Everyone nodded and Ethan grinned. A skydiving competition in France! Fantastic! Ethan realized he’d progressed quickly, but knowing that Sam was considering him as Jake’s replacement felt amazing. He opened his mouth to say something, but the look Sam gave him made him shut it immediately.
‘You’ll all be doing this for the experience. Go out there, get a feel for how a competition runs, and check out what you’re up against for when you do eventually enter as a team. Right?’
Nods all round.
‘Good,’ said Sam. ‘Now, to make it interesting…’ He paused, and everyone leaned closer. ‘I’ve already entered you in a couple of categories – call it your instructor’s prerogative.’ He looked at the gang, one by one, then explained, ‘Johnny, you’re in for freestyle solo, Luke you’re on accuracy, Kat and Natalya, you’re on two-way.’
Ethan looked at the team. They were all smiles.
Sam stepped back and winked. ‘And if you find a way to win something in the process, that’s a bonus. Right, travel arrangements…’
Ethan, like the rest of the team, was hooked on Sam’s words. He knew he’d have to get his mum to agree to let him go, but couldn’t think of a reason why she’d say no. This was such a great opportunity – he knew she’d understand that. And Dad wouldn’t have any say in the matter.
‘As I’ve said, I’ll meet you out there,’ said Sam. ‘Everything is arranged and paid for. Your tickets are in my office, as are details of the accommodation. If you don’t mind, I’ll leave Luke to deal with all that, as usual.’
‘Don’t you trust me?’ asked Johnny.
‘In a skydive, yes,’ replied Sam. ‘In my office, no.’
‘It’s a fair point,’ said Johnny.
‘And well made,’ added Kat.
Ethan couldn’t help himself. ‘But how’s all this being paid for?’ he asked.
Sam’s look was steely. ‘I have my contacts. They like sponsoring the right team. Perform well, they’ll stay on board.’
‘They the same contacts who covered my AFF?’ Ethan wanted to know.
‘They are. And before you ask, they like staying anonymous.’
‘But you booked my tickets without asking,’ said Ethan. ‘How’d you know I’d be free?’
‘I didn’t,’ said Sam. ‘I just made a big assumption.’ He turned to leave, but stopped and looked back at the team. ‘One more thing,’ he said. ‘Any takers for a night jump?’
19
‘Night jump?’ asked Ethan. ‘I’m guessing that’s exactly what it sounds like, right?’
‘Absolutely,’ said Sam. ‘These guys haven’t done one for a while and it’ll do them good to have a little refresher. You’ve not got enough experience yet so I’ll take you tandem.’
‘When are we doing it?’ asked Ethan.
‘At night,’ said Johnny. ‘That’s why we call it a night jump.’
‘And to think I once found you funny,’ said Ethan, sighing theatrically.
‘I’ll arrange it for tomorrow evening,’ said Sam. ‘I’ve already checked with the pilot and he’s free. Luke?’
Luke looked at him enquiringly.
‘Can you sort out the LEDs and glow sticks?’
Luke nodded, and Ethan asked what an LED was.
‘If you’re flying a plane at night, spotting a skydiver is pretty impossible,’ said Sam. ‘LEDs – light-emitting diodes – are bright enough to make sure we stand out well enough to be avoided.’ He turned back to Luke. ‘Give Ethan an idea of what a night jump involves. The rest of you read up on it. I doubt any of you can remember much about the potential effects of hypoxia on your night vision, or anything about the dark zone.’
Natalya spoke up. ‘Hypoxia is a restricting of oxygen to the brain that happens in most people above seven thousand feet. It can potentially make your vision cross-wire and slow your thinking, but this is usually not a problem unless you are doing a high-altitude jump. At night, however, it can make it difficult to focus or judge distance. This can be very dangerous, particularly when coming in to land.’
Sam nodded his approval, then said, ‘See you tomorrow,’ and left.
Ethan looked at Natalya. She was gazing at him intently, but as he returned her stare, she got up and followed Sam. He realized then that of all the team members, she was the one he knew the least about. She seemed incredibly loyal to the team, but apart from that…
‘Natalya was introduced to the rest of the group through Sam,’ Johnny said, almost as if he’d read Ethan’s thoughts. ‘No one knows anything about her. She’s really private.’
‘Gets on OK with Kat, though,’ Ethan remarked.
‘So did Jake,’ said Johnny darkly. Then he grinned. ‘Anyway, I’m taking bets on who she really is.’
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
‘It’s completely above board,’ said Johnny, ‘just so long as she doesn’t find out.’
Ethan laughed. ‘So who do you think she is?’ he asked.
‘Luke reckons she’s the daughter of some eastern Euro politician bloke who’s now in hiding,’ said Johnny. ‘He likes all that conspiracy theory bollocks. Kat’s not joining in the fun. Says it would ruin their special relationship. Typical girl.’
‘What about you?’ asked Ethan.
‘Oh, I’m odds-on favourite,’ said Johnny. ‘I think she’s a vampire.’
‘ France?’ said Jo.
Ethan nodded. ‘It’s a skydiving competition. Sam’s booked me a ticket and everything!’ He had rushed back home with the news, excited and breathless. Now, sitting in the lounge with Jo and his mum, he was doing his best to make it all sound very normal.
‘But it’s such short notice,’ said his mum. ‘Why didn’t Sam mention it sooner? And who’s paying for it all? Is there something Sam’s not telling you? Because I think you should find out if there is, just in case…’
Ethan knew it was a little odd that it should all be booked and paid for by a completely unknown – well, unknown to him – benefactor, sponsor, whatever. But to be honest, he didn’t care. He was just grateful to be going. He shrugged. ‘I think Sam just wanted to make sure I’d be good enough to go before he mentioned it and got my hopes up,’ he said.
His mum looked a little worried at this. ‘You’re taking part?’ she asked anxiously.
‘No way!’ said Ethan. ‘I’m not ready for that! I’m just going out to watch, see how competitions run, that kind of thing. It’ll be amazing.’
‘No kidding,’ said Jo. ‘I’m well jealous.’
Ethan grinned. ‘You’re not telling me you’re interested in skydiving, are you?’
Jo shook her head. ‘Nah,’ she said. ‘But sexy male skydivers – particularly French ones? Those I’m interested in!’
They all laughed, and it sounded good. Laughter was something Ethan didn’t hear too much of at home.
‘Well, I’m sure it will be a wonderful experience, love,’ said his mum. ‘But do you think I should just speak to Sam about it? Find out a bit more.’
‘There’s not much more to find out,’ said Ethan quickly, knowing that if his mum phoned Sam, he’d never live it down – certainly not if Johnny found out. ‘It’ll be fine, Mum. It’s all sorted.’
‘Well, if you’re sure,’ said his mum, smiling. Then the front door of the flat slammed and Ethan saw the smile falter.
Heavy footsteps sounded in the hall and they all looked up to see Dad standing in the doorway.
‘Ah, a lovely family gathering,’ he said, lurching against the door. ‘How sweet.’
Ethan got to his feet.
‘Going somewhere?’ asked his dad.
‘ France,’ Ethan heard his mum say as she got up too. ‘He’s going to France! Isn’t that exciting?’
Ethan looked at his mum. He knew it was a desperate attempt on her part to get Dad interested in something other than drink – to maybe share a bit of what being a family was about. He loved her for it. He also knew it wouldn’t work.