“Got room for another?” he asked.
“Sure.” Ballard smiled.
“Hey,” Kyle said, “does anybody know the time?”
Cale picked up on what Kyle was up to and played along.
“Five forty-five,” smiled Cale.
“Is that degrees?” Ballard ribbed.
“No. AM,” laughed Kyle.
“Fuck you guys!” said Goose as he stood back up.
“No, no,” Cale urged him, “sit back down. We’re just fucking with you.”
It had become a running joke, and Goose hesitated a moment but decided to stay. Cale quickly dealt him into the game.
“What are we playing?” Goose asked.
“Gin,” Kyle informed him.
“Gin? I thought we were playing Go-Fish,” Cale joked.
“No wonder I keep losing!” laughed Ballard.
“In all honesty,” Cale added. “I have no idea how to play. I’ve just been picking up cards and putting them back down.”
The group laughed.
“I wish they’d have just let us spend the night on the plane,” said Goose.
“I know, right?” Cale agreed.
Despite Kyle and Ballard explaining how to play, Cale continued to throw the game. He could see their mouths moving, but it was as if they were muted. All he could think of was holding his wife and daughter again. Often, he had to be reminded it was his turn. “Momma, I’m Coming Home” played for what seemed like the thousandth time, and everyone began to sing along.
The room fell silent when Blair walked into the terminal. He stopped at the window of gate 21 and looked at the plane that would be the first to fly. All eyes were on him in anticipation, and he turned to the mob that watched him more intensely than the undead.
“You guys get enough sleep?” he laughed.
The room burst into cheers and laughter.
“Sleep is for pussies!” someone yelled.
“Sleep when I’m home!” someone else shouted.
Blair chuckled at the group’s enthusiasm.
“I know it’s only…” Blair stopped to check his watch, “oh-six-hundred, but why don’t you guys start loading up?”
The atmosphere was electric as everyone shouted gleefully and rushed to grab their bags for boarding. Blair smiled as he watched the mad dash. He hurried over to Cale before he missed him. Cale stopped what he was doing and gave Blair his full attention.
“Good morning,” Blair said.
“It certainly is,” Cale beamed.
Around them, the terminal was emptying rapidly.
“I just wanted to thank you for seeing reason,” stated Blair. “I picked you to go with this group because I trust you.”
Cale nodded. “I’ll do as promised, make sure they get set up and what not.”
“Thanks,” smiled Blair.
“The least I could do after everything,” Cale assured him.
“You just make sure you write,” he joked. “We gotta keep in touch.”
Cale laughed.
“Actually, we found an old ham radio. Maybe if you guys found another…” Blair started.
“I got ya,” smiled Cale.
Amanda walked into the terminal and joined them.
“Big day, huh?” she said cheerfully.
“Yep.” Cale smiled.
“Who am I going to nurse back to health now that you’re leaving?” she joked. “I’m gonna miss those blue eyes and our conversations.”
Cale and Blair laughed.
“I’m sorry,” said Cale.
“It’s alright,” Amanda giggled.
The laughter faded as they realized that this was it. This was goodbye. Cale reminded her so much of her brother, and it made her want to cry.
“Just be safe and take care,” she said, as tears welled in her eyes.
She enfolded him in a hug, which he returned.
“I will,” he said.
“You find your girls, and you keep them safe,” she continued. “You protect them, okay?”
“Okay,” Cale whispered hoarsely, as he squeezed her tightly.
She kissed him on the cheek and relinquished her grip on him. Cale reached out to shake hands with Blair, who instead held out his arms for a hug. Cale acquiesced.
“Take care, man,” said Blair.
“If you guys find yourselves Stateside, look me up,” added Cale.
“Definitely,” answered Blair.
The two military pilots stood at the gate, waiting to speak with Blair, so Cale gathered his things and passed by them on his way down the hall to the plane. His heart thumped as he entered the portal to the aircraft. Inside, the optimism was contagious. The passengers laughed and carried on happily. The plane was only being loaded to half its capacity, and Cale walked down the aisle until he found three empty seats in the center row. He put his bag and rifle in the middle seat and sat next to the aisle. Goebel sat by the window in the row to his left. To his right, a Marine he didn’t know sat by the window. Blair and the two pilots boarded the plane, and again everyone began to cheer. The pilots entered the cockpit, and Blair hung back to address the group via the intercom.
“Everyone, take a seat,” he ordered. “Can everyone hear me? Good,” he said not waiting for a reply. “I just want you guys to know that I appreciate everything you’ve done here. You all did as I asked, no questions asked. Regardless of which branch of the military you’re in, I’m proud to have served with you.”
The passengers applauded him. The truth was he’d made it easy to follow him. In a time of uncertainty, he’d taken charge and blazed a path. He’d never asked anyone to do something that he himself wouldn’t do.
“Okay,” he interrupted the applause. “Your in-flight movie is Spider-Man 3,” he joked. “Enjoy your flight home, guys. Get some rest, because your mission isn’t done after you land. You’re a critical piece of the puzzle if we’re ever going to reclaim this planet. Take care,” he said to them.
