“I believe it had the turboprop.”
“Um-hmm.” More figuring went onto his napkin. “Okay, with the upgraded engine, he can carry almost twenty-two hundred pounds of cargo, so assuming he’s flying it by himself, he would still be good for about eighteen hundred pounds of cargo. He should be able to get at least six hundred miles’ range out of the plane. Where do you think he was headed?”
“We really don’t know. We based our search on the max range of the plane, which with modifications is good for about seven hundred fifty miles, but came up with nothing. When I saw what the drug runners were doing, I got to thinking. We know he didn’t land at any FBO or marina handling avgas.”
“Why would he need to meet someone to get gas? Avgas weighs about six pounds to the gallon, so he would have the weight and room for about three hundred gallons, which should give him at least another eleven hundred miles’ range, depending on winds, of course.”
Detective Summers looked crestfallen. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. All I could think of was meeting someone for fuel. I can’t believe how badly I’ve handled this case!”
“Hey, now. Don’t beat yourself up. You didn’t know, and nobody expects you to know everything. I’m glad I was able to help.”
“May I call on you again if I have any other questions?”
“Certainly.” He handed her a business card. “Just leave me a message if I’m not in. I’ll get back to you right away. I’d give my . . . well, a lot to get a job flying one of those birds. That was a lot of fun sometimes, and it surely beats loading poisons onto that old Cat of mine.”
“I know the owner will be looking for a pilot as soon as he can get another plane. He’s been having trouble finding someone with bush experience who also can do corporate flying. He also is a veteran and tries very hard to put veterans in all key positions in his company. Would you like me to pass your name to him?”
Besides, she thought, he is kind of cute, and I wouldn’t mind a chance to get to know him better.
Dan handed her another card. “Please pass this along to the owner. I would love a chance to interview for that kind of job.”
Detective Summers stood and shook Dan’s hand. “Thank you so much for your help.”
“It was my pleasure. If I get down your way to apply for the job, would it be okay for me to give you a call and maybe take you to dinner?”
She smiled. “I would love that.”
CHAPTER 62
It was chilly when Jed awoke as the sun was just peeking above the horizon. He found himself curled up and shivering. He and Lizzie had enjoyed a warm spell for the time of year, but he guessed the temperature was in the upper forties. When Jed looked at Lizzie, he was pleasantly surprised to see Tommy curled up next to her, sharing body heat.
Breakfast was going to be an issue. He didn’t want to leave the bear, but having given Tommy all of the jerky, they didn’t have anything else with them. Tommy’s head popped up and a soft growl came from deep in his throat when Jed stood. Jed spoke to him softly, and Tommy settled down and put his head back on his paws. Walking around helped remove some of the stiffness caused by Jed’s uncomfortable sleeping position, and he felt better than he thought he would.
He found the three dead coyotes he shot during the night, but it was Tommy who had really saved them. Coyotes, he knew, normally would not attack like they did, but when in a group all bets were off. All three coyotes appeared undernourished, so hunger could have brought on the attack.
Black Labradors are generally pretty docile, but the time surviving in the wild had taught Tommy to defend himself. His collar was too tight, and something was going to have to be done about it. But there was no way Tommy would let him do anything, at least not yet. Perhaps Lizzie could.
“Lizzie,” he called softly. “Lizzie.”
Lizzie stirred, and Tommy lifted his head again, watching Jed carefully, but he didn’t growl.
“Lizzie, I need you to wake up.”
Lizzie stretched and then shivered from the chill as she awakened. At first she was startled and then pleased to find Tommy curled up against her.
“I think you have a friend. He growled at me when I got up.”
Lizzie sat up and reached toward Tommy, who drew back, but then allowed her to pet his head. When she scratched behind his ears, all hesitancy vanished and he laid his head in her lap, rolling his head from side to side to get both ears scratched.
“Do you think you could get his collar off, Lizzie? It’s way too tight.”
