(18+) Smooth Xscape (Complete)

Ch. 11: Pistol power

The time went by, and one hour became two, and all we could see was the blue horizon, a few cargo ships underneath us, and the two Mexicans intensely glaring eyes. I kept randomly hanging over the edge of the basket, vomiting, but my stomach gradually calmed down. And so did I, listening to the periodically blazing sound from the fire that kept the balloon floating on the air waves. Mr. Jackson was right. The view really was spectacular! But I must admit that I felt a huge relief when we spotted the first signs of land ahead of us.

Suddenly, Mr. Jackson started screaming. And even though both me and the two other men looked at him wide eyed, he didn't stop. He just kept on screaming like a madman, while he held so hard around the railing that his knuckles whitened.

"Hey! Be quiet!" I yelled, picking myself up after sitting on the floor for a while, trying to regain some energy. I felt drenched and completely worn out. But he kept on howling like a siren.

"JACKSON! Will you please....?! If you don't shut up, I'm gonna shove your own foot into your mouth and choke you with it!"

I gently slapped his cheeks to make him look at me, and when he finally did, he blinked his eyes a few times, while his voice trailed off and ended in a groan.

"D-did y-you see t-that, Missy?! It's... We're... How..."

Oh. That explains it... Little scarecrow is back. Though, the only thing he manages to scare is himself...

"We're in a hot air balloon, Joe."

I rolled my eyes and let go of his cheeks.

"You see, someone here thought it would be the perfect way to travel, and it might have been too, if it wasn't for the fact that I'M BLOODY TERRIFIED OF HEIGHTS! And so are... Uhm... You. Obviously."

Joe groaned again, and looked at the two Mexicans.

"Did one of them s..."

"NOOOO! You did, moron!"

"Me?! But I don't even know how I got here, Missy...! I swear I would never..."

"See, that's the 'charming' part of you," I said with a voice dripping of irony.

"You don't remember, but I surely do. Now sit down before you hurt yourself. This is quite a bit more dangerous than falling down the stairs, so sit down and pretend you're paralyzed or something, and wait until we get there. I'm sure it won't take long now."

I looked at the narrow stripe of land that grew larger by the minute.

"Get where, exactly?" he asked, probably confused as hell.

"To Gahasvana."

He raised both of his eyebrows in question.

"To where?"

"To Gahasvana! In Crapposlovakia."

I laughed inwardly when I studied how he twisted his brain to recall anything, and I had huge troubles to keep myself from giggling loud, when his body language told me he had given up.

"Cuba, Joe. Cuba! Gahasvana and Crapposlovakia don't even exist! Now, don't..."

I suddenly got attacked from the behind by one of the Mexicans, and yelped when I almost lost my balance and fell. Luckily the railing was there, but the rough edge of the basket, dug into the skin on my stomach. Still, that was not what made me scream. Being forcefully pushed towards my biggest fear, triggered another spontaneous series of retches, but I managed to gurgle a few words to Joe, and prayed to God he understood me.