Mark started unloading the supplies, and August soon came out to join him. August immediately noticed the furrows that lined Mark’s forehead and knew the cause was most likely Rita.
“You want to talk about it?” August asked, following Mark into the shed where they stored dog supplies.
“I suppose that would be the logical thing,” Mark said, slamming a fifty-pound bag of commercial dog food to the ground. “However, I’m not feeling very logical. I’m confused and frustrated, but that’s nothing unusual after spending the day with your daughter.”
August grinned; he knew how infuriating Rita could be. “What happened?”
“I don’t even know,” Mark began. “She was reserved as always when we headed out, but by the time we got to Fairbanks, I thought she was starting to relax a bit. I figured on having a really nice trip home. You know, maybe talk through some of our feelings, but she was quieter than ever and never offered me so much as a single word.”
August frowned and followed Mark to the truck. “She never said a word? She didn’t even fight with you?”
“Nope,” Mark replied and hoisted another bag of dog food on his shoulder.
“That’s not like her,” August said. “She must have it bad for you.”
Mark nearly dropped the feed. “What? I just told you she wasn’t even speaking to me. How can you say she has it bad for me?”
“Because Rita fights with people she doesn’t care about. If the relationship isn’t that important to her, she won’t be put down, cast aside, or trod on in any manner. However, if she has feelings for you and the relationship is important to her, she handles it totally differently. Look at her and her mother. They scarcely share two words. Now, on occasion they will argue, but Rita hardly ever handles it in the same flippant manner she does when dealing with strangers,” August stated. “Rita cares for you, Mark, of this I’m certain. Her silence speaks more clearly than any words could.”
“Then what do I do?” Mark asked seriously.
“Pray for her, Mark. Pray good and hard for her. I found the Bible open on her bed the other night. I think the Lord is really working her over and she needs to come to terms with Him first.”
Mark nodded. “I’ll pray.” Inside the house, Rita found herself face-to-face with another mountain of emotion—her mother. Beth had purposefully sought out her daughter in order to take some measurements for Rita’s insulated pants.
“Did you enjoy your time with Mark?” Beth asked innocently.
“Why?” Rita snapped, rather irritably. “Why do you ask that?”
“I just thought maybe you and he—”
“Well, don’t think about him and me,” Rita interrupted. “There is nothing to think about. He’s my trainer along with Dad, nothing more.”
“You sound awfully firm on the matter,” Beth said, taking the final measurement.
“I am,” Rita replied. “Getting close to people only hurts you when they don’t return your feelings.”
Chapter 8
I can’t believe you sold them!” Rita nearly yelled the words. “How could you give up your Iditarod ingots, just to finance me in this race?”
“They weren’t that important to me,” August said with a shrug. “And I didn’t think they were that important to anyone else.”
Rita stomped her snowy boots against the straw-covered floor of her father’s supply shed. “Well, they were to me,” she finally said. She tried to ignore the fact that Mark was sitting not three feet away.
“Look, Rita,” August began, “Mr. Simons wanted to make them into tourist necklaces. He paid me more than I deserved to be paid because he’s a fair man and knows that by adding a simple silver chain to each, he’ll net a small fortune. Added to that I sold four more dogs. Now we have enough money to travel in style and keep everyone fed and healthy. Don’t begrudge me doing things my way, Rita. It’s important for me to see you accomplish this. It may be your only chance to ever compete. Don’t spoil it now.”
Rita bit back a retort and nodded her head. “If that’s what you want, Dad,” she murmured.
“Good,” August said with a smile. “We’ve got a lot of work to do and a great deal of information to go over. Mark, did you bring your notes on the trail?”
“Yup.” Mark got to his feet, patting the pocket of his insulated overalls. “They’re right here.”
“Well, why don’t we get started then. Let’s go into the office where it’s warm,” August suggested, and the other two followed his lead.
Mark set aside his gloves and pulled a thick packet of papers from his pocket. Rita and her father joined him at the small table. “It’s important to keep checking your list of supplies. You never know when you’ll leave something out,” Mark began the conversation.
Rita nodded and tried to quell the rapid beat of her heart when Mark gave her a quick wink.
“You know the mandatory items, but you’ve got important decisions to make about the rest of your gear. Most mushers on the Iditarod don’t bother with the weight of a tent, they usually sleep on the sled or at one of the offered shelters—”
“If they sleep,” August interrupted. “I don’t imagine I got more than seven hours that first week.”
Mark nodded and added with a laugh, “I think that’s why they insist on the mandatory layovers. There’s the twenty-four-hour one that you must take at one time or another and a six-hour stop in White Mountain before the final push to Nome.”
“Where do you take the twenty-four-hour stop?” Rita asked.
“A lot of folks take it at Rohn,” answered Mark. “You’ve just come through the mountains, and you’re physically and emotionally drained. There’s good shelter, food, and water there, and the people are great, too, but we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves. First, you have to get that far.”
“I’ll get there,” Rita said in a determined way that left both men little doubt that she would.
