Chapter 8

Bill’s turn:

I guess every baby bird has to leave the nest sooner or later. I sent my wife and daughter off to an unregistered airfield, running a pronto cargo run for a friend.

The phone call about the emergency landing sat me back on my heels.

“What was THAT?” Dan asked from the adjacent office.

I related the story. By the time I started, I had Maddie in there, too. And Brindy. Carlita’s in class. Dave’s on the road. Nina’s on the road. And we don’t see Sandy that much any more. She’s soaking up maximum Matt now. The wedding ceremony on the near horizon is a formality. Those two are MARRIED.

“Are you going up there?” Maddie asked.

“Not much good I could do but leave the other plane there and haul ‘em home. Besides, she’s invoked The Cindy...”

Maddie laughed out loud. “Just like Hallmark cards. ‘When you care enough to send the very best.’ Have you...”

My cellphone rang. “We spoke the name into existence,” I said. “Hi, Cindy...”

“Me ‘n Wally’re on the way to rescue YOUR wife, Bill.”

“It’s your fault. You should’ve given us a buzzard-proof plane.”

“I admit my malfeasance,” she laughed. “That’s why we’re rescuing her. Oh, and because she’s cute. And she’s got Deena with ‘er.”

“You have a plan?”

“Better’n that. I got Wally and a replacement prop.”

“Y’all sure that’s gonna work?”

“We’re gonna look, and give it a try. If it doesn’t, we’ll know and we’ll take the next steps. Wally says it sounds like a bent prop. He’s thinking no engine damage. If that’s the case they’ll be home tonight. If it ain’t, we’ll have a big slumber party and let Wally fend for himself while we figure out the next step.”

“I appreciate your help.”

“You guys ain’t the only ones in the ‘rescue’ business, you know.”

“Thank you, Cindy!” we chorused.

Squeak! “You had me on speaker?”

“Yes. Maddie misses your voice. The rest of us are curious about what magic you’ll work.”

“Hi, Maddiekins!” Cindy chirped. “We need to get you and Coop over here for a visit.”

Maddie eyed me. “I’d love that if my slave-driver boss would ever let up on me...”

“Maddie, Maddie, Maddie,” I said. “You work with Coop’s schedule and just do it. We’ll mourn your absence.”

“I’ll work on it, Cindy.”

“Now, Bill ... you’ll end up with a three-blade prop on that 185. We’re gonna send your bent one to a shop and I am thinking we’ll bring our other three-blader with it and get yours fixed – and swap back whenever...”

“But ... yeah,” Wally said. “I’d much appreciate y’all bringing the plane back here for that.”

“We’ll do it,” I said.

“Well, let us aviate,” Cindy said. “talk with you later.”

“Take good care of my Haley and Deena,” I said.

“Got ‘em. Bye.” Click.

“Wow!” Dan said. “You never know. One minute...”

“I know,” I said. “Just like that...”

“‘S not flying, you know,” Brindy inserted. “Coulda happened driving across town. Sleepy truck driver...”

“I know. Extra hugs tonight, though,” I said.

Brindy’s eyebrow ... it’s a tattletale. Went up extra high. “Haley handled it, though ... Maybe she’s OUR Cindy...”

“My Haley,” I said. “Unique.”

“Just like the rest of us,” Maddie tittered. “I’ve heard Cindy’s ‘unique’ speech. I think it was in the middle of one of those ‘this is why YOUR answer’s wrong’ math sessions. She’s a hoot when she gets on a roll about something.”

The crowd broke up. I went back to my office, woke my computer up, tried to get into the work displayed on it. Couldn’t. I’m fried. My girls. Just like that I could’ve lost both of them at once.

Time dragged. I got herded out of the office for lunch at the little diner up the road, ate a meal I usually loved.

“They’re okay, bud,” Dan said. “Just like their academics. Haley’s above and beyond. So’s Deena. And flying? Nina says that if Haley ever offers to go fly with you in the Stearman, lay out the ground rules first, otherwise you’ll see Louisiana over your head.”

“That’s Cindy and Hanna,” I said. “Hanna ... you need to get a session with ‘er. Make you a better pilot.”

“I suppose I will.”

“Hell, call John. Get us some crawfish. We’ll do a crawfish boil and make Hanna work for her dinner.”

“She’s gonna get wise to us...”

“Already is. Greg gets payback time in the Stearman.”

“At least Haley hasn’t hit him up for time in one of his planes...”

“Yeah. Uh, don’t plant that seed. Dan 1.0 told me about Cindy.”

Mid-afternoon. Deena’s ring tone. “Hi, Dad!”

“Hey, baby. What’s up?”

“Us, as soon as Cindy takes off. I wanna video it. You shoulda seen her drop the Pilatus in here. Ain’t gonna miss the takeoff. Uh, we on speaker?”

