“Good, so I can use you and make love to you every night.” John said, and then laughed.
“I’m not sure who will be using who. I want you all the time, and you should know that by now.”
Taking her in his arms, he kissed her and whispered, “And, I want you, as well. I’m glad you said yes, so I won’t have to break in a new woman.” he said and broke out laughing.
“Come on, let’s go eat. Very funny, a new girl.” She started laughing as well.
The dining facility was full, but a Sergeant neared and said, “If you’ll come with me, General, I’ll seat you at the best table in the house.”
Joy and John followed and were soon seated back by the milk dispensers. They had a table cloth and cloth napkins. A special General’s menu was handed to John, who looked it over and handed it back to the Sergeant.
“We’ll eat what the troops are eating and in the future, that will always be our order.” John said, with a slight touch of anger in his voice.
“I understand, and your food will be served right away, sir.”
When the Sergeant left John said, “When this war started, I promised myself that I would only eat what my men and women ate. I am not better than them just because I outrank them.”
“I knew the minute the menu was handed to you it was a waste of time.” Joy replied, smiled, and added, “That’s why I love you.”
John leaned forward and kissed her chin.
The meal consisted of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, gravy, and green beans. After living on MREs and rations from other nations, the freshly cooked American meal was appreciated by the soon to be General officer and his guest.
“John, why did they have you dress as a General a couple of months back and then make you revert back to a Colonel?” Joy spoke during the meal.
“It used to be if you were selected for promotion you could dress for your promotion by slowly changing your rank on your clothing until you were ready for the actual pin on day. In other words, before, I could wear my promotion a few months before I legally pinned it on, as I waited for the pin on day. My job would stay the same and my pay wouldn’t change either, not until I pinned the star on. They no longer allow folks to wear the promotion until the appointed pin on day, so I went back to dressing as a Colonel for a few months. It’s not a big deal.”
“I understand now. When will you leave for Paris?”
“Next Monday, and we’ll fly from here to New York where we’ll board an Air France aircraft and fly to Europe. Between now and then, I have to go to Dallas-Fort Worth for training on how to talk with Russians. Then, off to France.”
“That’s why it will be dangerous? I mean the Russians control New York.”
“No, but after we land in Paris it will become dangerous, because Russian companies are getting rich in this war. I understand they have hits out on the American and Russian representatives of the peace talks. The Russians in New York won’t bother us because they have orders from Moscow to make sure this meeting happens.”
“Will we be armed?” she asked, looking over the rim of her water glass.
“I’ve not asked, but we will be. It’s better to plead ignorance after a fight than to be told no before a fight and be killed. We will not be there if we can’t be armed. They are sending three representatives and each of us will have a squad of special operation agents assigned to maintain security, but I only trust myself.”
“That makes sense. What are our odds of getting a peaceful solution from this mess?”
“I think the odds are better than normal because the Russian people want out and right now. Remember, the people are calling the shots. Each night they are having violent riots that destroy businesses, get people killed or injured, and costing the Russians small fortunes in cop wages and destroying small businesses.” John said, and then wiped his mouth off with a napkin.
“I know nothing about politics or politicians. I do know if they served in the military, we’d surely have fewer wars.”
“The General is trying to get me to enter politics after peace comes to America.”
“Well?”
“I told him I’d think about it but he seems to think I’d do well.”
“I do too, but remember, you are a hero and once they pin the Medal of Honor on you, you will belong to America and her people.”
"I need no medal to remind me I killed hundreds of thousands of folks with a suitcase nuke, and I’m still killing Russians today and causing birth defects. Killing is a serious business and while it was war, not all killing is equal.”
“I don’t think the dead would agree with you. Dead is dead, no matter how you die.”
She spoke with her fork accenting the important parts of her conversation. John almost laughed, but didn’t. Using her fork to stab the air when stressing key words, she reminded him of his mother, God rest her soul.
Soon the simple meal was over and he pulled a flask out and poured two doubles in the water glasses and they toasted to a safe trip. They then stood, and he pulled her chair out and said, “Let’s get back to the room. We need a shower and some down time just for us. Tomorrow we head off to learn how to talk Russian and understand the Russian mind. That's only a day trip."
Joy gave him a smile and said, “You wash my back and I’ll wash yours. I'll go where you go.”
Monday morning at 0400 the two of them were in a jet preparing to land in New York City. The day long instruction on how to talk with Russians had taught them little, but they'd gone to the training. Both were armed and a little tense about landing in a Russian stronghold. The Governor of New York had quickly surrendered to the Russian army because they’d left him in charge, only they gave the orders. In Texas, before they boarded, customs had asked them both about their sidearms, but they’d presented diplomatic passports and were passed through.
Little did they know but others on this flight used the same American passports to retain their guns as well, and they belonged to the New World Order and were under contract to kill John and Joy. Once airborne the three intended to take the aircraft under their control and kill those on their lists. Once near France, they’d fly lower and leave the aircraft by parachutes, which had been stored in the cargo hold department below the passengers section. They were three life long members of ISIS and ready to give their lives for Allah, if needed.
