Free Sojourners of the Sky by Clayton Taylor

death.”
    “You were afraid, Grandpa? Of what?” asked Jack.
    “Well, I was terrified that I might fall out. Anyway, after that, John and I began building, flying and trading airplane models. We read trade magazines and discussed the stories we’d read. We both began socking away a chunk of our weekly allowance to pay for flying lessons, and kept an accounting of how much we had versus what we would need. It was an exciting and magical time for us. Of course, neither of us knew that our dream of flying airplanes would not come to pass for many years.”
    “But, Grandpa, what made him go crazy?” asked Lucy.
    Lucy’s words brought an unexpected chuckle from Lynn. The other three instantly looked up after hearing her response, but she put her head back down and continued eating without an explanation.
    “Back then,” Bill continued, “John Tacker was into almost every sport. His bookwork always came second, especially if any of us were outside putting together a game of football. His folks rarely said anything because John was as smart as they come. You probably noticed how tall he is. Well, being taller than most, coupled with his ability to read something and remember it forever, would have spelled doom for most kids in public school. But John’s abilities as a football, baseball and tennis player made him more of the kind of guy everyone wanted to be associated with.
    John’s high school years were pretty much the kind everyone wished they’d had. He was the starting quarterback in both his junior and senior years. He was also the baseball team’s starting pitcher. The one thing that he did not excel at, however, was an ability to hide his ego. But in spite of his often overflowing sense of self-esteem, John had such a warm and friendly demeanor, practically everyone wanted to be his friend. It was a situation that allowed him to pick and choose who would be among the chosen. Nearly all the other kids hung on his every word, and he loved it. And knowing that everyone wanted to be near him was like a drug: fueling him, driving him, inflating him.
    When we were seniors in high school, John was on top of the world. It went without saying that he could have pretty much dated any girl he wanted. But I think in an odd way that turned him off. The only girl who truly caught his eye was the one who treated him as though he was just another guy.”
    Bill’s sudden pause caused his two grandchildren to look up. Bill exchanged glances with his wife, but said nothing; allowing the silence to hang heavy in the air.
    “Well?” asked Lucy. “Who was she?”
    “Yeah, come on, Grandpa, spill your guts,” ordered Jack.
    “You’re looking at her,” said Bill with a smile.

Nine

    “W e just passed sixty-forty,” announced Ed, interrupting Liesel and John’s deep conversation. “Here you go, buddy,” he added, handing Asa a slip of paper containing the updated estimates.
    “Thanks, Ed,” replied Asa. He then studied the numbers in preparation for his conversation with Gander Control. He was bound and determined to make his youthful voice come out sounding like a seasoned professional when he passed along their position report.
    “We are just a hair southeast of Greenland,” observed Ed. “Practically gliding distance.”
    “I suppose,” said Asa. “That’s if you like ice and rocks.”
    “Well, if things get ugly, Bluie West-One is on the southern tip. It’s a nice backup if you need a place to land,” noted Ed.
    “No way!” said Asa. “Charles can land there if need be, but not me.”
    Diverted by the talk of diverting, John looked away from Liesel and added to the conversation. “I don’t even want to think about going in there,” he said. “I’ve flown with guys that have and they swore they’d never do it again.”
    “I’d better go,” suggested Liesel.
    “I wish you wouldn’t,” said John, regretting his momentary lapse of attention.
    “No, it’s not fair to the other girls,” said