Lizzie tried to slip her fingers under the collar, but it was so snug she could not do so without choking him. “Let me have your knife, and I’ll cut it off.”
Jed pulled his KA-BAR from its sheath and stepped toward her. Tommy picked up his head and growled. “Tommy, he’s okay. Just settle down, now.” Tommy quit growling but watched carefully as Jed came closer.
Jed reached out his hand to Tommy to sniff and said, “It’s okay, Tommy. It’s just me.” Once Tommy was settled, Jed was able to pet his head and scratch his ears. Tommy seemed to like attention but for some reason was still cool toward Jed. Jed grasped his KA-BAR by the back of the blade and extended the haft toward Lizzie. “Be very careful. It’s razor sharp.”
Lizzie took it gingerly and cautiously slipped the blade under the collar. Tommy didn’t like it when the collar pulled on his throat, and he started to struggle, but Lizzie was able to calm him. Then, with a quick slice, the collar dropped from his neck. Tommy shook his head in relief, turning to Lizzie and licking her face.
Jed said, “It’s not fair! Tommy got the first kiss!” and he laughed. Lizzie was busy wiping dog slobber from her face as she tried to get away.
“I could use some breakfast, but I think we had best get this old bear back to the cabin right away. We have a lot of work before us if we are going to save this meat and the hide.”
Lizzie handed him the KA-BAR and got up from the ground. She walked over to Jed and kissed him on the cheek.
“That’s because Tommy wouldn’t kiss you,” she said and giggled.
CHAPTER 63
James and Mary boarded their cruise ship in Miami, bound for Belize. Though their business focused on northern climes and cold weather, they both enjoyed the tropics and especially scuba diving and snorkeling. The barrier reef in Belize was supposed to have some of the best diving in the western hemisphere, with a wide variety of fishes. Mary also wanted to see the Mayan ruins. James didn’t care about the ruins. He had seen all the jungles he wanted to see years before in Vietnam, but if it would make Mary happy, he was up for it.
Though Jed was still on their minds, they had determined to make the most of the trip and enjoy themselves. Worrying and thinking about him was not going to bring him home. Jed was in God’s hands, and they had to be careful to trust Him.
CHAPTER 64
Sue was radiant in a long semi-formal gown as she walked out her hotel room door to meet Charles in the lobby. Jimmy, on the other hand, was unimpressed with the need to wear a suit to dinner. He didn’t see anything wrong with getting a pizza delivered to the room and chilling there. Besides, suits were for church or funerals or stuff, not for going out to dinner.
Charles looked sharp in a new suit he had bought for the occasion. The Men’s Shop had gone beyond their normal excellent service to have it tailored to fit him properly and to do it overnight. He was pleased at the sight of Sue when she exited the elevator, and he couldn’t suppress a grin at Jimmy’s obvious discomfiture when he followed his mother from the car.
“You look gorgeous, my dear. You are going to make all the other men jealous of me tonight! And you, young man, you look like you are about to cloud up and rain. What’s wrong?”
“I don’t see what we have to get all dressed up for just to eat dinner. Why couldn’t we have just gotten a pizza delivered or something?”
Charles laughed and stopped his hand just before it rumpled Jimmy’s not-so-carefully combed hair. “This i
s for your mom tonight, sport. You and I are the thorns to her rose. You need to learn how to treat a lady and make the night special for her. Women like to dress up and look beautiful, and your mother did a good job.”
“Stop,” Sue said. “You’re going to make me blush. Besides, you are doing way too much for us. This weekend must be costing you a fortune.”
“It’s not so bad. This is fun to do once in a while, and what is the point in having a fortune, not that I do, if you can’t enjoy it? Besides, having a beautiful woman such as yourself on my arm is a real treat. Shall we go?”
He extended his arm, and Sue took it. Together, they walked to the door, with Jimmy trailing, sulking, behind. The hotel doorman opened the door and then waved a cab forward.
When their cab stopped in front of the restaurant, Jimmy asked, “What is this place? It looks like a mansion!”
