We Are Not Eaten by Yaks by C. Alexander London Page A

please?”
    Dr. Navel looked at the Chinese lady, who smiled at him, but used her eyes to plead with the stewardess for help.
    â€œPerhaps we could talk at the back of the plane?” the stewardess suggested. Dr. Navel reluctantly put his maps and strings down on his seat and followed her to the back. Celia watched while the stewardess lectured her father. He had that pose that boys get when they’re in trouble. He slumped and shrugged and acted like he wasn’t listening. Then the stewardess pointed at Oliver and then at Celia, and Dr. Navel got angry and started lecturing her. And then she got angry and pointed at him. Then she poked him in the chest and out of fairness, he poked her back, which was not a good decision.
    â€œDo not dare touch me, sir!” the stewardess shouted, and everyone turned to look.
    â€œYou touched me first,” Dr. Navel said sheepishly, realizing he had gone too far.
    The stewardess picked up the little phone next to her and spoke into it very quickly. A man stood up from a seat near the front of the plane and walked back toward them. When he passed Celia’s seat, she saw him wink at the man in the shiny suit, who gave a quick nod of his head, like they were old friends.
    When the man reached Dr. Navel and the stewardess, he pulled out a badge.
    â€œAir marshal,” he said. “Is there a problem here?”
    â€œNo problem, sir,” Dr. Navel said, trying to undo the damage that had already been done.
    â€œHe has been a disturbance this entire flight,” the stewardess said. “We have reason to believe his children are . . . unbalanced, as he is himself, and now he has assaulted me.”
    â€œI did not assault you,” Dr. Navel tried to say, and Celia looked at Oliver with worry in her eyes. Oliver’s eyes showed worry too.
    â€œWe’re not unbalanced ,” Oliver whispered, and then thought about the talking yak in his dream.
    â€œSir,” the air marshal said. “Please do not interrupt. Unfortunately, I have been noting your unusual behavior since leaving New York, and I cannot allow you and your family to continue to put this aircraft and its staff in danger.”
    â€œI promise we will sit quietly until we land.”
    â€œUnfortunately, sir, you cannot be permitted to remain on board.”
    â€œWhat?!”
    â€œYou and your family will have to leave the plane.”
    â€œBut we’re forty thousand feet in the air somewhere over Central Asia!”
    â€œSir, please don’t cause a scene,” the air marshal said. “We are only at thirty-eight thousand feet, and we are just passing over Mount Everest. It’ll be a lovely piece of sightseeing for you.” He glanced back at the man next to Celia and smirked. Then he winked at Celia and gave her a thumbs-up, like the whole thing was one big joke. If getting thrown out of an airplane was a joke, she didn’t get it.

8
    WE FEEL THE GRAVITY OF THE SITUATION

    EXITING AN AIRPLANE IN MIDAIR is not an easy thing to do, even if you wanted to do it. And the Navel family certainly did not want to do it.
    In fact, Celia tried to bite the air marshal’s finger when he came to grab her, but the shiny-suited man in the seat next to her grabbed her and held her still while the air marshal tied her hands in front of her. Celia noticed that each man wore a gold ring with a tiny key inscribed on it and the key had tiny shining stones embedded in it.
    â€œIf you can’t behave, I’ll have to leave you restrained,” the air marshal said cruelly. “I don’t want to do that.”
    Two of the stewardesses tied Oliver’s hands in front of him and moved him to the back of the plane. One of them looked at him and mouthed the words “I’m sorry,” but it did little to comfort him. He didn’t like heights. He could already taste the dry chicken and soggy strawberry shortcake he’d eaten an hour earlier. It was far