Ruth checked the address again, and looked at her watch. It was 5:00, and she was at the right place. She grumbled under her breath, and hammered her fist on the door for the fourth time. Finally, a tall man in a black tux opened the door, and glared at her.
"Who 'er you?" he snapped. Ruth stared at him, her face locked in a snarl, and growled,
"My name is Ruth. Where is my father?" The man in black opened the door wider, a gesture for her to come in, but Ruth was already shoving her way past him and almost halfway down the darkened hallway. Another man came out of a room in front of her, and placed a hand on her shoulder. Normally, it would have been a comforting motion, but he had clamped his hand tighter than he should have, more like he was gently forcing a prisoner to walk. Ruth yanked her shoulder back, and balled her hands into fists.
"Cut the crap, Jeff. Where is my father?" Jeff just shrugged, and led her, with that first man behind, to a room she never would have found by herself; it was behind a bookcase. To open it, Jeff had taken the fire poker out of its holder near the fireplace. The bookcase had moved to the side, and the three people walked on. They entered a large room that looked more like a storage unit, and an older man was waiting.
"Ah, Ruth. You came. Did you bring that statue?" he asked, catching Ruth off guard.
"You never asked for the statue! You just told me to meet you here!' she yelled at him, and started to advance before the two men in black grabbed her arms and held them behind her back. "Let my father go!" The old man chuckled, and snapped his fingers. A chair was wheeled out, with a knocked-out, gagged, blindfolded man tied to it. Ruth gasped.
"Dad!" she shrieked, and struggled against the two young men. They held firm.
"Well, then I guess this is your last reunion with your father," the old man said smugly.
"No! I-I'll go get it, just-just don't hurt him!"
"My, my, it's too late for that, Ruth." He shook his pointer finger at her. Ruth was desperate, and it showed on her face.
"Please! I'll do anything, just don't hurt him!" she cried. The old man ignored her, and waved someone forward. It was another black-suited man, holding a gun.
"Kill him," the old man ordered. The guy with the gun aimed it at Ruth's father's head, and pulled the trigger. The gunshot was loud and clear as Ruth screamed, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"You bastard! You bastard...." she screamed. The old man waved his hand in a gesture that clearly meant, 'Take her away'. Ruth was dragged away, kicking and screaming.
Ruth sat in her father's chair, her eyes red and puffy. Her anger-blackened wings were spread out next to her, their feathers sagging and dull. The kids would be playing today; Whether or not she was grieving, she had to protect them. She sniffled, wiped her eyes, and got cleaned up in the broken bathroom before she stepped outside and plastered a smile on her face. The five children, Jose, Mary, Rusty, Lucy, and Rose were waiting for her. She ran out to them, and knelt down.
"Are you ready for the surprise?" she said, trying to sound excited.
"Yes! Yes!" the five children squealed, and she led them towards the meadow, away from windows and peeping eyes.
When they arrived, Ruth sat on her knees as the kids got in a semicircle around her.
"You have to promise not to tell anyone, got it?" she asked. All the kids nodded enthusiastically. She held out her mother's necklace, and showed them the little purple heart with wings. A couple of them gasped, but their eyes all widened when the heart began to glow. Ruth smiled. The silver wings flapped a couple of times before they stilled, and the heart returned to normal. Ruth tucked it back in her shirt and looked at the kids.
"Pretty cool, huh?" she asked. They all started chattering at once:
"How did you do that?"
"Are you magical?"
"Do it again! Do it again!" Ruth chuckled.
"One question at a time!" Rose went first.
"Is that safe?" she squeaked. Ruth nodded.
"I wouldn't do it around you guys if it wasn't safe," she answered. Lucy was next, and then Rusty.
"Are you magical?" Ruth considered this for a second before responding,
"In a way, yes."
"How did you do that?" Rusty exploded. Ruth put a finger to her lips.
"Shh... A magician never reveals her tricks," she said with a little wink to all the kids.
When all the kids were dropped off, Ruth returned to the meadow, and looked at the soft grass, which seemed to stretch for miles. She sighed, and spread out her wings. With a graceful arch, Ruth brought her wings up, and snapped them down, bringing herself off the ground. She did this repeatedly until she was soaring high above the houses, taking a deep breath of the crisp, cold air. She would get her revenge, someday.
And now that they had nothing to use against her, she would protect the statue no matter what.
