Chapter 14
Vlad held the door and waited for the others to step into the hall.
Gloria’s sneakers squeaked on the gleaming tile floor, so shiny that when she looked down, she could see her reflection…the reflection of a terrified woman.
The squeak was speaking to her… mistake…tap…tap…mistake…tap…tap. Even her shoes were telling her to hightail it out of there.
But it was too late. They reached the observation deck, and Gloria’s mouth went dry as she watched a group of four casually stroll toward a small plane, geared up and ready to take to the skies.
They looked so happy, so calm, as if they were actually looking forward to hurtling toward the ground and potentially impending doom. What was wrong with them? An even better question was, what was wrong with her?
“I need to use the bathroom.”
“Me too.” Margaret grasped Gloria’s arm. “Where’s the nearest restroom?”
Vlad told them how to find it.
The women hurried off, both remaining silent until they were safely inside the empty bathroom.
“We’ve lost our minds.”
“It’s getting real now,” Margaret said.
“Down to the nitty-gritty.” Gloria paced. “Thirteen thousand feet—over two miles up in the air and we’re gonna jump out of a plane, believing our instructor and parachutes will keep us safe.”
“It’s a lot of trust.” Margaret’s cell phone pinged. “Lucy just texted. They’re already at the observation area. They met up with Paul, so you don’t have to bother texting him. Lucy said they have a special surprise.”
“They all chipped in and have an ambulance on standby waiting for us.”
“No. Lucy said we’re going to love it.” Margaret tapped the screen. “She’s asking how we’re holding up.”
“Don’t tell her I’m freaking out.”
“Too late. Lucy said the urge to throw up will go away and your adrenaline will kick in.”
“I’m still waiting.”
“I thought you had to tinkle.”
“Right.” Gloria stepped into a stall. She took care of business and slipped back out where she found Margaret furiously tapping the screen. “Is there a problem?”
“Liz wants to know what we found out.”
“Nothing yet. We’ll have to wait until it’s over to start asking questions,” Gloria said.
“That’s what I told her.” Margaret turned her phone off and shoved it in her pocket. “We should head back. They’re probably wondering what happened to us.”
The women returned to the observation deck, where the young couple was already gearing up and had been joined by additional instructors.
Gloria went through the motions, numbing her mind to what was about to take place.
“I will jump with Margaret. We are more familiar with one another,” Vlad said, a sly smile lifting the corners of his mouth.
“We’re not familiar,” Margaret muttered.
Vlad ignored the comment. “Tom will jump with Gloria.”
“Tom.” Gloria skeptically eyed the man, who extended a hand. “Have you been skydiving long?”
“Last week was my first dive,” he said.
Gloria shook his hand, staring at him in disbelief. “You’re kidding.”
“Yeah.” Tom grinned. “I’m kidding. I’ve been diving for years and have been an instructor since 2010.”
“You scared the you-know-what out of me.” Gloria pressed a hand to her churning stomach, which was threatening a full-on assault.
“Do you have butterflies?” he asked.
“More like somersaults with a couple of front handsprings thrown in for good measure.”
Tom held out a mint. “This should help. Make sure it’s gone before we jump.”
“Will do. Thank you.” She popped the mint in her mouth. Although the churning was still going strong, she no longer felt the urge to vomit in his face. Which was a good thing. She needed to stay on Tom’s good side. Her life depended on it.
Gloria went into autopilot while Tom helped her gear up. He seemed to know what he was doing, hooking this, strapping that. Still… “How does this work?”
“When it’s our turn, we’ll strap ourselves together and jump.”
“What if a strap breaks?” Gloria nervously tugged on the metal hinge.
“There are many more to keep you secure,” he assured her.
“Our planes are ready.” Vlad led the way out onto the tarmac. The excited couple and their instructors veered off, heading in the opposite direction.
“Have fun!” The young woman gave them a cheery wave.
“Stay alive!” Gloria yelled back.
The pilot greeted them and waited for them to take their seats before taxiing down the runway. Their takeoff was smooth, and Gloria gazed longingly at the ground. There was no going back. This was it. The scariest thing she’d ever done. Ever.
Margaret patted her leg. “It’ll be over before you know it. I thought I saw Ruth’s spymobile parked alongside the road. Did you see it?”
“No. I’m having a little trouble focusing right now.” Gloria finished the mint, her eyes on her watch. Vlad had said it was a twelve-minute flight. They had already reached the eleven-minute mark.
She peered out the window at the farm fields below. “Everything looks so small and far away.”
“Two and a half miles up,” Vlad reminded her. “We’ll be taping the dive if you’re interested in purchasing the video.”
“We are, definitely,” Margaret said. “We can replay it later.”
“How long does it take to reach the ground?” Fear filled Gloria’s eyes. Fear and something else. Determination. She was going to jump and live to tell about it.
“Roughly seven minutes.” Tom went over the nuts and bolts of the jump again while Gloria paid close attention.
“We’ve reached altitude,” the pilot announced.
“Margaret and I will go first.” Vlad placed a light hand under Margaret’s arm and helped her to her feet. “Do you remember what to do?”
“Yes. Push my stomach forward and toward the ground.”
He eased the jump door open and Gloria couldn’t tear her eyes away as she stared at the bright blue skies. Nothing but blue skies.
With Tom’s help, Vlad strapped himself to Margaret and shifted into position, side by side and facing toward the front. She gave Gloria a “V” sign.
“Are you ready?” Vlad asked.
“As I’ll ever be.”
“Let’s go on three. One…two…three.”
“Geronimo!” Margaret yelled, right before stepping out into thin air.
Gloria held her breath, watching through the window as the drogue, the first small chute, opened. Down they went until she could no longer see them.
“We’re in the second drop zone,” the pilot announced. “You ready Tom?”
“Are you ready, Gloria?”
“Yes. I mean. I hope so.” She sucked in a breath and stood on trembling legs, slowly making her way to the still open jump door.
Tom expertly snapped the hooks in place, hooking the back of Gloria’s harness to the front of his.
“We can do the same as Margaret and Vlad and count to three,” he said.
“Sounds good.” Gloria’s heart hammered in her chest. Her palms grew sweaty, and she absentmindedly wiped them on her pants. “Thanks for the mint. I don’t think I’ll throw up on you now.”
“I hope not,” he laughed. “You’re gonna be fine.”
“I’m trusting you with my life.”
“And I will take very good care of you. Do you remember what you need to do at the end?”
“Yes. Stay out of your way.”
“Don’t forget to lift your knees so I can touchdown first.”
“Got it.” Gloria gave him two thumbs up.
“One…two…three.”
She closed her eyes and took a literal leap of faith. While Margaret had shouted Geronimo, the last word out of Gloria’s mouth was the person responsible for her current situation. “Liiiiiizzzzz!”