Letters From the Grave

explanation?”

  Jake stared at the man briefly. “You want to hear the best part?”

  “I’m listening.”

  “This bird was sabotaged.”

  Everyone in the room stared at him in disbelief. Ross put his hands on the table and looked into his lap, breathing deeply.

  The inspector looked at him in disbelief, practically smiling. “Oh. Do tell.”

  Jake was deadly serious, so there were no smiles. “It’s one thing to have a tail malfunction, and as I’ve already told you, the bird was in one piece when we hit the water. We got jostled around a bunch in the waves, but it should have survived.”

  Everyone was watching him intently. “N407AK had new floats installed, six inflatable floats. They worked perfectly when I triggered them. We should still be floating out there. Maybe upside down in the storm, but we should still be afloat.

  “But, all the floats burst when the CO2 ignited. They were all punctured before the crash. Someone wanted this bird to sink somewhere beyond the horizon. Not only that, the emergency raft kit was taken out of the helicopter. I was supposed to drown!”

  They were all silent until the investigator spoke. “Mr. Ramsey, are you seriously accusing someone of deliberately trying to crash this helicopter?”

  “Take it to the bank. It happened, and I almost died. Someone tried to kill me, and I don’t appreciate it. You can write that in your report.”

  The FAA and NTSB inspectors looked at each other in disbelief. Neither had ever had a pilot claim a deliberate act of sabotage. “I’m not sure what to write down about this. Are you sure you didn’t hit your head.”

  Jake was hot. The asshole was arrogant and probably bluffed his way onto the NTSB finding countless “pilot errors” in his reports. “Look, you egotistic ass, I just spent two days fighting the elements and damn well know how to fly helicopters. I’ve never had a major accident in a bird that wasn’t shot down – been there, too. You either write the facts as they occurred, or I’ll hold a conference with CNN and anyone else that will listen and tell them how incompetent you are – you, personally.”

  The investigator got red in the face. “Mr. Ramsey! This is an official investigation, and you will cooperate!”

  “I am cooperating, pal. I just gave you the truth. It’s probably the biggest scoop you’ve ever had, and you’re too chicken-shit to report it. Well, this is your chance to do the right thing. I’m tired, I’m hurt, and I damn well know what I’m talking about. So, unless you’re willing to take some helicopter lessons and fly in the shittiest weather out here and get dumped in a gale fifty miles at sea with just an inflatable preserver, don’t second-guess me. I know what happened!”

  The investigator’s pen started shaking in his hand. “Well, I don’t have any more questions. Does anyone else want to say anything before I close this hearing?”

  All of the CHI people, in turn, spoke on Jake’s behalf. They knew his skill and his experience. If the helicopter had not been tampered with, Jake would have completed the pickup and returned safely. There was one hundred percent concurrence on this point.

  The meeting ended, and Jake prepared to meet with the press outside. Minutes later, after several questions, his head was throbbing, and he wanted to shower and sleep. Most of all, he wanted to find Callie.

  BJ grabbed Jake away from the reporters when the questions became inane and repetitive. Jake was starting to show fatigue from days of exposure, sleep deprivation and malnutrition. “Come on, partner, it’s time to get home.”

  Jake didn’t say anything as BJ led him by the arm past newscasters and videographers all wanting to know more about his miraculous survival. It was the kind of story that would only improve over time. BJ didn’t want Jake saying or doing anything that would spoil his reputation.

  “Thanks, BJ. I didn’t realize how far gone I was. I think that investigator SOB took a lot out of me.”

  BJ smiled, “Yeah, well. You took a lot out of him, too. Tell you what, pal, how about we stop for that steak I owe you? You look like you could use some protein.”

  Jake patted his flat midsection. “You know BJ, she really got me into shape – probably saved my life.”

  “Callie?”

  Jake looked out the window of BJ’s truck as they passed by the last news van.

  “Yeah, Callie. You know any other ‘shes’ in my life? God, I hope she’s okay.”

  “Have the police found anything yet?”

  “I doubt it. They just started doing whatever Lafayette’s finest can do when we drove over here. I bet Gomer is still smearing all the fingerprints at my place before they send them off to whatever lab to find none are readable.”

