Sparrow

-3049_Leo?__-

7:50 PM

Wind rushed through my hair, slightly wrinkling the suit I'd stolen. Scowling, I slightly tilted my left wing, avoiding the tall spire of a skyscraper. Tucking my wings in, I fell into a dive, only stopping my rapid descent when tree branches grabbed at me.

A twinkling sliver of the moon glowed in the quickly darkening sky, the alley below was only lit with a single flickering streetlight. Broken glass threatened to cut through the soles of the shoes I had so carefully shined when I stared at the watch on my wrist, counting the seconds until it struck—

7:59 PM

Prying open the power breaker and planting a compact EMP — electromagnetic pulse weapon — was more than easy, as the only security was just a flimsy padlock. I opened an insignificant side door to the Eden hotel. Slipping in, I spared a quick glance at my watch once more before ducking behind a column, when an enthusiastic man rushed by to greet guests. I fished a respirator from inside my suit jacket and pulled it on. My eyes scanned the room for a suitable candidate to replace.

I settled for a lone bodyguard stationed beside a nearby column — we looked similar enough. I walked quickly, using the ridiculous amount of foliage for cover. I came up behind him and grabbed his shoulder. A small squeak escaped his lips when I pulled him onto the waiting blade in my grasp.

My head pounded when the smell of blood filled the air, even with the mask I wore. I blinked to clear my blurry vision and my eyes focused on the body at my feet. The guard lay dead on the marble floor, his black suit stained darker... I checked my watch,

8:05 PM

I was running late. Quickly, I grabbed the enamel pin fastened to the guard's lapel and pinned it on to my own. And just in time, Alexander Cortez, the loose end they sent me to tie, walked past, surrounded by an armed entourage. This was the last chance. I couldn't blow it. I straightened and slid one of the leafier plants over with my foot to cover the corpse.

***

  __Riley__

There was a loud knock on the hotel room door. The laughter and music quieted immediately. The room got impossibly quieter when the lock clicked.

"Are you all decent?" asked a disdainful voice.

Sam and Lex shut themselves back in the closet.

I heard a sigh before the door opened wider. The lady who opened it had dark hair tied up in a tight headache-inducing bun that squatted imperiously on her head. She wore black lipstick and a snobbish expression on her face. I guess I couldn't blame her; we were a sight to behold. Thirty-something girls in various states of disrepair.

All of us stood there awkwardly, staring. The woman's lip curled and through some secret language, she got the entire room moving. The quiet shuffling sounds were more uncomfortable than the silence, and I picked up clothing that wasn't mine to leave sooner. I gulped when the piercing coal eyes of Miss High-Bun fell on my back.

Miss High-Bun clapped twice, and we all turned around to face her. Her burning coal eyes glared at all of us.

"Out." she pointed to the door she'd left wide open. She paused, narrowing her eyes in a way that sent chills down my spine. "Or you all will clean every room down this hall."

For a fleeting moment, I wondered if that was legal, but the malevolent expression on her face was enough to convince me she didn't particularly care about the law.

***

We walked in a single-file line down the hallway and ended up stepping down three flights of stairs. She insisted it was because we wouldn't fit in the elevators, but I think it was just to punish us further.