My dearest C.J…
I write this letter to you from inside my jail cell at Ironwood Penitentiary as I'm preparing for the bell to chime that will signal that it's time for lights out. Another day in this institution coming to an end, with my thoughts on you my sweetheart.
I forgive you for what you and Matt did to me last year and wish to extend my best hopes that you both have a happy holiday season into the New Year…
C.J. slammed the letter down on her desk because she knew what was coming next. The part where he beseeched her to put aside her foolishness and come visit him in the prison that held him miles away. Futile on his part because she had cut all ties to him right after she had washed them cart a thoroughly drenched yet stylishly dressed Robert Tyler away in handcuffs after Matt had pushed him into the drink, meaning the marina right after he had fled the scene of the crime.
About five seconds after he discovered that she Matt and Uncle Roy had stung him into confessing murdering one of his former accomplices. The man who had partnered with him in several kidnappings carried out to further his meteoric ascension through the ranks of television news reporting. Robert had been brazen enough to shoot another man in cold blood right in front of Matt.
Boy she really knew how to pick them, handsome and suave gentlemen who turned out to be anything but. Wolves in sheep clothing some behavioral psychologists might have called them while trying to help C.J. figure out why she kept being drawn to men who were not what they appeared to be. She looked up just then to see Chris standing in the doorway with two cups of cappuccino brewed straight from the new machine that Matt had given to the secretarial pool who worked the penthouse suite. The least they deserved for putting up with the long hours and piles of paperwork that Murray had piled on them to prepare for finalizing the latest merger involving Houston Industries.
"You ready for a break?"
C.J. blew a tendril of hair out of her face.
"Yeah if you just hand over one of those coffees…"
Chris smiled as she handed a mug over to C.J. who took it gratefully. She'd been working since 5am sorting through her own court files to help out Murray. Matt and his Uncle Roy were flying back in one of the Lear Jets after finishing a case in New York City involving a cabal of criminals trying to embezzle millions out of a securities firm. They'd been gone on and off for nearly two months spending most of that time working surveillance and undercover until they had enough to make their move with the help of New York's finest.
Chris sat down in a chair opposite her nursing her own coffee while looking at the stack of files on C.J.'s desk.
"You finished all of those this morning?"
C.J. sighed.
"No…most of them I reviewed yesterday before I went home," she said, "Just finishing up this morning."
Chris sipped her coffee.
"So what are your plans tonight?"
C.J. narrowed her eyes at her friend.
"What do you mean?"
Chris looked at her incredulously.
"It's New Year's Eve, don't you know that?"
"Of course I do…I've just been so busy working on these files," C.J. said, "but we're having a party at Clover's club aren't we?"
That's what they had been doing the past couple of years on the last evening of the year ever since Matt's old friend Clover, former race car driver and model had decided to open up a new blues club in Malibu not far from Matt's beach house. For a while, she had tried to rekindle old embers with him but he hadn't seemed all that interested. C.J. figured he was busy trying to forget that he'd been engaged to marry Elizabeth only six months earlier before the wedding had gone bust followed by the whirlwind engagement.
Then there had been the latest string of cases that he and Roy had been working from coast to coast and why it'd been a while since she'd seen him. In a few hours that would change after they arrived back in L.A. for a while.
Chris seemed to be tapping into her chain of thought.
"Is Matt going tonight?"
C.J. just shrugged, not knowing how to answer that. It's not like she'd talked to him in the past couple of days since they finally wrapped up t he assignment. He's been so busy in briefings closing the latest complicated case out right down to the paperwork to check in with L.A. But then again she'd been busy herself.
"A couple girls off his Rolodex have been calling the office asking when he'll be back."
C.J. didn't doubt that as Matt had always attracted a flock of women around him wherever he went. It'd been like that since they'd been in high school and his wiry frame had begun to fill out with muscle from all the sports he played.
"Which ones…?"
Chris began to tick them off her fingers.
"Oh just Buffy and Tiffani and Madison…"
All names off of the charity party circuit that seemed harmless enough but C.J. had a hard time telling them apart. Maybe if they wore nametags…
"Buffy's the blonde and Madison has blue streaks in her dark hair," Chris interjected, "but I'm drawing a blank with Tiffani."
"So am I but they're all women that Houston met at parties. On the social circuit from here to the border…"
Chris nodded.
"Oh yeah not to mention all the charity foundations he's been involved in," she said, "That's where he met up with Crystal and Terri…"
C.J. just didn't want to run over the latest roster of Matt's women that he wore on his arm when he attended parties. If that's what made him happy after his broken engagement, then the least she could do was be happy for him.
Just lately it seemed harder for her to do that because she hadn't seen lately herself. He'd been so busy working investigations with his uncle mostly out of town while she'd been holding up the fort in L.A. spending most of her time at her desk or in court.
She looked at her watch as Chris finished off her coffee. If she hurried up, she could make her appointment in Chinatown with the tattoo artist.
