Daniel and Matthew.
With one day left to live, with one minute left to live.
Daniel and Matthew.
Her lips parted, but the words didn’t come–not yet.
And with one year left to live?
Daniel and Matthew.
Her heart lunged again but it didn’t hurt.
And with two years or seven years or decades to live?
Daniel and Matthew.
The two people she loved most if this were the last day of her life, or the most ordinary day of her life.
Daniel and Matthew.
Every day.
“Taking this long, you’re thinking instead of–”
“With you and Matthew,” she said. It felt like a shout in her throat, but it came out a whisper. “Oh, Daniel, with the two people I love more than life.”
The dark depths of his eyes lit, but the rest of his face remained stern. “With Matthew and–”
“Daniel! Hey, Daniel!” Rufus’ shout carried across to them.
Around Daniel’s shoulder, Kendra saw Rufus standing outside the open door, with a telephone receiver in one hand and waving the other one imperiously.
“Damn it,” Daniel muttered, then set his jaw and kept talking. “With Matthew and me. Including everything I am and–?”
“Daniel! Daniel!”
“Maybe you should see what he wants.”
Daniel ignored her suggestion as well as Rufus’ shouts. “–even with the flying, and–”
“Daniel!”
“Dammit to hell, Rufus, in a minute!”
“Don’t have a minute! It’s an emergency!”
“It sounds urgent, Daniel.”
“We’re going to finish this,” he vowed grimly.
“Yes. We’ll finish it.”
He frowned at her words, but she’d already started toward the building, and in another second Daniel followed her.
Rufus had retreated into the office and was talking into the phone when they walked in. Spotting Daniel, he gestured him closer.
“He just walked in, Sheriff. I’ll put you on speaker phone.”
“Daniel?”
“I’m here,” he said, none too cheerfully.
“I know you’re not on the payroll yet, but we’ve got a situation.”
Daniel’s posture didn’t change, but Kendra sensed his shift from irritated to intense as he sat on the edge of the desk.
“Couple of hikers missing. Lady called and said her husband and son hadn’t returned from a hike in the Big Horns as scheduled last night. She said they’re experienced, didn’t have equipment to stay out overnight and they’re regular as clockwork about checking in.”
“Any sign of their vehicle?”
“We’re trying to spring somebody to check their PLS–place last seen–but our manpower’s tied up with the fires, including our search and rescue volunteers. It’ll take at least a couple hours to shift around enough resources for a ground search. Rufus says he’s got a plane fueled, ready to go. If you can spot ’em, we can send the ground team right to them. That could be important time when daylight starts fading.” The sheriff paused. “If you’re willing.”
Without taking his eyes off Kendra, Daniel said, “Give me a minute, Sheriff Johnson. Rufus, take us off speaker phone.”
Rufus complied, but made no secret of watching and listening as Daniel walked over to where she’d stopped inside the door.
“You heard. It’s not my job yet, and I promised you the day. If you say not to go, I won’t.”
She knew what his going–now and always–might do to her. But she could see what not going would do to him. If she were ever going to test her fear against his courage, it might as well be now.
“Go.”
A flame seemed to go on inside him. Not only for what he was going to do, but for her. He kissed her, hard and fast.
“It’s routine, Kendra. When I land, we’ll talk more. I want the rest of my answer.”
“I’ll be at the paper.” Working would be better than going home and trying not to think, and far better than staying here and waiting.
*
“Got ’em,” Daniel said in a satisfied mumble, as he sighted two figures in a clearing after some two hours of searching.
Now he understood why they’d failed to return on time. One of the figures was stretched flat on the ground, with a leg wrapped in what appeared to be a makeshift splint.
Into the radio, he said, “Far Hills, this is Cessna One Four Six One. I have visual on the two hikers. Repeat, visual on two hikers. One appears to be injured, Far Hills.”
He gave the location coordinates. The standing hiker had spotted the plane and waved to him. Daniel gently tipped first one wing then the other, to let the hikers know they’d been sighted.
Not bad for his first mission with Kendra’s blessing. Well, blessing might be too strong. At least she hadn’t given him an ultimatum. That was something to pin his hopes to. Along with the fact that she’d come to the conclusion he’d been banking on with that “last day” question. You and Matthew. If he could be sure–
“Cessna One Four Six One, good going,” came Rufus’ voice, distorted by the radio, yet as capable of interrupting thoughts as his shouts had been of interrupting Daniel’s crucial conversation with Kendra. “We’ll get the ground crew headed that way.”
But as he circled, Daniel saw trouble.
Big trouble.
The hikers were in a large area bare of trees but with low, dry brush scattered across it. That underbrush would turn to tinder when the fire hit. He wouldn’t want to be down there trying to dodge burning bushes. Especially not with an injured leg. The whole area sloped gently upward until it fell off as a sheer rock wall on three sides. The fourth side–the route they’d come in–was forested. And between them and where any ground crew would have to come writhed a snake of fire.
“Far Hills, this is Cessna One Four Six One. Ground crew cannot reach their position. Unless you know another route.” He described the setup.
Rufus confirmed there was no other route. “We’ll have to wait for the Forest Service to get a chopper in there.”
“How long, Far Hills?”
“A few hours, most likely.”
Daniel took a closer look at the advancing fire, then checked his fuel gauge.
“Far Hills, I’m going in. After I land and pick them up, I won’t have fuel to get to Sheridan or Casper. Arrange for another plane or helicopter to meet me at Far
