Suddenly, the skin crawled on the back of his neck and he turned.Nearby, a child was crying.A teenager was on a cell phone.A weary traveler had given in to exhaustion and was sound asleep, his head lolling, his mouth slack as every now and then a slight snore escaped.The attendant at the check-in desk was on the phone.Nothing out of the ordinary.Nothing to warrant the gut-wrenching instinct he’d had that he was about to be attacked.
He glanced up at the monitor and sighed, then out of curiosity, back at the attendant.But when her expression suddenly froze and he saw her look up in fright, the same sensation came over him again, this time pulling a kink in the knot already present in his belly.
Easy.It doesn’t mean a thing.
Down the broad walkway, a small hom honked three times in succession.“Coming through.Coming through.”
His focus shifted to the electric cart coming down the terminal.It stopped in front of the attendant’s desk as she ran out from behind the counter.When she handed the driver a computer printout, the other man grimaced and wiped a hand across his face.Ryder stared as they scanned the list together.When the driver lifted his head and began to scan the waiting area, Ryder knew.He didn’t know how, but he knew.
He started walking—past the crying child, past the teenager on the cell phone, past the sleeping traveler.He came to a halt directly in front of the cart and didn’t wait for permission to interrupt.
“What happened?”
Both men looked up at him at once.But it was the glance they shared before one of them spoke that nearly sent Ryder to his knees.He’d been right.Something was worse than wrong.
“I’m sorry, sir?Were you speaking to us?”the driver asked.
Ryder leaned forward and pointed to the readout.“Don’t play games.”
Before either one of them could answer, an announcement came over the loudspeaker.
“All those waiting for information regarding the arrival of Flight 209 out of Chicago, please go to the VIP lounge in the west wing.”
Ryder stared into the eyes of the man behind the wheel and felt the ground coming up to hit him in the face.He leaned forward, steadying himself on the cart.
“Are you all right?”the man asked.
Ryder took a deep breath and lifted his head.“Should I be?”
The man looked away.
Ryder’s voice died on a prayer.“Oh, God… no.”
“Sir, you need to go to the VIP lounge in—”
“I heard,” he said shortly, and walked away, following the small crowd of people who were making their way down the terminal.A few looked nervous, aware that the request was unorthodox.Some merely followed directions—like cattle on their way to a slaughter.
An official from the airline was waiting for them inside the door.And Ryder stood with the crowd, listening to the end of his world and wondering how a man was supposed to live with so damned much regret.
“We’re sorry to inform you that Flight 209 has crashed in a cornfield just outside the Illinois border.”
A few started to cry.Others stood, like Ryder, waiting for the miracle that would pronounce their loved ones okay.
“At this point, we don’t know why this has happened, but there have been eyewitness reports that lead us to believe the plane might have been struck by lightning.We do know it was on fire when it went down.”
Someone’s perfume was too strong.The cloying scent drifted up Ryder’s nostrils.From this day on, he would hate the smell of musk.A woman shrieked and sank to the floor while a man somewhere behind Ryder started to curse.
“On behalf of our airline, I am very sorry to have to tell you…”
Ryder tilted his chin and closed his eyes, waiting for the blow.
“…there were no survivors.”
The wail that spread across the room began as a joint groan of disbelief.Ryder covered his face and then wished he’d covered his ears, instead.Maybe if he hadn’t heard it, it wouldn’t be true.
They were saying something about a passenger list and a verification of names, but he couldn’t stand still.He knew if he didn’t get out, he was going to come undone.He burst out of the lounge, even as someone was calling him back, and started the long walk back down the terminal.
One step at a time.That’s how he would get out of the airport.But how would he get home?How could he face that apartment without Casey?
