Jackie took a deep breath and once more glanced at the chopper. "It's a long story and one I'd love to tell you on the way. The important thing is, your father wants you safe. He wants your mother out of that building and my crew needs a rest. Please come, your children will be safer in Canada."
Michelle searched her husband's eyes, and then nodded. "What about Mister Taylor? We can't just leave him here."
"Of course you can, my dear," Sam said. "I'll be perfectly fine, with a little sleep. You go on."
Jackie smiled, "Good."
*
Three times, Evan Cole went up on the roof to look for the chopper, and then hurried back to his room to watch the news on TV. Dozens of planes and choppers flew in and out of Vancouver, but none landed on the Hotel's landing pad. The 8.3 aftershock toppled a few more chimneys, rattled windows and sent Canadian citizens to the streets again. Now, local news was filled with new local damage reports. The lack of information from Seattle sent chills down his spine and now he sat next to a radio waiting to see if KMPR would come back on the air. It didn't.
When Jackie called, he nearly jumped out of his skin. "Jackie, what's happening?"
"She's okay, Mister Cole. She’s still in the building, but her heart rate looks good. We just picked up your daughter and her family. Our ETA is half an hour. Is everything set?"
"Yes. Ask them if they're hungry. I can order..."
"They can hear you, Mister Cole, and they're shaking their heads no. but I'll have prime rib. Carl likes anything Mexican and Michael says he could eat a horse. Do they have horse on the menu?"
Evan Cole laughed, "I'll see what I can do. A half hour then?"
"See you there." With that, Jackie disconnected the call. When she turned in her swivel seat, Michelle was staring at the picture of her father.
In the time left before the chopper arrived, Evan turned his attention to finding just the right words to say to a daughter he had never seen – a daughter who probably thought he was dead. As hard as he tried, nothing came to mind. He watched the chopper land and there she was, looking very much like her mother had at that age, and he wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms. Instead, he just nodded and watched her follow the hotel attendant assigned to show them to their rooms. Without a word, his daughter walked with her family through the roof’s hotel entrance.
Again, there was nothing left to do but wait. He made sure Jackie and the others had everything they needed, watched continuous repeats of the day’s news on TV and nearly two hours passed before Michelle finally knocked on his door.
He calmly let her in, asked if he could get her anything and when she refused, took a seat opposite her at a small table. “It’s a lot to take in, isn’t it?”
“Yes, it is.” Michelle let her eyes drop and struggled to find something to say. She was wearing the expensive sleeping gown and robe he’d ordered for her from the downstairs gift shop.
“Do all the clothes fit? You can exchange them, if you’d like.”
“They’re perfect. The girls love the pajamas and you must have wiped out a toy store. I had a devil of a time getting them to go to bed.” Without even taking a breath, she changed the subject, “Mr. Cole, Jackie told me about Christina and about the ring you found, and about you being married to somebody else, but I still don’t understand. What happened?”
“I wish I knew. One minute I was the happiest man on earth with a beautiful bride and the next, I was cast into a pit of the deepest, darkness sadness in the world. To tell the truth, it never occurred to me to question Christina’s death. I saw nothing amiss at the time, nothing that would make me doubt what the authorities said.”
Michelle was beginning to relax a little, so she got up and helped herself to a drink. “She’s always had those scars around her wrists, you know. I asked about them when I was very young, but she passed it off as though it were nothing. Still, I guess I always knew something was wrong because she was so over-protective of me. When I got older, it was a real struggle to get her to let me go out. Maybe now I know why, someone tried to kill her.”
“Yes, but I have no idea who?”
“Neither do I.” Michelle brought her glass back to the table and sat down.
“Didn’t she ever remarry?”
“Remarry? She wouldn’t even date, although men always flocked around her like flies. She said she loved you, you were dead and that was the end of that. Just a couple of weeks ago she told me she was happy to be getting older – there aren’t as many flies these days.”
“Legally, she couldn’t remarry. Come to think of it, I have been a bigamist all these years. What a mess.”
Michelle finally grinned, “I can’t wait to find out what happened. Do you really think they can get her out of that building?”
“I hope so, I couldn’t bear to lose her again.”
*
Sunday morning at eight-thirty a.m. Eastern Daylight time, TV news was still showing yesterday's devastating pictures over and over, and reporting the number of hours before Seattle would see daylight. They replayed Sarah's calm voice, Ned's refusal to accept the devastation downtown and Mattie's heartfelt concern for the child buried in the department store. For a full hour, an expert talked about the intricate network of Hams and explained more about Amateur Radio. Finally, they identified Sarah and interviewed people she’d known in high school and college.
