1. Prologue (1/2)

where eagles have been

prologue

the sound of sirens was grew louder and louder. a girl, who couldn't have been any older than twenty, held a pistol against her chest. she took a deep

eath, counting down the seconds.

"i'll never understand it."

"understand what?" one of the young men asked.

"why. why we were made. why we were made the way we were."

"it's not worth it. worrying about it all." another voice called from the narrow window. a spider was hanging in its corner unaware of the four visiting souls.

"i don't worry."

silence seeped into the room. her words were meant to silence anyone who would dare speak. after a long while the silence fled.

"sometimes..." the girl began, unlocking the safety of the pistol.

flashes of red and blue intruded into the dark room. but the faces inside were still protected by shadow.

"sometimes...i wish i could."

"there's no smoking in here." the man said grumpily.

the girl lit the stick anyway, tucking it under her thin upper lip. with her hand free, she lowered her dark glasses ever so slightly so that they rested just above the tip of her nose.

"no please, or excuse me?" she replied in a smooth whisper, gazing at the man with sullen eyes. "not very polite you know."

the man was much shorter than her; his pudgy face turned shades redder at her curt words. she cocked her head to one side, observing him. he reminded her greatly of a rotting tomato.

he began to blubber about the recently updated health acts or maybe it was something about common decency. whatever his tomato mouth was spewing, the girl wasn't about to take it.

she pulled the cigarette out from her lips and dashed the ashes atop his balding head. that shut him up. he seemed to be speechless with rage and disbelief. the woman turned away from him, her eyes focusing on the blue sky outside. it was the sort of sky that only appeared after a long rain.

luckily her stop was next. hardly anyone occupied this train. after walking through the various cars she had specifically chosen this car because of its lack of people. there were four in total. a woman with far too many shopping bags and a glum smile plastered on her face. two high-school students in matching busily texting on their phones while snacking on a shared pack of sugary candy. and the tomato-faced man who clearly wanted to stir trouble.

so she smoked on the subway. who really gave a flying damn? she certainly wasn't annoying the other occupants of the car.

when the train slowed to a screechy stop, she shifted the weight of her messenger bag on her shoulder and exited the train. dodging her way through throngs of lunch-time commuters, she puffed on her cigarette as she went.

her apartment was only two blocks from the station. the complex was centered above a well-known gym. as she past the dozens of people who were sweating on treadmills and silently cursing their personal trainers, she dropped the cigarette carelessly onto the ground.

she pulled out her key which was attached to a small iron bird, a trinket key-chain that she had picked up at an aging tourist stand. it was the only key she owned. she had never owned a car or needed a key for her job.

however, when she reached the main door she found it already opened. shrugging she stepped inside climbing the stairs with ease.

she had purposely picked an apartment on the topmost floor. she never liked the sound of people clompning up and down stairs. if she occupied the top floor, foot traffic would be exclusive to the three other people who occupied the three other studio apartments on the fifth floor.

"hello ma'am,"

she had reached the top of the stairs. her eyes swerved to the left. a man stood in the doorway of number 3 the apartment that stood across from her own. however, it wasn't the idiot who took residence in the number 3 apartment. this man was much stouter and wore a worn-in suit. another man stood just outside the door, but he had his back to her.

she removed her glasses, black

own eyes. they reflected dark wood that had been recently soaked through by an angering storm.

"yes?" her voice was pleasant enough. she sounded truthfully interested in the man that stood in the doorway. her eyes met his evenly, but the lack of light in them put him on edge.

"you are rosa valdez are you not? you live here in apartment number 24?" he asked, trying to sound casual.