One of her resolutions to close out the past year and welcome in the new one, as Chris looked up at her expectantly.
"You are ready to go now?"
C.J. nodded as she grabbed her purse to leave her office and her stack of files behind for a while.
Matt looked at the journal that he had put in front of him for the past half hour. He'd actually read very little of it but he was trying to kill time while the flight attendant prepared to serve them in first class where he sat with his uncle.
Roy's attention had been focused on the novel he'd gotten for Christmas from his son Will who he'd missed so many holiday seasons with because he'd believed him to be dead for over a decade. They'd spent their first holiday together with Matt and C.J. before this latest trip, just a couple of days but it had been the best of times.
So different from the holidays they'd spent together back in Texas but they'd done brunch at their favorite eatery and then had joined Matt and C.J. out on Matt's favorite boat harbored just off of Catalina Island. The weather had been unseasonably warm, even hot and they'd spent most of the day out on the deck watching the sunlight glisten over the ocean waters and the dolphins swimming around them.
Matt had spent most of that holiday catching up on business with Murray with C.J.'s help though she'd seemed a bit distant. Everything had seemed almost like normal between them, they had always made a great business team yet…he hadn't been able to put his finger on it.
He looked up as the flight attendant approached with her cart handing out trays of food to the passengers on either side. Usually Matt would have used one of his fleet of jets but they'd all been in use or undergoing maintenance so he'd made commercial reservations.
"You eager to get back?"
Matt looked over at Roy who had put his novel on his lap in preparation for their meal.
"I'm glad that we're going to be spending more time in L.A. than we've done in the past few months."
Roy smiled.
"The case ended very well…the right people are going behind bars and the property's been located and will return to its proper owners."
Matt couldn't argue that the case hadn't ended well and that they had accomplished what they set out to do but he was glad to be returning home.
"That it did and we'll make it back in time for Clover's party," he said, "She really knows how to throw a good one."
Roy looked up at the flight attendant who had reached their row. She smiled at them and handed them some sandwiches cut in little shapes along with a fruit and spinach salad. Roy adjusted his silverware while Matt just looked at his plate.
"These are sandwiches right?"
Roy added vinaigrette to his salad.
"That they are…look pretty appetizing."
Matt picked up one piece.
"It's just that back when I was a kid growing up, sandwiches were much simpler."
Roy looked amused.
"I'm sure there'll be plenty to eat at the party," he said, "We'll be meeting the others there?"
Matt nodded.
"C.J. and Chris were finishing up work for Murray and then they said something about running some errands."
Roy shook his head as they ate.
"Murray's been keeping everyone's nose to the grindstone on the merger," he said, "I think it'd be best if you offered everyone working with him a couple weeks vacation at that resort that you picked up in the Bahamas."
Matt remembered back to those times when he had finally purchased what had turned out to be one of the hottest vacation spots in the Caribbean but not after he and C.J. had their plane hijacked by a band of terrorists working for a crazed father out for revenge after Matt's eyewitness account of an attempted assassination put him behind bars. He and C.J. along with former police lieutenant Vince Novelli had been on their way to an award ceremony when they'd been asked to stop at a shindig attended by one of the state's senators to check on his security detail. At the time they arrived, a hit man hired by a drug cartel had tried to kill him.
They had caught up with the young terrorist in training but not before Matt had received a bullet wound to the shoulder for his efforts. Three months later, it had still pained him somewhat while he and C.J. had been flying to check out that fancy resort that they wound up purchasing.
"I'll do that, to keep them from killing my corporate president," Matt said, "The merger's important but it wound up being more work than anticipated."
Yes, Matt thought but it would be worth it, the merger had built up the pharmaceutical side of his company.
"C.J. should be glad to be finished with her role in it," Roy continued, "Glad to be out from behind her desk."
A pang of guilt hit Matt at his uncle's matter of fact words which were anything but.
"Uncle Roy…"
The man next to him reached for his green tea bottle.
"Matlock, I meant it when I said that I was going to start off the new year with a global cruise with Sophia and Will," he said, "I'm not getting any younger and there's places I'd like to see from a stance that has nothing to do with covert operations."
Matt nodded, knowing where his uncle came from on the subject. After the rescue and return of Will, Roy had become even more reflective about the future and how he wanted to spend it. He had over a decade of missing time with his only son and after meeting Sophia at the Palm Springs Film Festival, he had realized that other parts of his life had lain dormant for too long as well.
"I know you did and I'm going to miss working with you," Matt said, "I'm grateful that you returned to L.A. and started working with me."
Roy smiled.
"Me too….we make a great team but Matt, I've taken away your time from C.J."
Matt rubbed his forehead.
"She's been very understanding about being left on the sidelines on so many of our cases."
Roy sipped his tea thoughtfully.
"I know that she misses it a lot"
Matt leaned back in his chair, done with his finger sandwiches.
