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Henry believed he was simply stating an obvious fact.
What he failed to realize was that the truth often hurt the most.
Looking at the disappointment and concern on Katharine Hepburn's face, he suddenly felt that his stubborn insistence on staying uninvolved might not have much meaning after all.
The awkward silence was finally broken by Maria Thomson, the private nurse who had remained quiet until now.
"Katharine, would it be possible for me to leave early today? I'm worried..."
The elderly woman immediately interrupted.
"You're worried about your children, aren't you? Maria, go home. Have your two children come home as well. Nothing is more important than making sure they're safe."
"Thank you, Katharine."
With permission granted, Maria hurriedly gathered her belongings and left in a rush.
After sending away a mother worried about her children, Katharine turned her gaze back toward the man standing beside her.
She didn't say a word.
Yet her eyes seemed to say everything.
Scratching his hopelessly messy hair, Henry sighed.
"Alright, Kate. I'll go take a look and see if there's anything I can do. But in exchange, you stay here and don't go running around. I'll have Skye come back and keep an eye on you."
The old woman beckoned him closer.
When he leaned down, Katharine cupped his face in both hands and gently kissed his forehead.
"Go, child. Do what you can."
Still wearing a bitter smile, Henry replied,
"I'll try."
As he prepared to leave, another thought occurred to him.
"I'll call Skye and have her come home.
"Even if she missed the school bus and walked back, it should only take half an hour. If she hasn't come home yet, make sure you remind her again. That little troublemaker can't be left unsupervised."
"I know."
After giving his instructions, Henry pulled out his phone and dialed Skye's number.
As expected, the cellular network was overloaded.
His call went nowhere.
---
Of course, a Kryptonian's phone wasn't exactly a consumer product.
Earlier that year, Henry had launched a satellite into geostationary orbit above the East Coast.
The satellite over California already covered the eastern seaboard, but he'd built a second one as backup and to strengthen signal coverage.
As a result, when the commercial networks became jammed, his phone automatically switched to his private satellite connection.
A moment later, the call connected.
"Henry, what's going on?"
Skye's voice came through from the other end.
Henry spoke quickly.
"There's been a terrorist attack in New York.
"I don't care what your teachers or principal say. Tell them you're leaving early and come home immediately.
"Maria went home to take care of her children. Right now it's just Kate and Katie at the house.
"I need you to look after them. I'm heading to the scene to see if I can help. Got it?"
A thought crossed his mind.
Girl... are you going to use this opportunity to run away?
After a brief pause, Skye answered,
"Got it. I'll get back as quickly as possible.
"The Twin Towers look really bad, don't they? I can see all that smoke from here."
Henry didn't bother answering something so obvious.
"Just get home quickly. Don't stay outside any longer than necessary."
He ended the call and turned back to the old woman.
"Skye will be back soon. Kate, make sure you keep an eye on her."
Then he added:
"I'm leaving."
Katharine Hepburn nodded firmly despite her frail body.
"Be careful."
"Oh, right. I'll leave the car here. I doubt anyone can drive into Lower Manhattan right now anyway."
That finally exhausted the old woman's patience.
She waved him away irritably.
"Don't act like one of those idiots in movies who spends ten minutes giving last words before dying. They ramble forever, never get to the important part, and then suddenly drop dead.
"If you pull that nonsense, I'll come back and smack you."
"Alright, alright."
Henry laughed.
"I'm really going now."
---
After being chased out of the apartment, Henry carefully closed the front door behind him.
As he descended the stairs, he considered what exactly he should do about the disaster.
Revealing his full powers and saving every single life was never an option.
If he intended to go that far, he should have stopped the planes before they ever struck the towers.
The only reason he'd agreed to get involved at all was to reassure the old woman and prevent her from trying to help personally.
As far as Henry was concerned, he bore no responsibility for any of this.
He hadn't caused the attack.
Nor was he a member of law enforcement or emergency services with a duty to respond.
At most, he could volunteer and contribute what help an ordinary person might reasonably provide.
As for the specifics...
He'd figure it out when he got there.
With that thought, Henry activated his super speed and headed toward the World Trade Center.
---
The NYPD headquarters was only about a kilometer from the towers.
Even with traffic completely gridlocked, officers could simply run to the scene.
As a result, uniformed police were already present in force, maintaining order and controlling the crowds.
People could leave.
Nobody was being allowed in.
Henry watched firefighters arrive from all over the city.
Wearing full gear and carrying axes and rescue equipment, they rushed into the Twin Towers one after another without hesitation.
No one standing there could possibly imagine that many of them would themselves become victims awaiting rescue—or casualties—within the next hour.
Slipping through a gap in the cordon, Henry spotted NYPD Commissioner George Stacy directing operations from a command post.
George was overwhelmed, receiving chaotic reports from every direction while trying to make sense of the situation and allocate rescue personnel.
Perhaps Henry's long hair and beard made him too recognizable.
George spotted him immediately.
Before Henry could even approach, George waved him off.
"No. Not now.
"Henry, if you want to help, go to the volunteer staging area on the perimeter.
"Don't come over here."
The fact that George could spare even a few seconds to address a civilian during a crisis already showed remarkable consideration.
Unfortunately, Henry hoped to use George's authority to accomplish something more.
Stepping forward, he said,
"George, if I were you, I'd pull the rescue teams out of both towers.
"Those buildings are at risk of complete collapse."
The alarmist statement immediately provoked outrage.
People around them began criticizing Henry for talking nonsense.
The firefighters reacted most strongly of all.
After all, the majority of personnel inside the towers weren't police officers.
They were firefighters.
Henry shrugged.
Good advice couldn't save someone determined to ignore it.
Since nobody believed him, he was prepared to leave and simply serve as an ordinary volunteer.
Perhaps he shouldn't have said anything in the first place.
But George Stacy wasn't the type to casually dismiss warnings.
He pushed through the crowd and called out to the departing man.
"Henry."
Henry stopped.
George looked at him seriously.
"Why do you think the buildings are going to collapse?"
"What are you basing that on?"
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