Ch 365 - Invasive Questioning

The Moon maidens all looked at each other in surprise. If Alex said that he had heard the bomb in their car, then of course they believed him. But it seemed incredible that he had managed to hear something as quiet at the ticking of a time bomb over the roar of the engine of the car.

They also didn't understand why they had been targeted for this attack.

Selene tilted her head. "When do you think it happened? Was it just installed?"

Alex frowned. "Whoever did it, I suspect they've been targeting you for a long time. They may have been looking for an opportunity to attack, and today was the day they chose to take action."

Luna shivered. "Someone's been following us? We didn't even notice. How awful! What can we do?"

After such a near miss, Luna began to have paranoid thoughts. She wondered if they would have to check every car and building they entered from then on.

"Don't be afraid," said Alex. "We'll just be extra careful for now. But why did you come here at all? How did you know I would be here?"

"Debbie called us and asked us to protect you," said Celeste. "She was worried."

Alex smiled. "I see. All right. Well, stick with me for today. I'll send you back to the Cliftons' house later on."

But secretly, he was amazed at how much information the Blood Brothers seemed to have gathered about himself and the people close to him. He felt keeping the Moon maidens at the Clifton residence would be the right thing to do. That way he could keep everyone safe and out of the limelight for a while. Even if the Blood Brothers chose to attack the house, at least he would be able to make some extra preparations to keep everyone safe in one location, rather than having them all spread across the city.

A sharp clicking sound went off behind him, startling him out of his thoughts. He looked around wildly, trying to find the source.

When he turned, he saw a group of photographers taking a series of photos. Other reporters standing with them were holding microphones and cameras, recording everything.

Celeste stepped in front of Alex, blocking his body from their view with hers. "What are you all doing? Leave us alone!"

It wouldn't be good for Alex's face to appear in the news. The Moon maidens were also not keen to have their image spread around. She wondered at how quickly the reporters had arrived at the scene.

No one listened to her warning. Some of the reporters were wandering around the abandoned, damaged car, even poking it daringly as if to see if it would blow up again. Some turned to their cameras and reported directly on what they observed. 

But many of them kept glancing slyly at Alex, as if waiting to see what he would do next.

"Leave us alone!" Celeste shouted again. But yelling unfortunately seemed to draw more attention her way. One reporter walked right up to her with her microphone.

"Hello, young lady. Can you tell us more about what happened here?"

Another joined in. "Why did the explosion happen? Was there a problem with the car? Do we need to issue a warning to other people who own this kind of vehicle?"

"Ma'am, if something is wrong with the car then we need to let other consumers know. We deal in consumer reports! Please tell us what happened."

Celeste quickly became nervous and angry. She didn't like the way the reporters spoke to her and jabbed their microphones in her face. The idea of complete strangers watching filmed clips of her speaking the next day made her want to hide. 

Part of her was tempted to grab the nearest camera and smash it to make them all give her space. But she knew this would not be a smart move.

She also had no idea what would happen if she refused to give a statement. What if she somehow made it worse by refusing to comment? What if people started making up crazy rumors and caused even more trouble for them?

Some of the reporters, seeing that Celeste was reluctant to speak, turned to Alex instead.

"Hello, sir," said one female reporter. "What happened here? Was this a fault with the car, or a premeditated attack? Should we contact the manufacturer?" 

Alex gave her a cold smile but refused to comment.

The sight of Alex being targeted made Celeste find her courage. "No comment!" She said. "Leave us alone!"

"How can you have no comment? It's your car!" the reporter snapped, turning her attention back to Celeste. She was happy to pick a fight with whoever was willing to speak with her.

Celeste couldn't bear it anymore. "Go away!" she yelled. "It's none of your business and we don't want to talk!"

Another camera was being pushed toward her. The lens was angled to get a picture of her and Alex together, the photographer contorting himself in an awkward angle to get the shot. The sight infuriated her even more. 

As if sensing her distress, Alex suddenly stuck out his hand and blocked the lens. He pushed the camera and its photographer back, making the man stumble.

Everyone froze.

Then suddenly the clicking and snapping of pictures being taken started up again. The noise was so thick it was like rainfall. 

It was unacceptable for a member of the press to be attacked. As far as the media folks standing around them were concerned, pushing a photographer away was a grievous assault.

"Sir, you just hit a member of the press! What were you thinking?"

"Would you like to apologize? This looks very bad for you!"

Alex shook his head. "You all need to give us some space!"

The scene kept getting worse and worse. He had too much to worry about without the press adding to it.

"Sir, we're just doing our jobs! There's no need to be violent with us!"

"Are you typically a violent person? Is this normal for you? I'm sure our viewers are curious!"

The questions became sillier and sillier as the crowd's fury and indignation grew.

Alex looked out at the crowd, trying to control his anger.