Queen of Hearts

by Sheryl Wright

  Hearing the sounds of something breaking through the nearby brush gave Erin visions of a bear finding her, but Ally stumbled through, almost falling on her. “You can’t see a thing in there. Remind me, if either of us has to pee, to stick to the shoreline.”

  “Can’t you hear the river and follow it back?”

  “Naw. The sound is dampened the second you’re more than twenty feet inside the treeline, and it’s ubiquitous. You hear it coming from every direction.” She dumped her bundle of small broken branches on the ground beside the rocks and began looking for a place for the fire.

  When she finally decided, Erin had to ask. “That’s right on top of that old fallen tree we crawled along. Aren’t you worried it will catch too?”

  “I’m hoping it will, but it’s really wet, and even the punky parts are soaked. Still, if it catches, it gives rescuers a better chance of spotting us from the water and the air. Even if they hike in, which they probably will, it’ll be easier to spot than the kind of fire we would light if we were camping here.”

  “Oh. What I wouldn’t do for a little camping gear. Even just a change of clothes.”

  Ally smiled, nodding to the discarded sweatshirt. “I know. Me too.” Looking at the pile of rocks, she asked, “Did you get them from the water or dig them up?”

  “I just grabbed the ones I could reach from here. Sorry, I didn’t want to put my hands back in that water.”

  “Hey, don’t be sorry. You did perfect. Stones from the water can have moisture in them. If we put them in the fire, they might explode.”

  “Explode?” That confused Erin. “And why are we putting them in the fire? I mean, I thought we needed them to go around, you know for safety.”

  Ally stopped what she was doing, giving Erin her full attention. “We don’t need a safety ring as much as we need warmth. We’ll build a fire, and these rocks will get warmed in it. They hold the heat for a long time, so once they’re hot we can bury them under the soil, down just far enough for some padding. The heat will rise from the rocks and help keep us warm all night.”

  “You think we’ll be here all night?”

  “Maybe, maybe not. All I know is a rescue boat can’t get up this river, and a helicopter can’t land here. That leaves having a search and rescue team winch us out or waiting until morning for the search party to show up. Either way, we might as well get comfortable.”

  Erin was just about to ask how she was going to light a fire when she pulled out a waterproof lighter and a folding knife from her cargo pocket. “I always carry these,” she explained. “Part of our helo safety equipment.”

  With the knife, she started dragging the blade at a ninety-degree angle along a piece of dead wood. In seconds she had a large pile of shavings. These she arranged between the stump and trunk of the fallen tree. With the lighter, it burned easily, and Erin watched with interest as Ally began feeding small sticks then larger ones until she could add a few of the larger branches she had dragged back.

  “That won’t last long, but at least I’ll be able to find my way back now. Will you be okay if I go grab more firewood? We’re going to need a lot more than that to last the night.”

  “Can I help?”

  Ally looked her over carefully. “You can keep this fire going for me. How’s that? Take your time and always leave room for the air to reach the fire. Here, look. Try adding branches by piling them on like lodge poles.”

  Erin watched her add firewood in a pyramid shape, up and above the fire. They looked unaffected by the flames then one by one they caught, the flames dancing up the dry wood faster than she’d imagined. “Oh! Okay, I can do that,” she reassured Ally, who still looked reluctant to leave. “I should come with you.”

  “Most certainly not. Not with a possible head injury. I’m just… You’ll be okay, right?”

  “Yes Ally, I’ll be all right, and I’ll keep the fire going. Promise.”

  That garnered a big smile, and Ally was off without another word. That was something she admired about Allyson. Unlike Pam or even chatty-Cathy Connie, she was a woman of few words. Not that she didn’t like to talk. She was as talented a conversationalist as was Pam, but Pam’s focus was, well, on Pam. With Ally it was different. They shared the same family upbringing and most of the education, but Ally was all about inclusion, and she genuinely liked to hear about others, their struggles, and their triumphs. And she was first to call bullshit and to suggest others reconsider their viewpoints from several perspectives, but not in the confrontational way Pam banked on in court. Ally was interested in people believing in themselves. She worked hard and truly thought it was the work, the effort, that set someone apart from those unwilling to contribute.

  Deciding the fire needed attention, Erin tried adding wood the way Ally had only to have those sticks fall. It was harder than it looked. Determined to get this right and have a solid blaze going by the time she returned, she tried again, rescuing a few of her branches and leaning them together. This time they stuck, and she watched in fascination as the flames climbed and the embers began to build. She carefully piled some of her rocks around the edges. She wasn’t sure if they needed to be in the fire or just close. If they needed to be in it, she decided she needed to build a bigger base of coals first and added more firewood. Ally was right. It looked like the old wet log wouldn’t burn, or at least not until it was thoroughly dried out. Until then, she’d concentrate on building her coals and adding her rocks around the edge. Even if it didn’t help, the work was keeping her spirits up and the heat was a salve for her soul.

