strap down!" he snapped. "Do it now!"
"Why?" Melissa stared at him. "What's...?"
"Just do it!" Grabbing at the ceiling, Gordie launched himself toward the cockpit. "Coming through!" he yelled, pushing Nina and Eddie out of the way. "Make a hole!"
"It's a missile," I said. Gordie's reaction had confirmed my suspicions. "Someone down there has launched a rocket at us."
"Are you sure?" Logan gaped at me, then hauled himself over to the window Gordie had just vacated.
I glanced out my window again. Although the rising star was still far away, it was getting brighter, and its upward direction suggested that it was on a trajectory that would intercept us in less than a minute.
"Yes, I'm sure!" Gordie hastily turned himself so that he fell into the cockpit feet first; within seconds he was in the pilot's seat, snatching at the seat and shoulder straps and buckling them together. "That's an anti-satellite weapon. Probably air-launched by another F-30 sent up from Texas. They haven't given up on us yet. Now get in your damn seats!"
We scrambled to obey him, but none of us were prepared for this, so all we managed to do was get tangled in each other's arms and legs. I was trying to get MeeMee's feet out of my face when there was a hollow roar from the stern, and in the next instant an invisible hand shoved all of us toward the compartment's rear end. Gordie had fired the main engine; a second later, the entire LTV seemed to roll sideways, and I realized that he was firing the maneuvering thrusters as well.
He was trying to dodge the ASW. No time to get back in the cocoon; I grabbed the ceiling rung with both hands and hoped that our pilot knew what he was doing.
"C'mon, baby, c'mon." Logan floated above the seat row in front of me, clutching at the top of one of them as he stared out the nearest porthole. "Climb, climb, climb..."
"What's going on?" Melissa was trying to get into the seat beside my cocoon, but its straps were hopelessly snarled, and every effort she made to untangle them only made it worse. "Are we going to die? We're going to die, aren't we...?"
"Shut up!" Gordie yelled. "Nobody's dying! Not if I can help it!"
His bravado might have been assuring, but it came too late. Eddie's earlier giddiness was forgotten as he let out a terrified scream. "I don't want to die! I don't want to die! I just wanna go home...!"
"It's all right. It's okay." Nina pushed her brother into one of the forward seats, then wrapped her small arms around him and held himtight. "We're going to be fine," she said quietly, and in that moment she seemed more like a mother than a little sister. "Hush, now. We're going to be okay..."
The only other person remaining calm--or at least not panicking, as MeeMee and Eddie were--was Hannah. She was crammed between a seatback and a bulkhead by Logan's legs, unable to strap herself down, but she didn't seem to care. Her eyes were shut, and she seemed to be saying something under her breath. Praying? Probably. Then her eyes opened, and she caught me looking at her. There was fear in her eyes, but something else as well: resignation to an inevitable fate.
She looked at me, and her mouth opened and her lips formed one silent word: Sorry .
I was still wondering why she'd say that--this wasn't her fault, was it?--when Logan yelled, "There it goes!"
Twisting my neck, I ducked my head to peer through the window again, just in time to see a brilliant, utterly soundless flash of light. The anti-satellite weapon had just detonated. How far away, I didn't know; all I could tell was that it exploded somewhere below and off to the port side of the LTV.
"It's a miss!" I shouted. "It didn't hit!"
A loud, sharp bang! that sounded like someone firing a pistol, and I knew at once that I was wrong.
A second later an alarm shrieked from the cockpit, followed by a loud curse from Gordie. "Blowout!" he shouted. "We've got a blowout!"
He didn't have to explain what he meant. The ASW had detonated close enough to
"Why?" Melissa stared at him. "What's...?"
"Just do it!" Grabbing at the ceiling, Gordie launched himself toward the cockpit. "Coming through!" he yelled, pushing Nina and Eddie out of the way. "Make a hole!"
"It's a missile," I said. Gordie's reaction had confirmed my suspicions. "Someone down there has launched a rocket at us."
"Are you sure?" Logan gaped at me, then hauled himself over to the window Gordie had just vacated.
I glanced out my window again. Although the rising star was still far away, it was getting brighter, and its upward direction suggested that it was on a trajectory that would intercept us in less than a minute.
"Yes, I'm sure!" Gordie hastily turned himself so that he fell into the cockpit feet first; within seconds he was in the pilot's seat, snatching at the seat and shoulder straps and buckling them together. "That's an anti-satellite weapon. Probably air-launched by another F-30 sent up from Texas. They haven't given up on us yet. Now get in your damn seats!"
We scrambled to obey him, but none of us were prepared for this, so all we managed to do was get tangled in each other's arms and legs. I was trying to get MeeMee's feet out of my face when there was a hollow roar from the stern, and in the next instant an invisible hand shoved all of us toward the compartment's rear end. Gordie had fired the main engine; a second later, the entire LTV seemed to roll sideways, and I realized that he was firing the maneuvering thrusters as well.
He was trying to dodge the ASW. No time to get back in the cocoon; I grabbed the ceiling rung with both hands and hoped that our pilot knew what he was doing.
"C'mon, baby, c'mon." Logan floated above the seat row in front of me, clutching at the top of one of them as he stared out the nearest porthole. "Climb, climb, climb..."
"What's going on?" Melissa was trying to get into the seat beside my cocoon, but its straps were hopelessly snarled, and every effort she made to untangle them only made it worse. "Are we going to die? We're going to die, aren't we...?"
"Shut up!" Gordie yelled. "Nobody's dying! Not if I can help it!"
His bravado might have been assuring, but it came too late. Eddie's earlier giddiness was forgotten as he let out a terrified scream. "I don't want to die! I don't want to die! I just wanna go home...!"
"It's all right. It's okay." Nina pushed her brother into one of the forward seats, then wrapped her small arms around him and held himtight. "We're going to be fine," she said quietly, and in that moment she seemed more like a mother than a little sister. "Hush, now. We're going to be okay..."
The only other person remaining calm--or at least not panicking, as MeeMee and Eddie were--was Hannah. She was crammed between a seatback and a bulkhead by Logan's legs, unable to strap herself down, but she didn't seem to care. Her eyes were shut, and she seemed to be saying something under her breath. Praying? Probably. Then her eyes opened, and she caught me looking at her. There was fear in her eyes, but something else as well: resignation to an inevitable fate.
She looked at me, and her mouth opened and her lips formed one silent word: Sorry .
I was still wondering why she'd say that--this wasn't her fault, was it?--when Logan yelled, "There it goes!"
Twisting my neck, I ducked my head to peer through the window again, just in time to see a brilliant, utterly soundless flash of light. The anti-satellite weapon had just detonated. How far away, I didn't know; all I could tell was that it exploded somewhere below and off to the port side of the LTV.
"It's a miss!" I shouted. "It didn't hit!"
A loud, sharp bang! that sounded like someone firing a pistol, and I knew at once that I was wrong.
A second later an alarm shrieked from the cockpit, followed by a loud curse from Gordie. "Blowout!" he shouted. "We've got a blowout!"
He didn't have to explain what he meant. The ASW had detonated close enough to
Similar Books
