The Emerald Casket by Richard Newsome Read Free Book Online Page B

started sliding. With a final surge of acceleration, the nose lifted from the ground and the three of them shot along the floor.
    Gerald gave a whoop as his tray skidded past clusters of armchairs. He clung to the tray as he hurtled down the length of the plane. He was heading straight towards a couch in the bar area and he leaned hard to his left. He flashed past, buffeting against the leather cushions and bouncing back into the middle of the cabin. The jet was now banking to the right. Gerald found himself veering wildly. He looked up in time to see he was on a collision course with a long dining table. He desperately hauled over to his right but his momentum was too strong. The jet’s trajectory was pulling him straight towards the heavy metal and glass furniture. At the last second Gerald ducked like a startled tortoise, and the top of his helmet skimmed the underside of the table as he shot down its length and out the other end. He passed a startled Mr Fry who was still strapped into his seat near the galley kitchen, flicking through a copy of Oi! magazine. Gerald was heading at speed towards the closed doors of the bedroom suite. It was time to abandon ship. He dropped heavily onto his side and tumbled off the tray moments before it clattered into the wall at the end of the main cabin. Gerald came to a stop on his backside, facing the way he’d come, a dazed expression on his face. He was still buzzing from the ride when, with a high-pitched squeal, Ruby ploughed right into him. Her tray skimmed off the top of his helmet as she spun out of control and landed in his lap.
    â€˜That was awesome!’
    Gerald untangled himself from a knot of arms and legs then looked around. ‘Where’s Sam?’
    â€˜Dunno. I heard him crash.’
    They found Sam flat on his back halfway up the stairs to the upper deck. His head was on the bottom step, his feet above him.
    â€˜Well, that was interesting,’ he mumbled.
    Ruby grabbed her brother by the shoulders and pulled him upright. ‘How good was that!’ she said. She turned to Gerald. ‘Can we do it again?’
    â€˜I don’t think the captain’s going to go around again just for us,’ Sam said.
    A look of confidence spread across Gerald’s face. ‘Why not?’ he said. ‘It’s my plane.’ He strode to the cockpit.
    Fifteen minutes later Gerald, Sam and Ruby were lined up on the trays, ready for another takeoff.
    This time the three of them made it to the end of the main cabin a jumble of giggles and laughter. Mr Fry appeared and Gerald, Sam and Ruby sheepishly handed over their trays and helmets.
    â€˜Lunch will be served in two hours,’ he said, as if announcing a death in the family. ‘Unless you decide to take a detour via Disneyland, in which case it will be much later.’ He trudged back to the galley.
    â€˜Is Mr Fry married?’ Ruby asked.
    â€˜Don’t think so,’ Gerald said. ‘Can’t imagine anyone volunteering to spend any time with him.’
    â€˜I think we should find him a girlfriend,’ she said. ‘To cheer him up.’
    Sam smirked. ‘And who’s going to cheer her up?’
    They wandered into the cinema room, piling their arms with chips and soft drinks from the bar.
    They each dived into a leather lounge.
    â€˜How long’s it take to get to Delhi anyway?’ Sam asked, clicking a remote at the enormous flat-screen television. A program guide flashed up.
    â€˜About nine hours, I think,’ Ruby said.
    â€˜Time to catch a couple of movies then,’ Sam said. ‘What do you feel like? Action? Comedy?’ Images filled the screen as he scrolled through the offerings from the plane’s library of films. ‘Look. Here’s that new war film, Grunt Once Then Die . What do you think?’
    Ruby tore open a chip packet and stuffed a few into her mouth. ‘Yuck! Too violent. Isn’t there something where people’s