So, if Wendy had that piece of knowledge, that meant she had access to information at the top echelon of ComQuest.
Exactly how did Wendy know about me?
As I pondered that strange turn of developments, Wendy signaled the copilot to use his foot and slide Cezar’s gun the rest of the way to her. The pilot slid forward in his seat and stretched out his foot, but instead of kicking the gun, his hand released his belt and he leaped up and charged her.
She managed to get two shots off before the copilot was almost upon her. He kept on moving. Cezar charged into the aisle behind him. The copilot landed against Wendy, slamming her hard into the cockpit door, and then falling to the floor with her. I saw the two struggle with the gun in her hand. Another shot fired off before Cezar joined the pile.
Holy shots on a plane!
I pulled Basia under the table, trying to make us as small a target as possible. Finn and Oliver jumped in to help the copilot. Wendy must have hung onto the gun for a few more seconds, because another shot rang out.
A million thoughts ran through my head. First and foremost was that someone was shooting a gun on a plane. What the heck? Didn’t anyone get the memo about not doing that ever? Holes in an airplane fuselage were not a good thing at forty-some thousand feet.
When the shooting and yelling had subsided, I heard Finn call for help. I crawled out and headed toward the front. Wendy was pinned to the ground with Cezar on top of her. The copilot had rolled to one side, moaning and clutching his abdomen. Finn knelt beside him. I gave a sigh of relief when I saw Finn appeared uninjured.
The cabin seemed a bit hazy. Oxygen masks dropped above my head and dangled on clear tubing. Jeez, we were losing air. I didn’t know how many shots had pierced the hull, but I calculated we had about ten seconds to grab a mask or pass out.
“Get on oxygen fast,” I yelled out.
Finn grabbed the copilot under his arms and dragged him back to a seat. Blood covered his white shirt. Finn put a dangling mask over his face before securing one on the copilot. The plane’s nose pitched down. My feet felt strangely light and I had trouble keeping them on the floor. We were rapidly descending.
Oliver and Cezar wrestled Wendy out of sight into the private crew seat. Until the captain made it to fourteen thousand feet or so, we wouldn’t be able to move freely.
“Lexi, the copilot is wounded,” Finn shouted, his voice sounding funny behind the plastic mask. “Find something to help stop the bleeding.”
I was able to stretch my length of oxygen tubing enough to reach the galley drawer where I’d seen Amanda, on the leg to Hawaii, grab linen dinner napkins. I grabbed a wad and stretched up to the sofa where I traded for a new oxygen mask. Eventually, I reached the copilot by exchanging masks until I kneeled down next to him.
I pulled his hand away, taking a look at the injury. He groaned and writhed as I pressed the cloths against his bloody abdomen. I swallowed hard. I’m not particularly squeamish, but it didn’t look good. He’d been hit on the right side, where the kidney, liver and pancreas were located. There was blood on my hands and on the floor beneath him. He moaned again, then passed out.
Finn patted my hand on top of the linens. “Keep it there. I have to figure out how to get to the cockpit.” He secured Cezar’s gun from the floor and tucked it in at his waist.
I watched him, feeling a twinge of guilt that he’d come along with me, even if I’d tried to dissuade him. Slash was right. My mom was right. Trouble followed me like a stalker.
I heard a banging on the cockpit door and shifted to look toward the front. Cezar had a portable oxygen unit the crew used and was trying to open the door. Unfortunately for all of us, it was locked and he was making exactly zero headway.
“That’s no good.” Oliver spoke sharply to Cezar from the crew compartment where he’d secured Wendy. “We can’t break down the door. What good would it do anyway?” He looked out of the little compartment back at the rest of us. “No one else can fly the plane. Right?”
We all, in our funny little masks, looked at each other and then the copilot. I kept holding firm pressure to his abdomen, but the cloths I had brought had completely soaked through.
Cezar held up a gun, probably Wendy’s. “They were in it together.” He pointed to Wendy, tucked away in the crew seat. “The flight crew changed in Hawaii. That’s where they came on. But how could that happen? We reviewed their bios in detail.”
“No time now to figure out where things went wrong.” Oliver tucked his own gun, which he’d retrieved from Wendy, back in his holster and signaled Cezar to hand hers over. Cezar gave it to Oliver, who checked the magazine before shoving it back in place. “Six rounds left.” He tucked it behind his waist.
Whether from the shortage of oxygen or the rollercoaster drop, my brain spun into overdrive. Something totally bugged me about this situation. How had our tight level of security been breached?
I wanted to voice my concerns, but events were unfolding too rapidly around me.
“What’s the plan?” Finn asked Oliver.
“I’m working on it.”
I peered out the window. The pilot was steadily descending. Sunrise must be near, because the sky had lightened enough to dim the stars. Below, I could no longer see whitecaps from the waves reflecting starlight. Instead, it was shadowy and rough. We flew over land. “Do we know where we are?”
Finn shook his head. “All I know for certain is the pilot diverted from our path to Jakarta. That’s what I was discussing with the copilot before he was shot.”
Cezar, who had moved to check on the copilot, pressed his face against the window. “Looks like we’re heading over jungle. Certainly not near a city or town. All I see are mountains and a lot of green.”