"She's kept herself awfully busy and not just at the office."
Roy's mouth curved into a smile.
"She's been spending time with her friends," he said, "including some male friends."
"I'm happy for her."
Matt had said those words almost too quickly. But truthfully, he was glad that she had been busy outside the office. She went out to clubs and had taken up some sports. Okay, maybe some of them were a bit on the extreme side like bungee jumping and rappelling cliffs and she'd always loved paragliding but he had stood on the sidelines and watched her enjoy herself.
"I'm glad Matt, that's very good but part of her new…pursuits is because she misses working with you… as a team on cases."
Matt sighed.
"I know and I'll have that talk with her," he said, "but maybe…"
At that moment, the plane lurched and then it shuddered. A pinging sound came over the intercom. The two men just looked at each other. Matt looked out the window at the silvery reflection of the wing and the engine attached to it…it was such a beautiful and clear, a brilliant sunny day.
"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen…this is Captain Brock of Southside Airways just here to tell you that we've hit an unexpected patch of turbulence…so we'll be turning on the fasten seatbelt signs. Buckle up if you haven't already and remain buckled while in your seats…until we get past this rough patch of air…"
The flight attendants had already finished servicing the passengers and were quickly rounding up the trays. Roy handed his and Matt's over to the flight attendant who flashed them a smile before quickly moving down the row. The plane shuddered and shook from side to side while Matt picked up his magazine to read it to get his mind off the turbulence and a few other subjects. Suddenly the plane dipped as if it were falling but then stopped.
They were only about an hour out of L.A. but it looked like it'd be a long flight remaining.
C.J. winced as she lay in the chair while a young woman with pink and golden highlights in her hair worked on her shoulder blade with a tool that offered up a load of discomfort. Not pain really, but pinpricks as the tattoo artist began to put in the touchups to the design on her shoulder. Chris sat beside to offer support when necessary but C.J. hadn't needed much. She'd wanted to get this tattoo for ages, she'd worked on the design with the artist for weeks when she'd had the time.
It'd hurt more than she'd expected but seriously, compared to the bullet wound that shoulder had taken, it was minor in comparison. Yeah, she remembered that night well, she and Matt had been running around Southern California trying to clear him of murder charges and an abandoned building had held major evidence of the sinister plot to frame him. So they and an ex of his who'd been a police officer, Andrea her name had been had searched the databases there. She remembered how charged the situation had become emotionally because she had been so scared and angry at what these men had done to her best friend. Terrorized and brainwashed him out of 30 days of memories, separated him from reality and put him on the run. All she had wanted to do was to clear his name but when she witnessed his own terror which he let her see, she'd wanted to do more than that, she'd wanted to hunt down his kidnappers and show them that same kind of fear.
The bullet wound had been the second suffered that night. The first gunshot had reached Andrea and killed her literally mid-sentence, it had come so quickly and stealth before the onslaught followed that pockmarked their surroundings from bullets. They had dove out the building but not before…before she had told him that she loved him.
The words had slipped out from some recess deep inside of her because she'd been so sure they were both doomed to death and if that happened…she couldn't leave him not knowing. But of course, they had somehow survived. Only she'd been dinged in the shoulder and he'd sacrificed his best chance at his freedom to save her life.
The wound had been sewn up after the bullet had been removed and it'd turned into a silvery pockmark on her shoulder. So she'd decided to get a tattoo over it because she got tired of seeing it. No, actually she got tired of looking at it and being reminded. That she'd left her most intimate feelings about him slip past her defenses out into the open.
"So when it's finished… are we heading to the spa?"
C.J. thought about the appointment they'd made earlier to spend a few hours getting spa treatments. Aromatherapy and then a deep tissue massage were the first on her list. But then she'd wanted to do the whole manicure and pedicure routine for the party and then her hair…no real reason for spending a lot of time getting gussied up for it but then again, it was being put on my Clover.
"Yeah…I'll just have to make sure the tattoo's covered and I should be okay."
Chris nodded.
"It'll be cool…I haven't had my nails done in a while."
"Me neither…I thought it'd be nice and just start off the year with some pampering," C.J. said, "It's been a hard year."
She didn't need to tell her friend that after everything that had happened. Hooking up with Robert and then having to betray him, another bullet wound that nearly killed her and then not long after that, getting in a car wreck and the whole amnesia bit that landed her smack in the middle of a prostitution ring inside a county jail. Julia dying and then Matt's whirlwind relationship with some heiress that nearly led to him getting married…it hadn't been one of those years of her life she wished to remember much. No, she most definitely welcomed the New Year, looking forward to dealing with a clean slate…and a new tattoo.
"Matt's had a difficult year too."
"I know…and that includes his broken engagement," C.J. said, "but he's been busy hitting the party circuit when he's not working cases with his uncle."
Chris paused.
"We've all been very busy…it'll be nice to kick back for a while at Clover's party."
