Lost in Flight

by Neeny Boucher

  Eddie leaned over and said gently to Jack in a voice full of emotion. “You’ve got kids and they need you. Ella would die defending her kids. You have do that for them now.”

  Jack’s eyes filled with tears and he nodded. Ella would die defending the kids. Eddie squeezed his shoulder and told Christina to get her things. Christina packed a bag and left with Eddie Robinson. Eddie, as always, was good to his word. He and Asha Robinson protected her like she was a bear cub, and stood against anyone that tried to hurt her.

  ********************

  Two weeks after Riley disappeared, the police told Christina she was no longer a person of interest. Riley had contacted his parents to say he was alive, but he was doing a road trip and wouldn’t be back any time soon. It stopped the hate mail, window smashing, and graffiti, but it didn’t stop the hostile stares in town. Mrs. Gustafson would glare at her and mutter just audibly, “Get behind me, Satan.” Christina could not wait to leave.

  She made another appointment to see the lawyer in Wenatchee to see how she could progress the divorce with a missing person. Christina was told that it was impossible to divorce a missing person and they should just wait for Riley to return, taking a “wait and see approach.”

  Years later, when Christina started her law degree she found out she’d been given bad advice. It was difficult to divorce a missing person, but not impossible. She guessed she wasn’t important enough for the lawyer to spend his precious time on and she was young, a barely out of her teens, Emo/grunge girl, and not rich enough for his attention.

  Riley had won this round. Actually, he’d seriously kicked her ass and it made her furious. He’d put her through all this drama to be spiteful. She could do little, but accept her circumstances and wait for another time to strike. After going through all the scenarios, the only conclusion she could reach is that this was her punishment. Christina swore to herself from here on in she would never trust him again and if she got the opportunity to divorce him, she wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

  Chapter Fourteen – In flight Safety

  Christina, Seattle, The Present, Monday 8 October 2012

  “Oh that’s so sad and tragic and how embarrassing!”

  Christina met her sister’s sympathetic eyes and offered a wan smile. Jed made his presence felt at the door and Christina gave him a smile. Smoothing Gabby’s hair down she said, “I’ve gotta go.”

  Gabby cried. “Hey, but you haven’t finished yet?”

  Christina gave her a grin. “I think I’ve spoken enough about this today.” It was late afternoon and Christina needed to grab something to eat. She’d stolen a bit of Gabby’s food when it came, but she really did need something more substantial.

  As she was leaving, Gabby called out. “Dina – just to clarify - so you didn’t really want to divorce him? You wanted to shock him – is that right?”

  Christina scrunched her face up. “The first time? I wanted to shock him, but I think we could have worked it out. Maybe just a break until I got myself together? But the second,” Christina grinned, “I really wanted to divorce him then. It was so over.”

  Jed had taken up residence in his usual spot by the doorway and as she passed he said, “Christina, I won’t be home tonight. I’ve got someone to look after Gabby, so I’m taking the night off.”

  Christina nodded and smiled. “I don’t know if we say it enough Jed, but thank you for everything you’ve done.”

  Jed looked surprised and pleased saying with mock formality, “Just my job, Ma’am, just doing my job.”

  “Will it be better when Gabby is home?”

  He shrugged and lowered his voice. “Maybe, but when the court case starts, I expect things will heat up again.”

  The mention of the court case gave Christina a serious attack of the guilty conscience. In the last few days, she’d been remiss in her duties and needed to rectify that situation immediately. Waving goodbye to Gabby and Jed, she sped out of the hospital, negotiating her way carefully, albeit nervously, in Bonnie’s car back to the townhouse.

  She quite liked this place even if it was a bit modern and sterile for her taste. The townhouse was all white, and industrial with chrome features and flat surfaces. Christina used one of the upstairs bedrooms when she was staying so she didn’t have to share a bathroom with Jed or Johnny, or Dad. It was an unspoken agreement between all of them: she was a girl and she didn’t want to share a bathroom with men, even her closest relations.

