Finding Home

3. Applied Skill

The C-130J is a versatile military transport aircraft that is designed to carry cargo, troops, and medical evacuees, depending on its configuration. The BPRD had outfitted this one to transport both people and cargo. Bethany sat with Davis and close to twenty other agents in reasonable comfort in the forward part of the cabin. Abe and the professor sat in front as well, but only about half the seats were filled this time. Behind that was an area that was designed specifically for Hellboy. Seating was sized for him, and arranged in an L shaped banquette. There was enough of it that others could join him if needed. He had his own screen for entertainment and briefing presentations, and a larger table to accommodate his larger meals. Behind that, were facilities for the comfort of the passengers. Then, the cargo portion of the plane began.

Bethany knew that she had flown to Florida with her parents when she was four, but she didn't really remember the flights or anything about the trip. Now she was flying to a foreign country with a team of government agents, a demon, a merman and an elderly professor to try and kill six dragons raised by an inept magician. The whole thing would have been laughable if she hadn't been so certain that she wasn't going to survive to see the return trip.

After they were in the air, the professor gave more specifics about the creatures. It should have helped put her mind at ease. According to him, they were smaller than she had imagined, and only active after the sun went down. They would use that flaw to their advantage and attack during the day. It all sounded entirely too simple to Bethany. If it was that easy, they wouldn't have to fly such a godawful distance to take care of it.

Bethany managed to hold it together through the presentation, but then things got quiet. She had only met a few of the agents, and none of them were anywhere near her. Davis seemed to be immersed in a book, but even if she wasn't, she knew that her liaison wasn't the comforting type. Those who weren't reading or working on something were trying to sleep. It took twenty minutes for the first wave of nausea to strike. She grabbed her small bag that had her toothbrush and a few other sundries in it and made her way quickly to the restroom at the back. Davis didn't seem to notice her departure or her return.

The next time she made her way down the aisle, most people were asleep. Even Red was snoring. When she returned again, Bethany tried to read, but found she couldn't concentrate. They had been in the air for nearly two and a half hours when Bethany made her third trip to the bathroom. Of course her stomach was empty, but sitting in the middle of a bunch of sleeping people and retching was probably not the best way to win friends. On the way out of the bathroom, her head was down and she nearly walked into Red. Her hand over her mouth stifled the surprised yelp before it could come out.

“Dammit you scared me half to death.” She whispered. “Maybe you should do it again.”

“Nah. Then I'd have to go back to watching movies with Myers.” His stomach growled insistently.

“Well, I'm glad I'm good for something.” She couldn't resist a little smile. “If you tell me what they usually bring along on these things I'll make you something.”

“You?” He looked at her strangely. Bethany shrugged.

“Yes, me. Everyone else is sleeping. I do know my way around a kitchen.” She walked past him into the galley and opened a large cooler.

“Yeah, but, I mean, do you know how much I eat?” He seemed surprised that she would even offer. She looked over her shoulder.

“I've seen you eat, remember? Besides, someone was very considerate.” She took out a large tray of sandwiches labeled with his name and the time. She was surprised to see that he was only getting it a half an hour late. She took off the plastic wrap and moved past him again. In a way, keeping her hands busy settled Bethany's stomach a little. She turned and nearly ran into him again. This time she wasn't completely shocked.

“You want some?” He asked. There was something about the way he said it that made her smile a little.

“I guess it would be kinda novel to have something in my stomach the next time I puke.” She walked around the table again. “What do you want to drink?”

“Soda.” She could feel him watching her. Surprisingly enough, it didn't bother her. Bethany returned with the two liter bottle that was labeled for him, and a similarly labeled large bag of chips. She also carried a regular-size bottle of Gatorade for herself. Maybe she would eat, maybe she wouldn't, but replacing her fluids was probably a good idea either way. He was already eating when she sat down next to him on the bench-like seat. She pulled her feet up under her. “Ham or roast beef?” He asked

“I don't know if-”

“You're having one or the other, and if you won't pick I will.” He said firmly.

“Ham.” She said. “But only half.”

He handed her half a sandwich and watched her while she took a small bite. That seemed to satisfy him and he turned back to whatever was playing on the screen. For a few minutes, she nibbled and stared in the general direction of the screen. No matter how often she saw him eat, she would never get over how quickly he finished such a volume of food. He was finished with the platter and the chips by the time she had finished her half sandwich. For the moment, it seemed to be staying put.

