Turbulent Desires(47)

Nick nodded and pushed up the throttle.

"CG6055, the storm is getting worse. Are you sure you can do this?"

"Sir, there's another man out there. The captain of the boat. We're going to go get him." Nick would never leave a man behind.

The Jayhawk was back in the thick of the storm, disappearing into the  torrid sky. It didn't take long before Nick was circling over the  remnants of the Southern Belle. There wasn't a sign of the captain  anywhere.

Beep, beep, beep . . . Nick glanced over at the fuel gauge and it was now reading low.

"We have to go back, Armstrong," Gail said with reluctance.

"I know, I know," Nick responded as he fought to keep the aircraft  upright. He didn't want to leave, but he was left with no choice.

Just as he began his turn south, they were struck by a bolt of  lightning. Nick grabbed the controls, and for a moment, he was fighting a  lost battle. The aircraft drifted sideways into the oncoming swell of a  giant wave. The sliding cargo door was jarred loose, swinging wildly  open and closed.

"Hold on. We need to pull up, Gail," Nick yelled as he put the throttle  to max. The turbine engines screamed as the rotors lifted the heavy  craft upward. It was too little, too late. Another larger wave crashed  into the side of them, this time filling the back with freezing sea  water. To make matters worse, the cargo door slammed shut and latched,  locking in the heavy payload of water.

"She weighs too much," Nick exclaimed as he strained to get the now-sluggish Jayhawk up.         

     



 

Gail jumped on the radio. "Mayday, Mayday, Mayday. Orca, this is CG6055,  we are going to ditch. I repeat, we are going to ditch!"

"Are you ready for this?" she asked as she handed Nick his survival pack.

"Nope."

A large looming wave crashed down on the aircraft, slamming it into the  water. The fuselage tumbled into the swell as it began to rise again.  Both Nick and Gail were tossed inside the deathtrap. The crew in back  must have lost their mics because they were radio silent.

With one final hit, the front window shattered, allowing bone-chilling  sea water to flood inside. There was nothing more they could do. The  orange and white aircraft slipped below the surface of the water. The  faint glow of the red and green navigation lights became dimmer as it  sank deeper into the sea.

"CG6055, this is Orca, come in."

There was no response.





ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This is my favorite part of writing a book. It takes so many people to  make the magic happen, and without all of you, I couldn't get it done.  Thank you to my pilot friends for looking over stuff for accuracy. You  guys so love to talk planes; it's a blast to do my research. Thanks to  Stephy for all the help with the nurse info. Thanks to my employees for  all you do and for the many hours you put in. I know I couldn't do it  without you. The hours we work together are so much fun for me.

Thanks so much to my editors, Maria and Lauren. You are amazing and I  love the many ideas you come up with to make my stories so much better.

Finally, thank you to my family. Everything I do is for you. I love you  all so much. We are nothing without our friends and family. I can't  imagine how lonely life would be without each and every one of you.