The Light in Her Eyes (4 page)

Baby?

She didn't move. I wondered if
perhaps she was sick of me, sick of my antics, though I couldn't quite place my
finger on what those antics were. Was this it? Was she going to end us? Was
this trip, this dream come true going to be destroyed by a petty fight?

I moved over to her.

Baby?

Yes. She replied with anger in her
voice.

It didn't phase me. I knew now what
she meant to me.

Baby. Get up. We have to keep
moving.

To where? We don't even know where
we're going.

I thought about that. I didn't know
where we were going, but we would have to figure it out. Staying out here at
night would be a sure fire way to get hypothermia. We had to find some sort of
shelter or civilization.

We'll find a way. All right?

She looks at the ground in front of
her feet.

How do you know? She asks.

I know. We need to keep moving or
else we'll freeze. We'll find somewhere we can stay the night, then we'll
figure out where to stay.

She stares at my hand which now
rests on her arm, then she looks up at my eyes. A smile cracks on the edges of
her face. I grin.

She gets up in my arms and we start
walking on the edge of the road. Soon I feel warm.

I really thought Zeb was a good
man. She says.

I did too. Who knows, maybe
something happened to him.

As soon as the words come out of my
mouth I know that I shouldn't have said that. Jenny shrinks in size and stays
silent. We move like that for a few minutes.

I mean, like his tire got popped. I
finally say when her silence becomes unbearable.

A few minutes later I hear the
whine of the road and we hide behind a tree. A truck with a spotlight is
driving down the road. I try to see if it's the cops or just some rednecks
looking to shoot some deer.

This truck doesn't stop like the
previous one, instead it crawls along the road. Then I realize that we must
have left some footprints.

The truck is now twenty feet away.

When I say run, run with me into
the forest. I whisper into her ear.

She nods. I can feel her breathing
faster and faster as the truck comes closer.

Jenny? Matt? A woman's voice calls
out.

A few seconds later a man's voice
calls out our name again.

Jenny shifts and a twig snaps. The
concentration of the people in the truck listening cracks to silence.

It's us. They say, not yelling.

Jenny gives me a look. She's
shivering and I can see that her lips are blue. We really don't have much to
lose.

I step out into the light.

Matt!

Zeb comes running at me. He's
holding two blankets and wraps one around me while embracing me at the same
time. He sees Jenny and throws the other blanket over her. The thought of
sitting in the warm truck takes over me and I barely register Zeb's apologies.
It's only when we're inside, and the warmth has returned to my mind that I
start to take in what Zeb and his wife are saying. They are still apologizing.
I'm happy that they found us. At the same time something inside me wants to reach
out and scream at them for leaving us abandoned for so long.

What happened? I ask in as nice of
a voice as I can muster. The truck is now hurtling down the highway. To where,
I'm not certain.

We went through the border, but
they'd shut it down. Weren't letting anyone through. When we finally got
through we started down the highway then realized that we didn't tell you where
exactly to meet. So we looked up and down and couldn't find you. Zeb said,
looking at the rearview mirror.

They were looking for you. Zeb's
wife pointed at Jenny.

So we had to wait for things to
cool before we came back with the light to see if you were here.

I nod my head. It sounds good. I
was happy to be warm. Jenny's head rests on my lap and I close my eyes.

The next day I wake up in a bed
with my clothes on and Jenny next to me. We are in a rustic cabin and I can
smell bacon and eggs. I tap Jenny on her shoulder. She squints and moves away
from me. I get up from the bed.

Don't go.

I sit down next to her, then lie
behind her. I have no intention of leaving her. I want to find out where we
are, but that can wait.

At breakfast Zeb and his wife
introduce us to his cousin. A man with a pointed nose and shattered grin. He
seems friendly.

Jim.

Matt.

Jenny.

Pleased to meet you.

I find out that we are near Banff
National Park.

Look.

I turn my head to see mountains in
the distance. Snow mists hug the peaks and seem to come from another dimension.
I drink more coffee.

We need a place to stay. Jenny says
after breakfast.

You can stay here. Jim replies.

To live. I say.

Oh. He thinks for a second.

I can pay cash.

I have an addition to my properties
that I don't need. But it's in the middle of nowhere. Need a proper four-wheel
drive to get to it.

Later that day we all drive to the
place. The truck shakes and rolls through a steep, muddy, and narrow road. I
see nothing but pine trees. We come to a stop in the middle of more trees.

Down a trail Jim leads us until we
finally get to a cabin. It's small and dilapidated. I stare in dismay. It's
barely livable; half the roof is caved in.

I love it. Jenny says, beaming. She
looks at me for approval.

It's great.

We walk inside. Cobwebs and the
smell of decay great us. It's small with three rooms to the place:
kitchen/dining, bed, bath.

It needs some work. Jim says.

But we'll help you get it fixed up.
Zeb adds.

There's a pause, but Jim seems to
agree.

Show them the view.

I walk to the other side of the
cabin. One look and my heart drops before swooping to unknown heights.

Nice, eh? Zeb says.

We're situated on top of a hill with
rows of hills unfolding beyond us, and the majestic peaks of Banff leaning
over.

Oh my God. Jenny says and holds my
hand. We kiss. Again.

It takes us two months to clean up
and rebuild the cabin. Jim is a natural carpenter and he even helps us connect to
a nearby spring for running water.

After bidding everyone good bye
Jenny and I sit down on our new porch near the overlook to drink some wine.

It's like a dream, isn't it? She
asks.

It is. I reply.

I hold her hand, pull her closer. I
touch her lips with my forefinger.

I love you. She says.

I love you too.

I kiss her and feel the smell of
her skin press into my heart.

###

Also by AR Shane:

Guns
Death and Love

Other books by Eiso
Publishing authors:

Tree
of Freedom

by Nelson Lowhim

The
Struggle Trilogy

by Nelson Lowhim

###

About the Author:

A R Shane has been a writer for
over ten years. Shane's energy is focused on writing stories about people
overcoming the odds to live life the way it was intended. Shane has spent an
entire lifetime traveling the world, and calls all nations home. This lifestyle
is, according to Shane, the only way to be a writer and to keep ideas for these
great books coming.