Rock Her (6 page)

Kip pointed out of the window. “That is where the World Trade
Centers used to stand,” He said.

Annie had seen the view in pictures taken before the terror
attacks a million times before, so it was still hard for her to accept that
something as stalwart and permanent as those two towers could just not be
there. But the lights were lit around ground zero, giving her the apparition of
the towers that she had seen before from the ground, but never from the air.
She was haunted by the surreal image of ghost buildings in the middle of
Manhattan.

Kip could see the look on her face when she scanned the missing
towers. He knew the look and the feeling she was experiencing because he had
had the same emotion when he first saw it from the air. He squeezed her hand
and gave her another tight lipped smile.

Just as he did the helicopter twisted and banked and the
captain’s voice broke in over the
Sennheiser’s
. “I
think you’ll like this,” the voice said, and Annie saw the pilot turn his head
around ahead of them and smile at them both from behind his microphone. “Port
side view,” he added.

Kip and Annie both shifted in their seats and looked out of the
opposite window. They were approaching the stature of liberty. The patina of
the resolute lady was darker than the flame and so was half obscured by the
weather, but the flame was outstandingly brilliant, lit by the hundreds of
lights that flanked it. The gleaming twenty four karat gold looked as if it was
really burning, guiding ships into the bay of Manhattan. Annie had only seen
her from Manhattan. She’d never even made the trip to Ellis Island, although it
was on her list of things to do. Now here she was looping around eyeball to
eyeball with the great lady.

“I’ve never, I mean, I’ve never been so close…” Annie started
to say.

“I know,” Kip smiled. “It really takes your breath away. I remember
the first time I saw it like this. It…”

“When was that?” Annie interrupted.

“Oh, I guess I was what, nine I think.” Kip answered. “I fell
in love with this country at that moment. There are a lot of great places on
earth, and I have seen most of them in person. But nothing like this. Only in
America can we build cities like this.”

Annie smiled at him, shrugged. “Mexico city is bigger,” she
said.

“Yeah, but not as grand,” Kip replied quickly. “Nobody can
build like we do, because we have it all here. We’re a melting pot. The best
craftsman, engineers and thinkers from all over the world are here in America.
And why? Because they want to come here. Because they think this is the best
place on earth. And they are right.”

Kip looked out across the water again toward the ghost
buildings of light shining straight up from ground zero. “And I hate to see it
threatened, or under attack from within.”

“So, is that why you became a Marine?” Annie asked him.

“Damn right. Two days after the attacks on September eleven, I
went down and enlisted.”

Annie examined Kips face, looking for bullshit. But there was
none. Kip was a genuine as they come, she could see that in him.

“Kip, were you wealthy before that? Before you enlisted?” She
asked.

Kip shrugged. “My father was.” He looked down at his feet on
the carpeted floor boards. Annie could tell this was a topic best left for
later, but a topic to be explored just the same. There was clearly an issue
between Kip and his father. And it would have to be an important part of the
book. Annie was now in work mode, despite the amazing view and the great time
she was having with this remarkable man. She could not help it. It’s just how
she was. She decided to try another approach.

“What was it like, Kip? Being a Marine?” she asked him,
squeezing his hand.

“The good parts? Or the bad parts?” He asked her back.

“Were their bad parts?”

Kip nodded.
Dumb
question.

“Then all of the parts. Good and bad.”

Kip held still and looked her in the eye then he let his eyes
wander over the cabin thinking. Kip unbuckled and leaned forward in the seat,
speaking to the pilot without using the
mic.
The
pilot pulled one headphone to the side and listened. Then he nodded and Kip sat
back down proper and buckled up again.

“Okay, Annie, here is what it is like. Take right now, for
example. Seeing things in ways you never have before. Going places and doing
things you never thought you would do. Even the hard work was enjoyable. Like
you, getting over the fear of taking off in this thing. It was hard, right? But
not overwhelmingly so, and you knew there would be an amazing payoff to it,
right?”

Annie nodded.

