Free Across the Lagoon by Roumelia Lane Page B

smoking black clouds were now racing by below them. Soon all was smooth once again.
    The incident had lasted for perhaps no more than five minutes. To Carol it had seemed like a lifetime. She felt limp and chewed up and couldn't wait to have firm ground beneath her feet again. When later a voice came over the intercom to say that they were approaching Venice, she thought she had never heard a sweeter sound in the whole of her life.
    Like everyone else she bent to attend to her seat belt when the time came, although it was already securely fastened. It was just as well. She doubted whether her shaking hands would have managed the task of redoing it.
    Going down, she found, was worse than coming up. The plane dropped rapidly and banked on its side to circle the airport, without a thought for her palpitating heart. Though it was a comforting sight to see the scenery below she didn't like the way they went hurtling towards it.
    Dragging her gaze inside, she stared hard at the seat in front of her. Long after she thought they must come into contact with something they were still dropping... dropping. She flung a look outside again. The ground was rushing up to them. Trees, houses, fields sped by. Then with a terrific roar of the engines, the wheels hit something. It couldn't be good solid earth, could it? She opened her eyes and sure enough they were speeding smoothly along the ground.
    A few minutes later Stephanie folded her magazine and tucked it away as calmly as if her uncle's car had just come to a stop. She checked around for her bits and pieces and helped Carol to unfasten her seat belt. Gray Barrett rose and tossing his paper on to his seat, led the way out.
    Carol let the other two go, then tottered to her feet. She had a job to make her legs carry her to the door. The fresh air on her face made her head spin. Giddily she moved along with everyone else down the steps and across the space to the airport buildings.
    The place was crowded with another plane load which had just come in. Gray Barrett turned to search her out with his impatient frown. With Stephanie he scooped her along ahead of him towards the luggage section. Carol felt her legs trembling beneath her. There was a peculiar hissing noise in her ears. The prolonged excitement of the journey, coupled with the mounting tension she had experienced during the flight, suddenly took its toll on her body.
    Though she tried to walk straight she began to sway. The lights became a brilliant dazzle before her eyes. She groped desperately for somewhere to sit, for somewhere to hide away, but there was no time. There in the vast crowded space with Gray Barrett ushering her along, she fainted clean away.
     

CHAPTER FIVE
    C AROL , came round to find herself sitting on one of the wooden benches. Stephanie was holding a plastic beaker to her lips. Gray Barrett was hovering near by with his usual scowl. People were hurrying about their business. One or two eyed her with curious sympathetic glanced.
    'Are you feeling better?' Stephanie asked, taking the beaker away.
    'Oh, much!' Carol lied with a washed-out smile. She stood up to show that she was all right, attracting more glances with her white face.
    Testily Gray Barrett said, 'It would help if you could arrange to have your fainting spells in less public places, Miss Lindley. Do you feel well enough to walk?' Carol nodded and he offered her his arm with, 'You'd better hang on to me.'
    It felt odd walking arm in arm with her irate employer. She was thankful that he didn't go too fast. She was just beginning to feel the strength flowing back into her limbs.
    Stephanie did most of the waiting and watching out for the luggage. When all their pieces had been retrieved from the conveyor belt a porter was called to transfer them to a taxi.
    Carol discovered that they were to cross the lagoon to the Venice Lido by motor launch. When they arrived at the waterside she welcomed the fresh cool breezes on her face;. So many people like