Page 39 of Inevitably Yours

“Let’s get you changed and ready to go, shall we?” Francis asked. Turning to Andy and Marco, she gave them specific instructions since they still seemed lost as to what was going on.

“Y’all can take her in my car since I have everyone blocked in, then we’ll be along after we grab her bags and lock up here.”

“Fuck,” John swore to the cockpit in general. He was losing oil pressure…fast. It would be a matter of seconds before he was on the ground, and not in the best of ways. At the rate he was hemorrhaging oil, his engine would go before he— There it went.

The headset went flying in frustration. He needed to focus on putting her down as gently as possible. At this point, he was piloting little more than a glider.

Being only twenty miles west of the landing strip meant he had already dropped to five thousand feet to enjoy the green farmland that surrounded the airfield. Thank God for small favors.

John would never again complain about these microscopic airfields in the middle of nowhere. That was to his advantage right now. He angled toward the farmland which surrounded it in all directions.

Spotting a decently maintained and partially paved service road among the endless green, he guided the hunk of metal toward it. While he lined up with the road, he tried to keep his head in the game, but his mind drifted to the things he would regret most if this landing was his last.

John thought of Stacy. She had Dax now, and he didn’t have to worry about her happiness anymore. John would miss his future nieces and nephews he’d never get to spoil.

The Reids came to mind then. They were a strong family, one he had just started to appreciate. He may never get the chance to tell them that, but he could let Troy go, or rather the guilt he held on to tighter than his brother’s memory.

And he did.

He spoke out loud to his brother, just as he did when he sat on the hill looking at the cold gray reminder of his life, and death.

“I love you, Troy, but I can’t cling to you the way I have been. It’s unfair to everyone I care about, even the memory of you. Your life, as short as it was, should be celebrated not mourned. Somewhere along the way, I got that confused. Instead of mourning your death, I mourned your life. And unfairly laid all my issues at your feet. You will be remembered with love, not pain, as long as I live.” No matter how many seconds that may be.

Augusta.Why did I not tell her, one moment with her is worth a lifetime of pasts?

John wished he had time to scribble a note or something. Some way to let her know that she was loved…by him, even if he was too damn stupid to just man up and tell her. But the ground was coming up fast, and he didn’t have time to—

The jolt of the initial impact whipped his head hard to the side. The moment it contacted the plexiglass, he saw a blinding light and a cold sensation spider-webbed out from his temple. Then it turned hot, then cold, then hot again.

Groaning metal followed by a sharp snap told him the landing gear sheared off and he was sliding sideways on the belly of the plane. His white-knuckle grip on the yoke was just to hold himself in place as his pucker factor hit ten and he rode it out.

When the plane’s wing dug into the pavement, John kissed his ass goodbye. If it flipped, he was done. He would die, and his torture would end, but Augusta would live with his mistakes. That was his last thought as the plane levitated off the ground before slamming back into the pavement.

And his world went black.

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