The Last Flight(14)
Next to her, Claire lifted her glass to drink, and Eva noticed the slight tremor. “I’m supposed to go to Puerto Rico,” she said.
Eva felt the alcohol finally hit her bloodstream, warm and low in her belly, easing the knot that had been steadily growing for the past forty-eight hours. “Nice time of year for it.”
Claire shook her head. “I’d do anything to not be on that plane,” she said.
Eva let the words hang in the air, waiting to see if Claire would offer more details. Because what Eva had in mind was risky, and she needed to be sure Claire was desperate enough. She swirled the ice in her glass, vodka and tonic melting into a clear liquid, the lime crushed and wilted around the edges. “Sounds like we both need a Freaky Friday.”
Eva knew two things. First, Claire needed to believe this was her idea. And second, Eva didn’t want to be a person who lied and deceived anymore. This was the last time.
Claire lifted Eva’s boarding pass off the bar top and studied it. “What’s Oakland like?” she asked.
Eva shrugged. “Nothing special,” she said. “I live in Berkeley, though. People there are kind of nuts. If you rode down Telegraph Avenue on a unicycle blowing a trumpet, no one would look twice at you. It’s just that kind of place. Easy to blend in because everybody’s a little weirder than you are.”
Just then, the bartender approached and said, “Can I get you ladies anything else?”
For the first time, Claire smiled. “I think we’re good, thanks.” To Eva she said, “Follow me.”
*
They left the bar and walked shoulder to shoulder, forcing people to move around them, falling into a line of weary travelers in the women’s room without saying more. Several stalls opened up, and Claire let people behind them go ahead, until the handicapped stall was available. She pulled Eva in after her and locked the door behind them.
Claire kept her voice low. “What you said back there, about whether I thought it was possible to disappear. I think there’s a way to do it.”
Toilets flushed, water ran, flights were announced over the loudspeaker, as Claire dug around in her purse and fished out her phone, pulling up her e-ticket and handing it to Eva. “If we trade tickets, flight records will show each of us boarding our respective airplanes,” Claire said. “But in Puerto Rico, there will be no trace of me. And in Oakland, there will be no trace of you.”
Eva tried to look skeptical. It wouldn’t work if she agreed too quickly. “Are you crazy? Why would you want to do something like that for me?”
“You’d be doing it for me,” Claire said. “I can’t go home. And I’m a fool if I think I have the skills to disappear in Puerto Rico.”
Eva’s eyes shot up to Claire’s face. “What do you mean?”
Claire said, “You don’t need to worry.”
Eva shook her head. “If I’m going to do this, the least you can do is tell me what I’m stepping into.”
Claire looked toward the stall door and said, “I had a plan to leave my husband. It fell apart, and he found out about it. I have to disappear before…”
“Before what? Is he dangerous?”
“Only to me.”
Eva studied the e-ticket on Claire’s phone, as if she were thinking. “How can we trade tickets if we don’t even look alike?”
“It won’t matter. We’re already through security. You’ll have my phone, with my boarding pass. No one will question you.” She stared at Eva, her eyes bright and desperate. “Please,” she whispered. “This is my only chance.”
Eva knew what it was like to almost have something within her grasp, only to have it yanked away again. It made you desperate, a hunger so fierce it blinded you to all the ways it might go wrong.
*
The plan turned out to be simple. They quickly transferred the contents of their bags, Claire pulling an NYU cap from hers and tucking her hair underneath. Then she took off her sweater and handed it to Eva. “My husband is going to leave no lead unfollowed. Every minute of this day will be unpacked and studied. Including airport security footage. We’ll need to trade more than just tickets.”
Eva slipped off her coat and handed it to Claire, hesitating for a moment. It was her favorite, an army-green hooded one with all the zippers and inner pockets that had served her well for many years.
Claire put it on, still talking. “When you land, use my credit card to pull out cash, or buy a ticket somewhere else. Whatever you want. Just leave a trail my husband can follow.” Claire tucked a computer case into Eva’s duffel, now resting at Claire’s feet. Then she opened her toiletry bag and pulled out a plastic travel toothbrush, slipping it into one of the pockets of Eva’s old coat, which Eva found odd. Oral hygiene seemed a strange thing to be prioritizing right now. From her wallet, Claire took a wad of cash and shoved it into another pocket, then dropped the wallet back into her own purse and held it out to Eva. “Do it fast, though, before he cuts everything off,” she said. “My PIN is 3710.”
Eva took it, though she didn’t need Claire’s money. Then she handed Claire her own purse, not even bothering to look through it, happy to be rid of all of it. The only cash she needed right now was tucked in a pouch against her skin, the rest of it far away, waiting for her.