C.J. couldn't argue with that but then she remembered the woman hosting the party. Blonde, voluptuous a bit older than Matt and her but when it came to attraction…the men just zoomed on over to her side. She had that magnetism that attracted the opposite sex to her like bees to well…clover. Matt and Clover had enjoyed a brief interlude years earlier when both had been in Monaco for some huge social gala put on by the royal family but it hadn't lasted long.
"Yeah well…it'll be fun before I have to tell him."
"You're serious about helping out F. Lee up in San Francisco on that major trial?"
"Yeah I am and it's a capital case, the highest stakes and he's asked me to be his second chair," C.J. said, "I'm looking forward to the challenge."
"But you didn't tell Matt?"
C.J. sighed as the artist stepped back to admire her work.
"No I haven't…I just finalized my plans while Houston was away on this latest case," she said, "I'll tell him after the party...the morning after."
"I don't know what he's going to say."
"He'll be happy for me Chris," C.J. said, "Like I'm happy he's been spending time with his uncle after years of not seeing him because of what happened between Roy and Houston's father."
"He's going to miss you too."
C.J. sighed, having thought about that but their lives had been on divergent courses for a while now.
"Maybe…but this is what I really want to do."
She came to him in his dreams, like she had recently. Her dark hair resting on her shoulders in curls and her hazel eyes showing off their emerald…while she stood before him this time in that royal blue cocktail dress she'd worn at the Christmas party. The one…
He felt the warmth of her skin when she stroked his face with her capable fingers, sending shivers of anticipation through him before her lips moved closer to brush against his…feathery touches to tease him perhaps before he slid his arms around her waist to bring her closer so he could respond better. Her mouth tasted perfect, the scent of her perfume made him heady as their bodies molded together.
Ping…ping…ping…
Matt's eyes snapped open as the vision faded.
"C.J…?"
Roy looked at him quizzically.
"She's back in L.A. We're nearly there…the pilot announced that they're beginning their approach."
Matt sank back against his seat, looking out the window at the silvery wing etching a path through some gentle wisps of clouds.
"It'll be about 20 minutes until we're on the ground."
Matt nodded and closed his eyes as landings weren't his favorite events unless it was him in the pilot's seat.
"The chopper will be ready for us to take back to the office and we can pick up our cars."
"I think I'm going to get ready there and then just head on over to Clover's…after I make some phone calls."
"Not work related…"
Matt didn't answer and Roy shot him a reproachful look.
"Matlock, you need to take at least today off from work," he said, "relax and enjoy yourself at this party."
"I'll do that…after I make the calls."
Roy just shook his head at his nephew as they both readied themselves for when the plane would land. Matt didn't tell his uncle what he had in mind or had planned until he received an email from the payroll clerk that C.J. had been inquiring about taking a leave of absence for several months. He had pumped the clerk for more information just before getting on the plane but the guy didn't have much more to tell him because he hadn't received the paperwork yet. What was C.J. planning to do, Matt had wondered as they had prepared to board the plane with the rest of the first class passengers and while he'd sat waiting for the plane to take off.
He had to relax because after all, she'd only planned to leave for several months but that didn't help much. Maybe she had decided to wait until they were actually inside the same city limits before telling him her plans.
That had to be the reason behind the dream he'd just enjoyed, yes that had to be it. The woman he had known most of his life had been on his mind because of the email and phone calls. That didn't explain why they had been kissing while she'd been wearing that blue dress but…
"I haven't met Clover…but I've read about her exploits including as a racecar driver."
Matt blinked his eyes and looked over at Roy.
"Yeah…she's really something," he said, "I haven't really seen her since that party in my suite where half the guest list got iced."
"I'm sure this one won't be as eventful at least not in a bad way," Roy said, "I'm looking forward to it…nice way to end a rather eventful year."
Matt knew the real reason why, because Roy would be meeting up with Sophia again and based on the enthusiasm in his uncle's voice, things were definitely getting more serious between the couple. Will liked Sophia a lot and looked forward to spending time on the cruise with her and his father. Matt would of course miss them but he knew they all needed this time together. But it had been a turning point for Roy this year, to reunite with his only child. If only his deceased wife, Matt's Aunt Flo had been alive to see it…life was bittersweet that way in what it delivered.
"It'll be good to see C.J. again too won't it?"
Matt turned to his uncle to say something and that's when the plane suddenly lurched, its metal frame groaning and then it dropped…further than it had in the turbulence. The two men looked at each other and then Matt looked out the window again. What he saw struck him cold.
"Uncle Roy…the engine's coming apart…"
Matt saw that part of the metal covering of the engine hooked to the wing had started peeling away, exposing the machinery inside of it. The pilot inside of him started running off a mental checklist of anything and everything that could have gone wrong with such a complicated and vital component of any airplane.
