Gabriel didn't stop flying until the sirens were just echoes in the distance.
He landed on a nearby rooftop, only a few blocks from where everything had unfolded, and dropped Daniel onto the ground. Daniel quickly scrambled to his feet, putting space between himself and the huge dragonfly-looking figure. The fear in his eyes was clear.
"Relax, I'm not going to hurt you," Gabriel said, his voice calm and soothing. "Says the huge dragonfly who took me against my will and dropped me on top of a building I have no way off of," Daniel replied, his voice laced with sarcasm. "Seems like all the cards are in your hands."
"Take you against your will?" Gabriel countered, his voice rising in defense. "I saved you from yourself—robbing an old man's house. Not the smartest thing to do, was it?"
"You know nothing about me, so don't judge me," Daniel snapped, his anger flaring.
"I know robbing houses is against the law," Gabriel shot back. "A man was shot tonight, and you were almost caught for something your friends did. I had to swoop in before you got arrested. Those are the facts."
"You sound just like my judgmental brother," Daniel muttered, his voice dripping with resentment. "Maybe, just maybe, your brother is right," Gabriel said, his voice gentle but firm. "Look how close you were to getting caught tonight. And look at the house you targeted—an old man's house. Where's your moral compass?"
"My moral compass?" Daniel shook his head, a mixture of frustration and anger on his face. "I didn't know we were hitting that old guy's house," he said, his voice rising in indignation. "You think I would've gone in and helped them if I knew that's what they were doing? I'm not all the way gone. I do have compassion and a heart, and what they did to that man wasn't right."
"Then you really need to listen to the people you have closest to you, like your family," Gabriel said, his voice filled with conviction. "It seems like they're the ones who have your best interests at heart, not the ones pushing you to sacrifice your moral compass."
Daniel scoffed, his eyes flashing with anger."My family..." Daniel laughed bitterly. "What's so funny?" Gabriel asked.
"You don't know my family. If you did, you wouldn't be saying what you're saying right now. My mother; an amazing woman who's always been there for me and my brother no matter what, our rock. But she's not a guy. She can't relate to what we go through, the pressures a man faces. We're constantly judged; who's stronger, who's faster, who's smarter, who's more popular. You have to be at the top or even in the middle of the food chain. Because, God forbid, you don't excel in any of those areas. Look at the history. Look at what they put on TV; either the rapper, the athlete, the content creator, or the entrepreneur. Everyone else is forgotten, thrown on top of the scrap heap," Daniel said.
"I may not know all the details," Gabriel said, his voice calm and empathetic. "But I do know that it's never too late to make a change. You have a chance to turn your life around, to make amends and start fresh. Don't let the people around you dictate your path. Take control of your own destiny."
The words hung in the air, a challenge to Daniel's way of thinking. He looked at Gabriel, his eyes searching for answers. Could he really change his ways? Could he really start anew? The questions swirled in his mind, a mixture of doubt and hope. "No," he thought, shaking his head. This was all just wishful thinking, life wasn't that simple.
"What about going to your dad and speaking to him?" Gabriel asked, his voice filled with genuine concern. "My dad?" Daniel replied, a hint of bitterness in his voice. "I'd be lucky to get a word in edgewise. He's too busy to truly care about what's going on in my life."
"Surely that's not true," Gabriel said, his brow furrowed in skepticism. "You don't know my dad," Daniel said, his voice laced with frustration. "All he cares about is his lab and his experiments. He never has time to just sit down with me and check on me."
Gabriel paused, thinking. "He's right," Gabriel thought to himself. "Dad has been wrapped up in his work for the last few years, dedicating all his time to his dreams, not realising how bad things actually are."
But Daniel's next words caught Gabriel off guard. "But check this out," Daniel said, a sly grin spreading across his face. "The person everyone thinks is the moral guy, the man who can do no wrong, the husband to the local pastor, is in business with the biggest gangster of them all."
"What?" Gabriel asked, shocked. He couldn't hold his tongue.
"You heard me," Daniel said, his voice dripping with malice. "My dad's old friend is more than just your casual businessman. He never got his money the legit way. He's the one pulling all the strings with the gangsters in the city, having us do his dirty work while keeping his hands clean."
Daniel's words painted a picture of hypocrisy and deceit. Gabriel's eyes widened in surprise as he processed the information. "So my father needs to get off his high horse," Daniel said, his voice filled with venom.
Gabriel's mind raced with questions.
How could someone so deeply respected in the community be tied to something this corrupt?
Had he known all along and just looked the other way?
Or had he truly been oblivious to who his friend really was?
And if he did know… what did that say about their father?
And what did it mean for everything he thought he knew?
Everything he believed in, the man who raised him, the principles he stood for, the moral lines he never thought would be crossed, now felt like lies unraveling in real time.
Had his dad been lying to himself, or lying to them all?
Had Gabriel been too blind, too naive to see what was happening right in front of him?
The thought twisted in his chest like a knife.
Because if the person he trusted most could hide something like this,
then what else was he wrong about?