The Way You Make Me Feel
Have you ever noticed that I get ticked easily? Yeah, well. Thank you Fang for making that day worse then it already was!
Okay, I'm calm. Well kinda, I guess I'm not fully calm because I'm still angry about losing Angel, and Fang's still bugging me…but the point is, I am as calm as I will get. For now. Kinda.
Gazzy and Iggy flew to the nearest stores, I didn't trust them staying "on task" down at the beach. And I'm not talking about going swimming.
Instead I sent Nudge and Total down there. I took off to the other side of the other side of the island with Fang.
Halfway through our trip I slipped slightly behind Fang. He starred at me like I was nuts.
"I just don't want to lead." I explained. Lie
"Are you sure you're okay?" Fang looked worried.
"Perfect. I know we'll find Angel." Another lie.
"I hope."
"You can only try." True.
After a minute more of flying, Fang had his eye on the edge of the coast; he flapped his wings and accelerated. I flung myself onto a lower air-current, and shoved downward. Into a death spiral.
I must have reached at least 300 as a shot past the wispy clouds into the luscious grove of trees. Right, behind the Itex building.
"Angel I'm gonna hope that you're here, or so help me I might just kill myself." I muttered.
I dashed to the side of the fence as two exceptionally stout men rounded the corner.
A rough voice called out to them. My heart accelerated, my breath was raspy and horse.
"You there!" The rough voice called. "Come back here now." The mysterious man footsteps were heavy on the asphalt.
"Sir? Is there something wrong?" Asked SMOL (stout man on left).
"Your circling the wrong way, our rules clearly state circling clockwise, your circling the premises counter-clockwise. This perimeter can not be guarded correctly unless all of the dim-witted employee's are correctly protecting it!"
"We're sorry sir, we'll head back." SMOR (stout man on right) replied.
"Non-sense, I've already sent every guard on the opposite direction. March forward. And never again do I want to catch you disobeying our rules. We have a reason to protect this building. Can either of you knuckleheads tell me that reason? Hmmm?"
The SMOL nudged the SMOR with his elbow. "Um-uh, Maximum Ride?"
My breath caught at the sound of my name.
"Hmmm, maybe you two are not total misfits, and yes Maximum Ride and her disadvantaged group of "heroes." Are your main reason! Get too!" He yelled and stormed off.
"Disadvantaged?" I whispered, thinking immediately of Iggy. A rustling of leaves caused me to jump. A gloved hand clamped over my mouth, I blacked out.
* * *
When light finally broke through the fuzzy liner of darkness. A younger girl took my hand.
"I'm so glad you woke Max, when you fainted, I was afraid, I thought that maybe. Possibly, I had…had…I mean, it wasn't really my fault in a way. And, and I didn't really think before I did anything. But I, could have k-ki-illed, you and…and what would the flock have done then?" She was really stuttering now, tears streamed down her face. "I could have los-s-st you!" I tried to calm her down. "No!" She yelled pushing my hand away. "No, you need to hear this. I have, to…have to….explain!" She sobbed, I couldn't understand her now. So I took her into my arms.
"Angel, you know you didn't mean to do anything."
"I-I-"
"Shhh, just… just sleep. Sleep is good."
