Member-only story
An Invitation To Interview
Excerpt of a crime novel
“Yes, yes I understand,” Celia’s voice was crisp and just impatient enough. “I got it, John. Look, the flight attendant is walking this way. Cell phones have to be off now.” Without waiting for his answer, she swiped off the call and turned the phone off before dropping it into her briefcase. Then she pulled out the brown envelope before sliding the briefcase under the seat in front of her. After smiling and nodding at the flight attendant as he passed, Celia laid her head back against the seat and closed her eyes. She’d been on enough flights to know they were still 15 minutes from takeoff, so a power nap before they were in the air would energize her. The flight was going to be turbulent; sleep once they took off would be impossible.
Celia had been flying on a regular basis for the better part of a dozen years, and she still hated turbulent flights. The smaller planes were the worst, bouncing over air pockets while she sat strapped into her seat, helpless to do anything but wait. It wasn’t fear, it was the lack of control, her therapist had said years before. Celia smiled at the memory of the woman with the soothing voice who asked the probing questions. That had seemed like a lifetime ago.
It didn’t help that 9/11 had happened the same year Celia had begun her regular travel. No one wanted to board a…
