Ninety Degrees Out

Chay listened with half an ear as his brother and Alicia discussed Arimina’s stay at the lodge. Armaruq chimed in and told her it didn’t matter if her daughter didn’t have any clothes with her, with Alasie there, the girls would share. There were always spare toothbrushes so she shouldn’t worry.

When they dismounted at the pool, Hakan grabbed Bingo’s reins and waved them away. “Try to forget about this day.”

They all looked up when they heard the twin engines of Kanti’s Otter throbbing through the humid evening. Clouds were building to the north against the mountains. It looked like thunderstorms were coming their way. How had it gotten so late? The sun was already heading down in the west.

“I’ll get these pictures to you, Hakan. Do we have someone in our community who can tweak the cell towers out here into a network just for us?” Chay asked.

“I don’t know. For the moment, we seem to have communications on the ranch from our own cell booster. I think it’s robust enough to reach your place too. We only have the radio to reach Dad though. Wi-Fi is working and so is Wi-Fi calling. Cellular connectivity is zero.”

“I know there’s power in the tower at the end of Dahl Road just past Alicia’s place. Maybe I should put my programming

skills to use and try making it work for us.”

“It couldn’t hurt. Are you still working the telescope?” Hakan’s curiosity was unusual.

“Why?”

“Just wondering. Kanti asked if the poles have changed.”

“No, at least not much. North is truer though. The pole is almost at the top of the world in the middle of the Gobi Desert.”

“God that’s strange. Do you know how many degrees off?”

“Last reading was steady at two degrees east of the Prime Meridian and about ten degrees south.”

“I’ll tell Kanti so she can tell the other pilots. No one has been able to figure it out.”

Chay reached over to clasp Alicia’s hand and said, “Enough of the tech talk, take care of our little munchkin, please. We’ll be down tomorrow to pick her up. I think we’re going to move my truck outside and make a couple of stalls for horses, in the garage.”

“You can take Bingo back up tomorrow, we’ll have to make sure you get some oats for feed as well,” Hakan said. “I’ll see about another horse for you later.” He turned his mount toward the path down the canyon rim, where it sloped down to the gate beside Twig Creek.

“We love Ari like our own, don’t worry about her,” Armaruq said. “I’ll make sure she’s safe.” He gave a nod to Alicia before they cantered away.

Chay watched them until he saw them close the gate and wave a final goodbye. Turning toward Alicia, he bent to kiss her.

“Have I told you I love you? Both of you?”

“Wow, where did that come from? Because I was just thinking about how much I love your family, and the way they opened their arms to embrace mine.”

“If you’re not ready to say it, I understand. So much has turned upside down in our lives. I learned from my grandfather, Dad’s Dad, always tell those you love how you feel. Love can only grow if it is shared. I’m sharing mine with you now. I love you, Alicia. I love Arimina. I always will.”

“I don’t have to think about it. I started falling in love with you right from the start. Your generosity sharing your house with a complete stranger, impressed me. But it was the moment when we went to check for earthquake damage at the Markham place, when you and I were swinging Arimina between us, that had me hooked. I knew I was in trouble if you didn’t feel it too.”

Chay stopped them halfway through the forest at the fork in the path leading to Ursa’s den. He pulled Alicia into his arms and threaded his fingers through her inky curls. Kissing her gently on the forehead, he rubbed his nose against hers, before matching his lips to hers. Her quiet sigh of acceptance released the final lock on his heart.

“My heart is yours, cherish it as I cherish yours,” he whispered in her ear.

“Love me, as I love you. My heart is yours,” she said the words with an intensity that struck his soul.

“We’ll celebrate tonight. I think bison steaks and fresh salad and greens from our garden,” Chay said when he caught his breath again.

“Hmm,” Alicia agreed. “It’s amazing how quickly the lettuce and radish seeds have matured.”

“Let’s head home and find Jazz. I think he’s found a stray friend somewhere close by. He’s been wandering a lot longer on his treks into the woods.”

“Aren’t you afraid he’ll go feral?”

“No. There’s always food for him here, although he’ll catch the occasional rabbit. There’s a ready source of water in the rain barrels. I taught him how to move the lid to get in. If you noticed, there’s a block of stone at the bottom of the one.”

“He usually comes back for the night too. Arimina misses him when he’s not here.”

“He’s in love with our girl,” he agreed.

“Do you think he’ll find her at the lodge?”

“I don’t think so. I have a feeling we’re going to find out if he’s found a mate. I never did neuter him like I was supposed to. He’ll coax her in to meet us soon.”

“How old is he?”

“He’ll be three in late May. More than old enough to find a mate, but not old enough to lead a pack if he were a full wolf.”

They came out of the woods at the fallen log. Chay pointed to tracks in the sandy soil behind it. Alicia knelt to study the confusing array.

“I see Ursa’s been here, digging under the rotting tree trunk. All the cubs are with her. But I don’t recognize these.” She touched her finger to the five pad pattern.

“Looks like I’m right. Those are Jazz’s paw prints.” He pointed to the bigger dog tracks. “The smaller ones might be his new friend.”

“He’s got her close by then,” Alicia surmised.

“I’m wondering if she’s got wolf in her. Assuming it’s a her.”

“I would suspect it’s a female. A male’s feet are usually much bigger.”

“You’re right as a rule.” Chay stopped to pull up a couple of radish plants, and found they were already at a half inch in diameter. “I’ll just pull a few more of these.”

“I’m going to get the hoe. We’ve got a lot of weeds coming up. I’ll harvest lettuce after I finish weeding.” Alicia headed around to the front.

He barely heard the beeps as she disarmed the alarm. He scanned the storm clouds, and decided they had enough time to deal with the chores. Heading to the house he unlocked the back door, noting the alarm was down. A quiet woof caught his attention, and he turned. Jazz was back, and he wasn’t alone.