Chapter 8: Chapter 8

Most of the clients who booked their Marcus and Brian's protection services back in the days when he still held prestige in the protection industry were high-class citizens like politicians, celebrities, popstars, business Moguls, and sometimes drug lords, and as per demand from their various lines of work, they had to move around frequently. To ensure that their convoys were not attacked, they carried their bodyguards along. Hence, flights and boat cruises were a regular occurrence for him. But oblivious to him, Jane did not feel the same way.

A torque of tension seemed to flow in her throughout her journey to the airport. Marcus would ask several if there was something he could do to make her relax, thinking she was still not at peace with the trip, but every time he was told to shut up and focus on looking for threats on the cold dark highway route they ploughed.

A few people knew but Jane despises planes. At first, she thought when she eventually got on one, the fear would fade off, but throughout the 30 minutes duration of her first plane trip, she puked into so many paper bags that she lost count. If not that her father had sat beside her, until she dozed off, she wasn't sure she wouldn't have hurled her guts out.

But she couldn't tell that to Marcus. She had secured an image with Marcus as a bossy woman with a tough exterior and was going to try her best to keep up the persona. Even an hour's flight was not going to make her ruin her image.

When they finally arrived at the airport, Jane hesitated a while in the car to place a call to Sophia while her boxes were loaded on the plane.

"Hey, stranger." Sophia sang after picking up on the third ring. "I thought you'd be cold-hearted enough to leave without saying goodbye."

"You know I'm not that wicked, at least not to you. Besides, I'll be away for a month. I need to know you'll not do anything stupid that'll make your mum call me, crying. I don't want what happened the previous year to repeat itself."

"Oh my gosh," Sophia's groaned. "You never cease to keep using any chance to rub my mistakes in my face. You never forget, do you?"

"I'm just saying be careful. And don't even get me started on last year. You almost drove off a cliff if not that a ditch was near. That's the closest to death I have seen you ever."

"Let the sleeping dog lie, Jane. I'll be at my best behaviour but you better get as many penises as you can be stuck in your p…"

"That's enough," interrupted Jane. "Please don't say another word with that filthy mouth of yours."

"Okay." A moment of silence slipped by before Jane continued. "Let me guess, you're freaked out about the flight?"

"Yeah, kinda. But it's alright. The second time would be as bad as the first time."

"Uh-huh. I feel you. And is it right to say this new confidence is because Marcus is flying beside you?"

"Hell, no!" Jane rebuked. "Why would you think of that? I would still get through the flight with or without him."

"Uh-huh," Sophia cooed, in a— I know you you know that's not the truth— kind of tone. "Anyways make sure you take a deep breath. If you feel like exploding to bits, grab Marcus by the collar and order him to make love to you."

"One more word about sex and I'm hanging up," Jane warned.

"I'm just saying you should try and have fun, yunno. Loosen up, explore and definitely have some sex."

"Okay, Jane. I'm gonna hang up now before you talk me into feeling horny. Kisses bye."

Perhaps that call was all she needed as she smiled reassuringly to herself before heading out to where Marcus was standing with the rest of the guards at the airstair of the plane. They were also some hostesses as well, who then accompanied her and Marcus, showing them the way to the business class where other big names sat sipping on beverages served in little glasses or fiddling with their electronics while at the same time talking about the dwindling economy with each other.

While they were shown to their seats, a few gazes raised but no one recognized her immediately or if they did, they didn't think her that wealthy to spare a greeting or even a second glance. Jane hated feeling inferior or being treated as such, but she was in no mood to pull the attention of the whole room on her so sat still, waiting for the announcement to begin echoing through the speakers.

Having taken her seat, Jane took an assertive look around the room. They were all surrounded by elderly individuals; a mixture of wealthy men and women in their late forties and nineties. Out of the small group, she and Marcus were the only ones younger than thirty.

She turned to take a glance at Marcus. He sat ever so confidently and striking staring at an elderly man who was trying to pour himself a drink but was ending up spilling the drink off his cup and onto the floorboard of the bar due to the shakiness of his hands. There was a woman of about the same age who stood by waiting to get a bit of the drink as well and she was subtly admonishing the man to hurry up.

Then just adjacent to them, to the right of the bar, a man dressed as an Arabic resident sat exchanging words a tall white man who had stepped on his toes unintentionally while he walked past. Their little scuffle was beginning to grow and almost began to cause a scene. But none of the others seemed to care and with the hostess out trying to organise the other section of the plane, there was no one to retain order.

"Someone should get the hostess before these two men rip themselves apart," she murmured in low tones but enough to the hearing of Marcus beside her.