He waved goodbye as he walked out and closed the plane’s door behind him. The notification tone sounded, and one of the pilots began to speak.
“This is Chief Phares, and I’ll be your captain for this flight. Chief Wagner will be my copilot. We have to run a couple of tests real quick, and we’ll begin our departure in about five minutes,” he explained.
They applauded once more as the end tone chimed. Three Marines in the front row jumped up. One of them went for the phone mounted on the wall, and the others stood in the aisle.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” the Marine said. “We’d like to take this opportunity to point out the exits located on the sides, and at both the front and rear of the plane.”
The Marines in the aisles went about pointing to the sides, then to the front and back of the plane. Laughter followed, but quickly died in order to hear what else the jokesters would say.
“When the captain turns on the seat-belt light, we’d appreciate if you sat your asses down and buckled the fuck in.”
One of the Marines stood there as the other checked the cabinet for the demonstration seat belt. He quickly held it up and demonstrated both the fastening and unfastening functions.
“Where’d you find that?” the idle Marine asked.
He pointed to the cabinet. Now both Marines had props for their demonstration.
“If we lose cabin pressure, the emergency oxygen masks will deploy.”
One Marine dropped it down by its tube as it would normally be demonstrated. The other dropped it on the floor.
“Please place your mask on first, and then assist other passengers.”
The Marine that dropped his mask retrieved it and placed it on his face. He then flipped off the other Marine who was struggling to put his on.
“Fuck you,” his muffled voice said.
Everyone laughed.
The Marine on the intercom continued, “In the event of a water landing, we’re all fucked.”
The passengers erupted into laughter again.
“Your seat cushion can be used as a floatation device, but chances are you won’t be able to fucking find it when the plane goes down in flames,” he joked.
The laughs continued.
“The designated smoking area is located on the portside wing. So if you want to step out there, be my fucking guest. Enjoy your flight, and lets go the fuck home!” he finished.
The three Marines returned to their seats amid applause and laughter. Cale reclined in his seat, and looked up at the fasten seat belt light. This was it. He was going home. He was finally going home. The jet engines roared as the pilots tested them. Soon, the aircraft pulled away from the gate and approached its take off point. The notification for the captain chimed.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve been given the green light to go!” Phares exclaimed. “Our destination is Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. It should be about a seven-hour flight, and the tarmac should be clear.”
A few happy shouts were heard. The engines spooled up, and the plane moved forward, slowly gaining speed. Cale was sucked back into his seat as the plane accelerated, and soon the front began to rise. Cale looked over at Goebel’s window. Outside he could see the terminals of undead zip past. Soon it all dropped from view, and they were airborne. Everyone cheered.
Unexpectedly, the aircraft dropped. Immediately they all fell silent and clutched their seats. The captain’s chimed sounded once more.
“Sorry about that, guys. I did just learn to fly this thing, so bear with me,” Phares joked.
Cale forced a laugh, as did many other passengers.
“Just fucking get us home, and don’t crash it,” he said to himself.
Zach occupied the seat next to him.
“This is it huh?” he stated, “You’re going to make it Stateside.”
Cale nodded. He closed his eyes and tipped his head back. He hated flying. He wasn’t afraid, he just hated the feeling, and he had a seven-hour flight ahead of him. Occasionally the plane shuddered as it hit pockets of turbulence. He retrieved the Ziploc bag with his iPod and ear buds from his cargo pocket, found his playlist, and put the songs on shuffle. From his other cargo pocket, he recovered Zach’s notebook. He turned the item in his hands. The cover had ‘Rite in Rain’ written on it.
“Are you going to try and find her?” asked Zach.
“Of course I am,” Cale whispered. “I made you a promise, and I’m going to keep it.”
He returned the book to his pocket and lay back. Soon he fell asleep and dreamed of what he’d do when he got home.
48.
One Hour Out
Chief Phares’ voice crackled over the intercom, “We’re about an hour out now. Make sure your gear is ready to go. There may be a welcoming committee of infected, so I suggest that team leaders get together and hash out their plans.”
Even though he was half asleep, Cale heard every word. Many of the passengers had already begun to congregate at the front of the plane. Cale stopped his music, and joined those up front.
“By now you guys already know what I’m going to say,” began SSG Curtis. “We don’t know if the airstrip is clear or even if it’s still intact. We may have to find an alternate place to land if that’s the case. But regardless of where we land, when we do, there will be a fight. Now it may be with the undead, but you guys need to be prepared that it may be with the living. It may be with our very own brothers and sisters in uniform. We are not welcome back in the States, as far as we know. But if we can land and establish a base, we might be able to enter into peaceful talks with them, perhaps join them.”
“What do you mean, we’ll have to fight them?” someone asked.
They’d heard all of this before, but fighting fellow Americans was new. Most of them knew that it was a possibility with the quarantine in effect, but some of the more naïve thought they’d be welcomed back with open arms.
“I mean exactly what I said,” Curtis stated. “You need to be prepared to defend yourself against the worst kind of people, our own people. The people you went through basic training and AIT with. Members of your own units, if need be.”