The plane jerked from side to side and Matt wondered if one of the fan blades had snapped under pressure starting off a chain reaction which would tear the engine apart or perhaps the engine on this wing had gone into reverse thrust which could tear the entire fuselage apart within minutes.
The flight attendants moved more quickly towards the front of the plane and started conferencing and then the warning sound alerted everyone to the intercom.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking…we've run into an unexpected problem with one of our main engines…which has shut down…which may necessitate an emergency landing at LAX…"
Matt blinked his eyes again. Engine shutdown, hardly…he motioned a flight attendant over to take a look at the engine knowing that the pilots might not have a visual on that section of the plane since it appeared to be an older model. When he showed her his view out his window, her body went rigid but she smiled at him as she moved away and thanked him before heading straight to the cockpit door.
"Now that the pilot knows, he won't treat it like a failure," Matt said, "which could make the situation much worse."
Roy nodded.
"I guess our landing's going to be a little rough but…"
The plane began its movement from side to side almost as if it were attempting a yaw. That would doom the aircraft, Matt knew, sending it plunging to the ground out of control killing everyone on board.
"I'm sure the plane's in capable hands Matlock," Roy continued, "who can handle all kinds of crises."
Matt knew as a pilot himself that flying consisted of hours of boredom interspersed with unexpected moments of sheer terror. He also knew that most experienced pilots had the skills needed to handle most emergencies.
But not all of them…since the plane was descending, that left the pilot less of a window of space to correct his or her aircraft. The plane began to shake in its descent which seemed more rapid to Matt. He fought the temptation to grab onto the armrests as lights began to flash inside the cabin and he heard the cries of apprehension around him grow.
C.J. examined her tattoo before recovering it with the wrap, as she sat dressed in a robe with Chris about ready to get their massages. Chris took a look too.
"Nice…and with a cute back-story…"
C.J. raised her brows.
"How did you…"
"Pam told me after she left your job for Japan," Chris said, "We are cousins after all."
Yes, and Pam had given a glowing recommendation to the daughter of her mother's sister and based on that and Chris' resume, he'd hired her on the spot. It hadn't taken long before Chris had taken charge of Matt's secretarial pool and whipped it into shape. Never losing her friendly nature while doing so and now the productivity in that section had increased exponentially…and she'd met the mechanic that had taken over for Slim before she'd left for a surfing tournament in Fiji. They had hit it up and had just moved in together.
C.J. envied Chris her ability to hit it off with a guy and have it not turn horribly wrong. Not that C.J. hadn't had relationships that hadn't been great if short-lived, but the men she had loved best had either been killed by maniacal stalkers or turned out to be killers themselves. Except…she almost thought but decided to focus on the here and now and relaxing during a much needed massage. After they were done here, they would go to their homes and get ready for Clover's New Year's Party and finish out the year unwinding to delicious food, vibrant music and maybe she'd meet a new guy. But then wait a minute, Matt would be at the party too not long after returning from his latest case. She did look forward to seeing him even though he'd spent an all too brief Christmas in L.A.
She wondered if he'd be bringing anyone to the party with him, some pretty socialite drawn from his Rolodex.
"This is awesome….I could get used to this."
"So could I but for now I'd settle for being relaxed and ready for this party tonight."
"It should be fun," Chris said, "Clover's parties always make the society pages and she sounds like she knows how to have a great time."
C.J. didn't doubt that based on what she knew about her.
"Yeah she does…Houston seems to think so."
"He did go out with her didn't he?"
C.J. thought back a few years.
"Briefly…but Clover's got a wandering eye," she said, "and Matt wasn't serious about her."
Chris smiled.
"He's not been serious about anyone lately not since he broke up with Elizabeth."
C.J. shrugged as she sat up after the masseuse had finished. Damn, her muscles felt all loosened up and relaxed, the stresses of the past few months having melted away with a few deft strokes and the passage of a little time.
"He really loved her," she said, "You don't get over something like that quickly."
They both sat in their robes preparing for the manicurists. Chris looked over at her.
"But it's been more than six months," she said, "and maybe he will get serious about some woman he meets."
C.J. thought that could happen. When Matt felt in love with a woman, he fell quickly. If not at first sight, then soon after and when he fell, he fell hard. Even though he and Elizabeth realized it would have never worked between him, it didn't mean that his heart hadn't been broken over it. She knew how he had felt. She'd been down that road a time or two herself.
"Maybe at the party…"
C.J. shrugged as the manicurist began examining her hands.
"Maybe…it'll just be great to see him again," she said, "for more than a few hours or a day."
Maybe they could get together while he was in town. Go out to dinner or out horseback riding in the hills over the beaches of Malibu. Just get away from the rest of the world and talk.
Soon enough she'd be leaving herself to work that trial up north and they'd be apart again. She's miss him, she knew that but she enjoyed the challenges that working criminal law provided and this time, she'd been offered a second chair position on a capital case with one of the top defense attorneys in the country.
