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MOUNT BAKER:
Wesley is forced to stop the Hummer at a narrow river rushing across a low section of the dirt road. He puts it into four-wheel drive and eases into the water.
Jamie leans out the window, watching it rise up the side of the door. She closes the window just as the water laps at the bottom edge of the glass, then looks forward at the water rippling over the hood. “Wesley? Are you sure about this? Won’t it drown the engine?”
“That big black tube outside behind my seat is called a snorkel and lets the air go into the carburetor. As long as it’s above the water level, the engine keeps running. We’re almost through.”
Jamie grabs the dash when the Hummer floats and drifts sideways with the current, then she feels the tires thump the ground and the Hummer slowly climbs out of the water. Wesley stops when they drive over the newly formed bank of the river and looks at Jamie. “Nearly as good as Disneyland.”
Jamie shakes her head no. “Oh, Wesley. That was real life or death.”
Ten minutes later, the road drops into the backside of the campground and Jamie scans through the trees for the green pickup as they drive around the campsites. The place is deserted, and she relaxes, knowing the woman has left. “That lady and her kids must have got out okay.”
Wesley looks over at her. “Let’s see how bad the road is from this side.”
When he looks forward, he slams on the brakes as a woman runs out of the restroom, waving her arms in front of the Hummer. Jamie recognizes her and throws open the door to get out.
The woman runs back into the building, brings out her children, then runs up to Jamie and wraps her arms around her neck, sobbing against her shoulder.
“I was so scared no one would come. We tried to leave, and the truck slid into the mud and we couldn’t get out, and I was all alone, then I heard your car, then I just ran out and . . .”
“It’s all right. You’re safe now. It’s okay.”
Wesley slowly climbs out and looks around the area, then grits his teeth against the pain as he kneels in front of the two kids and smiles. “I’m Wesley, and I’m going to take you and your mom out of here, okay?”
Jamie looks down at the kids hugging Wesley. She sees his smile through his beard, and her lips form a soft grin. This is a new side of Wesley, and she likes what she’s learning about him.
Wesley slowly stands back up. “Stay here while I check out the road.”
Jamie nods and steps out of the way as he climbs into the Hummer and drives out of the campground, then she looks at the woman. “I didn’t get your name?”
The woman turns from watching Wesley. “Oh. I’m Serra Billingsly. This is Gail and William.”
“Wesley has four-wheel drive, so he can get us out of here.” She turns when the Hummer pulls into the campground and stops in front of the building.
Wesley waves her over to his window. “We won’t be able to get out that way,” he tells her. “We’ll have to go back across that river.”
“I don’t know, Wesley. We started floating away the last time.”
“We’ll have more weight to hold us down this time. Tell them to get in and we’ll get out of here.”
Serra hears what they are saying and moves up to the window. “I need to get my purse. It’s still in the truck.”
Wesley shakes his head no. “It’s not going anywhere. We need to leave before things get worse.”
“I’ll be right back.” Serra runs down the road before they can stop her.
Jamie looks through the window at Wesley. “I’d better go with her.” She turns and runs after Serra.
The young boy is suddenly standing on his toes, looking at him through the open window. He looks at him and smiles. “What is it with women and their purses?”
“Can I get in?” the boy asks.
“You bet. Stand back now.”
Wesley slowly opens the door and climbs out. He bends over to lift the small boy onto the seat and feels a sharp stab in his side. The boy notices and climbs up onto the front seat, then flops over the backrest onto the rear seat. The other door opens and he sees the little girl struggling to climb in. He starts to walk around to help her, but she suddenly crawls onto the floor, then up onto the seat. He sees the bandages protruding from her tiny shoes. “You’re a brave little girl.”
He climbs back in and closes the door, then checks the rear view mirror, but there is no sign of the women. The loud crackling of a falling tree echoes from far away, and Wesley knows the water is tearing up the vegetation around the campground. He looks over at the girl. “I wish they would hurry.”
The girl smiles and slides closer. “You look like a bear.”
The boy leans over the seat. “A big grizzly bear.”
Wesley growls and they laugh, then he hears the women running up the road and looks into the mirror. Serra is trying to keep control of a very large green canvas bag bouncing behind her shoulder. He looks over the backrest at the boy. “Women.”
