Ride to Redemption (20 page)

“You
had good ride? Mile, she like mountains, snow, and big deers. Me, I just like
ride. I call you two times. You no answer.”

“Phone
off,” I woefully acknowledged, as I poked at the off button, inadvertently
turning it on. I poked it again, turning it back off, whereby he finally got
the message.

“Tomorrow,
we ride the Icefields Highway to visit the Columbia Icefields,” I explained,
while pointing out the panoramic window at the Victoria Glacier staring back at
us from the extreme far end of the lake. “Not that one, Gio, but one much
similar.”

Time
flies, I suppose. That is, if you base time on the number of beers consumed,
versus hours. In any event, at the six plus beer mark, by then whoz counting,
the girls found us, by my calculation, slightly inebriated.

“How
did it goooo, baby?” I asked Candi, suddenly realizing how thick my tongue felt
as I spoke.

“Fine,
D. It was incredible. Look at my nails. Aren’t they beautiful?” Realizing I was
looking at the floor, and not her hands, Candi exclaimed, “They’re drunk!” then
repeated it to Mile in excited Italian. Whereby, Gio suddenly raised his head
up and entered the conversation nonverbally by nodding slowly in agreement.

“Mile,
help me,” directed Candi, again repeating her words in Italian. “Let’s get them
to the room. Then you and I will have a quiet dinner, just the two of us.”

“Just
the girls? What about the two us?” I stammered. “We have to eat too, you know.
We’re gonna need something to take the buzzzz off,” I managed to add, before
the world as I knew it went dark...

* * *

And, that was the last thing I remembered, before waking up
at 5 a.m. to the sound of my alarm, my clothes still on and intact. Rolling to
my left, with my right arm following suit, I snuggled up against Candi, who
strangely felt much bigger than I remembered. “What happened, baby?” I asked,
in a fog, as my right hand moved to hold her ample chest.
Where did the ta-tas go?
was all I could think as my hand stroked a
grossly hairy chest, similar to my own.

“Yuck!”
Bolting from the bed, I turned on the light as Gio rolled over, smiling.

“Ciao,
D, I think we drink bad. Candice and Mile, they get us to room, but how you
say, not two.”

“Both,
I think that’s the word you’re looking for.”

“Yes,
we sleep here, they sleep there,” pointing at the adjoining room.

“Why is it, Gio, I can’t ever seem to remember the alcohol
in Canadian beer is at least 50% more than home? No wonder I feel a hangover
coming on.”

“
Mi
scusi
?“ asked Gio.

“Never
mind, I agree with you, we drink bad. Go back to sleep, pal. I’ve got to find
some caffeine to stave on this headache.” While he rolled back over, I picked
up the room’s key card, and my phone, before making my way to the lobby in
search of a fix. Filling two large cups with dark roast coffee from a silver
plated carafe next to the front desk, I negotiated my way to an outdoor patio
that overlooked the lake. Sipping this much-needed elixir, in silence and
solitude, I reflected on the events that occurred after we left the bar. I got
nothing, absolutely nothing. I drew a complete and total blank of last night’s
closure with a capital C.

With
the throbbing in my head, medicated, I turned my phone on to find one new voice
mail from Vic.

Message 1:

Hi, D. Vic here. I hope
you’re having an awesome time bangin’ your sweetie, while those of us in the
real world are trying to make a living, and keep your cute ass out of jail.
Call me. I’ve got some rather good news on your Marine friend, Frank.

Hmmm
… I never told her he was a Marine. Or did I? I wonder if she found that out
through the media. I’ve got to start watching the news again, but there is no
way it’s gonna be today,. maybe tomorrow.

Answer
the phone Vic,
I
mused, on the fifth ring.
Rats voice mail.
Just as I was about to leave
her a message, Caller ID, showed an incoming call from a number I didn’t
recognize. Clicking over, I said, “Speak.”

“What
do you mean speak?”
asked
the feminine, somewhat groggy voice on the other end, “I’m sleeping and
speaking at the same time. Why are you calling me at 5:20 a.m.? I just went to
sleep three hours ago, asshole.”

“Vic,
it’s you,” I sighed, gratefully relieved. “You’re on central time in Iowa, the
same as me. Where are you? Are you okay?”

“I’m
on Pacific time asshole. At least that’s what they told me when I landed in
Portland yesterday,”
acknowledged Vic, considerably more alert.

“What
are you doing in Portland, may I ask?”

“I’ve
been chasing down your ‘friend’ Frank. He wouldn’t take my calls so I put my
butt on a plane and came out here to Oregon to find him.”