  As Jed wasn’t coming home tonight, Christina decided she could work well into the night without fear of disturbing anyone. She walked to the local Thai restaurant to grab some food and was about to text Bonnie to join her, when she realized her cell-phone was dead. She ambled back to the townhouse and hesitated on entry.

  Strangely, the place smelled of Riley’s aftershave and she looked around the house to see if he was hiding in there. When she was satisfied the coast was clear, she decided he and Jed must use the same aftershave. Shaking her head at her paranoia, she opened her laptop and got to work.

  She groaned when 120 emails appeared in her inbox, but was relieved to find some were just Facebook notifications that she could delete. The majority, however, were from Andy James and Debbie Bindman about Gabby’s case. Settling in for the long haul, Christina got to it.

  By the time she’d caught up with work, it was about 11:00 p.m. so she closed her laptop and headed for bed. She got into her pajamas, which Bonnie had declared: “disgusting,” but Christina liked them. They were one of her few expressions of rebellion and levity in a life founded on long working hours, and sacrifice.

  The ‘jamas were comfortable and she was in a competition with her roommate in D.C., Marie, to see who could handle the worst pajamas for the longest length of time. Sure it was silly, but it was harmless and everyone needed some form of amusement. Also, currently she was winning and Christina liked a competition.

  Christina opened her bag and got out her sleeping pills. In the last six months, she’d begun to rely on them to ensure she got a goodnight’s sleep. She stared at the bottle: should she or shouldn’t she?

  She debated for a whole five minutes and then took one. She promised to throw them out when she got back to D.C., but not tonight. She needed them. Christina crashed out into oblivion and slept until the next morning.

  ********************

  Riley, Seattle, The Present, Monday 8 October 2012

  Riley’s day went better after he’d left the hospital and got away from Christina’s presence. He went to see Mason Glenn to go over some new prospects for Mason’s company. Mason was going “legit” in his business – something he was struggling with, and to be frank, hated. Mason might be a lot of things, but he was a genius and his business deals had made Riley a lot of money.

  Mason’s enthusiasm and all-round crazy got Riley out of his funk. With his over-grown black hair and silver-gray eyes, Mason spoke to Riley in a staccato fashion – like a machine gun giving him the run down on anything he could think of. Before Riley knew it, he’d promised to go out with Mason for a drink, which was code for wild partying.

  Mason looked him up and down, leering. “You got a date? Or you want me to set you up with someone.”

  Riley kept his face straight. “I think I can get someone.” He knew Mason’s type: tall, beautiful, vain, and insecure, with a penchant for freaky and drugs. Riley had done the freaky and drugs. He was over both.

  Not that that was bad or anything, but the women Mason set him up with were not his type. He wanted something different now, not casual and virtually anonymous. He excused himself, pulled out his cell and dialed a number.

  She answered on the fourth ring and he put a smile in his voice. “Hey. Hi. It’s Riley. Sorry about today. I had to take off and wanted to talk to you more, but I was in a hurry. Look, if you want to, we could change that?”

  He heard her give a throaty laugh that made him grin. “Sure,” she said. “What have you got in mind?”

  Riley
made his voice low and husky. He had lots of things in mind, clearing his throat, he said, “If you’re not busy, we could meet up tonight?”

  She laughed and said meaningfully, “I’d love to.”

  So after some further conversation, he arranged to meet her in town at a restaurant that she recommended. He ended the call with a friendly: “See you tonight, Callie.”

  When he’d organized his date and finished with Mason, promising to catch up later that night, Riley made his way to Bonnie. He wasn’t looking forward to it, but he had business with her and he wasn’t above pointing out professional responsibilities to her if necessary.

  He and Bonnie Howard had always had an interesting relationship. They’d known each other forever and their mothers had been friends in high school. Riley couldn’t tell if he liked her or she liked him. They just knew each other and that was it.

