The Stelter City Saga: Ultranatural (15 page)

"Look at what you missed out on
sleepyhead!" she exclaimed and Ammon had to stand up to peer over
their seats.

"What is it?" he inquired.

Cassie sat on her knees in the nice
first class seat and showed him the autographed magazine. "I ran
into Caring Diaz while you guys were sleeping!" she purposely spoke
loud enough for even the passengers in coach to hear. A couple
people looked up, but Larissa was still fast asleep.

"I got a picture too!" she announced
brightly and dug out her camera as Ammon read the
signatures.

"August M…something… says have a safe
flight." Ammon read out loud, "And Michael Caster wrote, ‘If you
had dropped that shot glass, I would have paid for it. Anything for
a fan.’- whoa, you really did get a picture with them."

"Dang, and the quality's super good
too." Josh noted as he gazed over Cassie's shoulder. "His eyes
can't be that naturally gorgeous."

"Well they are." Cassie huffed as she
snagged back her camera. "He's going to be my husband."

Josh snorted, "You'd be lucky if a pig
wanted to marry you."

Cassie glowered and opened
her mouth to retort when a flight attendant tapped her on the
shoulder and asked her to buckle up. She even called Cassie
a
sweetie.

"Oh,
sweetie,
" Josh sang in mocking
soprano. "Take a seat,
sweetie
, we're going on a
trip."

"Shut up," Cassie grumbled as she sank
into her ridiculously comfortable seat. "You’re just jealous cuz I
saw Caring Diaz."

Ammon sunk down in the seat and glanced
out the window. It was still pitch black outside, but he could make
out the flashing lights of the other planes. There were luggage
carts snaking their way across the runways. An expensive medium
sized jet sat in the hanger beside him. Ammon reached over and
pulled down the window curtain just as a limousine pulled up
beneath one of the jet’s wings.

~Dohnatello disembarked from the back
seat of his limousine. The moist early morning air clung to his
slick hair and he glanced up at one of his jets. The airplane in
the hanger beside him had just begun to drive off down the runway
and he hurried to his own jet before the explosive sound of the
craft could blow him off his feet. With a snap of his fingers a set
of stairs sprung from jet and the Krome leader ascended with
haste.

The interior looked
identical to the way he had last seen it. The large space was
perfectly vacuumed, the
f
latscreen hung against the far wall.
Pressed in the corner of the room were a set of thickly padded
seats and sofas. They looked so comfortable, the High Krome almost
wanted to cross over and take a nap.

Last night had been an exhausting one.
There had been a wedding, an in-gang thievery that Avery had to
deal with. He had to OK Alma’s request to meet up with another gang
of car thieves in Tokyo and Aaron was already busy organizing this
year's first major robbery. Busy, busy, and Dohnatello hadn't slept
a wink last night. Now this morning he had promised to fly two
supernatural to their designated locations.

Ace of course was going to Heleow and
that was why he came to this plane first. So that he could
coordinate their flight. Dohnatello stepped past the freshly
stocked mini fridge and into the small luxurious cockpit. He took a
seat in the captain's leather chair and placed his hand over the
jumble of buttons and knobs. To his will, the plane ignited to
life. The coordinates were noted, and when Dohnatello pulled back
his hand, the beeping instruments stopped.

He sat there for a moment
with his tired eyes glued out the window. Over the distant East
Side hills he watched as the first drop of sunlight
b
egan to outline the
Tarrillian towers. He rubbed his eyes and sucked in a tired breath
of air. The captain's seat was so comfortable he wished he could
just sit there and nap his life away so Dohnatello leaned his head
back against the cushioned headrest.

“
Just for a moment,” he
promised himself.

Sometimes he wondered why he
even became a member of the High Krome. All he ever did was run the
massive South Side gang. His gang life had begun just like any
others; with a passion for cars. But over the years, he found
himself farther and farther away from doing the thing he loved
most. He hadn't had his hands stained with oil in the longest time.
It had been so long since he had even peered under the hood of a
car, he hardly suspected he could distinguish the difference
between the dip-stick
a
nd a windshield wiper.

