Chapter Two: The Camp Site
Standing still Jon took a deep breath. The invigorating smell of the forest in front of him filled his senses, giving him a renewed vitality. He needed to get away from the city every once in a while to recharge his batteries.
Cassy got out of the truck and joined him. "Beautiful, isn't it?"
"Yeah," he smiled, pulling her close.
They were parked on a ridge, Friday afternoon, waiting for Ponch and Kellie to arrive. Below them was the valley and clearing where after a fifteen minute walk they'd be setting up camp. Wild flowers were in abundance throughout the pine forest, the grass was lush and green, and they could hear the trickle of the creek as the water flowed over the rocks.
Another truck pulled into the parking area; a Ford, red in colour with a broken tail light and a crack in the windscreen. Two men got out. The driver was in his early forties Jon thought as he glanced at him. Light brown hair, brown eyes and a scar down the left side of his face. He was about six feet tall while his companion was a good six inches shorter. Black hair and small beady eyes, he had an unkempt appearance and a distinct odour. Stale tobacco mixed with body perspiration.
They acknowledged Jon and Cassy with a sly grin and a nod of their heads. "Nice time of the year for a bit of hiking isn't it?" the taller of the two said as they began to unload their gear from the back of the truck.
"Yeah," Jon agreed.
"You and the missus going hiking too?" the man continued.
"Nah, just a bit of camping," Jon said cautiously. He'd noticed the way the other man was staring at Cassy and instinctively drew her closer.
"Enjoy yourselves," he smirked. They flung their backpacks over their shoulders and headed down the trail.
Jon observed them for a moment. Seeing that they were going in a different direction to where they were headed, he relaxed. Kissing the top of Cassy's head he leaned against the truck and looked at his watch. Why was it that his partner was never on time he wondered with a grin on his face?
Cassy giggled. "He wouldn't be Ponch if he was on time."
"How'd you know?" Jon chuckled.
"I can read you like a book, and besides you looked at your watch," she grinned."
"Oh, can you now?" Stepping away so he could look at her properly, Jon grinned wickedly as he stared at her. Wearing knee length navy shorts and one of his tee shirts, which was too big but gave room for her expanding stomach, blonde hair pulled back in a pony tail and blue eyes shining, she never failed to ignite feelings in him. "So, what am I thinking now?" he asked, with a glint in his eyes.
Looking him up and down, Cassy smiled. She knew that look he was giving her and it thrilled her like nothing else did. "That you wish we were in our tent, alone," she breathed deeply.
"God you're good," he groaned, reaching for her. He kissed her deeply, hands sliding down to rest on the swell in her middle. He felt her hands on his buttocks the same time he heard the car pull up. Reluctantly he let her go and whispered in her ear. "We'll finish this later."
Ponch got out of his Firebird grinning widely. "Sorry partner didn't mean to cramp your style."
Jon grinned. "We were just filling in time while we waited for you."
"Sorry Jon," Kellie smiled as she joined them at the rear of the truck. "But you know what he's like."
"Yeah I do." He rolled his eyes and they all laughed.
Jon opened up the back of the truck and proceeded to unload their gear. "Ponch, I could do with some help here," he said, glaring at his partner who had wandered to the front of the truck. "We have to get going."
Ponch turned around. "You didn't tell me it was this beautiful, Jon. Ya know I think I'm actually gonna enjoy this."
"That's good Ponch, come and get a backpack on your back would ya? Then you can enjoy it."
They loaded up, Jon and Ponch taking the heaviest backpacks along with the tents. Kellie had a smaller pack and two water bottles, while Jon wouldn't let Cassy carry anything heavier than two folding chairs and a light backpack.
With the cars locked up they headed off, with nobody noticing the green Cortina station wagon that had pulled in and parked next to the Firebird.
Jon led the way down the narrow trail, Cassy behind him with Ponch taking the rear. The path meandered through the pine trees, every step taking them closer to the trickling water they could hear. It was a pleasant walk, the sun peeped through the trees here and there, while birds chirped from every direction. +
Ponch smiled as he took in the sights and sounds. Maybe he could get the hang of this after all.
They arrived at the camp site fifteen minutes later where the creek could be seen as it ran through the clearing. About six feet wide it bubbled over a splattering of granite rocks. Jon stopped at the remains of an old camp fire and slipped his backpack off.
"What do you think, Ponch?" he asked.
"Nice," Ponch nodded as he looked around.
The clearing was roughly the length of a baseball field but only half as wide. The forest surrounded it on all sides and trials could be seen going off in all directions. An outcrop of rocks was up one end making the perfect wind break, and wild flowers were growing along both sides of the creek. The site was large enough for several groups of campers but they were the only ones there.
"What do we do first partner?" asked Ponch.
