“Me neither.” Fred let out a loud laugh as he brought his plane to life. “Let's get this girl into the air.”
Noel spotted smoke starting to spurt from the engine. “Uh—”
“She's just clearing her throat,” Fred told Noel. “Take it easy.”
Noel drew in a series of deep breaths as Fred taxied the plane down a bumpy, dirt runway, spun the plane around in one sharp movement, and then nodded. “Please, dear God...be with us.”
“Amen.” Fred smiled and then got the plane moving down the runway. Slowly but surely the plane began picking up speed...more speed...frozen trees flying past the windows...more speed...more speed...bump...more speed...and then...take off! Before Noel could release her breath, the plane carefully lifted into the air. “Here we go!”
The sound of the plane lifting up off the ground was almost deafening—at least inside the interior of the plane. Noel could barely hear Fred. The engine was loud and the air pressure inside the plane began to change the farther Fred flew the plane up into the stormy sky.Settle back. Relax. You'll get to North Winds in one piece….at least I pray. Just...enjoy the scenery.
A majestic mountain range appeared in the distance. The very top of the mountain range was soaked with cold snow and frozen rocks. The untamed land below the mountain range was filled with beautiful snow-covered trees, wild rivers, and untamed hearts that dared to be free. For a few minutes, Noel became captivated by the beauty her eyes were able to see. And then there was a sudden jerk in the plane. “Fred—”
“Just turbulence.” Fred laughed. “Relax.”
Noel looked into Fred's face. The old man looked relaxed and at ease as he chewed on his cigar.He's flying the plane with absolute ease and confidence. He doesn't seem to be worried about anything...that's good. When Fred starts to worry, I'll worry.“Are you going to stay in North Winds tonight, Fred?”
“Nah. I'll fuel up and fly back,” Fred called out, speaking loud enough for Noel to hear him. “North Winds has a small landing strip, a hanger, and a fuel pump...just like Snow Fields. Ain't nothing in North Winds except the lodge...Mrs. White's bakery...Mr. Milton's grocery store...the medical station...and the old movie theater.”
“A movie theater?”
Fred laughed. “We're talking about one-room buildings here, young lady. North Winds is a tight little village. All the buildings form a circle. In the middle of the circle is the park. That's it.”
“What about the beach?” Noel called out.
“The beach sits three miles west of the village,” Fred explained, sitting relaxed in the pilot’s seat. “The beach is off Kotzebue Sound, but I just tell folks the beach is off the Bering Sea because only a handful of people even know about the Kotzebue Sound.”
I guess Granny didn't know about the Kotzebue Sound, either.Noel kept her eyes west as Fred flew his plane over the mountain range. The plane jerked and bumped here and there, but nothing too alarming. She settled into the flight and stopped talking.It'll be about noon by the time Fred reaches North Winds, give or take a few minutes. I should have plenty of time to get checked in and visit the local cemetery.
Noel didn't speak again until she spotted a large body of dark water appear in the west. “That's the Kotzebue Sound,” Fred called out as he navigated his plane over another mountain range. The Kotzebue Sound appeared as a spiny fleck of water in the distance, but Noel could clearly see it in the far distance. “We're flying over what I call the Arctic Mountain Range. These mountains are far more dangerous than the ones we flew over earlier.”
“How so?” Noel dared to ask.
“Avalanches,” Fred answered in a loud voice, growing serious. “The slopes on these mountain ranges are steep and dangerous. But that's not the worst.” Fred nodded out of the front window with his eyes. “TheDipis down there.”
“The Dip?”
Fred nodded. “The Dip is a dangerous, wild, river...and deeper than anything I've ever seen. The river flows faster than my mother's mouth once did...the currents can take a man under within half a second. Ain't never seen a river so dangerous in all my life. You'd be smart to stay away from that river.”
“I'll take your word on it!” Noel yelled out.
Fred nodded his head. “Just stay near the village and if you go hiking, stay on the marked trials. The Dip is about twenty-five miles north of the village, so you won't have any need to go that far north.”
“Alright.” Noel nodded and then asked, “Where is the cemetery?”
“Cemetery is west of town near the beach area,” Fred called back. “As you can see, it's already been snowing pretty heavy, more so than in Snow Fields. Snow is much deeper up this way and the winds are harder. When you go out, wear snowshoes or take a snowmobile and—”
Before Fred could finish his sentence, the plane took another hard jerk. This time Noel saw Fred tense up. “What is it?” Noel called out in a nervous voice, grabbing her seat belt.
Fred's skilled eyes checked the instrument panels. “We're losing oil pressure...”
“What?”
“The old girl is losing oil pressure...we're losing PSI...if we get down to a certain PSI, I'll have to turn the engine off!” Fred reached forward and tapped the instrument panel. “Come on, old girl, hold up for me...tell me what's wrong. I made sure you were good to go back on the ground.”
Noel began to pray.
Fred checked the time. “We should reach North Winds in twenty minutes. Even if I have to turn off the engine, we can glide down...” Fred tried to calm Noel down, but deep down he was a bit worried. The winds were harsh and the oil pressure was dropping fast. “Come on, old girl...”
