Fly High | ✅

29 | Night run

◈A D R I A N◈

"Isn't this what you want?" Damon asked.

His question echoed in my head, each time getting louder and louder. What was he talking about?

He pressed the sweater against my chest and pursed his lips as if he didn't understand why my shoulders were lacking in length and bulk.

Clicking his tongue, he said, "The woman was right after all. It is too big on you."

Realization dawned upon me like a bucket of icy water drenching me in freezing awakening. I was no hyena. I was just a little lamb led astray by a sly fox. Damon fucking preyed on me!

"You sick fuck." The statement rushed out of me in a breath. I was bristling in anger, not only towards him—–who promised me the future and a family—–but mainly on myself for being the fool I was.

Damon glared at me, silently warning me to stop this tantrum like an unruly runt. This was the first time that gaze was targeted on me. Those black pools of ice that could freeze you to the ground.

Unfortunately, my anger clouded my better judgement and I spat, "You fucking liar! This wasn't a pack. You're just a bunch of self-righteous robbers!"

Damon laughed as if I just told him the funniest joke on earth. Or maybe my fury wasn't as terrifying as it was laughable to him. He circled me like a lazy python, leisurely taking in my fear.

"And what about you? Whiny, sniveling runt who looked at me like some white knight in shining armour when I so benevolently invited you into the pack," he taunted.

"No," I gasped breathlessly, still unwilling to believe my ears.

"No? Remember those pancakes you had at the diner? Those dripping, cheesy patties you devoured? Guess what, we paid peanuts for that feast. If we're robbers then so are you! Look at yourself!" Damon yelled with his hands gripping onto my shoulders painfully.

He was right. My black outfit, black gloves and black mask. We matched like two peas in a pod.

"You wanted a pack so I gave you one! You wanted friends, you wanted family. I gave you all of it!" Damon roared. Grasping my wrist, he gave a hard tug and hissed, "Now, don't you dare turn your back against your brothers, Adrian."

I stood shell-shocked as his words shredded me apart and laid them open for crows to feed. I looked around the store and found them staring at me, beguiling me to join them. The only person who refused to look me in the eyes was Zax.

All of a sudden, there was a bright, white light shining over Thomas and Nico from behind. They grunted and squinted their eyes, using their arms to shield from the light. Turning my head, I saw a man using his phone as a flashlight. Wide-eyed and slack-jawed, he ran head on head with a group of intoxicated robbers—and me.

Nobody made a sound. Like a deer caught in the headlights, we remained motionless as if we were afraid any movement will trigger the chaos.

"What the—" the man began.

Before he could finish his sentence, Damon was quick to his feet as he yelled at us to run. My first instinct was to check my mask, to make sure that my identity stayed anonymous and safe.

"Run!" someone screamed. Shattered glasses crunched beneath our boots as we hightailed out of the crime scene with their fruitful knapsack. They pushed me aside as I was blocking their escape route.

Unable to grasp reality, I tripped on the broken hangers and fallen racks as my feet caught in the tangled mess. Sensing an opportunity, the man quickly latched onto my right foot to keep me from leaving.

I clawed my way through shards of glass, thankful for the gloves I wore to protect them. The man was tugging relentlessly before his grip slackened suddenly and I immediately pulled my foot away.

Turned out, Zax kicked the man in his stomach. He quickly dragged me to my feet and pushed me forward before running off on his own.

I stumbled my way out and saw the man regained his wits. His fingers quickly pressed the buttons on his phone.

Numbers that I didn't need to see to know who will be on the other end of the line.

With the phone pressed to his ears, the man rushed forward in an attempt to catch us or at least find out our hideout. Like the fool I was, my feet was shackled down with fear as he had his finger pointing at me and opened his mouth to speak.

In a matter of seconds, something metallic reflected the streetlights into my eyes, causing my eyes to snap shut at the blinding light before I heard a sickening crack.

No, no, no.

Slowly peeling open my eyelids, I saw the man.

The man stood right there— his eyes wide with fleeting emotions, his wispy hair and gray button-down shirt danced along the night breeze and his grip on his phone went slacked and—

Thud.

Down he went with blood flowing like river down his head.

And standing beside of the dead man was Damon with that glistening, bloody baseball bat in his tight grip.

He's dead, I thought numbly. Damon killed a man.

"Y—yo man, we gotta go now," Thomas stuttered urgently. He looked sober now that a man was dead and we were all accomplices.

Damon ignored him. He looked positively feral with only his eyes visible and his gait strung tight like a bow. Straightening his back, he gave the bat a swing and another one with graceful ease as if he had just scored a home run.

I couldn't believe what I just saw so I turned to the pack to see if they were really seeing what I just saw. That murder. That nonchalant swing of the bat.

Can someone please tell me this was just a bad dream?

"Damon! We really need to go now!" Jenna urged in a whisper. She fidgeted with her backpack and shifted side to side anxiously.

With a slight nod, Damon started with a slow jog. His boots tapping in the cold, lonely night of November. Soon, he set everyone in motion as they all started sprinting away from the godforsaken place.

Meanwhile, I was caught in a dilemma. To help the man and risked getting caught or run with murder stamped to my back.

Damon slowed to a jog as he neared me. His glistening eyes and I didn't miss the small, almost-there grin when the wind carried his words with a taunting hymn.

"Run, Addie boy. Run."

✈

Author's note

I'm so sorry for the late update. I had food poisoning on Saturday and it wasn't a pretty sight. I had to call in sick today and while I was recovering, I wrote this chapter quickly because I really hate to break my promise to deliver every weekend.

Sorry for the short chapter. 🙏 Hope you will still enjoy this one.

{Song: Night Running by Cage The Elephant, Beck}