Chapter 7
"Have you given the warning to everyone, to the hotels and skiing lodges, and to everyone with a radio?" Matt Hawkes, High Mountain Ranger at the headquarters at South Lake Tahoe asked.
"We´ve informed all people who´ve come for the skiing season to return to the hotels. All the cabins have been closed down. There are just the usual hermits who refuse to come down." His colleague Izzy Flowers ran a finger down a list.
"Like Old Toby?" Matt grinned. Toby never left his cabin, not even in winter.
"Yeah, Toby and of course your dad and Cody."
Matt shrugged. His dad, a former High Mountain Ranger and role model for his two sons, lived in his cabin high up in the mountains all year round and with Matt´s brother Cody. A blizzard wasn´t anything that would make the experienced ranger leave his home. But he was aware of the dangers and he was well equipped for the isolation and hardship of a winter in the mountains. A few days without contact to the outside world did not pose a threat to him.
The blizzard they were expecting now wasn´t anything unusual, it was just a bit early in the season. So there were more people they had to take care of, more skiing tourists. But everyone was registered somewhere. And everyone was accounted for at some lodging. Thus it wasn´t really hard to get the warning across to everyone and take care of things.
XIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXXIXIXIXIXIX
Joe woke slowly. He could hardly move. His back hurt like hell. He felt cold to the bone. Sometime in the night he must have fallen asleep. The drug induced dream from his childhood still lingered on the verge of his consciousness.
Again the implications hit him.
Dio sol sa – only God knew where he was. He was lost, he was alone.
He looked at his watch and was surprised. It was way past midday. He had not expected to sleep so long because of the uncomfortable situation. Slowly he sat up. He felt dizzy and sick, most likely on account of the pot. Probably the effect of the drug was stronger if one had nothing to eat. At least he had water now.
He leaned over and with the mug dipped into the bucket. To his horror he found a thin layer of ice on the water´s surface. How could it be so cold inside the cabin? With a shock he became aware of the fact that he could have frozen to death without ever feeling it. He shuddered as he filled the mug. The water was so terribly cold. He could hardly take it into his mouth to warm it before swallowing it. His teeth started to chatter and his hand with the mug shook so hard that the water spilled over the rim onto his trousers and he quickly set it down.
Finally he got up and opened the door. The gust of wind that hit him made him shrink back. But he needed to relieve himself and he forced himself to step outside. There was a trace of newly fallen snow on the ground. He rolled down the socks Paolo had given him, pulled them off his feet and threw them behind himself back into the room. He did not want them to get wet. They would never dry again.
Gritting his teeth Joe stepped outside and around the corner of the building, trying to ignore the sharp pain the cold caused in his feet. But he had in no way anticipated what was coming next. The painful burning sensation as he started to pee drew his gaze down, and the pattern on the white snowy ground made him realize that he was not only passing water but also blood.
Great. This was just the time and place to consider seeing a doctor.
XIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXXIXIXIXIXIX
It seemed impossible to find anyone who was willing to fly from Las Vegas to South Lake Tahoe. Greg again took to the telephone, attempted to track down everyone he knew with a plane. Of those people some were out of town, some were on trips somewhere else and the rest was down with the flu. It was downright frustrating.
When Greg was at last successful and turned up with an old friend who agreed to fly, it was too late. The blizzard was rapidly approaching from the north-west and that was exactly the direction the flight had to take. Considering the speed of the storm and the plane it was obvious that they would meet half way. So the only option was to wait until the blizzard had passed.
Greg did not mention that this would not be the only obstacle. When the blizzard would have passed there was also the question how the condition on the airport in Lake Tahoe would be. Snowdrifts would have to be removed to allow landing and an icy runway might downright prevent any touch down at the port of destination.
Levon knew this as well but he pushed those considerations aside. Thoughts of Joe spun through his mind, all kinds of scenarios of where he might be or what might have happened to him. The idleness was driving Levon crazy. He had the acute feeling that they were running out of time. But there was absolutely nothing they could do except wait.
XIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXXIXIXIXIXIX
Joe went back inside and attempted to dry and warm his feet, then put on the socks. He crawled back under the remains of the sack. Meanwhile he was pretty sure that the pain in his back was emanating from his kidneys and had something to do with the blood he had passed along with his water. All through the afternoon he felt the onslaught of violent chills. He tried to drink some of the water from the bucket, but he felt so sick that he brought it up again every single time. While the blizzard gathered momentum and howled around the cabin, a relentless fever seized Joe and filled his heart with sheer despair.
