CHIPPED

Chapter 9

Neva started to snore beside me. As much as I wanted to sleep, I was wide awake. The fact that I had to confront Aspen in mere hours made me anxious. How did she tie into all of this mess? Did she tie into any of it? I'm scared to find out.

My thoughts wandered to Willder, who was slumped in the seat across from me. He was half asleep, but told me he had full confidence in me if autopilot started to malfunction. If the plane started to go down, the fate of our lives rested on my shoulders. This was also one of the reasons I couldn't sleep.

I stand up, needing to stretch my legs after sitting for so many hours. I wasn't sure how long we had been flying, mainly because my mind was occupied with so many other issues. For instance, how was I going to sneak into CIA headquarters and release every bit of information on Rushwood I had previously found? I already got fired for investigating him, and I have already been in federal prison for fixing the election. If I take one more step by revealing his crimes, I can almost guarantee I'll be murdered. It's not beneath Rushwood to do such a thing.

Neva stirs around a bit before she wakes herself up. Her eyes flutter open as she sits up in her seat. She looks directly at me, and I force a smile. She rubs her eyes and yawns before she speaks to me.

"Have you slept at all?" She asks.

"I'm fine." I retort.

She rolls her eyes, "That's a 'no'," She stretches in her seat, with her arms above her head. "You need to relax your mind and let your body rest."

It's my turn to roll my eyes, "Easier said than done." I sit back in the leather seat, allowing myself to sink into the chair.

Neva twiddles her thumbs, "You're still thinking about Aspen."

I look away from Neva's piercing eyes, "How can I not? If she's a part of this whole scheme, how did I even let myself get this close to her? But on the other hand, if she isn't playing dumb, I may hurt our relationship by even asking such questions."

Neva remains silent for a couple of seconds before replying with, "I think she needs to understand what you've been through."

"I can't tell her what I've been through, she'll know I lied to her."

Neva purses her lips, "Yeah, your engagement is not in a good place right now." I allow myself to let out a light laugh. That would be an understatement, I think to myself.

"Tell me this," She inquires seriously, "If she has been behind this whole operation, how do you think you'll get over her?"

I'd rather not think about such things at the moment, but I realize I may have to make that choice here shortly. I shake my head, "I don't know."

We weren't talking very quietly, but I didn't think we were loud enough to wake Willder up. He wakes up ever so slowly, starting by stretching and letting out a few incomprehensive mumbles. He checks his watch, and I watch his eyes grow wide. Willder rushes to the cockpit without saying a word to either of us.

I make my way over to my luggage and find my black suitcase. I've managed to wear a suit and tie for over 24 hours. My fingers quickly unzip the suitcase and rummage around until they land on jeans and a polo shirt. I would much rather wear sweatpants and a t-shirt, but I decide to pass those to Neva, so she has something to change in to.

She looks up at me with a pearly white smile, her facial expression thanking me before "thank you" even came out of her mouth. I smile back and allow her to use the bathroom to change before me.

While I wait for my turn to change, I contemplate what I'll say to Aspen. Do I ask the questions delicately, or will I spit them out without even thinking? It's better I plan this out now. My engagement is on the line.