Convergence - The Last Science #2.1 - In Plain Sight

B2: Chapter 2 - The Goddess of Kent - I

  Pre-flight checklist: Her leather jacket was zipped up snug. Her long brown hair was braided and pinned to her back. The thick aviator cap Jessica had found for her birthday in July sat comfortably around her ears, and the bag Kendra made her was fastened tight to her waist. Boots, goggles, everything was set. She clicked on the little radio that was hooked next to her bag, which beeped reassuringly through the earbuds that snaked through a small tube sewn inside her jacket to her right ear.

  Hailey nodded to herself, satisfied.

  "You hear me, Rupert?"

  "Perfectly, angel." The corner of his lip twitched slightly. He was trying to smile, but his eyes kept drifting over to the edge of the building.

  She grinned. "Don't worry, I've done this a thousand times."

  "With someone else clinging on for dear life, yes?"

  "Oh, don't be a baby. She flies like an eagle, so can you."

  Rupert shook his head. "Dearest Jessica is a fair sight braver than I. So do I jus—"

  Without warning, Hailey rushed at him. She flung her arms around his well-muscled chest, bundled in a blue overcoat and tight-fitting jeans, savoring the dawning look of shock plastered on his handsome face as his brown eyes widened to dinner plates. He tumbled backward off the edge of the skyscraper with Hailey on top of him, a thousand feet up in the air.

  The wind kicked at them as they started spiraling through the air. Rupert wasn't as tightly dressed as she was, and his clothes flapped wildly as they sped up. Luckily his hair was short, or it would have blown right into Hailey's face as they fell. She wanted to enjoy the view—both of the nighttime Seattle skyline, and the exquisite mix of excitement, adrenaline, and fear on Rupert's face.

  "You're bloody insane!" he shouted.

  Hailey laughed. "Last night you said you were up for anything!"

  "I was talking about sex!"

  Hailey laughed even harder. They were rapidly approaching the ground, but Hailey knew exactly how long she had. Right before they reached street level—well-lit and populated, even in the middle of the night—she burst open her wings. Rather than a hard brake, which was all she used to manage, they fell into a smooth glide, blitzing over top of the mostly-empty streets. If anyone managed to see them, it would only be for an instant at the speed they were moving.

  "Bloody hell!" Rupert clung on tight as Hailey tilted one wing and spun them in a tight roll. She instinctively retracted her wings as they shot through a tight gap between two buildings, even though they didn't really exist. The pressure in the air and the noise around them dropped for a moment before kicking back into full gear as they emerged out the other side. Hailey flared her wings wide and dipped them, starting to slow down as they swooped out over Lake Washington.

  Rupert's heavy breathing crackled through the tinny connection on the radio in time with the short bursts of hot air on Hailey's neck. He was still hanging off her from below, though, and she could tell his arms were getting a lot more workout than he'd expected. Time to break out one of her new maneuvers.

  She rolled over onto her back, but mentally flipped her wings as well. She could glide through the air while lying face up, as if the wings were attached to her chest instead of her back. It was really weird the first time she'd tried it, but the idea was so useful she couldn't really ignore it. Flipping them really screwed with her head though, like trying to use only her left hand for things or the thought experiment doing entirely different actions at once with both hands, so she didn't rely on it. As long as the only thing she did while upside down was gentle gliding, it usually turned out okay.

  Rupert's arms relaxed a little as he suddenly found himself supported from below, instead of hanging off of her. She released him and let her arms fall wide, almost as if she were floating in water instead of through midair. He looked up, and to Hailey's relief his smile was as wide as her own.

  "You're a goddess."

  Hailey felt a flutter of joy in her throat at the words. "You're not so bad yourself," she teased. "So how was your first flight?"

  "Thrilling, simply thrilling." He tried to sit up slightly, as if he could actually just sit on top while she glided around, but their balance immediately began to give way. She wobbled heavily in midair, and his legs started to lose grip on her own. In seconds he could fall away and plummet to the lake below them, and that would really put a damper on the rest of their night.

  Hailey reached out to grab him, and at the same time she summoned up a burst of wind behind him to shove him forward. Rupert found himself flung down into her arms. They took a hard dip toward the lake before Hailey managed to steady them out again.

  "Won't be trying that again, I suppose," Rupert said, smirking.

  Hailey laughed. "Where were you trying to go, anyway?" She gently pushed his head a bit closer with another gust of wind, and in an instant his lips found hers.

  Between the dark water, the receding city lights behind them, the full moon above, and the handsome guy clinging tight to her chest while he kissed her, Hailey Winscombe felt very pleased with herself.