by Jamie DeBree
Across the aisle, Winston chuckled. "You'll never get in. And if you do, they won't listen to you."
* * *
Ignoring Winston, Eddie kept his eyes on Holly.
"Are you going to be okay? How's the leg?" He glanced down as she moved the towel away to look. Her jeans seemed to be drying, thankfully, though they couldn't be comfortable caked with all that blood.
She shrugged, tossing the towel aside. "I think it's fine - or as well as it's going to get for now. I think it started when Sean's goon knocked me over. Ripped a few stitches out, is all." She smiled, though she couldn't hide the worry lining her face. "I don't suppose you know how to fly a plane?"
He shook his head, knowing they were running out of time. "I actually went to a few flight classes in college, but never finished the course. We'll think of something though." He stroked the side of her face, his hand falling away as the plane dipped again. "I'll be right back."
Sprinting for the curtain, he made sure to pull it closed behind him. Holly was obviously very strong, but the carnage in the forward compartment was a bit much even for his stomach to handle. He bent over to pick up a gun - it didn't matter whose, and he wasn't sure anyway - and continued forward until he reached the cabin door. Pointing the weapon at the door with one hand, he grasped the knob with the other and pulled, surprised when it opened easily.
Not nearly as surprised as the man who stepped over the threshold. He tried to move back, but Eddie grabbed the front of his shirt and hauled him forward, clocking him on the back of the head with the butt of the gun. The man slumped to the floor, and Eddie lunged for the door, stopping it from swinging shut just in time.
Peering around the frame, he saw one man in the co-pilot seat, his hands on the yoke. Moving as quietly as possible, Eddie stepped inside and pulled the door shut, engaging the lock.
"One wrong move, and I'll blow your head off," he said, pressing the barrel of the gun into the man's temple.
The pilot laughed. "You blow my head off, we all die," he replied, reaching to his right to flip a few switches. "We're on approach to Mr. Winston's private airfield, so why don't you just sit back and get comfortable. I'm sure Winston can straighten everything out when we're on the ground."
"What, you mean when we're surrounded by more of his men? I don't think so." Eddie looked for a fuel gauge, trying to remember where it should be located on the massive instrument panel. "How much fuel do we have left?"
The pilot shrugged, but he glanced to the left, and Eddie followed his gaze to the display. The needle was about midpoint on the dial, but he knew that didn't mean anything unless he knew their location. "Where's the nearest commercial airport?"
"A hundred miles away, at least. We don't have enough fuel."
In the center of the dash, a red light blinked on and off. The tag underneath indicated that it was the autopilot indicator, and there was a small switch just below the light. He thought about it for half a second, then brought the gun down hard on the pilot's head. Dragging the man off the controls, Eddie flipped the autopilot on and half-fell into one of the seats as the plane rocked, the computer taking over.
* * *
Holly felt the plane shift, dip, and finally level off. Fearing the worst, she debated internally whether to go forward and check on Eddie, or to stay in her seat. Across the aisle, her stalker laughed.
"I wouldn't count on your hero coming back anytime soon," he sneered. "All of the men in my employ are armed, and trained for situations like this."
Holly placed both hands on the top of the seat in front of her and pulled, grunting as she cautiously put weight on her wounded leg. To hell with sitting back here. She was going to help Eddie get this plane on the ground, or die trying.
"Is that why your men are all on the floor up there?" she asked as she limped past. "Seems like well-trained men would have been able to fend off a measly two people."
He started to argue, but she slipped through the dividing curtain, muting him to the point where it all just sounded like more babble. Moving slow, she stepped over the sprawled limbs and dropped weapons. Finally getting past the guy she assumed was the pilot by the wings on his impeccable blue jacket, she reached the cockpit door.
"Eddie? It's Holly. Open up."
