Chương 65

Adam was still standing in the same place when The Boys came running up behind him. The place was already in chaos because of him, and many guards were still inside the facility. Frenchie stopped beside Adam. His hand settled on Adam's shoulder.

"We need to get out of here as quickly as possible. Vought cannot find out that we broke into this place."

'Isn't it a little late for that?' Adam thought. Even so, Adam listened to Frenchie and began leaving the area with the others.

"We have to take something from here," M. M. said.

"We need evidence." They moved from room to room while M. M. searched for anything they could carry out as proof. They searched the facility until they entered a room and found Lamplighter inside. Lamplighter first looked at Frenchie. Memories from their past returned. He remembered the mission that had connected him to The Boys and the night that had destroyed Grace Mallory's family. Then his gaze moved to Adam beside Frenchie. Lamplighter had seen what Adam had done while he was escaping through the facility.

The power of that attack was still in his mind, and seeing Adam this close frightened him. Frenchie's anger rose the moment he saw Lamplighter. Before he could act on it, M. M. stepped forward. Lamplighter looked from Frenchie to M. M.

"Been a long time." M. M. was affected too, but Frenchie struggled more to control his emotions after seeing Lamplighter again. The memory of Grace Mallory's grandchildren returned with Lamplighter's face. He had gone after Grace during that old mission, but her grandchildren had died in the fire meant for her. Lamplighter took a deep breath.

"I didn't know the children were there. I thought Grace Mallory was in that bed. I set it on fire, and by the time I realized they were her grandchildren, it was too late." Frenchie stared at him.

"You killed them. Maybe you did not mean to, but you still killed them." Lamplighter did not want to accept the blame.

"It wasn't my fault. I thought you would come and stop me, but you never did." Frenchie's anger disappeared beneath the shock. It was not Lamplighter's accusation that stunned him. It was the realization that the accusation was true. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Grace had ordered Frenchie to follow Lamplighter and keep watch on him that night. Frenchie had stayed behind him until he received the news about Jay. Jay had taken a drug overdose and needed him.

Frenchie had abandoned the mission in the middle and gone to save his friend. He had chosen Jay instead of continuing after Lamplighter. While Frenchie was trying to save Jay, Lamplighter reached Grace's home. Frenchie was not there to stop him when he set the bed on fire and killed the children. Frenchie finally understood the part his choice had played. Until this moment, he had carried only his hatred for Lamplighter. Now Frenchie faced the reason no one had stopped Lamplighter from reaching the house.

The thought that Grace's grandchildren had died because Frenchie had left the mission struck him hard. Adam laughed.

"So, what do we do now?" M. M. looked at Lamplighter.

"We need evidence, and you're coming with us." At first, Lamplighter saw no reason to obey them. He had powerful fire, while Frenchie and M. M. were only standing in front of him. He believed he could defeat both of them instead of letting them take him away. Then he looked at Adam and remembered the laser he had seen outside. Fighting the other two was one thing. Attacking them while Adam stood beside them was different. Lamplighter let out a breath.

"Fine. Come with me." Outside Sage Grove, Hughie and Butcher waited near the van. Annie was with them. An escaped test subject approached the three of them. Butcher tried to calm him, but a shock wave burst from the man's chest. The blast threw Butcher and Annie back. It also struck the van, flipping it over and leaving Hughie badly hurt inside the wreckage. The subject disappeared after releasing the blast.

With their van destroyed, Butcher and Annie pulled Hughie away from it and started looking for another way to get him out. A car stopped when Annie signaled, and she asked the driver for help. The driver pulled a gun. Her power threw him back, and the impact killed him. Because Hughie remained hurt, they drove away in it. Back inside Sage Grove, Stormfront flew straight into the facility without knowing what was happening inside.

She only knew that the system had sent an emergency message saying something was wrong. The moment she entered, she saw guards running in different directions while others lay dead on the floor. One of the escaped test subjects ran across the corridor in front of her. Stormfront's hand rose as she summoned lightning. She struck him down before moving farther inside. She was already angry when she arrived.

Homelander had come to her with a bouquet, but the emergency message from Sage Grove had forced her to leave him behind with it. She had come directly to the facility because of that warning. What she found inside made her anger rise further. Adult Eleven came running down the corridor and found Stormfront blocking her path. Adult Eleven made a fist. Before she could raise it, Stormfront attacked first. Lightning struck Adult Eleven again and again.

High voltage covered her while she struggled to stay conscious and tried to bring her arm forward. Every new strike stopped the attack before her ability could reach Stormfront. Adult Eleven kept struggling under the lightning, but her body finally gave out. She lost consciousness and fell to the floor. Stormfront stared at the open cells and the escaped subjects around her.

"Which fucking freak released all of them?" Slow footsteps came from the other side of the corridor. Stormfront turned toward the sound and clenched her fist.

"So, you-" She stopped in the middle of the sentence. Adam stood in front of her. His eyes glowed red.