This was the harsh reality of what it had come down to. They were rogues—defectors who’d abandoned their posts during a time of war, and they would be treated as an invading force.
“That being said,” Curtis continued, “we will not be the first to engage. Blair adamantly expressed that we should pursue diplomatic avenues first. We are not going to shoot our way in.”
Curtis looked around at the group. There were a lot of scared faces, and they had every right to be. Fear was healthy at a time like this.
“After this, I want you guys to go back to your seats and check over your gear. Make sure that it’s ready to go, because regardless of what scenario we drop into, we’ll need everyone at one hundred and ten percent. Roger?” Curtis waited for replies.
Everyone nodded before returning to their seats. Cale gave his own nonverbal confirmation and went back to his seat. He’d never taken the ear buds out and resumed playing his music. His weapon would be the only thing he really needed to look at. Everything else was personal gear. He counted his magazines, to ensure he had the full combat load.
“You sure you can do this? Can you do what they’ve asked you to?” Zach asked from the seat next to him.
Cale nodded. He’d have to if he wanted to get home.
49.
Just a Blip
The soldier sat huddled over his console, watching as the dot entered the range of his radar.
“Sir,” he waved his superior over, “we have something on long range radar.”
“A ship?” the superior asked.
“No, sir. I think it’s a plane,” he informed him.
“A plane? Really?” His skepticism was obvious. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, sir,” the man confirmed.
“Scramble the jets. I want birds in the air, ASAP! And go weapons hot!” he ordered.
“Roger, sir!” the man replied.
50.
Threats Foreign and Domestic
The glow of the gauges and dials illuminated the faces of Chief Phares and Chief Wagner. Other than take off, when they’d accidentally throttled down instead of raising the landing gear, the flight had been uneventful. Thomas had taught them well. Wagner used the protractor and charted their course on the map with the compass. With no power to the guiding beacons, they had to navigate the old fashioned way.
“How’s it looking?” Phares asked.
“Looks good,” Wagner said confidently, “We’ve already begun our descent, and should be landing in about twenty minutes.”
“Can you believe we fucking did it?” Phares asked.
Wagner chuckled. “I’m still surprising myself.”
The two men laughed.
“Can you believe we are the only thing in the air on the planet right now?” Wagner asked.
“Kind of weird to think of it that way,” stated Phares.
“Yeah, it really is. Should we attempt another radio check?” Wagner asked.
Periodically, they’d try to hail someone on the radio. They’d lost contact with Paris about two hours ago, and since then had heard nothing but dead air.
“Nah,” Phares said. “If no one has said anything yet, they won’t say anything now.”
“Roger,” replied Wagner as he flipped a couple of switches. “I’ve gotta go take a leak anyway.”
“Hurry back,” Phares encouraged.
“Will do,” answered Wagner.
Phares sat in silence for a moment before Wagner returned.
“Did I miss anything?” he teased.
“No…” Phares was interrupted by a transmission over the radio.
Neither of them had been able to understand what had been said. Quickly Wagner took his seat.
“Last calling station. Repeat your traffic. Over,” Wagner requested.
The transmission was garbled.
“I say again. Last calling station. Repeat your traffic.
Over,” repeated Wagner.
The voice was clearer this time: “Unidentified aircraft this is Foxtrot-two-six. You are entering restricted airspace. Turn back and return to your point of origin.”
“Negative Two-six. We are beyond our PNR. We are an American flight with no infection aboard. I repeat no infection on board,” Wagner replied.
“Turn back now. Use of live ammunition is authorized. Three F22 Raptors are approaching you now,” the caller warned.
“We have American Military on board! I am a CW-2, Wagner, James of the US Army! There is no infection on this flight!” Wagner urged.
Silence answered his plea.
“Buckle in. This is about to get interesting,” said Phares.
51.
Not a Hero’s Welcome
Cale heard the tone for the captain’s announcement over his music, and removed his ear buds.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” Phares began, “it appears that the US Navy has come to greet us. Despite our best efforts, they don’t want to play nicely. You’ll see that I’ve turned on the fasten seatbelt sign. We’re going to attempt to put her down in the water.”
“What the fuck did he just say?” Goebel asked.
“We’re going down in the water,” Cale informed him, as he wrapped up his iPod, returned it to its Ziploc bag, and then to his pocket.
“You believe this shit?” someone said behind him.
“We may not even make it to the ground,” a woman stated.
“Shut up,” another woman told her.
“Fuck,” said Zach. “I knew this was a bad idea.”
Cale ignored him and looked around the cabin. He watched as everyone buckled their seatbelts and prepared for the worst. The afternoon sun flooded in through Goebel’s window. He could see Ballard and Goose jumping into the nearest seats. Sergeant Kyle closed his eyes in prayer. The plane rocked and swayed as it rapidly descended. Cale clutched his armrests. He already hated the feeling of flying, and now he was going to experience a crash landing.
“He said we’re going down in the water, right?” asked Zach.
Z Plan (Book 2): Red Tides Page 32