“It ain't gonna be that bad.” He said when he was finished.

“What isn't?” She tried to sound nonchalant, and failed. He gave her a flat look. “Alright, so I'm terrified. I don't see what's so unreasonable about that.”

“Nothin'.” He shrugged a little and turned back to the screen. “Course I've seen these guys before. They're ugly, but without someone controlling them they're not smart enough to be much of a threat.”

“Then why bother with us at all?” Bethany stretched her legs out. “It seems like it would be quicker to just take care of it locally.”

“The existence of the supernatural in general is TMI for most people. They'd rather not know, so when it hits 'em in the face they shut down and call us.” He looked over at her. “'Sides, you should be used to the 'ugly' part. You look at my red ass ever day.”

“First of all, I have never seen your red ass.” He opened his mouth to say something, but Bethany continued. “And that is not a request. Second of all, you're not ugly.” She picked up the remnants of the meal returned them to the galley. He followed her.

“I'm a big red guy with horns and a tail.”

“So? That makes you stand out in a crowd, it doesn't make you ugly. You want anything else?” He looked at her strangely for a minute.

“Nah. Not right now.” A quiet beeping caused them both to turn. Myers came rushing down the aisle. Bethany had met him a number of times, but for some reason all of them had been uncomfortable experiences. She wondered if he felt she was in the middle of his relationship with Hellboy.

“Shit Red, I'm sorry. I set it for the wrong time. Why didn't you wake me up?” He rushed past them into the galley.

“Lil Bit was awake. I'm good.” He walked back and sat down. Bethany wasn't sure when he had started calling her that, but it was long enough ago that she wasn't surprised to hear it. Myers looked surprised and a little put out.

“I was a maid, before. I-” Bethany started to explain.

“Thanks. He gets cranky otherwise.” He turned and went back to his seat. Bethany still felt like she had done something wrong. She grabbed her bag, fully intending to go back to her her own seat.

“Missing Davis?” Red asked.

“Like chickens miss Colonel Sanders.” She smirked and he chuckled. “But I feel like I might have overstayed my welcome.”

“Not with me. 'Sides, you don't travel well up there. You puke every half hour.” She sat down again.

“I thought you were sleeping.” Sleep sounded wonderful at that moment. It wasn't that late in the day, but her nerves were decidedly frayed.

“Sometimes I don't sleep as deep as most people.” She stretched out and tried to make her back comfortable against the arm of the bench. She switched sides and propped her feet on the other bench. That was much more comfortable.

“I'll remember that the next time I have an anxiety attack.” She yawned and closed her eyes.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Damn if he didn't just want to pull her into his lap and hold her for the rest of the flight. That would probably scare the hell out of her, and that was the last thing she needed now. The kid was flat out terrified, and people could tell her she was going to be fine until they were blue in the face it wasn't going to make her believe it. He knew it though, Father knew it, Blue knew it. She was the only one who didn't know it yet. He watched her fall into a deeper sleep, then she shifted and came to rest against his arm. She made a little sighing sound and her body relaxed.

As many evenings as they'd spent watching TV together, she'd never fallen asleep snuggled against him. Liz used to, but she'd been doing that for years. Her face never changed, though. Bethany's face was different now. The little worry lines that always creased her forehead had melted away and the corners of her mouth were turned up in a comfortable little smile. He wondered if that always happened. She had calmed down a lot since that first day, but she was still so damn worried about doing something wrong.

He blamed Davis for some of that. The gossip said that Manning's preference had been that Bethany never wake up from whatever drugs they had given her to get her there. Psychokinetics were just too much trouble in his estimation. They looked too normal and slipped out of his clutches too easily. Davis was hand-picked by Manning and instructed to keep Bethany on a short leash. Trouble was, Davis went about it by using a machete to give a haircut. He could see that it hurt Bethany's feelings. The sarcastic defense was something he was familiar with.

She shifted again and he thought about putting his arm around her. Maybe, if she nodded off again some evening when they were alone, he would. At least then, if she woke up and slapped him he wouldn't have a plane full of witnesses. He leaned back and closed his eyes.

*~*~*~*~*~*

The rumble of the landing woke Bethany. She was surprised that she had slept so long, and even more surprised that she was resting comfortably against Red.