“Were
you successful?”

“Believe
it or not after a long 48 hours I was. He’s one of the reasons I didn’t get
back to the hotel, till one in the morning, that and the Cadillac Island Casino,
I couldn’t pass up on the way back. All this has been done on your dime, no
less. Full disclosure, remember?”

“And?”

“Well,
it took quite a few well placed Franklin’s to find him. But, I did. Then I had
to spirit him away from the flood of reporters that have constantly hounded him
since he broke your story.”

“You
seduced him with your wily ways, I bet. Just like you did me. Yep, I can see it
now.”

“Slow
down tiger. You got at least part of the story correct. I did make myself an
irresistible 10, wearing a thigh high, slit skirt, while showing lots of my
desirable cleavage through, an almost see through, milky white, blouse. Tricks,
I might add, which were more than sufficient to momentarily get his most
undivided attention.”

“Then
what happened, Vic, you’re dragging this out on purpose, aren’t you?”

“Yep,
you deserve the full effect, D. Moving on, I strolled up to him in his local
honey hole, while the reporters were standing idly by outside, and asked him,
just like I asked you, if he wanted his luck to change for the better?”

“After
sizing me up,
Frank
said,
‘No thank you, he couldn’t afford me.’

“D,
was that a compliment or what? What is it with you and these guys you run with,
I am not a hooker, get it?”

“But
you play the part so well, Vic. Could be a sideline business for you someday,”
I playfully retorted.

“Hush!
Not to be denied, I
whispered in his ear, ‘I am yours for free, compliments of D.’ That got his
undivided attention, I tell ya, damn near immediately. I told him to give me
five minutes, then excuse himself, go out through the back door, and I’d be
there to pick him up. The rest is now history.”

“What
did you do, Vic, whack him?”

“No
D, what kind of girl do you think I am? Ignore that last question. We’ve been
down that road before remember when my hand handsomely introduced itself to
your cheek.”

“I
remember vividly,” I retorted, fondly thinking back to what transpired later,
where she was standing before me in all her glory. “Go on.”

“He’s
really a nice guy, D. Surprised the hell out of me. Seems he’s been doing all
this to take the heat off of you, whoever you are. He used five of the diamonds
to make himself credible, then began giving false leads and is making up the
story as he goes along. Can you believe that? Said to tell you when I talked to
you, he’s got you back, Semper Fi or something like that.”

“Vic,
that’s the Marine motto in Latin, it means, Always Faithful. Just when I was
beginning to lose my trust in people, Frank goes and does something admirable.”

“D,
he said to tell you that no one ever inspired him to better himself by helping
others the way you did. And then when he got home, and opened the package you
gave him, he said he couldn’t leave the house for two days. Says you were an
answer to his prayers. He owes you and he’s doing what little he can to help.
And, he doesn’t even know your name. He asked me if I did.

“Go
figure. I bet that’s why I’m here, too. Don’t ya think? At least I know your
name,”
Vic
concluded.

“Neither
one of you, owe me anything. Neither does anyone else for that matter, well,
with the exception of a certain one, which I’m repaying in kind. Your success
is thanks enough. I am speechless. What am I supposed to say after all the
Intel you've discovered? Thank you?”

“You
don’t have to say any more, D. You’ve done more than enough. I am eternally
grateful. I can’t speak for the other 1000 or so you’ve attempted to make
whole, but, as for me, I too, agree with Frank. You can always count on me to
have your back. Oh! And one more thing, if and when the time comes to discard
your ride along, I’m always willing to have your front to. Now, hang up and let
me go back to bed. You’re taking me shopping this afternoon, in spirit anyway,
on my way home through Seattle. Know I love ya. Bye, D.”

Chapter
33

M
aking
my way back to the room, I found the women dressed and waiting on Gio to get
out of the shower.

“Prince
Charming, you’re not, especially when you’re wasted,” declared Candi. “Silly,
yes and dead weight too, heavy like lead. I finally got a bellhop to push you
both up here, while you were hanging off a luggage cart. You owe me $50, by the
way. I’m a big tipper when it comes to cute bellhops.”

“Thanks
guys,” I replied, while gazing at Mile and her new doo, compliments of the
Hotel’s Salon and Spa, no less.

“You’re
beautiful this morning, Mile,” I exclaimed.

“What
about me, D?” stammered Candi.

“You’re
always beautiful, baby,” I responded. “It’s the first time I’ve seen Mile
without helmet hair. She looks great!”

