And the dentist.
    An electromagnetic pulse would wipe the data from the drive in Lara’s pocket in a nanosecond. I squinted through the window at the sky, scanning the cloud formations in hope.
    â€œWhat’s up?” asked Lara.
    I pointed to a hulking black cloud. “Does that look like an alien mothership to you?”
    Lara fixed me with a look. “Y’know, you’re even weirder than I thought,” she said. But not unkindly.
    Before I knew it we were at our stop. We walked the last half-mile to Moore Street and paused outside her house. I had failed in my mission and tomorrow Zack would be splashed all over the front page of the The Globe.
    â€œWell, bye then,” I said, sloping off along the pavement, already figuring out how to break the awful news to Zack. Being revealed as Star Lad couldn’t be good for his upcoming battle against Nemesis. If Zippy the Doorbell was telling the truth, the whole world – two whole worlds – were circling the galactic toilet bowl because of a cub reporter trying to land the story of the school year.
    â€œWhere are you going?” Lara called after me, holding up the drive. “Don’t you want to see what’s on this?”
    A few minutes later we were in her big sister Cara’s bedroom. Cara was not.
    We threaded our way past puddles of balled-up clothes and discarded shoes to a desk at the window that overlooked a small back garden ringed by a wooden fence. Over it I glimpsed our tree house, two gardens along. Zack was probably alone in there right now. Either that, or he was out rescuing people and stopping criminals.
    â€œCara’s out for the afternoon,” Lara explained. “With Matthias.”
    â€œOh, OK,” I said, not really that interested.
    She huffed, bothered at my lack of curiosity. “Matthias is her boyfriend. He’s from Sweden. Cara says he’s soulful. And Mum and Dad don’t know about him.”
    So, Cara had a secret boyfriend. I glanced again at the tree house. Zack would be gutted. But he had enough on his plate saving the world without having to hear that his dream girl was dating a sensitive Viking. In that moment I decided to keep it from him.Another secret for me to shoulder.
    Lara opened the desk lid and pulled out a shiny silver laptop.
    â€œThis is Cara’s,” she explained, with a note of irritation. “Mum and Dad gave it to her last Christmas. And do you know what they gave me?”
    â€œShoes?” I guessed.
    â€œWorse.” She flipped open the laptop and mashed the power button. “Ballet lessons,” she spat. “I mean, do I look like a ballerina?”
    â€œMaybe you will after the lessons?” I suggested.
    With a glower she sat down at the computer. As we waited for it to boot up I glanced round Cara’s bedroom. I’d never been in a girl’s bedroom before. Her bed didn’t have flowers or ponies on the duvet cover and looked just like a normal bed. On the walls were a smattering of posters – two of a