"You really haven't been camping much, have you?" giggled Kellie. "We've got to get the tents up first."
Jon chuckled. "Listen to her Ponch and you won't go wrong."
"I always do." Ponch winked at Kellie. "Or else she might be tempted to use her cuffs on me."
"You wish," she grinned.
Newly promoted, Officer Kellie Waugh was relaxed and enjoying herself. She'd finally put the drama of three months ago behind her, and she was especially delighted with the progress of her relationship with one Frank Poncherello. Her light brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and hazel eyes sparkled as she watched Ponch and Jon discuss where to pitch the tents. She loved the amity between the partners and wondered how she could've ever been nervous over meeting Jon. He'd brushed away her apologies without a second thought and the phone call was never mentioned again.
"Wouldn't it be safer to have the tents closer together?" Ponch asked, worried about the possibility of snakes or other creepy crawlies in the middle of the night.
Jon was setting his tent up on a flat piece of ground not far from the creek, and he wanted Ponch opposite with the campfire in between them. "We could, but..." he lowered his voice. "I'm sure the girls would appreciate a bit of distance between us."
Ponch smirked as he realized what Jon was going on about. "You got unfinished business or something?"
"Maybe," Jon grinned, looking in the direction of his wife who was sorting out the tent pegs. He never tired of gazing at her, and at four and a half months pregnant she'd never looked lovelier.
Cassy felt his eyes on her. She glanced up giving him a warm smile and felt a shiver run down her back at the look he gave her. She ran her tongue slowly around her lips and smiled seductively back at him, giggling when he looked away. It was hard to believe that it was not much more than three years since she'd first met him, and she couldn't imagine life without him, which was why she struggled to accept Kellie as Ponch's girlfriend. It went against the way she was brought up, and she hated herself for it but she just couldn't move past the fact that Kellie's mistake could have cost Jon his life.
The tents were up, sleeping bags rolled out and chairs unfolded. It was looking like a camp site. Ponch surveyed the area with pride, erecting the tent hadn't been as complicated as he'd thought. Jon sent him off to collect firewood with Kellie while Cassy filled the water bottles. Before long Jon had the campfire going and a pot on to boil water. They settled down on their chairs while they waited.
The sun had begun to set transforming the sky into a living, breathing work of art. Every imaginable shade of red, pink and orange was visible. Kellie passed around the trail mix she had brought along, and they munched away happily as they enjoyed the brilliance of the ever changing scenery. Jon made them each a cup of coffee after the water had boiled and silence descended as they drank the hot steaming drinks.
"That wasn't bad, Jon," Ponch said as he finished his cup. "It's better than that instant stuff back at the station."
Jon chuckled. "Anything's better than that stuff. So what do you think of this camping so far?"
"Surprisingly I'm enjoying it, but I've gotta say I'm disappointed in you Jon."
Three sets of eyes stared at him and he laughed. "How many years have we been partners? And you've only now managed to get me out here."
Jon grinned. "You know me, never one to rush things."
Next to him Cassy giggled and put her hand on his knee. "Now that's not always true, hon."
"Why?" Jon looked puzzled.
"Have a look at me." She patted her stomach. "Married just six months and already pregnant."
"You can't argue with that one partner," Ponch chortled.
"No I can't," Jon agreed. "Nor do I want to. We might not have planned this but we couldn't be happier."
"Ponch told me about your visit to the baby store the other day," said Kellie. "That, I would have loved to have seen, the pair of you in full uniform pushing strollers around."
Cassy stared at her husband in shock. "Jon, you didn't tell me you were there while you were on duty."
"We were on a break," Ponch said quickly.
"Did Jon drag you in there during lunch, again?" Cassy said sternly, but Jon could see the twinkle in her eyes.
"Maybe..." Ponch answered.
"Actually Ponch, wasn't it your suggestion in the end to go there?"
"Maybe..."
Cassy giggled. "Relax Ponch, I know you both like going in that store, but I'm not sure who enjoys it more, you or Jon."
"He does," they said together. The partners looked at one another and burst into boisterous laughter, promptly followed by the girls.
As stomachs started to rumble they decided it was time for dinner. They'd brought frozen steaks for tonight which Ponch got ready while Jon heated up the pan. Vegetables were thrown in the pot and dinner was underway. Cassy organized the plates and eating utensils while Kellie rinsed the coffee cups and refilled them with water.
"For a simple meal that was delicious," Ponch said as he licked his lips, after having eaten everything on his plate.
"There's something about eating outdoors that makes everything taste different," agreed Jon. "It reminds me of that old lady cooking her bacon outside."
"That bacon," grumbled Ponch. "I still don't believe you ate the bacon."
"Are you still going on about that Ponch?" Jon said, amused. "It was what? Four years ago?"
