Where To Find It
Excerpts courtesy of Mary's TnT Page
Excerpt from Chapter 2
With the last bit of reserve energy, Téa reached for the flapping door, flinging it aside and launching herself desperately into the cockpit. She made it halfway, grasping at the passenger seat, and lifting her feet off the ground. The plane hurtled down the runway, now rolling too fast for Téa to let go and fall to the earth safely. Preoccupied with trying to do a rolling run-up of the engine, Todd glanced down in shock as a wild woman suddenly materialized next to him, her hands clinging to the seat and her feet flailing out the door, wildly kicking in the prop wash. Distracted, he nearly veered off the airstrip and into the desert, which would have killed them both. Quickly, he used his feet to realign the aircraft with the runway. In the small amount of time left to him, he had to make a decision. He could abort the take-off, pulling out the throttle and slowing the aircraft to a safe enough speed for him to shove Téa out the door. The problem was that with the short, soft field, there wouldn’t be enough runway left for him to take off. He’d have to taxi back toward the hotel a distance, no doubt giving the Federales time to catch up and nab him. There was only one other choice.
Screaming out his frustration, Todd reached out his right arm and grasped Téa by the belt, hauling her roughly on board the plane. She sprawled over the seat clumsily, kicking wildly at the rudder pedals on the right side as she tried to pull herself up. Fighting against the pressure she exerted, Todd shoved in his feet. As the 182 reached an indicated airspeed of 60 knots, he pulled gently back on the yoke. Téa gasped in surprise as she felt the physical release as the plane broke contact with the ground. The engine whined loudly as something about as graceful as a beached bull walrus on the ground pulled free of the gravity holding it down, and smoothly climbed into the medium for which it was designed. Feeling a deep fear in the pit of her stomach, she scrambled into the seat, staring in shock at the quickly receding ground visible through the open door on her right. Gritting her teeth, she clutched the seat tightly, afraid to let go of the only thing between her and a deadly plunge to the earth.
Excerpt from Chapter 5
"I can’t," she wailed. Cursing under his breath, Todd slid his body a little more into the ravine, realizing that he was practically hanging on with his fingernails. He prayed that he would have the strength to hold both their weights when the time came.
“How’s that?” he asked, trying to sound calm. “Can you reach it now?” Biting her lip, Téa again reached for the belt, this time managing to snag it.
“I got it!” she said excitedly. Now she had to go for broke. With a hard swallow, she let go of the root and grasped the belt tightly in both hands. She dangled over the ravine as Todd strained against the weight trying to pull him in.
“Climb up!” he shouted. Téa brought her feet around, scrabbling in the loose sand and rocks as she tried to get a foothold. Going hand over hand, she slowly pulled herself up, finally reaching Todd’s foot. “Keep going!” he prompted. “Climb up my leg!” Now having a better purchase on the ground below her, Téa crawled up using Todd’s body as an anchor. As soon as she could reach it, she grabbed for the mesquite, releasing her weight from Todd. After a bit more scrambling, they both were lying in the sand at the top, breathing heavily and wiping the sweat from their eyes. After a few minutes, Téa pulled off the backpack, grimacing in pain as the straps slid over the spines in her arms. She started to sob.
Excerpt from Chapter 7
She awoke in the heat of the afternoon, feeling so hot she didn’t think it would be possible to survive. Groggy, she fumbled for the water bottle, allowing herself a tiny sip to soothe her parched throat. Glancing over at Todd, she suddenly sat bolt upright. Something was terribly wrong. He lay deathly still, the jerking having stopped. There wasn’t the slightest sound coming from him, not even the whisper of a breath. And his face, which had been clenched in pain for so long, seemed peaceful and relaxed.
“No!” shouted Téa with a cry torn from her soul. “No! You can’t leave me, Todd!” She collapsed on his chest, sobbing her heart out. “Don’t be dead, Todd,” she begged. “It can’t end this way!” At the end of her rope emotionally, she continued to sob, saying, “I love you,” over and over. After a long time, she didn’t have any more tears to cry. “I want to die,” she said out loud. Distraught, she didn’t feel the barely perceptible touch of a hand weakly stroking her hair.
“Don’t die, Delgado,” Todd’s voice croaked out. “I love you.” Startled, Téa pushed to her knees. Todd hadn’t moved. Maybe she was dreaming. Very slowly, his tongue emerged from his mouth and licked along his parched lips.
A scream of joy ripped from Téa. “You’re alive! Oh Todd, you’re alive!” She flung herself along side of him, covering his face with kisses.