From the jacket pocket, his phone
vibrated. He had nodded off without meaning to and when his eyes
flashed open, he could see the first crest of sun over the East
Side skyline. "Yes?" he said frantically climbing out of his seat
and hurrying toward the door in the jet.

"G'Day, Dohnatello." came the familiar
Australian voice.

"Your Majesty!" he exclaimed descending
the steps. "I have your plane ready and waiting in…” his brain was
still fuzzy from the nap and when he rubbed his eyes he caught
sight of the large number 4 painted on the cement. “… in Hanger
4."

"Brilliant!" Caster replied, "thank you
for your help. It has been greatly appreciated."

"Anytime." Dohnatello replied, and then
the King hung up.

Dohnatello had always thought it was
odd that Michael Caster, a rock star with the gift of teleportation
was the King. At the same time, it made sense that Caster was the
King simply because everybody knew who he was. But based off that
fact alone, Dohnatello still found it hard to respect him as the
ultimate leader of the underground race. In all honesty, if it
weren't for the powerful members of his Council, Dohnatello never
would have pledged his alliance. Powerful members like Mirage,
Shadow, August Matthews and Ithaca Iglesias.

Ithaca was unlike any supernatural he
had ever met. One, she was by far the most gorgeous individual he
had ever set eyes on. Not to mention she practically had the power
to do anything. The other Council members were remarkably powerful
as well, yet it was Ithaca alone that swayed his alliance. If she
were the King, he would have claimed loyalty in a
heartbeat.

Dohnatello climbed back into the
limousine and instantly the engine revved. He willed the car to
drive to Hanger 8 where the King's jet waited to take him to Italy.
Even though Michael had the power to be wherever he wanted,
whenever he wanted, some members of his council couldn’t. Using
powers on Naturals was the most exhausting thing for a supernatural
and so for Michael and August, it was easier to take a
plane.

As Dohnatello kept his eyes glued to
the window, he recognized one of his own limousines as it drove
past. With his perfect sense of vision, he recognized Lee's silvery
hair in the back seat. He hasn't expected them to be arriving this
early and had programmed the plane to take off in thirty minutes.
Speedily he whipped out his phone and sent a text
message

Ace and Lee's limo stopped at Hanger 4
just as the sun had fully extended into the sky. The engine was
still running when the doors automatically swung open. Lee grinned
up at Ace. "That was about the coolest ride ever."

He had to admit, having a ghost driver
was scary at first. But the limousine ended up driving as if it had
a mind of its own and when they stepped out, the door shut
reflexively then the car sped away from the scene.

Even the jet acted
robotically. They did nothing, yet a set of stairs descended from
the hatch as if it just knew they were there. As they ascended, Ace
reached into his pocket to find the text.
DIDNT THINK YOU'D BE HERE SO EARLY. PROGRAMMED PLANE TO LEAVE
IN 30 MIN. BEST OF LUCK IN HELEOW. –DOHNATELLO

Ace had no idea the High Krome had his
number. But considering Dohnatello was a guru with machines, he
probably didn't even need it.

"Wow, this is... Nice." Lee marveled as
they stepped into the plane. The inside was made of polished wood
and lined with comfortable relaxing furniture. Lee crossed over the
fresh carpet to the enormous TV screen and checked the cupboards
for movies.

After setting down their luggage by the
door, Ace headed straight for the mini fridge and pumped a fist
when he saw that it was stocked. "This is awesome. This is so much
more than I was hoping for." He continued to marvel at his
surroundings until his eyes fell on the entrance to the cockpit.
Lee saw it too and together they squeezed through the
door.

"Oh, cool!" Lee gasped noticing the
enormous window. "We're so riding up here for the takeoff." she
announced as she plopped in the co-pilot's seat. "I'm so excited!
This is going to be the first time either of us have gotten out of
Tarrillian!"

