13-year-old Brian Robeson, sole passenger on a small plane flying from Hampton, New York, to Canada's northern woods, boards the plane, excited at the prospect of flying in a single-engine plane. . Once the novelty of the experience wears off, Brian returns to his thoughts about his parents' recent divorce. Brian remembers the arguments between his parents and his hatred for the lawyers who happily try to explain to him how the divorce will affect his life. What Brian calls "The Secret" also enters his consciousness, and at this point we don't know what "The Secret" refers to. Brian feels the burn of tears coming to his eyes, but doesn't cry, making sure to shield his eyes from the pilot, whose name Brian can't exactly remember. He suspects it is Jim or Jake, a man in his forties who remained mostly silent during the ride. Seeing Brian marvel at the complexity of the control panel in front of him, the pilot offers to fly the plane himself. Initially reluctant, Brian declines the offer. At the pilot's insistence, he took the wheel and kept total control of the plane for a few minutes. The pilot notices some pain in his shoulder as Brian once again remembers the details of the divorce. Brian's father knows his mother wants a divorce, but his father does not know why and is not in favor of separation. The court ruled that Brian would live with his mother during the school year and with his father during the summer. The plane jerks, bringing Brian out of his thoughts. He notices the smell of body gas in the plane and assumes the pilot had a stomach ache. He also seems to have increasing pain in his shoulder and arm. With the divorce a month behind him, Brian heads north to visit his father and bring him some special equipment from New York. A mechanical engineer, his father developed a new drill bit for oil drilling. Brian remembers the long drive from the city to Hampton to get on the plane, during which Brian's mother tried to convince him to tell her what was wrong, but he felt he couldn't tell him that he knew “the secret”. When they arrived in Hampton, his mother gave him a hatchet to use in the woods during the summer. Sensing that his mother was feeling particularly vulnerable, Brian had humored her by attaching the hatchet to her belt, where it remained for the duration of the plane ride...