Chapter 35

 

By seven o’clock that evening, the sun’s rays were poking through the trees. After the phone call from the Boss, things settled down with only a call from Jim every half-hour. Emily looked up from making her notes.

“Do you really think they’ll come?”

I peered over the log at Ralph’s plane for maybe the hundredth time.

“Yeah, I think they will. By road, there’s only one highway out of Fire Bay and the Troopers will have checkpoints set up. That leaves boats or planes and, since Ralph has a plane and not a boat, then I think we’re in the right place.”

Emily continued making notes. I was beginning to think I should stick to one-word answers.

“You writing down every word I speak?”

She tapped her pen against her chin, a smile slowly forming in her eyes.

“Uh huh, just in case you’re right about the plane.”

My eyebrows raised with the first inkling of self-doubt.

“And if I’m wrong, then what?”

“Then we’ll have a good laugh,” she said.

Yeah, on me, I thought. But it wouldn’t be the first time. After that exchange, we became quiet again. The sun’s rays became an orange glow higher up in the trees as the day descended into twilight. Unlike the tropics, twilight lasts a long time in the North. Instead of an inky black as soon as the sun sets, the long twilight phases you into darkness, letting you and your eyes adjust to the night. This is especially helpful when you’re on the hunt. And we were definitely on the hunt.

Emily stopped her writing, whether because of the twilight or whether she had run out of words, I couldn’t say. But I sure as hell was not going to ask. My cell-phone vibrated again. Thinking it was Jim checking in, I answered more brusquely than I should have.

“Yeah?”

“Leo, it’s Jeanette. How’s it going?”

I whispered that it was going okay, that we were in a “wait mode.” She said the Boss had called and wanted her to “talk some sense into that guy.” So she was doing her wifely duty. Good old Boss. He knew and used all the angles to get me to come in. Except I wasn’t going to. Ashley owed me—big time—for that picture and I was going to whip her, one way or the other. But I didn’t tell Jeanette that.

“No, Hon,” I said, “We’re all set up here, so I think we’ll stay. Maybe they won’t come,” I said, hoping to erase some of her fears.

“I told the Boss I didn’t think you would go back to Fire Bay. It would be so unlike you.”

She was right. It would be unlike me. I whispered to her not to worry and we clicked off. 

The temperature was starting to cool, maybe down into the upper thirties. Emily was starting to shiver and so we broke out our sleeping bags.

Time passed. It was dark now. I could see the outline of Emily sitting by the log, but not much more. So we sat there by the log, each lost in his or hers thoughts.

“I forgot my flashlight,” Emily said.

I smiled. “I guess you weren’t in the Girl Scouts or some such organization?”

“Nope, I couldn’t see the sense of it. I was going to be a writer. Besides, who wanted somebody like . . . ”

I didn’t prompt her to complete the sentence. I knew what she was going to say.

Because of her teeth, nobody wanted her around, or at least that was Emily’s feeling. I sighed. Kids can be cruel, and I probably would have been one of those kids that taunted her about her teeth.

I checked my watch with my flashlight. It was ten-thirty. They should be showing before long I reasoned. But, again, they might not.

“Emily, would you mind taking the first watch until say . . . twelve-thirty.”

I yawned. “Hope you don’t mind.”

There was a pause. I’m sure she had entertained the thought herself, but here the old fella had beat her to the punch.

“No, I guess not,” she said.

“Good,” I countered, and I rolled over in my nest of spruce boughs. Even if she fell asleep, Jim across the strip probably would remain wide-awake. He was used to waiting, first as a soldier, then as a hunter waiting on some moose to poke its head out of the trees. 

I crashed, and was asleep before I could count to ten. Later Emily said I tossed and turned and shouted a couple of times about throwing a grenade on that machine gun nest. One of my old Vietnam dreams. Sometimes I don’t even know I have them. She asked me if I would be willing to give her an interview sometime. I could only shake my head no. Let the dead stay in their graves was my motto. One thing I did do was give her the phone with an admonition to use it sparingly. I could imagine Sam calling her every half-hour to make sure she was okay. She said that time really dragged when I went to sleep and would have gone to sleep herself except that Jim called a couple of times.

I came to when I felt something hit my foot.