“Sorry.” She mumbled and sat up straighter. She felt a blush coloring her cheeks.

“For what? I was comfortable.” He said.

“Bethany, come on.” Davis called. The usual annoyance in her voice was muddled by sleep. It was still there, though.

“Being summoned I guess.” Bethany said. “Are you coming?”

“Nah. I tend to scare the normals. They don't bring me out until it's time to go.” He was looking at her curiously when she didn't move.

“Okay, do you think you could let me go then?” She smiled a little.

“Let-?” She glanced down at his tail wrapped around her waist. “Aw geez. Has a mind of it's own sometimes. Sorry.” He unwrapped it and looked away.

“It's alright, I'm not upset.” She put her hand on his wrist. She smiled a little when he looked at her.

“BETHANY!” Davis was mad now.

“I'll see you soon.” Bethany smiled and walked down the aisle and grabbed her bag. “So you DO know my name.” She said to the scowling agent.

“Have everything?” Davis ignored the comment. She always did.

“Sure, this is a beach vacation, right?” Bethany said. She followed the rest of the group down the stairs and out onto the tarmac of a military base. Trucks were waiting to take them to a gray building. There was a brief meeting that gave a few more specifics about location, and then they were told that the only support the BPRD team would have would be vehicles and one driver for each. As far as any actual fighting, the team was on its own. Then they were shown to quarters where they could sleep for a couple of hours. Bethany was surprised that it was just past 3am.

She didn't sleep at all. Part of it was because she had slept so well on the plane. Part was because of what they were there to do, and part was because Davis was snoring away on the upper bunk. The fact that she had slept so well surprised her. It wasn't like her to sleep well in a strange place, especially a strange moving place when she was nervous. Red had an interesting affect on her though.

At six, they ate a quick breakfast and got back into the trucks again. The route had been determined the night before, but the ride into the mountainous backcountry took longer than anyone anticipated. The route was a disused dirt road that seemed to have been a magnet for fallen trees. At the end of it, they hiked for close to three miles. Until they came to a wide ravine. At one time, it looked like there had been a natural land bridge that connected the side they were on with the nearly unrecognizable ruin on the other side. Time had eroded it to a narrow ridge no more than six inches wide, most of it was less than that.

“Can we go around to the other side?” Someone asked.

“Not according to these maps. The castle sits on a tor. The landbridge was the only access.” Someone else answered. Bethany thought his name was Peters. Bethany's back was to the group.

“What about ropes?” Davis asked.

“Good idea if we could get someone over there, a pulley system would get us across.” Collins answered. She learned that morning that he was in charge of the team.

“So we need to get over there in order to get over there.” Myers said.

“We need to decide on something pretty quick, it's gonna be dark in two hours. I don't feel like fighting six of those things at once with no cover.” Red answered.

“How long would it take to climb down, cross the ravine and climb up the other side?” Myers asked.

“To get down, a few minutes after the line is set. It's at least a couple hundred feet though, I don't know if I could find a route up the other side in the time we have.” Collins said.

“So if you could get a rope across, we could get over there relatively quickly, right?” Bethany asked. Everyone turned to look at her. Her heart was pounding.

“Yeah, but-”

“If you teach me how and where to anchor it, I can take it over there.” She sounded almost confident. The longer they stared at her, the worse she felt.

“Bethany, I realize you're upset.” Abe started. “But even in your present state, your PK-”

“I'm not talking about using my PK.” Bethany said. “That's a balance beam. It's higher up and it's longer, but I CAN get to the other side.” There was silence.

“You know, that might be the best option we have.” Collins said. “Davis, help her with a climbing harness”

Bethany stood still while Davis wrapped what felt like several miles of nylon webbing around her.

“Lil Bit-” Red said softly.

“I can do this.” Bethany said firmly, but in an equally quiet tone.

Neither had a chance to say anything more. Collins explained how the anchoring system worked and instructed her to set it as high as she could into solid rock. Once it was set, he would come over first and insure that it was set properly before anyone else went over. She explained the procedure back to him, just to make certain she had it right. It was hooked onto the back of her harness for the walk over. It wouldn't do her much good if she fell, though.

“Is your earpiece on?” Davis asked. Bethany made certain that it was. She felt for the release mechanism on the back of her harness. She turned her back to the group and took a moment to compose a shell of quiet air around herself. There were undoubtedly air currents over the ravine. She tried not to think of the dizzying height as she stepped out onto the ridge.