  Like most guys, he thought Bonnie was smoking hot, but she and Christina were linked to the core like ancient bone. He knew – like in the deep dark recesses of his being – that if he ever put the moves on Bonnie, he’d regret it. In truth, he’d only put the moves on Bonnie to hurt Christina and although it was tempting, he figured he’d be the one that came off second best. So he put the thought out of his mind.

  He and Bonnie Howard had shared a moment - one he doubted they’d ever forget. She had witnessed him and Christina tearing each other to shreds on the street when they divorced. They’d never spoken about it, but it was there between them - unspoken. He hadn’t forgotten and he was pretty sure she hadn’t either.

  Riley didn’t have to worry about Bonnie being anything other than a consummate professional. He could tell by the look she gave him that she’d like to say a few things, but she refrained in her work environment. She had compiled a list for him of prospective properties that would suit his needs and a few others that he’d never considered.

  As he looked up, Bonnie was looking at him speculatively. She pursed her lips and Riley thought: Here it comes. Clearing her throat a little, Bonnie said, “Has anyone run this by Christina?” And there it was: the mention of the big crazy psycho, elephant’s name in the room.

  Riley scowled at Bonnie. “What has this got to do with her? She’s not moving back to Seattle – is she?” He hoped Bonnie hadn’t noticed the rise in pitch of his voice on the last question. He thought she might have because she started with an: “Ahem.”

  “Not that I know of, but I assume if her father goes in on this property, it becomes Martin family business, but Dina would know the legalities of it more than I,” Bonnie said with a raised eyebrow.

  Riley stared intently at Bonnie. Seriously? Was that a threat? He replied quietly, which really belied the desire to grind his teeth and snap, “I’m not sure what’s been discussed with her. I assume she will have no interest in the property since she lives in D.C. and all.”

  Bonnie looked at him with eyes like ice and her bottom lip jutted out in displeasure. She looked at him like “I know you had sex with my friend – you pig,” which made him squirm a bit in his seat. Instead, Bonnie rose and grabbed a file. “Okay, then. I’ll get right on it.”

  He was tempted to hire Bonnie on the spot. These days, Riley was used to people following his orders and he hadn’t wanted Bonnie to be the agent for this project, but the others insisted. Begrudgingly, he realized she’d just proved him wrong. Basically, she’d let him know she thought he was an “asshole” in a completely professional manner. He was impressed.

  Riley left with Bonnie staring daggers at his back and for once, he wasn’t quite sure what it was about. It was just sex, right? He and her – they just had sex. If the rumors were true, Bonnie had had plenty, so he didn’t understand what she was getting all-moralistic about.

  He missed Christina by fifteen minutes. He’d gone back to the townhouse, showered and changed. He was meeting Callie in the city centre at a restaurant for dinner and he was late. He’d arranged for an early meal so that if it didn’t work out he could cut it short and meet up with Mason. If it did go well, he’d bring her along and they could go to Mason’s nightclub, Way Point. It was going to take him an hour to get there and he didn’t want to keep the lady waiting.

  He waited at the bar until Callie walked in and he got up to greet her. She was pretty with a nice smile, blonde wavy hair, green eyes, and about the same height as Christina. She was about the same size too, but he decided comparing her to Christina in any way would not be a good start.

  Callie had a dusting of freckles over her nose, with full lips, and a decent set of head and taillights. In a green strapless dress that clung to her body in a good way, with high heels that made her sashay when she walked, she was getting more than a few admiring looks around the place. Riley thought she was pretty damn cute.

  But god, she could talk. She was about Gabby’s age and discussed everything from movies to music and magical thinking. With a beaming smile, Callie said, “I think this was destiny – oh I have a sister called Destiny.”

  When she saw the confused look on his face, she laughed. “I do! I guess it could also be fate. I don’t have a sister called Fate though.” She frowned and a cute little line formed between her eyebrows. He figured she was thinking and then her eyes lit up. “I know! I could call my daughter Fate, or my son, I suppose it could be a gender neutral name?”

