Chapter 75
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Vought had cleverly pushed Maeve and Homelander into the background. They were being kept away from the public as much as possible.
Homelander was already annoyed. At the same time, he was happy that Adam had been dragged into the open.
He thought, "Let's see Adam's response."
Homelander had been trapped in situations like this many times. He knew how to smooth-talk his way out. He could step back for a while and let people forget what had happened.
But what would Adam do?
The survivors from the airplane had released videos in his support, but Adam had already been declared a Supe terrorist. The government was now after him as well. It had become too dependent on Vought, and Vought's pressure had pushed the government into declaring Adam a Supe terrorist.
At the hideout, Annie looked toward Adam with concern.
"What will happen now, Adam?"
She had already left Vought. She was ready for whatever came next. Adam had already entered Vought Tower alone to save her. He had made himself the villain of the entire world while doing it.
Annie had known that something like this could happen when she walked away from Vought. That was why she had decided to stay with Adam until the end, no matter what happened.
A new situation had also developed at The Boys' headquarters.
Becca had arrived.
Adam and Annie were sitting with Hughie on one side of the room. Butcher sat with Becca while Mother's Milk sat there with Frenchie and Kimiko.
Adam had stayed farther away from them. The government had declared him a Supe terrorist and had publicly demanded his surrender.
Becca looked at Butcher.
"I need your help, Butcher."
Butcher was surprised, though he already had an idea what she wanted. "Please save my son," Becca said. "Homelander and Stormfront took him."
Butcher stayed silent. "Please, Butcher. He is my child. And he is as much your child as he is mine."
Butcher released a slow breath. "All right, then."
He turned toward Mother's Milk and Frenchie. "We need to make a plan."
Hughie stood and came over to them. "Our problems keep getting worse."
Adam also walked over. "Then we split into two groups. Annie and I will deal with my problem, the government declaring me a Supe terrorist. You save Ryan."
Becca looked toward Adam. She had seen Homelander's anger whenever he caught Adam's image on the news. Adam had powers like Homelander. But he was calm and open with everyone.
The decision was made. The group split into two teams.
Adam took Annie to an abandoned factory. He did not fly there. He wore a hat and walked inside with her.
Maeve was already there with A-Train.
A-Train looked annoyed when he saw Adam. He still released a deep breath and faced him.
"Fine. I'm ready to do it. But remember, you promised Maeve that you would help her. At some point, you'll have to help me too."
Adam smiled.
"Fine."
Maeve looked at him.
"We can help with that part. But we cannot remove the government's Supe terrorist declaration."
Adam smiled again.
"I know someone who can help me with that."
He left the factory with Annie.
Meanwhile, Homelander and Stormfront had already taken Ryan away from Becca. Homelander hated that Ryan was growing up like a normal child when he was not one.
They did not know that Stormfront's real identity and her entire past had already been published online.
Adam had done it for a simple reason. Vought had pushed Homelander into the background and Stormfront to the front. It had spent its resources trying to dilute the backlash against her, and the plan had been working.
Adam revealed Stormfront's identity, and Vought faced more backlash.
In his office, Edgar was angry.
Edgar was angry.
"The simpler this boy looks, the more dangerous he is. He has power. Somehow, he has the mind to use it too."
He looked toward his assistant.
"What is the government's response?"
The assistant answered him.
"Sir, they have given us thirty-six hours. Before those thirty-six hours are over, they will not act, because they know that some sections of the public are supporting Adam."
Victoria Neuman was standing inside her bungalow and speaking to someone on the phone.
"This work needs to be finished as soon as possible."
She was standing on her balcony. Several guards were posted outside the bungalow.
Victoria lowered the phone from her ear.
A sound like a fighter jet came from the sky.
She looked up and saw something flying toward her at great speed. Victoria thought of Homelander.
The figure stopped in front of her and began hovering above the balcony.
It was Adam.
He had come alone. He had not allowed Annie to come with him because Victoria's secret could not be exposed yet. Not until the original timeline matched the right point.
Victoria stared at him in surprise.
"What are you doing here?"
Adam flew down and landed on the balcony in front of her.
The soldiers below immediately moved inside and aimed their guns at him.
"Surrender now!"
Adam looked toward them. His eyes turned red.
She raised it.
"All of you, lower your weapons. He is my guest."
The guards looked at Victoria in surprise. Then they looked at Adam's red eyes. Sweat appeared on their faces, and they slowly lowered their guns.
The head guard turned toward the others.
"Fine. Return to your quarters. A few of you stay here."
Victoria was afraid as well.
She remembered the day the Deputy Director's head had exploded. She remembered Adam's blast hitting her guards.
She wondered whether Adam knew that she had been responsible.
Victoria smiled without warmth.
"You know that you have already been declared a Supe terrorist. You do not have much time before you have to surrender."
Adam smiled.
"That is why I came to you."
Victoria smiled at him without warmth and asked, "And how can I help you?"
Adam looked at her.
"Get my name removed from the Supe terrorist declaration. Declare me your subordinate."
Victoria stared at him.
"And why would I do that?"
She was already considering the reasons in her mind.
Adam answered before she could say anything else.
"You will need me because you want to become President."
Victoria became completely silent. Her expression went blank.
"Why do you think I need your help?"
Adam continued.
"Think about it. When you run for President, Homelander may not like it. You have already done things that didn't pleased him. You killed the Deputy Director, and you killed someone who was like a father to him."
Victoria's worst nightmare had become real.
Somewhere inside, she had already feared that Adam knew everything. He had not followed her after the attack because he had known that she would be useful to him in the future.
Victoria spoke more quietly.
"My power is limited. Even if I wanted to, I could not remove you from the Supe terrorist declaration."
Adam shook his head.
"It would be difficult, but not for you. You are a Congresswoman. You have power, and your relationships with the other Congressmen are strong. Right?"
Victoria said nothing. Adam continued. "Declare me your subordinate. If you run for President, you will have my support. If Homelander or Vought stands against you, I will stand behind you. That will happen because you oppose what Vought wants."
Victoria remained quiet and considered the deal. Adam standing beside her would make her a stronger candidate. His popularity could increase her own. But Vought would become her enemy. Some Congressmen would remain blindly loyal to Vought, and many people would dislike Adam. They could become a serious obstacle in her path to the presidency.
Adam spoke as if he had read her thoughts. "That is not certain. People turning against Vought is becoming natural now."
Victoria released a deep breath. "Fine. I will help you, but I have one condition. If I want to dump you later, I can do it. You will not retaliate against me. And you will do whatever I tell you to do."
Adam smiled and raised one finger. "I will accept only the first condition. I am not your puppet; you can dump me whenever you want, but I will not retaliate. Unlike Homelander, I keep my word."
Victoria understood that Adam knew how much authority he had. She still tried to test him. "You understand?"
Adam said, "I know it, Madam Victoria. Better than you."
He continued, "I do not want that path; the system is pushing me toward killing the President and Congress. I came to help, but refusing will not stop me."
Victoria thought, "Just as I suspected." "Fine. You can dump me whenever you want, but you will still have to do some work for me. Otherwise, this deal will not benefit me."
Adam touched his throat. "Hmm. Okay. But if I do not like the work, I can refuse it."
Victoria offered a handshake. They shook hands.