“It used to be one. It is now a private club and has a wonderful restaurant. Just wait until you see the inside.”
Charles had a big smile on his face as he stepped from the cab and held out a hand to assist Sue. Jimmy tumbled out behind them. Charles stopped him and said gently, “Lesson one: This is not Burger King or Pizza Hut. You notice you have a suit on? You can’t get in the front door of this club without one. Now, the dress and the club require a different sort of manners than one would expect at a fast food joint. I want you to pay close attention to the other gentlemen here and behave yourself as they do. You are a sharp kid. I know you’ll pick up on it quickly. Jumping from a cab like you were on a baseball field won’t cut it. Got it?”
Jimmy nodded, abashed. “Sorry.”
“No need to be sorry. This is your first time at such an establishment. This is how you learn. Just like going fishing, you have to learn how to handle the situation.”
Sue gave him a big smile of gratitude. “We don’t have many opportunities for him to learn these things. Thank you for being patient with him.”
“Hey, no problem. This is how they learn. I was a lot older before I ever learned, and I’m afraid I embarrassed myself royally.”
The doorman swept the door open for them, and with a slight bow said, “Good evening, madam and sirs. Enjoy your evening.”
Just inside the door, the maître d’ greeted them. “Good evening, Staff Sergeant Sitton. It is a pleasure to have you in the house again.”
Sue was surprised by Charles’s reaction. Normally, one would expect to follow the maître d’ to the table selected for you, but when the maître d’ put out his hand to shake, Charles grabbed it and pulled him into a tight embrace. Sue saw real emotion in both men’s eyes as they hugged.
As Charles disengaged, he turned to Sue and said, “Sue, I want you to meet Little Timmy Wright, one of the guys James and I served with.” Sue looked up at all six feet, six inches of “Little Timmy” and saw all two hundred seventy pounds was muscle. “If it wasn’t for Little Timmy, I wouldn’t be here tonight. He got the Silver Star for pulling James and me back to safety. Don’t let his Little Lord Fauntleroy suit fool you. This man is the real deal.
“Timmy, would you believe Sue was the anesthesiologist and chief surgical nurse in Tokyo General when they put me and James back together? We’ve been living in the same town all these years without knowing it.”
Charles’s revelation generated a hug between Sue and Timmy and a mutually murmured “thank you” from each of them. “I’ve got to get you to your table before JC comes out and wants to see what all the commotion is. Besides, you have all the guests staring.”
He turned and led the way to the center table where, with a flourish, he seated Sue, and then he turned to a bewildered Jimmy and extended a hand.
“I presume this is your mother, young man?”
Jimmy nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“You have excellent taste, young man. Take good care of her for me. If she helped put the staff sergeant together again, she is better than all the king’s horses and all the king’s men. We didn’t expect him or James to make it.”
Putting a hand on Sue’s shoulder, Timmy whispered, “Thanks, again. It is a real pleasure to have you in the house.” Surreptitiously, he wiped one eye as he turned and walked away from the table.
In moments, a server set water goblets before them. “I know you don’t drink, sir, but will madam be having a glass of wine?”
“Oh, no thank you. I don’t drink either.”
“Would madam care for iced tea?”
“Tea would be splendid. Thank you.”
“And how about you, young sir?”
Jimmy, overwhelmed by the experience, had been paying attention enough to reply, “Yes, thank you.”
“Very good. Dinner will be served in just a few moments.” And the server walked away.
“He didn’t take your order?”
Charles smiled at Sue. “Timmy already knows what I want. I never order when I come here.”
“Why do you call him Timmy? I never saw anyone look less like a Timmy than he.”
Charles laughed. “You remember Tiny Tim singing ‘Tiptoe Through the Tulips,’ back in the sixties?”
“Of course, but what does Tiny Tim have to do with Timmy?”
