The Pilot's Holiday

The Pilot's Holiday Part 8

Chapter 8

Carol knew something felt off and wondered why Paul had called her during what was supposed to be her Holiday. "That's your boss?" Maria questioned. "Yeah, and I have a feeling it's about to be a serious talk. Catch up to you later?" Carol hugged Maria and gave her a kiss before Maria left. Paul reached Carol as Maria was leaving.

"I am sorry if I interrupted anything Carol but, you know you can talk to me about anything. Especially if it was something going on that made you want to leave." Paul and Carol took a seat at one of the tables in the lobby. This was all a little confusing to Carol. She knew something was up but couldn't quite tell what it was. The distraction yesterday was nice but it made her lose track of what was bothering her. Now she knows. "Whoa whoa wait a minute. I didn't leave. I went on vacation. I had the time and filled out everything. Charles should've mentioned that. Didn't he call you?"

Paul was the one person outside of Charles that she could trust. So everything about this situation was bad. One of the two people she trusted, was now lying to her or about her and it did not feel good. "Yes, Charles called. He mentioned you left and just didn't come back. I figured it was bullshit so I called him into my office to get a straight answer. He stood by his story. So I called you and when you didn't pick up I thought you might have been in some kind of trouble or something." At that moment, it was clear. She thought back to why her phone was on airplane mode when she hadn't really touched it. She remembered the last time she did and it was that day. The last day she saw Charles.

"No. Mother FUCKER!" Carol shouted as she slammed her hand on the table. "Charles set me up! Why? He has been my friend since pilot school. I....I" Carol trailed off as tears filled her eyes. Never would she have thought Charles would betray her. He knew how difficult it was to get the job let alone be a pilot. Paul hugged Carol. He didn't want to believe Charles was a piece of shit who betrayed a friend but all the evidence said it was true. "I'm sorry Carol. I didn't want to believe it either. You two are...were as close as siblings." He patted her on her back a couple of times. Letting her cry some more. "Hey, come on kiddo. I know how much Control Towers ease you so let's head to the airport now. Not to end your holiday, but to help you process everything."

*Charles*

Charles sat at the edge of the bed. Staring at the picture of him and Carol. "Is this worth it? I can't cause Carol to lose her job. I have to call this off." Charles was so lost in thought he didn't hear Lacey come into the room. She looked at him and waved her hand in front of his face several times. "Hey! Earth to Charles. Come on, our plan is just about done." She rubbed her hands together. Smiling methodically. Charles shook his head and stood up to face Lacey. "I can't do this. The plan was never to cause Carol to lose her job. Nor for Paul to chase after her. Hell by now they probably both know and we are fucked anyway!"

Charles pulled out his phone and before he could press on Carol's name, he felt a slap on his hand and the phone shot across the room. "You will NOT ruin this. We have come too far now. We are almost at the finish line Charles." Realizing Charles could fall apart at the last minute Lacey took a deep breath and went for a more gentle approach. "Charles sweetie, we are almost there. Soon." She placed her hand on his face. Feeling the path the tear traveled down his face. "Once we land that plane, they will see. Then you can explain to Carol and be friends again. Plus." She used her other hand to feel the bulge in his pants. "You have something waiting for you when this is all over."

She pushed off of Charles and turned to walk away. "So get us on the plane to that shit hole town her and Paul are in so we can land that plane and see the look on their faces when we find them and people praise us." Lacey held her arms out like she could feel the admiration from the people and more importantly, Paul and Carol. That's what mattered the most to her. She bent over purposely in front of Charles to pick up his phone. "I'll hold on to this in case you get any ideas." "WAIT!" Charles shouted. He sighed before going on. "Look, the flight out of Gate A20 is heading to Asheville. I know the pilot and co-pilot. I can tell them to switch off with us since it is the last flight for the day for all of us. They'll get the shorter one which they will love. There."

Lacey's devilish grin appeared again as she closed the door and tossed Charles his phone. "Good boy. Now let's get ready to make me a pilot." She walked into the bathroom to shower as Charles couldn't join her. At least not at the moment. He was too far in to stop now. Or so he thought. Despite his protest he had to help out Lacey. He did not agree with her methods but if it helped another woman from being held down, then it would be worth it. Once they were out of the room and at the gate, Charles informed the pilots of the switch off. "Lacey, go through the checklist, I have to prepare in the cockpit." Lacey, not knowing what was on the checklist and honestly didn't really care, did a walk around the plane a couple of times and gave a thumbs up to Charles.

*Marcus*

Marcus hadn't had a chance to think about everything that happened. He knew he had to tell Carol everything but the fact that she knew Maria only made things worse for him. He took a hero breath and pulled out his phone as he laid in bed. He called his brother James hoping for some brotherly advice. "Marcus. I take it you messed things up with Carol already?" Marcus sat up and put his hand on his head. "Maybe, kind of. I don't know. Look, things are more complicated. It turns out Carol knows Maria. From college. I get the feeling they might've dated too." There was a pause before James could respond. "That is complicated. After you explained your history with the she devil , how did Carol take it?" Marcus scratched his head and looked around the room. "I didn't really get a chance to. I sort of panicked and drove away after I found out they knew each other."

Dylan's voice could be heard in the background. "YOU DID WHAT??? Marcus no." "Calm down Dylan, drink your sparkling water." James replied. "Well brother, you know you must go to her and tell her everything. Or wait for her to call you. I mean you did leave in a hurry so there's a good chance she wants answers from you." Dylan spoke again from the background. "If you go to her, there's no guarantee she's not with Maria so I say wait on the call. She's a good one so I would say wait." Marcus thought about it and decided he would wait. He could only hope it was the right decision.