Page 71 of Toxic Vengeance

Eden followed, shutting the door behind her to try and contain the worst of the smoke, then rushed after Ty, leaning back to keep from stumbling during the steep descent, and shoved armrests out of the way so he could lay Zack down. The two of them quickly strapped him down tight across the chest and hips with seatbelts, then Eden scooted in beside him to buckle into her own.

“Thanks,” she said to Ty, who was strapping in across the aisle from her beside Megan. God, they were dropping so fast her stomach was floating up into her ribcage, like the first big drop on a roller coaster.

“No problem.”

A second later the cockpit door swung open and the copilot craned his neck to shout at them. “Brace. Heads down, stay down.”

Eden leaned forward and laced her fingers behind the back of her head. She coughed at the smoke irritating her lungs, then reached down and grabbed hold of Zack’s shoulder. It was for the best that he was unconscious. There was nothing he could do to save them, and if they were about to die at least he wouldn’t suffer the fear and pain.

The scream of the engines was the only sound other than occasional coughing, everyone otherwise silent as the pilots tried to get them on the ground safely. She didn’t know how close the nearest runway was.

Just when her heart started to climb into her throat, the plane leveled off. The engines changed pitch. Seconds later, the wheels hit the ground with a thud. Eden grunted, the force of the impact slamming her chin into her knees, knocking her teeth together. They bounced twice, then stabilized, and the pilots hit the brakes hard.

Oh my God, we’re still alive.

The thought was still running through her head when the plane came to a sudden halt, more smoke pouring through the cabin.

“Everybody out,” Trinity ordered.

Eden needed no further encouragement. She ripped off her seatbelt and reached for Zack’s, ready to get the hell out of this deathtrap.

****

Voices swirled around Zack as he struggled up through the heavy weight of the blackness surrounding him. He was bouncing.

He struggled to clear the cobwebs from his brain. Something was wrong. Something bad had happened. He hurt. There was danger.

Shots hitting the plane. Smoke.

Fire. The plane on fire with Eden in it.

Zack sucked in a gasping breath and tried to shove upright, the world spinning around him. Pain shot through his side, but he was frantic to find Eden.

“Uh oh, someone’s awake, and he doesnotlook happy about it.”

He squinted up at the source of the familiar voice. A woman’s face came into focus. Long blond hair. Brown eyes. Jaw working as she chewed.

Chloe. “Did we crash?” he mumbled, sounding drunk and feeling worse.

“Almost.”

What? He struggled to turn his head and look around. Ty and Heath were carrying him using a blanket. “Where’s Eden?”

“Whoa, take it easy, brother,” Ty said. “She’s fine. Everyone’s fine.”

He’d believe that when he saw her for himself, and not before. “Where is she?”

“I’m right here.” Her face appeared above him, and Zack quickly scanned her for signs of injury. She didn’t seem hurt. She even smiled down at him as they carried him…somewhere.

“Youdruggedme,” he accused. “Again. While we were onfire,” he added for emphasis. “What iswrongwith you?”

She didn’t look the least bit sorry. “You were being stubborn. Refused all pain meds and wouldn’t stay lying down even though you’d just been shot. It’s your own fault.”

His own— He dragged in a calming breath, wincing as it spread flames up from his wound. “What’s going on?”

“Assholes shot our plane full of holes,” Chloe answered, happily chomping away on her gum. “The tail section caught fire.”

And Eden had rendered him useless in the back. They were having more words about that later. As for right now…

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