“Here.” Finn handed Cezar his gun.
Cezar tucked it back into his holster. “So, where did the copilot say we’re headed?”
“Port Moresby.”
“Guys, what’s that over there?” Basia interrupted.
I squinted into the sky and saw the flash of navigation lights. “Holy cow. It’s another plane. Coming right toward us.”
Finn cupped his hand against the window and watched. “No, not coming at us. Coming alongside us.”
“OMG! I can see the people inside,” Basia said after a minute. “Who are they?”
Finn shook his head. “I don’t know, but they’re shadowing us.”
“Maybe they’ll help.” She sounded hopeful.
I hated to be the voice of doom, but I didn’t think a plane that had appeared out of nowhere, at exactly the time of the hijacking, was there to help us. It wasn’t statistically feasible.
“I’m sorry, Basia, but I sincerely doubt that’s their intention.”
“Are you saying those are bad guys, too?”
“My vote is yes. I presume they’re following us to wherever the pilot intends to land this plane.”
“Would be nice to know who they were working for.” Finn’s voice was low and hard.
“It’s a Chinese registered aircraft.” Cezar pointed out the window. “See that B followed by numbers near the tail? I used to work protection for a guy that repossessed aircraft from around the world, and that’s how they were identified”
I considered it significant that there was a Chinese connection again. “That might account for the Asian guys that attacked me twice.”
Cezar nodded as rays of morning light made a nice crown on the horizon. “We were warned that the Chinese have been hacking the company’s system for the past six months. They couldn’t get through. The Zimmerman twins apparently gave the tech guys some solid ways to keep them out.”
No surprise there. “I guess they had to find another way to get the knowledge,” I said.
“I guess they did.” Oliver spoke the words, but his tone was wrong.
We all turned away from the window.
Oliver had released Wendy. This time they both stood, holding weapons pointed at us.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The pieces fell into place. The detailed information about our flight plan, the ability to put whomever he wanted on the plane, the knowledge that the case was wired to my biometrics—Oliver had known it all. Only someone at the very top could have pulled this off.
All wasn’t lost, however. They could steal the case, but it would be useless without the code. The bad news was that we were all going to bite the dust now that we knew Oliver was a traitor. I was pretty sure he wouldn’t let any of us live after learning of his participation in the hijacking, not to mention murder charges if the copilot didn’t survive.
Oliver motioned at Cezar. “Face down on the couch. Arms out and palms up.”
Cezar grumbled but complied. Oliver worked his way toward Cezar, having to ditch one mask and secure another. When he reached Cezar the first thing he did was extract the gun from Cezar’s holster. He then zip-tied Cezar’s hands together behind his back. Next he pulled an oxygen mask down and switched it with the portable one Cezar wore. Great. Now Oliver had even more mobility.
Wendy kept a close watch on Finn. She looked like someone had clocked her good. Her eyes were still glassy and she had a massive bruise building on her cheek. I didn’t feel one bit sorry for her.
Oliver patted Cezar down and came up with another pistol, a switchblade and a set of brass knuckles.
Holy gangster. Apparently Cezar been prepared for every occasion...except a betrayal from his boss.
As an extra precaution, Oliver tied Cezar’s feet together and handcuffed him to the couch. I couldn’t see how we would get any assistance from him now.
The copilot started to moan and come around.
“We have to help him,” Basia said to Oliver. “He’s going to die.” She rose from her seat.
“Really, half-pint? You a nurse or something?”
“No, simply a lot more human than you are.”
“Sass won’t get you anywhere. Park that skinny butt back in your seat.”
Basia glared at him. She might be petite, but she detested when people underestimated her.
“We’ll get him assistance when we land,” Oliver said. “No one was supposed to get hurt. He made a stupid decision to rush Wendy.”
Cezar grunted. “No. He made a calculated decision to fight for his life.” He pulled against his restraints. “How can you do this, Oliver? I thought you were my friend. Now you’re selling out to the Chinese? It goes against everything you stand for.”
Oliver shrugged. “I stand for making eight million dollars. Shut up.”
During Cezar’s trussing, Wendy had worked her way well into the cabin area. She pointed her gun at me. “Give me the case. Now.”
I didn’t have to ask which case she meant. I pointed at the cubby in the credenza. Oliver snatched it and handed it over to her. She tucked the titanium case into a black sports bag with the carry strap slung over her neck and one shoulder.
After she zipped it shut, she motioned at Finn. “You. Join the two ladies and belt in. Now.”
Finn tossed aside his mask and moved back to their table. He donned a new mask and then folded up a leaf of the table on the side next to me so he could drop into a seat.
“Wait.” She pointed at me. “You sit on the aisle. He goes in the seat by the window.”
I rose and played musical seats with a scowling Finn. We buckled in again. A quick peek out the window indicated we’d dropped closer to the jungle. I suspected the pilot was nearing ten thousand feet and we no longer needed the oxygen.
Wendy stood guard while Oliver headed to the cockpit. He gave a series of complicated knocks. It seemed like forever and no one opened up. A sickening fear hit my gut. Was the pilot okay?
