Tom Brand Escapes

29 - Escapes Canada, Eh

They departed early the next day from Sault Ste. Marie airport. It was a clear, bright morning and the wind was with them. In a little over 3 hours, Charles asked for clearance and they made a soft landing in his Cessna light jet on the small airstrip at Oliver Municipal Airport in British Columbia. Charles taxied directly to the hanger. Brand and Slater would head out immediately on a three hours drive by Jeep. They would park at trail entrance off Crowsnest Highway, which intersected EC Manning Park. Charles had arranged for the Jeep to be picked up so no one would be alarmed thinking that hikers were missing. This time of year the weather was tricky and within weeks trails would start closing for the winter season. They would make their way up a remote trail by foot, fifteen miles to their target destination, a peak east of Shawatum Mountain.

They had maintained a strict technology silence since leaving Washington DC. Brand didn't need to be connected to anything to know to know that people were looking for him and Jenn Slater. There was no doubt his image had been captured by cameras in D.C. or Pentagon City. Out here, they had the remoteness and protection of being offline. Out here, a person could fall off a cliff and be within yards of a search party and never be found. Brand would not go back online until after the mission, using the satellite phone supplied by Charles.

It took them most of the rest of the day to make it over the rough terrain. Jenn's surveillance would hopefully confirm their suspicions but their final move was open-ended. Brand was fine with this. Slater's reasoning was sound, logical. What she had surmised from the information Russom had given her made sense. They need only wait till dawn to execute their plan.

The sun was setting quickly behind the mountain, casting purple and yellow streaks across the sky. As they finished their bland ready-to-eat meals Jenn asked Brand, "Do you know the song "Dock of the Bay"?"

"I do," Brand answered. "I'm surprised you know it. That's an old one. Why do you ask?"

"There's this line in it: "my loneliness won't leave me alone."

"I'm not sure I know that verse."

She sang it.

"'Sittin' here restin' my bones, and my loneliness won't leave me alone.'"

She had a nice voice.

"I guess you're missing Peter?" Brand asked.

Jenn started. "How do you know?"

She broke off, miffed. "Of course. You looked into my background."

Brand nodded.

"When?" she asked.

"As soon as you started working for Russom."

"I suppose Petras is good at that," she said.

"He's my guy."

Jenn shook her head and took a long drink of water from her field flask.

"No offense. You're terrific company and all considering the situation, but I'm lonely. Aren't you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah. I mean Petras is great - tons of fun. But don't you feel lonely? For companionship? Warmth?"

"Warmth?"

"Yes. Warmth, comfort." Jenn was lying on her back, staring up at the sky.

"Not romance or sex. Although...anyway. I mean holding hands, watching The Bachelor, cooking dinner." She sighed and propped herself up on an elbow. "That's what I miss. It makes me feel lonely to think of Peter by himself and us not doing those things together."

"You okay?" Brand asked.

Jenn rubbed the tips of her fingers under her nose.

"Yeah. So how about it? You have those feelings?"

Brand looked out over the rocky landscape. It was getting cold fast as the sun rapidly disappeared. The clouds turned purple and then dark blue-grey.

"Sure. But only just recently."

" Leah?"

Brand laughed.

"Why would you assume that?"

Because you let her go."

"How does that follow?"

"I don't know," Jenn said. "Maybe you thought you could live vicariously through her if she made it out."

Brand considered this then said, "I don't think so. It wasn't her, anyway."

"The Bahamas woman?"

Brand rubbed his knuckles along his chin.

"Yeah."

"So she gave you that warm feeling?"

"I guess you could say that. Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"What's The Bachelor?"

Jenn laughed and covered her face.

"Oh, no. You did not just say that."

"What? What did I say?"