Amy woke the next morning with a smile on her face. Her parents had called to say that they were coming in on flight 251 at about 2:30 in the afternoon, and so would be home that night. She had volunteered to help Tess clean the house up, and this was one time she didn't mind doing it. At first she'd thought she wouldn't get to, but then there was a blizzard overnight and school was cancelled the next morning.
"Chris has a doctor's appointment in about a half hour," Amy said, putting down her dust rag. "I'd better get him ready."
"He is ready," Andrew said, coming in. "But I don't want you driving, Amy. There's too much snow on the ground. I'll take him, don't worry about it."
"Ok, thanks Andrew. If there's one thing I hate, it's driving in the snow."
"I know." He smiled and left, and Amy and Tess continued their work. Monica was mysteriously absent…
"Dan, I know it hurts, but you have to try to stay conscious." The angel pleaded with the pilot. A passenger had been carrying a loaded revolver in his carry-on and it had accidentally gone off when the bag was dropped, shooting the pilot in the shoulder. Monica tried to keep him awake. "Dan, you need to land this plane."
"The controls are shot," he gasped. "I can—try…"
"You must. Do what you've been trained to do."
"There's a field, I think…" He said, attempting to steer the plane in the right direction. A stewardess was instructing the passengers to fasten their seat belts and assume a protective position, and then a horrendous noise was heard as the plane crashed through the tops of a cluster of trees and came to a violent stop in the middle of nowhere.
"Everybody, listen up!" Monica said, trying to get the passengers to quiet down. "We need to exit the plane. Get your bags and let's go."
Panic was starting to set it.
"Is it going to explode?"
"Are we going to die?"
"What happened?"
"Where's the captain?"
"Where are we?"
"Ladies and gentlemen!" The captain was leaning against the door, holding on with his last bit of strength. "This is Monica. She's an angel from God. Listen to her." Then he sagged to the ground. George White jumped up.
"Ok, let's get a single file line going out that exit, and that exit, ladies and children first, come on. You two, help him, get him on the ground and put pressure on that wound."
Helpless to argue with a voice of reason, the passengers managed to get themselves outside, where they were faced with the biting winter wind.
"What is that?" A young girl pointed to the tail end of the plane.
"Uh-oh. Back up. Everyone, back up!" As the people retreated as fast as they could, the stray flame ignited the gas tanks and the plane was consumed in a massive fireball.
"Well." Said one man. "At least we'll be warm now."
"Does anyone have a cell phone?"
"Good luck getting it to work, look where we are!"
"It's worth a try, isn't it?"
"Who has food? Put all the food together, we'll ration things out!"
"Make sure everyone has warm clothes, share what you've got!"
Monica smiled gently from the sidelines. It didn't seem that she was needed here now. She had just enough time to go check in with Andrew, Tess, and Amy, and then she had better come back.
Andrew was standing at the fence outside the airport. The plane wasn't there. And he didn't know where it was. Or where Monica was. The winter wind blew his hair off his scalp, sending shivers down his spine. Something was wrong.
"Andrew?" Monica appeared next to him. "Are you looking for Amy's parents?"
"Yeah, actually. What happened?"
"The plane went down about an hour ago." She said gently. "No one died, but it will be awhile before they are rescued, I believe. It is possible that some of them won't survive. There's nothing around, no way to get help…"
"Well—can't we do something?" Andrew asked.
"No, baby, we can't." Tess appeared then. "God doesn't want us to. He has a plan for those people, and if we rush a rescue team up there, His plan will not be carried out."
"But Amy…" Monica started, and Tess cut her off.
"Amy will see on the news that her parents' plane has crashed. Andrew, you'd better be there when she does. She'll need you. Monica, you'll have to stick with the passengers. But do not tell anyone what's going on. Is that understood?"
"Yes, ma'am." Monica said meekly, looking at Andrew. Then she disappeared.
"Can I at least tell Amy that her parents are alive?" Andrew asked.
"Yes, you can. But neither you nor I know if they will still be alive by the time there's a rescue. Now, the plane was being tracked by radar, but the bullet that hit the captain also destroyed some of the instruments, and one of them was the homing beacon. It will be a few days before they are found. So you better go take care of Amy now."