“There are other things to consider,” Mark continued. “We’ll head down to Anchorage in plenty of time to have the race-appointed veterinarians check out the dogs. You have to have all the shots up to date for parvovirus, rabies, and distemper.”
“I have the records for all of that,” August assured them. “You’ll be given the Official Iditarod Cachet to carry with you. This is promotional material from the racing committee. It usually weighs about five pounds and has envelopes to be postmarked in Anchorage as well as Nome. It kind of celebrates the fact that the Iditarod trail is the old mail trail. The top finisher’s envelopes are usually auctioned off to raise money for the race.”
“Sounds like I’ll have a crowded sled basket,” muttered Rita.
“That’s why what you choose to take along is so critical,” Mark said, meeting Rita’s dark eyes. He wished silently that he could find some sign of closeness in them, but Rita was expert at masking her feelings, and he saw nothing. “You can always dump stuff off as you go, but you can’t get what you need in the middle of the Alaskan interior when you realize you’ve neglected to bring something.”
“That’s true,” August stated. “I ran low on headlamp batteries early on and then I forgot to pack an extra pair of boots as well. When I got my only pair soaking wet and the windchill made the temperature seventy below zero, I knew I’d just cashed in the race.”
Rita nodded, remembering how her father always reminded her to take extra boots whenever she and Mark trekked out into the wilds.
“Boots, extra clothes, batteries, lightbulbs, gloves, ropes, harnesses, even sled runners are all things you’ll have to choose carefully. You must also be able to transport any injured or ill dog on that sled and, in a pinch, sleep in it instead of on top of it. You have to be careful, and you have to be smart,” Mark added.
Rita tried to absorb it all. She wanted very much to show both Mark and her father that she was fully capable of caring for herself. It was a dangerous position to put herself in, because with her prideful attitude, she purposefully avoided as
king important questions, questions that could very well mean the difference between life and death.
“There are also rules of the road,” Mark continued. “You’ll get most of these on paper, but some are just givens. There’s the Good Samaritan Rule that says no racer can be penalized for helping another in an emergency. You have to explain the incidents to the race official at the next checkpoint, but there shouldn’t be any problems.”
“Also, there are regulations related to the wildlife. If you have an incident arise where wildlife has attacked you, there are rules that relate to the situation. If the game is killed in defense of life or property, you are responsible to get that animal gutted and cared for,” August remarked.
“But that could take a long time and by then you’d lose your place in the race,” Rita said irritably. “That doesn’t seem fair.”
“No other racer can proceed ahead of you,” Mark said, setting the record straight. “You don’t lose your place.” Was it Rita’s imagination, or did Mark sound rather disgusted with her?
“If it’s impossible to take care of the animal, for whatever reason,” August continued, “you need to report the incident to the racing committee.”
Rita nodded, still disturbed by Mark’s intonation.
“Of course, we don’t have to worry about cruelty to the animals,” Mark began, “but rule number thirty of the Dog Procedures states that racers aren’t allowed to commit any action or inaction that causes preventable pain or suffering.”
“And they are quite severe on this rule,” August added. “Violation of this rule results in disqualification. The whole world watches the Iditarod with extreme concern for the health and safety of the animals. It’s almost as if it doesn’t matter what happens to the drivers as long as the dogs are pampered and cared for. Now, don’t get me wrong,” August continued, “I believe the dogs should always be cared for first. It’s what I’ve taught you since you first started working with them. Your dogs are your life’s blood out there. You feed them first, bed them down first, go over their bodies for injuries or problems, all before you take any form of personal comfort.”
“I know all of that, Dad,” Rita articulated.
“We’re just trying to help you remember,” Mark joined in. “There’s so much that you must keep in mind.” Mark noted the frown on Rita’s face. “Look, Rita, no one is trying to make you feel stupid. We know that much of what you need to be aware of will come second nature to you. But, there will be those things that don’t, and they’ll probably be the very things that will not only make or break the race for you, but may result in a great many problems for you if you aren’t on top of them.”
“Okay. Okay,” Rita retorted. “I’m all ears.”
“Well, let’s get on with the race itself,” August suggested.
“That sounds good,” Mark agreed. “Now first of all is Anchorage to Eagle River. This is mostly urban and, as much as the dogs love to race, they hate the crowds and noise. There are hundreds of thousands of people, cars, helicopters, and, above all else, noise. It makes the dogs jittery and the drivers tense. Fourth Street is where it all starts. At a banquet a couple of evenings before the race, you’ll draw your starting position. Nine o’clock marks the ceremonial start of the race with the honorary number one racer send-off. After that, the race officially begins at nine-o-two. Racers will take off every two minutes after that, and during the ride to Eagle River you’ll carry a passenger.”
“That’s you, Daddy,” Rita said, offering August a smile. August couldn’t help but return his daughter’s gesture.
“Who’s riding with you, Mark?” August questioned.
“I have a friend in Anchorage and I’ve asked him to ride with me. It’s kind of a pre-wedding present,” Mark replied. “In fact, after the race, I’m going to be his best man.”
“You never mentioned this, Mark,” August commented with a quick glance at Rita. He noted the flash in her eyes that bespoke of sudden interest.