After a brief pause and several clicks from the other side of the door, it swung out, revealing Eddie holding a gun pointed straight at her face. She watched his eyes dart to either side of her, checking. Then he lowered the gun and pulled her in, securing the door again.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, turning around to look at her. "Why are you on your feet?" There wasn't much space, and Holly found herself neatly pressed up against his hard chest.
Among other things.
She smiled. "Maybe I just missed you." Raising a hand to the muscles before her, she traced a finger down the center of his torso, pleased when he twitched under her touch. He grabbed her hand and brought it to his mouth, gallantly kissing the back.
"We don't have time for this, Holly. We're about out of gas with nowhere to land - not to mention I knocked out the pilot. Unless you know how to fly a plane..."
She shook her head. "No, but I have read a lot about it - I wrote a book about a pilot last year. I might be able to sort of figure it out."
He laughed. "You're kidding, right? You learned how to fly by reading a book? Sorry, but I just don't think that's going to work here. Maybe we should find the parachutes. There has to be at least one."
"Eddie Pierce, I am not jumping out of a plane - especially not with this stupid leg. Just let me look at the controls. I bet I can figure it out. We can figure it out - you said you have a little knowledge, right?"
He shrugged and stepped aside, giving her access to the pilot's chair. "What the hell. We're screwed anyway. Might as well go down fighting."
Chapter 11
Holly settled into the pilot's seat, careful not to bump any of the controls as she tried to arrange her legs under the yoke. Examining the instrument panel, she was glad to see most of the dials were labeled. Too bad she had no idea what most of them meant.
Eddie reached over her head and handed her a headset. She slipped it over her ears while he sat in the co-pilot's chair and put on his own headset.
"Can you hear me okay?" he said, his voice sounding strangely isolated in her head under the large headphones. She nodded.
"Loud and clear. Do you have any idea where we are?"
"The pilot said we were on approach to Sean's private airstrip, but that was several minutes ago. We're a hundred miles out from the nearest commercial airport, and he said we didn't have enough fuel to make it."
Holly searched the dashboard for a fuel indicator. The mark was about half-way up.
"Do you think he was lying?"
Eddie shrugged. "I have no idea. But I think we should get back on solid ground as soon as we can, just to be sure.
"Agreed." Holly looked out the windshield, but all she could see were clouds. "We have to get lower so we can see the terrain. I think if I push the yoke forward and throttle back, we should be able to slow down and get under these clouds."
Eddie shook his head. "I can't believe we're doing this." He reached a hand out to put a finger under the auto-pilot switch as she grasped the throttle in one hand, and the yoke in the other. "It could be a beast to control...why don't you throttle back, and I'll control the yoke. Just don't go back too far. We don't want to stall."
"What, these things don't have power steering?" Holly joked, earning a stern look for her efforts. "Okay, fine. On three. One...two...three."
Eddie turned off the auto pilot, and the plane dipped almost immediately as he worked to pull the yoke back in time. Holly pulled back on the throttle, her heart beating against her chest as she felt the engine shift around her. The aircraft rocked wildly as Eddie struggled to pull up, and he put his feet on the pedals working just the lower half until the plane was finally steady again, though still descending at a slight angle.
"Got it?" she asked, relieved when he nodded. "Okay. I'm going to throttle back a little more." She pulled the lever half an inch further, and watched the airspeed dial move a little lower.
"This isn't too bad," Eddie commented as they both watched the clouds disappear. Far below, wide fields spread out below, surrounded by low hills and taller mountains.
"Think we could land in one of those fields?" Holly asked.
Eddie shook his head. "We aren't low enough - we'd have to circle around a few times. But with any luck, there will be more over that ridge coming up on our right. I'm going to try turning - hang on." He slowly turned the yoke to the right, and Holly tried to remember to breathe as the plane banked a little too sharply. The engine made an odd sound, and she reached over to throttle up a little, relieved when it stabilized. Eddie returned the yoke to center, struggling to deal with the forward and back directional movements before he got it leveled off. Holly could see beads of sweat on his forehead as she eased the throttle back again.
