Into the Cold

Amelia cried herself to sleep when Caleb was gone. She wished she’d never gotten on that plane half a year ago. That anyone else had been able to take that trip instead of her, but on second thought no, she didn’t wish that. It had been a miracle she'd survived the crash, let alone the journey down the mountain.

She could still smell him on the pillow, still feel his arms around her. What was she going to do? Dale would be here in just a few hours and she had just made love to another man that she wanted more than her own fiance.

Unable to sleep, she got out of bed and dressed. Thankfully the hotel had laundered her clothes and provided her with a pile of new ones based on sizes Dale’s secretary had provided. She’d found among these items a sweater with an Inuit design stitched on it, leggings and yummy velour socks that made her feet feel like she was walking on clouds.

Sitting on the sofa, she simply stared out at the cityscape, her hand propping up her head, hating everything she saw. The buildings distracted from the beauty of the wilderness around them, the snow was grey and dingy instead of sparkling white. It was all wrong, all too dirty.

She wanted to cry, but she was all cried out.

Amelia jumped as the lock on her suite door clicked and Dale rushed in, dropping his suitcase, running to her.

“Amelia,” he said, pulling her into his warm embrace. “Oh, Amelia. I’m so glad you’re alive.”

He was kissing her then, her cheeks, her forehead, her nose, and finally her lips.

“Dale,” she sobbed, “I’ve missed you so much.”

After a long embrace, they sat on the sofa holding each other’s hand, the silence stretching out between them. Amelia couldn’t believe how much he had aged since she’d last seen him, he seemed almost fifteen years older.

“I can’t tell you how happy I am to see you,” Dale said finally, squeezing her hand gently. “The trooper who called me said some hermit found you.”

“Caleb,” Amelia nodded, returning the squeeze. “He used to a state trooper himself.”

“How did he find you?” he asked. “We searched and searched for weeks but found nothing.”

“From what information I could get, the search party was looking over a hundred miles west from where the plane actually crashed,” she explained.” Caleb found me entirely by accident.

“After the crash, I stumbled out of the wreckage and somehow found a small cabin in the middle of the forest,” she continued, a chill running through her at the memory. “I climbed in and passed out. Turns out it was one of Caleb’s. He’d set it up for shelter while hunting, in case he couldn’t get back to his main cabin.”

“And that’s where he found you?” Dale breathed, pulling her into an embrace. “Thank God for coincidence.”

They sat there for hours, just holding each other relishing in being together. Finally Dale had to stand.

“Sorry sweety,” he apologized, “my sciatica is beginning to act up. Those commercial airline seats are horrible, even in first class.”

“It’s okay,” Amelia said, brushing her hair out of her face. “We should get moving anyway.”

“Is there anything in Anchorage you want to do before we head back to Houston?” he asked, offering her his hand to stand.

“I wish there was something we could do for Caleb,” she sighed, “but he’s so independent and set in his ways, I don’t know if there is anything we could do.”

“Did you get the name of the bush pilot that flew you out?” he asked.

“Yes,” she nodded.

“Well, we can contact him and see if there are any supplies he thinks Caleb could use and if there are, we could have them taken out to his,” Dale offered.

“That would be perfect,” Amelia said, “if all else fails we could pay for his supplies and the fees his pilot charges for the next few years. I know he works all winter trapping just to afford those.”

“How about we do both,” Dale said, “he saved your life. Supplies and pilot fees are the least we can do.”

“Thank you,” she said, squeezing his hand. “I’m gonna go pack.”

“Okay,” he said, kissing her forehead. “I’m gonna order some coffee and breakfast. I haven’t eaten anything except airport food since last night. Do you want anything?”

“Sure,” Amelia said from the bedroom, “bacon, eggs, and toast sounds wonderful.”

By the time she was done, there was a knock on the door and the wonderful smells of breakfast was wafting through the suite. As they ate, she and Dale made plans on what to send to Caleb.

Amelia wished she could find a way to send a message to him telling him how much she wished things were different, but she thought it was better to just leave things alone. She was here with Dale and Caleb was going back to the wilderness where he belonged.

After finishing their meal, she and Dale set out on a whirlwind shopping spree across Anchorage purchasing anything Amelia and his pilot thought Caleb might need or be able to use.

When she could think of nothing else, they made arrangements with the pilot to fly the lot out to Caleb as soon as the suppliers delivered them.

The next morning, she and Dale boarded a plane and flew home, leaving Alaska and all of its memories behind.

Dale had arranged for her companies corporate jet take them home and with a heavy heart Amelia settled into her seat as it lifted off. She watched from the window as the world drifted by, her heart breaking more and more as the miles between her and Caleb increased.

After touching down in Houston, Dale escorted her to the waiting limousine, and they began their long drive home. She was amazed at how different everything looked, the grass was the wrong shade of green, the trees were small and leafy instead of majestic and full of needles.

Dale saw her confusion and did his best to alleviate her discomfort, offering her snacks and drinks. When that didn’t work, he tried discussing business, only to lapse into silence once more. He wanted so much to see Amelia smile, but no matter what he tried failed. Everything about her was different, the further they were from Alaska the more she seemed to fold in on herself.

The staff welcomed Amelia home with such joy and jubilation, she was moved to tears. By the time she and Dale went to bed she was exhausted beyond belief. She barely managed to pull on her nightdress before she collapsed into bed. Dale crawled in next to her and pulled her into his arms.

“Amelia,” he said softly, stroking her cheek. “What’s wrong my darling?”

“I don’t know,” she sobbed, “everything just feels wrong. For the last six months all I wanted was to get home, but now that I’m here it doesn’t feel right.”

“Hush sweetheart,” he soothed, kissing the top of her head, “It will probably take a few days to get back into the swing of things. We’ll just take it slow. I’ve told the office that I’m taking next week off and not to call me unless it was a world-ending emergency. Tonight we sleep, tomorrow we’ll figure out in the morning. Now, close your eyes and sleep.”

“I love you,” Amelia whispered as she drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

“I love you too,” Dale said softly, pulling her closer.