Read Online The OK Team by Nick Place - Free Book Online Page B

you,’ I say, and wince at how high-pitched and squeaky my voice sounds.
    The thug stares at me. And then throws his head back and laughs and laughs. I die a little inside.
    â€˜You won’t hurt me ?’ he says, stepping towards me. ‘ You won’t hurt me ! Well, that’s good to know. Unfortunately, I can’t make the same promise.’
    He takes another ominous step forward and produces a steel bar from behind his back.
    â€˜In fact, I think there’s a very good chance I will hurt you,’ he says.
    â€˜I’m an Entry Level Hero, Grade Two,’ I squeak miserably, taking a step backwards. ‘You’re not allowed to use weapons.’
    The man giggles his high-pitched giggle again in the worst way. ‘Yeah, that’s what they say. But they’re not here, are they?’
    I gasp and take another step backwards, and that’s what saves me. My heel catches on something sharp, I stumble backwards and suddenly find myself on the other side of the wall, back inside the power station, a life-saving metre of brick between me and the crazy guy.
    What really confuses me is the sound from the other side of the wall. It’s like an urgent whistling with a kind of buzz behind it. It sounds far away but then very close, all in a rush. It finishes with a huge crash, the sound of rubbish bins bouncing in all directions, and then silence.
    I sit there, frozen, panting with fear. I listen hard and finally I hear a voice on the other side of the wall say, ‘Oops.’
    I’m so shaken by the attack that falling back through the wall one more time is a no-brainer. With my shattered nerves, I wonder if I will ever be vaguely solid again.
    A small figure in a baggy black bodysuit, red boots and a big black helmet is standing in the middle of the dark alley. Scattered bins are lying everywhere, and there, in the middle of them, the crazy guy is unconscious, the steel bar lying harmlessly beside his right hand.
    â€˜Cannonball! You saved me!’
    â€˜I did? I mean, yeah, I did!’
    â€˜How did you do that?’
    Cannonball blinks at the still KO’ed man, and looks at me sideways. ‘Um, well, . . . I saw you were in trouble and . . . Actually, I’m lying. I had no idea. The truth is, you know how I said I can fly? Well, it’s true. I can. It’s just that I have no control over it. I aim to fly somewhere but my body just takes off in any direction. I only fly a few metres off the ground and it usually ends when I crash into something. Crash hard. Like just now.’
    â€˜You weren’t trying to fight this guy?’
    Cannonball shuffles his feet. ‘I was trying to fly home, which is that way.’ He points off to the north. ‘I had no idea you were even here. You’re not exactly easy to see, no offence.’
    We both stare at one another and then I feel a strange surge coming from my stomach. My entire body begins to shudder and I put my hands to my face. And then it erupts – a laugh. A wild, almost hysterical laugh of relief and disbelief. Cannonball’s face splits into a giant smile and then he is laughing too. We laugh so hard I think I might die.
    My ribs are hurting from the laughter.
    â€˜You saved me and you didn’t even mean to!’
    â€˜My first genuine superhero rescue! And it was completely accidental!’
    â€˜He had a steel bar. I thought I was dead!’
    â€˜I fly about as well as a tractor!’
    We finally stop laughing, gasping for breath. Cannonball has the hiccoughs. The crazy guy moves his left foot slightly and murmurs.
    â€˜Quick,’ I say. ‘We have to get out of here before he wakes up. Fly while you can.’
    â€˜Actually, I think I’ve done enough flying for one night,’ Cannonball admits. ‘I’m going to get a taxi. I don’t want to catch a tram dressed like this. Where do you live?’
    â€˜Northcote,’ I say.
    â€˜Me too. Want a