“We
both looked stunning late yesterday,” declared Candi, “but you were both too
drunk to see.”

Gio
emerged from the bathroom, wrapped in nothing but a towel. “Ciao,” said Gio
cheerfully. “
Mi scusi
for last night. We drink bad,” while slapping me
on the shoulder, abruptly causing his towel to fall to the floor.

“Yuck!”
shouted Candi. “Put some clothes on, Gio. Nobody wants to see you naked,
especially before breakfast.”

“Mi
scusi,”
said Gio, reaching to the ground for his towel to wrap back around his waist.

“Mile,
let’s go grab something to eat while these guys do whatever guys do in the
morning.”

With
Mile and Candi out the door, I returned the slap on the shoulder to Gio. “I
don’t know why Candi was so upset. You, pal, are hung like a horse.”

“D,
remember,
la mia famiglia,
” said Gio sheepishly.

After
a quick shower and shave, Gio and I headed downstairs, grabbing two café lattes
from the hotel’s espresso bar.

Joining
the ladies, who were just wrapping up breakfast, I asked Gio, “Would you like
to eat or ride?”

“Ride,”
replied Gio, much to my delight.

“You
heard the man-horse,” I declared in a proud and loud voice. “Ladies, we will
meet you at the bikes.”

“Gio,
today we ride to the glaciers. Do you have glaciers in Italy?”

“Sì,
but, bigger in
Switzerland.”

“We’re
ready to ride,” Candi announced, escorting Mile by the arm. “Is it going to be
cold up there? Do we need to put on more clothes?”

Looking
at my leather-clad entourage, I stated, “Highs today will be in the 60s. If you
start to get cold, we’ll stop. Okay?”

Chapter
34

W
ith
that, we were off. Riding through both Banff and Jasper National Parks is
probably the most picturesque and scenic ride I’ve ever taken on a bike, bar
none. Cobalt blue lakes, ice blue glaciers, snow-capped mountains and
meandering, lush green valleys pierced by magnificent streams, envelope you
along this 144-mile long journey.

Gio
was in his element. With camera in hand, he acted just as he did when he joined
us in Sioux City. Passing back and forth between Mile and I, Gio was all smiles
for the next 90 miles. An hour and a half of pristine landscape was captured on
film, including the last thirty terror-filled seconds, which would forever rock
my world.

Sweeping
through a blind curve, running not much over 50 mph, I found myself running
headlong into a cow moose and her calf. Knowing immediately that Candi and I
were about to be royally screwed, I managed to accelerate just enough to pass
between them on the road. The Italians, who were following directly behind us,
where not so lucky.

Looking
into my rearview mirror, I saw Gio with his camera in hand, hit the cow moose
straight on, catapulting him over the bike and into the 1200 lb. moose, where
they both tumbled and collapsed to the ground.

Mile,
reacting immediately to what was happening to Gio, cut left, then right back
into the path of the calf. Thankfully, with an instant’s warning, she laid her
bike down and allowed it to take the full brunt of the impact with the calf,
before her body followed suit.

Candi
turned back just in time to see the sudden carnage scatter all over the road
and come to a halt. She dug her fingernails into my shoulder blades and yelled,
“STOP!”

Slamming
on both brakes, I spun the bike into a slow U-turn and headed back down the
road, weaving my way through the scattered bikes and bodies and into the blind
curve. “Jump off now!” I screamed at Candi. “Stop every vehicle before it
rounds this curve, otherwise it will make this already bad situation much, much
worse.”

“But
I can help, Jon David. I’m a nurse. Remember?”

“Stop
the traffic now, Candi. You can help later; I’ll need you. But, for right now,
we need to get traffic stopped.”

Thankfully,
traffic was extremely light. The few cars we’d passed earlier could be both a
Godsend and a curse.

I
spun the bike around for the second time in less than thirty-seconds and made
my way back to the horrific scene unfolding slowly before my eyes. I was
expecting the worst, but honestly for the best.

Both
riders were down, as well as the moose and calf. Blood was pooling in the
middle of the road where Gio and the moose had landed. To my left, the calf lay
motionless. Mile was pushing and pulling, trying to get her leg out from under
her bike, using the only arm that worked.

I
reached the kill switch on her bike first. “Mile!” I screamed, over the roar of
the bike. “Look at me,” I said after the bike shut off. “On the count of
three,” I held up three fingers, “I’m going to lift the bike. When I do that,
you pull your leg out. One, two, three,
now!
” I lifted the 600-pound
bike, using my legs and back, and flipped it off her. “Stay there!” I yelled,
pressing my hands on her shoulders. “Don’t move.” Mile nodded, grimacing in
pain.

