Royce hated planes. He didn't used to, but since he lost his parents, he'd viewed them as giant deathtraps. The pilot announced their flight time and the weather conditions on the way to Moscow, and Royce's stomach knotted. He'd flown often over the years but had never gotten over the ache of his memories of that tragic night.

He would sit frozen in his first-class seat of the Boeing 747 and not be able to breathe. The engines would come to life and the flight attendant would ...