He climbs out as they run up to the Hummer. “Things are getting worse, so get in.”
Serra runs back down the road. “I have more stuff in the truck.”
Wesley stares at Jamie. “Can you talk some sense into that woman?”
“She’s running away from her ex-husband, Wesley. Give her a break.”
Wesley releases a long sigh of frustration. “All right, get in and we’ll drive to her truck.”
Wesley climbs in and they drive down the road, and he tries to be patient while Jamie and Serra fill the back part of his Hummer with Serra’s belongings. The woods echo with the crackling of another falling tree, and his patience is wearing thin.
The women slam the rear hatch closed and climb inside. Wesley drives to the back of the campground and onto the logging road. When they drive over the small rise down to the river, he’s forced to stop. A large fir tree lay at an angle across the water, blocking their way.
He shuts off the engine and climbs out, and Jamie does the same. They walk down to the rushing water to assess the situation.
Wesley looks down river at the base of the tree, its roots tangled in a ball of dirt pulled from the bank, then looks back to the top. “I’ll drag a cable across and attach it to the top and you can pull it out of the way with my winch.”
Jamie stares up at him. “You want me to drive?”
“I won’t be able to get back because of my ribs. You have to do it.”
Jamie glances back at the kids in the Hummer, then looks at Wesley. “You’ll be lucky just to make it across. How about I go and you drive?”
“You’ll get swept away, but I weigh more than you do. You’ll be fine. I’ll show you how to use the winch.”
Jamie watches him plug in the cable and unlock the reel, then waits while he walks along the bank to the tree trunk, dragging the cable behind him. “Be careful, Wesley.”
Wesley gives her a nod he will and wades out to the tree. He holds on to the branches while working his way forward, checking the depth, and the water is much deeper than he thought. The mud underneath is slick and the current drags against his legs, threatening to pull him under the tree
The sound of clattering rocks makes Wesley turn around. The ball of tree roots suddenly rolls down the bank and he cannot hang on. The water drags him under the tree, and with nothing to grab, he tumbles repeatedly down the river with no control over where the water takes him. The foul liquid rushes down his throat as he gasps for air and grabs a passing bush, but the sharp pain from his ribs forces him to let go and continue down the river.
“WESLEY!” Jamie screams, watching him tumble away in the water until he is swept around the corner and out of sight. She stares down the river, but Wesley is gone. Tears blur her vision and she wipes them clear with the back of her hand. “Wesley?” she whispers.
She jumps back when the roots tear loose from the bank, dragging the rest of the tree downriver. She wipes her eyes, goes back to the Hummer, then leans back against the front, not looking at anything in particular.
Serra stares through the windshield, watching the events. When Jamie leans against the Hummer, Serra opens the door and climbs out. She goes around and stands in front of Jamie, but she doesn’t seem to notice. “Jamie?”
Jamie looks up and wipes her eyes with the back of her hand. “I’m not sure if we can make it across without Wesley.”
“I heard what he said. He thought you could do it.”
Jamie straightens up from the Hummer. “You’re right. I can do this.”
She walks around to get in and notices the cord for the winch and the loose cable. “I can do this.”
She follows Wesley’s instructions and reels in the cable, then unplugs the power cord and climbs into the Hummer. She tosses it onto the floor and starts the engine, and when Serra climbs in front and closes the door, she looks over at her. “Here we go.”
She eases the Hummer into the water and suddenly remembers the water coming up the doors. “Roll your window up, Serra.”
She continues forward, her knuckles turning white on the steering wheel as the Hummer crawls across the river for what seems forever, then the water rushes off the hood and they crawl up the other side.
Jamie releases her breath and looks at Serra. “We did it.”
She continues forward until they are on flat ground, then shuts off the engine and climbs out. They are higher on this side, so she shades her eyes and stares down river, but there is no sign of Wesley. She reaches inside to grab a radio, but it’s no longer on the seat and she looks across at Serra. “Did you see a portable radio anywhere?”
Serra reaches down to the floor and feels around in a pool of water. She grabs the rubber antenna on the radio and holds it up as water drains out the bottom. “I guess my door wasn’t closed all the way.”
Jamie looks over the hood, trying to maintain her cool. “That’s just great!” She tells her, then climbs inside and drives up the dirt road.