Next,
it was on to the blood pool and the two bodies. The bloody mess was composed of
man and beast, and Gio was lying in its midst. “Gio, can you hear me?” I
shouted, realizing I had one more bike to shut down. Moving to my right, I hit
the kill switch.

“
Sì
,
I did bad. Huh, D?” acknowledged Gio, trying to make light of a very bad
situation.

“You
did good, my friend. You’re still alive!” I exclaimed, frantically trying to
ascertain just how bad he was hurt. “Can you feel your arms? How about your
legs?”

“
Sì
,
uh no,” Gio nodded yes and then no, while tapping his upper left thigh, which I
realized lay at an unnatural 90˚ angle.

“Gio,
your leg is broken. I need to move you out of all this blood so we can see what
else is going on. Do you understand?”

Just
as I was readying myself to move him, I heard a most welcome voice screaming
behind me.

“Don’t
move him, D, till I assess him,” shouted Candi. “You could paralyze him.”

“I’ve
already assessed him, nurse. He can feel both hands and one set of toes. Other
leg is sideways. You can however, help me get him out of all this blood.”

“My
God, D, where is all this coming from?” asked Candi in amazement, as she struggled
to comprehend the breadth and depth of the red goo Gio was lying in.

“I
believe it’s all from the moose. I think the bike almost cut her in half,
severing an artery. You’re gonna have to trust me right now, Candi. I’ve done
this before, too many times. Get his left shoulder please.” We pulled Gio away
from the moose, and all the blood and guts he was soaked in.

“Bad,
Candice?” Gio asked, looking into her eyes for the truth.

“I
don’t know, Giovanna. I don’t know,” Candi said and nodded solemnly as I moved
her to the side and attempted to remove his chaps.

“Candi!
Candi!” I shouted, realizing she, too, was in a fog. “Go check on Mile, while I
cut away his chaps so we can assess the damage.” I grabbed my knife and cut the
black leather chaps from his left leg, exposing a serious compound fracture to
his femur. The bone was exposed and his skin was turning blue below the knee.

“It’s
going to be okay, Gio. But we’re going to have to set your leg to get the blood
flowing back into your foot. It’s gonna hurt like hell. You with me, Gio? Do
you understand? We’ve got to straighten your leg.”

“
Sì,
D. I trust you,” Gio said softly, a faint smile on his lips.

“Mile
is going to be okay,” Candi assured him. “She’s twisted an ankle and may have
dislocated her shoulder, but she’s going to be okay.”

“Gio,
did you hear Candi? Mile is going to be okay.”

“Good,
D. She did good, huh D?” replied Gio, seemingly numb to it all.

“Candi,
in my right side bag you’ll find a satellite phone, a bottle of water and a
collapsible walking stick. Bring them to me, while I finish cutting away his
jeans.”

“Here,
D. Now what?” asked Candi, ready to take more orders.

“Cleanse
the wound. We’ve got to set it here in the field to restore the blood flow to
his leg. In the meantime, I’ve got to call in an air evac.”

Standing
up, I suddenly realized a small crowd had gathered around us. Apparently,
they’d been attracted by the carnage I was up to my elbows in. “Does anybody
have any more bottled water, tape, anything I can use to make a splint? If so,
please run get it for me.”

A
man in the crowd, yelled, “I have a large first aid kit in my RV.”

“That’s
great, sir. Go get it please.”

A
couple of more responses from the crowd said they had bottled water. I thanked
them while I pushed a preprogrammed number on the phone. On the fifth ring, Jim
answered. “Jim, this is D. I don’t have time to explain,” I said rushing my
words as I walked to my bike and the GPS mounted on its handlebars. “Do you
have a pen? Good. Write down these coordinates. I need an air evac sent here,
like yesterday.”

“Hang
on,” said Jim, my favorite U.S. Marshall. “I need to punch these into my
computer.”
Silence … then,
“D, what the Hell are you doing in Canada? You don’t have
permission to leave the country. We can’t protect you up there. What’s going
on? I need to know!”

“Jim,
call it in. I’ll answer any and all of your questions, but not right now. I’ve
got two Italians on the ground. One is okay, but the other one,” I continued in
a whisper, “could lose a leg or worse, die, if we don’t get him air-lifted off
this Canadian highway ASAP!”