“Bronski!” came a harsh whisper. “There’s something out there!”

“What?” I said. 

“I said, ‘There’s something out there!‘“

I woke up, my mind whirling. It could be only a moose doing its nightly browse. I sat up, fully awake, and checked my watch. Well, what do you know, it was the bewitching hour.

“Bronski!” she whispered again.

“Okay, I hear you.” I whispered back. “Listen, and be quiet.”

For that, I received another kick. I suspect she rather enjoyed doing it, a payback for making her stay awake. Then I heard a clank with the sound of a muttered curse. I grinned. I recognized that voice. It was Ashley. Immediately, I rang Jim’s phone. For a few seconds I was beginning to think he had fallen asleep. Finally, he answered, and I told him to get ready, and to remember the fact he was to act as backup only.

“Uh-huh,” he muttered.

“Jim, are you awake?”

“Uh-huh,” he muttered.

“Well, try to wake up, I’m moving in.”

“Uh-huh,” he muttered again.

Some people take forever to wake up, I thought, and clicked off.

“Emily,” I whispered, “You stay here.”

It was light enough for me to see her head nod up and down.

I took a deep breath. Just like in the old days of Vietnam when we were going out on a night patrol. We members of the patrol knew it was likely that one or two of us wouldn’t be coming back. And each of us asked the question of himself: is it my turn to die?

One of the things I had done while it was light, was to make sure of the lay of the land, especially how to sneak around to Ralph’s plane from our hiding place. So I stood up, took the safety off on my shotgun and proceeded to make my way to the plane. Although I wasn’t sure why they hadn’t tried to start the engine. Maybe I could catch them standing together, then I could make them lay down on their stomachs while I used the tie-wraps to bind their hands. Sounded like a plan to me. 

I began sneaking from tree to tree in a crouch, which was an automatic reflex learned from Vietnam. It may have saved my life, because at that moment a shot sounded and a piece of bark from the tree I was hiding behind flew down on me. 

“Asshole!” I yelled, and I moved back behind the tree just as the ground at my feet spurted up. I stood there, knees shaking and breathing hard, wondering if I had enough strength to lift the shotgun.

“Give it up, Bronski! We have you covered! You can’t go anywhere!”

It was a man’s voice I heard; the same as that night at the party, asking, “Is he out?” 

Good old Ralph. An actor if I ever saw one. By day a Postal Service milquetoast, by night a genuine killer. My battle blood lust was up and I resolved not to say a word until I had killed the son-of-a-bitch or he had killed me. I was curious how he had seen me since I could maybe see only a tree away, ten feet at the most. Well, the time for thinking was over. I shoved the shotgun around the side of the tree and let go with a blast in the general direction of the voice. A second after that I was moving to the next tree, another spurt of dirt behind me with an accompanying sound of a high powered rifle. Again the shaking of knees and the weak feeling of barely being able to hold onto the shotgun.

“You lucked out that time, Bronski!” 

Yeah, maybe, you son-of-a-bitch. But I was beginning to think. I didn’t think Ralph had moved from his position. Whether from stupidity or over-confidence I didn’t know, but I sure as hell didn’t care. Because if he stayed there, I would kill him. Thank goodness I had thought to bring extra shells and I put a couple in the shotgun to replace the two I had fired off. Ralph must have heard me.

“Load up all you want, Bronski. You’re still dead. All you’re doing is knocking down leaves!”

He let another round off, which hit the tree I was hiding behind. Where in hell was he? And where in hell was Jim? I had to find out. Although it pained me, I was going to have to lose my flashlight to do just that. It was the only thing I had that would distract him long enough for me to peer around the tree. 

I pulled it out of my coat pocket, turned it on and gave it a gentle throw out onto the ground, maybe twenty feet away. Ralph actually shot at it while it was in flight, his reflexes were that good. His first shot missed, but after it landed he knocked it out on the second shot. It was on this second shot that I spotted the flash of his rifle. Before he could work the bolt of his rifle, I had moved one tree further away. I made him out to be about fifty feet to the east of his plane, behind a log. I was going to have to work my way around him the long way. 

“Ah, Bronski, there goes your flashlight. By the way, we have Jim. You might as well give up.”