“Well, when Timmy first reported in to Fox Company, he said, ‘Wright, Timothy P., reporting for duty,’ but he had laryngitis, and his voice came out squeaky. Biggest man in the outfit, but rather than calling him Tiny Tim, they started calling him Little Timmy, and the name stuck. Nobody but those of us who served with him had better ever call him that, but those of us from Fox Company don’t ever call him anything else.”
Jimmy looked puzzled. “You don’t come here often; how can he know what you want?”
“Two things, Jim.” Intentionally he removed the diminutive from Jimmy’s name. “First of all, Timmy is the consummate maître d’. He excels at his job and learns what his customers’ desires are, without having to ask every time. Then, too, he and JC, who is the chef by the way, and I used to sit by the hour and make up menus and recipes when we pulled guard duty at night.
“JC was a chef when the draft caught him, but what did the Marine Corps do with him? They made him a machine gunner! He used to make deals with the Vietnamese locals for fresh produce and meat and cooked for the outfit. We were more than happy to take some of his duties so he could cook. Lot better than C-rats, let me tell you!”
“C-rats?”
“C-rations is what the Corps called them. We had other names, but C-Rats is the most polite. Pre-cooked and canned meals that would keep you alive, but that was about it. We hated them royally.
“Anyway, the captain came by one night when JC was cooking, and he gave the company cook a rifle and unofficially made JC cook. Best thing for company morale ever!”
It was then the kitchen doors swung open with a flourish and a very tall, very black man in immaculate whites and a high master chef’s hat on his head rolled a kitchen cart laden with small dishes into the dining room. He was closely followed by two servers, one of whom carried a tray with three iced teas.
Charles didn’t wait for them to arrive at the table to serve. He jumped to his feet and, with emotion showing on his face, stepped into a close embrace with the chef, JC. As the servers placed the small serving dishes and iced teas on the table, Charles led JC around the table to meet Sue.
“Sue, I want you to meet JC, one of the closest and best friends a man could ever have. I told you Timmy received the Silver Star for dragging James and me back to safety; well, it was this man who exposed himself to enemy fire to provide covering fire to allow Timmy to get us. A grenade landed at Timmy’s feet, and JC threw himself on top of it. Fortunately, the grenade was a dud, but it might not have been. JC also received the Silver Star. It should have been higher, but the chair warmers back at Eighth and Eye—Marine Corps Headquarters, at Eighth and I Streets in Washington, DC—decided it was only worth a Silver Star.”
“Stop it, Charles. If I could, I’d blush!” Both men laughed. Sue stood to her feet a
nd, pulling JC down, kissed him on the cheek. Tears were in her eyes as she said, “I’m in your debt, JC. Thank you for saving this wonderful man.”
“Ah, but the circle is not broken, JC,” Charles said. “Sue, here, was chief surgical nurse in Tokyo General when they put me and James back together.”
JC leaned down and kissed both of her cheeks in return.
“I am truly honored, ma’am. All I did was my job. This guy should have been decorated a number of times, but there were no officers around to see what he did.”
“You are my heroes, you and Timmy. Thank you.” Carefully, trying not to smear her makeup, Sue blotted at her eyes.
“What am I doing? Your food is getting cold! Please, sit down, sit down. We’ll get acquainted over dessert. I have to get back to the kitchen before I get fired.” JC winked at Charles, stuck a hand out to the bewildered Jimmy, and said, “I’ll meet you officially later, young man. We’ll go up to the Company Room.” JC cast a quick glance around the room to be certain everyone was properly cared for before sweeping back to the kitchen.
“What I had JC do was recreate some of the dishes he made for us when we were ‘in country.’ Some may seem a mite strange to you, and if you don’t like them, you can give them to me and eat the ones you do like. I like them all. Jim, I want you to be acquainted with these men. You will never have a better opportunity to meet better men, nor better role models.”
CHAPTER 65
Detective Summers arrived at the police department late in the evening. It had been a long drive home, and she had been held up once by an accident. There was nothing needing her attention yet tonight, so she parked her unmarked squad car in its spot and moved her gear to her own car.
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