"Ok." Andrew took one last look at the empty runway and started toward the car. What next?
"Chris has a doctor's appointment in about a half hour," Amy said, putting down her dust rag. "I'd better get him ready."
"He is ready," Andrew said, coming in. "But I don't want you driving, Amy. There's too much snow on the ground. I'll take him, don't worry about it."
"Ok, thanks Andrew. If there's one thing I hate, it's driving in the snow."
"I know." He smiled and left, and Amy and Tess continued their work. Monica was mysteriously absent…
"Dan, I know it hurts, but you have to try to stay conscious." The angel pleaded with the pilot. A passenger had been carrying a loaded revolver in his carry-on and it had accidentally gone off when the bag was dropped, shooting the pilot in the shoulder. Monica tried to keep him awake. "Dan, you need to land this plane."
"The controls are shot," he gasped. "I can—try…"
"You must. Do what you've been trained to do."
"There's a field, I think…" He said, attempting to steer the plane in the right direction. A stewardess was instructing the passengers to fasten their seat belts and assume a protective position, and then a horrendous noise was heard as the plane crashed through the tops of a cluster of trees and came to a violent stop in the middle of nowhere.
"Everybody, listen up!" Monica said, trying to get the passengers to quiet down. "We need to exit the plane. Get your bags and let's go."
Panic was starting to set it.
"Is it going to explode?"
"Are we going to die?"
"What happened?"
"Where's the captain?"
"Where are we?"
"Ladies and gentlemen!" The captain was leaning against the door, holding on with his last bit of strength. "This is Monica. She's an angel from God. Listen to her." Then he sagged to the ground. George White jumped up.
"Ok, let's get a single file line going out that exit, and that exit, ladies and children first, come on. You two, help him, get him on the ground and put pressure on that wound."
Helpless to argue with a voice of reason, the passengers managed to get themselves outside, where they were faced with the biting winter wind.
"What is that?" A young girl pointed to the tail end of the plane.
"Uh-oh. Back up. Everyone, back up!" As the people retreated as fast as they could, the stray flame ignited the gas tanks and the plane was consumed in a massive fireball.
"Well." Said one man. "At least we'll be warm now."
"Does anyone have a cell phone?"
"Good luck getting it to work, look where we are!"
"It's worth a try, isn't it?"
"Who has food? Put all the food together, we'll ration things out!"
"Make sure everyone has warm clothes, share what you've got!"
Monica smiled gently from the sidelines. It didn't seem that she was needed here now. She had just enough time to go check in with Andrew, Tess, and Amy, and then she had better come back.
Andrew was standing at the fence outside the airport. The plane wasn't there. And he didn't know where it was. Or where Monica was. The winter wind blew his hair off his scalp, sending shivers down his spine. Something was wrong.
"Andrew?" Monica appeared next to him. "Are you looking for Amy's parents?"
"Yeah, actually. What happened?"
"The plane went down about an hour ago." She said gently. "No one died, but it will be awhile before they are rescued, I believe. It is possible that some of them won't survive. There's nothing around, no way to get help…"
"Well—can't we do something?" Andrew asked.
"No, baby, we can't." Tess appeared then. "God doesn't want us to. He has a plan for those people, and if we rush a rescue team up there, His plan will not be carried out."
"But Amy…" Monica started, and Tess cut her off.
"Amy will see on the news that her parents' plane has crashed. Andrew, you'd better be there when she does. She'll need you. Monica, you'll have to stick with the passengers. But do not tell anyone what's going on. Is that understood?"
"Yes, ma'am." Monica said meekly, looking at Andrew. Then she disappeared.
"Can I at least tell Amy that her parents are alive?" Andrew asked.
"Yes, you can. But neither you nor I know if they will still be alive by the time there's a rescue. Now, the plane was being tracked by radar, but the bullet that hit the captain also destroyed some of the instruments, and one of them was the homing beacon. It will be a few days before they are found. So you better go take care of Amy now."
"Ok." Andrew took one last look at the empty runway and started toward the car. What next?
