Flutter Read Online Free Page B

passengers were sleeping, and I didn’t want to wake
them.
    “New York City,” Ezra replied without looking up from
his book. “And then to Finland.”
    “Finland?” I raised my eyebrow,
completely caught off guard by his answer. “Peter’s in Finland ?”
    “I believe so.” He flipped a page. “Scandinavia has
always been his favorite place to hide out, especially in winter.
There’s hardly daylight for months, and the temperatures are
usually below freezing.”
    “So we’re just going there because that’s where he
usually goes?” I still couldn’t wrap my mind around Peter hanging
out in Finland. That just didn’t sound… exotic enough?
    “No. Peter’s had a run-in in Finland. I don’t know
exactly where he is, but I’m certain he’s there,” Ezra said.
    “A ‘run-in?’ What happened?”
    “I’m not entirely sure,” he said at length. “And I’d
rather not speculate.”
    “You’d rather not speculate?” I
repeated. “I’m on a plane flying half-way across the world, and not
only do you not know where we’re going, but you’d rather not even
speculate on why we’re going?”
    “Finland is not half-way around the world,” Ezra
corrected me.
    “Whatever.” I sunk down in my seat and crossed my
arms over my chest. “I can’t speak Finnish.”
    “You don’t need to. I can.” He flipped another page
in his book, and I sighed.
    “You’re gonna be a hoot to travel with if you’re like
this whole time,” I muttered, and he laughed to himself.
    I borrowed a book from Ezra so I had something to do
with the rest the flight. After a couple hours of reading about
native Finnish wildlife, I vowed to get as many magazines and books
as I could when we landed at JFK. That was my plan until we
actually started de-boarding the plane, and Ezra grasped my hand in
his.
    “There’s a layover here,” Ezra told me quietly as we
walked. “You can’t eat until we get on the next plane, because
you’re a mess when you eat. I need you to stay by me and never let
go of my hand, no matter what. Is that clear?”
    “Yeah but….” I was about to ask him why, but then we
were stepping beyond the plane, and the smell hit me for the first
time.
    There hadn’t been that many people in the Minneapolis
airport. In fact, I would go so far as to say there weren’t even
that many people in Minneapolis. JFK terminal is a city unto
itself, full of hot, sweaty people pressed up against each
other.
    Suddenly, my thirst appeared with a vengeance.
    Waiting in the airport was torture. Most of the time,
I had to grip Ezra’s hand so tightly, I don’t know how I didn’t
break a bone or something. I sat rigidly, my eyes locked on my
shoes in front of me.
    Ezra sat next to me, a leg crossed over his knee,
with a magazine open on his lap and telling me all about Martha
Stewart’s recommendations for making Halloween treats. He was
trying to keep me calm and focused, but hearing about making Rice
Krispies treats orange made me want to vomit.
    Going through security was very hard, but Ezra told
me to keep saying the alphabet backwards in my head. It didn’t
really soften the burning thirst inside of me, and I kept my eyes
locked on the throbbing pulse in the security guard’s neck, but I
didn’t bite him. So I counted that as a success.
    Ezra gave me the window seat and belted me in, which
made both of us feel better. I closed my eyes and tried not to
think of Jack. He lurked painfully in my thoughts and only made my
bloodlust increase. The whole situation felt very precarious, and I
started to think that I wasn’t ready for this trip.
    When the engines of the plane revved, Ezra leaned
over and whispered, “If the plane crashes, it’ll be in the ocean.
The ocean’s full of sharks, and they can kill us. You actually have
something to be afraid of this time.”
    “Is that supposed to comfort me?” I asked through
gritted teeth.
    “No, not at all. I wanted to scare the hell of out
you so you’d stop