Page 23 (2/2)

She figured he was still in the field, assisting the search-and-rescue teaer to speak with hih some of the reporters ary of her after the way she verbally assaulted Anlock, she kne tofrom a Styrofoam cup of bitter black coffee-as if she needed caffeine to ie--she drifted around the roo that she was one of the infors, she discovered that two hundred survivors were already accounted for, and that the death toll was unlikely to exceed fifty, athe breakup of the plane and the subsequent fire She should have been exhilarated by that good news, for it meant Jim’s intervention had permitted the captain to save many , she brooded about those who, in spite of everything, had been lost

She also learned thatto find a passenger who had been a great help to the, sort-of a-Kevin-Costner-lookalike with very blue eyes" Because the first federal officials to arrive on the scene were also eager to talk to Ji for him as well

Gradually Holly realized that Ji in an appearance

He would fade, just as he always did after one of his exploits,quickly beyond the reach of reporters and officialdom of all stripes

Jim was the only name for him that they would ever have

Holly was the first person, at the site of one of his rescues, to who why he had chosen to reveal more to her than to anyone else

Outside the door of the nearest women’s restroom, she encountered Christine Dubrovek, who returned her purse and asked about Steve Hark that he was the

"He had to be in Chicago this evening, no matter what, so he’s already rented a car and left," Holly lied

"I wanted to thank hiuess I’ll have to wait until we’re both back in Los Angeles He works in the same company as my husband, you know"

Casey, close at her mother’s side, had scrubbed the soot off her face and co a chocolate bar, but she did not appear to be enjoying it

As soon as she could, Holly excused herself and returned to the eency-assistance center that United had established in a corner of the VIP lounge She tried to arrange for a flight that, regardless of the nuht

But Dubuque was not exactly the hub of the universe, and all seats to anywhere in southern California were already booked The best she could do was a flight to Denver in the ht fro for her, and at six o’clock, Holly found herself alone in a clean but cheerless rooe Maybe it was not really so cheerless; in her current state ofa suite at the Ritz

She called her parents in Philadelphia to let them know she was safe, in case they had seen her on CNN or spotted her naht 246 survivors in tomorrow’s newspaper

They were happily unaware of her close call, but they insisted on whipping up a pri the because it confirmed how much they loved her "I don’t care how i on," her mother said, "you can take a bus the rest of the way, and a bus ho she was loved did not iledcenter, where she used her Visa card to purchase a change of clothes: socks, underwear, blue jeans, a white blouse, and a lightweight deniht new Reeboks, too, because she could not shake the suspicion that the discolorations on her old pair were bloodstains

In her roo and relathering herself until one entire compli sliver She still did not feel clean, but she finally turned the water off when she realized that she was trying to scrub away so that was inside of her

She ordered a sandwich, salad, and fruit from room service When it ca at the wall

She dared not turn on the television She didn’t want to risk catching a news report about the crash of Flight 246

If she could have called Jim Ironheart, she would have done so at once

She would have called him every ten minutes, hour after hour, until he arrived home and answered But she already knew that his number was not listed

Eventually she went down to the cocktail lounge, sat at the bar, and ordered a beer-a dangerous move for someone with her pathetic tolerance for alcohol Without food to accompany it, one bottle of Beck’s would probably knock her unconscious for the rest of the night

A traveling salesman from Omaha tried to strike up a conversation with her He was in his h, but she didn’t want to lead him on She told hiet picked up

"Me neither," he said, and smiled "All I want is someone to talk to"