Chapter 2: Kidnapped to the Right Place

Etoile tried to shift her weight forwards away from the man standing behind her who covered her mouth. The red light at the end of the carriage flickered to life. Eyes eagerly looked for an escape route within the dark metallic tube of the skyline train. Red illuminated her sight of the shattered window and scattered glass on the ground. A way out. It was the only opening unless she was strong enough to unlock the sealed door.

"Don't even think about it". Etoile's eyes trailed back to the winged male who stood in front and towered over her small figure. He bent down to her eye level as if searching for an answer. The video was still recording. Two males with animalistic features trapped her in between like a suitcase. The winged demon faced her and the loyal feline held her in place. Reflecting upon previous events the two were fighting like symphonies of blazing and burning. Yet now, they worked together like a wolf of one pack.

Her fear-filled pupils mirrored the striking features of the winged villain. A hand from behind trailed down her shaking arms taking the phone that shuddered to life.

"Incoming call from Boss, Huh?". Etoile head felt vibrations from the muscular chest she was forced to lean on behind her.

"You think we should take her in?" The man questioned the one ahead like a boss and employee. The angel in disguise upfront leaned towards her ears and interrogated.

"Who's your boss darling?". His nape was fully exposed to Etoile exhibiting his fearlessness through exposing one of the weakest aspects of a human body. The smell of cologne and mint wavered around her nose. With quivering lips and wondering eyes, Etoile finally chewed out "My essay manager".

"Oh really?" Standing back up his large hands wrapped around Etoile's twig-like arms roughly pulled her to his embrace. Etoile tiptoed so that her arms weren't being ripped off. Tears blurred her sight as she was steadily lifted, she attempted to grab her phone from the feline male, whom she was now free from, with her vacant arm. The attempt only caused the winged demon who held her to swing her over his shoulders feeling as if meters above the ground.

"Put me down!" She screamed and squirmed trying to get out of this man's forceful grasp. Etoile slapped the broad shoulders of the tall figure carrying her. The enthralling scarlet feathers tickled her cheeks as she came up with one of the ideas she'd regret for life. She laid as a despaired limp over his shoulders, and within the spur of distress, she straightened herself slightly and bit the nape of the exposed neck. A hit burned through her back causing tears to stream down and the struggle to died down. The painful contact led to her lifeless reactions.

"I will make you regret every move".

The cat-like man who previously held onto Etoile's mouth was carried by his collar. It didn't take long for the winged man to soar up away from the broken-down skyline train. Etoile looked back as the train receded into the midnight abyss.

-

We flew for what seemed like hours, the cold breeze whipped my hair around causing my lips to dry. Flying on an aircraft without windows wasn't comfortable. I tried to shift myself into a more durable position only to feel the grip on me loosen.

"Stop moving" a deadly voice came from my captor.

"But, I'm uncomfortable! You can't just take me, you're supposed to return me to a police station or something" I replied as I gained some fightback after a bit of rest. It wasn't long for me to recognise my wrongdoing. The loose hand around my waist retracted contact from me. My widened eyes saw a smirk on his face. "No, you didn't".

I closed my eyes shut as I fell down from the heights passing through clouds. A scream struggled to leave my mouth, barely heard as the sound of strong winds came gushing at me. I waited for the impact. A hand-pulled my collar almost choking me. My feet touched the ground and immediately I fell to the earth, hands shaking, barely holding my body up. I was still recovering from the shock. I was in such a startled state I didn't realise we arrived at a landfill until the striking smell invaded my nose. Quickly I pinched my nose and I breathed heavily through my mouth still trying to recover my breath's pace.

"Disgusting! Where am I?" The sound from my mouth was as if I breathed helium. I got no answer. Within seconds I was carried back in that intolerable position over the bird-like man. It still horrified me how tall he was, I'd say about 6 foot. He had awfully broad shoulders, strong wings like those of an angel, a large torso and long, and well-proportioned legs. If he was just a human stranger who was on the skyline trains, I would've considered him very attractive. Probably a human that most girls would fawn over, but no.

He was everything but human. The peculiar wings attached to his back, the slits on his shirts that granted the wings access. He seemed like a fantastical being. The colours of his wings faded from red to white as if unsure whether it was to be an angel or a demon. Trailing to his face, a sharp jawline, fair skin, clean shaved, long lashes and a perfect nose like a statue's. His face compliments his cold and dominant personality. You wouldn't expect someone like him to use puppy eyes on you. In contrast, the feline-like person to his right was similar...just comes off more of a flirt or playboy. The darkness of the dump transcended to a bright setting. Being carried over the shoulder allowed me to clearly witness that the feline person was probably a snow leopard according to the patterns. As the source of the light became brighter, I noticed.

"This is the place I investigated last week! The mysterious lab!" my uncontainable excitement of entering the lab was revealed with my smile. "Ha! Yesterday I was stressing about not being able to find a way to sneak in. Look at me now, going in through the front door!"

The grip on me tightened as my true nature as a journalist exploded with happiness. I'll get to enter the lab and take hundreds of photos; I'll then write the most appealing essay, and this will be distributed to all national television. Headlines of "Is the government hiding something" it'll be crazy. Do you think these guys I met would let me interview them? Perhaps they can answer some 7-second questions. They'll reveal to me the history of their animalistic features. I couldn't ask previously as I was struck with fear and shock of my surroundings. Perhaps they were some science experiment, or even worse they were born like this because their parents did something during their pregnancy. Do you think they'd have animalistic habits such as dietary or possessiveness of land? This is crazy! I was finally let down from over the shoulder. The door was massive, it was like a wall of a two-story house or ones that loading docks have. The two men stood next to me one holding my arm so I wouldn't escape. I seemed so tiny standing next to them, they were roughly each a head and a half taller than me. Excitement pumped through my veins as I tiptoe and tilted my head trying to catch an early glimpse through the slim opening of the metal gates.

I didn't know. I didn't know that I was a suspect. Not at this point.