Alex flashed through Ava’s mind as she prepared for a plane crash she didn’t expect to survive.
She couldn’t believe this was how she met her end. A plane crash over the jungle after all of the trouble they’d gone through with The Board would never have been her prediction.
A sob escaped her as the plane continued to drop.
“Impact in three, two?—"
They never heard the one. The chaos that replaced it made Ava squeeze her eyes closed and hold her breath. A force like she’d never experienced before slammed into her,sending her body airborne as much as the strap that held her to the seat allowed.
She jostled around as the plane smashed into the ground then rumbled forward, propelled by its own momentum. The sickening screech of metal on metal was only drowned out by the booms of the trees that smashed into until the plane finally came to a rest.
Ava sat frozen, her head still pressed against her knees as the world seemed to spin around her. Her ears rang, and the acrid scent of smoke filled her nostrils. She blinked rapidly, her heart hammering in her chest as her mind struggled to catch up with the reality of what had just happened.Am I alive? Her limbs felt disconnected from her body, tingling with the aftermath of adrenaline. Slowly, she straightened, her fingers trembling as she ran them over her arms, her torso—searching for any sign of injury. But all she found was a throbbing ache in her chest and the sound of her own shallow breaths.
After a few seconds, she slowly sat up, running a shaky hand through her hair. With a hard swallow, she shifted her gaze to Kyle.
“Ava?” He slowly rose, a small trickle of blood marring his forehead but looking okay otherwise.
“I’m okay…I think,” she answered, her breathing shaky as she tried to unbuckle her seat belt with trembling hands. “We need to get out of here.”
Kyle tore at his seat belt until he managed to remove it. “What about the flight attendant and the pilots?”
“You check on her, I’ll go for them,” Ava said as she rose on shaky legs.
Kyle nodded, and they went in separate directions. Ava made her way to the crumpled front of the plane, pulling open the broken cockpit door. She found both pilots slumped over the controls.
A quick check of their pulses revealed neither made it through the crash. Ava shook her head before she twisted around to find Kyle behind her. “She’s gone, and we need to get out of here. There’s a fuel leak.”
Ava’s heart skipped a beat as she swallowed hard. This plane was a ticking time bomb—and time was running out.
CHAPTER 17
ALEX
Alex’s heart dropped as he watched the feed from Ava’s pearl cam continue to jitter wildly. The pilots had warned them to put their seat belts on and brace for impact.
His heart rose into his throat as the lights on the plane flickered before returning to life.
“Ava,” he whispered, his voice hoarse.
The camera turned dark as she leaned forward, placing her head in her lap as they prepared.
“Don’t panic,” Sebastian said. “These pilots are highly trained. They can–”
A sob escaped from Ava, stopping Sebastian’s voice.
The next words that came from Alex’s laptop speakers send this heart and his heart monitor into overdrive.
“Impact in three, two—” The pilot’s voice cut off abruptly, leaving only a deafening silence before the speakers filled with a horrible, metallic screech.
The camera blurred, shaking violently as the plane plummeted, the world spinning out of control. Alex’s heart hammered against his ribs, each second stretching painfully as he waited for something—anything.
And then, a sudden, gut-wrenching crash. The sound of metal tearing and glass shattering filled the air, followed by the hollow thud of impact.
“Ava,” he whispered, his throat tight. But the camera remained dark.
Alex’s heart raced as he stared at the frozen image on the screen, his lower lip trembling. His mind screamed at him to do something, anything, but there was nothing. No sound, no movement—just the faint pink of her pants where the camera had landed. He clenched his fists, helpless.
"Move, Ava," he whispered, his voice cracking. "Please, just move."