  Erin heard Ally long before she could make her out in the all-consuming dark. She tried to keep her attention on the fire, but it was hard to concentrate when she couldn’t see anything around her except for the treeline on the opposite bank of the river. And Ally was right—it was hard to hear above the sound of the river. It was pervasive yet hushed somehow, like the trees themselves worked to diminish its force.

  “You’re back.” To her ears, she sounded unsure, maybe even scared. Ally, for all her abilities, never made her feel stupid or unprepared.

  “You’re right to worry. Twenty feet in and I couldn’t see the fire. It would be so easy to get disoriented. From now on I’ll forage along the river bank. The deadfall may be wetter, but I’ll have a better chance of finding my way back.”

  “Were you scared?” The question surprised her. Until this moment, Erin had convinced herself Ally was invincible and completely in her element.

  “Yeah, a bit. My hearing sucks, so it’s impossible for me to tell the direction of the river in the dark. The deeper you go, the harder it is even to see your hands much less where you’re putting your feet.”

  Erin watched as Ally added more wood to the fire, finally asking, “You must have a lot of survival training. I mean, you have all the stuff we needed on you…”

  Ally’s grin stalled her thoughts. “I carry a lot of junk in my flight suit. Belt cutter,” she said, holding up the folding knife and showing her the angled inboard cutting edge that reminded her of the little cutter her mother used to open the corner of plastic bagged milk. “Weatherproof lighter. There’s more I usually have and could have used if I hadn’t let Connie rush me to get out of my flight suit. I do have a little pack of basics.” She pulled out and zippered open a wallet-sized case. “I have fishing lines and hooks.”

  “Ooh, can we string the fishing line and see if we get lucky?” The enthusiasm she felt renewed her hope.

  “We sure can. You want to pick out one of those long sticks to tie one end to?”

  While Ally tied the line to the hook set in paper, she looked to be in deep thought. “We need to think about what we can use for a sinker. In water this fast, a hook and line will just bob on the surface. You don’t happen to have any toonies on you?”

  Erin was confused by the question. “Connie collected all our electronics.”

  That made her grin. “Sorry, I mean those Canadian two-dollar coins.”

  She
did, but it took some trying to get it free of her wet pocket. “It’s from the twenty I won for you. I meant to give them to you today.” She handed it to her, curious to see how she would use it.

  “You did good.” Ally grinned at her, then explained, “What I’m about to do is technically a federal offense, so I’m swearing you to secrecy. Understood?”

  She offered a Girl Scout salute, promising not to divulge a word. Ally carefully laid the center section over a low spot on a rock, placed her heavy blade against the polar bear in the center gold section and used another rock to pound on the knife. It took a few tries but finally, the inner coin separated from the outer silver ring and instantly she had a weight and spinner all in one. She handed the gold-colored bear back to her. “A souvenir of our adventure,” Ally said, hunting in the thin, rich loam for a squishy worm and then hooking it on. “Okay, I think that’s the best we can do. You mind being pole keeper? Oh, that sounded wrong.”

  Erin was all smiles. “You know, you’re quite ingenious?” She chuckled. “Yes, I’ll guard the fishing pole,” she said, carefully stuffing the polar bear inner coin back in her wet pocket and taking hold of the stick to which the line was now tied. “What else have you got in there?”

  “Hmm, let’s see, Band-Aids, antibiotic cream, bug juice…”

  “Would that work for mosquitoes?”

  “Yeah!” she said, and Erin was immediately hopeful for some relief. “I’m sorry. I don’t get bit much, so I don’t notice.” Ally opened the soft plastic vial, squeezing the clear liquid in her hands. “Just say where.”

  “Oh um…My face and arms.”

  Ally rubbed mosquito repellant on her arms then the back of her neck, carefully covering her face with just the gentlest of gestures with the tips of her fingers.

  “I could have done that.”

  “This is military-grade stuff. You don’t want it in your eyes. Which is easy to do if you get it on your fingers.”

  She watched as Ally washed her hands in the cold river water. “What else have you got in there?”

  “A signal mirror, which is useless until we have sunlight, and a mini compass which I’ve found to be accurate within one hundred and eighty degrees. Not sure why I haven’t tossed the thing.”

  “Oh, so not much help for us.”

  “We don’t need it,” Ally reassured her. “Rescuers will be here long before we have to think about walking out alone. I just wish I’d thought to grab my flashlight too. That would have made life easier. Oh, look. I forgot I have the solar blanket. It’s not much, but it should help keep your back warm while the fire takes care of the rest.”

  “I…” What if I want you to take care of the rest? “What about you? Can’t we share?”

  Ally smiled again. It was warm and unpresumptuous. “Would it be okay if I got in behind you and cuddled in? We can share body heat, and I can wrap the blanket thing around us both.”

  She nodded, not trusting her voice and sitting rigid as Ally maneuvered around to sit with her legs on each side of Erin. She slid in close, gently gesturing for Erin to get comfortable.

  They were quiet for some time before Ally admitted, “KC once dragged me on a week-long survival course. I wanted to kick her ass for signing us up, but she was right as usual. It was something we needed.” When Erin didn’t say anything, Ally asked, “You all right?”

