X-Millionaire - From Rick

The DC-3 had begun it’s descent through the thunderstorm. Inside the passengers were oblivious to the sound of the thunder because the sputtering noise of the engines and the roller coaster tossing and turning had convinced most of them that being struck by lightning was the least of their concerns.

“Dude, we’re all going to die. Have you ever been on such a ride?” The young man grabbed Franco’s arm in terror.
“The last plane ride I had crashed in the middle of the Atlantic” replied the older man.
“Crashed in the Atlantic? You’re puttin’ me on.”
“Nope. Then we bobbed around like corks in our life jackets for 2 days before being picked up by an oil tanker. So this doesn’t seem so bad.”
Chris seemed to lose his fear of death for a moment. “So you crashed in the Atlantic and then were rescued by an oil tanker. Is that why you’re going to the mission for volunteer work? You think maybe God gave you a miracle and now you owe Him one? I mean, no offence, but old guys like you don’t usually come out to the middle of Africa to do God’s work.”
“First of all you little snot, I’m 55, not an old guy. And second, while surviving a plane crash and being picked up 2 days later is good luck for sure, it’s hardly a miracle.”
Franco looked out the window as the plane tossed some more. “We’re probably going to die anyway,” he said mischievously, “so let me tell you a bit more.”
“My brother and I were the only people on the plane. He was the pilot and I was the passenger. We were in my Lear jet heading for the Canary Islands from Florida. In the back were 3 suitcases that we didn’t have time to stow properly: one for his duds, one for mine, and one with 8 million dollars in unmarked bills.”
“Lear jet? 8 million dollars? What are you? Mafia? Columbian drug lord? Politician?”
“Shut up and let me finish. Let’s just say we had to leave in a hurry and flying American Airlines was out of the question.”
“Lady luck seemed to be the third passenger. We took off just after sunset I figure about 2 steps ahead of the feds. Everything I owned had been seized, my bank accounts frozen the day before. Same with my brother. But the plane wasn’t in our names so they hadn’t found it yet. It was a perfect night for flying. We had a slight tailwind, the ocean was calm as a prairie pond, and no one seemed to notice our departure. Of course we weren’t keen on being spotted so Gino was keeping the plane under 1,000 feet.”
“We were about 3 hours out when Gino suddenly says ‘Hey, what’s that bright light?’” He points up in the sky straight ahead of us and sure enough, there’s this star, brighter than Venus in the morning, but it’s moving.
“I am in awe. The light is moving and first I think maybe it’s the light from another plane, but it’s way to bright. Then it hits me. ‘It’s a shooting star Gino, but I’ve never seen one before that lasted so long. They usually burn out in a second.’
“Well it didn’t burn out about 3 seconds later, this shooting star goes right through the right wing. It must have been going faster than a rocket because it punched a hole about the size of a baseball and hardly gave the plane a shudder. Gino and I look at each other with our mouths hanging open. We can’t believe what just happened.
Chris’ mouth is hanging open too. He is distracted enough by Franco’s tale to no longer notice the pitching and yawing of the plane and the fact that the wings seem to be bending.
“But then Gino checks his instruments. The fuel indicator is going down so fast we can watch it change.
“It must have punched a hole in the gas tank,” Gino yells at me as if I didn’t already figure that out. “Shit I’m going to have to take it down.
“Next thing I remember I’m bobbing up and down in the water in a life jacket and Gino is next to me. I got knocked out when we hit the water but somehow Gino got us out with our life jackets and nothing else. The jet went straight to the bottom.
“Kid, I haven’t been a good Catholic, but I figured the Man upstairs was giving me a message. Surviving a plane crash is luck. Getting shot down by a meteor is a sign.
As Franco finished his story, the DC-3 touched down and they taxied to the terminal in silence.