Page 12 of Knight's Fall

“You’re trusting me to fly this?” Milburn paled at the notion.

Wings blinked in an attempt to dispel the spots popping in his vision. “We don’t have a choice, man. I’m about to pass out, and you’re the only one who can do this.”

“Wait! What?”

A roar sounded in Wings’ ears, drowning out Milburn's cry of concern. The spots grew to a solid black curtain, and Wings succumbed to the darkness.

Chapter Seven

“Mac? Mac! Mac! What is wrong with you?”

Courtlyn pulled herself out of her thoughts to find Sissy Reeser standing at her elbow, her trademark look of condescension pointed in Courtlyn’s direction. Of all the people at work to find her woolgathering, it would have to be her nemesis, the only person alive who referred to her as “Mac”, a shortened version of her surname McNeal that she despised. Sissy said she coined the name because she kept messing up Courtlyn’s first name, but Courtlyn suspected she chose the name she knew would get under Courtlyn’s skin the most.

“Don’t you let my order of steak and eggs burn. It’s my tips that suffer when you mess up an order.”

Courtlyn snapped her gaze down to the meat sizzling on the grill. She grabbed a spatula and scooped the steak off the surface and onto the cutting board. Expertly slicing the delicate steak, she checked the ticket and was pleased to see the steak was cooked to order. Her luck was running toward good at the moment, and she was relieved that she hadn’t given Sissy more ammunition to use against her.

“It’s perfect.” She added the steak to a plate followed by her specialty omelet with cheese, mushrooms, peppers and onions. Steam rose from the dish, carrying with it a delicious aroma she never tired of. She garnished the plate with orange slices and presented it to a scowling Sissy with the largest smile she could muster. “Tell Mr. Fielder I hope he enjoys his breakfast.”

Sissy rolled her eyes, and Courtlyn stepped to the order window so she could watch her least favorite waitress deliver the breakfast to one of her best customers. Mr. Fielder smiled as Sissy placed the plate in front of him. The waitress turned on the charm that Courtlyn never witnessed except when Sissy was vying for a good tip.

Mr. Fielder raised his eyes and waved to Courtlyn before digging into his meal. She ignored the glare Sissy flashed in her direction and went back to filling the other orders lined up on her counter. Placing a couple of strips of bacon on the grill, she started a short stack of pancakes before her nose smelled the distinct aroma of pastries ready to be pulled from the oven.

The timer never sounded, but she set it just in case her focus was pulled elsewhere. She trusted her nose more than a timer, having prepared enough pastries to be able to smell when they were done. Ovens could run hotter than usual at times, so timers only served as attention getters for when she was daydreaming, which happened a lot since she worked in the kitchen alone. Preparing the food was as natural as breathing, so her mind wandered as she worked. It wasn’t a big deal — unless she was so consumed with her thoughts that her nemesis crept up on her without her being prepared.

She flipped the bacon and pancakes before taking the pastries to the order window. She motioned for one of the other waitresses to pick up the platter and place the gooey sweets in the display case. Turning back, she plated the bacon and pancakes, placed it in the order window, then started on the next order of thick sliced ham, homemade biscuits and her grandmother’s tomato gravy.

Courtlyn loved to cook, especially comfort food, and to her, breakfast was the ultimate comfort food. The kitchen was the one area where her awkwardness disappeared and her confidence soared. She found peace when she cooked whether it was the kitchen at work, at home, or just about anywhere else. But peace eluded her today.

“Courtlyn, when the last of your orders is finished, you’re good to take your break.” The diner’s owner, Tabitha Greer, called to her as she passed by the opening to the kitchen on her way to her office.

Tabby knew none of the waitresses would let her know when the dining room slowed, so she took it upon herself to alert Courtlyn when it was time for a break. Courtlyn didn’t mind working without a break, since she did what she loved, but today she needed the time to herself. Plating the last of the orders and passing them off to the waitresses, she made sure her cooking surfaces were off before she stepped out into the alley at the back of the diner.

Even with the commercial dumpster and rats, the alley was the closest to fresh air she could get on her breaks. Tabby wanted her staff close when they took their breaks, and she frowned on them exiting out the door the customers used. So here Courtlyn was, walking the alley, trying not to breathe in too deep. Even as preoccupied as she was, she couldn’t stomach the combination of rotting garbage and animal dung that permeated the alley.

Her hand smoothed her dark ponytail before her finger twirled the end of a stray lock. Her teeth chewed her bottom lip. If Liv could see her now, she would give Courtlyn enough grief to rival Sissy on her worst day. She was worried about a man she’d only spoken to when he’d come to her rescue — twice — during humiliating circumstances. She moved from friendly neighbor to stalker mode pretty quickly, but then her actions the last few months had definitely led her to this point.

After she’d noticed him during the initial tour of her house, she hadn’t realized he was a regular at the diner until Tabby changed her shift. When she first started working here, she’d been assigned to the late afternoon to early morning shift, which put her at her busiest during the dinner rush. Sexy Neighbor didn’t usually come for dinner. She imagined he had better places to be and better company to keep during that time. But when she’d been moved to the morning through early afternoon shift, she’d started seeing him regularly for breakfast and lunch.

He was a creature of habit, his order rarely veering from his favorite items. Even though she spent more time cooking that scoping out the customers, she always knew when he stepped inside. The fine hair on the back of her neck would stand on end. A shiver would run up her spine, even if she was red-faced and sweating from cooking over the hot grill. It’s like her intuition was tuned in to him.

Could that be why she was so worried? Sexy Neighbor had been gone for a while. His house had been dark with no signs of life for days. He hadn’t been in the diner either, though she’d seen a few of his friends he’d come with from time to time.

It’s not like this was the first time he’d been gone, and it wasn’t unusual for him to be gone a few days in a row. But this was different. Not because he’d been gone a couple of days longer than normal. She just felt that something was different. She couldn’t describe the emotion churning in her gut or explain the worry that kept her distracted. It was unlike anything she’d ever felt before.

Could he be in trouble? Could he be hurt? Could he be with someone he cared about who was hurt or in trouble? Could his mistress be in a hospital having his baby? Could he have had an accident and was lying in a ditch somewhere with no one realizing he was in need? Could he have been arrested? He could be a bank robber or a serial killer or a con man. He could have a head injury and be wandering around a strange town with no recollection of who he was. He could…

“Stop!” She hissed the word under her breath, hoping saying it out loud would prevent her imagination from running away with her.

“Talking to yourself again? You might want to stop with the crazy, Mac, before Tabby realizes she could do so much better than you.”

Sissy had managed to sneak up on her again. Courtlyn’s typical line of defense against her nemesis was killing her with kindness, but Sissy had caught her at the wrong time for kindness.

“You know, Sissy, if you spent as much time working as you do sticking your nose in my business, you’d make enough in tips to give us the best present you could give us by quitting this job.”

Sissy stepped from the doorway, the heavy metal door slamming behind her. Her skinny arms crossed over her small breasts as she walked with measured steps closer to Courtlyn. She narrowed her eyes as she stopped just short of Courtlyn’s personal space.

“I’m not one you want to mess with, Mac. You should know this. Tabby and I go way back, so if it comes down between you and me, who do you think she’s going to choose?”

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