Steve was sitting on the floor next to her, stirring the logs in the fireplace.
"I'm sorry," she said softly, touching his shoulder, "I was not a good date for you tonight."
"It's all right, kiddo, there will be plenty more opportunities for that."
"You promise?"
"Promise. Now go back to sleep."
When she woke, it was daylight, the sun was already high. Sensing her move, the dog stretched his paws and licked his nose. She rose and noticed she was wearing Steve's pajamas. She blushed. Oh, well… She noticed a note, pinned to the fireplace mantle.
Good morning, or maybe afternoon?
Sorry I had to leave — some of us still have to work, you know.
The cabin is all yours to enjoy. It's remote and secure; you need not worry about any humans bothering you. As for bears, they could happen by, but if you don't leave any food outside, they won't show.
By the way, the dog's name is Teddy. He looked just like a bear cub when he was little. He still does. He'll take good care of you, he promised.
There's a hammock in the back, along with a grill. There's plenty of food in the fridge.
I'll be back as soon as I can. Until then, enjoy your stay and get plenty of rest.
The note wasn't signed.
The day passed quickly, between naps, meals, and brief walks around the cabin. The landscape was breathtaking. The cabin overlooked one of the few wooded gorges of the southern California mountains. She had no idea where exactly on the map the cabin would be. From the back, you could see all the way into the valley. Down there, far away, a road was barely visible. She could not distinguish the cars on it. The front of the cabin was facing a thickly wooded patch, and the road leading to the cabin was nothing more than a forest path. She listened hard and could only hear the forest sounds: birds chirping, leaves rustled by the wind. The sounds of serenity.
Teddy nudged her, waking her from her daydreaming. He was a huge Terra Nova, from what Alex could tell, in great shape and obviously hungry by now. It was dusk already. She went inside and prepared food for her and Teddy. They both sat in the dimming daylight, eating and watching a spectacular view through the window.
Suddenly she became aware of Teddy's low growl. Hackles raised, he started walking toward the cabin door. She looked out the window, trying to see clearly in the darker dusk. A silhouette moved near the tree line. Alex gasped, seeing a man carrying a shotgun. Teddy's growl grew louder. She crouched, reaching for her cell phone. There was no coverage here, so high up in the mountains. She looked around for something she could use as a weapon. There wasn't much. The man was approaching the door, and she could see him better under the porch light. He was huge.
The man grabbed the screen door handle and opened it. He knocked on the doorframe.
"Hey, there, miss?"
Teddy's attitude suddenly changed, recognizing a familiar voice. The hairs on his back settled, and his tail started waving.
"Miss? Are you in there?"
Alex rose from behind the couch.
"Yes. Who are you?"
"I'm your neighbor to the south, miss, just came by to see if everything was OK with you. Steve asked me to. Oh, and I also feed the dog when Steve can't make it up here."
"Oh, I see. Thank you for checking in on me. I've already fed Teddy. You nearly scared me to death," she laughed.
"Didn't mean to do such thing, miss, I apologize. I'll be on my way now."
"Uh… excuse me?" She did not know the man's name.
"Yes," he turned.
"Did Steve say when he was coming back?"
"Later tonight, that's what he said."
She waited, curled up on the couch, in front of a newly started fire. When she woke, the sun was high again, and Steve was holding a cup of steaming coffee in front of her nose.
"Good morning, sunshine, how are you feeling today?"
"Aww… you said you'd come last night." She voiced her disappointment before she could restrain herself. She had made plans for their evening together.
"Oh, but I did, and you were fast asleep," he smiled. "Here's some coffee, and I promise you there's no meth in it. Come on, you're going to need it."
"Huh?" Alex took a sip. The coffee was excellent.
"You have a plane to catch. You're going to Florida. Dr. Barnaby managed to arrange for you to interview the Florida drone operators. We're leaving in an hour."
…64
Waiting for her flight to board was going to be a while. The incoming flight was late, and the gate was already crowded by loud, impatient travelers. She found a remote corner and sat on the floor. Connecting her laptop, she checked on the emails she didn't review while at Steve's cabin.
There was only one message that caught her interest, but it was troubling.
From: Benjamin Walker (COO)
To: Angela Prescott (VP HR)
Subject: Reminder
Sent: Friday, July 9, 10:23PM
Angela,
My biggest technology problem has not been solved yet. How much longer do I have to wait? You need to make this happen immediately.
Thanks,
Ben
His biggest technology problem? What could that be? Alex felt a chill down her spine. Was that email about her? Had she become Walker's biggest technology problem, which had to be dealt with immediately?
Whoa, she thought, trying to curb her paranoia, there's no reason to think that. The technology problem on Walker's mind could be anything. On the other hand, he was emailing HR about it, so the technology problem was, most likely, an employee, not a printer, or a paper-jammed copier. But was he emailing an HR leader? Or a lover? Did he want the employee fired? Or hurt?
She got so engulfed in her thoughts that she nearly missed the final boarding call for her flight. She grabbed her things in a hurry and, as she was boarding the undersized, crammed aircraft, she decided it was safe to assume Walker's email was indeed about a person. Her.
…65
"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen."
The young anchor seemed sure of himself and joyous for that early hour of the morning. "We're kicking off this new work week with an examination of a GPS system from NanoLance, the Guide. This GPS model has been around for a few years, yet constantly evolving, redesigned, and enhanced. For many, it has proven to be a great device. Yet, as of late, more consumer complaints end up in our mailbox. Therefore, we decided to give the NanoLance Guide a test drive, to see for ourselves."
The TV screen was showing the anchor handling the GPS device and using it to get guidance on a hiking trail.
"We've hiked around with the little Guide in our hands for quite a few miles before it started acting up. When it did, it simply lost satellite connection and wouldn't restore it. Sometimes, the available channels for GPS routing are maxed out, and GPS devices, now popular, are competing over insufficient satellite bandwidth. However, this wasn't our case, because the NanoLance Guide was quick to re-establish satellite connection after a full power restart, as in removing and reinserting its battery pack.
"Then, just a couple of miles later, the LCD screen went completely dark. The voice guidance worked, but the screen stopped showing any information or map detail. This time, a restart didn't do the trick. A good shake did, the type you'd see given in the movies to dying flashlights. Finally, we tested a second handheld unit, but that worked properly for the duration of our test run."