The engines hummed and the propellers buzzed. Eliza felt like she had stepped into a giant beehive. The next thing she knew, she was tilting backward. Pressure rushed to the back of her head. The next thing she knew, her feet were on air and Cape Suzette shrunk away. Eliza felt like she had left her breath behind when they took off. There was a whole new world up here and she never took the chance. Even when she was on the ground, she never took enough time to appreciate the sky's vastness.
"Well?" asked Kit.
There was nothing more she could say than,"Wow!" She broke out of her trance when she felt him take her hand. Her face grew hot. She told herself it was just nerves; from flying. Nothing more.
"You know what's better than watching the clouds?"
"What?" Eliza kept her gaze on the view.
"Riding them."
Eliza whipped her head around and stared. She then snickered. "Come on. That's impossible."
"Not for me." Kit pulled an odd piece of metal out of his sweater and unfolded it like a fan. "I use this."
"What is it?"
"An airfoil. Baloo reels the line out, and I hold onto the end while riding this."
Eliza gaped again. "Are you crazy?"
Kit shrugged. "I know what I'm doing. As you can see," he bumped a fist on his heart and straightened his back like a soldier. "I'm still alive."
"What if you fall?"
"I surf down." Kit noticed Eliza's surprise and giggled. "If anything goes wrong, Baloo will catch me."
"So basically, you risk your life just for fun?"
"I'm careful." Kit dropped the soldier posture and rubbed the back of his neck. "I, uh, kinda had to learn the hard way. Besides," he glanced dreamily out the window. "There's nothing like it in the world."
"Really?" Eliza followed his gaze.
"Out there, you're free."
Free. The word was almost foreign to Eliza. A flock of geese soared beside the plane. Eliza could've touched them if not for the glass. It was like she was the bird in the cage while the geese watched. She now realized that she was always in a cage. Even before moving in with her uncle, her tiny apartment was all she had known. Khan Tower was an upgrade in size only. Outside of her books, the closest she had to a real adventure was the pirate game at school.
She imagined her father freaking out if he saw her flying outside a plane. Being a pilot, he could give a whole lecture on the wrong place in a plane. She definitely didn't want to think of her uncle's reaction. Then again, who said either had to know? The idea of making a choice on her own without their bickering, and keeping it secret gave her a mischievous thrill. It was time to stretch her wings.
She jumped out of her seat. "Well, are we going or what?"
Kit looked at her skeptically and put his hands on his hips. "Hang on. You just said it was too risky."
Eliza shrugged. "Hey, it's a new day for me."
Kit smiled and lead her to the cockpit to ask Baloo.
"Both of you?" asked Baloo. "You've got a gift, Lil Britches, but Eliza might not be ready." Great, just when she was feeling better about it.
"Don't worry, Papa Bear. I've done this with my friend Oscar, remember?"
"Oh, yeah." Baloo tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Alright." He turned to Eliza. "But you hang on good and tight, okay?"
"You don't have to tell me." Eliza shuddered, watching the ocean pass a thousand feet below her.
She followed Kit to the back of the plane where he placed the airfoil and the floor, grabbed a wooden handle attached to a rope line, and stepped on the foil. Eliza stepped on the space behind Kit's feet and threw her arms around his waist.
"You ready?" asked Kit.
"As ready as I'll ever be," she gulped.
"Here we go!"
The back door opened, sending in a windy blast. No matter how ready she said, she didn't count on the jerk on the jerk when the rope sent them flying out. Her hold on Kit tightened and she shut her eyes. All she felt was the weightlessness beneath her feet and the wind biting her face.
Eliza reluctantly opened her eyes, blinking away the sting in her eyes. Once she could see clearly, her imagined plummet melted away. With them went speech and possibly every breath in her body. Clouds surrounded them like blankets. They passed straight through one large cloud. Cool mist kissed their faces. Eliza dared look below. Cape Suzette looked like a map made of dollhouses. A flock of ducks flew so close, Eliza could have touched them if she wasn't clinging for a dear life. Her black ponytail flapped like a fish. Her mouth dropped, drying her throat, but she didn't care.
Kit glanced behind just enough to catch her expression and beamed. He had to shout over the wind's roaring. "Well, what do you think?"
"You're right, there's nothing like it!"
"You ready for the best part?"
"What?"
"Hang on." With one hand still holding the handle, he gave Baloo a thumbs up with the other. Baloo stretched his arm out the window to return the gesture. Kit gripped the handle with both hands again. The plane tilted upward, trailing the children on the thermals like eagles. No eagle could screech as loudly as the children laughed.