Bethany could feel the air currents sliding over and around her bubble of calm. The rough surface of the ridge took a few minutes to get used to. With each step her confidence grew. She had gone about a quarter of the way when the rope began to throw her balance. She stopped.

“Collins, can you take up some of the slack on the lines? The wind is starting to take them.” Bethany said.

“Check.” She felt motion on the lines. “Tell me when.”

“That's good.” Bethany said. “I'll try to maintain my pace. Can you maintain that tension?”

“Move how you need to, I'll take care of the rest.” He said. She started to walk again. The ridge narrowed to little more than three inches. Even her narrow feet wouldn't fit fully on its surface. She slowed down, and set her feet carefully.

“You alright?” Red asked.

“Got narrower.” She answered. “I'm fine.”

Bethany stopped again when the ridge began to slope to the left. She knew looking down would do her more harm than good. She slid one foot forward for a short distance and felt it flatten out again. She considered taking a longer step, but didn't want Collins to try and to follow a different movement. She stepped carefully and continued. By the time Bethany reached the halfway point, she was certain she was going to make it without incident.

“Bethany, there's something I just discovered in reading the information I was given.” Abe said.

“What's that?” Bethany asked. She was only half listening to him, but she knew he had been given a stack of papers and an old book. Most of it was written in strange symbols, the rest was probably French. He had been poring over it for the entire ride there.

“There may be guardians.” He said. Bethany stopped.

“What exactly does that mean?” She asked.

“Apparently, as inept as our friend was, he did manage to utilize two of his creations as daytime guardians of the others. As soon as the halfway point is breached-”

“Like I just did?!” Bethany was fighting to stay calm, and it wasn't working. The edge in her voice was clear, her heart was pounding in her ears.

“Dammit Blue, you couldn't have found that earlier?” Red said.

“If you guys panic, I'm going to panic.” Bethany said.

“Keep moving.” Red said. She started to walk again, still taking care to set her feet carefully, but trying to move more quickly.

Something between a lion's roar and an eagle's scream ended the need for further conversation or speculation. The scaly creature that flew at Bethany was about the size of large draft horse. Its head and neck were covered in horny spikes. They ran in a ridge down its back and ended in a spiked club at the end of the animal's tail. Its leathery wings beat the air, talons reached out for Bethany. For an instant she was frozen, but then she dropped so that her hands were on the ridge and spun the air around the creature's wings effectively trapping it in a private tornado. In the space of two heartbeats she moved another gust to hurl the creature against the tor. The power the release of the tornado added to her emotional energy was shocking, even to her. The creature's body shattered and crumbled to the ground below as rocky rubble.

“Below you.” Red said.

The second beast came straight up from deep in the ravine. Red fired three times and missed. It was climbing up the side of the ridge.

“Do they need air?” Bethany asked.

“What?” There were at least three people who said it.

“If someone knows – nevermind.” She answered and created a bubble around the drooling creature's head. As quickly as she could, she took all the air out it. The beast started to struggle and fight but it kept climbing. Bethany wanted to move forward, but at least with the creature headed for her it wasn't grabbing at the rope that could easily pull her down. It slowed and then lunged forward with one massive claw. Bethany's shield slowed it down, but it still tore down her left arm and knocked her over the other side of the ridge. There was one more shot and the beast stopped and slid down into the ravine again. As she hung on for dear life, she heard it break apart.

“Talk to me.” Red said.

“I'm alright.” Her voice cracked as she said it. Bethany wasn't sure that she was, but she still had to get to the other side. Loose rocks slid out from under her feet as she tried to get back on top of the ridge. Bethany used the force of her fear to stabilize them enough to get the traction she needed.

She moved unimpeded and largely in a fog of terror to the other side. She planted the three anchors as high as she could.

“All set.” Her voice sounded frayed and blood was dripping down her arm and off her fingers. Collins had already attached his harness to the trolley mechanism on the rope. The party on the other side held another line, presumably to pull the mechanism back. He crossed the ravine quickly. Bethany's eyes were on the anchors the whole time, but they never quivered. He made certain they were solid then turned back to the group on the other side.

“You're good, Red.” He said. “You're going back after he gets here.” He said to Bethany.

“On that?” She asked. “I'd rather walk.”

