for your counterpart in the other universe. Probably in all the universes, but I donât have enough data to guess.â
The wheels were once again spinning. âYouâre saying that this person, whoever it was, became the Mastermind?â
âYeah, I am. He turned that loss into a lifelong hatred of and competition with you, which grew into a full-blown mania by the time he was an adult.â
âSo, we just need to figure out who that was in this world, and weâll know who the Mastermind is.â He looked at me closely. âAnd everyone else has figured this out. Because the me in that world knew who this guy was, didnât he?â
âHe did. And Other Me did, too, therefore. They didnât know he was the Whack-A-Mole King of Lunatic Take Over the World Plans, but they knew who your lifelong enemy was. I mean, they know he was their Mastermind now, because we had to take him out before I came back. But they didnât know until we switched places.â
âThe Great Mommy Switch, as your counterpart called it, was good for a few things, wasnât it?â He took a deep breath. âI could start guessing, but I think itâs going to be better if you tell me straight out who the Mastermind is. And, before you ask, I promise you that Iâm going to do what you wantâreact like you did when you found out what Tucci was planning, not how Iâm sure Iâm going to want to react.â
Took my own deep breath. âOkay. Dude, just remember two things. Oneâeveryone else is going to kill me if you go into Wolverineâs Patented Berserker Rage. And twoâeveryone else loves and cares about you. Everyone. Even the guys who act all tetchy about your authority. They may have the Alpha Male head-butt fights with you, but they still care about you. So, youâre not alone in this, okay? We are all, and I do mean all, here for you.â
Chuckie looked pale. âThis is going to be worse than I think it is, isnât it?â
âYeah. Youâre gonna hate it.â Sent another prayer up to the various Powers That Be, and then took the plunge. âThe Mastermind is, for certain, Cliff Goodman.â
CHAPTER 5
C HUCKIE WAS QUIET, which was a good sign. I hoped. Hard as it was not to run my yap nervously, I allowed him to process what Iâd said by keeping said yap firmly shut.
After a good long minute, he swallowed. âSo, youâre saying that the man I think is my best friend, the man I was going to have be my best man at my wedding, the one guy I think âgets me,â that man is actually the person responsible for my wifeâs death?â
âAnd every other action against us and you, specifically. Yes, thatâs what Iâm saying.â
âAh.â
Cleared my throat. âAh, do I have to tackle you before you make a mad dash for The Retribution Railroad?â
He shook his head slowly. âNo. I understand why no one wanted to tell me. And . . . I canât tell you how much I appreciate that you were the one to break this news to me. Alone.â
âYou need to go to a workout room and hit something and maybe scream a lot?â
âNo. I want to save the rage. I know thatâs what you do these daysâyou use the rage to control your power, to ensure youâre mad enough to kill if you have to.â
âYeah, I doââ
The door slammed open, rudely interrupting me, and Jeff, Buchanan, and Gower were there. Gower was built like Jeff and Buchananâbig and buff. He was also black, bald, beautiful, and Readerâs husband. More pertinently in this situation, he was the Supreme Pontifex of the A-Câs religion. Why he was with Jeff and Buchanan wasnât hard to guessâbring the head religious man when you have someone about to totally lose it.
All of them looked worried and ready to tackle someone. And all three of them came to a screeching halt, looking