He had always been scared of flying.
Now, the fear is real.
A plane crash.
The water is rising over his mouth.
In his nostrils.
Lungs.
As Daniel gasps, he swallows; and punches at his seat-belt.
Nancy, the woman he loves, is trapped in her seat.
He clambers over her, pushing her face into the headrest.
It is a reflex, visceral action made without rational thought.
But Daniel Kennedy did it.
And already we have judged him from the comfort of our own lives.
Almost a hundred years earlier, Daniel's great-grandfather goes over the top at Passchendaele.
A shell explodes, and he wakes up alone and lost in the hell of no-man's-land.
Where are the others? Has he been left behind? And if he doesn't find his unit, is he a deserter?Love; cowardice; trust; forgiveness.
How will any of us behave when we are pushed to extremes?.
Black Swan The blasphemer | nigel farndale
