Page 6 of A Touch of Frost
“It’s a floating airport is what it is.” Jesse mumbled.
Captain Sinclair laughed. “Something like that.” He then pointed up.
I squinted but made out the warplane coming in for a landing. There was something almost majestic in watching one in the air then coming in to rest.
Black Widow handled the craft like a dream and when it landed, a flurry of activities followed before she even popped the lid to remove her helmet and climb out.
Once her feet touched the tarmac, an officer jogged over to meet her. She carried her helmet under one arm, accepting high-fives as she walked away from the craft.
When she was closer, someone ran over to her and whispered in her ear. The pilot’s expression instantly changed. Her dark brown lips drew themselves into a thin line and she hadn’t even seen me yet.
When she came face to face with me, to say she hadn’t been impressed to see me would have been an understatement. She said nothing until her and I were alone.
“You have some nerve.” She drawled.
“Hello Priscilla. You look well.”
She side-eyed me. “And you’re looking old.”
Mozart smiled. “I guess I deserve that.”
“What do you want, Mozart?” Priscilla “Black Widow” Merriman asked in a way that told me she was losing her patience.
“I’m looking for Frost.”
She laughed. “You’r joking, right?”
“Why?”
“Because it has to be a joke.” Black Widow snapped. “Otherwise, why would you be here?”
“It’s not a joke.” I replied, taking a step back, just in case.
“Why?”
Why what?” I asked.
Widow stomped her foot. “Why the fuck are you looking for Frost? Don’t play dumb. I don’t have the time or the patience for these games.”
“Widow…”
“It’s a logical question.” She cocked a hip. “I mean, after the shit-show y’all dragged her through? You’ve got the nerve to come here and ask to find her like nothing ever happened, like you’re entitled.”
“I had nothing to do with any of that.”
“That’s right—you keep telling yourself that.” Black Widow turned to walk away but stopped and swirled to face me. “She loved you, you know?”
“I know.”
“Like—really loved you—like, give up the Army for a regular job, loved you.”
I hung my head. “I know.”
“Then why?” Black Widow countered. “Even if you didn’t feel the same way, you could have told her so. There were other ways of getting rid of her—all you had to do was say no.”
I had nothing.
“It wasn’t a joke for her.” Black Widow continued. “She always told me as long as she was in the service, she wouldn’t let any man get anywhere near her. But she let you in. You were her first love and you managed to fuck it all the way up.”
