Hawk's Holiday.
Chapter 3: Traveling.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the GI Joe characters.
Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 72 hrs later.
Hawk had decided to go to the resort town of Banff, Alberta in Canada for his holiday. The town was located in one of, if not the largest national park in Canada. There were a lot of things to see and do, including; hiking, skiing, natural hot springs, golf, and other activities just the ideal place for a quiet, relaxing holiday, far away from the daily grinds.
Firewall checked to see how many Air Miles he actually had saved up. It turned out that Hawk had more than enough to get a decent room at a nice hotel, and a free rental car. They looked over the list of hotels and Hawk decided that he liked the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel a lot. It was an opulent, secluded hotel that offered fine dining and many other activities for the reasonably wealthy, late middle aged, American tourist.
So Hawk had her book a reservation, at the Fairmont Banff Springs under his real name, Clayton Abernathy. He kicked in a bit of his own money, but it would be worth it.
He decided to fly to Calgary, Alberta, and then drive the rest of the way himself. Firewall had already booked him on a First Class flight to Calgary. And a car or SUV would be there waiting for him.
Hawk packed up enough clothes for two weeks, including his best suit. He also packed his golf clubs, and swim trunks. He decided to leave his old, battered brown leather bomber jacket behind. He wanted to project the image of a man of leisure, not an Army General. He wanted to leave all his troubles behind for two weeks.
Before he left though, he had a bit of a row with Duke that went something like this:
Duke: I really think you should have booked under an alias, not to mention in a less opulent hotel.
Hawk: Duke, I am going on a vacation for heaven's sake. I'm not going on an undercover assignment.
Duke: You should take along a few Joes as bodyguards at least.
Hawk: (Sigh) I can take care of myself Duke. What do I have to worry about? Ski Bunnies and retirees? Bodyguards? Please.
Duke: You could at least take a gun with you.
Hawk: Duke! You know about all of the restrictions against taking firearms onto civilian flights! Not to mention a lot of the Canadian firearms regulations. For the last time, I am going on holiday. That's h-o-l-i-d-a-y, not a spy mission.
Duke protested further, but Hawk shut the door in his face.
Hawk got on an early morning flight the next day. Flint, Lady Jaye, Scarlet, Snake Eyes, and a still smouldering Duke saw him off at the airport. He arrived in Calgary in the afternoon and picked up his rental car, a Ford SUV. He decided to head into Calgary to pick up a few odd items, have a meal, and check into a hotel for the night before driving west to Banff.
He drove into the city to a few stores that sold camping equipment that a nice woman at the Airport information booth told him about, and even provided him with a map of the city. Fortunately the SUV he had rented came with a GPS unit and computerized navigation system.
He made his way through the city's downtown core, slightly amazed at the size of the city, considering the population was barely close to a million people. Hawk found the stores that the helpful woman indicated, delighted that they were all, more or less, on the same street. He purchased a pair of new fleece sweaters, a pair of sturdy hiking boots, several pairs of socks, a rucksack, and, just for the hell of it, a fedora and sunglasses.
He than walked down the street to a restaurant called the Keg Steakhouse and Pub, and went in for lunch. The people there were very friendly, something he was starting to like about Canadians. Hawk decided to turn his cell phone back on. They had asked him to turn it off when he boarded the plane. He figured Duke should have tried calling several times by now and should be fairly worried by now.
Sure enough, almost two minutes after he turned on his cell phone, it vibrated. Hawk checked to see if he was right. Yep, the number was the same as the one on the phone on Duke's desk. Hawk decided to have a little fun at his second in command's expense. He let it buzz for a few seconds before he answered.
"Hi Mom!" Hawk said with an impish grin on his face. The waitress came up with an inquisitive look on her face. "My old mother." Hawk said. "She really worries when I don't call." The waitress smiled and nodded in understanding.
"Sorry, Mom. I was just talking to my waitress. Yes, I'm having lunch now, a nice steak lunch. I'm fine, Mom. The flight was uneventful. Don't worry." Hawk was enjoying himself. Duke was getting a bit annoyed at being called 'Mom'. There were people giggling in the background on Duke's end. He's using the speakerphone. Hawk thought. Time to raise his blood pressure a bit.
"Yes, Mother I'll try to eat in moderation. I bought a nice couple of warm sweaters too; so don't worry about that Mom. Don't worry I'll be safe. Yes there are some wild animals up in Banff according to the brochure. I won't go near any of them Mom.
"I should go now, Mom. My waitress is here. Don't worry; I'll bring you back a nice present. Bye Mom, I'll call you later. I love you. Bye now." Hawk closed the phone on Duke's angry reply. Hawk felt a bit better. He turned back to the waitress. "What's the biggest steak you've got? I'm starved!"
Meanwhile, Duke hung up the phone with an annoyed expression on his face. Scarlet, Lady Jaye, Flint, Stalker, and Cover Girl, were trying, and failing, to keep from laughing at Duke. Duke figured that the whole base would know about this within 5 minutes of them leaving. He wondered what he had done to annoy God this time.
Hawk, after a wonderful lunch, and dessert, and a little walk through a few more local stores, went to a nearby Holiday Inn and got a room for the night. It was going to be a long drive to Banff tomorrow, and he wanted to be well rested. He could hardly wait for his holiday to begin in earnest.
When Hawk, settled in his room, he poured himself a drink and relaxed on the bed. It had been years since the last time he had been in Canada. He had been here before a few times while he was growing up. His parents had taken him on a few trips to various parts of the country.
Hawk had also visited Canada a few times since he had started leading GI Joe. The first time was just a few years after GI Joe was formed. He and a few others went to advise the Canadian Military and R.C.M.P. about the threat Cobra represented to international security. He met an attractive young female army Captain named Catherine LaCroix. She was a stunning redhead with bright green eyes and a great figure, not to mention smarts, and a great sense of humour.
She was there as an aide to the General in charge of Canadian Army Intelligence. He didn't seem to take the threat Cobra represented seriously enough, but she did. She asked insightful, thought provoking questions about Cobra that intrigued Hawk so much that after a few meetings he asked her if she wanted to have dinner with him. Happily, she said yes. They went out for dinner or drinks a few more times, but Hawk got called away for a mission to Alaska, where Cobra tried to sabotage the Alaskan Oil Pipeline.
They kept in touch for almost two years until Hawk went back for another conference with the Canadian Army Brass. The new head of Canadian Army Intelligence was a bit more worried about Cobra than his predecessor, as was his chief aide, Major LaCroix.
This time things got a bit more intimate between them. Things were going well until the formation of Cobra Island mess.
They met several more times over the years until she retired from the Canadian Army, with the rank of Colonel, and went into the private security business. Unfortunately they drifted apart, except for Christmas cards, Birthday cards, and the odd letter. Her last one indicated that she was now head of security for some company, but didn't mention which.
Hawk would have loved seeing her again.