Chapter 53
Betrayal in the Air
Elena’s pulse thundered in her ears as Jordan’s words sank in.
“It’s someone on that plane.”
A heavy silence filled the cabin. Naomi’s eyes darted between Richard and Amira, her fingers twitching near her concealed weapon. Richard looked pale, shaking his head.
“That’s impossible,” he muttered. “We’ve barely spoken to anyone.”
Amira, still at the controls, let out a low laugh. “You think I sold you out? Please. I don’t even like you.”
Elena’s gaze narrowed. Someone had tipped Vincent off. And if Jordan was right, they were sitting in the same plane as the traitor.
She clicked her earpiece. “Jordan, how sure are you?”
His voice was tight. “One hundred percent. I intercepted a message—your departure was leaked minutes before takeoff.”
Naomi exhaled sharply. “That means whoever did it is still here.”
Richard’s hands clenched into fists. “This is insane.”
Amira turned her head slightly. “If one of you is a rat, now would be a good time to confess before I throw you off my plane.”
Elena ignored the tension crackling between them. They couldn’t afford to panic. Think.
She stood slowly, scanning each face. “If someone tipped Vincent off, it wasn’t just to expose us—it was to stall us.”
Naomi’s expression darkened. “Or get us killed.”
Jordan’s voice crackled back in. “You’ve got about fifteen minutes before an armed response team is waiting for you in Paris. If you land there, you’re walking into a trap.”
Elena gritted her teeth. Damn it.
Richard looked desperate. “Then what do we do?”
Naomi tapped her temple, thinking fast. “We need a new destination. Somewhere unexpected.”
Amira’s fingers hovered over the navigation controls. “Tell me fast.”
Elena’s brain worked at lightning speed. Paris was compromised. Their every move was being watched.
Then it hit her.
“Eliminate the obvious,” she murmured.
Naomi frowned. “What?”
Elena’s gaze sharpened. “We land in Madrid instead.”
Richard blinked. “What? But we—”
Elena cut him off. “Vincent expects us in Paris. If we change course now, we buy ourselves time.”
Naomi’s eyes lit up with understanding. “And if we fake a crash landing in the process, they’ll think we’re dead.”
Amira grinned. “Now that’s an idea I can work with.”
She didn’t wait for further confirmation—her hands flew across the controls, redirecting their flight path. The plane banked sharply, sending Richard stumbling.
“Hang on,” Amira warned. “This is going to get rough.”
Elena steadied herself, watching the navigation system update. If this worked, they’d disappear off Vincent’s radar.
If not…
Well, they’d deal with that when the time came.
