Checkers

Chapter 4 - The Castle

The flight from Lowal, New Jersey to London, England was about 7 hours long. I kept to myself on the plane as I was stuck in window seat next to an older man who was probably in his late 30s. We made light conversation and he was nice enough to let me up when I had to use the bathroom.

He told me that he was originally from England and he had been visiting his children in Texas but had to take a transfer flight from Austen to Lowal. Our conversation quickly died when I didn't share my story and turned to listen to my iPod.

I was very proud of that little music player since I bought it with my own money that I earned. It was a simple generation one iPod nano. It was my favorite color: green. I loved that color because the sky could be every color but green. That and I always believed that the grass is greener on the other side. I liked the color green.

Getting off the plane was pretty simple and so was waiting in line to get my passport stamped. The hard part was finding my next plane. I had to ask several people until one security guard offered to escort me to the right gate. I accepted his offer and followed him as I listened to all the accents around me. I found them quite entertaining.

"Why are you going to Wilkenshire?" the security guard asked.

"I've got some family there," I answered. The guard nodded then pointed to the smallest gate I had ever seen.

"There you are," he said. "Have fun in Wilkenshire!"

I waved and thanked him then handed my ticket to the lady helping the others board. She smiled at me and led me into the entrance of the plane. After I put my carry-on bag away, I sat in my seat and waited for everyone else to board. Only two more people arrived on the small plane before the pilot announced we were leaving.

I fastened my seatbelt and watched out the window as we took off. The pilot said this flight would be 30 minutes long and only drinks would be served. The rest of the flight was silent except for the occasional 'Need anything Miss?' from a flight attendant. It wasn't long before the pilot announced that Wilkenshire could be seen out the right side of the plane.

Sadly I was on the left side of the plane but since we were allowed to walk around, I got up from my seat and took one of the many empty seats on the right. The first thing I noticed about Wilkenshire was the miles of beach around the coast. It made sense since it was an island but the cluster of dark evergreens seemed a little out of place. The silver color of the castle was visible from my view as it was a huge structure.

"Wow," I breathed at all the natural beauty of the place. I felt the plane slowly declining and the pilot requested that the passengers sit back in their seats and fasten their seatbelts.

The landing was smooth and I could clearly see the cottage-type houses as we neared the ground. I noted that once I got off the plane, I couldn't see much of the country from inside of the airport no matter how unnaturally small it was. I had to focus on where I was going anyway. I got my passport stamped once again but I had to do it after I claimed my luggage which was difficult since I was by myself. Then I headed for the exit gates, which were not hard to find in the tiny excuse for an airport.

A line of people were going through the exit gate and most of them would stop and hug a loved one. Only did a few people keep walking without even glancing at the growing crowd. I awkwardly pushed my cart with luggage and glanced around. I had no idea what to expect after stepping foot in Wilkenshire.

"Francesca!" I heard my name and searched in the sea of people.

Suddenly I was approached by a tall, lean man who had salt and pepper colored goatee and hair to match except for prominent bald spot on his head. He smiled when he made eye contact and guided me away from all the people exiting the airport.