Cassy giggled. "You'd better fill Kellie in," she said, seeing the confusion on the other woman's face.
"We had a call out about some smoke, and when we got there we found this lady cooking bacon over an open fire," explained Ponch. "And God it smelt good."
"It was," chuckled Jon.
Ponch glared as he continued on. "We helped her put the fire out and I did the right thing and escorted her up the hill, and what did he do? He-"
"Ate the bacon," Jon and Cassy said together, laughing.
Turning towards Kellie, Ponch nodded. "Yeah that's exactly what he did, ate every last piece of it. Some partner he was that day."
Jon laughed. "You win some, you lose some. Talking about food, what about those two detectives whom we helped solve their drug case, and the ice-creams they left on our motors."
"Only it wasn't tutti fruiti," added Ponch. "What was that flavour?"
"Strawberry wasn't it?" Jon grinned as he remembered. "That was a good result, jumping out of a plane to catch those crooks."
"You did what?" exclaimed Kellie, eyes nearly popping out of her head.
"We sky dived out of a plane," Ponch said matter-of-factly.
"And how did two California Highway Patrolmen end up jumping out of a plane to catch crooks, may I ask?" Kellie queried, not believing what she'd heard.
"Easy," answered Ponch.
Taking a sip of water he told, with Jon's help, how a car stripping racket entangled them with the detectives, and led them to jumping out of the plane to intercept a drug pickup. Ponch proudly told how Jon chased one crook down on horseback, lassoing him.
"And they teach all this at motor school, do they?" Kellie looked from one man to the other. "Coz I sure didn't learn any of that stuff at the Academy."
Ponch rubbed her leg. "Stick with us babe and we'll teach you all our tricks."
She placed her hand over his and grinned. "I might just do that."
"Has Ponch told you how we rescued Bonnie by using micro planes?" asked Jon. "Or the time Ponch climbed down a ladder into a Tiger Moth."
Kellie looked at Ponch and smiled. "No, he hasn't, but I've heard the story of how you chased some crooks through Downtown LA on horseback."
Jon grinned. "Yeah that was one special horse."
Sensing where this was headed, Cassy excused herself and slipped into their tent. She came out shortly with a block of chocolate in one hand and her jacket in the other. Jon put another log on the fire which sent sparks shooting into the night sky. The moon was out now and reflecting off the flowing water in the creek.
The chocolate was consumed as the stories continued, another log put on the fire. The high pitched howl of a coyote was heard in the distance, an owl's hoot closer. The forest was coming alive. Kellie glanced up at the right time to see a red fox sneak a drink from the creek before disappearing. Crickets chirped and the odd firefly was seen.
Cassy yawned. It'd been a long day for her; work, the drive up here as well as the walk and setting up camp. She was ready for bed even though it was only just after nine. Catching Jon's eye she indicated the tent with a slight nod.
Jon yawned. "We're gonna call it a night. Put more logs on the fire before you turn in, can ya Ponch?"
"No problem," he grinned. "Watch out for the bed bugs."
"Forget the bed bugs, worry about the rats," countered Jon mischievously, enjoying the look of horror on his partner's face.
"Rats? And you're only telling me this now? You know I hate rats." Ponch squirmed in his chair.
Kellie grasped his hand, trying to suppress a giggle. "I think your partner is just teasing you."
"Good night Ponch," Jon said quickly, taking Cassy's hand he headed towards their tent before Ponch had time to react. "Nite Kellie."
"Good night," she returned.
"You'd better have your wits about ya tomorrow Jon," Ponch warned. He smiled when he heard Jon chuckling in the darkness.
Kellie stood up and held her hands out to him. "Wanna turn in too? It's been a long day."
"No, not yet," he replied huskily as he took her hands in his and pulled her onto his lap in one swift motion.
She squealed in delight but was quickly silenced by his lips. "Mmmm," she murmured as she wrapped her arms around his neck and returned the kiss.
After enjoying the warmth of the fire for an hour or so, Ponch and Kellie finally decided it was time to turn in. Kellie removed her arms from around his neck and kissed him deeply before standing up. Ponch poked at the fire making sparks shoot out in all directions before putting two logs on it. He grinned, enjoying the experience.
Kellie bobbed down behind their tent, while Ponch wandered further away to relieve himself. Zipping up his jeans he stood still for a moment and listened. Over the sound of the crickets and the screech of an owl he was sure he heard voices. Shaking his head he concluded that the forest was just playing with his mind. He turned around to head back when he heard it, the cracking sound of a stick being stepped on. Pausing, he turned slowly back, peering into the forest but seeing nothing. Listening he thought he heard the voices again but it may have been the wind. He was half tempted to wake Jon up but knew his partner wouldn't be impressed and besides what could they do in the dark? He'd tell him about it in the morning.