Ace flopped down in the comfortable
control seat. She was right. This was their first time. Though,
they had gone up to the hills of East Side once, but that wasn't
truly far enough away from the city. But a six hour flight to a
city in the middle of the ocean was quite the distance.

Ace wasn't excited about the sandy
beaches and the tranquil waters. He was ready for answers. After
the wedding, he hadn't shut his eyes once. His mind was racing
without end and even as he sat in the cockpit, he couldn’t shut off
his thoughts. Tarrillian City was an enormous place. Even with all
the things that had happened there, there were even bigger things
to unmask.

"Ace," Lee called and the boy looked
up.

His gaze met hers and he smiled at her
troubled expression with reassurance. "I'm fine angel, don't worry
about me." he reached over the armrest and locked his fingers in
hers. "I love you." he muttered. "So much.”

Lee blushed. Ace was by far a better
boyfriend than she could have imagined. He was stunningly handsome,
strong, powerful, mysterious and even from the very beginning; he
was the most loving person Lee had ever met. The gang loved him,
and even though at first he treated her horribly, she loved him
back. It had just taken a while for him to cave into his feelings
for her.

She was the most seraphic person he had
ever met. In a filthy city like Tarrillian, it was nice to meet
someone who was polite enough to say 'thank you'. From the moment
she said that, Lee had clung to his mind like glue. He knew he
would fall for her if given the time, now he had, and with each
passing day he fell harder and harder.

“
Have I ever told you that
you are the best thing to happen to me?" he continued.

"You don't have to tell me." she
offered. "I know how you feel about me."

Ace kissed the top of her hand, “But I
love telling you how much you mean to me.” he reached in and
scooped her up by the waist and she nestled against his lap like a
baby. “You’re perfect, Lee, in every single way.” He muttered into
her hair.

“
I am not,” she objected,
then stopped.

She knew he was about to comfort her,
after all, Ace knew everything about her including every single one
of her insecurities. She hated the fact that she was fare haired
and that there was absolutely no color in her face. She too hated
the shape of her body. For an adult, she still had absolutely no
curves and the reason for her height was her freakishly long torso.
Whenever she was out in public, she felt like a disproportioned
scrawny washed out stick walking beside her supermodel of a
boyfriend.

Girls always stared at Ace and even
though he could practically get any girl he wanted, he always
returned to Lee. It was her personality that made her so
irresistible and Ace couldn’t go a day without reminding her. But
in the end, having a wonderful personality couldn’t change her
looks. Lee’s never ending fear was that another woman who was just
as sweet and polite as her, would come into their lives and take
him away. Since she figured that just about any other person on the
streets was more beautiful than she was, her fear was that any day
now that would happen.

“
Lee, you are-”

“
No, no, Ace,” she muttered
swiftly cutting him off, “Don’t. You’ve told me hundreds of times
how beautiful I am. I know I just need to get over
myself.”

Ace scoffed, “What are you talking
about?”

“
My ugliness,” she
grumbled.

“
Lee!” Ace exclaimed, his
voice laired in grief. “How could you say that? You know everybody
thinks you look like Lotus Stelter.”

“
Yeah, but did you know she
was number 8 on the Top Ten Ugliest Celebrities list?” she
exclaimed. She had glanced at a magazine while waiting in line at a
grocery store. It was petty, but she couldn’t just ignore
it.

“
Lee…” Ace muttered again
and this time Lee saw a sorrowful slant in his eyes, “I cannot
believe you are saying this. You are gorgeous to me; I don’t care
what other people think.”

“
But I do.” She confessed.
“I know I shouldn’t but I really do.”

“
No angel, listen to me.”
His firm callused hands grasped onto her cheeks and he held her
eyes to face him. She stared back at her reflection in the deep
ocean of his eyes. Why did he have to be so beautiful? “Do not ever
say that again, understand? I love you forever and always and
especially regardless of what ever faults you think you have. Do
you understand?”