Page 82 of The Fighter
It felt like my body was torn in half from the force of the ejection. Rain hammered on my face and I was screaming my lungs out as I watched the Doom’s Bird fall toward the ground with Magni still inside it. “No, Magni, nooo!!!”
CHAPTER 20
Mortenstown
Raven
“It’s never made that sound before. I don’t get it; this drone isn’t even a year old.” I looked over at Laura, who was sitting next to me. “If only Tristan were here, I’ll bet he could fix it.”
Laura was wearing tight black leather pants and when she crossed her long legs the leather rubbing against leather made a squeaky sound. “He’s not, and even if he were, Tristan would still need the right equipment. Try to shut the drone down and see if it still makes that clacking sound.”
I did as she asked but the moment I pressed power, the clacking began again. “I’m not getting any alerts. Maybe we should just try to fly home.”
“No, Raven. Something is not right, and I’m not flying in a defective drone.”
“We could call my father.”
“Yes, we could, but he would tell Magni, and I already had an argument with him last week about going out without guards. You know how protective Magni is.”
“I could call Leo… except he’s with Magni, I think.”
Laura pulled at her lips with a speculative glance. “How far are we from the Gray Manor?”
“About half an hour.”
“We need someone to pick us up that won’t tell Magni about it.”
“What about Mila?” I looked out at the heavy rain. “She’s not the best at keeping secrets, but unless she’s asked directly, I don’t think she would tell anyone.”
“I don’t want Mila going out without guards. She’s not a warrior like you and me.”
“But you could argue that it’s not really going out since she won’t be in public anywhere.”
Laura sighed and after a moment of hesitation, she called up Mila.
“Honey, Raven and I need a favor.”
“I’m always happy to help.”
“I know you are, dear. Listen, all we need you to do to is program a drone with our location and send it to us. Can you do that?”
“Where are you?”
“We went to interview someone. We’ll tell you about it later, so send us a drone, will you?” Laura repeated.
“Of course, but I’m coming to pick you up.”
Laura shook her head. “No, darling. There’s no need for you to come, I’d rather you stayed back at the Manor. We’re in the middle of nowhere and really just need a drone to pick us up.”
Mila was being licked on her face by that small dog of hers. “Are you kidding me, Mom? I never get to do anything heroic. This is my first rescue mission and I’m excited.”
I laughed at the sight of Mila’s wide smile of self-satisfaction. “You want to be our knight in shining armor?”
“I would love to. Mom, it’s not like I’m going to leave the drone. I’ll just fly to you and open the door for you to get in. What could go wrong?”
Laura lifted her hands. “The same thing that happened to us could happen to you. The drone could break down and leave you stranded somewhere.”
“Don’t be so negative, Mom. You’re being as controlling as Dad, and you know how you hate it when he limits you.”
