"Come in."

The woman waiting inside looked nothing like the cold government interrogator Luke had expected.

Dr. Evelyn Cross appeared to be in her mid-thirties, with long auburn hair falling over one shoulder in loose waves. Thin black frames sat neatly on her nose and drew attention to intelligent gray eyes.

She wore a cream blouse tucked into a fitted charcoal skirt, and although the outfit was professional, the blouse followed her mature figure closely. When she crossed one leg over the other, the slit in her skirt shifted enough to reveal part of her thigh.

Luke noticed, and the slight lift of one eyebrow told him she had noticed his attention as well. Neither of them commented on it.

"Sit wherever you’re comfortable," she said.

Luke chose the chair nearest the door.

Evelyn glanced at it. "Most people choose that one when they’re eager to leave."

"I’ve been here for hours."

"That’s understandable. I’ll keep this focused."

Faint silver rings appeared around her irises before fading.

Luke narrowed his eyes. "You have an ability."

"I do. It’s called Emotion Sense, and it helps me detect strong emotional changes."

"So you can tell when I’m lying?"

"No." Evelyn opened a thin folder on her desk. "Fear, anger, embarrassment, and guilt can appear whether someone is lying or telling the truth. My ability gives me context, not answers."

That sounded more reasonable, though Luke still disliked being examined by someone who could sense his reactions.

"What happens during this assessment?"

"I’ll ask about the awakening, the attack, and how you feel now that you have an ability. I’m checking for confusion, loss of control, violent impulses, or other changes that might put you or someone else at risk."

"So you’re deciding whether I’m dangerous."

"I’m assessing whether there is any immediate concern," Evelyn corrected. "That isn’t the same thing."

Luke leaned back in the chair. "All right."

She picked up a pen.

"What was your first thought when you realized your Powerforge ability worked in the real world?"

"That I could protect myself."

The silver rings appeared around her irises again.

"And after that?"

Luke hesitated. "That I could protect Miss Lauren."

"Why does her safety matter so much to you?"

"She took me in when I had nowhere else to go. She fed me, gave me a room, and helped me when everyone else ignored me."

Evelyn wrote something in the folder.

"Do you feel indebted to her?"

"I’m grateful."

"That wasn’t quite what I asked."

Luke frowned. "Maybe a little."

"Do you believe you owe her your safety or your life?"

"No."

The answer came quickly enough that Evelyn paused.

"I want to repay her," Luke continued, "but she never asked me to put myself in danger. She’d probably get angry if she knew how badly I was hurt."

A small smile touched Evelyn’s lips. "That sounds likely."

She turned to the next page.

"Since developing your ability, have you thought about finding the teenagers who attacked you?"

"No."

"What would you do if you encountered them again?"

"I’d avoid them unless they attacked me."

"And if they threatened Lauren?"

Luke’s grip tightened around the armrest.

"I’d stop them."

"Would you stop once they were no longer a threat?"

"Yes."

The silver glow briefly returned around Evelyn’s eyes.

"Did you feel in control during today’s fight?"

Luke thought about the criminal inside the café. Fear, anger, and panic had rushed through him, but he still remembered making decisions.

"I was scared, but I knew what I was doing."

Evelyn added another note. "Good. That distinction matters."

She gave him a moment before continuing.

"You seem uncomfortable around heroes."

Luke almost laughed. "Is that a question?"

"It’s an observation. I’d like to understand it."

He looked away from her.

"I called for a hero after those thugs attacked me. No one came."

Evelyn remained silent, so Luke continued.

"People walked past while I couldn’t see. I asked them to call someone, and they avoided me. Heroes are always on the news when a villain attacks downtown, but apparently someone like me wasn’t important enough."

"I understand why that would leave you angry."

Luke looked back at her, surprised that she had not immediately defended them.

Evelyn rested the pen against the folder.

"Emergency response systems have limits, and heroes cannot answer every call. That doesn’t make what happened to you acceptable."

"Pulseweaver helped me after I awakened."

"She would have treated you without an ability if you had been brought here."

"But I wouldn’t have been brought here."

Evelyn considered that.

"Probably not. You likely would have been taken to a public emergency department unless your injuries involved an ability-related crime."

At least she was not pretending the system treated everyone the same.

"Does that anger make you want to hurt heroes or retaliate against them?" she asked.

"No. I just want to prove I don’t need them."

"That’s different, although it can still lead to reckless decisions."

"I’m not planning to attack anyone."

"I didn’t say you were."

Her calm, matter-of-fact tone made the conversation feel less like an accusation.

Evelyn glanced at the next question.

"Have you considered becoming a hero yourself?"

Luke stared at her.

He had dreamed about heroes when he was younger, back when they seemed larger than life. That admiration had faded after years of watching powerful people receive attention while ordinary suffering went unnoticed.

His first instinct was to reject the idea, but then he thought about Lauren.

Her daughters had moved to Canada to become sidekicks, and every report of a villain attack left her waiting helplessly for news. Oracle’s Glimpse might finally allow her to protect them instead of watching from a distance.

Luke knew she would want to explore that possibility.

"If Miss Lauren wants to become one, I’ll go with her."

Evelyn’s pen paused. "Is that what you want, or what you think she’ll need?"

"Both, maybe."

"What part appeals to you?"

"I want to become stronger. I don’t want to be helpless again, and I want to protect the people close to me."

"That’s a common reason people enter hero work."

"I don’t care about being famous. I’d mostly be doing it for Lauren."

"Caring more about someone close to you is normal," Evelyn said. "The concern is whether you can still make clear decisions when she’s in danger."

Luke thought about the fight in the café.

"I was scared, but I didn’t lose control."

"That’s encouraging. Training would tell us more."

"I still want to become someone she can rely on."

"There’s nothing unhealthy about that as long as you respect her choices and continue making your own."

"I can."

"Good. Keep doing that."

Evelyn closed the folder.

"I don’t see any immediate indication that you’re a danger to yourself or others. You’re angry about what happened, understandably protective of Lauren, and still adjusting to a major physical change."

"So I passed?"

"This isn’t an exam."

"It feels like one."

"That reaction is common."

She placed the folder on her desk.

"I’m recommending a follow-up after you’ve had time to rest and learn more about your ability. You should also receive proper training before using it in another dangerous situation."

"Is the follow-up mandatory?"

"For the moment, yes. Powerforge awakenings are still being treated as unknown cases."

Luke rose from the chair.

When he reached the door, Evelyn spoke again.

"Luke."

He looked back.

"Wanting to protect Lauren is not a problem," she said. "Just remember that protecting someone also means listening when they tell you not to throw your life away."

Luke thought about how Lauren would react if she learned how much pain he had hidden during the fight.

"She’d probably agree with you."

"I suspect she would."

For the first time since entering the office, Luke smiled faintly. Then he opened the door and stepped back into the corridor.