Exit to nowhere

Nowhere

"She sighed heavily and deliberately loud while she fibbled with the pages. The book she had in her hand was old and torn, with written doodles all around the edges. Her doodles. She glared at the man sitting by the fire. Now, thanks to him, this book was all she had left of the civilization as she knew it. Damn him to hell.  And the other one too.  Would she ever get back?

Well, at least it was not wet anymore. She held the book towards the light from the fire and examined it once more. It had taken forever to dry it up. The cover especially. She heard a sound nearby and turned her head. Oh. The other one came walking through the bushes back to the camp.  

She clenched her teeth and looked away, up, just not on him. The moon was almost full, the sky clear and starlit, but somehow she could not find it in herself to enjoy it even though it was among the most beautiful sights she had ever seen. Slowly her gaze lowered to the horizon. To the vast and endless sea.

To say that she now knew the meaning of  the saying ; Being at the wrong place at the wrong time, was an understatement."    

~     ~      ~ 

A week earlier.

She checked her wrist-watch one last time. If there was one thing Erica hated more than to have too little time on her hands, it was to have too damn much time instead. Her eyes scanned the departure lounge where she sat and the sight was utterly depressing.

A couple were arguing, no wonder she thought. The delay was creeping into the third hour as it was right  now. A fat woman started on her fifth chocolate-bar, Erica kept count and shook her head slightly.

If she could, she would go back a couple of days and tell her boss no thanks, instead of the utterly stupid yes thanks she told him when he asked if she wanted to go on a business trip. She regretted that now, to the fullest. And come to think of it, if she remembered right, James Rollins, a co-worker in the company,  had seem mighty keen on getting the assignment.  

Business trip by the way, not likely she thought. Just delivering a sealed , but rather large envelope to another company half way across the world. That was it. Nothing more.  Should she be worried? Or suspicious? 

Oh yeah, rather late for that, eh? The roll of Erica's eyes was instantaneous and a chuckle slipped her lips. So typical her. She reached for her handbag and opened it. There it was, the damn envelope. Folded, of course, or else it would not have fit in her bag. Her boss had told her it was okay to do so, so of course she folded it.

What, on a piece of paper can be so bloody important that you, yourself,  have to travel by airplane  with the damn thing and deliver it, instead of mailing it?  And why, in heavens name had she not asked her  Boss about that before she left?  God, how stupid she felt. 

Both those questions started a loop in her head. A pretty insalubrious loop unfortunately. Aw drat,  Erica cursed under her breath, now she could not think about anything else.  Well, thruth be told, the feelin stupid part took up more than its fair share inside of her.

Suddenly a message blared out from a speaker in the lounge ceiling, shaking her from her train of thoughts, announcing that FINALLY it was time to board. Everybody around her started moving, heading for the gate.

Searching frantically for her boarding-pass in her inside jacket-pocket, she then grabbed her bag when she found it and stood up. Not a damn minute too soon. Erica made a promise to herself that when, if she could be so lucky, she would be in her seat on the plane, she would order in one hell of a big,  and most important of all, strong drink.

   ~       ~       ~