Wings of Fire

Chapter 2

James stared with his mouth agape in horror, surprised to see that someone had caught him! The man sat there, like a lump on a log, searching for something to say, but coming up empty. He had absolutely no idea what to do at that moment, as his mind was blank. He knew this could happen, but was unprepared for it. Luckily for him, Laura broke the silence by saying something he did not expect.

"Well, by looks of things, you, Mr. James Brighton, have robbed us blind," the young woman stated, her alto pitched voice staying in a neutral tone. "I only have one thing to say to you about this; what took you so long?"

"What?!?" he choked as he stared at Laura. If his jaw could have hit the floor, like those cartoons that kids watched, it would have done so. Despite his shock at her words, James couldn't help but get an eyeful of the gorgeous woman before him.

She was a classical Italian beauty, her features appearing to have been sculpted by the ancient Roman artists. She stood at maybe five foot five, with long black hair that went to about mid back. Her eyes were a stunning cobalt blue, and she had the full-blown curves of a woman. Her breasts stood proudly on her chest, more than a handful, and her hips were lush and plump, looking like the kind of ass a man wanted to bite into.

"If we're both being honest here, I was expecting something like this to happen sooner or later. My father and brother are absolute bastardi (bastards) and I was wondering who would punish them for their arrogant and self-serving ways. I'm glad you found your balls and did something about the way they've been treating you," she said evenly. Laura walked into the office, her floral pattern spring dress swishing around her legs.

"Doesn't this affect you, me stealing from your family?" James asked incredulously as he stood to face her.

"It does, but I'm past the point of caring right now. I'm just as pissed at them as you are," she stated as she surveyed James' belongings.

"You know with all that gold in your duffle bag, you'll barely be able to lift it, much less carry it, unless you have a car nearby. If I know my father, he'll be sending the police after you, once he's discovered that he's been robbed. You won't get far. Maybe the next county, before they catch you," Laura said, almost sadly.

"They won't catch me," James said with a smirk.

"Oh? So I assume that you have a plan then? Please, do share it with me," she demanded of him.

"Honestly, I am not in a sharing mood at the moment, so you're going to have to deal with disappointment this time, Laura," he addressed her.

"I ask because I want to know how it is we are getting out of here," she told him.

"Wait, 'we'???"

"Si! (Yes!) I've suspected that you had some kind of plan since you got here, else you wouldn't be standing in this office. You've been rummaging around, looking for something and appear to have found it. Wherever you are going, you are taking me with you," she said matter-of-factly.

"OK, hang on! You want to leave here, with me, a man who is soon to be a fugitive and leave all of this behind? Leaving everything you've ever known??" James asked, stumped why such a woman, who literally had everything she wanted, would want to leave.

"Yes. I have my reasons," she said.

"Well, let's hear them. I won't be taking anyone with me until I know the how and why of them wanting to leave such a lavish lifestyle behind," he said, skeptical of her intentions.

"Wait, you are leaving??" a familiar cantankerous voice said out loud. Both James and Laura whipped their heads around to see Ezio standing there in the doorway. James mentally cursed himself for not remembering that Ezio lived here on the airfield, in a small shack just out by the main hangar. "James, I understand, but why do you want to leave?"