"Linda Evans - Time Scout 5 - License Invoked" - читать интересную книгу автора (Evans Linda)

***

Elizabeth had to make direct contact as soon as possible now. Once the
pilot had turned off the seatbelt light, Elizabeth sprang up from her
seat. She excused her way out of the tight row, smiling at the man in
the aisle seat, who gave her a puzzled look.

"Some people have the tiniest bladders," he muttered to himself.

Elizabeth felt her cheeks redden. Let him think what he liked. It would
suit her purposes. She was working for the good of the British Empire,
and such personal considerations as ego ought to be of secondary
importance. It still stung. She wriggled her way up the narrow aisle
toward the front of the plane. Too much time had gone by. An unknown
enemy might already have struck.

Nothing in the jet made her natural sensitivity to magic come alive.
The only good thing about being on board a plane was that Cold Iron
would chase off the Fay. If Fionna Kenmare was under attack by one of
the Fair Folk, whom Elizabeth had never seen but in which she firmly
believed, she'd be safe as long as they were airborne.

The chances were much more likely that an unknown enemy was as mortal
as she was, and might take advantage of the proximity and easy access.
Elizabeth wound up just a tiny fragment of Earth power around her
fingers and held it ready.

Using the force of her will and just a little magical misdirection, she
persuaded each of the flight attendants in her cabin to look the other
way as she slipped past the curtain into Business Class.

There were only six or seven people in the middle cabin. One of them, a
well-dressed woman in her thirties, gave her a dirty look as she
sauntered in. Territoriality, Elizabeth thought. She sent a fragment of
'fluence toward the woman, who forgot her presence and turned away to
look out the window through the clouds at the fast disappearing island
of Britain.

Business Class had as many attendants as Economy, but for a fraction of
the number of passengers. Elizabeth had to move fast, tossing cantrip
after cantrip with little flicks of her wrist, to keep the people from
noticing her. So far, so good.

Things began to go awry as soon as she reached the curtain separating
First Class from Business. She distracted the first uniformed man and
put a neat double whammy on the next two, but she simply missed the
fourth attendant, who came out of the galley just as Elizabeth reached
Fionna Kenmare's row. The young woman hastily interposed herself
between Elizabeth and her subject.