  “When did you become a cynic?”

  “When they stole my coins.”

  “Look, Jake. Don’t give up hope that they’ll find them. Can’t be that easy to fence that much gold.”

  “Yeah. I don’t know, BJ ... and yes, I’ll take that steak now. You know any place where I won’t stand out like a vagrant in this flight suit and unshaven?”

  “I know just the place, mood lighting designed to make even you look good.”

  “Let’s do it.”

  Turn About

  She was still getting dressed in the bathroom while Will loaded the car with the heavy coins.

  He came in after the last box was carried down. “Ain’t you ready yet, girl? Hell, we might’n never get outa here before morning you keep powderin’ and smearing.”

  “Look, lover boy, you wasn’t complainin’ about my appearance last night. Perfection takes time.”

  “I wasn’t lookin’ at your face!” He smiled and sat in the side chair by the bed, looking through the local takeout menu’s when she emerged.

  “Ta da!”

  “You look really fine, babe. How ‘bout we mess up the sheets again?”

  She pushed him away. “Not here. That bed will stink for months.”

  “Wow. You really know how to make it sound romantic.”

  “Let’s go, slick. I want to get to Savannah for supper.”

  He just smiled and leaned forward mocking her while opening the door. She added, “And tonight, I want to get somewhere early enough to get a good hotel, not another flea bag.”

  They walked out the door directly into the parking lot. Will had moved his truck and her Buick by their door. She gave him instructions about how far they would travel before stopping again. She wanted to drive until nightfall then find a place to eat and gas up, and Will could find her another license plate. She had never owned a mobile phone, and Will didn’t own one currently. She added, “Keep behind me. If we get separated, go to the next ‘Rest Stop,” I’ll wait there until you catch up.”

  “How do you know I can find you?”

  “I’ve got the gold, stupid, so don’t get too far behind.”

  The old sign for the hotel was in the center of the parking lot near the street, flashed “Vacancy” as they turned left out of the lot to I-85 North, heading toward Atlanta. Callie was in the lead, using cruise control to stay right at seventy miles per hour, just slightly above the limit, closer to the flow of traffic, but slow enough to avoid speed traps. It would be dark and evening rush hour when they entered Atlanta, which could take up to two hours to pass. Her only instruction to Will was to stay on I-85 until they reached the center of downtown, then take I-75 toward Savannah. If he got confused, it was no great loss. She almost wished he’d get lost in the Atlanta traffic.

  Two hours later, they were in it. She couldn’t tell if he was still behind her. All she could see were headlights behind, so she turned the mirror away to avoid eye strain. It was up to him to follow her. At the I-75 intersection, she stayed in the right lane and signaled for over a mile. The traffic leaving central Atlanta was brutal, and everyone seemed to be going south with her. The telltale pattern of cars changing lanes behind her proved that Will was probably lost somewhere back the
re. In another hour, she’d travelled about thirty miles and traffic was starting to ease up. A blue “Rest Stop” sign gave her the opportunity for him to find her, so she exited and no one followed. Dumb guy probably forgot our plan. Oh well, so long Will. Nice knowing you. I might never have met Jake otherwise! She smiled to herself about how he found the wealth, and she got it all away from him. Men were so easy.

  She waited an hour before deciding to move on. Will was finally gone, and now she had the collection herself. She decided to use the restroom before leaving. When she came back to the car, looking at it from a different perspective, she had a strange intuitive feeling. Things just never worked out for her this easily. Will was an idiot, but even he could have found her at the rest stop by now. On impulse, she went to the trunk and pressed the opener on the keychain. As the lid came up and the light illuminated inside, she nearly fainted. The gold was gone! The coins had been stolen!

  Miles away, completing the beltway circle around Atlanta, Will was smiling and singing along to a local country music channel on his radio. The windows were down and the cold air felt good. Dumb bitch. You’re probably half way to Savannah by now. Well, sweetheart, this is where our journey together ended. I’m headed back west. You shoulda been watching me load the gold in my truck instead of beautifyin’ yourself. I could never have stayed for long. Nothing you could ever do would clean off completely. Hundreds of men been between those legs, not to mention your mouth. He