How could she pass up such an opportunity?
No she couldn't and Matt had understood that, but she knew she'd still miss him anyway.
The plane rocked in the air, lurching from side to side and Matt knew that the pilots were in the cockpit fighting the aircraft for control. A battle that they couldn't lose or else the plane would go down probably killing everyone aboard…given that it didn't want to stay level…Matt's body itched to go join them to try to wretch the airplane out of the grip of what crisis had overtaken it. He had never been good at sitting on his hands and waiting for tragic events to unfold or a crisis to reach the point of no return. No, he'd always ridden his adrenalin rush to take actions to deal with it. Roy looked over at him.
"Matlock you have to have faith…"
Matt looked over at his uncle who smiled at him despite the rattling of the plane. There hadn't been any updates from the flight crew over the intercom because they'd been too busy fighting to save the aircraft. But he wondered if they'd make it to LAX to make an emergency landing…it seemed like the airplane was losing altitude too quickly.
"Uncle Roy…I know they know what they're doing but if they treat it like a stall…"
Roy sighed.
"I'm sure the flight attendant told them about the engine damage. They'll get the plane down the best they can but in the meantime, we'll have to prepare."
Matt nodded. He had already started picking up any loose objects and tucking them in the jacket in the seat in front of him. The flight attendant started walking the aisles talking to passengers who were upset.
"If we can just make it to the runaway…"
Roy nodded.
"Beats crashing into the mountains…."
Matt looked out the window again, as the engine looked like it could fall away at any moment possibly ripping out hydraulic lines in the process. His mind already racing with the steps he'd need to take if a crash were imminent. But if they did crash, would he and his uncle survive it? His muscles tensed and he rejected that possibility, no they both had too much at stake to give it up. His uncle had just been reunited with his long-lost son and Matt…he still hadn't accomplished all he had wanted to do in his life. Business wise, he had challenges ahead and then the personal side, the family he had always wanted.
When he met the right woman of course…
No, he had no intentions of dying and whatever happened, he and his uncle would find a way to survive it.
The plane lurched violently to the right and then dropped as if they were on a roller coaster. The flight attendants rushed through the aisle again as if given instruction. Matt knew then that they might not reach the airport in time.
C.J. and Chris sipped their green teas as they watched the music videos on the screen while their nails dried. Their hair had been styled, with C.J.'s in looser curls and some highlights woven in it by the stylist. Chris went for a more radical change, cutting her hair quite shorter and spiking the ends. C.J. had looked in the mirror and liked what she saw and suddenly, she couldn't wait for the party at Clover's club. She was excited to get dressed up and ready for a night of fun with others celebrating the end of one year and the beginning of the next.
Because Matt would be there, dressed up in one of his tuxes with the ties he hated so much but damn the way they fit his rugged build, he wore them quite well.
"What's this music anyway?"
C.J. saw the dancers gyrating on the screen with fire bombs going off in the background.
"I have no idea…I'm looking forward to some easy jazz tonight."
Suddenly, the television picture changed and an anchor woman looking appropriately concerned popped up on the screen.
"This is Ashley Purdue from KTDV with a breaking story…news has come in of an airliner that has engine trouble heading to LAX to make an emergency landing…"
Chris looked over at C.J.
"I wonder what flight that is," she said, "Hope it's not Matt and Roy's."
C.J. shook her head.
"Chris, there's dozens of planes that land at LAX every hour…I'm sure it's another flight."
Ashley looked straight at them, with her curly red hair and wearing a serious expression.
"Yes…it's been confirmed that a Southside Airlines flight blew an engine mid-flight and has begun its emergency approach to make it the airport before it falls out of the sky."
C.J. bit her lip.
"That's their airline."
"Yeah I know I booked the flight myself," Chris said, "Oh my god, what if…"
"There are an estimated 250 passengers on the flight and the plane's been losing altitude in the past half hour…Emergency crews have been dispatched to the main runway in anticipation of the crippled jet's arrival."
C.J. felt her heart thud in her chest. It couldn't be Matt's flight but…she knew that he and his uncle were on that aircraft and if it crashed…
"No Chris…we have to be think positive here…Houston and Roy…if they're on that flight, they'll know what to do."
Chris just looked scared.
"God…I know but what if something bad happens? The lady said the plane's lost control."
C.J. sighed.
"They always make things worse for the sake of ratings."
She didn't want Chris to panic. They have to remain calm and rational but inside; she felt fear threaten to take hold of her.
"Yes…over a dozen fire trucks are lining the runway in case there are casualties when the plane lands at LAX. But with over 250 passengers and crew on the plane will that be enough?"
Chris shook her head.
"Does she have to be so grim," she said, "I know Matt and Roy are going to come through this just fine."
C.J. tried to smile.
"Yeah if anyone can make it…"
Chris looked at her.
"They're going to be okay, we just have to believe that."
