You Like It Darker

Craig Dixon, a turbulence expert, is unwinding in his suite at the Boston Four Seasons when he gets a call from his employer, telling him to get on an evening flight to Sarasota. Dixon complains that his last flight from Seattle was stressful and he’s still recovering, but his employer says no one else is available. Knowing he can’t get out of it, he boards the flight.

Next to Dixon are Frank Freeman, a prickly businessman, and Mary Worth, a small-town librarian on vacation. Dixon’s anxiety begins before takeoff, though he quells Frank’s complaints. During the flight, Dixon refuses to eat or drink anything, which his neighbors see as a sign of anxiety. Both assure him the flight will be safe, though this is Mary’s first flight after becoming a widow.

Turbulence hits the flight, terrifying the passengers as the plane hops up and down. Dixon anticipates his death, letting himself feel his fear of crashing even as he reassures Mary that they’ll survive. Suddenly, the plane steadies itself. Frank vomits into a sick bag. Dixon feels gratified knowing he has saved many lives.

After the plane lands, Dixon offers Mary a ride in his chauffeur service, which will later take him to the Ritz-Carlton. He explains that his employers can predict which flights will crash due to unexpected turbulence. They can prevent those crashes as long as they can ensure that a turbulence expert, “at least one talented, terrified passenger” (297), is aboard such flights. The turbulence expert’s fear projects enough telepathic strength to protect the plane. Dixon describes the benefits of his compensation but clarifies that he really does it to save the souls aboard each flight. Having seen the same terror in Mary, Dixon invites her to work for his employer. As a result, he can retire two years early. She accepts and receives her first flight assignment when she returns to Boston.

Lloyd Sunderland is a grieving widower whose older sister, Beth, brings him a Border Collie-Mudi puppy. Lloyd initially refuses to adopt the puppy, but Beth informs him that the puppy will otherwise go to a shelter, where she’ll be euthanized unless she’s adopted. Beth can’t take the puppy because her husband is allergic. Also, caring for the puppy will distract Lloyd from his grief.

While Beth shops for Lloyd’s groceries, he takes the puppy out on his overgrown lawn. He supposes he could give the puppy to someone else on Rattlesnake Key. Until then, he’ll take care of her. Beth returns with toys and furniture for the puppy. She urges Lloyd to name the puppy, and he impulsively settles on “Laurie.”

Lloyd begins consulting new-puppy guides, while Beth reminds him of Laurie’s medical needs. Laurie urinates and defecates around the house, annoying Lloyd. While strolling along a boardwalk called Six Mile Path, where alligators are said to swim by, they bump into Lloyd’s outspoken neighbor, Don Pitcher, who comments on the yachts in the water.

Lloyd watches television with Laurie on his lap. He has the idea to use a playpen to potty-train her. He dutifully walks her in the early morning when she cries. After walking her, he brings his late wife Marian’s CD player into the bedroom and plays Joan Baez’s Greatest Hits to put them both to sleep. Over the following month, Lloyd grows closer to Laurie, training her, buying her new toys, and taking her on walks to a nearby restaurant. He tells Beth that Laurie is no longer on probation with him but urges her to adopt Laurie if she outlives him.

Beth cautions Lloyd about walking Laurie along the Six Mile Path, which is likely to collapse. She makes an appointment for Lloyd’s medical check-up, though he’s confident that his walks with Laurie have improved his health. The doctor affirms this, advising Lloyd to thank Beth for Laurie.

One day in December, as Lloyd and Laurie walk down the Six Mile Path, Don’s wife asks them to look for Don. Further along the boardwalk, they find his cane, cracked and bloodied. Laurie breaks out of Lloyd’s grasp to bark at an alligator eating what’s left of Don. Worried that the alligator will eat her too, Lloyd grabs her and tells her to move away. He fights the alligator, stabbing the broken cane into its eye, and then retreats from the collapsing boardwalk with Laurie in his arms. He tells Don’s wife what happened.

Relieved that they both survived, Lloyd lets Laurie sleep on his bed, contrary to the puppy guides’ advice. After Beth visits, the state wildlife game warden comes by to say that the alligator has been caught. It was protecting its eggs over the last two months, and all the passersby, including Don, had provoked it. Lloyd affirms how lucky he and Laurie are to be alive.