Read Airborne for Free Online Page B

added the second question as an afterthought.
     
    When she first saw Mason, she was much more concerned with the wings and danger than the names and identities. On that train of thought, she tried to channel as much real emotion as she could like shock and confusion. These harpies were freaky looking enough she didn’t have to act.
     
    “I don’t care to answer your foolish questions.” The woman ticked off with bitter superiority.
     
    She lashed out and caught Avery by the arm. Somehow knowing, the harpie pulled Avery’s injured hand forward and looked straight for the black bruising. The harpie even smiled like she’d been expecting it.
     
    “Cut it out” Offered the male harpie on the left. “We don’t need the girl.”
     
    “No for if we are mistaken, the magic is destroyed. We take the human.” The female harpie announced after a second of thought.
     
    “And then?” He prompted. They clearly wasted no time with decision making.
     
    “And then? Then we kill her.”
     
     
     
    Five
     
    Without waiting any longer, the male harpies grabbed a hold of Avery and hoisted her to her feet. They knocked the desks out of the way, sending the tables up against the wall to shatter with a thunderous bang. Partially dragging her, they made their way for the exit. They burst through the first door and went out into the hallway. Avery’s eyes searched desperately. The halls were as dark and empty as she’d initially left them. She let out a breath of disbelief. There had to be a janitor somewhere. Why couldn’t anyone hear the clatter?
     
    The harpies kept on toward the final door. Avery rapidly understood that once outside, the harpies could take her up in the air and any chance to escape she had would be gone. She immediately began to struggle.
     
    “Help!” She shouted. “Help me!”
     
    People should have heard her screams in every dormitory on campus, but if they did, she’d never get the chance to tell.
     
    “Shut up.” The male who held her growled and gave her a vigorous shake.
     
    They smashed through the exit door to the Hall and dragged her down the steps. The temperature dropped and it had begun to sleet. Avery’s feet slipped on the icy front steps. The harpie tried to yank her up to keep her in place but Avery didn’t put her feet upright beneath her. Then luckily, the harpie didn’t find the point in dragging her. Loosening his grip, he let her fall back to her knees.
     
    Avery’s looked for help, but the outside was just as desolate as inside the Hall. Hope threatened to leave her until her eyes landed on the front office in the middle of campus. The lights remained on. Someone always had to be there. Fueled by desperation, Avery went for it. Surprise working on her side, Avery jumped to her feet and as soon as her boots met the ice, she ran.
     
    The biggest harpie was clumsier than the rest and he made a wild futile grab. Avery dodged away from it, bounding off the last step. They chased but the sound of footsteps thundering behind her only drove Avery to run faster.
     
    “Company!” A screech rang out from behind. Avery didn’t get a chance to understand before impact knocked her back off her feet.
     
    “Come on!” The familiar voice made Avery snap her head up.
     
    “Mason!” She recognized the harpie with a surge of relief. Without a second more of greeting, he snatched her up in his long arms, kicked off the ground, and sent them airborne.
     
    Feet abruptly dangling, she panicked. His arms had her under the shoulders but the grip wasn’t a sturdy one. He flew upward and cut a sharp left. The world spun, blurry with his aggressive flying. She saw the white topped trees one moment and the stars in the night sky the next. The movement kept her barely aware of their pursuers’ exact location but she could hear the high pitches screeches as they chased.
     
    A shadow flashed in Avery’s peripheral. In an instant, that shadow became a harpie and that harpie sprung