Ellie was the first to stir, though she was still a bit dazed. She had a vague recollection of her head smacking the side window during each revolution. She struggled to look to her right, and saw that the window was cracked in a star pattern. “Owww,” she gasped, hand reaching up to her right temple. It felt wet. She looked at her hand; it was soaked with blood. Just then she realized that her right foot hurt, too. Hurt like hell, in fact. She peered down but couldn’t see it; it was twisted under Tony’s seat.
“Ellie?” Brenda was tapping her on the shoulder. “You okay?”
“Yes, mostly, I think. How about you? Are you hurt?” Ellie struggled to peer over her shoulder to see Brenda, but the elevated tail, combined with her pinned right foot, made it difficult.
“A good bump on the head, but that seems to be all,” Brenda replied. “But…but… Oh my god, Ellie! Look! I think Mark and Tony are dead!” Her voice cracked as she pointed to the front of the plane.
Ellie turned to look down at the two men. Both were slumped forward onto the console. The windscreen and dashboard were spattered with blood. “Don’t worry,” she said. They’re probably just unconscious.” She thought for a minute. “Listen, we can’t help them until we get out of here ourselves.”
“Okay,” Brenda said.
“Right then. Well, I’m going to need your help. My foot is snagged under Tony’s seat, and I think my ankle might be broken. Are you sure you’re not hurt; do you think you can try to get us out?”
“Sure,” Brenda said. “I’ve just got to get my seatbelt undone…” Brenda braced herself on the back of Ellie’s seat and Ellie grimaced with pain as the shifting ground her foot in a twisting motion. Then there was a clink of metal as Brenda managed to pop her seatbelt. She crumpled forward onto the back of Ellie’s seat.
“Oooo,” Ellie whimpered, pain shooting up her leg.
“Sorry,” Brenda said, as she rotated left onto the back of the empty seat beside Ellie. She crawled over the back of it then turned, looking left then right.
“How are we going to get out? There are no doors back here.”
“I think the window beside me will pop out if you kick it,” Ellie replied, fiddling with the latch. “It’s supposed to be some sort of emergency exit. Here, let me grab onto something so I can lean back out of your way.” She reached over her head and braced her arms on the ceiling. “Okay,” she grunted, pushing herself back as best she could. “Go ahead.”
Brenda stretched her legs out in front of Ellie and braced her left foot on the window frame. She pulled her right foot back a bit, then punched it into the window. It popped out easily, clattering down over the side of the plane and onto the ground.
“Okay, can you climb out past me?” Ellie asked. “I need you to try to get Tony out so we can move his seat forward.”
“Okay, just a sec,” Brenda said, pulling her legs under herself. She stood up, pushing her head and shoulders out of the window. She tried not to jostle Ellie too much as she wriggled out past her.
YOU ARE READING
Defining Moments
Adventure'Defining Moments’ is the story of Ellie Ward, a professor with a knack for making bad decisions at life’s crossroads, often with tragic consequences. At the age of nine, Ellie accidentally discovers a time portal near her childhood home, one that o...
