“So what’s the plan?” I asked as I began to arrange the cushions on the floor. I love puzzles, and this was an interesting challenge that kept my mind busy. It wasn’t perfect, but I was eventually able to jigsaw the cushions together into something that resembled, of all things, one of the cushion forts I used to make as a little girl. I kept the three cushions that would make the “roof” of the fort off for now, setting them aside until I had arranged the sleeping bags and mats. “What do you think?”
Wesley looked over the arrangement, smiling good-naturedly. “I think you did pretty well, considering that this is your first plane crash. I doubt I could have done better myself, all things considered.”
Laying out the bags, I found myself stumbling. I was worried at first, thinking that perhaps the shock or some other injury had taken away my balance, until I realized the main problem was that I couldn’t really see. The sun had gone down, and the inside of the plane was now very dark. “Uh, Wes? You think we can break out that LED lantern we brought? Assuming it’s here.”
“Yeah, sure,” Wes replied, pulling my bag over to him and searching it efficiently. “It’s going to be a lot better illumination than my flashlight, that’s for sure. Ah, here we are.” Turning it on, the lantern cast a ghastly pale light around the wrecked cabin, but it was better than nothing. “I suggest we eat, then try to get some rest. We’re going to need it tomorrow.”
“You still haven’t told me the plan,” I said, grabbing one of the two opened packets Wesley had used earlier to get heaters from. Taking a bite, I winced at the preserved metallic flavor of the rations, chewing as quickly as I could to get it down. The stuff was horrible. No wonder soldiers complained about military food all the time. “Next time, save the heaters and just climb into the bag with me first. This stuff is terrible when it’s cold.”
Wes nodded and grinned, using the enclosed plastic spoon to scoop up what was supposed to be chicken with rice and mushroom gravy.
“Sure. It might actually be good if we connected our bags tonight too. We can’t build a fire, and we don’t even have hot water or anything to use like that. Two bodies with those bags, though, will be a lot more comfortable than by ourselves. I promise I won’t bite. Unless you want me to, that is.”
He was looking at me with that wicked smile of his. I was glad he was acting like his normal self. “Okay,” I said, a trifle too quickly, ignoring his last little comment and hoping that the lantern didn’t show my blush. It was hard to admit to myself, even after the plane crash, but I wanted Wes’s arms around me again. “I mean, if you think it will help. Now, what’s the plan?”
“We’re going to have to hike out of here,” Wesley replied, pointing to the map. “You see this blue line? This was his flight path. But, I put us right about here,” he said. “Whatever it was that caused him to descend and crash, it hit a lot earlier than we realized. I’d say we’re close to ninety kilometers off of our intended course, in the high mountains and above the snow line. Any search party is going to have difficulty even finding us, and I doubt any search would even start for at least another day. The pilot was good, but he was a two-man operation, and his mechanic doesn’t come in on Sundays.”
“So you don’t think we could survive until a search party finds us?” I replied, fear making my voice tight and strained. My throat felt like it was closing up, and I had to cough. “Others have done it.”
“Yes, but we have a better option. Neither of us are badly injured, our gear is in decent shape, and we have food supplies. I spied a lake, which I think is the beginning of a chain. They curve around and lead to a huge lake called Williston Lake. We’re certain to find boaters or campers along that route. And since we’ll be going roughly downhill, we can cover the distance fast enough. I think that’s better than sitting here, hoping someone comes and finds us.”
“Uh, no offense, Wes, but what about wild animals and stuff like that? I’ve heard some pretty scary stories about what lives up in this area.” I shivered as I thought of the tales I had read, of bears and wolves and even moose attacking and trampling humans. Yes, I am Apache, but even the Apache lived in the desert. Snakes and scorpions don’t frighten me as much as a mountain lion or a bear does.
“We’ll make it. We have knives, we have means of making fire, and we have our packs. I just hope nothing is broken inside, especially our water filters.” Wes finished his main meal and opened the dessert, a bag of chocolate candies. “I seem to remember you favored the red ones best. You want to share?”