Chapter 13

Lukas processed the information his mother shared with him, but he sensed there was something more to the story. Taylor approached him and put his hand on Lukas’ shoulder. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you your mom chartered this flight. I wanted her to tell you.”

“Actually,” Lukas responded, “I’m kind of relieved. Now I don’t have to go on that date with you in DC.”

Taylor felt a brief lightning bolt zap through his heart but maintained his composure. “Lukas, I’m…”

“Oh, just stop it. I’m teasing you. But you’re paying for dinner.” Lukas answered.

“Well, actually, you should pay. Your mom just saved you a boatload of money.”

Lukas smiled. “Fine, then you have to take me somewhere really cool.”

“Maybe I’ll fly us to Paris. Would you like that?” Taylor smiled.

Lukas had no response. The mere idea of being able to jet over to Paris with this man was incredible.

Taylor sat down next to him. “We should be able to see the Aurora Borealis tonight after we cross the pole. I’m glad we got out when we did. There is a ground stop on all US flights. Now the United States air traffic control is on strike.”

“I thought Reagan made that illegal?” Lukas asked.

“So did I, which was why I didn’t see that coming,” Taylor answered. “Let’s hope Europe doesn’t follow suit.” Lukas nodded in agreement.

“I wonder if we should have called the FBI, or the embassy, or somebody. I feel like we have no idea what we’ve gotten ourselves into,” Lukas speculated.

“I don’t know, but in my experience, the worst thing you can do is get local or Federal law enforcement involved in something like this. They play by the rules too much,” Taylor replied.

“Isn’t that good?” Lukas asked.

“Sometimes, and theoretically, yes, it’s good they follow the rules, or else you’d have chaos with guys making decisions not knowing the broader story.”

Lukas nodded. “Hey, look. I see them.”

Lukas and Taylor saw the Northern Lights on the horizon, glowing with vibrant colors and appearing almost unreal.

“That’s a view I never get tired of,” Taylor commented.

Lukas agreed. “I’ve probably seen them twice now, both times in the air. It’s pretty fascinating.”

“You know,” Taylor interjected, “it’s always so peaceful up here, it’s easy to forget all the conflict, suffering, and strife that goes on down there.” Taylor leaned back on the jet’s sofa, adjusted his arm, and placed it over Lukas, whose back rested on Taylor’s chest. Despite his thoughts earlier, Lukas felt good with Taylor. More importantly, his gut feeling was to trust him. Trust and verify, he told himself, which was one of his mantras he used with his employees regarding data accuracy and the conclusions they drew from it.

Molly quietly walked toward them, smiling at how content Lukas looked with Taylor. “It’s nice to see you both so comfortable. You make a handsome couple,” Molly observed. “Taylor, Lukas will probably yell at me for saying that, but I say what I think. Which reminds me, can I make a phone call from up here?”

He looked at his watch. “In about an hour. We get better reception when we’re over land. That work?”

Molly nodded. “I need to call Mr. Patrick Aziz and tell him I’m his new boss. I’d love to be a fly on the wall when he learns that.”

“Why do you say that, Ma?”

“Your father thought Patrick could possibly be his successor one day, and I’m sure Patrick knew that, too. He followed your dad around like a puppy, but he had no time for me. I was just the dutiful wife.”

Lukas chuckled. “If only Patrick knew who held the real power in the Halloran household.”

“I’ve been involved with Phoenix since Dad started it,” Molly commented. “I know a lot about the company, its holdings, strategy, and stuff like that. Your dad would bounce ideas off me, and I’d tell him my honest opinion.”

“Did you ever disagree?”

“Most of the time we disagreed.” Molly chuckled. “Your dad was the visionary. He could see things that most people couldn't see.”

“Sounds like a good team,” Taylor stated.

“Yep. My husband was the dreamer, I got shit done, and that still works for us.”

“Mom, what did you mean when you talked about Poseidon? You make it sound like it was something bad. That doesn’t seem like something Dad would want to get involved with.”

“I’ll explain it to you since you should know what’s possibly at stake. Taylor,” Molly asked him, “can you get Tory and bring her back here? I’d like to explain this one time so I don’t have to repeat it.”

“Molly, I’m afraid I can’t do that unless I take her spot in the cockpit. We need two pilots up there, even when we’re on autopilot, unless it’s just a quick pee break.”

Molly turned around and spotted Donna, who was engrossed in watching a movie on her tablet, along with her sound-canceling headphones. “Donna. Donna!” Molly waved her arms to get Donna’s attention.

“Yeah?” Donna yelled, not knowing how loud her voice was due to the headphones.

“They need another pilot while I explain Poseidon to them. Can you…”

“Roger. Finally get to have some fun.” Donna rose from her seat and headed toward the cockpit. “I didn’t drink the booze, in case you were wondering.”

“Mom, what is she doing? She’s terrified of flying!”

“Didn’t you know? Donna was a pilot in the US Army back in the day. She’s kept her license and has flown bigger planes than this. I think she gets nervous when other people fly. She’s not afraid of flying. She’s afraid of being a passenger. Don’t take it personally, Taylor.”

“Mom, you never told me that.”

“Didn’t I? I must have forgotten.”

Donna opened the cockpit door and pulled out a badge. In a few seconds, Tory walked back to where the passengers were meeting. “What’d I miss?”

“Is she okay up there, Tory?” Taylor asked nervously.

“Diego’s up there, and Donna showed me her pilot’s license, so they should be okay. She’s trained to fly Spectrums, which is a coincidence.”

“But, Ma” Lukas stammered. “Shouldn’t she hear this conversation about Project Poseidon?”

Molly had a slight smile as she glanced over at Linda and Betty. “She already knows.”