Page 25 of Somewhere Only We Know

I gripped the armrest, trying not to think about what would happen if we crashed on a snow-covered mountain. So much for me taking the less dangerous route to see Mount Everest.

‘I think we’re almost there.’ Tiff prodded me again once the turbulence had disappeared.

My eyes roamed the skyline. There were so many mountain peaks ahead of us that even knowing it was the tallest one didn’t help to identify it. ‘Where?’ I said, reaching for my camera. ‘I can’t pick it out.’

‘We are approaching Everest,’ said the stewardess.

The plane banked sharply to the left.

Diane let out an ear-piercing shriek. ‘I want to get out.’

The stewardess handed Diane a paper bag. ‘Breathe into this.’

‘Off you go then,’ Steve grunted. ‘Don’t forget your cushion.’

‘We’re crashing. I can’t breathe. I can’t … Oxygen, oxygen.’ She leapt to her feet and choked as if someone was strangling her.

‘Jesus Christ,’ Steve said through clenched teeth.

‘I’m going to have to ask you to sit down, mam, or we will have to turn the aeroplane around and go back.’

‘No way,’ Tiff muttered, ‘over my goddamn body, not this time. Sit down, honey!’

‘I’m going to throw up,’ Diane moaned, burying her face in the bag.

‘Is there a doctor on board?’ said the stewardess, looking alarmed.

‘A vet would do,’ Steve added with a snigger. ‘Preferably one who could put her out of her misery.’

I couldn’t bear it; the wild look in her eyes was terrifying, and that husband of hers was the one who needed putting down.

‘Me!’ I put my hand up. ‘I’m medically trained.’

‘Thank you, thank you,’ Diane garbled, discarding the paper bag. ‘Can I get your strongest drugs, please?’

I ignored Tiff’s look of surprise, moved to Diane’s side and took her hands. ‘Look at me, focus on my face. Let’s breathe together. In and out, in and out.’ I kept my voice low and calm, and my eyes on her.

‘That’s the final straw, Diane. I’m leaving you at home from now on,’ her husband grumbled. ‘I paid good money for this trip for your birthday, and you had to ruin it with your drama.’

‘Sorry, Steve.’ Her words escaped in wheezy gulps. ‘But I don’t like heights. Or flying, or confined spaces.’

I heard Tiff mutter, ‘Asshole,’ and I tried not to smirk.

My mum had had a panic attack once. Kat and I hadn’t known what to do so we’d run next door to fetch our neighbour, a retired army officer. He didn’t know what to do either so had thrown cold water over her and shouted in her face. She’d given him a black eye for his trouble. I taught myself how to deal with the situation after that. I learned to spot the warning signs too: a build-up of bills on the hall table, another one of her get-rich-quick schemes backfiring, a visit from the landlord. Her first response was to ignore trouble for as long as possible until inevitably there was no escape. Her second was to let it overwhelm her. The older I got, the more difficult it was to stay sympathetic when she’d invited trouble in so readily and regularly.

Steve unclipped the buckle on his safety belt and pushed past us.

‘Where are you going?’ Diane wept.

‘The other side,’ he said, throwing himself into my seat. ‘I’m not missing Everest because you’re being hysterical.’

‘My name’s Maggie,’ I said to Diane to distract her. ‘Short for Magnolia, which my mother chose because she thought it would make me appear interesting.’

‘I feel faint,’ she replied.

‘Can you wiggle your toes?’

‘Yes.’