by Denise Gwen
“Can I help you with something?” she asked.
“Uh, um, Dr. O’Reilly, I want to ask you something.”
It frightened her, the look on his face. He was just going to give her a dressing down, she could see it on his face. He was going to let her have it for getting so snippy with him when she reversed Mrs. Bristow’s medication.
“Well, let me get right to it.”
“Okay,” she said warily.
“Willie Bellefleur told me there’s a growing population of grizzlies coming down from Denali mountain, and they’re getting too close to the reservation. This is a dangerous situation that would put many lives in danger, and we don’t need anything happening like what happened to that poor man who died the first night of your arrival.”
“Don’t remind me,” she said, and shook with revulsion.
“I’d like you to come with me on a fact-finding mission,” he said.
“To study grizzlies?” she asked and sweat broke out on her face. “Oh, I don’t think I want to do that.”
“We’re not killing them,” he assured her.
“Oh no! I don’t want to get that up close and personal with them,”
“I know it was hard for you,” he said, “with that man who died.”
“That was bad, but you want me to get up close and personal with a grizzly?”
“You’ll be perfectly safe. I want you to help with their identification.”
“Out in the wilderness?”
“It’ll be a nice opportunity for you to see the real wild ruggedness of Alaska before you head back to . . . Omaha.”
“I really haven’t had a chance to really see Alaska,” she mused. “And Rachel’s coming back to work the first week in February.”
“That’s the idea,” he said, encouragingly.
“I’ll be with lots of people, won’t I?” she asked.
“No, it’ll just be you and me, but I’ll keep you safe.”
“You’ll be there the entire time, with me?”
“Yes,” he said, and her heart filled with gladness.
Apparently, things between them weren’t as bad as she thought, if he still wanted to spend time with her. And there was a tiny part of her that wanted him to want to spend time with her. She longed for his presence. She looked forward to it every day. She loved watching the way he walked into the clinic, the way he seemed so focused on everything he did. How he devoted his entire attention to every patient.
She loved his devotion to his patients.
And they loved him.
I wonder if I’ll ever enjoy that kind of a relationship with my patients.
They may have not been getting along, but at least they were going on a field-trip excursion to tag and identify some grizzlies. Woot!
He gazed intently at her, apparently watching to see her reaction. He must’ve seen something in her face that gave him relief, for he sighed and smiled. “I’ll get it all fixed up. We’ll leave at the end of the week.”
“Good,” she said. “That sounds like fun.”
Later that evening after they’d finished their rounds, Jake, thinking of how Sarah might appreciate a perk-me-up, made a fresh pot of coffee and his heart lightened at the sight of her as she walked into the break-room.
“That smells so good.”
“Grab a chair and rest a spell.” He nodded toward the one next to him.
“I may just do that,” she said. “I’ve been on my feet all day long.”
“How do you like your coffee?”
“Heavy on the cream, I like my coffee Boston style.”
“Ah,” he said. He fixed her coffee and brought it to her. She took a sip, smiled, and leaned back with a sigh.
“That’s great coffee, Jake.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Do you cook much?”
“I used to be quite the master in the kitchen,” he chuckled. “Most of the time, these days, I’m more inclined to just make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.”
“Sometimes, especially during the past year, during exams, I’d find myself standing over the kitchen sink, eating tuna fish out of a can.” She smiled ruefully at the memory.
They drank their coffee for a moment in a companionable silence.
“Today, with Mr. Imus, you did a really fine job, Doctor O’Reilly,” he said politely.
“Call me Sarah,” she said.
“Sarah,” he said. “You did a fine job today with Mr. Imus.”
“I don’t see how you can say that when I lost control and cried like a child.”
“You showed your compassion for the patient. There’s nothing childish about weeping over your patient. It shows how much you care.”
“When I look at that little boy,” she said, referring to Michael. “I just think to myself, how much more torture can this poor child take?”
“Children can be surprisingly resilient. Even cases as sorrowful as Michael’s.”
“Really?” she asked, looking pointedly at him. “Have you ever had a patient whose condition was as bad as his, and saw him recover?”
“One,” he said. “A long time ago.”
“Hm.”
He wondered if he dared press . . . it didn’t hurt to ask, did it?
Or did it?
“The other night . . . when you mentioned having two older sisters . . . ”
“I mis-spoke,” she said quickly, as if shutting him down. “I’ve only got an older sister, Rachel.”
He didn’t speak for a long moment, and when she said nothing, he finally cleared his throat. “I lost someone very important to me.”
“The beautiful lady in the portrait,” she said, staring down into the coffee cup.
“Yes, my wife, Robin.”
She looked up and caught his gaze, her green eyes bright and sharp. “How?”
“Breast cancer.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thank you.”
“And she—she was Joshua’s mother?”
“Yes,” he said, swallowing back the lump in his throat.
“That’s hard,” she said.
“Yes.”
They gazed at one another for a long moment without speaking.
At last, she stirred. She took one final sip of coffee, stood up, took the coffee cup to the sink, drained the dregs, rinsed the coffee cup, placed it upside down onto the drainer, and rubbed her hands on her pants. She walked out of the kitchen. “Good night, Mr. Roundtree,” she called over her shoulder.
