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Isabelle watched the runway start to blur as the plane sped up for takeoff.  She was in the aisle but didn’t want to look at the faces of the others that were on the plane with her so she turned her attention to the window.   Her eyes started to get heavy but she reminded herself that she couldn’t allow herself to fall into any kind of travel stupor.  She needed to be alert, she needed to figure out a way to get away from The Cleaners on board and get to Brian in Rifle. 


“Brian you don’t understand, you have to get away from here, you have to get away from me.” Isabelle had pleaded with her husband.  “If you don’t go into hiding, they will hunt you down and use you against me.” 


“Isabelle, I understand but I will not leave you,” Brian took her hand kissed her fingers.  “I promised you when we married that I would stick with you through everything.  What kind of person would I be if I backed out of my vows now and left you because you are being hunted by The Company so they can tear information away from you?” There was a hint of a smile on her face.  The way he worded what she faced combined with his smile caused her to smile in return.


“I should tie you up and hand you over,” She playfully shoved him away from her.


“I’d chew the binds and find my way to you,” He pulled her close and nuzzled her neck. 


“Brian this isn’t a game. You can’t be around me.  I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if anything happened to you because of me.”  She wanted to push him away but the warmth of his body made her feel reassured.  He made her feel that everything would be alright in the end.  He was the reason she was going to fight The Company and release the truth of what happened, of what was going on.  It was all for him.  If she had not met him and fallen in love she might have been involved with the very plot she was fighting against.  But if he stayed with her, if he got injured, captured or killed she didn’t know how she could go on with the knowledge that it was because of her that she would never see him, feel him, again. 


In the end they had decided to go into hiding together.  They would keep hidden until they had developed a way to make it known what was going on, until they had a way to expose the faction inside The Company.   That had been the plan anyway.


Isabelle could feel the pain in her eyes as she fought back the tears remembering how sure they were that they would be safe until they came forward.  How confident everything would go according to their plan especially when her training screamed at her otherwise.  She should have known there was really no where safe for them if they were being hunted by The Company.   She tried to push the thoughts out of her mind but one phrase kept repeating, “I promised you when we married that I would stick with you through everything.”  It had been a similar statement he had said in regards to Leighanne.   How could one of the reasons you loved someone so much be a reason that could tear you apart? 


She shook her head and felt the binds on her hands tighten as she attempted to move them apart from each other.  She needed to stop lingering in what had happened, what had brought them to the point they were at now and think of a way she could get away from her captors so she could free Brian.  Even if Brian went back to Leighanne and their son, he would be alive.  She could live if he was alive but if he were to die, Isabelle couldn’t bear the world without him in it. 


“Can I offer you any refreshments?” the sickly sweet voice of the flight attendant rang out.  Isabelle turned to see the woman holding a cup of some liquid out towards her, a smile plastered on her face. 


Isabelle threw back her head in a muffled chuckle.  This woman who had slammed her into the wall of the plane when they boarded, the one who had tied her hands together was now acting the part of a real flight attendant. 


“No thank you,” she managed to mutter.  Her throat was dry and she could really use a drink but she knew that there was more than just water in that cup. 


“Really, I insist,” The woman held it close to Isabelle’s mouth motioning for her to move forward so she could help her take a drink. 


“No,” Isabelle’s voice was strong and clear despite her desire to grab hold of the cup and drink.  “It will have to be enough that I am sitting here calmly.  I refuse to be drugged when we arrive, besides I thought you said there would be no drinks on this flight.”  Isabelle couldn’t help but add the last quip.


The woman smirked at Isabelle and put the cup to her own lips throwing back the clear liquid, crushing the cup with a satisfying smirk as she finished. 


Isabelle’s throat screamed at her for not taking the drink when she got the chance.  Now that she knew it wasn’t drugged she knew it would be the one and only chance for a drink she would receive.   She hadn’t really noticed the dryness of her throat until the drink was offered, now that she couldn’t have it, it was all she could think about.  


For the next couple of hours, Isabelle’s mind was running full force trying to discover a way that she could get out of her binds and free from the plane.   She couldn’t arrive under guard.  She needed to show up to Rifle and get a lay of the situation so she could formulate her plan to get Brian out and both of them safely away.   She played with the armrest, it moved loosely in her hand and an idea formed in her mind. Her prospects were dim but she knew she had to give it a chance.


The seatbelt light flashed above the cabin and the flight attendant moved from where she was talking to the Cleaner the furthest in front of Isabelle and took a seat.  That must have been the notification from the pilot they were landing.  Isabelle looked out the window and she could tell the plane’s altitude was dropping, the plane turning slightly to align with the runway for landing.  This was it.


“Wait, wait, I want the drink.  I’m really thirsty.”  She called out kicking the seat in front of her.  She knew they wouldn’t really give her a drink but she hoped if she caused enough noise the woman would come back and try to shut her up.   “Drink,” she repeated like a spoiled child while she kicked the seat in front of her.   She allowed herself a small smile when she saw that it was working, the woman was rising from her seat to see what was going on. 


“Isabelle, really?” The woman asked as she got closer.  Isabelle wrenched the loose armrest off and aimed the hit to crash into the woman’s temple.  She shoved her woman’s body back the direction she came from hoping to block the aisle from the two Cleaners towards the front.    The force of the blow caused her to drop the armrest.  She had hoped that she could use that again but she wouldn’t have time to pick it up.   This had not been the first time she’d been bound in a fight; the Cleaners would know that, it was a part of their training. She had to move quickly.     


Isabelle turned her attention to the Cleaner at the back of the plane.  She saw him pull his gun from his waist band.  She moved out of the way as the tranq dart flew past her and landed in the chest of the cleaner that was moving the flight attendant out of the way.  He fell providing more blockage for the final Cleaner.   Before the other man could aim again, Isabelle was using the force of her fists together to, slamming them in the side of his head.  She then brought them up to impact with his face.  She felt the man’s nose break.  She leaned back as he attempted to hit her with the butt of the gun. 


With a quick turn, Isabelle brought her foot up and kicked his back.  He stumbled forward and lost grip on his gun. Isabelle grabbed for it and started to fight with him to release it.  She managed to turn it around to face him and used the man’s own hand to pull the trigger, shooting him with a dart.  He stumbled backwards.  She managed to grab the gun and pull it from the man’s hand.


She turned quickly to fire the remaining dart at the final Cleaner.  She turned and shot missing the man’s leg.  She thought she heard him make a “tsk” noise before he brought the arm rest down on her head knocking her unconscious.