Make the Call
Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Red Eye!
Chapter Four: Time is Running Out
Jackson could not believe that this was happening. How could the phone have gone dead just when he needed it the most? Of all the absurd things to happen…
It never would have happened if he had not been trying to help Lisa. Why did he care so much about one woman? What did Lisa Reisert mean to him? He would figure it out soon enough. He had to figure it out. After all, he was risking his life to make her happy and save Keefe. He should have just let the Keefes die and let Lisa cry.
"What happened?" Lisa's worried voice pulled him from his mental fog. The emotion in her voice spurred him back into action.
"The phone went out. I'm gonna try again," Jackson glanced at her long enough to explain, before returning his focus to the dead phone in his hand. He replaced it and then removed it again, but the small screen still read 'temporarily out of service'.
Shit. This could not be happening! Not twice in one night! Not when he was so goddamn close to doing something meaningful for the first time in his life. Helping Lisa, freeing her and saving the Keefes would be the first worthwhile task that he would ever complete in his life. He had taken the easy road out after he killed his parents. He had become a manager—never liking the taste of murder and the act of killing. He could kill when provoked, but he did not enjoy it.
He enjoyed control and was only happy when things went according to plan. Which they were not. Everything was out of his control and it had been spinning that way ever since he approached Lisa in line.
"Hurry," she pleaded, desperately. Tears were welling in her eyes once more.
It was clear that the airplane phone was no longer going to work. Now what could he do? How else could he get a message to them?
A small, rectangular object jabbed him sharply in the side as he reached forward to replace the out-of-service airplane phone. His cell phone. How could he have ever forgotten about it?
He plucked the small blue phone from its plastic belt clip and turned it on. What he was about to do was against the airplane rules and regulations, but he was beyond caring at this point. Besides, what could the nosy stewardesses do? Fine him? Jackson snorted at the very idea.
He held his breath as he anxiously waited for the phone to turn on. Finally, the main screen appeared and he punched the phone number in rapidly and using more force than necessary on the small keypad. The phone started ringing as he pressed it against his right ear and Lisa shifted closer to listen. She too, was holding her breath, praying that this worked.
They were almost out of time.
Sooo close…Too close…In more ways than one.
The phone continued to ring. Where was Cynthia? Why wasn't she answering the damn desk phone?
Suddenly, someone picked up, and it was not the redhead that they needed. "Hello, Lux Atlantic Resort, my name is Mike, how may I help you?"
Jackson swiftly hung up in disgust. The phone going out had lost them precious time. Time that they did not have. Now, Cynthia would be escorting the Keefes and company to the doomed hotel room 4080. Once they were visible, they were dead.
"Does Cynthia have a cell phone?" Jackson asked Lisa, turning to face her. She nodded and Jackson placed the phone in her hands.
Lisa dialed the number and handed the phone back to him. He took it with a smile and their hands lingered in mid-air, where they had handed the phone over, far long they needed to. They both flinched awkwardly once they realized what they were doing. Their hands flew apart and they began to refocus on the task at hand.
"Hello?" Cynthia answered the phone cautiously.
"Cynthia, I'm sorry but we got cut off. Where's Keefe's head of security?" Jackson demanded. "I still need to speak with him."
"He's already in the room. They all are."
Lisa grabbed the phone from his white-knuckled grasp. "Cynthia, you have got to tell them to get out of there. Every second that they spend in that room is a second closer to their deaths! You have to get them out!"
Jackson glanced at his watch. Time was gone. They were out of time. The Russians would be launching the shoulder rocket any moment now and the Keefes—and room 4080—would be going up in a fiery blast any second now.
"Lisa, are you joking or is there really going to be an explosion?" Cynthia questioned. Lisa had been jerking her around on the phone since the day before. She was not sure what was going on, but she had to wonder if Lisa was just trying to scare her.
"I'm not joking! You have to go to the room and tell them to get out right now! You have to run up there and refuse to leave until they do! You have to get them out, Cynthia!" Lisa nearly screamed in frustration.
"Leese, shh. It's gonna be okay. We're gonna fix things," Jackson whispered into her ear, trying to console her. The last thing they needed was to draw attention to themselves. And he hated seeing Lisa in this state.
"Okay, Lisa, I'll go tell them right now!" Cynthia agreed, her voice shaking and they could both hear her high heels clicking loudly as she ran.
"Tell her to pull the fire alarm," Jackson suggested, resting his lips near Lisa's ear, trying to hide the small blue phone as the red-haired stewardess walked past them.
The loud speaker sounded, telling everyone that, "We've begun our final descent into Miami…"
They were out of time.
"Hang up, Leese," Jackson ordered, feeling a pair of eyes on the back of his head.
Jackson slowly turned his head, using his curtain of dark hair to spy on the other passengers. He noticed one, a man, staring at him. He could see the lump where a gun was hidden. They had been found out.
"Why?" Lisa questioned, noticing his actions.
"Just do it!" he snapped.
Lisa ended the call and handed Jackson back his phone. He slipped it back onto the clip and began to wonder if they would manage to get off this plane alive.
Time had run for Lisa and Jackson on the plane as Flight 1019 headed towards the tarmac… And in the Lux Atlantic, time had run out for the Keefe family.
Author's Notes:
A longer chapter than last time! This story should be concluding soon, I think. It's only going to have another chapter or two. It's not a long story. Enjoy!