Tailspin (18 page)

NINETEEN

S
ylvie leaned against the hospital wall outside Will's room, nursing a tepid cup of coffee. He hadn't wanted to dive. But he'd done it for her. Would the guilt ever leave her? Could she ever let go and move on? They'd both been desperate to solve what happened to their mothers. The price had been too high.

If I lose Will...

No. She couldn't think like that. She had to hang on to hope like Heidi said. Sylvie couldn't lose Will. He'd sacrificed everything for her.

At least it hadn't been for nothing. The Alaska State Troopers had apprehended Ashley at the Juneau airport, confiscating the thumb drive containing incriminating evidence, thanks to Chief Winters. Once he'd heard the story he was quick to act, calling in the “state boys,” as he'd termed them.

The state police hadn't wanted to share the status of their investigation with Sylvie, although they'd taken her statement, but Chief Winters had kept her informed. She'd been wrong about so much. Misled. Her stomach soured.

The information on the thumb drive turned out to be trade secrets that Ashley had stolen from Damon Masters's company in order to sell to the highest bidder. Apparently, she already had a buyer, a company competitor, for millions. With that money, she could live her dreams.

Masters Marine Corporation's R&D had been developing a new eco-ship in order to solve fuel-efficiency problems in the shipping industry. That kind of technology would mean everything to a shipping company. A secret worth millions—money Ashley had been able to leverage to get the hired muscle she needed to take out Sylvie's mother, and try to kill Sylvie, as well.

She peered into Will's room to see if the nurse had finished. Sylvie wouldn't leave his side until he woke up from his induced coma, except for when the nurses sent her away.

Pressing her back against the cold wall, the smell of antiseptic accosting her nose, Sylvie squeezed her eyes shut. Damon hadn't been involved in her mother's death, after all. Shame filled her that she'd believed he would have been. When her mother had taken the information from Ashley and realized what she'd found, she was afraid for her life. She'd already been followed and nearly killed. She had to leave and find a safe haven.

When Ashley learned Regina was planning to leave and that she had the thumb drive, she hired a mercenary to take Regina out. He engineered the plane crash, timing it over waters in no-man's land in southeast Alaska. Unfortunately, Ashley was concerned that Regina had shared her secret with Sylvie. Ashley learned through a contact at the diving school that Sylvie was still searching for the plane. That was when her mercenary accomplice rigged trackers on her scuba gear and boat. As soon as she got near where they suspected the plane had gone down, he was sent to kill her and make it look like an accident.

Like her mother, she would be lost forever.

Since Ashley was Damon's assistant and right-hand woman, she could easily retrieve the information again. Once she sold it, she could leave the country.

Except that Damon had grown increasingly agitated, believing someone was stealing R&D secrets from his company. As a precaution, he locked her out of the system and called the FBI. When Ashley could no longer gain access to the information, she needed to retrieve the thumb drive, after all, and Sylvie was the person to do it, since she believed she'd found the site of the crash. All Sylvie needed was incentive and to know what precisely she was looking for, i.e. a thumb drive. Then she could die in a diving accident, after all.

Problem solved.

So Ashley copied the letter her mother had intended to send, only tweaking it to serve her purposes, and planted the seed. Diverman had wanted to kill Sylvie and Will at her stepfather's house, and he nearly ruined Ashley's new plans.

Sylvie gulped back the rest of the coffee, ignoring the bitter taste.

She should have seen this coming a mile away. Should have seen through Ashley. But Ashley had seemed so genuine. So warm and caring.

The squeak of footfalls, somehow familiar, drew her attention up. One of her newfound siblings? Her heart skipped at the thought.

But then tumbled.

Her stepfather made his way toward her from the elevators. Sylvie fought the need to turn her back on him. How could she face him? She peered at the white sterile floor, waiting for his approach. Hospital staff exited Will's room, so she could finally go back in. But now she had to speak with Damon.

“Sylvie.”

She glanced at him. Saw the regret.

“I'm so very sorry about what happened.” He cradled her elbow.