“Good night, Doctor O’Reilly.”
And this time, she didn’t correct him.
Sarah was racked with guilt as she walked back to her cabin, and her guilt only increased as she stepped inside her cabin and went immediately to the special nook where her journal rested.
She sat down, pulled down the drawer, and began writing in a flurry of words and emotion.
I wish, oh, how I wish I weren’t already engaged, because I can’t help it, I’m falling in love with Jake. Tonight, he made me a fresh hot pot of coffee and it was just the thing for me after a long day of rounds.
He’s invited me to go with him to tour Denali Mountain in search of grizzlies… shooting them with a tranquilizer and then tagging them. I’m not looking forward to that, let me tell you! But the fact he asked me to come, oh, it just speaks volumes of how much he trusts me.
I wish I’d stayed in the break-room awhile longer and listened to him telling me about Robin.. The poor thing died of cancer. Why did I run off the way I did? Why didn’t I let him talk?
She kind of had an idea why she hadn’t lingered to listen to Jake sharing with her the story of his deceased wife. If she’d stayed behind, a deeper intimacy might have taken place between them, and she was attached to someone else. If she were to take an interest in Jake, it’d mean something significant. It’d mean she no longer cared for Grant, but how could that be?
No, Jake wasn’t anything superior to Grant . . . right?
On
Monday morning, Jake met Sarah in the front lobby. He could see that she’d brought provisions, for a large backpack rested at her feet.
“You ready?” He smiled.
“Yes,” she said nervously.
“It’s going to be okay. I’ve made the necessary arrangements, and we’ll be safe.”
“Okay,” she sighed. “Let’s go.”
As they walked out to the helicopter pad on the clinic’s roof, he turned to her and smiled.
“What?” she asked.
“I’m pleased to see that you’ve properly outfitted yourself for a trek through the Alaskan wilderness.”
“Oh, yeah?” she asked.
“Yeah. Look at you. You’re wearing a pair of hiking boots, sturdy jeans, and layers upon layers of a shirt, sweater, sweatshirt, and a heavy coat, and you’ve got mittens on and a woolen cap.”
“Okay,” she said. “I mean, like, duh, we are heading out to the Alaskan wilderness.”
“You don’t understand,” he said. “I’ve met many a low-lander who didn’t think to pack a single article of warm clothing.”
“I hope you don’t think I’m one of those idiots who know nothing of Alaska. I do have a sister who lives here, after all.”
“It isn’t just that,” he mused. “You’re a smart girl.”
She started with surprise but said nothing else.
He looked at her backpack, bursting at the seams.
“I’ll be willing to bet, you even packed a change of clothing.”
“Yes,” she said, holding up her bag. “I’ve got a change of clothing in case my own clothes get wet, and I’ve also brought a first-aid kit.”
“You didn’t need to do that,” he said. “I’ve got my own kit in my knapsack.”
“One can never be too prepared,” she said.
He smiled at her, perhaps more broadly than he’d ever smiled at her before, and she smiled right back at him. It was nice, this moment, them standing there and smiling at one another. He had a sudden urge, a raw desire, to take just one step forward, wrap his arms around her svelte waist, and kiss those lovely lips.
She must’ve sensed the change in his demeanor, though, and instead of encouraging him, or perhaps even indicating she liked him right back, she lowered her gaze and turned away. “Anyway,” she said.
Damn, the moment’s over. I might’ve gotten away with a kiss, let her know how I feel, but it’s too late now.
“Okay, fine,” he said. “Oh, by the way, Willie Bellefleur came by this morning, and he dropped off the kit we’re going to need for locating the bears. A spear gun, tranquilizer darts, serum, and tags.”
“If it’s all the same to you. I’ll let you take care of shooting the bears with the tranquilizer gun.”
“I can handle that part,” he said. “I’m just really pleased that you planned ahead.”
She smiled winningly. “Yep, I sure did. And I even brought snacks.”
“Do tell? What’d you bring?”
“Now, you know I can’t tell you that, Mr. Roundtree,” she said with a sly smile.
“Oh? How come?”
“I don’t know,” she said with a sheepish smile. “I’m just pulling your leg.”
“Well, that’s okay.”
He studied her as she stood there, smiling at him.
She’s never looked prettier.
With her raven black hair accentuating her pale skin, and the bright morning sun beaming down upon her face, she appeared a ravishing goddess. Her cheeks, still spotted from her trek from her cabin, were pink, and with her red lips parted slightly, and her green eyes shining with the excitement of their upcoming adventure, it took every shred of his will power not to kiss her.
“All right then, young lady,” he said. “Let’s go, shall we?”
She took his arm. “Yes, let’s.”
He helped her up into the helicopter, showed her the five-point harness system, and within a matter of moments, he was lifting them high into the air.
He loved operating a helicopter. As the copter lifted high and higher, he looked around at the majestic scenery and simply drank it in. He cleared the clinic, and before he knew it, he was idling the engine away into the wilderness, in the direction of Mount Denali.
