Blake felt the feathery fingers of cloud brush against his face. The wind thundered in his ears as he moved faster.
He closed his eyes for a moment, letting the sensations and sounds wash over him. Brief glimpses of light danced across his closed lids, increasing as he neared his goal.
Blake opened his eyes as he burst out of the cloud bank into the sharp-angled morning sunshine. A smile spread across his face.
He banked up suddenly, held his breath, and dove straight down. The rush of wind turned into a deafening roar. Blake loved it. He let out a whoop of pure joy. The rushing wind drowned out the sound.
This was exactly what he needed: a quick flight to clear his head.
He had a job to do. Failure would have disastrous consequences, and he was the only one who could do it.
As a rule, rejecting a job was not an option for Blake. His parents taught him never to run from a challenge and never assume someone else would do the right thing.
However, that didn’t mean he was thrilled or felt like he was the man for the job. He wasn’t, and he didn’t. At that moment, it all became too much.
Nuts to this, Blake thought. He banked left, got his bearings, and took off like a shot.
He didn’t make it far.
“ Will you help us, son?” Blake heard the deep voice echo in his mind, drowning out other thoughts. “We wouldn’t ask you unless we had to. You don’t have to do this, Blake, but you have to understand something. I won’t lie to you; If you do this, there’s a good chance you’ll end up dead. But if you don’t, I promise you, innocent people WILL die.”
Blake wheeled back around and headed towards Blackway. He flew faster and faster, and this time he didn’t hesitate.