When the pain became too fierce to bear, Joe reached for another cigarette. He could hardly get the lighter going, his hands were too shaky and his fingers were numb from the cold. This time it took long for the respite to come. The combination of the drug and the sickness took Joe away from the cabin and back into Julia´s arms. He had spent almost all his life with her before they had split. Now he longed for her comfort and consolation. Soon his feverish brain confused Julia with other members of his family who had taken care of him: his grandmother, his mother and his aunt Teresa. He was held, he felt soothing hands run through his hair and as he cried in his despair he could feel his tears being kissed away.
When he at last slipped into total oblivion the snow had already formed a large drift in front of the cabin door. But the force of the blizzard had not yet abated.
XIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXXIXIXIXIXIX
"Well, what have we got?" Matt Hawkes scanned the chart with the messages that had come in during the last hours. Luckily they were only few, and their content was quite ordinary.
"It´s been pretty calm, actually," Izzy said. They both looked out of the window. The landscape had changed to a glistening winter wonderland under a clear sky of the bluest of blues. The blizzard had kind of wiped out everything before leaving only fresh and frosty crispness.
"Just what we were hoping for." Matt felt relieved. Of course these emergency situation were just what made his job most exciting. But still it was good to see that nothing really bad had happened.
"Matt, I have a call here from Frank." Robin, the only female on their team of High Mountain Rangers, was in charge of coordinating all communication. "He´s on his way to clear the road to the resorts and he reports that he found a body, just off the road."
Matt was at her side at once, seizing the radio microphone. "Frank, what´s this about?"
"Hi Matt, this is pretty strange. I came across a body here. The guy is a bit out of place, frozen to death obviously."
"What do you mean by out of place?" Matt enquired.
"Well, he´s just wearing a black suit, no winter clothes, like he dropped out of nowhere. His fashionable loafers are in shreds. Looks like he walked a long way."
Matt and Izzy looked at each other, unable to think of anything that might have brought the man in such strange attire into the mountains to die in the middle of a blizzard.
"There´s something else," Frank came over the ether again. "He´s carrying a gun and two joints of Marihuana."
XIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXXIXIXIXIXIX
Another long night had passed, a mostly sleepless night of tossing, turning and waiting. Levon felt a leaden tiredness weigh him down. He was very grateful to Greg and his wife for their hospitality. He just wished he would have been able to stay with his former colleague under different circumstances. On the other hand, being with this really nice couple had helped him to endure the long wait.
First thing Greg had done in the morning was to enquire about the accessibility of South Lake Tahoe Airport after the blizzard. Authorities confirmed that the runways were being cleared at present and that touchdown shouldn´t be a problem for any aircraft coming in at noon or later.
So Levon packed his things and Greg took him to the Las Vegas airport.
Until now an official investigation had not been initiated yet. Still Greg had on the previous day contacted the South Lake Tahoe Police. He had explained about the assumed destination of the kidnapper and his victim and the obvious mix-up there had been with regards to the location of the drop off. At that point in time the police had thanked him for the information, but hadn´t been able to give any help.
They were just entering the parking lot at the airport when Greg received a call.
"83-19, do you read?"
"83-19, loud and clear. What´s up?"
"We just had a call from the South Lake Tahoe Police. They say a body has been discovered on a road leading to one of the skiing resort up in the mountains."
"Any ID on the body?" Greg asked. Levon had sat bolt upright in the passenger seat.
"No, they couldn´t say anything about that yet. Just that it was a city guy in totally inappropriate clothing."
"Cause of death?"
"He was frozen solid. Obviously got caught in the blizzard." Levon gasped.
"Ok, thanks. Tell them I´ll call them as soon as I get back to the office." Greg hung up the mic, then he looked at Levon.
"Levon, are you ok?" Greg brought the car to a halt. "You look like you´ve seen a ghost?"
Levon couldn´t say anything. His throat was constricted, as was his chest. He was almost afraid of having a heart attack.
"Levon?"
Levon drew a deep breath. There was no use panicking now. "I´m ok," he forced himself to say. But he felt terrible.
