Page 7 of Bearing North
Oh.
Orson had been pronouncing the name like Tik Tok, the social media app, and apparently it was “Toke.” The danger of being gruff and blustery was that no one corrected him, so he sounded stupider and stupider as the day progressed.
A company pickup waited for them in the parking lot, with the new Grizzly Protection Services vinyl logo stuck on a space on the door with slightly less mud than the rest. It was a crew cab in deep blue, and Orson glanced into the back to find a plastic bin lashed into place, with not one but two spare tires, a full-sized shovel, and a marked emergency kit. How far away from civilization were they going? Were they going to bury bodies? Sandra had assured him that he didn’t need any camping equipment and that she had arranged housing all along the way.
Alexandra went to the driver’s side and opened the back door.
“I’ll drive,” Orson insisted. That was thebossthing to do, right?
“Of course!” she said. “Tee hee hee.” She left the door ajar and went around to the other side of the truck, storing her luggage in the back seat.
Orson was beginning to suspect that there was something sinister behind her fake-sounding giggle. He slung his suitcase into the back of the cab and settled into the driver’s seat.
He thought he did all right through the brief tour of the Valdez (Valdeeeeez) terminal, but he was eager to get on the road, alone with the woman making his bear do emotional somersaults.
“Buckle up!” he said cheerfully, before he could remember that he wasn’tOld Orson. He followed it with a grunt that sounded super forced.
Alexandra didn’t comment, though Orson caught a confused sideways glance.
He vowed to be tough and silent for the rest of the trip but blew it almost at once as they drove north into a gorgeous canyon just as the clouds cleared and the sky opened up overhead. The road was twisty and narrow, and Orson nearly drove off it twice staring at the waterfalls cascading down the cliffs opposite of the road across a frothy river. Between the light and the water and the sheer rock walls, it was a view straight out of a postcard, and he had to force himself not to gape. Fortunately, traffic was light, because he crossed the centerline several times.
“Pull over here,” Alexandra said firmly, following it with a clear afterthought of a giggle. “Tee hee hee.”
Hereproved to be a viewing point of a particularly stunning waterfall. The light streaming into the canyon lit it up like a filmy, foamy spill of silver. Rainbows danced everywhere.
“Bridal Veil Falls,” Alexandra said briefly, as they got out. “It’s more impressive earlier in the spring, but we’ve had a lot of rain lately. I’ll take the wheel now.” She put her hand out imperiously, then winced. “So you can enjoy the view. Tee hee hee.”
Orson obediently dropped the keys into her hand, then wondered if he should have insisted on continuing to drive. He settled for scowling at her and stomping to the other side of the truck without speaking.
6
ALEXANDRA
Alex took over driving because fear for her life overwhelmed her need to suck up, but she needn’t have worried that Orson was going to take offense. He acted like he’d never seen waterfalls or mountains, craning at the views Alex had stopped appreciating years ago.
Every so often, he seemed to realize what he was doing and sat back in his seat, crossed his arms, and glared at the road. But it wasn’t many miles before he leaned forward again, gazing out at the broad sky with its fluffy clouds, snow-capped peaks, and scattered wildlife.
Alex kept up a chirpy, exhausting monologue when he wasn’t any help at all, and pulled over when she spotted Dahl sheep along the mountainside, pointing out the tiny forms. “They look like tiny patches of snow, but if you watch, they’ll move. If you want a closer look, there are binoculars in the glove box.”
He looked like he wanted to say yes but only grunted in reply, so she put the truck back in gear and pulled onto the highway. “We’re coming up on Thompson Pass,” she told him some time later, pulling into the campground for the view. He did use the binoculars then, sweeping the facing glaciers in interest.
“You should see Denali,” Alex told him. “It’s the tallest mountain in North America and worth a side trip.”
He gave an off-putting snort. It was fascinating to Alex to watch him struggle with himself. He was clearly excited to see the wilderness and had a youthful eagerness that was at complete odds with his more usual snarling, scowling demeanor. Every time he caught her watching him, he frowned harder and drew himself up.
“You mean Mt. McKinley?” he asked, sounding cross.
“They renamed it Denali, the Native name, like ten years ago,” Alex said as mildly as she could manage. “It means The Great One.” Should she giggle? Trying to keep up a light, air-headed conversation without pointing out his inaccuracies was frustrating. At least he hadn’t called Tok “Tock” since they’d made contact with the Valdez office. And he didn’t suggest a side-trip to see Denali, so Alex didn’t have to explain that it would add at least a day and a half to an already agonizing journey.
“It’s another four hours to Tok,” Alex reminded him. She didn’t want to rush his sight-seeing, and she was intrigued by the little glimpses of enthusiasm he seemed to be trying to hide, but she also looked forward to dropping her chirpy, bubbly facade and shutting a hotel door on Orson’s smug face.
He stomped back to the passenger side without offering to drive, so Alex slipped into the driver seat and clipped on her seatbelt.
“Music?” he asked gruffly when she forgot to be a tour guide for a while and they had lapsed into silence. The scenery got less epic as they descended down into the broad valley. “What do you like?”
Alex shrugged. “Anything but country.”Oh crap, what if he loves country music?Trying to please him was going to give her a damned ulcer.
“There’s no cell connection,” he grouched.