He took a quick, furtive glance at Sarah, and smiled to himself. She looked terrified. Her green eyes were as large as marbles, and her mouth a tight moue of fright, she’d glance out the glass-front door, then just as quickly dart her gaze back inside and clasp her hands.
It was as if she were torn between wanting to enjoy the view and being absolutely terrified at the same time.
He eased the copter over the first low mountaintop, and he watched to see her reaction. This was the best. The first part of the trip to Mount Denali, and his expectation did not disappoint, for as they cleared the small mountaintop and came across the gloriously tranquil lake, he saw the look of wonder wash over her face and the fear from a moment ago left her. She sat back and gazed at all there was to see with a huge, beaming smile.
They were heading into the deep wilderness.
Ready or not, here we come.
Chapter 9
Mount Denali National Park
January 20th
The whirring of the copter’s blades lulled Sarah into a blissful slumber, but when the helicopter jumped, she startled awake. She looked around her, noticing the gorgeous mountain peaks and the glassy lakes. Was it her imagination, or was the copter listing to one side?
And that’s when she heard a strange sound.
Ka-thunk! Ka-thunk! Ka-thunk!
Sarah looked over at Jake, half-hoping that he’d look unconcerned; after all, Jake knew how to operate a helicopter. If he wasn’t worried, then she wasn’t worried either, but when he glanced back at her, and she saw the sharp tinge of fear in his eyes, her heart plummeted.
“What’s going on?” she asked him.
“The engine—”
The helicopter dropped the height of a two-story building, and Sarah cried out in alarm. It was horrifying. It reminded her of an amusement park ride she went on once, a ride called the drop zone. Everyone buckled into a seat set on a circle surrounding a pole, and the ride crept higher and higher into the air, until it reached the very top of the pole, and then, after a long, agonizing moment, the ride hovered in the wide, open air, and then it plummeted to the ground. And in the moment when the ride plummeted, that’s when Sarah felt herself lifted off the seat in a weird, terrifying moment of weightlessness, and then the ride plummeted to the ground below, accompanied by a lot of screaming.
That’s how she felt right now. As she felt the helicopter drop, she became airborne, despite being strapped in securely, her butt lifted off the seat and she floated in the cockpit as the helicopter dropped.
“Whoa!” Jake cried out, and this briefly assured her, because his voice made it sound as if he experienced this kind of thing all the time. But then the helicopter tilted over onto its side and Sarah’s body mashed up against the glass door. For one awful second, as her cheek pressed up against the latch, she thought her body was moments away from flying through the air and landing hard and dead upon the frozen ground way, way below. With her hands plastered on either side of the panels, she gazed down in horror at the landscape as it soared toward her at astonishing speed. She screamed. The copter flipped over onto its other side, and she flipped over onto her other side.
Every time the copter listed from one side to the other, her arms and legs flailed around as if they were made of straw, but her torso remained rigidly fixed to her seat.
This was bad, this was very bad.
“We’re making an emergency landing,” Jake yelled.
“Oh, yes, we’re making an emergency landing, all right!”
Jake flashed her a quick, sharp look, and she couldn’t help it, it was so absurd, so ridiculous, she started laughing. She kept on laughing as Jake made one last valiant effort to right the copter, then brought it down with horrifying speed. He was ai
ming for a grassy spot near a lake. Off in the distance, she saw some brown bears scurrying away.
They looked kind of big . . .
“Oh, no,” Jake said.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Those are grizzlies.”
“Uh, oh,” she said.
“Put your head between your knees!” Jake shouted.
“My head between my knees,” she said, then she got it.
We’re crashing.
Sarah lifted her head.
My neck’s not broken, that’s a good thing.
She lay on her back, her arms and legs outstretched. She’d landed on sweet, green grass, curious how green, considering how bitterly cold it was, and then it struck her that she was outside the helicopter. When she craned her neck around, a lot of things struck her mind.
I’m lying outside, on the grass.
She was still strapped into her seat, that was the weird thing. Her seat had become unhinged from its moorings, as if she was a child in a booster-seat, and the adult had lifted her, seat and all, and placed her gently on the green grass.
Oh, my God.
But Jake, where was Jake and what shape was he in?
“Jake!” She looked from one side to the other, struggling to unlock herself from the harness, “Jake!”
Dead silence greeted her.
A chill gripped her heart.
“Jake!”
Sarah looked around the area where the copter had crashed. Broken seats, a shattered piece of windshield, a broken copter blade, and other bits and pieces of wreckage littered the ground as if a giant angry toddler had thrown a temper tantrum and torn a toy helicopter apart.
God, what a mess.
When the last harness belt released her, she rolled out of the seat and face-first onto the grass. She just lay there for a long moment, checking her body to make sure nothing was broken. When she finally decided that she was okay, she clambered to her feet and patted herself down, disbelieving. Surely, she should’ve hurt some body part, or broken something, or torn something, or sustained some kind of injury, but no. Apart from feeling really sore, she stood upon her own two feet as she normally did.
