"There's Just No 'Getting Away From It All'"
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Kelly's borrowed alarm clock went off at six a.m.—sharp—and continued to go off until the spring mechanism unwound to the point where its loud, annoying 'clang'ing became a mildly irritating 'tap'ping sound…and then quit, entirely.
Gage crawled out of his nice, warm bed, tossed on some clothes and then headed into the cabin's kitchen.
The paramedic waited until the last possible moment, before disturbing the loft's still-dozing denizens. "There's coffee and pancakes!" he called up the stairs. "If anybody's hungry…for food," he wryly added, just beneath his breath.
"What time is it?" Chet sleepily pondered.
"Seven-thirty."
Kelly's "Ah sh—eeeesh!" cry was closely followed by a flurry of activity.
The cook snickered and returned to the kitchen.
A few minutes later, the loft's former occupants appeared in the cabin's cozy little breakfast nook.
Judging by the bags under their eyes, and by the way they had to practically drag themselves to the breakfast table, the pair had put that bed in the loft to good use.
Gage placed a platter—piled high with pancakes—and a pot of steaming coffee down on the set table and then assumed a seat, directly across from the groggy couple.
The paramedic was able to put up with the pair's mushy terms of endearment. He even tolerated all the lustful, furtive glances they managed to exchange.
But, when the two lovebirds started feeding each other pancakes, and licking the maple syrup from one another's lips, the cook quickly excused himself and finished eating his breakfast in front of the fireplace.
Nikki put in an appearance around eight, as promised.
John loaned Vickie his helmet and snowmachine and Miss Norland led Chet and his 'guest' off on a deluxe tour of the best—and most scenically beautiful—snowmobile trails, in the entire surrounding area…including a brief sojourn into Wisconsin.
Shortly after the trio left on their scenic tour, several large trucks pulled up to, and went rumbling past, the cabin. During the course of the morning, and under the strict supervision of the FAC, what could be found of the plane's wreckage was carted off.
Gage ignored the heavy machinery's whining engines and grinding gears, and concentrated, instead, on relaxing.
John filled the bird feeders out on their cabin's deck, swept off a comfortable wooden chair and then spent a somewhat disturbed, but still relaxing morning out there, sipping coffee and communing with a small flock of Black-capped Chickadees.
Gage even managed to get several of his remarkably tame feathered friends to land right in his motionless lap, and take sunflower seeds right out of the palm of his steady hand.
The fireman felt a profound calmness flow over him and suddenly recalled Dorothy's words in the final scene to 'The Wizard of Oz': "If a person can't find happiness in their own backyard, they're not going to find it anywhere." Or something to that effect.
He figured it was the same way when it came to trying to find someplace to relax. If a person couldn't relax in their own backyard, they most likely weren't gonna be able to relax anywhere else, either.
John also now knew why Nikki liked being out there on the deck so much.
You couldn't hear the wind, or the quiet chorus of singing birds when you were in the cabin.
As he sat there under a canopy of crystal blue sky, with a cool but gentle breeze caressing his cheeks, and the sun's warm rays lulling him to sleep, the paramedic could actually feel the serenity and beauty of his surroundings sucking all the stress out of him.
The paramedic exhaled a contented sigh. He felt incredibly—and completely—relaxed. And he wasn't even concentrating anymore!
By that afternoon, the recovered pieces of plane wreckage, and the FAC people, were finally gone—for good.
Peace and quiet returned, once more, to the mountaintop.
That is, until just before dark, when the sound of three, noisy, two-cycle engines suddenly broke the silence.
When the trio of bold explorers got back to the cabin, they discovered that John had supper waiting for them in the oven.
Nicole's guests invited her to be their guest for dinner that evening.
The young lady accepted their gracious invitation, and the four of them finished off the last of their tinfoil wrapped pasties.
Four snowy/rainy RELAXING days later, it was, regrettably, time for the two Californians to take their leave of both Brule Mountain and Michigan.