C.J. nodded knowing that Chris was right but all she wanted to do was get in a car and rush to the airport but with the traffic on the 405 and other routes…no she needed to just head to the office and wait for them to return.
"We'd better get going…"
So she and Chris did just that, hoping that by the time they reached the office suite, there'd be good news.
Matt stopped looking out the window at the engine. He knew that if it fell off, it might send the plane sideways perpendicular to its original flight axis and then the nose would plunge downward. But in the past few moments, the pilot appeared to have reduced the shuddering of the aircraft and his body started to relax a bit.
Roy looked over at him.
"I think we might just make it," he said, "though we might be late for Clover's party."
Matt smiled at his uncle's attempt at levity. Then he looked past him and saw a young girl with dark hair sitting by herself, her eyes never leaving the window.
"Excuse me Uncle Roy…"
Roy saw the girl and nodded.
"Go sit with her Matlock. I'll be just fine," he said, "I thought I saw her with someone earlier but now…"
Matt moved past his uncle and stepped out of his row into the aisle.
"Hey there…."
He saw the little girl dressed in jeans and a print blouse with snowflakes on it look at him, fear lacing her features.
"Who are you?"
"I'm Houston…"
Her eyes narrowed.
"Like the city?"
He nodded.
"Are you flying by yourself?"
She nodded.
"My mom's waiting for me at the airport…and my daddy…"
She stopped talking.
"Are we going to crash?"
He slid into the aisle seat and looked at her.
"The pilots flying this plane are trying to do everything they can not to crash," he said, "but the landing might be bumpy."
She appeared to digest that.
"But what if he can't…"
"Then we'll get ready so that everything will be okay."
She looked at him doubtfully.
"Will you help me?"
He nodded.
"Everything's going to be just fine."
And when he said those words to the girl, he believed them. He had too much to live for and so did she. She had a full life ahead of her and he…he had always wanted to have a family of his own. He had made those plans with Elizabeth but with their breakup, that dream had been put on hold but he didn't want to keep putting it off to some future date that might never arrive.
There was no predicting what life had in store for you. It could all be taken away without a warning.
C.J. and Chris finally reached the suite and after filling the rest of the secretarial pool in on what happened, they filled up two glasses with Scotch and sat on the couch. Chris turned the television on and they both sat on the couch.
"They're going to get through it and they're going to walk through that door."
C.J. marveled at Chris' calmness even with Ashley now at the airport in front of some terminal predicting a fiery end to the Southside Airways flight that Matt and Roy had both got on hours earlier.
"The tragedy stricken aircraft has just entered California airspace and should be making its approach in a few moments…if it can make it at all. It's highly probable that it will instead crash in a ball of flames somewhere in one of the outlying suburbs."
C.J. put her Scotch down and reached for the remote.
"Enough of her…I can't watch anymore of her doom and gloom reports…"
Chris nodded, putting her feet on the table.
"Me neither…I know that they're going to be just fine."
C.J. picked up her glass again and just looked at it.
"I hope so…"
Chris rested a hand on her friend's shoulder.
"I know so…Matt's got his whole life ahead of him and after the year he's had, he's due for a better one."
C.J. sighed.
"I know…I wanted him to be happy after what happened with Elizabeth not to mention everything else…back to the kidnapping."
"She was stupid to walk away from him."
C.J. sipped her drink.
"They walked away from each other," she said, "smartest thing either of them did. They weren't right for each other."
Chris nodded.
"Can't disagree with that…she was so high maintenance…he had to go overboard to make her happy."
C.J. rubbed her forehead.
"He did that because he loved her…besides Houston likes women like that…who need him."
Chris snorted.
"He does not…he needs a strong capable woman who takes life by the reins and isn't afraid to live it under her own rules."
C.J. smiled.
"Life's a lot more meaningful when you take charge."
Chris put her glass down and looked over at C.J.
"Then why don't you?"
C.J.'s eyes narrowed at her friend.
"What do you mean by that?"
Chris looked at her impatiently.
"Oh come off of it, I'm talking about you," she said, "This is the perfect time to make a play for him."
C.J. shook her head.
"No it's not…I can't use this crisis to do that…then I'd be Christina."
Chris just shook her head.
"That's not what I meant and…Pam told me all about that ice princess…what I meant is that it might be a golden opportunity to tell him how you feel about him."
"Houston knows all that…I tell him all the time."
Chris tilted her face.
"No I mean really tell him…C.J. were you always so dense when it comes to men?"
C.J. felt a bit affronted by that comment.
"No…I've always been able to handle myself," she said, "but Houston, he's been my best friend since we were kids…"
Chris rolled her eyes.
"Yeah so I heard…I think everyone's heard…but everyone knows it's more than that with you."
