Page 56 of Shattered

Henley stopped us on the curb outside the diner, kissing first Koen then me on the cheek. “I wish we were going with you, but we’ll be there in spirit.”

So did I.

“We’ve never been on a plane. Are they safe?” Jett asked as we climbed into the Camaro.

“I guess we’re about to find out,” I muttered.

12TURBULENCE AND TOUCHDOWN

Koen

At twenty-five thousand feet in the air, flying at four hundred plus miles an hour while waiting for an update about Mom from Willow, I should not be smiling. Yet I was grinning like a fool. All because of Jade’s responses to the conversation between Jett and the co-pilot about the science behind flying.

“Lift, weight, thrust, drag? Sounds more like what a director would say at a porn shoot.”

The siblings had polar opposite reactions to their first flights. While Jade latched on to my hand as if I’d somehow keep her from falling out of the sky, Jett was utterly fascinated. He perched on the floor, just outside of the cockpit, once we reached an appropriate altitude, peppering the pilots with questions about propulsion and Newton’s third law of motion.

“It’s okay to be scared.” I wiggled my fingers, trying to get some circulation back into them.

“I’m not scared.”

No, she was terrified. Even her snarky commentscouldn’t hide the fact. The flight attendant—recognizing her fear—offered to fix her a stiff drink on more than one occasion. My Angel politely declined each time. I did not.

Taking the last sip of scotch from my glass, I sat it down on the table, then resumed running my thumb over the back of her hand. It seemed to have a calming effect on her and me.

“Anything from Willow?”

“Not since her last text. They’re running more tests.”

My sister texted a total of thirty-seven times since her first call. Don’t get me wrong, I was grateful for the updates, but I could tell she was freaking-the-fuck out. For such a fantastic grief counselor, she was total shit at handling anything close to her own heart.

“Do you need anything? Besides the obvious.”

“Just you, Angel.” I kissed the top of her head.

I’d never flown on a private jet before, but I’d hazard a guess this one was as close to top-of-the-line as you could get. There were four separate swivel seats at the front used for takeoff and landing. Behind those, on either side of the cabin, were two long leather sofas. The entire thing screamed comfort and money, both of which I was extremely thankful for at the moment.

The flight would take a little under five hours, so with nothing else to do except worry, I pulled up the video recordings from Jade’s house. More than the fact her mother was wearing an obviously stolen necklace bothered me. Their lawyer, for instance, hadn’t come cheap. Jade mentioned earlier the stuff in the jewelry box had no real monetary value, only sentimental, so how the hell could they afford such a pricey attorney? Even more worrisome, what other bullshit did they have up their sleeves?

Jade’s vise grip on my hand relaxed infinitesimally asI forwarded through hours of footage. Glancing over, I saw why. She’d snuggled against a throw pillow and was fast asleep. It came as no surprise, given the excitement of the day and with how restless she’d been the night before.

Another text flashed across the top of my screen. This time it was Riley. He’d made it to the hospital.

Riley: Hey. We’re waiting for the cardiac surgeon to come in and tell us for sure, but it looks like she’ll need surgery.

Me: Damn. Why?

Riley: Plaque buildup in some of the arteries around her heart. I’ve done some research.

Me: Of course you have. How is she?

Riley: She’s being Mom. Said to tell you since you’re flying all the way here, you better damn sure have your girl and her brother with you.

Mom and Jade had spoken over FaceTime during several of my weekly calls. They’d hit it off immediately. Initially, we kept the finer details of our relationship a secret for the same reason we hadn’t told our friends. Then we decided it wasn’t the kind of news to be shared via phone, so we held off until we could plan a weekend trip. It all seemed ridiculous now though.

Me: Ha! Let her know she didn’t have to go to these extremes to finally meet them.

Riley: Lol. Will do. Are you sure you don’t want one of us to pick you up from the airport?

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