Giddeon (Silver Strand Series) (28 page)

Raymond Bradford certainly was built for speed.
 
He had Jennifer all packed up… three suitcases, a laptop computer and a couple of filing boxes… and loaded onto his Learjet at Lindberg Field in the space of about 4 hours.
 
The aircraft was a special edition of the 85, and it was capable of cruising just below Mach 1 with a range of 3,500 nautical miles.
 
The entrepreneur preferred this small jet to his larger G-5 for domestic trips.
 
Sampson, whom they had retrieved on the way to the airport, went obediently into his crate at the back of the cabin, and Dr. Evans had a seat in one of the four plush, leather chairs located in the fuselage.

Ray introduced Jennifer to his co-pilot, made sure she was strapped in, and within minutes they took off into the setting sun.
 
The acceleration pushed her unexpectedly back into the soft cushioning of her seat, and she looked out of the window as they made a tight turn which took them back over
San Diego
and towards
Texas
.
 
There, they were to spend the night and then change planes.

The next week was her vacation, so that would give her time to arrange for a substitute psychologist to fill in for her.
 
She knew of several that could use the work, and, also, her old mentor had even mentioned on several occasions that she wanted to come out of retirement.
 
Her friend was still a young 62, and had found that she really missed the interaction with patients and people.
 
Most likely, she would jump at the opportunity, and Jennifer couldn’t think of a more competent fill-in for her patients.

*****

The clouds had red and golden colors brushed onto their underbellies by the last of the day’s illumination, and Jennifer stared out of the window in amazement at the striking formations.
 
Sampson whined in his crate, so Dr. Evans turned around and told him everything was okay, which seemed to settle him down.
 
Then, she took a folded piece of paper out of her jacket pocket, and slowly read the words on it, over and over, to herself.
 

She smiled a sad smile at the lyrics there in her hand and looked back out of the little rectangular Plexiglas next to her seat.
 
Lights from houses and automobiles twinkled on below her, and then they were obscured as the aircraft went into the clouds.
 
Eventually, the moon and Venus became visible in the new night sky, and the first few stars of the evening announced their presence.
 
Photons that had been travelling for untold years made their way into the planet’s atmosphere and quietly into the therapist’s eyes.
 

Jennifer turned her overhead bulb down low so she could see the heavens.

She kissed the words on the page, folded the paper, and put the song back into her pocket… next to her heart.

*****

Raymond spent a few minutes, on the trip back to his facility in
Texas
, in the chair across from Jennifer after he came back to check on her and Sampson.
 
He advised that she stay strapped in because the air might sometimes be a bit choppy… the small jet wasn’t as smooth in such conditions as a larger craft.
 
Jennifer told him that she would do that, and informed him that she never got motion sickness, having sailed on boats from the time she was a young child.
 
Her father had even enlisted her as part of his crew on several races between
L.A.
and Catalina when she was a teenager.

Bradford
broke into his famous grin when she said that.
 
He spent more time on the water than in the air… and, he spent a lot of time in the air.
 
Small planes, motorized hang gliders, parachuting… his dream, of course, was to go beyond the atmosphere and into space… but, the sea would always be his first love.
 

The deep green and blue mistress of mystery.
 

The smells.
 
The storms.
 
The life.

Jennifer could see that the man sitting across from her was full of passion and intellect, and as she looked him over she found that he seemed far younger than his years… even though he was easily old enough to be her dad.
 
A young dad, anyway.
 
Maybe if he had had her during his senior year of high school or first year of college.

They hit a couple of bumps in the air, and Ray got up to go back to the cabin.
 
He had to duck a bit, as the interior ceiling wasn’t quite spacious enough to accommodate his full 6 feet and 5 inches.
 
Jennifer drank from a bottle of sparkling water that her gracious captain had brought with him and given to her.

*****

Two hours after lifting off from
San Diego
, they touched down on the runway of the
West Texas
facility.
 

There was a private airstrip and Ray maneuvered the plane next to a large hanger, of sorts.
 
His ground crew took over, and the stairway was lowered to allow them to exit the jet.
 
Sampson bounded onto the asphalt, his tail wagging, and all four of his feet periodically left the ground as he jumped and spun.
 
He made a few circles, and then went and relieved himself on one of the Learjet’s tires.
 
Raymond laughed out loud and shook his mane of hair from side to side.

“He does that every time.
 
Kind of ritual, now.
 
I’m not sure if he’s trying to mark his territory or if he doesn’t like the planes.”

Ray helped load Jennifer’s baggage and files into his waiting Range Rover, and then drove her to a set of apartments that was special housing for scientists and engineers.
 
Sampson sat in the backseat, with his head out of the window, taking in the warm
Texas
air on the short trip to the building.
 

*****

Two end units were vacant, and Ray carried the one suitcase that Jennifer indicated she would need to her door.
 
The rest of her luggage and files stayed locked in his vehicle.
 
Bradford
showed her the accommodations, and asked if she would like anything to eat.
 
As it was getting late, Jennifer declined, so Ray just pointed out that there was a fully stocked refrigerator and a functioning kitchen complete with a microwave and a coffeemaker.
 
He said that if she needed anything, he and Sampson would be right next door, and then bid her goodnight.
 

Jennifer Evans stripped down and took herself a nice, long shower.
 

When she was done, she dried off with a thick, white towel that was hanging on the wall.
 
She then put on a set of red, silk pajamas that her husband had given her years, before.
 
He said they made her look like a little, sexy Ninja.
 
She observed herself in the full length mirror on her bedroom door as she dried her hair with another white towel.
 
