The next stall has what must be the biggest prizes we’ve seen so far. There are massive stuffed pillows in various colors and shapes, all seeming to represent one of the four Archangels. Raphael must notice the same look of pure awe on Hayliel’s face because he pulls her up to the counter.
“Good afternoon and welcome to the toughest challenge you’ll face today. Care to try your luck?” Behind him is a wall of moving targets with several worn-looking daggers lined up on the counter.
“She will,” Raphael says, before digging into his pocket for a few bills and handing them over.
Hayliel freezes. “What?”
“Come on, don’t be nervous, sunshine. Just picture Cadriel’s face, and I know you’ll hit every single one.”
She picks one up, gripping it in her fist, and listens to the man in the booth.
“All you have to do for a prize is throw those five daggers and get three of them to stick. The more of them that stay in the target, the bigger the prize.”
Hayliel lines up her shot, brings her hand back, and throws. The blade spins as it moves through the air before smacking into the edge of a moving target. Without wasting time, she grabs another and tries again, but the same thing happens. Her aim isn’t terrible, but the handle keeps hitting the target instead of the blade.
She grabs another, and I step forward. “You need more space for the dagger to rotate. That’s why the handle keeps hitting instead of the blade. Take a step back and try throwing from there.”
“Here?” she asks once she’s moved back.
“Exactly. Give it a shot.”
She lines up her shot before throwing again, and this time the blade hits the outer rim of the target. But we don’t get to celebrate, not when the blade wobbles and falls to the floor.
“Shoot.” Picking up her fourth blade, she goes back to the spot from before and lines up her shot. I’m sure lesser angels would have given up once they realized they couldn’t win anything, but it doesn’t seem to matter much to her. She’s just enjoying herself, which is exactly what we wanted from today.
“Throw it a bit harder this time, alright?”
With a throw that even I can admit is impressive as hell, she hits the target with a resoundingthwack. Her gaze doesn’t move from the dagger for several moments before she lets out a whoop of excitement and grabs the final blade.
“I did it!”
I swear, the smile on her face is as bright as the sun when she steps forward to grab the last knife, lines up her shot, and throws it exactly the same way. It hits the target less than an inch from her last shot, but doesn’t budge.
“Nice try, miss. Would you like to go again?”
“No, but he would.”
I don’t realize she’s talking about me until Raphael hands the man more money and says, “Why don’t you win our girl a prize, Theo? I think that big-ass flame would look perfect in her room.”
He winks at me, and when I look at Hayliel, she’s watching me with a hopeful expression in her eyes, like she really does want that damn flame.
I pick up a dagger and freeze. Something feels off. Resting it on two of my fingers, I test the weight and find out just how much of a gimmick this is. The handle, though subtle, weighs more than the blade. To someone untrained, this may go unnoticed, but not to me. When a knife is handle-heavy, it usually means you have to throw it by holding on to the blade. That way, when it rotates through the air, the blade will hit the target instead of the hilt.
No wonder this slimy weasel hasn’t lost many prizes.
I shoot him a glare and pick up another dagger before stepping back a few paces. There are eight targets, each pulled in different directions. Some go up and down, side to side, while others move in a circular pattern. Once I’ve chosen which ones seem best, I take aim, making sure to hold the dagger by the blade and throw.
It arcs through the air, spinning horizontally before impaling into the first target. I don’t wait before throwing the second one, watching as it hits another moving target. Hayliel’s jaw is practically on the floor, and as I grab the last three daggers, I watch as Raph teases her by pushing her jaw closed.
Alright, I may be trying to show off a little, but so what? If I can land all five daggers and they just so happen to also be dead center, then maybe she’ll keep looking at me like that. Like I could grab hold of the sun and offer it on a chain to wear around her neck. Even that would pale compared to her.
Pride surges through me as I throw the last three daggers, all of which hit the bullseye. The man in the booth looks annoyed, but I don’t even care. Not when Hayliel rushes forward and wraps her arms around my middle.
She feels so tiny against me, but I know I won’t break her. This girl has been forged from a flame far greater than I ever realized, hammered and molded into who she is today. An angel with the strength of a thousand suns held within her chest. Yet still, she’s soft in all the right places.
I hold on for a second longer than I should, but she doesn’t pull away, seeming content to just exist in this moment. At least, until the angel behind the booth clears his throat.
“You won,” he says, voice deadpan. “Please select a prize from one of the large items near the front.”