In years gone by, she might have gone into his arms to receive a fatherly hug, but so much stood between them now. Even though he was innocent regarding her mother's death and the attacks on Sylvie, he'd still cheated on her mother. Betrayed his family.

She looked away. “Me, too. I'm sorry I thought you were involved. I know that hurt you.” More than she would ever know. “Because it hurts me.”

“I can't say that I blame you. Things were so volatile and explosive between your mother and me. And then...there was the matter of the affairs. I'm sorry for those, too, and for the hurt I've caused both you and your mother. I'm sorry that I was idiot enough to think I could trust Ashley.” Bitterness spiked his last words.

Unsure what to say, Sylvie stared at her feet. She wanted her life back. She wanted those years back spent with a loving stepfather and mother. When she actually
was
his princess. His betrayal had been far-reaching. She'd carried it into adulthood where it had colored the way she looked at others. Damaged her ability to trust men. But she was done with letting their actions affect her life. Their mistakes rob her.

“So what's next?” he asked. “Where do we go from here?”

She gathered the nerve to look him in the eyes. “We take it one day at a time. None of it really matters to me anymore. All that matters is that Will wakes up.”

Because somewhere along the way, she'd fallen in love with Will Pierson.

* * *

Will's eyes fluttered, squinting open to the dim lighting of a room. His limbs were too heavy, or he was too tired, disconnected, but he couldn't move.

Where am I?

His lids grew heavy and closed again. That was much better. Sleep. He could sleep forever and be okay with that.

But wait...there was something or someone. Some reason he needed to wake up. Except his body wouldn't respond to his commands, and his mind was trapped in the past.

He was only fourteen and learning to fly, taking the controls of the plane for the first time. His dad beamed with pride, and when he landed, he didn't think he could ever have a better day. He'd come home to chocolate chip cookies fresh from the oven. Mom and Dad were working to build up Mountain Cove Air bush piloting services. He could stay here forever with them, and soaked in the rare warm day in Alaska
.
He didn't want to grow older. No, he didn't want to see the future. He knew what he would face, and the pain was too much, as it rushed in and over him anyway. His father's death, and then his mother's.

But then there was someone else...someone vitally important to him. And he couldn't save her, either. She was going to die because Will had let her down, too.

A flash of light golden brown hair. Athletic body, and strong mind and spirit.

She can't die. No, Will has to die for her, to save her.

And then he could fly with the eagles, riding the winds of heaven.

He jerked; his eyes opened. Pain sliced through his head. Sylvie stood there, looking at him. That was painful, too. Seeing her standing there in his dream. He shut his eyes, shut out the light and the pain and Sylvie. He'd let her down. He couldn't look at her, face her, even though it was a dream.

“Will,” she whispered.

He cringed inside, wanted to run away, but he couldn't move. She took his hand in hers and squeezed. And Will, to his surprise, squeezed back.

“Can you hear me?” Again, she whispered, hurt and fear twisting her voice. “I have to tell you something. I can't keep it inside anymore. I know it's crazy. I haven't known you for long, but I'm in love with you.”

Will wanted out of this dream. He had to wake up to get away from Sylvie. It was as if she voiced all his fears of loving someone, all he'd run from. She was taking his fear and offering him the one thing he'd ever wanted—someone to love. But he could never admit it, never let it happen. Why was she torturing him?

And then she sniffled. “They told me you couldn't hear me, but I don't believe that's true. I think you can hear me and that's why I'm begging you to please wake up. I love you. I need you. Come back to me.”

Sylvie's voice was so sweet, so comforting, Will decided he didn't want the dream to end, after all, but then he realized...
this isn't a dream.
He fought to open his eyes. Hearing her gasp, feeling her breath against his arm, motivated him to try harder. Will turned his face toward the warmth emanating from her body.

This isn't a dream! Wake up! Don't lose her again!

When had she become everything to him? Will's eyes opened and he stared into the most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen. Her smile nearly did him in again. He tried to return it, but wasn't sure his lips so much as cracked the hint of a grin.

“You're awake,” she said through tears, and squeezed his hand with both of hers. “Will, you're awake.”

“Yes.” His voice sounded ancient to his own ears.

“Did you hear me? I mean, could you hear me talking?”

