Runaway Devil

Neither of us said a word until we got to Alec's connection in Buffalo. The sun greeted us from over the horizon. The light was warm, and comforting compared to the cold early morning.

"He works as a mechanic," Alec said. Now that the sun was up, we had to travel like humans. I always hated their ways of travel; it was slow and agitating. We landed under the cover of the forest and had to walk about a mile. "He should be right up here," Alec said. Houses were sprinkled along the road, a few residents sat on their porch to greet the morning. It slowly transitioned into a residential area. A few looked at us funny, we made sure that any blood was washed from us, but we still looked ragged. We carried duffel bags and were walking along an empty road, seemingly from out of nowhere. Now, I wouldn't say that we looked homeless, but granted, we looked like drifters. Balan hung back, I wasn't about to walk into a small town with a fucking fifteen-pound vulture on my shoulder.

A small car shop came up on our left, its garage open, and seeing clients already. It could fit three cars maximum, but that didn't include the warehouse behind it. A man in ripped jeans was assessing the underbelly of a Honda with his tools laid out next to him. He rolled out from under the car to grab a tool I couldn't name if I had a gun to my head. He caught sight of Alec and nodded at him. He had grease stains on his shirt already and his hair was held back with a bandana. His face was sharp and tired, maybe in his mid-fifties, with stubble over his jaw. He glanced at me for a moment, then promptly slid back under the car.

"Follow me," Alec lead the way through the shop, not pausing or greeting anyone else. There were three other mechanics on duty, and none of them paid us any mind. The scent of motor oil, solvent, and grease filled the air. The air in the shop was thick and warm. The small building had little to no air movement, the large fans up in the corners were doing little to help. I felt sweat break out on my upper lip as I followed Alec deeper into the shop.

We passed through a back-office that lead to the warehouse. As soon as we entered the large space, the air seemed to lighten. There was more temperature control, more air circulation, and more natural light. I looked at all the cars that lined the walls. They all looked like junkers, old and falling apart. "Pick one, I'll be right back." He walked off, probably to find his 'connection'. I strolled down the aisles between the cars, careful not to touch any of them. I didn't particularly care which one we chose, they all looked plain enough to blend.

I passed one that was only a skeleton of a car, it's frame was bare and all of its parts stripped. "And how can I help the lovely lady today?" A small man was suddenly beside me, taking me by surprise. The turbine-like fans everywhere muffled his footsteps. I spun with my fists at the ready and fully prepared to clean this guy's clock. He grinned with his hands up, amused that he spooked me. I already had his wife-beater in my fist.

"Aye! Rico," A man with greased back hair yelled from across the warehouse, Alec at his side. "What the fuck did you do?" He gestured between us with his heavily ringed hands.

Rico smiled wider, his curly hair falling over his forehead. "Fuck if I know." I let go of his shirt and stepped back, feeling some heat rise in my cheeks. Alec was trying to keep the smile from his face while looking down at his shoes. The man reprimanded him in swift Italian and smacked the back of his head. Rico chuckled and jogged to another part of the shop, having been instructed to do something useful.

"Sorry about that, he's young," The man looked in Rico's direction with a disapproving gaze. "So what are you looking for?"

"Something with wheels that can run for days at a time," I said.

"We keep all our running cars over here," He led us to a portion of the shop with untouched cars. As he showed us his selection of obviously stolen cars, I found out his name was Danny, and he ran the family's chop shop. Rico was his younger cousin, who couldn't stay out of trouble, so his parents forced him under Danny's wing.

He reminded me of a used car salesman, but as I thought about it, that was exactly what he was. Within a half-hour, we were set up with a 2000 Subaru outback, in shit pea green. They filled her up and brought her around front. Some of the employees looked and nodded at Alec, acknowledging his business with them. Alec handed me his bag and said, "I'll meet you at the car."

"Yes dear," I said, my voice drenched in sarcasm. He raised his eyebrow at me and I put on my innocent face, walking with more attitude than necessary. He shook his head, hiding his smile, and went back to work out a price with Danny. I popped the trunk and slung our duffels in. I slammed it shut and sat on the back of the car, pulling out my cigarettes. I squinted against the sun; it was starting to warm up. I took off my jacket and looked through my pockets for my lighter. I couldn't remember that last time I lit my own cigarette, Alec had done it the last few times. If he kept spoiling me I would get lazy, and then he would have to light my cigarettes every time. The idea made me chuckle.

"What are you smiling about?" Rico hopped onto the trunk next to me, still wearing his shit-eating grin. He wore over-priced Ray-ban sunglasses. He reminded me of a high school boy trying to impress his crush. I looked at him and realized I wasn't too far off.

"I could ask you the same thing, Rico." My lighter wasn't in any of my pockets. I would have known if I dropped it, I always knew where my lighter was, and I rarely kept it out of reach.

"Here," he flicked open a matchbook and struck one. He cupped his hand around the small flame and held it out. I leaned towards it and inhaled. He watched me smoke as he blew the match out, leaning back on his elbows, and presenting me with his muscled torso. He was trying so hard to seem like he wasn't trying at all. It was juvenile and inexperienced; he was clumsy and far too obvious.

The cigarette tasted different than when I lit it with my lighter. It tasted more like when Alec lit it for me, I liked it. When you lit a cigarette with a lighter, the butane makes it taste different, it brought out the chemicals. I savored the taste, inhaling and exhaling slowly, closing my eyes. "So what would a girl like you need with a stolen car?"

"Didn't your uncle teach you not to ask questions?"

"He's not my uncle, he's my cousin. And he didn't teach me shit," There was resentment in his voice. Little Rico didn't like being shipped off to Cousin Danny because his parents couldn't handle him anymore. I hummed, starring down the long road to nothing. I wondered if Balan had found anything to eat.

I felt Rico's fingers brush some hair behind my ear. I moved my head away and raised my brow at him. "Watch it, kid," I growled.

"Hey, don't be like that. Let me see that smile," He grinned at me, expecting me to melt in his palm. I took my cigarette out of my mouth and growled at him, flashing my fangs and golden eyes. He gasped shakily, back-peddling on his hands until he fell off the side the car. His sunglasses fell from his face, but he didn't stop for them. He powerwalked back into the shop, looking over his shoulder at me, trying to act as natural as possible in front of the rest of the employees.

I slid off the trunk and picked his ray-bans up off the gravel. I tried them on and found they suited me. I smiled to myself and finished my cigarette. This was turning out to be a pretty good morning. It was the little things in life you had to appreciate.

"Alright, we're all set," Alec said with Danny behind him, waving from the mouth of the garage.

"Let's get the hell out of here," I said. I whistled for Balan. It was high pitched, sharp, and loud, multiple people turned and stared. I waited a moment, knowing it would take a second for Balan to make it all the way to the shop. Alec slid into the driver's seat and turned her over.

I spotted Balan down the road, gliding, and barking his strange vulture bark. He braced his landing with a few beats of his wings and grabbed my shoulder with his talons. I smiled at him and pet his thick neck. "Hey there, hon." He purred and shook his head.

I could feel the men in the shop staring at me, Danny still standing there. I was sure he didn't normally see his customers off, but Alec was a loyal regular and this time he brought a girl with her vulture. It was worth sticking around to see. Alec rolled down one of the back windows and I let Balan waddle down my arm, hopping into the back seat.

I slipped into the passenger seat and rested my head back. "Where'd you get the sunglasses?"