Page 67 of The Last Flight

I begin packing my things, shoving them into my bag haphazardly. By this time tomorrow, I’ll be Claire Cook again, shouldering all the baggage that comes along with it, facing the circus my accusations will create. I think about Eva, out there somewhere, and hope that at least this might set her free.

A knock on the door startles me, and I worry that Rory might have bumped his trip up, slipped out of New York without Danielle knowing, and somehow located me here. That by the time the CNN car arrives, there will be nothing but an empty room.

I peek through the curtains and see a man, his arms folded across his chest, revealing a brief glimpse of a gun holster under his coat.

I call through the door. “Can I help you?”

He smiles and flashes a badge. “My name is Agent Castro,” he says. “And I’d like to talk to you about Eva James.”

Eva

New Jersey

February

One Day before the Crash

The plane bumped down at two o’clock in Newark, after flying all night and an interminable layover in Chicago. After taxiing to the gate, Eva hurried up the Jetway, stopping only to buy a new prepaid phone at a kiosk, tossing the packaging in the trash, and dialing the number Liz had written at the bottom of her letter. “It’s Eva,” she said, relieved to find Liz at home. “I’m actually in New Jersey. Is it possible I can stop by?”

“You’re here? How? Why?” Liz’s surprised voice floated through the line.

“It’s a long story,” Eva said, passing through baggage claim and out into the frigid February air. “Can I tell you in person?”

* * *

Just a little over fifty miles from Manhattan, Liz’s New Jersey street looked like it belonged in the Midwest, with small, well-cared-for houses, a mix of brick and painted stucco. When Liz opened her door, she pulled Eva into a tight hug. “This is such a surprise,” she said. “Come in.”

She followed Liz through the house to a large room off the kitchen that overlooked a snowy backyard. An afternoon talk show was on the TV in the corner, and Liz switched it off, gesturing for Eva to sit on the couch. Liz perched next to her and said, “I’ve missed you. Tell me everything.”

Eva froze. The whole flight, she’d rehearsed in the dark while people slept around her. Tried to find the right place to begin unraveling it all. But now that she was looking into Liz’s questioning eyes, waiting for Eva to say something, she couldn’t make her mouth work at all.

Her gaze traveled around the room, to the bookshelves crammed with books, a messy desk covered in papers, and a couple half-emptied packing boxes in the corner.

She took a deep breath and gave Liz a wobbly smile. “I don’t know where to start,” she told her.

Liz took Eva’s hands, warm and dry against Eva’s sweaty ones, and she felt a little calmer, Liz’s energy passing through her, making her heart rate slow. “Just pick a place and begin.”

“I’m in trouble,” Eva said, her voice low and tentative. And then she began. She told Liz about Wade. How he made her feel special. Eva looked into her lap and shrugged. “It was the first time anyone had made me feel that way. Interesting. Attractive. Like a normal person living a normal life.”

She described the meeting in the dean’s office, how no one showed up for her, and how she’d felt she had to accept their terms. “They had all the power. All the leverage. I was just a kid. It was easy for them to kick me out and pretend none of it happened.”

“Didn’t the university appoint an advocate for you?”

Eva had never even considered such a thing. She shook her head, and Liz looked disgusted. “You could have appealed. There are procedures that should have been followed.” But then Liz seemed to catch herself, because she said, “You couldn’t have known, and that doesn’t help you now. Go on.”

Eva thought about what came next, a decision so significant, her entire life cleaved in two. She let out a slow breath, dragging out the moment, knowing she’d have to step forward and tell the rest, but not wanting to. Terrified Liz wouldn’t understand. That what she’d said in her letter, about accepting Eva as she was, wouldn’t apply to what she was about to confess.

Eva was tempted to end the story there. Tell Liz she was on her way to Europe, had a layover, and wanted to stop by and say hi. But she knew Liz wouldn’t buy it. And eventually, Castro would show up at Liz’s door and tell her the truth. Eva needed to be the one to tell Liz. To make sure Liz understood why she’d done what she did. She prayed some of Liz’s forgiveness would come her way.

“That guy you saw me arguing with is named Dex. Or at least, that’s the name I know him by. Apparently, he has others.” Eva told her about Dex’s offer, about how she had no money. Nowhere to go, and how it seemed like a lifeline at the time.

As she spoke, Liz’s eyes grew wider, her expression more and more shocked. Eva knew what Liz expected to hear. Typical problems such as a lost job. An unwanted pregnancy. Maybe stolen money or property. But Eva could tell Liz didn’t expect this. She couldn’t bear the weight of Liz’s eyes, and she leaned forward, resting her head in her hands, covering her face, elbows on her knees.

Next to her, she felt Liz rise from the couch and move away from her. Eva held her breath, waiting for the sound of Liz opening her front door, a quiet voice asking Eva to leave. Or the sound of her picking up the phone to call the police. But instead she heard Liz move into the kitchen and open the refrigerator, the sound of ice, and she returned with a bottle of vodka and two glasses. She poured generously and took a drink. “Continue,” she said.

Eva sipped her vodka and told her the rest. Brittany. Agent Castro. The evidence she’d assembled, Castro’s news that she didn’t qualify for witness protection. And finally, that Dex was Fish. “I’m sure he knows by now that something is up. I was supposed to meet him yesterday, but I never showed.”

“You have to cooperate,” Liz said when Eva had finished telling her everything. “It’s the only thing youcando.” She finished her vodka and poured another glass, topping off Eva’s as well. “My God, Eva.”

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