C.J. thought about what her friend had said and wondered if it were really that obvious that yeah, she did have feelings for her best friend she didn't share with anyone else. Well, except for the time she had told him she loved him and he had blown her off. Sure, there were extenuating circumstances like they were being shot at by unknown villains and the building holding the necessary evidence to clear Matt's name was about to go up in flames. But since then, she had never ever repeated the "L" word in his presence and she had watched as Matt had picked a flavor of the week or rather per case while for her there had been…Robert.
She sighed picking up her Scotch being reminded again how that had turned out.
"If he gets killed in this plane crash, then he'll be gone forever without knowing...but if somehow he survives…you'll have another chance."
C.J. looked down at her glass.
"I don't know if I can take that chance," she said, "Look he's made it clear to everyone that for right now at least, he's running through his Rolodex."
Chris just shook her head as if she couldn't believe C.J. were giving up, but Chris didn't understand that the situation with Matt had just always been so complicated even though their tight friendship that had taken them through triumph and tragedy had been anything but.
"Maybe if he survives, he'll toss the Rolodex."
C.J. put her hands together.
"I can't think about that right now….I just want him to make it through this…to come walking back through those French doors."
Both she and Chris looked at them, left open and looking out into the empty helipad on an unseasonably sunny afternoon on the last day of the year.
But was it the last day of Matt's life?
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking…as you can see we've encountered some engine trouble and will be making an emergency landing at LAX…"
Matt raised his brows…engine trouble what an understatement. But he knew the pilot didn't want to provoke a panic onboard the jet…not during these critical moments. The girl had calmed down a lot as if she trusted his words that everything would be all right. But he rubbed his brow wondering what the next few moments would bring…would they land and walk off the airplane or would their lives end in a mess of burned metal on the runway?
"I'm going to give you some instructions on how to engage in the brace position…however we land this plane, it could be quite rough…but if you take these steps, we should all make it through this situation."
Matt heard the tension in the pilot's voice as he left it to the flight attendant to explain what to do. They had already collected dangerous items in bags and everyone had adjusted their trays and seats. Matt looked over at Roy who had his eyes closed but he knew that was his uncle's practiced way of focusing his resources for the exact moment he would need them. After all, he'd been in worse situations than this and had always made it home.
So had Matt and he knew he had a lot to return to once they reached L.A. He wondered if C.J. knew and if she worried about him. She wouldn't panic, she never did in crises but what was she thinking? He'd been thinking a lot about his life and what he still wanted and how much the people, his family and friends mattered to him.
But none more so than her, the mainstay in his life…and he found himself thinking, of what he would do when he saw her again, what he'd say. He'd wrap his arms around her suppleness to feel her warmth, the image of that in his head stopped his mind from racing.
Then he saw some more images as well that surprised him…as the plane made its final lurched approach to its destination. Its descent more in earnest and a silence filled the aircraft broken only by the sounds of voices in different languages praying.
C.J. rubbed her forehead as Chris returned from the office with some files while the tension left her own body for the first time in several hours.
"The party still on…?"
C.J. just looked at her.
"What?"
Chris shrugged as she sat down again.
"C.J. Matt and Roy…they're safe," she said, "no one got killed and everyone walked away."
It had been a miracle when C.J. had seen the video on the news, because the plane had landed roughly and nearly split in half right down the middle. People had scrambled out amid thick clouds of smoke and her eyes had searched the screen for signs of Matt and his uncle.
Then she had seen him emerge from a column of smoke looking a bit sooty but in one piece. In his arms, he carried a young girl with dark hair who held onto him just as tightly.
And she knew everything was going to be okay.
She waited for him even as it took hours for him to return to the office. The clock chimed each hour as it passed and the sky outside the French Doors darkened. Chris had gone to the party after hearing that Roy would be meeting his girlfriend there leaving C.J. alone. She'd been more rattled than she'd admit and didn't feel like leaving until she knew for herself Matt had made it.
When she finally heard the helicopter land outside, she knew he had arrived and she didn't want to wait any longer. She got up off the couch and walked quickly outside to meet him. Her heart thudded more quickly as he stepped out of the chopper, his face shadowed by some soot and his clothes wrinkled but she didn't care. He looked up at her as she stood there.
"C.J…my god…."
She felt something tugging inside of her as she met him halfway and before she could touch him, to know for sure he was real, he grabbed her with his arms and picked her up off of her feet. His body molded against hers as she felt him hug her tightly. After a long moment, he lowered her to the ground and still holding onto him, she looked up into his face.
"Houston…I…."
But before she could finish her sentence, say the words that had been bottled up inside her for far too long, his lips swept over her own and he kissed her. Cologne mixed with smokiness, his body hard and warm against her as he explored her mouth and she let him. This wasn't the easy, flirtatious kisses they'd shared in passing. This was something new, elemental between the two of them. This was about being alive together, of surviving another day to end a tumultuous year.
In the hopes that the New Year would bring more joy and C.J. though as she held onto the man she'd known most of her life and yet….
Hopefully it would bring more kisses as well.