“Seeing how the rest of the world lives,” he continued. “Like
looking in on people in their apartments as we ascended.” Annie looked slightly
embarrassed. Like she was being accused of being a peeping tom. “You don’t know
them. You don’t know how they live. But just for a brief moment you get this
quick glimpse.” Annie nodded again. “We don’t know how the rest of the world
lives, Annie, because we don’t see it like the rest of the world does. Now, a
case could be made either way, that that is good or bad. I think it is good.
The whole world should live like we live. Comfortable in our beds at night.
Warm in our houses. Money in our pockets to go see one of my concerts. But a
lot of the world doesn’t have those things. And some would say that it is our
fault that they don’t. But it’s not. It’s their governments fault. I did my
part to spread happiness throughout the world, and I feel good about doing it.
America spreads democracy. We spread prosperity throughout the world. We don’t
terrorize other countries. We liberate them. And I feel good about that. I feel
good about what I’ve done.”

“Interesting, huh? Even fun. Exhilarating. The world gets
smaller for you. You’ve seen more of it. The ways of people start to come into
focus. And when you are a part of the United States military, you know that,
for the most part, you’re doing good in the world. You’re helping people. Oh, I
know there is a lot of bad press about the US armed forces out there. But
mostly it’s just that. Bad press. I’ve seen articles in the New York Times that
flat out lie about the military. I’ve seen articles about my very own company,
accusing us of killing civilians. I know for a fact that it is a lie. Made up.
They do it because they are trying to paint the military in a bad light before
the world stage. God knows what the hell they are thinking. Just like rock
stars too. The press makes us seem like bad people. But just the same, I didn’t
see any of that, and I was a huge part of it. We did good. We helped people
throughout the Middle East. I felt good about what I did. I felt bigger than
myself and way bigger than anything I could have done with the money my family
had. Being a rock star is thrilling and I love to hear people chant my name but
serving my country is better.” And then Kip swallowed and said, “Okay Sammy.”

Suddenly the helicopter broke away from the stern face of the
statue of liberty and went into a dive. Annie’s stomach lurched inside and she
gripped Kips hands, digging her nails into his flesh. He let her, without
pulling his hands away. She screamed a short yelp.

In seconds the helicopter was nose down toward the open water,
heading straight for it. Then it pulled up at the last second and skimmed
across the surface. Annie could see when tears weren’t obstructing her vision,
the water ripping by just feet below the skids. The helicopter zoomed at high
speed, and Annie was pinned tight back into her seat.

“And then there are times like this, Annie. Shear, Stark,
terror! And it happens just as fast as that. From peace and happiness in
knowing that you are seeing the world and making a difference to the people in
it, to shear horror and helplessness with your life in the hands of others, and
there is not a damn thing you can do about it.”

“Kip, Please!” Annie screamed between clenched teeth. Blood was
being drawn from kips hand by her nails. Kip just beamed into her eyes, trying
to gauge her reaction. Then he realized he’d made a mistake. He made his point.
But he feared he’d gone too far. “Okay Sam, that’s enough,” he said to the
pilot.

The helicopter slowed and pulled up gently. In seconds they
were at a higher altitude and a more moderate speed. The pilot was an expert
and handled the craft with a sure hand.

Kip could see Annie relax, then look embarrassed.

Kip leaned forward and hugged her. “I am sorry, Annie. I didn’t
know you’d take that so hard. Please forgive me.” Annie hugged him back and took
a deep breath. “I was trying to make a point and show you how I felt sometimes.
I didn’t intend to scare the shit out of you as much as I did.”

Annie pushed back and looked kip in the eye. “My God, Kip, I am
not cut out for that kind of shit. I would never have been a good soldier.”

“Warrior.” Kip corrected her. “We call ourselves warriors in
the Marine Corps. Not Soldiers. Soldiers are in the army.”

Annie shook her head.

“I would have never realized things could be like that,” she
said. “I mean, I have seen war movies. But always from the comfort of my couch.
I would never have realized the terror that you have experienced.”

