Left to Lapse (An Adele Sharp Mystery—Book Seven) by Blake Pierce (book club suggestions txt) 📗

against Leoni’s chest. The Italian grunted, but then Johnmoved between the front and back seats, sliding his lanky form in the spaciousback compartment between Leoni and Adele.

Thenhe pointed to three harnesses hooked on the back of the helicopter. His headsetwas now dangling over the front seat where he left it, so he mimed placing theharnesses over their heads. Adele reached out, snaring one of the grainedfabric vests and passing it to Leoni. She passed another to John, then, stillmuttering darkly to herself, she removed her headset, placed her own harness overher head, pulling her arms through the gaps in the crisscrossing straps andtightening the metal buckles across the front.

“Allright?” she shouted, moving her lips emphatically to help the two men read whatshe was saying despite the noise. “Now?”

Johnpointed toward a metal loop attached to twin pulleys as thick as hubcaps by thesliding door of the helicopter. He then leaned across Adele, brushing againsther, and snared a thick loop of black rope which lay on the ground, alreadyattached by a metal hook to the safety hitch.

Thenlike a rock-climbing instructor, John first looped the rope through his metalclasps on the front of his harness and then mimed to Adele, pointing at thesimple clasp and showing her how to release her own.

Hepointed at his chest, held up a finger, then pointed at her and Leoni and mimedglasses.

“Watchand learn? I get it,” she shouted back.

Johnwas no longer grinning, though. He turned back toward the sliding door beneaththe safety hitch. He had a strange light in his eyes which Adele had witnessedon more than one occasion. When things got heavy, bullets started flying, orthe agents attempted some sort of life or death stunt, John always seemed in asort of heightened state, his eyes wide, his nostrils flaring. A light didn’tspark behind his eyes so much as it died. As if he were switching off any sortof fear, empathy, desire. John was terrifying in that way if you were on thewrong side of the law. But if you were wearing the same uniform? Adele couldn’tthink of any place safer.

Sheknew John had a history with helicopters. He’d flown them before—once on theski slopes in the Alps. But prior to that as well, while still serving hiscountry overseas. She knew it had ended in tragedy. But it was just like Johnto refuse to allow past pain to claim prizes for current endeavors.

Sheglanced at Leoni, who was still shifting uncomfortably.

Bynow, John was signaling instructions to the pilot. The helicopter dipped, justa bit, and now Adele could see through the glass in the side door, the trainbelow them. They began to slow as well, and the helicopter adjusted. Adelecould almost hear the scrape of the chugging wheels beneath them now, over thesound of helicopter blades.

Shelooked to Leoni, whose face had paled. He didn’t seem perturbed by theharness—and she reminded herself that Leoni had a pilot’s license of his own.Still, he looked worried. When he caught her watching, though, he flashed aquick thumbs-up, then pointed toward John, if only, perhaps, to redirect herattention.

Shefelt a flicker of concern. Normally, Leoni was always calm, collected.

“Thisis insane,” Adele muttered to herself.

Johnmade a spinning motion with his finger, the pilot pulled on the controls, andnow the rotating blades above made a different sort of noise. Were theyslowing? Falling?

No…Adele realized. They were trying to fly directly over the train, so they couldrappel down.

“Insane,”she muttered again. “Batshit.”

Andthen John flung open the side door. Wind blasted into the cabin, sweepingacross John and ruffling his slicked back hair, sending it flying. Adele’s owneyes strained at the gusting wind. They were slowing, though, likely to matchpace with the train.

Adele’sheart jumped in her throat as she watched John, rope looped through his harness,reattached to the second pulley on the hitch. Then he looked at her, flashed athumbs-up, and jumped off the side of the helicopter. Adele leaned forward, onehand out, bracing where she still sat strapped in her seat. She unstrapped,gripping a metal handle near the open door, and leaned forward, watching asJohn shimmied down the rope.

Thepilot seemed to be keeping them on a steady course, at least for now, guidingthem along just above the train. She could see three compartments ahead ofthem. Thankfully, the train was going so slowly, it allowed the pilot to keepup with relative ease.

Johnmoved down the rope, expertly managing his pulley the way he’d indicated toAdele, using the clasp release to slow or speed his descent. For a moment,Adele wished she’d had a bit more time to acclimate. It seemed simple enoughthough.

Atlast, still leaning and watching, she stared as John landed on the ceiling ofone of the train compartments. He released his clasp at last, letting the blackrope slide free, and it shot up all of a sudden, pulled in by a whirring motoron the pulley.

Adeleglanced to the pilot, who was still staring, fixed at the train in front, usingit as a guiding post to keep them steady.

Sheglanced at Leoni, then down at John. She swallowed, then looped the ropethrough her own harness how she’d seen John do.

Batshit.All of it. But no time to hesitate. The whole point of this was to catch thekiller before he had a chance to flee, to hide amidst a station of passengers,or slip off the train when it got near a crowd. No—now wasn’t the time forfear.

Sheswallowed once, pulled a couple of times on her clasp, testing it, and then sheturned back toward the open air, eyes fixed on the interior of the helicoptercabin. Leoni was watching her, still a bit pale, his eyes wide.

Sheflashed a thumbs-up, then jumped.

Thepulley did its work. As she began to fall, her body weight counteracted themotor in the pulley and she descended, rapidly, but not too quickly. Still, shesqueezed her clasp, slowing the descent. The wind seemed to carry her, knockingher about as she fell from the helicopter above, aiming for the slowly movingtrain below. She glanced between her feet where John was crouched low, one handout, braced against the metal ceiling, one hand upraised, gesturing at her asif guiding in a landing plane.

Shecontinued