Missing in Flight

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN MAKAYLA

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

M AKAYLA

At the sound of a woman’s shriek somewhere behind her, Makayla’s eyes snap open. The plane abruptly tilts forward at a steep decline. Makayla’s lifted off her seat and grips her armrests, her hips pulled taut against her seat belt. Her forehead comes within an inch of the locked tray table rattling against the seat back in front of her. Cold air blows against her mouth and nose through the yellow mask strapped to her face. The scattered heads in the surrounding seats sway simultaneously with the aircraft as it rocks in jerky motions from side to side.

She struggles to remember how she got here. She’s in the last row of the main cabin, on the side of the plane opposite her seat. The gray-haired man seated in front of her looks familiar, and she realizes he’s the passenger who was reading on a tablet right after Liam went missing. Then she remembers collapsing outside the lavatory, and her horrific reality comes flooding back.

Someone must’ve moved her here. Out the window, all she can see is the wing. A loud roar still emits from the hole in the aircraft behind her. Her heart aches. Liam.

“Flight attendants, prepare the cabin for emergency landing.”

To her right, movement catches her eye. She turns to see Rose removing her oxygen mask with a trembling hand before shakily getting to her feet. The twentysomething flight attendant appears at the front of the cabin, running one hand along the overhead compartments, with the other holding a portable oxygen bottle attached to a clear mask strapped over her mouth and nose. She sees Rose stumble into the aisle and hurries toward her. Makayla watches her grab Rose by the shoulders and coax her back into her seat, pulling the woman’s oxygen mask over her face and clipping Rose into her seat belt.

Beyond them is Jemma and Chad’s empty row. Makayla’s chest tightens. The nose lifts, throwing Makayla against her seat. Multiple screams fill the cabin as the g-forces of their climb suction her against her seat cushion.

“Why are we climbing?” someone yells.

As the nose comes down, the plane tips to the left. The young flight attendant stumbles sideways, her head cracking against an overhead bin before she disappears into the rear cabin. Makayla removes her seat belt and slides toward the window that’s blurry with rain. She leans forward, spotting the Hudson River up ahead. Even from their altitude, she can make out the divots on the surface from the downpour.

At the thought of Liam going out the hole in the side of the plane with his abductors, bile rises to the back of her throat. It’s so painful she can hardly allow herself to accept it. God, please let Liam be alive. They cross the Hudson, and she studies the buildings below as they fly low over Harlem. Where is he now?

“Ladies and gentlemen.” A shaky flight attendant’s voice blares over the loudspeaker, making Makayla jump. “The captain has advised that we will be making an emergency landing at LaGuardia Airport. The instructions I am about to give you are extremely important, so I ask that you pay close attention.” The flight attendant speaks fast, and there’s no masking the tremor in her voice. “There are eight emergency exits on this aircraft, two door exits in the front, four in the middle section, and two in the rear. These exits are equipped with slides, which can be used as rafts.”

The floor drops. As she’s lifted off the seat, Makayla feels weightless. She flails her arms for something to grab on to before she’s slammed against the seat cushion. Screams erupt all around her, muffling the next few words of the attendant’s announcement.

“Take a moment now to locate your closest exit. Note that the closest exit may be behind you. Immediately prior to landing, the captain will announce ‘brace, brace, brace’ over the intercom. At that time, place your arms and head against the seat back in front of you. If there is not a seat back directly in front of you, lean as far forward as possible, with your head straight down between your legs, and tightly grasp your legs or ankles. Remain in this position until the aircraft comes to a complete stop or until directed by your flight attendants. At this time remove from your pockets your glasses, earrings, piercings, and anything sharp, such as pens or pencils.”

Makayla looks away from the window and lifts her head toward the compartment above Jemma’s seat. No one searched the compartment after they jumped out of the plane. There’s a chance Liam could be up there.

“And you may now remove your oxygen masks, as we have descended to a safe altitude and oxygen is no longer required,” the flight attendant adds.

Makayla pulls off her mask and gets up. Rose gapes at her with wide eyes as she staggers through the middle row in front of her. Makayla reaches for the storage bin’s lever when a cold hand closes around her forearm. Britt lowers Makayla’s arm.

“Sit down!” she yells.

Makayla twists out of her grip. “I have to check! Liam could be in there!”

Britt slaps her palm against the compartment. “We already checked. He’s not in there! And there’s no time!”

“I need to make sure!” She lifts the lever and tugs, but Britt pushes the bin closed.

Makayla suddenly realizes something. She grips Britt by both shoulders. “You checked their bags! Were there parachutes inside?”

Britt glances at the overhead bin. “No.” She looks pensive when she meets Makayla’s eyes. “Wait. They each had a backpack inside their carry-ons. They told me they’d been backpacking outside of Anchorage. I didn’t have any reason not to believe them. At that point, I was only looking for a baby ...” Her voice trails off as she eyes their empty row.

Makayla brings a hand to her forehead. “There must have been parachutes! Help me check!”

When Makayla reaches for the compartment, the nose lifts, and the plane turns. She falls into Jemma’s empty seat. When she tries to get up, Britt extends her arm.

“Stay seated!” Britt reaches across her waist and buckles her seat belt.

“I have to know!” Makayla shouts.

“You can check as soon as we land. Get in the brace position.” She lowers her head toward Makayla’s. “Do not get up.”

The front of the plane plunges toward the ground. Makayla shoots forward, her forehead hitting the tray table in front of her. Britt stumbles backward down the aisle, grabbing a seat back on either side. Makayla rubs her forehead.

Britt grips the tops of the aisle seats as she climbs toward the rear. The front of the plane continues to plunge. Makayla unbuckles her seat belt and tries to get up. The plane bounces, pulling Makayla against her seat. The nose suddenly dips, and Makayla is thrown against the seat back in front of her. Several passengers cry out.

Makayla pushes herself to her feet and steps into the aisle. When she reaches for the overhead bin, the floor drops. Her back hits the floor of the aisle with a thud, knocking the air from her lungs. Makayla fights against gravity to sit up and crawl back to her seat, barely managing to buckle her seat belt before the angle of the floor steepens. She begrudgingly leans her head and arms against the seat in front of her.

While in the brace position, Makayla cranes her neck to peer beneath the seats. The empty pet carrier and stuffed dog are tucked under one of them. Makayla watches them slide forward on the sloped floor. Aside from that, the floor is bare.

She thinks of the compartment above her head, replaying Britt’s words. He’s not in there. She closes her eyes, grappling with the probability that Britt is right.