Chapter 8 - THE DESCENT TO EARTH
Captain Miller let go of the yoke, his hands trembling so violently he had to tuck them under his thighs. He sat back in his seat, staring at the synthetic horizon display, then slowly turned his head to look at Mara.
Mara was standing beside the center console, her hands resting lightly on the metal frame. Her black tank top was soaked with sweat, her hair completely unraveled from its knot, cascading down around her face.
She wasn't shaking. Her eyes were calm, bright, and completely clear for the first time in two years.
"Autopilot engaged," the First Officer whispered, his hand trembling as he pushed the small square button on the main panel.
A gentle, melodic double-chime rang out in the cockpit. The plane smoothly took over its own navigation, banking gently to the right as it corrected its course toward New York.
Miller reached out and took Mara's right hand in both of his, pressing his forehead against her knuckles. "Thank you," he breathed, his voice cracking. "My God... thank you, Captain."
Mara gently pulled her hand back, her thumb tracing the faded eagle tattoo on her wrist.
"Get on the PA," Mara said softly to Miller. "Tell them they can unbuckle their seatbelts."
She picked up her white linen shirt from the jumpseat, pulled it back over her shoulders, and pushed open the cockpit door.
When she stepped back out into the main cabin, the silence that greeted her was entirely different from the silence of fifteen minutes ago.
Nobody was screaming. Nobody was looking at the small cartoon airplane on their screens.
Odette was standing at the front of the aisle, tears streaming freely down her cheeks, smiling at Mara with a radiance that lit up the dimly lit cabin.
Then, slowly, a man in row 3 stood up and began to clap.
Within three seconds, the entire cabin exploded into applause. Passengers cheered, wept, and reached out to touch Mara's arm as she walked back down the narrow aisle toward row 8. The young mother with the four-year-old boy in the red sweater grabbed Mara’s hand as she passed, pressing it against her cheek, crying quietly.
Mara didn't say a word. She offered a small, quiet nod to the room, sat down in seat 8F, and buckled her seatbelt.
May you like
She looked out the window.
The gray clouds were opening up below them, revealing the blue waters of the Long Island Sound in the distance, shimmering brightly under the afternoon sun.
