Chapter Ten: Thinking of You
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Danny was still thinking about Mary two hours later as he stared vacantly out the window of the medium-sized jet. He sighed upon thinking about how sad his best friend had looked, and how she didn't expect that he'd ever come back. He only came back to reality as Sam, who had been up with the pilot, sat down next to him.
"Did Nessa bring you up to date?" the dark haired woman inquired.
"No." Danny replied, shoving Mary out of his mind for the moment.
"We figured out that Ed is being held in an abandoned factory surrounded by forest." Sam said, "There's only really one road in." She cleared her throat. "Nessa thinks that it would be a better idea to go in through the jungle."
"There'll be plenty of places to hide." Nessa said from the seat behind him. "You can't say that for an open road."
"Yeah," Sam disagreed as a slight nervousness became clear in her voice. "But there's…things in the jungle."
"More dangerous than guys with guns?" Nessa teased with a slight smile.
Smiling himself, Danny decided that it might be better for Nessa and Sam to have some time to themselves. He silently got up and walked back a few rows to where Mike was sitting by himself. As he noticed Danny approach, the African American man smiled.
"There going to be a catfight up there or something?" Mike asked as Danny sat down.
"Possibly." Danny sighed, running his hands through his hair.
"I know that look." Mike smiled as he watched Danny. "Who's the lucky girl?"
"Lucky girl?" Danny repeated puzzled.
"The one you're thinking about so much." Mike clarified, "I'm guessing it's not Sam, and I'm hoping that it's not Nessa." He pointed at Danny. "Because I'll kill you if it is." He relaxed his hand. "So, who is it?"
"Mary." Danny replied as Mike nodded. "What? What's with the nod?" He looked seriously at Mike. "She's just really worried about this, and isn't sure that I'm going to come back."
"Because she loves you." Mike said, looking at him. "And I don't mean just as a best friend. The girl has feelings for you, Danny, and, for whatever reason, you either can't see that or are ignoring it."
"It's not that I can't see it," Danny replied, looking at the seat in front of him. "But I'm not ignoring it either." He sighed slightly. "Mary knows why I'm doing what I'm doing."
It was then that he flashed back to an incident months ago when he and Mary had been trapped in an elevator. The two had come to the understanding that Danny couldn't let any woman get really close to him, due to his feeling like he would lose her just like his father lost his mother. Remembering the pain in Mary's voice when she told him that she always thought that they would get together, Danny rubbed his forehead to block out the image.
"Then, understand why she's doing what she's doing." Mike suggested, "Maybe she just can't let it go."
Saying nothing, Danny simply nodded. He silently admitted to himself that, despite his fears, part of him wasn't ready to let go of Mary in that way either.
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Eating alone wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. Mary sighed as she looked at the food in front of her. She had made enough for herself and for Danny, who usually had a big appetite. Thinking about her best friend, Mary sighed again and whispered a silent prayer for his safety.
The doorbell brought some much-needed distraction from her thoughts. The dark blonde woman hurried to the door to find Delinda Deline waiting on the other side. She smiled weakly at Mary.
"Come on in." Mary invited, gesturing inside.
"Is Danny home?" Delinda asked, looking around as she stepped inside.
"Oh, sweetie." Mary sighed, shutting the door. "I thought you knew. He and the others left already to go rescue your father." She noticed the pained look on Delinda's face. "What's up?"
"I got angry with him." Delinda sighed, "I slapped him the face, and told him that he was responsible for Daddy's kidnapping."
"Sit down." Mary said sympathetically as she gestured to the nearby couch. As the two sat, Connell wrapped an arm around the younger woman, who was weeping silently.
"What if he doesn't come back?" Delinda asked, "What if I never get to apologize for what I said?"
"Danny knows that you didn't mean it." Mary assured, rubbing the younger woman's back. "And anyway, you can explain all to him when he comes back."
"You really think he's coming back?" Delinda asked, looking at Mary.
"I hope so." Mary replied with a sigh.
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"I don't remember loading this much onto the plane." Mike commented as he and Danny unloaded the cargo from the plane. It was slow going as the airstrip had only enough lights to be distinguishable from the air, so most of the light was coming from the nearly full moon. The lack of light would prove to be a good thing though as it would be harder for Keller's men to spot them in the darkened jungle.
"You two okay over there?" Danny called to Nessa and Sam, who were changing in some nearby bushes. The two women emerged wearing black turtle-necked, long sleeved shirts, dark pants, and black boots. Danny and Mike had changed into the same outfits on the plane.
"How do you want to divide this up?" Nessa asked, nodding at the pile of weapons. "I was thinking three guns a piece, and the explosives would be separated between you and I, Danny."
"Good thinking." Danny said, tucking Ed's favorite pistol into his belt.
Sam and Mike set about separating the guns out, while Danny and Nessa carefully packed up the explosives in the two backpacks they would be carrying. Also in the packs were water bottles, flashlights, and first aid kits. Although, Danny had to chuckle at the fact that the injuries they were most at risk for couldn't be treated by anything in the first aid kit. Nessa also held onto a map and compass, both of which she checked in the moonlight.
"All right." Danny said, as things seemed to be wrapped up at the airstrip. "Where to?"
"There." Nessa said, pointing. "If we head west through those trees, it's a ten-mile walk to the back of the factory." She pulled a flashlight out of her bag and nodded at Danny to do the same.
"Only two flashlights?" Sam whined, looking at them. "Won't that still be kind of dim?"
"We don't want to advertise our presence." Danny replied, tossing his flashlight at Sam. "Here! You can carry one if it'll make you happy."
From the view inside the plane, the pilot merely watched as the quartet disappeared into the brush. After the last bit of them disappeared, he picked up a nearby cell phone and punched in a number.
"You're about to have company." he said as the other party picked up.
