Page 47 of Born for Silk
“You’re not meant to actually get the heart,” Ana states. “It’s just a little test of courage.”
“I don’t like this game,” Daisy says, her cheeks paling. “I think I will just watch.”
Some people before us are afraid to reach in, others try but then retract their hands with a squeal when the hole closes, and more get their hands stuck in the tight grasp of the machine. It is a game of speed and timing.
I place my hand over my chest and feel my heart beating inside.
Budum.
Budum.
When it’s my turn, I watch the gap closely for a few moments, counting my heartbeat in my ears, focused. I brace my hand at the entrance—wait. I dive in. Snatch the heart and whisk it out, still beating in my palm.
I hold it up.
The blood from the organ begins to spill over my fingers, and the girls gasp as it appears to be real. A real heart still very active, thrashing between my fingers.
“Drop it,” Iris cries, but I barely hear her.
I’m staring at it so hard, the thing still thrashing, oozing fluid, that I don’t notice everyone has gone quiet.
Then I hear a long, drawn-out screech from the skies above me. A shadow moves over the festival, darting, then darkening the ground that circles the place where I stand.
Everyone except Ana cowers away from the ominous shadow, retreating to the safety of the lit areas of the piazza.
The shadow tunnels in, a dark entity homing in on me. I look up and inhale a sharp breath.
The underside of Odio quickly descending through the haze is a sight that snatches air from inside my lungs. His wings are black and brown, but for a silvery sheen that appears to almost sparkle.
His massive talons pound the ground as he lands, his body low to take the impact until he straightens, standing at my height. Eye to eye.
He stares at me.
I still hold the heart in my hand, but it has stopped beating, while my own heart races in my ears to replace the rhythmic countdown.
“Get her out of there,” I hear someone mutter, but I am not afraid of Odio… Should I be?
“Aster,” Ana whispers from close to my side, and time appears to slow as I sweep my arm back, tucking her behind me so that I stand between Odio and my pregnant friend.
Against my nerves, I step toward the great winged deity, presenting the heart for him to take. “I had a friend like you,” I say, soothing, “in the Aquilla Silk Aviary.”
I inch closer, and everyone gasps again.
“He was a vicious thing, not at all royal like you are.” I take another step, my fingers and the heart a mere nail’s length away from his razor-sharp beak. “You’re such a handsome boy.” Odio cocks his head from side to side, eyes piercing like the perfect predator he is.
My hand shakes violently, so I steady my breath again, and control the tremors of adrenaline. I know he could take my hand off in a heartbeat—one heartbeat.
I turn my face slightly, gaze at him sideways, and then blink to let him know I’m relaxed.
Budum.
He plucks the heart from my grasp without even touching my fingers and pushes off the ground, wings whooshing the air around me.
I pant with excitement and relief, euphoria riding my exhale. I beam up as the beautiful creature coasts over the heads of The Estate guests, blood from the heart dripping a long crimson trail through the air like a pretty ribbon. My world is spinning, and the thrill makes me dizzy.
Finally, my mind aligns with my surroundings when I level my gaze and notice no one else shares my expression of awe and delight. I blink at the sudden change in mood. The festival and the other guests are all startled, gaping at me.
Dammit. I circle around to face the platform and freeze.