“Show me, ” she softly said to her Darkness. “Show me the Purpose. ”
“You will find your Purpose, ” she answered herself in a different voice that was deep and unearthly.
“Yes. ” She smiled at herself in the mirror as her craving became intense. “Soon. Soon, ” she said to the blond cop. “Soon you will have a unique experience. ”
Twenty-six
I feel right qualmish, ” Fonny Boy told the pilots through his headset as he and Dr. Faux shivered and felt airsick in the back of the Jayhawk. “I’m of a mind when I scudded along on my losipe and went ass-over-tin-cup and fell in my own spew. ”
The sad childhood story about Fonny Boy flying along on his tricycle and taking a spill and throwing up on himself was lost on the Coast Guard crew, who had been smart enough to radio NCIC for a record check and had discovered that the dentist they had just rescued was wanted for health-care fraud, money laundering, and racketeering. As for the strange-talking Tangier boy, he was in clear violation of maritime law and also wanted for kidnapping.
Of course, Andy had seen to it that warrants were taken out on Dr. Faux and Fonny Boy after Andy had visited Tangier Island disguised as a journalist and had gone through Fonny Boy’s dental chart and later realized that when Fonny Boy had stated that the dentist was tied up, he had meant it literally. Recognizing that the two people the Coast Guard had just rescued were wanted by the state police, the pilot switched to the emergency frequency and radioed for any state police aircraft that might be up.
Macovich, having dumped Regina an hour earlier, happened to be giving Cat a helicopter lesson when the call came over the radio.
“Helicopter four-three-zero-Sierra-Papa,” Macovich tensely replied as Cat jerked the twin-engine helicopter into a hover. “I didn’t say lift the pedal, I said left pedal, ” Macovich admonished him through their headsets, and in Macovich’s confusion, he pressed the transmit button on his cyclic and his instruction was heard by hundreds of area pilots, including the Coast Guard. “If you lift the left pedal, it’s the same thing as pushing the right pedal, and how many times I gotta tell you that? And see what happens? The chopper noses ’round to the right, ’cause what you just did was give it right pedal since you lifted the left pedal. Don’t you remember what I told you about torque?”
Cat was sweating and not at all interested in aerodynamics. He just wanted to learn whatever was necessary to fly the helicopter himself. He didn’t give a damn about getting his license or abiding by any FAA regulations, because he was fairly sure that once he and the road dogs escaped to Tangier Island, they would sell the Bell 430 to pirates in Canada and never have another worry. Six million dollars, he thought as he overcontrolled and caused the helicopter to oscillate precariously over the tarmac.
“Helicopter zero-Sierra-Papa.” A voice came back to Macovich. “You’re on one-twenty-four-point-five, ” which was the emergency frequency. “Switch to one-twenty-five-nothing. ”
Macovich switched as he struggled with the controls and yelled at Cat while unwittingly pressing the transmit button again. “Set it back down. Easy, easy! Don’t hunt for the ground. Just let it settle. Jesus Christ, don’t jerk the collective up at the last second!”
The helicopter popped back up into the air and then set down again hard, bouncing on its wheels as the tail boom swung around and almost hit a power cart. Macovich yelled for Cat to take his hands and feet off the controls.
“It’s my ship!” Macovich fought to steady the aircraft. “It’s my ship! Let go of the fucking controls, you son of a bitch! That’s it! I ain’t giving you another lesson ever! It ain’t worth it!”
Cat shoved the cyclic forward and pressed down on the right pedal, causing the helicopter to taxi along the tarmac in a hard right turn, heading straight for the hangar, the rotor blades chopping at full power. Macovich had no choice but to haul off and slug his NASCAR student in the side of the head, knocking him out cold. Macovich pressed down both pedals and stopped the helicopter before it taxied into the back of a Cessna Citation. He cut the throttle back to flight idle and blew out a big, stressful breath of stale tobacco-smelling air.