In a Moment
By rhombus10
- 464 reads
In a Moment
At thirty thousand feet, out over the Atlantic with the blood red sun
glaring in the pilot's eyes, the 747 banked into a turn to head south
towards JFK, and entered an air pocket.
In a bar in London's Soho district, Emma Jackson blushed under the dim
lights and Ray's smooth compliment, his hand settled gently on her leg
and she didn't brush it away. After all, her husband Mike was away on
business again.
Mike Jackson found himself in freefall as the air liner began an
uncontrolled descent towards the sea. He clutched for a hand hold,
missing by an inch.
At last, Jimmy-Lee spotted his mother on the other side of the road.
She was a little late, and his fears had exploded inside him at this
apparent abandonment. In relief, he ran towards her, only noticing the
grey Chrysler when its horn sounded in a screech of brakes. It was too
late for the driver to do anything else, and even this was not
enough.
Jimmy-Lee's father clutched at his heart as the plane fell. A stifled
gasp exploding from him as the stewardess at his side was flung into
the air.
In the glittering tower block that was the conglomerate's headquarters,
the Chairman, Ray Beslake, signed the document that sealed the deal.
They would have to close down about half the shops in the chain to make
it profitable, but that was the price of progress.
As one now, the passengers screamed their shock and terror. Tilly was
among them. Her first holiday abroad ever had been a disaster, and this
just seemed to cap it all. All she wanted to do was get back to her
home and the small town chain-store where she worked.
Lizzie was on the phone to her husband when the plane dropped, in the
noise and the confusion, she didn't hear him saying he was
leaving.
The plane had dropped a thousand feet, when the pilot felt it bite once
more into the tenuous air about it, and the controls begin to respond.
His years of experience and training helped him to regain full control
quickly. His next thought was for the passengers.
"This is your captain again, as you will have noticed, we did have a
little trouble with air turbulence just then, but everything is under
control now. I assure you, everything is all right."
In the passenger cabin, everyone sighed with relief.
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