I was really sorry, then. I may have cost another man’s life. I had been responsible for other people dying, in Vietnam and here in the States. My first wife and child. That was the cause of my drinking. I began breathing hard and nearly sobbing with remorse. I had to give myself up. Then, from somewhere, Jim yelled.

“Leo, don’t do it! If you do, both of us are dead!”

Then a high-pitched scream from Ashley and all was quiet again.

The voice of reason. Jim was right. But if they killed him, I would never forgive myself. Without any more thinking about morals and repercussions, I moved again, as I would have in Vietnam. Always move. Give yourself time to think. There was another shot, but it went harmlessly into the trees nearby. I had guessed by then Ralph must have night-vision goggles or some kind of night scope, the kind you can buy in hunting catalogs. Not as good as the Army had, but much better than natural sight at night. But night vision goggles or not, you can’t see through things, and I meant to use this fact to its fullest extent. 

I began working my way around, flitting from tree to bush to tree. Always on the move. “Never expose yourself for more than three seconds,” old Sarge had said. It was good advice. I was beginning to feel like I was in Vietnam, but the trees were different, so I couldn’t be, could I? I stopped for a moment to clear my brain. I was not in Vietnam. I was in Alaska and someone was trying to kill me. Ralph had all of a sudden turned silent. He’d fired only once since I started moving around, and that bullet pinged off a tree fifty feet from me. Maybe Ralph was getting worried. That thought was enough to give me a glimmer of hope. Speaking of which, was it me or were the woods getting lighter? I could now see at least twenty feet ahead. Then I realized what was happening. Good old moon. Indistinct rays were beginning to show through the trees. Maybe it was only a half moon, but it was enough to equalize the battle. I could now plan my stalk to get behind Ralph.

I started working my way around to the right, watching for twigs, limbs, and bushes that might brush against my pants leg. Anything that might make noise. It made for slow going, but now my main concern was what Ralph was up to. Maybe he was attempting to circle behind me. Now that it was almost light, he had to know I was up to something. A merry-go-round for sure. I heard a cough.

“Bronski! You have five minutes to come in or I shoot Jim in the head!”

This time it was Ashley doing the talking. This meant Ralph was on the move.

“Don’t do it, Bronski! We’re both dead if you do! Don’t do it!”

There it was again. My conundrum. I knew that Jim meant what he said. He was a stand-up kind of guy. But I didn’t think I could take the chance. My first mission was to put Ashley out of action. Then Ralph could be taken on. He might be waiting for me to do just that, but it was a chance I would have to take. I moved as fast as I could, taking time to look behind me to check for an ambush from Ralph.

“Three more minutes, Bronski!”

Thank you, Ashley, I thought. I’m almost there. Another check behind me. Where in hell was Ralph?

“Don’t do it, Bronski!” Jim retorted.

“Shut up!” Ashley screamed. I heard and almost felt the clunk as she hit Jim on what sounded like his head. Then came a soft “Oh . . . ” I took a deep breath and wiped the sweat from my eyes.

“One more minute!”

I slipped from tree to tree and finally ducked behind one maybe six feet away from Ashley. I held my breath as I took a quick look. At that second, she was looking at Jim lying there on the ground, holding his head and writhing back and forth in pain. She was telling him that maybe next time he would stay quiet. It was now or never. I rushed her.

In my haste, I stepped on a twig that popped like a small firecracker. She saw me and let out a shriek before I hit her a good one over the head. She fell straight down like the inanimate object I wished she were.

“Boss,” Jim groaned.

I shook my head and gave him the universal sign to be quiet. He nodded. Although I thought Ashley would be out of action for a while, I decided to bind her with the tie-wraps. I had finished tying her hands behind her back and was working on tying her feet together when I heard a noise behind me. I reached for the shotgun.

“Don’t even think about it, Bronski!”

Well, hell. I had screwed up. Well, perhaps it was for the best. Jim and I would at least die together.

“What did you do to Ashley?”

“I hit her over the head, like she did to Jim.”

On cue, Ashley groaned.

“There, you see,” I said. “She’s still alive.”

“Bronski, you bastard, if she doesn’t pull out of this in a few minutes, you’re dead!” 

I decided not to say a word. Ralph was near to cracking at the idea his beloved Ashley could be dead. Just you see that you don’t crack, my little voice said.