In their merriment, they ignored the familiar sound of engines, unsurprised by a second plane. Out of the corner of her eye, Eliza caught the familiar red and gold emblem. As the clouds cleared away, she recognized the polished blue airplane. Her heart sank. Staring out the windows, a familiar tiger looked ready to smash the glass.
"Oh no!" she screeched without thinking.
"What is it?" Kit followed her eyes. When he recognized their company, he smiled and said, "Hey, it's Mr. Khan. Whatta ya say we give him a real show?"
"Kit, wait! He's-aaaahhhhhh!" The Sea Duck took a downward turn, cutting off Eliza's warning.
Inside the expensive jet, Shere Khan was just about ready to smash the window, when the cargo plan tilted downward, trailing his niece with it.
"Radio that plane," he ordered his pilot. "Tell him to reel in those children and land now!"
"Yes, sir."
Baloo never tired of Kit's woops but hearing two of them doubled the fun. The last friend Kit brought was his accident-prone friend Oscar on an adventure. Although, Don Karnage was never part of the plan. Baloo couldn't help being amused that Kit's company this time was a radio buzzed, breaking him out of his thoughts.
"This is Shere Khan's plane calling," a voice muffled sounded over the radio. "You are ordered to bring those children back inside your plane and land now."
"Woah, now!" Baloo picked up the receiver. "This is the Sea Duck. What gives? The kids are fine."
"If you don't concede, we will be forced to call the police."
"Okay, okay. Geez, what's your problem?"
"Mr. Baloo." This time, it was Shere Khan's voice coming out of the radio. "Are you aware that that girl riding outside your plane is my niece?"
"Y-Y-Your what?" Baloo stammered. "She didn't tell me."
"Really? In that case, I won't hold you accountable, but I still insist you land them."
"Uh, yeah. Right." He was still processing this information. Nevertheless, he stretched his hand out the window to signal to Kit.
High above the planes, concealed in the clouds, the ominous Iron Vulture loomed. The dread pirate Don Karnage listened to the radio, tapping his fingers on the table.
"So," he sneered. "Shere Khan has a niece, eh?" He paced in front of his pirates, before jumping with a whoop. "This is brilliant! At last, the generous Lady Plunder smiles!"
"Duh, but Captain," Dumptruck scratched his head. "Who cares about Shere Khan's knees? Do you want us to kick his knees?" Karnage stopped jumping and frowned at his minion. Dumptruck may have been dumb, but he knew when his captain was annoyed.
"Idiot!" Karnage slapped the oversized dog. "I didn't say 'knees,' I said 'niece.' Meaning that girl is related to him." He examined his sword. That always calmed him down. "So, use whatever pathetic excuse you have of a brain. If we kidnap her, how much you think the world's richest tycoon would pay for ransom?"
As it dawned on the pirates, they all chorused a long "Oh," then imitated their captain, jumping and cheering.
"So glad you're not all dead in the brain," Karnage grumbled.
"But, Captain," said Mad Dog. "I thought you gave up kidnapping after that crazy lady tried to marry you." He immediately regretted his words, as Karnage grit his teeth. He looked ready to burst a blood vessel.
"I told you never to speak of that again!" Karnage raged, brandishing his sword. The Iron Vulture echoed with Mad Dog's screams as his captain chased him across the ship at sword point.
"Baloo says he's reeling in the line," said Kit. "That's odd. We haven't been out long." Eliza's stomach turned. This time, she knew it wasn't from the flying.
When they reentered the plane, she said weakly, "Kit, I have to tell you something."
"What?" The door slammed shut behind them. Eliza went numb.
"Well, you see- " Before she could finish Baloo emerged from behind the cockpit's curtains.
"We got a problem, kids. Shere Khan's calling us down."
"Why?" asked Kit, joining Baloo in the cockpit. Eliza followed.
"Ask your friend?"
Kit looked back at the tigress who turned as red as a tomato. "Eliza?"
Eliza sighed in defeat, avoiding Kit's eyes. "Shere Khan's my uncle."
"What?" Kit's eyes widened.
Eliza clenched her sweating hands. When neither Kit nor Baloo said anything she added, "I didn't think it was important." She returned her gaze to see both Kit and Baloo looking at her confused.
"Eliza," Baloo's voice laced with concern. "Does Khan treat you bad?"
"No." Eliza shrugged. "He's just distant." And intimidating, she thought to herself but they didn't need to be more worried. "I'm really sorry, Baloo. I'll tell him it was my fault."
"Hey," Baloo gently touched her shoulder. "If you need to tell us anything, we're right here."
Eliza smiled and swallowed the lump in her throat.
Kit took her hand. "I'm right behind you."
"Thanks, Kit," her voice shook.