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She sighs. “I’m sorry, girl. I know this is the last thing you needed.”
“It’ll be fine,” I say, trying to hide the fear that’s in my voice as I see the rain that’s now falling heavy from the sky over top the small, waiting plane. I don’t know why, but flying through a rainstorm sounded more exciting in a plane the size of a bus, not so much a family sedan.
“Sara… just come back and I’ll buy you another flight.” She sounds distracted as though she’s ordering a coffee. “Maybe you can stay here another couple of days.”
The offer is tempting, but I need to get back to reality. I’ve delayed the inevitable long enough.
“I know you would, but—” The attendant calls for last boarding Flight 8998 to Ellery Island. “I gotta go. Text me when you can. Safe travels.”
I don’t give her time to answer before hanging up to pull the barcode up on my app.
“You’re on the first plane to therightof the jetty,” the woman says. This one is kinder, thank God. My nerves have already had enough splitting today without another dose at boarding.
I repeat her directions in my head… first plane on theleft, first plane on theleftas I roll down the jet way, and down the steps toward two small planes sat on either side of the staircase.
First plane on the left,I say to myself again, as I run into the heavy rain toward the plane that’s just about to pull up its steps.
The man at the steps says something, but his voice is muffled through wind and rain as he holds his hat in place. He must be asking me if I’ve checked my bag, which I have, so I nod, and hurry up the steps, ducking as I enter the small plane where everyone looks to be already in place for takeoff.
“I’m sorry,” I say to the flustered attendant as I swipe my wet hair from my face. “I thought I was leaving at ten, but—”
“It’s okay,” she says, sounding agitated. “There’s an empty seat right there. Go ahead and get settled. We’re running behind schedule.”
My mouth is dry and suddenly I have an aimless feeling in the pit of my stomach as I slide into the empty seat. The plane is so small that seats are lined one on each side. I didn’t look up much to see how far they went back, but I’m guessing by the echo the engine makes as it starts up, it’s not that far.
A crack of thunder hits close by, and anxiety throws my heart into quick motion. Is it smart to be flying in this weather? I want to ask, but I’m sure this path has been flown hundreds, if not thousands of times. Besides, I can’t imagine this island is far away… unless it is. My stomach rumbles and I feel my hands start to sweat.
Looking around, it seems that other people are calm. The man next to me is listening to music, and the woman in front of him is messing around on her phone. No one seems panicked. Maybe I shouldn’t be either. I snap my seatbelt into place and close my eyes, thinking back to last night with Brad. I can already see this is going to be a problem. I should nip it in the bud now. I don’t want to be fantasizing about some man I’ll never see again for the next twenty years. God, I’ll already be living on the streets, the last thing I’ll need are the memories of what ifs and maybe’s haunting me. My thoughts scatter from their debate as the heavy pull of the plane speeds down the runway.
“Bad day for this, isn’t it?” the man next to me says. He’s in his mid-forties, wearing swim trunks, a sleeveless t-shirt, and flip flops. “You watch the show much?”
My eyes narrow. “The show?”
“Yeah, Commando Island.”
“Commando Island?No. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it,” I say, a little happy for the distraction. “Is it any good?”
“Yeah, it’s why I tried out. I’ve been wanting to do this for years. My wife finally convinced me. I’m taking home that million.”
“Oh!” I say surprised. “You’re on the show?”
He nods. “You’re not? This plane is taking people out to the island. I didn’t realize there were other people on the—”
“Welcome to season five of Commando Island,” a woman says over the speaker of the plane. “To celebrate this year’s anniversary season, we’re doing something a little different.” I can’t see where the speaker is on the plane.
A different young woman with long dark hair walks down the aisle with a backpack for everyone as the speaker continues. I scan the plane in a panic and notice two cameras with flashing red lights mounted to the ceiling, their heads swiveling intermittently.
How did I not see this before?
“Once we’re at twelve thousand feet, the door to your left is going to open, and your very first challenge will be to jump and swim to safety,” the mysterious woman says.
My throat tightens, and without thought, I shoot up from my seat. “Excuse me. I’m on the wrong flight… my—”
The woman who delivered the backpacks a moment ago, comes to my side with panic on her face as though her job depends on this going smoothly. “You signed a contract,” she snarls quietly. “There’s no backing out now.”
“That’s just it, I didn’t sign anything,” I beg. “I’m supposed to be going to San Francisco, not—”
“Once you jump, you’ll see two sides of the island,” the woman on the speaker continues. “You’ll be swimming straight ahead to meet up with your team. From there, we’ll split you into two teams and you’ll build camp for the night. Remember, the last person standing wins a million dollars.”