“No, why?”

“You might wanna take an extra vitamin or something. Disasters make me horny.”

No idea who might overhear. “You know everybody’s gonna want to hear the story.”

“No doubt,” she giggled. “But tonight ... just hang on...”

“Okay,” I said, making an effort to keep my voice slightly down from ‘Ohboy ohboy ohboy.’

“Lemme go. She’s taxiing.”

“Okay, honey,” I said.

“That them?” Dan’s voice.

“Yep. Got the prop on. Test flight. They’re filming Cindy’s departure then they’ll be in the air. Home in a couple hours...”

“They’re gonna be pushing the edge of daylight.”

“Haley’s got sense enough to land next door if she needs to.”

“Yeah. We really do need to get the lights installed,” Dan said. “Might only use ‘em twice a year, but we need ‘em.”

“We can talk with Alan and Anders. It’s a chunk of change.”

“Well, if we’re getting ready to get told ‘no’,” Dan said, “Let ‘em tell us ‘no’ to paving, too.”

“You know, you’re a starry-eyed optimist.”

He laughed. “Nina’s fault. And dammit, I should’ve gone with her on that walk-through.” Nina was visiting a site with a client, a little electrical cooperative, looking at upgrading a remote substation – new circuit breakers, new transformer, new controls and protection technology.

Second time the thought crossed my mind today. “I guess every baby bird has to leave the nest sooner or later.”

“Tell you what,” Dan 3.0 said. “How about I bring my baby bird and you bring your baby birds and we get a steak for dinner...”

I thought about that quickly. It’d delay the bedtime festivities, but with those two, I might not live through the night, anyway. “Sure. Gotta give ‘em time to clean up. I think if I’d’ve munged up an engine on takeoff, I’d be changing my drawers, though.”

“Weekday night,” Dan said. “Won’t need reservations.” He raised his voice. “Brindy! Maddie! Steak dinner tonight?”

“Already bein’ domestic,” Maddie said. “Maybe next time.”

“Sure,” Brindy said.

Those three – Brindy, Carlita, and Dave, they’ve almost got synchronized heartbeats anyway.

The sun was just halfway down on the horizon when the old Cessna slid out of the skies. I was out there when she clattered to a stop. She looks strange with the three-bladed prop. I accepted hugs and held those two close for entirely too long. I had tears. They were giddy.

The arrival emptied out the houses. Dave and I pushed the plane back into the hangar while the girls had a squeal-fest, then my two walked with me to the house.

“Shower, then steakhouse,” I said.

“I’ll settle for a grilled cheese sandwich. Later.” Deena’s eyes flashed.

“Me, too. Bein’ heroic makes me horny,” Haley tittered

“I expect so. But we must be social, okay? Later...”

“We’ll be gentle, Dad.”

Giggle. “Or not.”

“YOU!” I told Deena. “Go turn on the light in your bedroom.”

“Nobody cares, Dad,” she pouted.

“Plausible deniability.”

The shower was uncharacteristically short, only a cursory amount of extracurricular activity. We got out, dressed, went to dinner.

You might guess what much of the conversation was about.

It’s been a long time since I wanted a social meal to end.

When the lights went out, I was a dried-out husk of a man.

Middle of the next day was another of those “We need to fly right NOW!” moments.

Haley’s turn:

Maybe this is the way it worked for Cindy – things just kept coming up.

Cindy’s ring-tone. “Hey, sister,” I said gleefully. I’ve never had an unhappy conversation with Cindy, even yesterday, after she found out what had happened.

This time she sounded sad. I listened to her talk about her elderly friend. “He won’t last much longer, Haley. Some of us talked. We need the other Stearman for the funeral.”

“How soon?”

“First good day. Tomorrow’s...”

“Might be it. I’ll look. That’s a loooong flight in the ol’ thing.”

“She’ll love it. Bring a co-pilot.”

I snickered. “Deena.”

“Who’s gonna stay home and take care of Bill?” she giggled.

Lights flashed in my head. Red ones. Oh, she knows...

“We’ll have him chase us in a 185.”

“Not much of a chase. That thing beats a Stearman by fifty knots.”

“So he can slow down.”

“Y’all can spend the night,” Cindy said. “Fly back the next day.”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“Thank you, Sis,” she said. “We’re doing a proper send-off for a great old guy. Our version of a Viking funeral.”

Arrangements. Delay a meeting on campus. Not like missing a couple of days is going to hurt either me or Deena. Bill? He’s the boss, more or less, and he’ll get some face time with the principals of the company.

The next day is not COLD, but we still bundle up. First, the air’s colder at altitude. Second, won’t be moving to warm up. Third, long legs. Refuel midway, for us. I know what the calculations say, but the ultimate arbiter is where that little bead sits in the fuel gauge tube.