“Yes.” Her words had brought him back, he was sure of it. They had saved him. “I heard.”

Fear flickered in her gaze. “And?”

Finally, he felt his grin, and he saw it reflected in her response. Wow, he loved her smile. Her strength. Her beauty both inside and out. Her spirit.

“Oh, Will, I'm sorry. I've hit you with all this when you've just woken up.” She turned from him, pulled her hands away and called the nurse. “He's awake!”

“Sylvie, wait.” He reached for her, but there was no strength in his arms.

She rushed back to him as others came into the room.

“You didn't let me finish. It's your words that brought me back, and they weren't too much. They were just right. I love you, too.”

But Sylvie wasn't allowed to respond as the nurse asked him questions, welcomed him back and took his vitals. Just where had he gone that everyone appeared surprised he was back with them? It wasn't as if he'd been dead. The doctor would explain the details, the nurse said, then left him alone with Sylvie.

Images of his dreams crawled over him, leaving the fear and memories in their wake. The loss, his personal loss, had been too much. Nausea roiled.

“What's the matter?” Sylvie asked.

But Sylvie was here in the flesh. Alive, not dead, as he'd believed. He would move forward. Be grateful for her. But...

“What if love isn't enough? We're too different. I love to fly. And you're not happy if you're not in the water.”

The horror of what had happened came rolling back and rammed him. The pain in his leg, fighting the diver, and then he hadn't been able to breathe. The anguish and pain of it and everything went black.

“I don't care about any of that. I just care that you're alive.”

“I must be a weak man. I don't think I can ever go diving again. Can you still accept me, love me?” He didn't doubt it, but he had to ask. He had to put it all on the table.

“Isn't that what love is all about? Giving up, sacrificing, for the one you love?”

He nodded, waiting to hear what more she would say.

“I can give it up for you, Will. I don't need to dive. You sacrificed everything for me. There's nothing I wouldn't do for you.”

He saw the truth in her eyes. “Well, there's at least one thing we have in common. We're both willing to sacrifice. But I wouldn't ask you to give up something you love.”

“Good. Because I'm not giving you up.”

* * * * *

Keep reading for an excerpt from
MIRROR IMAGE
by Laura Scott

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Dear Reader,

Thank you for reading
Tailspin
. I hope you enjoyed it. Of all my books, I've had the most fun writing
Tailspin
. Maybe that's because I've always wanted to write a bush pilot story. When I started the Mountain Cove series, I hadn't yet thought of it, but since my character Billy, aka Will, showed up in several books, I realized he needed his own story. Of course Regina's offspring needed to turn up, as well. Several readers have written me wanting to read the long-lost Warren sibling's story.

Regarding Sylvie's need for a hyperbaric chamber, as of the writing of this story, the hospital in Juneau had removed its chamber. In the real world, divers in need of one would have to travel to Seattle or Anchorage.

A question readers often ask is what part of myself I put into my stories. After all these years writing, I've finally learned that it's my spiritual journey. Whatever I'm going through while I'm writing is what goes into the book. And guess what? That's by God's design. This is my ministry! Because if I'm going through it, that means others are also going through something similar and can use the encouragement that comes with knowing you're not alone.

Over the course of writing
Tailspin
, I was in a place where I carried far too many burdens, and continued to gather more. My responsibilities continued to grow and I added more by choice, because I have goals and dreams. Things I want to achieve. But life has a way of dumping things you don't want onto the metaphorical plate, as well. To say that I had become depressed and overstressed is an understatement. The stress made me physically ill. As I prayed and sought the Lord, He gave me this verse about eagles.

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31

After researching about what this could mean, I learned that an eagle's wings are heavy and if it tries to fly on its own energy, it will quickly tire. But an eagle waits on the wind so when it lifts its wings, it can rest as it0 flies. In essence, God wants us to let go of our burdens and give them to Him, and that's when good things start to happen. I know they did for me, when I let go, and they will for you, too. I love to hear from you so please stop by my website to connect at
elizabethgoddard.com
. You'll find my Facebook and Twitter links there, too.

Be blessed!

Elizabeth Goddard