The door finally opened. Oliver caught the pilot as he nearly dropped into his arms. Holy crap. He’d been shot.
Oliver helped the captain back to the pilot’s seat. We sat too far away to hear any discussion, but Oliver returned minus his mask, looking pale and distraught. He did a quick check on the copilot and then approached Wendy. “We’ve got a problem.”
“What’s wrong?”
“The pilot has been hit. One of the bullets penetrated the cockpit. We’re damn lucky it didn’t kill him. He’s bleeding badly. He’s managed to hold the course so far, but he’s pretty sure he’s minutes from passing out.”
“What?” Wendy looked horrified. “I thought the doors were impenetrable to bullets.”
“Are you crazy? A plane couldn’t lift off with that kind of weight. They are reinforced, but a bullet will still go through.”
“Oh, God.”
“The pilot says we have to put down now. He’s not going to make it to Port Moresby.”
“Isn’t Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea?” I whispered to Finn.
“Yes. That’s what I asked the copilot about when I noticed our flight path was off. He thought it was a planned stop on our way to Jakarta.”
Great. The captain had literally led him astray.
Wendy looked out the window into the dawning new day. “Is there an airport before Port Moresby? I don’t see anything out there but jungle and mountains. Not even a road.”
“He’s looking for something suitable for us to land on.”
“How suitable?” For a totally cold-hearted woman, her voice sounded a tad panicked. “Maybe we can get the copilot awake.”
Oliver shook his head. “He’s near death, thanks to you.”
“He attacked me.”
“You should have stuck with the plan. We agreed no one would get hurt.”
“It happened so fast. I didn’t think he’d be that stupid.”
“Water under the bridge now. I’ve got to get back to the cockpit.”
“Wait. Did you relay the information to them?” She jerked her head toward the other plane which, as far as I could see, was still matching us in speed and pace.”
“Of course.” He held up a walkie-talkie. “There’s nothing they can do at this point except track us. According to the pilot in the other plane, there may be an abandoned logging road ahead. He has no idea how long or straight the road is, but he says it’s our best chance. He’s sent over the coordinates and our pilot has programmed them in and is headed that way. He thinks he can make it, but it’s going to be a rough landing no matter how you look at it.”
Wendy looked at him in incredulous disbelief. “You have got to be kidding me. A logging road?”
Horror swept through me. I was totally with Wendy. Landing a plane on a logging road in the middle of a jungle surely was right at the top of the official pilot’s manual of something never to do in an airplane. It certainly topped my list of things never to do in my lifetime.
“It’s better than nothing.” Oliver’s expression was grim. “The good news is no one else will know where we are. The pilot reported his last position as nowhere near our current position.”
“What about radar?”
“There isn’t any out over the ocean. Transponders are useless there. So, all we have to do is land. Shi will make note of our coordinates and come back with a helicopter to extract us out of this hellhole.”
“This can’t be happening.” Wendy had paled considerably. “What if the pilot passes out before we land?”
“He won’t. I’m going to go help him stay awake.”
Short of a blood transfusion, I didn’t see what else could possibly keep him from dropping into unconsciousness. No matter which way I looked at it, we were totally screwed.
Wendy still looked at Oliver as if he could get us out of this. “Do you know how to fly a plane?”
“No.” Oliver s
hook his head. “But I’ll have him show me the basics, just in case. I’m a quick learner. By the way, we’re low enough now you don’t need the masks.”
Wendy yanked hers off. “You’d better not mess this up, DeWitt. There’s a lot of money at stake.”
He didn’t answer her and returned to the cockpit, slamming the door shut. We removed our oxygen masks, too. Basia started to shake beside me. The copilot moaned louder from his seat. I wanted to check on him, but Wendy’s glare indicated that wouldn’t be happening soon.
“If we’re going to crash land, I need to get this table folded down.” Finn eyed Wendy and rose slowly to reach across toward Basia. She helped him get her side of the table released and dropped into place. He gave Basia’s hand a squeeze before he sat back in his seat next to mine. He reached over and took my hand. I leaned forward and Basia reached her hand across to me. The three of us sat there holding hands and squeezing hard, as if willing ourselves to stay calm.
Wendy pointed at me. “You. Lexi. Come here.”
“No.” Finn stretched a protective arm across me.
Wendy took aim at his head. “Back off or I’ll shoot. I’ll do it.”
I unbuckled my seatbelt and stood. “It’s okay, Finn. I’ve got this.”
He looked at me for a long moment. I nodded encouragingly at him, so he sat back.
Without taking her eyes off of Finn or me, Wendy unzipped the sports bag and took out the case. She handed it to me. “Open it and press your palm print to the bioscanner.”
“It’s not that simple.”
“Don’t argue. Just do it.”
Sighing, I sat back down and set it on my knees. I opened a thin metal plate set in the lid. Inside was a palm pad. I turned on the power and waited.
The plane took a sharp dip to the left. I nearly dropped the case. My stomach rolled and Wendy staggered to the side. Worriedly she glanced out the window, but the plane straightened and flew on.
She frowned at me. “What are you doing?”
No Room for Error: A Lexi Carmichael Mystery, Book Seven Page 13