Joy leaned over and whispered to John a couple of minutes before the aircraft took off, “John, those three men with the Arab looks, I think they are planning something. Now, I’ll admit, it might just be me, but I don’t think so. They were whispering just a few minutes ago.”
“Like you are whispering to me now? Relax, I don’t think anything will happen and besides, you are armed. But, just in case you are correct, I’m going to take my pistol off safety for the flight.” John said, and then reached for his holster and did just that. He wore an under arm holster so his coat covered the fact he was packing a weapon.
The aircraft suddenly started down the runway, gathering up speed as the seconds ticked off and a minute or two later the wheels were heard slipping into their wheel wells and the tires gave a loud thump as they locked into place.
Minutes later the aircraft leveled off and the pilot came on to say, “Ladies and gentlemen, I am Alan Bardet, your Captain, and I’d like to thank you for flying Air France and hope you will use our services again when you return to the United States. We are at our cruising altitude of 26,000 feet and we’ll meet our cruising speed of 500 knots in a couple of minutes. Stewards, you may begin serving drinks. All drinks, including alcohol drinks are free as long as they last. If you need assistance, let one of our beautiful ladies or handsome lads know. Once again, thank your for flying with us. Remember Air France for all of your travel needs. Everyone to their stations.”
The women began rolling metal containers down the aisles passing out drinks. John got a whiskey and Joy had a beer. As he sipped his drink, he wondered what the future held for America. He knew and fully unders
tood there might be a Civil War or uprisings over how the country should be run. They were now a mixture of Communists, traditional Democrats, New Age Left, and Constitutional Conservatives, moderate Conservatives and more. He knew if the Communists took over it would mean years of more war. He and millions of other patriots had no use for Communism and he knew he’d fight them. They went against everything he loved about America.
“Ma’am, can I get you to move forward to first class and sit in one of the empty chairs? I need most of the weight to the front.”
“Sure,” Joy said, “I’ll move.” She then met John’s eyes and shrugged.
He glanced at the two men seated behind them and noticed they appeared nervous. Both were rail thin and looked tired, but that was the new normal for most people. Just staying alive took all the energy and strength a person had and then there was little to eat. He saw danger in their shifty eyes, but most people were dangerous these days too.
America had once been the most obese country in the world, but no more. It was rare to find anyone that weighed more than 150 pounds, regardless of their height. John watched the two men whispering to each other. Their talk was none of his business, unless they turned mean. If they caused trouble, he’d stay out of it, unless it involved him, then he’d put a stop to it and quickly.
The stewardess moved to the rear of the plane and continued to serve her drinks. The two men waited until she passed them and then they both stood. The taller of the two, maybe six feet and two inches tall, grabbed the woman and pulled out a pistol.
He held the barrel against her head as he yelled, “This is a hijacking and we’re taking over this aircraft. No fast moves or you will be killed!”
The other man chose to speak at this time as well, “I need access to the cockpit of the plane and now.” When no one moved, he screamed, “I need the head steward to come forward and get me in the cockpit or people will start to die!”
A tall and beautiful blond woman of middle age moved forward and said, “I’m in charge here and I can help you.”
“Knock on the door and tell them to open up, you need to talk to the captain. Hurry, I need in there now.”
“And if I say no?”
“Then I will kill five people at random.”
“I’ll do it, but hurt no one, okay?”
“I will hurt no one, now, but I cannot promise later I will not kill.”She moved forward and rapped on the door.
“What do you want?” a male voice asked.
“I need to come in and,” She said and then quickly changed, “Don’t open the door, we’ve been hijack—”
The sound of the pistol shot was loud and the blonde woman fell to the floor, half her head missing.
The aircraft made a sudden vicious dive as the Captain attempted to get them lower than 10,000 feet, so they’d not have a rapid decompress if the terrorists shot holes in the cabin. Also, under that height oxygen was not needed.
As soon as the plane leveled out, the killer of the woman walked down the aisle shooting people at random. After killing six, he stopped and screamed. His anger at not getting in the cockpit was obvious. When he passed John, his pistol still smoking, the partisan stood and placed three rounds in the man’s back. He then shifted a little and fired twice at the other terrorist, but missed with the shots.
The last man was seen trying to clear a jammed cartridge as John ran for him. When he neared, he struck the man on the side of the head with his pistol, knocking him to the floor of the aircraft. The struck man collapsed, but maintained consciousness and fired one round that struck John in the upper chest, in his shoulder. Knocked back by the impact of the bullet, the partisan fired twice, with both bullets striking the terrorist in the middle of his chest. The terrorist noticed his mind wanted to fight back but when his mind told his body to fire back at John, his body refused to act. Slowly the light in the cabin got gradually darker until it went black as he died. Feeling movement around him, John noticed some of the male passengers were near to help, but the fight was over.
It was then a fat man seated up front stood and said, “Do not move, or I will blow all of us to hell and back.” All could see dynamite taped to his chest and he held a detonation button in his left hand. “If my thumb is removed from this switch, the bomb will explode.”