  “Just looking at the stars. Even with the fire and the trees, I can see, like, a million. I’ve never seen so many stars and so clearly.”

  They sat cuddled up, the fire keeping them warm and the stars looking down at them. Nothing in the moment felt more important to Erin than just sitting here, in the dark woods, with Ally. She reached for Ally’s hands which were resting respectfully at her side and pulled her arms around her. The immediate response was Ally pulling her even closer. Holding her, comforting her. She felt protected, and something more. “I don’t know how you feel about me. I mean, there are so many women…”

  “Are there? I hadn’t noticed.” She didn’t sound flippant or ironic. She sounded sincere, finally stating softly, “I thought you were into Pam?”

  “I…no. I mean she’s nice. I do like her, just not…”

  “It’s okay. I know women see me differently than my cousin. They always have. I guess it’s my shyness that gets the best of me. Pam, on the other hand, has always been the outspoken go-getter. Like Harvard. She decided at the tender age of eleven that she would study law at Harvard then move to Chicago.”

  “I thought she moved there to be closer to her mom and stepdad?”

  “More like the other way around. My grandfather is a persuasive man, and he worried about her being alone, so he opened an investment office there and persuaded Uncle David to set up a shop to monitor the Chicago commodities and options exchanges. It’s a made-up job but it suits him and my aunt just fine.”

  “I had no idea.”

  “How could you? It’s not something Pam would share on a first date.”

  For a moment Erin almost panicked, remembering Pam and Connie’s warning not to tell anyone she was Pam’s spy. Surely that couldn’t include Ally? Except telling her didn’t feel right either. What would she think? Would she decide Erin wasn’t really into this thing and give up on her? Was she in this thing? She certainly never intended to be part of the whole game, just an unofficial observer. That’s what she had told herself, and what Pam had repeatedly said on the flight to Toronto. In or out? She couldn’t say.

  “You okay? I didn’t mean to give you a hard time. Whatever you feel for Pam or anyone else is, well, they’re your feelings, and you should honor them.”

  That didn’t make Erin feel any better. Still trying to decide what to say, she needed to sit up, turn around and say it face-to-face. Turning, she caught the firelight dancing in Ally’s eyes and something more. Desire? When was the last time a woman looked at her like this? She’d been feeling it too. Was it just the situation or was it the woman? It was so hard to tell, yet here she was, in the arms of a caring and gentle woman. Circumstances aside, she had never felt better.

  “THERE THEY ARE!”

  They both jumped at the triumphant shout of the search party.

  “Holy cow, you guys are a sight for sore eyes,” said Sandy, the woman carrying the camera pack, then she flipped on the floods. “How are you both?”

  The moment gone, they submitted to medical checks by the field medic. Most concerning to the medic was Erin’s possible head trauma. Pleased to see her alert and responsive, he ordered the other guides to make camp, then pulled out his satellite phone, calling the base camp and the lodge to let everyone know they had been found and were injury free, except for some bruising, and in good spirits. “The director wants to speak with Allyson,” he said, holding out the phone.

  Ally took the phone. “Ally here…Yes, Connie, we’re fine…She did hit her head, but she hasn’t shown any symptoms of concussion…Yes, I have been paying attention…Let me ask her.” She turned to Erin, asking gently. “Connie’s willing to call in a helicopter to take you out tonight. It’s up to you.”

  “I thought you said they couldn’t land here.”

  “They can’t,” the medic said. “We’d set off flares, and they would lower a basket on the winch line. We’d strap you in, and they’d pull you up. It’s easy. Nothing to worry about and we shouldn’t fool around. If you have any symptoms, tell me now. It’ll be safer to get you out.”

  “Where would they take Ally and me?”

  “Just you. They’ll only winch out injured parties. Allyson here can walk out tomorrow morning with us. Right?”

  Ally nodded, adding for Erin’s sake, “It is safe. If you’re feeling any symptoms, I would rather err on the side of caution.”

  “I’m fine. I told you that. No nausea, no headache, nothing.”

  Both the medic and Ally looked chastised, then Ally reported to Connie, “She’s in fighting form. I think that means she wants to stay. Is that a problem?” She listened inte
ntly, finally answering, “Got it. Okay, put her on.” Turning back to Erin she said without emotion, “Pam wants to talk to you.”

  Erin could only wonder if Ally felt betrayed, considering their conversation. Ally stood, joining the others just feet away, leaving Erin to feel cold and alone. “I’m here Pam, and I’m fine.” Of all the times for her boss to make a fuss. Damn it!

  Chapter Fifteen

  It didn’t take Ally and the guys long to set up the survival shelters. The biggest challenge was finding three somewhat level spots big enough for the lightweight two-person tents. While they were working on setting up camp, the camerawoman sat with Erin by the fire and interviewed her on all that had happened. Ally could only wonder what was being said.

  The guys teased her while they worked. “Woulda thought you’d built a shelter by now.”

  “And a shopping mall,” another joked.

  “Naw,” the third chimed in. “I was betting on an escape vessel. Or a rocket!”

  “How’s she gonna build a rocket out here, dipwad? There ain’t no rocket fuel for miles.”