  Riley decided this could be a long night. He signaled to the waiter and ordered food and wine. When it came, she sighed, “I’m in the food industry. I want to be a chef – start my own business or get my own place.” He made encouraging and enthusiastic “good for you” noises, and she carried on. “I’ve done a cooking course. You know” and she laughed loudly. “When I first started, I thought baking soda was actually baked.”

  Callie laughed until tears sprang into her eyes and Riley wished she’d take it down a notch. He looked around and noticed they were drawing attention, which made him sit forward, hunching his shoulders. She opened her eyes wide, as if she’d discovered the secrets of the universe. “What if it was fried or deep fried? Oh my god! Can you imagine all the calories in that?”

  Calories, he thought, calories might save him. Smiling, Riley said, “A woman with your figure wouldn’t have to worry about that.” When she blushed, he grinned as broadly as he could. “Eat up.”

  Riley filled her glass with wine for good measure, but quickly learnt that was a mistake. Wine made Callie even more talkative and random. As he sat listening to her monologue on Batman, he wondered if he was a crazy magnet or brought it out in women.

  “I guess it would really depend on what Batman you’re talking about,” Callie burbled. Riley hadn’t talked about Batman at all. In fact, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d uttered a word in the conversation.

  Shit, Riley thought, filling his glass of wine and pouring her another one. He was listing jobs in his head and strategies for an easy exit when he heard Callie apologize for talking too much. He waved her comments away and hoped the relief didn’t show on his face.

  Callie asked him where he lived and when he said, “mainly New York” she waxed lyrical for some time about how she’d always dreamed of going there. Her question, “What do you do for a living” brought about his usual cagey response. “I work for myself,” he said.

  When people discovered he was the music manager for Collective Pitch, things went into dangerous territory. They nearly always wanted to meet the band or fish for information that could potentially be exploited for profit. Riley always made sure someone was trustworthy before he divulged his connections to anyone.

  Callie interrupted her stream of consciousness conversation with a giggle and stroked his arm. “I’m sorry. I’m just really nervous, you know. I broke up with my long-term boyfriend a few months back and I’m not used to this.”

  He smiled reassuringly at her and felt bad. “It’s fine and I’m enjoying it,” he lied. It was sort of true, but he was looking forward to getting some respite in loud music at the nightclub. She ba
tted her eyelashes at him in a seductive and endearing way, which made the decision easy for him.

  Riley leaned over and ran his fingers over her hand. “Do you want to get out of here and go to a nightclub?” He almost regretted his decision when she clapped her hands together squealing, “Yes.”

  He drove an impressed and chatty Callie to meet Mason in his Audi A4. She loved European cars too and thought they were sophisticated. He wondered if she’d like the old pickup truck he drove in Shanwick. If he valued any possession in this world, it was that old beast and his box of sad memories that he left at the farmhouse.

  Riley parked his car as per Mason’s strict instructions and made his way to the front of the line at the nightclub. Callie was “super-excited” when he gave his name to the bouncer and they were let straight in the door. He made his way to the VIP section and even he was impressed. Mason had outdone himself. It was Monday night and the place was pumping full of good looking people grinding on the dance floor.

  When he saw Mason, he gave him the head nod. Riley watched Mason extract himself from two hot women wrapped around him and make his way over. Flinging his black hair out of his eyes Mason grinned, looking Callie up and down. His eyes lit up and he turned to Riley with a raised eyebrow, giving a “nice” wink.

  Mason yelled over the music. “What are you drinking?” When Riley said he wasn’t because he was driving, Mason snapped. “Bullshit. I’ll have someone drive you and sweet ass wherever you want to go. I can get your car dropped off later. We’re drinking.” So they went for whiskey.

  A pretty drunk Riley and Callie staggered out of the nightclub around 3:00 a.m. They’d danced, kissed, groped, and had a pretty good time. Even her talking didn’t bother him anymore, although he was having a problem concentrating on what she was saying. His focus was on her cleavage. They got into Mason’s town car and Callie straddled him, grinding with enthusiasm.