Chapter One
Bryn
Her mother chased her down the street, anger rolling off her like waves of energy.
“You ungrateful little bitch! How could you just up and leave your sister like this?”
“Like what?” came the retort. “She moved out; she’s on her own. She’s an adult and doesn’t need me anymore, not that she’s ever wanted me around.” She knew her words were wasted but she had to say them. “When is it my turn to have a life?”
Loud raucous laughter rang in her ears. Her mother’s face was mottled red and held no humor. “Who said you could even have one?”
“You’ve never loved me, never. Why, Mom? Why do you hate me so much? Why can’t you love me like you do my sister?”
Pain ripped through her heart and she felt the tears burning to fall.
Bryn Matsen jolted awake, even as her mother’s laugh still echoed in her head. The seatbelt sign dinged overhead just before the airplane dipped slightly as it was buffeted by the wind. While grateful to have been jostled from her dream, she subconsciously tightened her already-fastened seat belt.
What good will this even do if the plane crashes?
She gripped the armrests so hard her knuckles turned white beneath the reading light. She wanted to turn the light offbut was afraid that if she reached up, she might grab the man sitting next to her if the plane bucked again.
Her thumb automatically reached for the ring she wore on her middle finger. She had found it at a thrift store as if it had called to her. A simple, dainty band with a tiny intricate dragon embossed in the silver, with sapphire chips for eyes. While it wasn’t her usual thing, something had drawn her to it and convinced her she would be safe as long as she wore it. At least that’s what she had convinced herself. Now she prayed to the mother of all dragons to keep her protected.
Her seatmate glanced at her ring and then at her. He was handsome enough and she read the question in his eyes as his gaze moved back to the ring, but before she could say anything, the plane slammed on another… another what? Wind wall? What the hell made the plane slam around?
Bryn hated turbulence and the lack of any control over the situation. She forgot about the guy and closed her eyes again. She forced herself to breathe in through her nose, out through her mouth.
If the oxygen mask falls, place your own over your head and face before helping your neighbor.Would she even remember to help anyone else if the mask suddenly dangled in her face?
Her annoying thoughts didn’t help the situation.
The hum of the engines buzzed through her muffled head. Another side effect of flying. As a rule, she knew not to start a conversation with a fellow passenger. She wouldn’t be able to hear them anyhow. The buzz grew louder as the grip of panic squeezed the air from her lungs.
All around her, the other passengers seemed oblivious to her mounting angst. The man next to her had forgotten about her and seemed deeply engrossed in a movie on his seat-back screen. A little girl across the aisle giggled at something hermother said. The flight attendants moved with practiced ease as they prepared for landing, their expressions bored but their smiles never waning. No one else seemed afraid.
But Bryn was. And not just of her current situation.
This was her first time on a plane alone, and her travel wasn’t a round trip for a vacation. It was a one-way endeavor. A clean break. A new start. Maybe not permanently, but at least for the next year or so. A lifetime away from home. From her family.
But now, almost at the beginning of her new life, she felt like she was hurtling into the unknown. And Bryn wasn’t sure she was ready for it.
She looked out the small oval window beside her. The world outside was the solid white of clouds and nothingness. Like every horror movie that involved an airplane.
We could run into another plane and never see it coming. Or a bird. Or a helicopter.The white looked as thick as cotton, and she reached up and slammed down the window shade. Her seatmate glanced at her again, started to say something but apparently changed his mind, and then went right back to his movie.
I hope we land and you miss the last ten minutes.Snarky maybe, but it made her feel a tad better. All the bravado she had felt when she boarded was long gone. She was ready to be off the metal bird, and she scrolled through her own television monitor to distract herself before she hyperventilated.
Another jolt made her stomach lurch. She pressed her head back into the seat and tried to remember what the pilot had said during takeoff. Something about mild turbulence expected when they neared mountains. Normal. Routine. Nothing to worry about.
So why did it feel like the entire plane could fall out of the sky at any moment?
An announcement pinged overhead and the pilot said something about beginning their descent in about fifteen minutes. Bryn sighed and reached into her purse and pulled out the journal her sister had given her as a going-away gift.
Randi.
The one person that she would miss, regardless of their tumultuous relationship. Several years younger than herself, Bryn had raised her when her parents had decided their careers were more important and basically left them on their own.
Her baby sister was the one who tried to straighten out the messes with her parents which usually made them worse. Most of the time, Randi had caused the messes in the first place that Bryn was being blamed for. While she always seemed apologetic, Randi had never seemed to be able to prevent herself from creating the next one.