Greg scrutinized him. "Really, man? You don´t look it."
"What if it´s Joe they´ve found." His own voice sounded hollow, alien.
"Wouldn´t he have carried an ID? They would have told us, Levon. It´s not Joe, it could be anyone, even the guy who was with him."
Only now did Greg realize that this assumption wasn´t good news either. If the two men hadn´t been together, where was Joe? Would Morone have left Joe if he hadn´t been dead already? Barberi´s plan to take over Uncle Mikey´s business was based on using Joe as a hostage. There was no reason why the guard should leave the victim behind unless the hostage had become worthless, either because Michael LaFiamma had turned over his business or the hostage was dead. Now the guard was dead and the hostage was missing.
"Levon?" Greg reached over and laid his hand on Levon´s arm.
Levon had been holding his breath while an assessment of all options swirled through his mind. Feeling Greg´s touch now was the impulse that made him resume breathing. But his breath came in panicky gasps as he started to hyperventilate and the world started to spin.
When Levon came to, he was lying on the ground next to the car and Greg was looking into his face with great concern. He started up, but Greg held him down.
"Easy, Levon."
He sank back onto something that was stuffed under his head, Greg´s jacket. "I´m sorry, Greg."
"Bullshit, Levon, it´s no wonder, it´s all been a bit much, no need to apologize."
"I´ve got a plane to catch." Levon struggled to get up.
Greg steadied Levon as he got up, swaying slightly. "Take it slow, you´ve still got lots of time."
"Didn´t mean to lose it like this but I…I…" Levon felt totally embarrassed.
Greg shook his head. "Don´t worry, it happens to the best of us one time or another." He opened the rear trunk and took out Levon´s baggage. Without another word they headed for the departure area and half an hour later Levon was airborne.
XIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXIXXIXIXIXIXIX
Only the immense pain brought Joe back around. He found himself curled up in the fetal position, delirious and crying, his face wet, teeth chattering violently. All the bones in his body were aching.
The effect of the pot had evaporated and the fact that he hurt so badly made him wonder why he was still alive. He reached for the bucket of water and this time there was no layer of ice on the surface. So the interior of the cabin must be slightly warmer than before, he concluded. He had no idea that a thick blanket of snow had almost thoroughly covered the cabin and thus served as insulation against the outside cold.
Slowly and with great effort he tried to sit up. The square in the wall above him had been the window only yesterday. But now it shone in a strange bright light, too eerie to be real. He couldn´t get up, he felt too weak. Otherwise he would have seen that the light was the reflection of the bright sunlight on the newly fallen snow.
But in his delirious state he took the light to be a herald of his coming death. Perhaps he was already closer to death than he had thought. Somehow the notion did not fill him with the usual dread. Perhaps it was time to prepare himself to leave this world.
He tried to remember if he had ever witnessed anyone in his large Italian Catholic family preparing for death. But he couldn´t. Perhaps the adults had kept the things connected with death away from the children. He knew that the adults sometimes had called a priest to attend to a sick person and that this person, shortly afterwards, had been announced dead. So the priest had obviously been present when the person had died.
He was alone. For a short moment he thought of Levon and became acutely aware how much he missed his partner. But now there would not be another soul present to help him with his departure from this world and his reception in the afterlife, least of all a Catholic priest.
Joe felt lost.
For a long time he just lay there, trying to figure out what to do. If it hadn´t been for the persistent pain he would have slipped back into the delirious feverish dreams.
Finally he took Julia´s picture out of his breast pocket. He kissed her face. "Goodbye my sweet love, my only love. Please forgive me, Carissima. I hope we will meet again in the next world." Though they had hoped to spend a lifetime together in happiness, the world had in the end only granted them one sweet moment. Then he lit the last joint with trembling fingers. While he slowly and deeply inhaled the smoke he started to recite the words of the universal prayer he had learned a long time ago as a child
Padre nostro, *
che sei nei cieli,
sia santificato il tuo nome
venga il tuo regno…
* Our Father, who art in heaven…
His voice grew weaker and trailed off as he slipped for the last time into the drug induced dream state. He suddenly felt strangely consoled and his fear retreated just as did the pain and the cold. At last his hand with the still burning joint dropped limply and the smoldering cigarette rolled on the floor, the ember slowly dying.