“I meant to. When I was arranging help for the kennel so that you and Beth could spend time in Anchorage, I arranged to cover the extra day I’d be away for the wedding. I was going to mention it to you the other day because I needed to pick up the wedding ring in Fairbanks, but you made it easy on me with that trip to town, and I just forgot.”
Rita nearly fell off her chair. So the ring wasn’t Mark’s. This changed everything. But did she want it to? When she’d thought that Mark had someone else in his life, it was easier for Rita to separate her feelings from her thoughts.
Rita’s reaction wasn’t lost on August or Mark, but both men kept their thoughts to themselves, while Rita struggled just to hear what was being said about the trail.
February came quickly to an end and Rita found herself on the way to Anchorage with her father. Her mother was coming down with Gerald and his wife in order to join in the festivities. After the Iditarod started, they would drive the dog vehicles to Eagle River, where they would meet Rita and her team after the first leg of the race. At Eagle River, the dogs and sleds would be loaded into trucks and driven to Wasilla, where the entire race would start again. The trail in earlier years passed over the mudflats of upper Cook Inlet to Knik. Due to the hazards of this area, when unseasonable warmth left the ground and water unfrozen, the race was officially changed to restart in Wasilla.
“It only gets better,” August said with a smile.
“I love the anticipation. Just knowing that something glorious like the Iditarod awaits is enough to keep me on the edge of my seat. I keep thinking of how it’s going to be, and even though I’ve never been there, you and Mark have made me feel as if I know how it will be,” Rita chattered.
August nodded. “I’m glad you’re excited. I knew you would be. You’re finally realizing your dream and that’s something quite special. I’m grateful to be a part of it before I die.”
“Don’t talk about dying, Daddy.” Rita’s voice betrayed her fear.
“Rita, you don’t need to worry about me. I’m not afraid to die; and when my time comes, I’ll be ready. I guess my only real concern is whether or not you will be.”
Rita swallowed hard. She thought of the verses her aunt Julie had shared and all of her mother’s speeches. Somehow those things were easier to deal with than her father’s worries.
August tried not to notice the way Rita paled. Death, particularly the possibility of his death, caused Rita a great deal of fear. “Rita,” he began gently, “you must let go of the fear you feel inside. Trust isn’t an easy thing, but trust in God is something that will never let you down, because God will never let you down.”
“How can you be so sure?” Rita barely whispered the question.
“It’s a matter of believing in the promises that God has given in the Bible, Rita. He said He’d never leave us and He never will.”
“It’s so hard,” Rita replied. “The whole concept is difficult to believe. I mean, I see that God is real to you and Mom. I guess even Mark sees Him in a real way; but it just doesn’t feel that way to me. I’ve prayed before, but I never felt as though my prayers went any farther than the room I was in. God just never made Himself very evident to me.”
August nodded. “I can understand your predicament. I went through a time like that, too. Of course, you know all about that, and it isn’t what’s important right now. What is important is that you can have God in your life in a very real way. If you want Him, Rita, God will be there for you and He will help you to see Him.”
“I’m afraid of trying.” Rita’s honest words hung in the air. “I mean, it seems like everyone I’ve ever cared about has deserted me. Everyone but you, that is.”
“Do you really believe that?” August questioned.
“I don’t know, Daddy. All I know is that ever since I was a little girl, I tried to understand why Mom felt so angry with me all the time and why none of my brothers or sisters seemed to have the time of day for me.”
“Your brothers and sister were all s
o much older than you. You turned out to be a surprise gift from the Lord. You have to remember that you came nearly nine years after we presumed we were finished with diapers and bottles. Nevertheless, we loved you as much as any of the rest,” August replied.
Rita shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. You may have felt that way, but Mother didn’t. I overheard her tell Sarah that she’d never wanted me.”
August looked stunned. “I find that hard to believe, Rita. I mean, I know the pregnancy was a shock to your mother and that we had to change a lot of plans, but I remember when she gave birth to you. I watched her nurse you. Your mother loved you as much as any of the others.”
Rita winced and fell silent.
“Look, Rita,” August said, dividing his concentration between the road and his daughter, “the issue here isn’t the past, but the future. I’m going to pray that God will reveal Himself to you in a very real way and I’m going to pray that you can somehow get over your hurtful relationship with your mother and start over.”
Rita looked out the window to avoid her father’s face. She didn’t want to appear vulnerable to his words, but the truth was, she felt compelled to listen.
“I mean it, Rita,” August said in an authoritative voice. “I want you to figure out what the problem is between you and your mom and deal with it. I don’t want to leave this world with the concern that either one of you is alone. I want you to be there for each other. I want you to love each other.”
August’s words hung on the air, stifling Rita into silent submission. “I want you to love each other,” resounded in her mind as the forested miles of highway ticked by.
Chapter 9
The noise at the starting line on Fourth Street was intense and nerve-racking. Rita stood beside her dogs, soothing, quieting, and rechecking every harness and line. She could feel the adrenaline surging through her veins, making her heart pound hard against her temples.
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