The Export by J.K. Kelly (read along books txt) 📕

me, skipper. I’ll let the ground crew do their thing.” He turned to the two flight attendants. “Looks like it will be a table for three, ladies.”

Minutes later, Eve and her roommate Vicki climbed the short steps, sounding excited by their first private jet ride, a free trip to Europe, and seeing Matt, standing there with two glasses of champagne for them. Once the hugs and kisses and bag stowage were behind them, the captain finished his paperwork and announced they were ready for takeoff.

“Weather for the crossing looks perfect,” he said. “We can hop a ride on the jet stream and should have you in Munich at eight in the morning local time.”

Matt, Eve, Vicki, and the two attendants buckled up and, once the jet passed the 10,000-foot mark, the pilot announced they were now free to move about the plane. As always, he still suggested they wear their seat belts when they were seated.

“Yada, yada,” Vicki laughed, “at least he didn’t tell us about the oxygen masks.” A minute later, the pilot commenced with the rest of his safety announcements.

“Hey, I’ve got a story about those damn things that will make your hair curl,” he told his guests. “But we’ve got quite a dinner planned for you, so let’s sit down and have a drink. I’ll get back to what happened the last time I flew over the Atlantic.”

Endless champagne, beer, wine, shrimp cocktails, filet mignon with béarnaise, baked potato, grilled asparagus, and creamy New York-style cheesecake with fresh berries to top off the meal left them almost in a caloric haze. The tale Matt had told during dinner, of the chemical spill on the Swiss flight, left the girls stunned. Even the two flight attendants, with their charter’s permission, had remained close to the table to listen in.

With everyone content for now, Matt got up and moved to one of the many plush beige leather captain’s chairs throughout the cabin. While Vicki used the toilet and the attendants cleaned up and served dinner to the cockpit crew, Eve sat down next to Matt.

“I hope you aren’t mad that I brought Vicki along.”

Matt laughed. This trip was to get his mind off almost being killed and knowing he would soon have to go after those who had tried. He had partied with the two women in Montreal during the F1 weekend and enjoyed both, in every way.

“I’m happy, the more, the merrier,” he answered, but the look on Eve’s face meant there was something coming.

“You know, I hardly know you,” she began.

“We’ve swapped DNA, so–”

“Yes, but here you are whisking me away to who knows where. It’s been clear to me for some time that you are more than a travel writer, much more,” she said. “Normally, riding in a private jet is totally against everything I believe in. I told you before that I’m an environmentalist, and it really irks me when I think of how often these jets are used and how uncaring the people who use them are about our world.”

“But you came aboard,” he stated.

“You were going to burn this fuel and cause this exhaust long before I called you. Having me along doesn’t impact the environment any more negatively other than what we leave in the loo. I guess I can make peace with that.”

“I’m glad. Because the last environmentalist I had on board, we threw out somewhere over Utah.” He laughed at her shocked expression but continued in a more serious tone. “Yes, I am much more than a writer. What I do I don’t normally discuss with other people. But I can tell you, if it makes you feel any better, that I am somewhat philanthropic back in the States. I contribute not just to environmental concerns like the Sierra Club but also domestic shelters that protect and help women who have to run from abuse with nothing but their lives, Make a Wish and other char–”

He broke off when a look of panic came across Eve’s face. Matt spun in his chair to see Vicki, holding a black compact machine gun.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Matt froze. He stared at Vicki’s fingers. They weren’t near the trigger. He looked for the clip; there wasn’t one attached. He took a deep breath and slowly stood up, reaching for the gun.

“What the hell is this?” she demanded, opting to lay it down on the beige leather sofa behind her rather than hand what looked like an assault weapon to a man she barely knew.

“It’s okay,” he said with a smile, turning to Eve to reassure her. “Alright, you got me. I’m FBI. We’re headed to Germany to help bust an international drug cartel. I figured since Uncle Sam was picking up the tab, there wasn’t any harm in asking you two to come along for the ride.” One of the flight attendants had returned from the cockpit and walked past Eve and Matt but then noticed the gun on the sofa and acted as if this sort of thing happened all the time.

“Is that the new Sig 6.8?” she asked Vicki, the person closest to it, but Matt answered for her.

“Yes, just got it,” Matt offered. The attendant stepped past Vicki and continued to the back of the plane. Matt smiled as he saw the stun gun she’d been holding behind her back as she passed them both.

“Okay, I’m starting to freak out,” Vicki said. “You know I hate guns.” She glared at Eve.

“Calm down,” Eve assured her. “We know this guy. He’s clearly up to something else, but I’ve not sensed an ounce of threat from him since the first day I laid eyes on him. “

Matt had a decision to make and decided on the spot to tie in one of his tales, in the hope that it would all make sense to his guests. He went on to tell them that he was to meet up with a team that was supposed to fly on a double-decker