To be continued...
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Danny was still thinking about Mary two hours later as he stared vacantly out the window of the medium-sized jet. He sighed upon thinking about how sad his best friend had looked, and how she didn't expect that he'd ever come back. He only came back to reality as Sam, who had been up with the pilot, sat down next to him.
"Did Nessa bring you up to date?" the dark haired woman inquired.
"No." Danny replied, shoving Mary out of his mind for the moment.
"We figured out that Ed is being held in an abandoned factory surrounded by forest." Sam said, "There's only really one road in." She cleared her throat. "Nessa thinks that it would be a better idea to go in through the jungle."
"There'll be plenty of places to hide." Nessa said from the seat behind him. "You can't say that for an open road."
"Yeah," Sam disagreed as a slight nervousness became clear in her voice. "But there's…things in the jungle."
"More dangerous than guys with guns?" Nessa teased with a slight smile.
Smiling himself, Danny decided that it might be better for Nessa and Sam to have some time to themselves. He silently got up and walked back a few rows to where Mike was sitting by himself. As he noticed Danny approach, the African American man smiled.
"There going to be a catfight up there or something?" Mike asked as Danny sat down.
"Possibly." Danny sighed, running his hands through his hair.
"I know that look." Mike smiled as he watched Danny. "Who's the lucky girl?"
"Lucky girl?" Danny repeated puzzled.
"The one you're thinking about so much." Mike clarified, "I'm guessing it's not Sam, and I'm hoping that it's not Nessa." He pointed at Danny. "Because I'll kill you if it is." He relaxed his hand. "So, who is it?"
"Mary." Danny replied as Mike nodded. "What? What's with the nod?" He looked seriously at Mike. "She's just really worried about this, and isn't sure that I'm going to come back."
"Because she loves you." Mike said, looking at him. "And I don't mean just as a best friend. The girl has feelings for you, Danny, and, for whatever reason, you either can't see that or are ignoring it."
"It's not that I can't see it," Danny replied, looking at the seat in front of him. "But I'm not ignoring it either." He sighed slightly. "Mary knows why I'm doing what I'm doing."
It was then that he flashed back to an incident months ago when he and Mary had been trapped in an elevator. The two had come to the understanding that Danny couldn't let any woman get really close to him, due to his feeling like he would lose her just like his father lost his mother. Remembering the pain in Mary's voice when she told him that she always thought that they would get together, Danny rubbed his forehead to block out the image.
"Then, understand why she's doing what she's doing." Mike suggested, "Maybe she just can't let it go."
Saying nothing, Danny simply nodded. He silently admitted to himself that, despite his fears, part of him wasn't ready to let go of Mary in that way either.
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Eating alone wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. Mary sighed as she looked at the food in front of her. She had made enough for herself and for Danny, who usually had a big appetite. Thinking about her best friend, Mary sighed again and whispered a silent prayer for his safety.
The doorbell brought some much-needed distraction from her thoughts. The dark blonde woman hurried to the door to find Delinda Deline waiting on the other side. She smiled weakly at Mary.
"Come on in." Mary invited, gesturing inside.
"Is Danny home?" Delinda asked, looking around as she stepped inside.
"Oh, sweetie." Mary sighed, shutting the door. "I thought you knew. He and the others left already to go rescue your father." She noticed the pained look on Delinda's face. "What's up?"
"I got angry with him." Delinda sighed, "I slapped him the face, and told him that he was responsible for Daddy's kidnapping."
"Sit down." Mary said sympathetically as she gestured to the nearby couch. As the two sat, Connell wrapped an arm around the younger woman, who was weeping silently.
"What if he doesn't come back?" Delinda asked, "What if I never get to apologize for what I said?"
"Danny knows that you didn't mean it." Mary assured, rubbing the younger woman's back. "And anyway, you can explain all to him when he comes back."
"You really think he's coming back?" Delinda asked, looking at Mary.
"I hope so." Mary replied with a sigh.
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"I don't remember loading this much onto the plane." Mike commented as he and Danny unloaded the cargo from the plane. It was slow going as the airstrip had only enough lights to be distinguishable from the air, so most of the light was coming from the nearly full moon. The lack of light would prove to be a good thing though as it would be harder for Keller's men to spot them in the darkened jungle.
"You two okay over there?" Danny called to Nessa and Sam, who were changing in some nearby bushes. The two women emerged wearing black turtle-necked, long sleeved shirts, dark pants, and black boots. Danny and Mike had changed into the same outfits on the plane.
"How do you want to divide this up?" Nessa asked, nodding at the pile of weapons. "I was thinking three guns a piece, and the explosives would be separated between you and I, Danny."
"Good thinking." Danny said, tucking Ed's favorite pistol into his belt.
Sam and Mike set about separating the guns out, while Danny and Nessa carefully packed up the explosives in the two backpacks they would be carrying. Also in the packs were water bottles, flashlights, and first aid kits. Although, Danny had to chuckle at the fact that the injuries they were most at risk for couldn't be treated by anything in the first aid kit. Nessa also held onto a map and compass, both of which she checked in the moonlight.
"All right." Danny said, as things seemed to be wrapped up at the airstrip. "Where to?"
"There." Nessa said, pointing. "If we head west through those trees, it's a ten-mile walk to the back of the factory." She pulled a flashlight out of her bag and nodded at Danny to do the same.
"Only two flashlights?" Sam whined, looking at them. "Won't that still be kind of dim?"
"We don't want to advertise our presence." Danny replied, tossing his flashlight at Sam. "Here! You can carry one if it'll make you happy."
From the view inside the plane, the pilot merely watched as the quartet disappeared into the brush. After the last bit of them disappeared, he picked up a nearby cell phone and punched in a number.
"You're about to have company." he said as the other party picked up.
To be continued...