She didn’t think she looked much like a Ninja, but, she supposed that for a woman soon to be no longer in her thirties, she was in fairly decent shape.

Dr. Evans climbed into bed, and fell into a deep, sound sleep.

*****

The next morning Jennifer was up and dressed early.
 
Raymond knocked on the door about 8:30, and she opened it to allow a bounding Sampson into her apartment.
 
He shook his tail with a fervor… as if it was necessary to make the morning move along properly and on schedule as it should.
 
Dr. Evans smiled and patted him on his head, and you would have thought she had bequeathed a lifetime of doggie treats into a never ending dinner bowl by the look upon his face.

“He’s certainly a happy dog,” observed
Bradford
’s guest.

“Kind of manic depressive without the depressive,” said Ray.

“Not a bad way to be, I suppose.”
 
She patted him, again.
 
“When do we leave for the island?”

“This afternoon.
 
I want to show you around first.
 
And, before we do that, I know a great little breakfast spot about 30 miles from here.
 
They have the best
Huevos
Rancheros in the world.
 
Are you up for a ride?”

Sampson answered with a definite ‘Woof!’

“I wasn’t talking to you… but, you can go, too.
 
He loves that word.
 
Want to go for a
ride
?”

“Woof!
 
Woof!!”

Jennifer laughed at the two boys and said that yes… she would love to go for a ride.
 

*****

On the way to the restaurant, Dr. Evans took in the
West Texas
landscape.
 
It had a beauty all its own… desolate, but full of life if you looked closely enough.
 
Kind of the way she had been for three years… she just hadn’t bothered to look.
 
For the first time since her husband died, the therapist felt like she wasn’t moving in a fog and going through the motions.
 
She wasn’t sure if it was the exuberance of her companions, or the change of scenery, or maybe just a mark on the calendar that she had finally passed.
 
A mark that signaled that it was okay to be part of the world, again.
 
Whatever it was, it felt good, and Jennifer let the light and the pastel colors of the area seep into her spirit.
 

Raymond seemed to pick up on her mood.

“
West Texas
agrees with you.”

“It’s beautiful.”

“I think so, too.
 
Not many people would agree with you, though.”

“They must not see it like it is,” replied the doctor.

“Wide open spaces are good for the soul, aren’t they?
 
Room to think.”
 

She nodded.
 
“I know what you mean.
 
Room to think and breathe.”
 
Jennifer turned in her seat.
 
“Sampson seems to like the air, doesn’t he?”
 
The
Labrador
was so far out the window that it was a little precarious.

“Sampson… get back inside!” Ray admonished after looking in the rear view mirror.
 
Sampson sat down and contented himself with just having a snout in the wind.
 
“Oh, he likes pretty much everywhere.
 
Sometimes I think he even likes his crate on the plane.
 
Apparently, you can’t lock up happiness.”

Jennifer smiled and said, “Happiness isn’t locked up, so don’t waste all of your time looking for that key.”

Raymond glanced over at the attractive woman in blue jeans and a Padres jersey next to him.
 
She looked so different from the professional lady of the day before… especially without her reading glasses.
 
“That’s pretty profound.”

Jennifer gazed out of the window for a few seconds and then turned back to him.
 
“I used to say that to my patients all of the time.
 
I’m afraid I’m better at giving advice than taking it, though.
 
At least, lately.”

Raymond nodded, and a few telephone poles went past his window.

“I’m sorry to hear about your husband.
 
That must have been tough.”

“It was… have you ever lost anyone?”
 

“Yes.”

He didn’t expound, so she didn’t push.
 

They seemed to be on the same wavelength, and Jennifer was surprised to find that they were comfortable with each other’s silence.
 
They rode on for a bit with no words between them.
 
Finally, she said,

“Time heals all wounds… I just wish it didn’t take so long.”

*****

The
Huevos
Rancheros were truly delicious.
 
They sat at a small outdoor table, under the awning, on the sidewalk that bordered
Main Street
.
 
It was a dusty little town that seemed like it was cut out of a movie set.
 
Every now and then someone would tell Ray hello, and even though he was a celebrity, of sorts, they all seemed accustomed to him and treated him like one of the locals.
 
The waiter made sure that their glasses of water and orange juice stayed full at all times; Jennifer suspected that Mr. Bradford was a generous tipper.
 

Periodically, Raymond would slip a bit of egg to Sampson, and Jennifer noted that the dog had impeccable table manners.
 
He took the morsels from his master with a delicate maneuvering of mandible, lips and tongue that, for the most part, was fairly hygienic.
 
He didn’t beg for more, and just sat there looking around as if the food was secondary to his enjoyment of the experience of being out and about.
 
His black fur shined in the morning sun, and Jennifer felt her mood lighten with its reflection.
 

Raymond related a few tales of his past life to her, and the adventures would inevitably end with him guffawing and slapping his knee at some ironic twist or eventuality.

*****

She found herself laughing, truly laughing, for the first time in several years.
 
It was as if a new chapter had been started in her life, and the first few paragraphs were kind of hilarious.
 
Once, during the breakfast, he made her laugh so hard that she actually cried.
 
She wiped at her tears with her napkin and for some reason wanted to throw her arms around the man across from her and give him a hug.
 
The doctor didn’t do that, because she didn’t think it would have been appropriate, but Sampson gave her the next best thing.
 
He jumped halfway onto her lap after her outburst of glee, and she encircled him as best she could with her upper appendages.
 
She laid her head onto his neck and smiled at the contact.
 
Raymond pulled out his phone and took a picture of the two of them positioned like that.
 
He showed it to her from across the table.

Jennifer hardly recognized the image of the woman in his hand.

*****