9. Flying High
1111 Words
Harley cowered into Silas’s chest, fearing that she might puke again if she looked down. The wind whipped around her. Goosebumps appeared along her arms and legs, anywhere her skin was exposed. The one constant warm thing was Silas. He was a furnace. It might have something to do with the fact that he had large black wings and was most certainly not human.
She couldn’t be quite certain how long they were up in the sky. The minutes seem to drag on and though she was scared to be up so high, she felt safe away from the men that had kidnapped her. However, when she thought back on what had just happened, her gut twisted at images of the destruction Silas had left in his wake.
The tips of her fingers were ice cold when they started to drop altitude. The melodic flapping of his wings almost lulled her to sleep with the help of the slight rocking with his every movement. But as they came closer to the landing, she couldn’t keep pretending she was just trying to take a nap. She opened her eyes just in time to see a large skyscraper pass right by them.
She let out a soft squeak and flung her head back. Her hold on Silas’s shirt tightened.
Silas snorted. “I’ve got you. I promise you won’t die because I flew into a building.”
It wasn’t evident how fast Silas was flying until they were down this low. He was zooming through skyscrapers like he was merely running and avoiding trees. He flew higher at some point and swiftly landed on top of one of the tallest buildings near them.
The moment his feet touched the ground, Harley flailed until he let her go. She stumbled to the ground. She would have bolted if she knew how to get off the building or if she could get her legs that had practically turned to jelly to move.
Silas crossed his arms and let out a soft snort. “I’m surprised just as much as you are. This is the first time I’ve ever been summoned by someone…like you.”
Harley was still shaking as she grabbed onto the edge of the building. There was a short ledge that she put her weight onto. The city below was a blur of lights. They were so high up that there were clouds grazing by them. It was a surreal picture that made her sick to her stomach. She thought she might puke over the edge, so she moved back so that she didn’t unfortunately ruin someone day. Or, actually, night.
She was almost too nervous to look Silas in the eyes. But she did anyway, though her gut cramped even more. She felt like she should still be afraid for her life, but she didn’t think he was going to kill her after he’d just saved her from her kidnappers.
“W-What do you want with me?”
Silas raised a brow. “That’s kind of a loaded question. There’s many things I want from you though your little pea-brain can’t even start to comprehend them.”
Harley balled her hands into fists. She clenched them by her side and ground her teeth. “Are you calling me stupid?”
Silas rolled his eyes. “Well, you did get kidnapped by incompetent henchmen and you made a deal with me without understanding exactly what they entailed.”
Harley gaped, flabbergasted by how confident Silas said all that. “Excuse me? Am I supposed to be ashamed that I was kidnapped? And when the Hell did I make a deal with you?”
She was disgusted that this—weirdo would even think that she would want to make a “deal” with him. Whatever the f**k that meant. She’d been calling out for help. It wasn’t her fault that this low-life wannabe angel was swooping in saving humans on his free time.
Silas flapped his wings. He effortlessly flew to the large air conditioner that sat among many more. He landed and curled his wings. They disappeared into his back as if they’d never existed in the first place. He leaned forward, propping his boot on the edge of the air conditioner, and placed his arm atop his knee. He grinned down at her.
“The moment you asked for my help was when you signed the contract. Have you ever heard the saying “be careful what you wish for”? Well, you should have been careful.” The sparkle in his eyes made them change color. They went from black, to a bright red, and then back. The glee on his face irritated Harley so much that she wanted to slap the look right off.
Thankfully, she didn’t do something so rash.
She swallowed. Her mouth was so dry that she barely had anything to swallow.
“Take me home,” she said. Her voice sounded faint and she wasn’t sure if it was because it was just a whisper or if it was because she was losing her hearing.
Silas tilted his head. “Are you sure you want to go back? Not all of your attackers are dead.”
She nodded. “Yes. I don’t care. I want to go home.”
She would deal with all of this later. She needed to be in bed before she passed out right there on top of some random sky scraper.
“Okay.” Silas gave a light shrug.
Harley expected him to pull out his wings again, but he didn’t. One second he was sitting on top of the air conditioner and then the next he was in front of her. She jumped back, startled, heart quickening. Before she could run away, he grabbed her and pulled her to his chest.
The night sky melted around them. In the blink of an eye, she was on top of the building and the next she was standing in the middle of her living room.
She shoved against Silas’s chest. He let her go without a fight and she fell to the floor.
“What the f**k was that?” She frantically looked around the room.
Silas walked around the coffee table and slumped on her small couch. It looked like a miniature with him sprawled upon it. “That’s usually how I get around. Takes a lot of energy, but pretty effective when I’m traveling far.”
He ran his hand through his hair, pulling it back off his shoulder. His once again dark eyes fell on Harley.
“Go rest. Come morning, your work starts.”
- Writer
