It was a few moments before anyone said anything more. The silence felt awkward, and Ethan didn’t fancy being the one to spark a conversation, so he cleared and cleaned a couple of empty tables.

At last Natalya spoke. ‘We will just have to deal with it,’ she said. ‘It is not the end of the world.’

‘Not for you maybe,’ said Johnny.

‘Not for any of us,’ replied Natalya. ‘Jake was not safe, he took risks – we all knew that. Now he is gone and that is a good thing.’

Johnny and Luke were silent.

‘Sam really does rule this place, doesn’t he?’ said Ethan.

‘Totally,’ said Luke. ‘He’ll never see Jake as reliable now. And on a team you have to be. It’s vital. Everyone’s depending on you up there. It’s not a place to get complacent. Mess up in a formation or a stack? That’s what kills skydivers. It’s never the equipment. It’s always human error.’

‘Or stupidity,’ said Johnny.

Silence.

But it was so loud, it was deafening.

‘It is down to Sam,’ said Natalya, finally breaking the silence. ‘It is his call. We have to trust his decision. We all know that.’

‘But that’s just it, isn’t it?’ said Johnny. ‘We do trust his decision. Which means we’re screwed because we now don’t have enough members to make up a skydiving team.’ He leaned over the table and raised a glass. ‘Here’s to Jake – who ruined everything by being a tit.’

It was late afternoon. After the incident with Jake the day before, Ethan was happy it had all been fairly quiet. He was just getting onto his bike to head home when the sound of footsteps on gravel made him turn. A man wearing sunglasses and an expensive-looking dark suit had emerged from a black saloon car and was striding towards the café. He was younger than Sam, older than Luke – probably mid thirties. And his blond hair was swept back. He looked like an accountant, albeit one with a sense of style.

Sam came out of the café and shook the man’s hand, then turned and spotted Ethan. Sam said something to the man, nodded, then came over.

‘Ethan,’ he said. ‘Good day?’

Ethan nodded, and noticed that the man in the suit was still looking at him.

‘Excellent,’ said Sam. ‘And it’s about to get a whole lot better. You jump today.’

Ethan hesitated. It wasn’t that he didn’t feel up to it; it had just taken him by surprise. He shook his head a little to clear his mind, to think about what Sam had just said.

‘Having second thoughts?’

Ethan shook his head again, realizing Sam had misinterpreted his hesitation. ‘No,’ he said. No way was he backing out. He wanted to be like Johnny and the rest of the team. He wanted to be that good. And it was the first time in his life he’d felt this strongly about anything.

‘Then follow me.’ Sam headed off towards the hangar without another word.

As Ethan followed him, he noticed that the man in the suit was still looking at him, his sunglasses revealing nothing but reflected sky. Then Ethan was through the hangar doors and any thoughts as to who the man in the suit was were gone. This was it: he was about to skydive.

No one else was around. The last group to jump were now waiting outside for the minibus to take them to the plane.

‘Sit. Watch,’ said Sam, pointing at the TV in front of a row of plastic chairs. The screen flickered and Ethan sat down. He’d spent every day since taking the job watching people skydive. He’d heard them talk about it, scream about it, cry about it. He’d even caught bits of the DVD he was about to watch. From first jumpers to seasoned skydivers, they’d all passed through the café, the reception, the shop. And there was one thing he’d realized above all else: skydiving was ninety-five per cent waiting and five per cent adrenaline. If the conditions weren’t right, no one jumped.

Today the conditions were right.

The TV was showing a tandem jump. Over a thumping rock soundtrack, the camera panned out from the buckle on a parachute harness to reveal an excited twenty-something girl. She gave a thumbs-up. The scene cut to the interior of a plane, the girl sitting quietly, seriously, between the legs of her instructor – who was smiling and acting very relaxed. Next scene they were sitting at the open door of the plane, feet dangling out, 12,000 feet up in the air. The girl was still sitting between the legs of her instructor and had her head back. He nodded at the camera, and then they jumped. The camera turned blue, spun, then focused on the girl. Ethan couldn’t work out if she was actually smiling or if the wind was just pushing her face into an impression of The Joker. Finally the instructor looked at the camera, crossed his arms, then pulled a cable and disappeared. The film finished with the girl on the ground, leaping around and screaming.

‘Simple, really,’ said Sam as the film ended. ‘You’ll love it. Trust me.’

Ethan glanced up at him. He looked as imposing as ever, but Ethan could see that he meant every word. Not just about loving the tandem he was about to do, but about trusting him.

‘How many times have you jumped?’ Ethan asked.

‘I’ve lost count,’ said Sam. ‘I went over the four thousand mark years ago.’

There was no bragging in what he said. It was just simple fact. Ethan was in the presence of a man utterly unlike anyone he’d ever met before. Sam seemed scary at first, but Ethan had come to realize that there was a lot more to him than the rough, tough exterior. He really cared about those who jumped at FreeFall. And he especially cared about Johnny and the rest of his team.

Sam showed Ethan the kit. ‘This is a tandem rig,’ he explained. ‘It’s larger than a solo rig because it has to hold two of us. It also needs to be able to grab enough air to support two and give the experienced skydiver enough control. After all, it takes us from a hundred and twenty mph to ten mph in just a few seconds.’ He looked Ethan up and down. ‘You weigh around thirteen stone, right?’

‘Spot on,’ said Ethan.

‘Limit for a tandem is sixteen stone,’ said Sam. ‘Limit for a solo is fifteen. So don’t go eating pies, OK?’

‘OK,’ agreed Ethan, wondering just how many pies he’d have to eat before he weighed fifteen stone. Then he asked, ‘How big is the canopy exactly?’ Despite knowing he was well within the weight limit, he suddenly felt a little concerned it wouldn’t be big enough.

‘Canopy, eh?’ Sam smiled. ‘Good to hear you’re learning the lingo. Don’t want people coming in thinking my staff are total muppets.’

Ethan grinned. It seemed Sam had a sense of humour after all.

‘All you need to know is that it’s big enough,’ said Sam. ‘Now empty your pockets and put this on.’ He handed Ethan a blue and red jumpsuit. ‘We can’t have anything trailing from us when we’re jumping,’ he explained. ‘It’d be dangerous and could split the canopy. The jumpsuit will protect your clothes and stop any flapping. Trust me, you don’t want to be distracted when you’re jumping.’

‘Right.’ Ethan promptly emptied his pockets, double-checking each one to make sure. No matter how good a skydiver Sam was, having him distracted at 12,000 feet wouldn’t be good.

The jumpsuit was a good fit, and once it was on, Sam kitted Ethan up with a helmet and then the harness. It was a very snug fit to say the least, and he was glad he wouldn’t be wearing it for too long.

Sam positioned Ethan up close and with his back to him and started to rehearse the jump. Ethan had seen people go through this numerous times. To be doing it himself felt amazing.

‘Basic body position and commands are simple,’ said Sam. ‘Head back, legs up, arms crossed. Got it?’

Ethan had a go.

‘And when we leave the plane, just arch yourself backwards with your legs between mine. Right?’

Ethan nodded.

‘When we’re clear and stable, I’ll release the drogue chute. That’s the one that will eventually pull out the main canopy. It also helps to stabilize the freefall. I’ll tap again and you pull your arms out like this, right?’