Bryman Audio-Video Store.
Hughie absentmindedly wiped the plasma TV screen until a news segment featuring an interview with Homelander came on and caught his attention.
On-screen, Homelander wore a solemn expression, with just the right trace of grief in his eyes.
"Sadly, my colleague, my friend, my brother..."
"A-Train left us for good last night."
"...What?"
Hughie shuddered, staring in disbelief at the black-and-white photograph of A-Train displayed in the upper-right corner of the screen.
Homelander turned away, seemingly composing himself, before finally speaking again. "He was a great teammate, a true Hero."
"I ask everyone here, everyone watching at home, everyone he once helped, to join me now in observing three minutes of silence for him."
The TV abruptly cut to a wide shot, revealing a square packed with people. At a glance, there were at least ten thousand.
People held A-Train merchandise, flags, banners, and other signs of support. As Homelander finished speaking, the commotion gradually gave way to silence, and some even began silently wiping away tears.
To organize such a solemn, dignified, and grand farewell ceremony overnight, Vought International's public relations department had clearly spent some dollars and put in some thought.
Inside Bryman Audio-Video Store, however, Hughie was so worked up by the sight that his fists trembled.
Just yesterday, he had watched helplessly as A-Train, looking like a junkie high out of his mind, smashed his beloved girlfriend into a pool of blood, leaving nothing but a pair of hands to bury at the funeral scheduled for that afternoon.
Vought International's perfunctory official press conference had left Hughie so furious his eyes had nearly bled. Then that bastard claiming to be from the legal department had brought a check and a nondisclosure agreement, yet refused to mention an apology.
Such cold-blooded behavior had driven