“Oh, it is much, much worse, Annie,” Kip said, looking back out
the window.

“I can’t imagine how things could have been more terrifying
than that,” Annie said.

Then without looking at her, Kip said, “Well, that’s because we
didn’t actually crash.”

Annie held Kip’s hand as they trotted across the roof of the
McNamara building toward the lobby. Once inside, the doors closed automatically
behind them and the wash from the helicopter stopped buffeting them around.
Someone with a Sampson Flight logo on his shirt ran toward them and unhooked a
cue rope, allowing them to bypass the people milling around the lobby. He
nodded as Kip walked by, leading Annie by the hand.

“Kip,” Annie said. “How do you do that?”

“What is that?” Kip asked.

“Just get what you want anytime you want it.”

Kip smiled and exaggerated smile at her. “I’m charming!” he
proudly exclaimed.

Annie laughed. “You are that!” she said. “But I mean it. You
just got us on that flight without any reservations or anything. And I don’t
think Sammy the Pilot was susceptible to your charm when he agreed to nearly
dive us into the water, probably breaking all kinds of FAA rules that would cost
him his license.”

Kip blushed. “Yeah, he probably did break a few rules there,
huh? But hey, don’t we all?”

Annie put her hands on her hips and cocked one to the side.
“Really?”

“Eh, Sammy and I go way back,” Kip finally said.

“Old friends?” she asked.

Kip looked down again.
Damn,
I hate admitting this stuff.

“It’s a little more complicated than that,” he said. “More like
an employment relationship.”

Annie narrowed her eyes and shook her head slightly. She was at
a loss.

Kip shrugged. “Sammy works for me. In fact, everyone here
does,” he waved his arm around the lobby. I own Sampson Flight.”

Annie’s eyes widened.
Well,
that certainly explains a lot
, she thought. She shook her head and pursed
her lips. “Well, Kip, you ARE full of surprises.”

“Right,” Kip said leading her to the elevator. “So, when you
sleep with me again tonight, you don’t have to worry about breaking your made
up rule anymore about not hooking up with rockers.”

Annie laughed, blushing. “You’re so much more than a rock star,
Kip,” Annie admitted.

“Exactly,” Kip said as he pushed the button for the lobby and
the doors closed. Then he kissed her on the mouth and wrapped his arms around
her. He body was soft and warm, despite having just come in from the roof,
where the air was cold and wet. The elevator rocked slightly in the old
building, but it was a welcome movement as they grinded together. Kip tangled
his fingers in her soft hair and pulled her face tighter to his, then pushed
her back against the mirrored wall of the elevator. Annie’s hands slid up and
down his back. She let her nails scrape marks into his leather jacket.

Then the door slid open and several people started to board,
and then backed off in embarrassment at the action taking place inside. Kip and
Annie paused and let their eyes swing to the door, even if their mouths did
not. Their lips stayed attached. Then they parted in smiles and pulled apart.
They both stepped out onto the ground floor of the McNamara building laughing
and breathing heavy.

“Hungry yet, Annie?” Kip asked as they left the building and
headed north on the sidewalk.

“Famished!” Annie said.

“Let me take you to dinner, I know a place,” Kip said smiling
at her.

“I bet you do. You know, Kip,” Annie said as they made their
way against foot traffic, “I do actually have a life.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just that I have spent the last forty eight plus hours
with you. Maybe I have other things to do?”

Kip stopped and turned toward her, causing ripples in the flow
of pedestrians on the way to this place or that. Annie stopped also and cocked
her head toward him.

“Well, do you?” Kip asked, seriously.

Annie cracked a smile, and then they both broke out into a
laugh again.

“I didn’t think so,” Kip said. They resumed their walk.

“Actually, I lied again. I have no life. Where are we going to
eat?”

“Well, for what I had in mind we are not dressed right,” Kip
said looking down at his jeans and leather jacket. “We should head back up to
the hotel room and change.”

“Kip, I have no clothes there.”

“Ah, a dilemma,” Kip said, holding up a finger. “We could just
stay there and not wear anything then.”