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Ten minutes later, she had a boarding pass downloaded to her iPhone and was sitting on a bench in the terminal, swinging her legs in boredom.
LaGuardia was a massive place. Addisyn had been there before on flights with Brian, but she’d never realized how overwhelming it was when you were alone. She glanced at the gates leading to security and the concourse. Should she go on through security and into the concourse now? She sighed. Well, what was her rush? It was only five fifteen. She had at least two hours before she would need to be ready for her flight to leave.
A Starbucks across the aisle caught her eye. She grinned and hopped off her bench. No need to go to the concourse yet. She’d get a sandwich, maybe some chips.
And coffee. A Cuban, of course.
ONE HOUR ANDthirty-six minutes...plus a few seconds. That was how long Avery had been at LaGuardia. Every instant seemed like an eternity. She’d taken to pacing up and down the concourse. At least the feverish motion kept her from going stark raving mad. She’d memorized the number of her flight—4706. It was 5:41, and her 5:30 flight hadn’t even started boarding yet.
She couldn’t bear it any longer. She marched to the kiosk. “Excuse me.”
A harassed-looking woman turned wearily. “Yes, may I help you?”
“I have Flight 4706, a five thirty flight from New York to Boston. Why—” Avery made it no further before the woman interjected.
“That flight has been postponed due to inclement weather conditions. However, we are hoping to depart by seven thirty. We apologize for the inconvenience.”
“Inclement weather conditions?” There hadn’t been a drop of rain.
“The fog. It reduces visibility for our pilots and air traffic controllers.”
Avery stared out the window in shock. Sure enough, a thick grey blanket was rolling over the airport.El Shaddai...why?“Seven thirty?” She took a deep breath. “Ma’am, it is crucial that I be in Boston as soon as possible. I need to get to Chicago tonight. It’s an emergency.”
“We understand that our passengers are impatient. But it’s FAA policy.” The woman leaned over the counter and locked eyes with Avery. “Until the fog lifts, this plane willnotbe leaving the terminal.”
Numbly Avery turned away. Tears filled her eyes as she gazed out the window. How could El Shaddai let this happen? Her sister needed her!
The city felt like a strangling boa constrictor, wrapping around her soul and squeezing the life out of her.El Shaddai!Avery took a deep, shuddering breath to keep from dissolving.You have to get me out of New York City!
5:52. The clock was relentless, and the fog was equally persistent. Avery settled down on a bench to wait.
SEVEN FIFTEEN, ANDa flight was being called. Fully recumbent on a hard metal bench, Addisyn raised her head briefly from her carry-on bag, then let it sink down again as she realized this was for a different airline. Flight 4706, to Boston.
She sighed. Every part of her felt tired and achy and sore. She really wanted nothing more at this point than a hot bath, a quiet room, and a soft bed. Her eardrums throbbed from the incessant buzz of the terminal—even though the concourse, where she’d now relocated, was at least quieter than the main hub.
The air was beginning to lighten, the fog rolling away toward the horizon. Addisyn squinted her eyes to block the diluted sunshine stretching through the oversized windows. Like every other part of her body and soul, her eyes needed a rest. Addisyn wasn’t sure, not having a mirror, but she figured her eyes were swollen. They tended to do that when she was really upset or really tired—or both.
She adjusted her position, shoving her bag more firmly under her head. She’d had more comfortable beds than a rigid metal bench, but right now, any horizontal surface was good enough for her. She closed her eyes and considered once again how she could go about finding Avery.
The need to locate her sister had gripped her mind every second of the time she’d been sitting idle in LaGuardia. And yet she still had not a single shred of an idea. The best she could do, so far, was just to hope that Maggie knew something...and that she called her back soon.
And pray. Addisyn realized that she’d done more praying in the last forty-eight hours than she’d done in three years. She breathed in deeply and once more begged God for the same blessing she’d been requesting all day.God, please, please, help me find Avery. I don’t deserve another chance.She squeezed her eyes tightly to keep the tears inside.But please, God, give me just a few minutes with her—just to tell her how wrong I was.
Suddenly a peace, warm and comforting as a blanket, settled over her. Without really knowing why, she left her bench and strolled toward the big plate-glass window. Leaning on the pane, she idly watched the passengers milling through the jet bridge for that Boston flight—the fortunate people who were escaping from the spider’s web of LaGuardia. With the lingering remnants of the fog, in the odd interplay of sunshine and shadows, the lights on the runway looked almost—beautiful. Sparkling, even.
Some of the worry that had enveloped her for the last few hours seemed to spread dark wings and swoop away. God knew where her sister was. He had known all along. And somehow, she was suddenly quite sure that He had the situation under control.
She would see Avery again.
WHEN AVERY HADglimpsed a golden shaft of sun penetrating the thick fog blanket, she’d shot to her feet as though someone had stabbed her with a hot poker. Sure enough, within five minutes, the flight had been called.
Now it was finally happening. 7:26, and Avery was boarding her flight to Boston. She breathed a prayer of gratitude as she walked through the jet bridge with the other passengers.
Once inside the plane, she chose a window seat, as she had on the previous flights. Shrugging off her backpack, she relaxed into the cushioned seat and stretched her legs out, crossing them at the ankles. The hop to Boston wouldn’t take long, and then she could catch the flight to Chicago and be there by—
Stop!
Out of nowhere, uneasiness slammed into her stomach. She jerked upright in her chair, alarm ringing in her soul.
