“It’s the only trajectory that makes sense,” Dylan continued. “The pilot deliberately took us off course. This crash … and location was planned.”
Beck swore, and when he spun around and I saw his face for the first time, I shrank back. Holy scary motherfucker. I waited for him to bowl me over as he set off in my direction again, but he didn’t. His hands were firm as he lifted me out of the way before he strode past and disappeared back into the cockpit. He emerged a few minutes later with two guns clutched in his hands.
I gulped. “Uh, what do you need those for?”
“This was a setup, and they’re going to make sure they finish the job.”
“Who? Who is going to make sure they finish the job? What job?”
I looked frantically between the four of them, trying to calm my breathing, but with each of their expressions growing grimmer, my panic only increased. “Riley,” Dylan barked, clearly seeing hysterical when it was about to happen. “You need to pull yourself together. We’re not the spoiled rich boys they seem to be expecting. We’re not going to let you get hurt, and we will kill every single person who comes after us.”
“That’s a promise,” Beck added, checking both guns and sliding them into the waistband of his jeans.
For some reason, their calm confidence helped me calm down as well, and I decided that I wouldn’t be a liability to them. Well, not too much of one. Starting at the front of the cabin, I searched through each of the drawers and overhead compartments I could find, gathering together anything I thought was important. I ended up with three fluffy blankets, two medical kits, a few snacks and bottles of water, and a shit-ton of cash. The cash was probably useless, but maybe we could bribe someone in the forest to help us.
There were two duffle bags which held guys’ clothing. Dumping the contents, I found a couple of thick jackets, and a few more snacks, and even more cash. “Riley, we’re moving out now,” Dylan said from where they were still crouched around Jasper. “We can’t stay here … they’ll be coming for us, and we’re not in a good spot to defend ourselves.”
With a nod, I slung both bags over my shoulder and hurried back to them.
“I gathered some supplies,” I said softly, my gaze going straight to a very pale Jasper. He didn’t look good.
“Any painkillers?” he half joked.
Holding a finger up, I dropped one of the bags and riffled through it. “You’re in luck,” I said, pulling out a small bottle, plus the packet Beck had given me earlier.
Dylan smiled at me, and I was pretty sure that was the first time I’d seen a true smile from him. “Thanks, Riley,” he said softly, taking the bottle from me.
He gave Jasper three of the small white pills and some water.
“Put the jacket on,” Evan said, noticing a thick black hood sticking out of the bag. “That’s mine. I’ll be fine.”
He was wearing a thick long sleeved shirt, unlike me, so I decided to take him up on that offer. “Thanks,” I said, slipping my arms in the sleeves before hauling the bags up again.
Beck leaned down then and helped Dylan lift Jasper to his feet. Gone was his cocky arrogance, and in its place was a pale, sweaty guy. “I think you should leave me here,” he bit out. “I’m a fucking liability to you like this.”
“No!” Beck snapped the word with force. “No man left behind. We’ll be fine.”
Jasper shook his head at his friend but didn’t argue. These four were close, and I was starting to really see it, especially in moments where their guard was down. Like right now. There was a true bond there, one which told me they would have each other’s backs no matter what.
“Did you try and call for help?” I had no idea where my phone was, but surely someone had theirs on them.
“No service,” Dylan said. “We’ll have to move toward a more populated area.”
“Is there anything around here like that?”
I had no idea about Canada except that they had a lot of uninhabited land.
“Guess we’re about to find out,” Jasper joked and then groaned as he leaned on Evan. They moved toward the back of the damaged plane. Beck gestured for me to go ahead of him, and I stepped in behind Dylan. On the way, both of them found two more fancy leather bags, and pulled out more warm clothing and other essentials. Apparently I was the only dickhead on this flight without clothes or a coat.
The heavy weight of the duffle bags was lifted from me, and I turned to find Beck with them both over his shoulder. “If you fall behind, you get left behind,” he warned me. “Keep up.”
I bristled, but I was too fucking tired and scared to fight with him, so I just turned around and moved closer to Dylan. I cursed myself for choosing last night of all nights to get wasted. Had I known today I would be in a plane crash followed by a trek through a snowy forest, I’d probably have rethought the alcohol.
The plane had landed in a densely packed part of the forest, and it was clear where we’d smashed through the trees and undergrowth. I almost couldn’t believe how much damage there was in the foliage around us, and it made me shudder all over again thinking about the fact that all of us could be dead right now. If Dylan didn’t know how to fly a plane—and how the fuck did he know that?—then we’d no doubt have landed nose first. Dead. Like my parents.
The pain was more of a dull slash this time, probably because I had some other things to worry about. Nothing like a fight for survival to take your mind off your dead parents.
No one spoke as we moved, and despite Beck’s warning, the pace wasn’t that fast. Jasper was just too injured to move quickly. Dylan stepped up at one point, and slipped Jasper’s other arm over his shoulders. It didn’t work that well because he was so tall, but they sort of figured out a rhythm.