John and Chet bid their unforgettable—and beautiful—hostess goodbye, and thanked the pretty miss—profusely—for her hospitality…and her friendship.
Nikki pulled Chet aside and slipped him a note, along with some 'stern' instructions.
Chet and Vicki headed back to Marquette in her car.
John followed them in their rental.
Prior to checking back in to their original hotel, John stopped at The Camera Corner to pick up several rolls of film he'd sent off to be developed.
The paramedic purchased a picture frame, to go with one of the photos he'd had blown up, and then finally returned to the Ramada Inn.
John carried his packets of pictures and his heavy suitcase up to his old room.
The photographer looked over his developed pictures for a while, and then headed over to the hospital, to thank Dr. Hunter—in person—for vouching for him with the Iron County Medical Commissioner.
Dr. Hunter filled the paramedic in on how Jack and Billy were fairing, following their surgeries.
Gage was relieved to hear that the two 'guardian angels' were recovering well from the crash. Their rescuer was also delighted to learn that the pair intended to purchase a new Life-Flight plane, so that they could continue to fly people with medical emergencies to distant hospitals.
John returned to the Ramada Inn and asked the desk clerk to give them a couple of wake up calls around six, or so. Then he exchanged some paper currency for coins and headed for the nearest pay phone.
He called Stacey, just to hear the sound of her voice. He bid the girl sweet dreams and a goodnight, and then turned in.
Chet and Vickie dined and danced one last time in The Discoverer's Lounge.
The couple then retired for the evening.
Speaking of discovering things…
Gage was awakened, at precisely 6 a.m., by the loud, annoying ringing of a telephone.
Kelly completely ignored his wake-up call.
The muffled, but still annoying, ringing continued.
So John stumbled across the carpeting and rapped, rather loudly, on the door to Chet's adjoining room. "C'mon!" he insincerely urged. "If we miss this flight, we miss them all."
"Is it always this difficult for you to get out of bed?" he heard Vickie ask.
"I can get out of bed—easy," he heard his sleepy chum reply, "unless you're lying beside me…" he romantically tacked on.
Gage wasn't the least bit surprised to discover that the beautiful young woman had spent the night. In fact, he would have been shocked, if she hadn't. John blinked his own sleepy eyes and then headed for his shower.
Chet and Vickie saved water, by showering together.
The couple also shared breakfast—together.
John was packed and ready, and waiting for Chet in the lobby.
The pair walked in, hand-in-hand, and the three of them headed out to the parking lot.
The artist retrieved a tall, gift-wrapped cardboard box from the trunk of her car and presented it to the U.P.'s departing visitors, as they were packing their rental.
Kelly thanked her and then bid the beautiful young woman a lingering—and surprisingly emotional—goodbye.
Having been there…and done that…himself, Gage didn't rush their departure, even if it meant that they might miss all of their flights.
The two men reached the Marquette County Airport at about a quarter to eight.
"Before I forget," John announced, as the pair were pulling their suitcases from the trunk of their rental car. "You were absolutely right!"
"Of course I was right! I'm always right…About what?"
"This trip. You said it was going to be great, and it was."
"Damn straight it was great," Chet smugly agreed. "It was even greater once we ditched the itinerary."
"Anyways, thanks…for inviting me along."
"Thanks…for coming along," Kelly countered. Then he gazed up at the bleak, overcast sky they were about to take off into, and quickly changed the subject. "I don't know about you, but, after all the snow…and the rain…and the blizzards, I am really looking forward to seeing some good old California sunshine again. Man, I can't wait to get back to the blue skies and sunshine!"
Weather wasn't the paramedic's chief concern, at the moment. All John was 'really looking forward to seeing again' was a certain California girl.
The 'blue skies and sunshine' would just be a welcome bonus.
The travelers turned their rental car in, checked their luggage and boarded a North Central DC-10, nonstop, to Detroit.
After a brief layover at Detroit Metro, the Californians climbed aboard a TWA Boeing 747—direct to LA International.
TBC