Suddenly, all four of the screens go wonky, blur, and disappear completely.
“What the hell?” Jeremy exclaims, jumping to his feet.
I back away, trying to give him room to work as Draven paces impatiently behind me. Within seconds, the screens are back to normal, the schematics once again prominently displayed.
Jeremy settles back down without another word. As I watch, the graphics on the screen start to move, like the layers are being peeled away.
He points at another spot on the screen. “If I have enough time, I can hack the external system, but they’ve got all kinds of closed-circuit security that can only be accessed from inside the bunker and they have half an army of hero backups. Security guards, check-in stations, locks that actually require keys to get in.” He sounds scandalized at the old-school tech. “The good news is they aren’t running at full capacity yet. We forced them to move earlier than they planned, so the complete protocol hasn’t been implemented yet.”
I lean down once more to get a better look, and the screens go nuts. Again. This time the whole array turns to static and the laptop actually shuts down.
“What the hell did you do?” Jeremy snaps at me impatiently.
“Me? I didn’t touch anything!” I turn so he can see my hands clasped behind my back, a testament to my innocence.
“Then what is going on?” He goes to restart Riley’s desktop, but nothing happens. It doesn’t so much as let out a start-up whir.
“I don’t know! Why would you think it’s my fault?”
“Because everything was working fine until you got close.” He sounds completely exasperated. “Unless…” He turns to Draven. “You don’t have any tech-based powers, do you?”
“Definitely not.” Draven lifts his own hands. “Dante’s got wind and Nitro—”
“Trust me,” Jeremy interrupts. “We’ve all seen Nitro’s power. What about Riley?”
“He’s a flyer,” I answer.
Draven lifts his brows in reluctant amusement. “You mean those Superman pajamas actually have some basis in reality?”
“I know. It’s ridiculous.”
Jeremy checks his plugs and cords. “Then I don’t know what the hell is going on.”
“Figure it out,” I tell him. “We’ve got to find a way into the bunker, and those blueprints are the only way!”
I’m so frustrated that I start pacing too. I walk from the kitchen into the living room. When I’m on the other side of the room, the computers spring to life again.
“What the hell!” Jeremy yelps. “This isn’t normal.”
But Draven is looking back and forth between me and the computers, a studious expression on his face. “Come here, Kenna,” he says, holding out a hand to me.
I do as he says, and the second I get close to the breakfast nook, the computers freak out again.
“It’s you!” Jeremy howls. “You’re doing this!”
“How is that possible?” I demand. “I’ve never had problems with computers before. It must be something with how you linked everything together.” I gesture vaguely at the web of cables.
“What? You think I made the mistake?” I’ve never in my life heard Jeremy sound so insulted.
“I’m not saying that. I’m just saying something is wrong and it can’t be me—”
“Let me see your phone,” Draven interrupts.
“My phone? It’s on the fritz. Why?”
“Just let me see it.”
By now, Dante, Rebel and Nitro have joined us and are staring at me like I’ve grown another head. So, under duress, I pull out my phone and hand it to Draven. He presses a button to turn it on. When he does, the screen goes static-y.
“Told you.”
He walks away a few steps, tries again. This time, when he holds up the phone, the display works. Then he takes a few steps back toward me and the whole thing fritzes out again.
“What is going on?” I whine, totally frustrated.
I’ve worked with some of the world’s most sensitive technology in my mom’s lab, and nothing like this has ever happened.
“How long have you been taking those immunity shots?” Draven asks me as he hands back my now utterly useless phone.
“Since I was little. Why?”
“And this is the first dose you’ve missed? Ever?”
“Her mom is obsessive about those shots,” Rebel tells him. “What does that have to do with this?”
“I don’t know. Maybe nothing. But it’s hard to imagine that the same day the immunity wears off, you start making computers go nuts. That’s quite a coincidence.”
“You think I emit some kind of electromagnetic field and the shots blocked it?”
He shakes his head. “I think the shots blocked some kind of power that you have.”
“That’s not funny, Draven,” I snap. “I’m powerless.”
“Are you?” he asks. “Or did the immunity shots block your powers the same way they blocked everyone else’s?”