The latter replied with a "hmmm" and that was when Jane's eyes turned to meet him once more. He had his eyes fixed on the arguing duo and from the way he shifted uneasily in his seat, she could tell that Marcus was about to do something unnecessary.

"Don't even think about it. We are here for our flight and not to become some third party. Let them be."

"Okay," Marcus whispered, rolling his eyes. But as soon as Jane was not looking, he jumped up and ran towards the men, ignoring the calls Jane shouted after him.

"Please, this announcement goes out for all those boarding this flight," a voice, which Jane figured belonged to the pilot, echoed grabbing everyone's attention. "We're are about to take off soon and as such, please put on your seatbelt."

The announcement halted Marcus in his steps. Even the two men had stopped speaking and all at the bar returned to strap themselves in their seats, leaving Marcus embarrassed. Just as he tried to return to his seat, the receptionist came out and made sure all were seated.

He expected Jane to express his rage once he took his seat but she remained silent, an action which he had learnt from dealing with a lot of people, to be worse. She just ignored him and grabbed on tightly to the armrests of her chair, her fingernails digging into the material of the chairs.

The vessel's engines gave a little purr and then a great groan before it began running along the track. The pilot kept his promise and there was no turbulence until the plane lifted its nose into the air and began flying in a half-vertical position.

Everyone adjusted well as the takeoff dragged them into their seats, but for Jane, her body did not feel so good. Apart from the lurch in her stomach, the mere thought that they were in the air made sweat beads begin to form on her forehead even though the room was fully air-conditioned. She clasped her teeth together and pumped her cheeks with air, trying desperately to keep back the bitter taste she felt creeping on her tongue.

To add to the distress she was feeling were the imaginations filling her head about the possible accidents that could befall the aircraft. Even though she had previously read over a thousand reviews that all applauded and spoke highly of the airline, she couldn't stop the feeling of insecurity. It seemed like she was thrown into a trance and she could experience all the flight hazards all at once, from a feeling of the plane developing dysfunctions and exploding in midair, to a bird colliding with the cockpit; making it fly headfirst into one of those steep peaks that stood lots of heights underneath the sky, and even a psycho serial killer emerging among those aboard and hijacking the plane. In all this, only one person noticed her distress and asked for her welfare. That person was Marcus.

"Should I get you water?" He offered, trying to unbuckle his seatbelt.

"Don't be ridiculous!' Jane stopped him, forcefully swallowing back her bitter spit. "The plane is in motion and you could get hurt if you get out of your seat."

"It's my job to get hurt, miss Jane. Just say the word and I'll get you anything you need," he persisted, adjusting to the edge of his seat.

Jane didn't reply but grabbed the paper bag that lay beside her and hurled her vomit into it with her face lowered to the ground. She couldn't help it anymore. A vomit would be enough and I would be fine— she had thought, but when she felt her stomach churn, she knew that was just the beginning of it.

Marcus retrieved a little towel from his suit pocket and began wiping off the sweat that lined her brows and forehead. He felt her neck with the back of his palm and could tell she was beginning to have a fever. Alarmed, he tried reaching out to the hostess by hollering her name, but she was nowhere around, probably strapped to a seat herself. He glanced over at the bar and lo and behold there was no section in the bar that was labelled with medicines. He was stranded.

Before he could decide on the best way to lower Jane's temperature or even make her calm, a pair of hands flung at him, engulfing him in an embrace and leaving his jaw dropped and his eyes widened. Of all of the things he could expect to experience on this flight, the last thing on his list was Jane clinging onto him for comfort or any reason. The only thing that separated them was the armrests of the two seats. He tried to speak but either the words were stuck in his throat or he suddenly changed his mind at the last minute before they could escape. Besides, what was he supposed to say in such a situation? Get the hell off me? Why are you hugging me?

Marcus had sustained the shock thinking that the hug would only last for a minute, but when Jane's hands tightened around his back and her head nestled on his neck, he knew he was going to be a human pillow for quite a while. Unsure of what his reaction would be, he hesitated for a while before taking his hand and stroking her hair slowly, while grunting slightly.

After a while, the plane adjusted back to its original horizontal position. Finally, Marcus breathed. Everything had returned to normal as well in the business class compartment. People unbuckled themselves from their seats discussing amongst themselves or entertaining themselves at the bar. Alas, the plane was stable and Marcus nudged the sleeping beauty on his shoulder. Once. Twice. But there was no reaction. There and then he realized that Jane had slept off and he would spend the rest of the flight in that position.