"Great job," she said, feeling like some bubbly cheerleader, but meaning every word. She looked out and pointed to a field in the distance, narrow, but long. "How about there?"
"We can try. I'll start nosing it down. I'll tell you when to throttle back." He pushed the yoke forward, and Holly could tell he was being as gentle as he could, but the plane still tilted sharply. She saw his feet go to the pedals, and after a few more wobbles the aircraft straightened at a gentle descent.
"Wow," Holly breathed, unclenching her fists. "I don't know what you did there, but nice flying."
"Maybe you should wait until we get on the ground to say that." Eddie took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. "Okay. Once we get over the tops of those trees, I'm going to lift the nose back up. When I do that, go ahead and throttle back hard. Just don't kill the engine, okay?"
She nodded, putting her hand on the lever. "Just like in the movies, right?"
"Cross your fingers."
She looked out the windshield and watched the trees as they passed overhead, cringing when it looked like they were going to take out a power line. When they didn't, it hit her.
"Landing gear! We need wheels!" Scanning the front panel, she found the toggles and switched them on, relieved when the lights turned green. Eddie nodded.
"Hang on," he said, pulling the yoke back slowly. "Here we go."
Holly pulled back on the throttle, the lever shaking in her hand as the aircraft descended fast.
Too fast.
"We're doing this wrong," she yelled, watching the earth rise up underneath them. "Eddie, we're gonna crash!"
He wrestled with the yoke, struggling to keep the nose in the air and she wondered if he could hold it. He was strong, but the plane was huge. She was sure the controls would be ripped out of his hands at any second.
The aircraft swayed from side to side, fighting to shake off the gravitational pull. Then they touched down, and the shock was jarring, throwing Holly against her restraints toward the dash as she felt the tail end of the plane bounce once, twice, three times. Each time the nose went down, she was certain the plane would go end-over-end, and they'd be crushed in the process.
One of the wings dipped on the third bounce, and stuck, spinning the craft in a wide semi-circle before it finally came to a stop. The engine revved, and Holly reached out to pull the throttle back all the way, until the beast shuddered and died.
Holly looked at Eddie, now several feet lower than she was with the plane nearly on its side. Relieved when he looked back at her, she shook her head.
"I never want to do that again. Actually, I don't think I ever want to fly again. That was rough."
Eddie inhaled, then let his breath out in a long sigh. "Can't say I disagree with you right at this moment. We did it though. And you have to admit, it was a hellofva ride."
"Yeah, well, let's not plan on a repeat, okay?" Holly squirmed in the safety harness, feeling the bruises that would certainly be showing up on her shoulders. "Now how do we get out of this thing?"
Eddie looked to his right, then swung his feet over and braced them against the wall. "Hang on a sec." Releasing his harness, he held onto his seat for support, then climbed up on the side of it, using one foot against the instrument panel to keep the seat from swiveling.
"Turn your chair so your back is to me. Then you can unfasten your belts without falling."
It took a few seconds to find hand-holds, but Holly managed to pull herself around like he instructed, so she was basically lying on her back. She unhooked the harness, careful to keep one foot tight against the window above her so she wouldn't spin out of her seat.
"Okay, now what?" She carefully turned her head toward the cockpit door in time to see Eddie with his back on one side of the wall and his feet on the other, trying to reach the door handle. He shimmied up a few more inches, and finally got it, pushing the door up to open it while trying to maintain his precarious position.
"Let me get into the hall," he said, grasping the doorframe with both hands. "I should be able to pull you up then." He took a deep breath, then pushed with his feet as he pulled his shoulders through the doorway. A few more twists and turns, and his feet disappeared. Holly pictured what the short hall would look like now that it was half on it's side. The steep angle was not going to be fun to negotiate.
"Okay." Eddie's head and hands appeared in the opening again. "If you can just turn around in your seat so you're kneeling on the back, you should be able to reach for my hands. Then I'll pull you up. Just be careful the seat doesn't swivel, or you'll fall."