Behind the man, John could see Joy slowly standing.
He decided to speak to the man and keep him busy as Joy made her move.
“Why do you want to take over the aircraft?” John asked the man.
“For the glory of Allah and for my people, for Islam.”
"Your two friends are dead. Do you wish to die as well?”
“My life means nothing, but glory to God is the key to a rich afterlife in heaven.” Joy was right behind the man now and she suddenly grabbed for his hand holding the button as she fired three rounds through the man’s body. One round pierced his heart and he was dead in a heartbeat. Joy’s fingers slipped from the hold she had on his hand, but there was no explosion.
Another woman screamed as one of the bullets struck her husband in the face, blowing the back of his head off as the bullet exited. It then struck an empty seat behind him and lodged there.
Women screamed and men covered their heads as all expected the bomb to go off.
The dead man fell to the floor.
“Anyone else on here that wants to take over this airplane?” John yelled.
Silence.
“Stop the screaming, and we need to get rid of the explosives. I need a stewardess to call the Captain and tell him the hijacking is over. Tell him we need to dump about a dozen sticks of TNT out a window or door.”
A slim women with auburn hair picked up the intercom and spoke with the pilot. She hung up and said, “The only windows that can be opened and closed are in the cockpit. If you give them the bomb, they’ll throw it out a window.”
Pulling his knife, John cut the vest from the dead man and then, very slowly, he removed the vest and carried it to the cockpit door. He waited, sweating, for the door to open. Finally, it slowly opened and out stepped the engineer. He took the bomb, re-entered the cockpit and handed it to the pilot. John entered behind the man.
The pilot coolly opened a side window by sliding it back and then tossed the bomb out. About three seconds later the discarded bomb exploded, knocking holes in the left wing, now allowing fuel to leak.
“Hello, tower. This is aircraft zero, niner, niner, seven, three, eight, in flight from Fort Worth, Texas to Paris, France. We just had an attempted hijacking and our aircraft has sustained damage from a bomb.”
“Uh, what is the extent of your damages, over?”
“Full extent of damage is unknown but we are losing fuel from our number one fuel tank and do not have enough to reach Paris.”
“Understand. Wait one as I find you an alternate landing spot.”
“Copy, and will do.”
Minutes passed, but finally the tower said, “Closest air base is Greenland but their runway is too small to handle you. The next best is Dublin and it can take you as is.”
“Copy, tower and Dublin it is.”
The co-pilot then tapped the pilot on the right arm and pointed at a fire warning light.
“Tower, my left engine fire light is on now and I’m going to have to set this plane down on the nearest land mass, because I have no options.”
“Roger, and understand. The runway in Greenland is about 500 meters too short for a safe landing and while I’m sure you can land there, they may never get the aircraft off the ground once you touch down.”
“I’m not particularly worried about take off, just landing. Take off is not my problem.”
“Roger, wait one as I get your heading and other information for Greenland.” “Copy.”
“I’m going back to my seat.” John said and left the cockpit.
When he entered the main cabin, everyone clapped and hooted as he took a seat. They knew he’d saved them all and while not feeling like a hero, he
was one to the people in the seats. Like most folks, they only fought when cornered and had no desire to start a fight. John and Joy did what it took to stay alive.
An hour later the pilot came on the intercom and said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, due to mechanical issues we will be landing in Greenland in approximately fifteen minutes. The landing might be rough, so expect somewhat of a different landing than usual. Once we have come to a complete stop, follow the orders of my ladies back there and evacuate the aircraft as smoothly as possible. Once on the ground, you can make further travel arrangements from there.”
John stood and walked to an empty seat beside Joy. He then asked, “You scared?”
“Concerned a little but not really scared. I wonder why the landing will be rougher than usual?”
“I overheard them in the cockpit say the runway is 500 meters too short. My guess is they’ll land and then stand on the brakes.”
“Fine with me. I’m not sure what our damages are, but the bomb caused some.”
“I heard we are losing fuel freely from the left fuel tank and we didn’t have enough fuel to make it to London, so Greenland it is. I also heard there was fire in the fuel, but the Captain pushed the agent discharge button which floods the fire area with foam. I suspect it’s out now or we would have exploded by now.”
“You’re just great to talk with during an emergency, do you know that?”
Grinning, John said, “Hey, just telling what I know, and I’ll hide nothing from you about this, okay?”
“The fasten seat belt sign is on.” Joy said and the kissed John on the nose and said, “If the worst should happen, know I love you.”
“We’ll be fine.” John said, but he didn’t really believe it and Joy sensed his doubt.
“Flaps are moving and the ground is near, so we’ll land in just a few seconds.” she said, and took John's hand in hers.
It was then the wheels gave a loud screech as they touched the concrete runway. The engines were quickly reversed and the pilot pumped the brakes to slow them down. A great shudder came over the aircraft as it bounced and jumped attempting to slow down.
The Fall of America | Book 10 | No Winners Page 5