“Hang
on, let me make the call,”
said Jim, with a much more even temper.
“D, I’m in contact with the
Canadians now. They want particulars.”

“Tell
them that two bikers from Italy slammed into a Bullwinkle and calf. The wreck
is scattered across the westbound side of the Icefields Parkway. We’ll need
Mounties, conservation officers and a rollback wrecker, too. That’s all I got.
That’s enough, Jim. I’ve got to go set this leg now. Thanks. Talk later.”

“Candi,
does Gio have any other injuries? It’s good to see you’ve elevated his other
leg. Your nursing degree is paying off.”

“None
than I can find, D,” replied Candi, “but I think he’s going into shock.”

“Gio,
how you doin, pal?” I asked, noticing the ashen color of his face. Time was of
the essence now.

“Hey,
does anybody have any Canadian whisky?” I yelled into the crowd.

“Yes,
sir-ee. I got me some of that Canadian Crown as a souvenir,” bellowed a
middle-aged guy with a long southern drawl, sporting a well-nurtured belly.

“Great,
I’ll need that, too. Could you please run and get it for me.” Run might not
have been the best word to use I suddenly realized as I watched him waddle off.

Locating
the large first aid kit that was graciously supplied by the RV driver, I found
some antiseptic and two pairs of latex gloves, which I shared with Candi.
“You’re going to have to hold his shoulders down while I set his leg. I’m
afraid he’ll lose it if we don’t do it now.”

“Are
you sure you want to do this in the field? Never mind, D. I know better than to
ask you that. You’ve done this before. Just another chapter in your life you’ve
failed to share, I bet.”

“Let’s
do this,” declared Candi, just as the guy handed me the whisky.

“Thank
you, sir,” I graciously acknowledged, while wiping off the newly opened bottle
of Crown and taking a swig. “You want one?” I asked a startled Candi before
tipping it to Gio’s lips. “Open your eyes, my friend. Drink this,” I directed,
while lifting his head to help him swallow without choking.

 
“Take another, now another. Good. Okay,
we’re gonna do this and it’s gonna hurt like hell. Okay?”

With
Candi holding Gio’s shoulders down, I pulled his leg down just enough to move
the femur back into its natural position. Gio winced and moaned a whole lot
less than I would’ve in his place. I figured that shock had probably set in.

Using
my walking stick, I separated it into halves. With the surgical tape from the
first aid kit, I made a splint to stabilize his leg and get the blood once
again flowing to his foot. “Candi, stay with him while I go and check on Mile.”

Much
to my surprise and relief, I found Mile sitting up. She was being attended to
by strangers, and looking none the worse for wear.

“Mile,
Gio is going to be okay,” as I reached down and kissed her on the cheek. “I’m
glad you’re going to be okay, too.”

Within
15 minutes, a bright red Canadian Air Force Rescue helicopter arrived,
compliments of Jim. The chopper set down in the middle of the road, less than
50 yards away. I was surprised to see both a flight surgeon and nurse coming
our way along with the crew.

“Doctor,
nurse, guys, I’m glad to see you. I’m D, and this is Candi. She’s a nurse.
Candi, if you please, fill them in on triage and their stabilization. I’m off
to find the whisky.”

Sitting
on my bike sipping whisky, I watched the Italians being whisked into the
helicopter, while I could hear sirens growing louder off in the distance.

Walking
back towards me, Candi looked like she'd been rode hard and put up wet.

”D,
that offer for a drink still good? If so, I’ll gladly take it now.”

“My
pleasure, baby,” I said, handing her the bottle. “Drink as much as you want.
I’m driving.”

“I
might just do that, D. After all that’s happened today, I now know why they use
the term “organ donors” for bike riders so liberally. It may take me getting
plastered right now just to be able to climb back on your bike with you. In the
meantime, before I get too wasted, loan me your Sat phone, please. I’ve got to
call the family.”

Just
as I handed Candi the phone, a whole fleet,of emergency service personnel
arrived, whereby, I began the long discourse of what happened, while
coordinating their bike removal to a secure storage location in Calgary.

Walking
over to the mother and calf still laying in the road, I discovered the cow
moose had mercifully bled out, while the calf could possibly be saved if Fish
and Wildlife could get it to a vet in time. What a scene, I thought to myself,
if only I had taken some pictures.

Then
I remembered Gio’s video camera and found it lying beside the road, still
recording. “Look at this Candi, it’s been taping the entire time. I really
don’t want to see what Gio saw at impact. I think I’ll just hang onto to it and
give it to him … later.”