“Not with the way you're losing blood.” He said. Bethany looked down at the rusty puddle that was forming by her feet. Red hit the side of the tor hard.

“Damn, you're short.” He hauled himself up and smiled a little. “And ya did good.”

“Thanks.” She smiled a little.

“Thirty minutes, Red.” Myers said.

“Gotcha.” He took a charm out of of a pouch on his belt and stepped into the crumbled entrance. Collins sent Bethany back across the ravine. This time, Bethany kept her eyes closed the whole way, it was all she could do not to scream. Peters and Davis helped her down.

She took off her jacket and let Abe wrap her arm tightly.

“You're going to need stitches.” He said.

“Great. Those things aren't poisonous, are they?” She asked, looking at the three long, ragged wounds that started at the point of her shoulder and continued down to the middle of her upper arm. The upper third of each was deepest. Bruises were starting to form along the edges of each one.

“No, and I'm certain of that.” She groaned when he drew the dressing tight. “Sorry. I can't stitch it here but I want to at least slow the bleeding. This wasn't meant to be so difficult, you know.”

“I'm walking away from it, so I guess it went better than I expected.” She tried to stay silent as he pulled the gauze sharply.

“Is that why you offered to cross the ridge?” Abe asked.

“No. I offered because I knew I could do it, and because I wouldn't be in anyone else's way in the process. I wasn't expecting that whole guardians thing, though.” Her arm was starting to throb, so were her ribs. She touched them and found them surprisingly tender.

“It was buried among insignificant minutia. I hope you know I would never have sent you out there without all the information.” She knew his voice well enough to know that he felt bad.

“I know. Besides, it worked out.” Bethany put her arm back into her shredded sleeve and accepted the protein bar he handed her.

The half hour elapsed and everyone was on high alert. Growls and loud bangs rumbled from somewhere deep in the castle for the next fifteen minutes. Then there was silence. Red emerged a few minutes later. He came across the ravine. Even in the low light she could see the cut on his cheek and the slashes across his chest.

“Only managed to get to three of them in time. Had to actually fight with the last one. Got 'im though.” He sat down on a large rock and Abe started fussing over the wounds.

“Not too bad at all.” He pronounced.

“I know.” He said. “What about you?” He asked Bethany.

“Nothing too terrible.” She smiled a little.

Collins came back across, cut the rope and wound it around his arm.

“We all ready?” Collins asked.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Bethany wasn't sure how she finished the hike, but she knew that Red stuck close to her. The ride back to the base was lost in throbbing pain her shoulder and a creeping numbness in her hand. She didn't know where the rest of the team went, but she and Davis were left at the medical clinic.

“You don't have to stay in here with me.” A nurse helped Bethany get her jacket off and started to unwrap her arm. She was surprised to see that the gauze was so bloody.

“It's alright.” Davis had been unusually quiet. A doctor came in. “I wanted to say-”

“Allergies?” He asked.

“What?” Bethany's mind felt dulled.

“Do you have allergies?” He sounded annoyed.

“No.” Bethany said. The nurse uncovered the wound. It looked worse than Bethany remembered but it was only oozing blood. The doctor said something to the nurse in French. She got several things out of the cupboards.

“I'm going to start an IV.” She looked at Bethany's right arm and applied the tourniquet. Bethany pulled her arm away.

“What's in that?” Bethany asked. Her heart had started to race.

“Saline, to replace your fluids.” The nurse responded. Bethany looked at Davis.

“No.” Bethany said.

“What?” The nurse was shocked.

“Where's Abe, or the professor?” Bethany asked.

“Stop being ridiculous and give me your arm.” The nurse said. She had the same annoyed sound as the doctor.

“No!” Bethany said firmly.

“Abe was checking on HB.” She read the look on Bethany's face. “I'll get one of them here.” Davis took out a cell phone. The doctor and nurse said spoke quietly in French. From the tone she could tell that they were upset with her.

For twenty minutes Bethany sat in the tense room.

“What are they trying to give me?” Bethany heard the tremor in her own voice.

“I didn't even think about how you came to us.” He looked at the IV bag. “Saline, probably to counter the blood loss.” The nurse snorted. He looked at the vials on the tray the doctor had set up. “Lidocaine, to be injected around the wounds. It acts as an anesthetic. I can stitch the wounds if you would prefer.”