I took another deep breath and slowly stood. Ralph was only about three feet away. Dare I take a chance and grab his rifle? Before I had to decide, a miracle happened.

“Drop your rifle!”

It was the Princess, stepping out of the shadows, not ten feet away. While Ralph’s eyes goggled, I snatched his rifle out of his hands. All we needed in a situation like this was one of those “You shoot him, I shoot you!” dilemmas.

“All right, Ralph,” I said quietly, “lay on the ground, face down.”

He looked around, as if he couldn’t believe this turn of events. 

“Down on the ground, Ralph,” I repeated. This time, a little louder. Still, he hesitated. The hairs on the back of my neck started to rise. I was just about to use the rifle on his head as I had on Ashley, when he bolted. I brought the rifle to my shoulder and pulled the trigger—nothing! The safety was on! Then I heard a shot and a scream from Ralph. The Princess had done it again—and from about fifteen yards to boot. Right through Ralph’s leg. Later, we would find that she had missed the femoral artery, but he would be out of commission for a while. She stood there, left hand on hip, right hand holding the smoking gun like she was at a shooting range, looking very cool standing there in the moonlight.

I flipped the safety off on the rifle and wandered over to where Ralph lay, holding his leg and cussing for all he was worth. This time I aimed the rifle at his head and told him to roll over on his stomach. 

“Damn you, Bronski! I’m bleeding!”

“Yes, you are, you asshole, and you know why! Now turn over on your stomach!”

This time he complied. By this time Emily had moved to my side, and I handed her my rifle and dug out some more tie-wraps. After tying him, I pulled his belt off and proceeded to make a tourniquet of sorts around his leg. I was not very gentle. Ralph moaned and groaned, but he would live.

In the distance, I heard a siren. Probably the chief. I checked my watch. Only one o’clock a.m. Surely, it was later than that, but watches don’t usually lie. Soon headlights shone through the trees. I looked up to see the half moon looking down on our little party and wordlessly thanked the Lord.

The chief pulled up onto the runway and turned his sirens and engine off. No sooner had the car stopped then who should come bounding out the door but Sam himself. In a couple of seconds, he and Emily were intertwined, murmuring sweet words of love and an admonition here and there. After a minute of this, the chief walked over to me. I could just make out his teeth glistening in the moonlight.

“Young love. Kind of makes you jealous, eh . . . Bronski?”

I agreed it did, but we had more important things to do. I cleared my throat.

“Ah . . . Sam . . . Emily.”

They turned to face me, still holding on to each other. One said, “Yes, Leo?” And the other, “Yes, boss?”

I suppressed a chuckle. “We need to get these two put away, the sooner the better. One has a wound that needs to be taken care of. So, maybe you two can take Ashley’s car back and the chief and I will take the two prisoners to where they have to go.”

Sam gave a bewildered look to Emily.

“Somebody shot?”

“Yes,” I said. “If Emily hadn’t shot Ralph in the leg, he might have gotten away in the darkness. This moon isn’t overly bright.”

He looked at Emily. “You shot somebody?” he asked. There was an edge of worry to his question.

She nodded and looked away. Evidently, she was a little surprised herself.

“Gosh, boss, I wish you hadn’t let her come.”

“I couldn’t stop her, Sam,” I said gently. “She’s a reporter. That’s what reporters do—take risks.”

“Oh,” he said, and looked back at her. This was something he hadn’t considered. 

She responded by giving him a peck on the cheek. Poor boy, he hadn’t a chance.

Jim sat up and looked around, a dazed look on his face. I laid my hand on his shoulder.

“It’s okay, Jim. We have Ralph and Ashley in custody. You’ll ride back with Sam and Emily.”

He nodded, still not sure about things. With some help he stood up and wobbled, getting his balance. I motioned at Sam and Emily, and they snapped to. She stayed with Jim while Sam ran for Ashley’s car. The chief and I finally got Ralph and Ashley into the back seat of his squad car. 

The chief removed his handkerchief from his pocket and mopped his face. “It’s been a long day, Leo.”

I looked again at the moon. And I realized I would never regard it again without thinking about this night. I looked down at Ralph groaning in the back seat and Ashley now back to giving me murderous looks. 

“You’re right chief; it has been a long day.”