Stranded by S. L. Menear

Author:S. L. Menear [Menear, S. L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781644570975
Publisher: ePublishing Works!
Published: 2019-09-23T16:00:00+00:00

LIA Flight 515

“Where are the bombs?” I asked, my heart pounding against my chest.

“In overhead compartments. One near the front, one about halfway back, and one near the aft end.” Barbi bit her lip. “I’m not sure they’re bombs, but they look scary. I’ve never seen anything like them on our airplanes.”

“Lance, get back there and check them out. Take pictures with your cell phone.” I looked into Barbi’s frightened eyes. “We’ll handle this. Prepare the cabin for an emergency landing. Secure everything and seat the passengers away from the bombs.”

I focused on missing the storms while my mind raced, searching for solutions. Would we be blown apart in the next few minutes?

After a long twenty minutes, Lance returned with Lisa Atwater, the British musician. She had changed from her satin gown into jeans and a sweater.

His tone was grim. “Lisa says she’s undercover with MI6. She checked the devices and confirmed they’re bombs.”

She gripped my seatback when turbulence jolted our jet.

“MI6? Do you know Hugh Owen?” I asked, testing her.

“You’re smart to be careful.” Lisa’s lips were a tight slit. “Hugh was killed in Edinburgh Castle last summer, right in front of you.”

“Right, so what can you tell me about the bombs? Any connection to your mission?”

“We had no concerns about this flight. I’m gathering evidence to prove Murciato has branched out from his drug cartel and is now selling illegal arms to African war lords.”

“Carlene sure picked the wrong guy.” I glanced back as our jet zoomed up and down like a rollercoaster. “How big are the bombs?”

A loud boom from a nearby lightning bolt made us duck involuntarily.

“There’s enough C4 to destroy the aircraft. Lance told me about the sabotage. The bombs were activated with timers about the same time your radios were fried.”

“So why didn’t they explode?” I asked, hoping the bombs had malfunctioned in a good way.

“I’ve seen bombs like this before. The timers were only meant to make them live. Each one has an altitude detonator, which means they won’t explode until we descend to a preset altitude—2,000 feet above sea level.” Lisa wiped her forehead with the back of her hand and glanced out the cockpit windows. “We need to find an airport above that altitude.”

“Any chance you can defuse them?” I asked as I banked to avoid a storm.

“Afraid not.” Lisa gripped my seatback as another patch of unstable air jarred us. “Once they’ve been activated, they’re designed to explode if they’re tampered with. Landing above 2,000 feet is our only option.”

“Could these nasty air currents set them off?” I asked.

She hesitated. “The bombs are securely anchored inside the overheads, but…maybe.”

“Then I’d better find a safe place to land before they get jarred into exploding.”

“I’m on it.” Lance slipped into his seat and scanned a flight chart. “The highest mountains are near the west coast. Where do you want to go?”

Before I had a moment to think, fate made the decision for me.

Both engines quit, and all the glass displays on the forward panel went blank.

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