“Now wait just a minute, you can't just come in here and-” The doctor began. His face was red, his nostrils flaring.

“According to our agreement with your government, I can. You provide facilities and basic supplies only. We take care of our own.” The merman spoke calmly. “Since you've been kind enough to arrange all the supplies already, I'll take over from here.”

The nurse opened her mouth to protest but the doctor grasped her elbow. Without another word, they both left.

“I'm sorry.” Bethany said.

“Nonsense.” Abe put on gloves that seemed to have been designed for his shortened fingers. Bethany didn't resist when he took her arm and inserted the needle into her vein. After he stabilized it, she felt the cool fluid begin to flow. Bethany shivered a little. “You're so much a part of us now, I hadn't even thought of how the trauma of your arrival might still be affecting you.”

He started carefully cleaning some of the dried blood off of her other arm.

“I haven't thought about it for months, until just now.” Bethany winced but tried to hold still. “How's Red?”

“Hungry. With his accelerated healing factor, he was mostly healed by the time we got back. He was rather put out that he wasn't allowed to come with me.” He filled a syringe with the anesthetic. “This will sting a bit.” He began injecting.

“Damn, getting it hurt less.” Bethany squeezed her eyes closed and gripped the edge of the table she was sitting on.

“Adrenaline is an almost magical substance.” Abe kept injecting. The numbness that followed each burning injection was a welcome relief.

“Why wasn't he?” She was surprised that he would feel so strongly about being there with her.

“His movements are more strictly controlled than mine are in these situations.” He started to clean the wounds. “I'm going to give you an injection of antibiotics before we leave, and make sure that's followed up with when we return.”

“That feels weird.” She was trying not to stare at what he was doing, but it was odd to feel only pressure when there should have been pain.

“Painful?” He stopped.

“No.” Bethany assured him. “Kinda like it should be, but it isn't.”

“If it becomes painful, let me know.”

Bethany nodded.

*~*~*~*~*~*

“Would you sit down or something?” Myers said. He was clearly annoyed. Hellboy didn't care. He was annoyed too, just for different reasons.

“What's taking so long?” He covered the small, open area of the plane in four long strides, then turned and covered it again.

“I don't know, she was cut up pretty good and having some kind of an issue with the doctor.” Myers turned the page of the magazine he was holding. Red knew the agent well enough to know he hadn't read a word of it. “If she had just sat there and let him sew her up she'd probably be done by now.”

“Yeah, because strangers coming at her with needles wouldn't freak her out at all.” He kept walking.

“Davis was there with her-”

“And we all know how close she and Davis are.” He countered. Myers sighed.

“So now Abe is with her and we all know she trusts him. Are you going to do this every single time she gets hurt?” Myers asked. Red spun around and glared at the agent. “I'm just saying that she's not really cut out for this. She doesn't have your constitution or your physical strength. Fighting just doesn't come naturally to her. It stands to reason that if she gets up close and personal with anything she's going to end up hurt.”

“Then yeah. I'm gonna do this every single time.” He chose to ignore the comment about Bethany not being suited to this. Considering the situation and her inexperience, the fact that they weren't scraping her off the bottom of the ravine meant that she had done damn good.

Finally, the other agents started to board the plane. He knew they wouldn't have if Bethany was still being worked on. He watched the door anxiously. All of the agents – including Davis – had boarded when Bethany and Father finally stepped on the plane. She looked completely exhausted. and the way she moved told him she was in pain. Someone's jacket was draped over her shoulders. Both of them headed back toward him.

“You okay?” He resisted the urge to reach out and stroke her cheek.

“I'll heal. Besides,” She smiled a little. “I'm still breathing.”

“Hellboy, do you mind if Bethany travels back here with you? I think she would be more comfortable if she could stretch out.”

“If you'd rather not-” Bethany said quickly.

“No. Kinda nice not sitting back here alone.”

“Good.” Father smiled a little and patted his arm. “We'll talk after you've had some rest, Bethany.”

Father walked down the aisle. Bethany sank into the bench.

“You in any pain?” He sat next to her. She looked exhausted and vulnerable.

“Not really.” She sighed. “I'm still kinda numb.” The noise from take-off kept both of them silent. He was trying not to stare at her. As soon as they were airborne, the bright lights in the cabin were turned off. She sighed softly and stretched out. He moved a little closer. He knew she would be asleep soon and she might want someone to lean against.