"Sure," Holly said, looking for something to grab. "Piece of cake, right?" She slowly started to turn in the seat, her pulse tripping when it rocked under her movements. She was nearly on her side when her top leg caught the yoke. A jolt of pain ripped through her healing leg, and she closed her eyes, counting to five as she waited for the pain to subside.
"You can do it," Eddie said quietly when she finally looked up at him. "Take your time."
She nodded, took a deep breath, and then repositioned her legs to bring the bottom one under first, and then the top. Finally kneeling on the back of the seat, she took a minute to breathe.
"Maybe you should just leave me here, go get help. I'm not sure how I'll be able to climb out with this stupid leg. How are we even going to get to the ground once we find a door?"
Eddie grinned. "The wing of the plane is on the ground. That's why we're stuck scaling metal, remember? I figure if the emergency slide doesn't work, we'll slide down the wing." He shifted, propping his chest against the threshold and looking back toward his feet for a moment before holding out his hand. "Come on, Holly. I'm not leaving you. Buck up and start climbing. Consider it research for your next book."
She laughed, a pathetic, whiny sound. "I write romance novels, you dolt. Not action/adventure flicks."
He shrugged. "What? You don't think this is romantic? This is my chance to be the hero, and rescue a damsel in distress. Don't blow it for me, dammit!"
She rolled her eyes, but dutifully reached for his hand. "Fine. But you should know I could never write about this." She placed her other hand on the wall, and then steeled herself for the pain as she put her foot on what looked like the side of a coat hook under normal circumstances. Holding her breath, she stood up on the chair supported by her good leg and then reached up to grab the doorframe next to Eddie's shoulder.
"Why not?" Eddie waited until she jumped toward him and then pulled, rolling to his side as she landed half-way through the door.
Holly finished pulling herself up and propped her toes on the edge of the door while she tried to catch her breath. Thankfully, her leg had gone numb once her hips hit the edge of the opening, so the pain was surprisingly manageable. For now. She chuckled.
"Do you seriously think anyone would believe all this?"
Eddie shrugged. "It's all true - why wouldn't they believe it? Besides, isn't it your job to make people believe stuff that isn't true?"
Holly gave him a wry grin. "Well yeah, but I wouldn't call getting shot, kidnapped, and then crashing a plane all that romantic. My readers would probably get bored."
He reached up and trailed his fingers down her neck, and suddenly her argument felt hollow.
"What would your readers say if I kissed you right now?"
As if she were watching a movie, Holly saw herself perched on a doorframe in a tiny tilted hallway, her rock-star hero propped up next to her. It was surreal, watching him move closer as she closed her eyes and just knew the moment his lips were going to press against hers. The image vanished from her head as soon as he made contact, and there was only soft, moist, warmth that nearly overwhelmed her as she met him move for move. Leaning closer, she pressed against his chest, reveling in the feel of his arm clamped around her waist as he left her mouth and kissed his way across her jaw and down her neck. His breath was hot against her skin, and suddenly she wanted nothing more than to strip down and feel him flesh against flesh.
"Eddie?" She forced herself to open her eyes and started to pull back, but realized there was nowhere to go. "Eddie, we have to get out of this plane."
His lips curved up against her chest, kissing her one more time before he looked up at her. "I don't know. This is pretty cozy, don't you think?" The playful glint in his eye made her want to kiss him again, but she managed to refrain.
"Beds are cozy too, if I remember right."
"You remember right." He wiggled his eyebrows and carefully straightened, placing one last quick kiss on her lips. "I'll find you a bed if you promise to share."
She laughed. "Deal." Tilting her head back, she looked at the corner of the wall. "So how are we going to get from here to there?"
Eddie reached a hand out and hooked his fingers on the edge. "Are you okay here for a few minutes?"
She nodded.
"I'm pretty sure there's a counter on the other side of the wall in the galley. I'm going to stand on that, and then I should be able to pull you out."
