In the weight room, Vic lifted his usual thousand pounds without breaking a sweat. A small crowd had gathered around his bench, calling out encouragement he didn’t need. The barbell felt light in his hands, insubstantial. Ever since he’d discovered Matty’s gift of super strength, Vic had been after the gym to order another set of weights—something heavier this time, something to let him really feel the burn. A mere thousand pounds no longer cut it.
Lowering the barbell to his chest, Vic called out, “All right, boys. Let me have it.”
Four men advanced on his bench, muscles flexing through ripped shirts, hands curled into fists like wrecking balls. Flanking Vic on either side, two of the guys laced their fingers together over the top of the weights at either end of the barbell. They pushed
