Another Chance Book I of III

Book III-Chapter 118, World Conquerors

Bella's POV

Bella was sitting in a window seat and Prince in an aisle seat directly across Carlos's aisle. The two men began talking over some of the many details about the upcoming performances for the 100th time. For a while Bella stared out at the sky admiring the beautiful blue and the puffy white clouds slightly below them. She amused herself by finding familiar shapes in the clouds. She saw dogs, houses, cars, and finally Angels. One of the Angels looked just like Michael and as she looked closer she saw that it was Michael and Sandalphon just slightly behind him. Michael turned toward her and smiled. Despite her shock at seeing him, she smiled back. 'Thank you for being close' she thought not masking them. Prince heard her and turned toward her and looking out the window saw his two favorite Angels and said 'hi guys' in thought. 'Hi yourself' Sandalphon answered also through the mind as he smiled broadly. Bella thanked them again for being so close to which Michael responded, 'always' and just as quickly as they had appeared, they disappeared behind the veil again. Prince squeezed Bella's hand and returned to his conversation with Carlos who had not missed a beat. Of course, he had not seen the Angels but had sensed a brief loss of focus on Prince's part. Bella wondered if their presence was because they knew that they would be needed to protect them. She masked her thoughts and silently began to pray for their safety, as well as an outstanding tour performance wise. She prayed a hedge of protection around them all...the 4, their band and their security and remained in prayer for over an hour. Dinner was going to be served at 1:00 PM California time which was 10:00 PM Paris time. The flight attendents came around with their meal choices and then offered them drinks. Bella and Elaine had a glass of white wine, Prince and Carlos opted for red. Dinner was either Steak or Chicken. Each of the 4 chose the Chicken while the security team was split between the two. They ate enjoying each others company and conversation. The five hour flight would land in Paris at 1:00 AM. Bella was always amazed at how short the flight time was to Europe. Air travel had come a long way since the 20th and 21st centuries. The 4 napped after the meal and would remain asleep until the announcement about landing was heard. They would need it. They would go directly into a rehearsal/soundcheck tomorrow, Friday, at 2:00 PM with two performances Friday night at 7:00 and 11:00 PM and two more the following night at the same times. The only nod to their jetlag in the schedule was that Saturday's soundcheck would be at 3:00 PM.

Bella was the first to wake after the annoucement and she gently woke Prince so that she could go by him on the way to the rest room. He collected their things and then went himself. Back in their seats they busied themselves with watching the lights from the Parisian airport and the plane lining itself up for landing. Greg landed the plane like a knife cutting through soft butter and they were at the gate in just moments. Frank and Ray went to the front of the plane, cleared the gate area for safety, and spoke to Greg giving the all-clear. They de-planed and went immediately to the pre-arranged rental SUV and the Mercedes Benz shuttle for the band and the instruments. They were whisked away to the Peninsula Paris Hotel where they had stayed on their second trip to the romantic city. It was beautiful, provided great service, and the staff did all humanly possible to keep their presence in the hotel from the press. The 4 were taken directly to their rooms, as was Security after the 4 were checked in while in their suites by the concierge. Prince and Bella wasted no time and unpacked only what was needed for the soundcheck, their performances and clothes changed after the shows. Bella reached into her tote and pulled out some chamomille oil drops and set the bottle on the little kitchenette counter. She and Prince showered and once they had moisturized each other, she made two cups of Chamomille tea letting the tea bags seep in their mugs. She put two drops each of Chamomille oil into the tea and topped the mugs off with a little more of the boiling water. It was the best natural sleep aid available and would help with the jet lag too. They drank their tea in silence and then called their parents to let them know they had arrived safely. It was 8:00 PM Michigan and 7:00 PM in Chicago. Prince then said..."let's go to bed Mama". He took her hand and led her into their bedroom which was as lovely as he remembered it. Bella turned the covers down while Prince checked to make sure that his phone alarm was set. They climbed into bed getting into their favorite spoon position. Chatting for a few minutes, they found themselves growing sleepy thanks to the Chamomille. Prince kissed Bella on the neck saying "love you, Mama". Bella, however, was already in dream land.