Seated in her living room in Atlanta, Georgia, Sarah's mother turned her television off. In another two and a half hours, more pictures would come and God willing, she would hear Sarah's voice again. That was a long time to wait -- especially with another 8.3 aftershock reported during the night. Slowly, she got up and picked up her purse. She closed the door softly behind her and walked down the street to the nearest church.
When she got there, the double doors were open and a man greeted her with a smile, "You're Sarah's Mother, aren't you?"
She nodded, tears welling up in her eyes, "I haven't thanked God for anything in twenty years. It's about time I did." She walked down the aisle and took a seat in the front row.
*
It was the longest night anyone could remember in Seattle. For most, sleep didn't come until the early hours before dawn. Ham calls were few, the earth remained relatively calm and dogs didn't bark. Exhausted minds finally shut down and rested until the sky began to brighten.
His chest filled with pain each time he took a breath, and the cleared off park bench was as hard as a rock. Even so, NE7G was out like a light for most of the night. When at last he opened his eyes, a woman was smiling down on him. She held a cup in one hand and pot of coffee in the other.
"Lady, I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life. Could you set that down and help me up?"
"You hurt?"
"Broken rib."
She set the pot down, wrapped his arm around her shoulder and helped him rise to a sitting position. "I've had one of those. You're in for about six weeks of pain. They're not taking broken bones yet." She lifted the pot, and then poured him a cup of coffee. "It doesn't matter. There's not much they can do about a broken rib except wrap it. Mind if I sit down?"
"Not at all. Tell me, where did you come from?"
She handed him the coffee, and set the pot down on the ground, "The courthouse. The Salvation Army set up on the grass. Sure is a fine time for the street people, the ones that lived through this. They'll likely get three good meals a day till this is over. And how hard will it be for them to steal booze with all the windows smashed. On the other hand, maybe all the booze got smashed too."
NE7G smiled. "Tell me what's happening?"
"Well, that aftershock scared hell, sorry, heck out of me. We heard a big crash after it stopped, but I don't know what fell. Probably another building."
"Yes, I heard it too. You got any food at the courthouse?"
"Sure do. The Army dropped some from the air last night. It's not bacon and eggs, but on a day like this, who cares."
He herd the engine of a snowplow start less than a block away. "Where did that come from?"
"Army dropped that too, early this morning. Didn't you hear the chopper?"
"Guess I passed out."
*
Collin opened another box of crackers and then popped the lid on a new jar of cheese. "I've always wanted to eat cheese and crackers for breakfast. Wonder why I didn't think of this before."
Seated on the floor with her back against the wall, Sarah swallowed her last bite and smiled, "Guess you've been a little too proper. Beth told me about you. You like things in order, just like the day before and the day before that. You need to branch out. I had a friend like that once. He..."
Max poked his head through the window and frowned. "Hey you two, time to go to work."
Collin walked to Sarah, leaned down and instead of lifting her, grabbed two pillows. "See, I remembered." He put the pillows in her armchair and switched off the lamp. He came back, leaned down, picked her up, and set her on the pillows. He watched her turn to a new page in her notebook. "Do you want to go first, or shall I?"
"You go first."
"Okay." He sat down, put his lips close to the station microphone and waited for Max to nod. "This is KMPR, 760 AM in Seattle. Folks, we need another check. If you're on Queen Anne Hill and you can hear us, honk your horn." He waited, heard three different car horns and smiled. "Thanks. When this is over, I'd like to shake your hands. As those living in Seattle already know, we had another strong aftershock during the night. Reports are not expected to be very good this morning.
And now, you need to brace yourselves. What I am about to say will hurt. We have to keep our eyes on the living, especially the children, and dead bodies carry disease. Experts tell us the sooner we get them buried, the safer the children will be. Today, we must focus not only on search and rescue, but on the grim task of saying good-bye to the dead. The Red Cross asks that you try to identify as many people as you can.
Just like the rest of you, we at KMPR hardly slept a wink. Nevertheless, we do have a little good news. A7BB didn't fall off the cliff and Charlie, the little girl trapped in the department store is still alive…and still trapped. The truck convoy reached Renton and is unloading badly needed supplies at a Red Cross center. Help is on the way.
At the collapsed buildings across the street, I see fresh faces, and sadly, another two bodies. If I remember correctly, we should see rain tonight or tomorrow, and before you curse the rain, remember those still trapped in buildings need the water."
Collin paused to take a deep breath. "Max and I have yet to hear from our wives in South Center, but Sarah manages to keep our spirits up. She's well, sitting right next to me and anxious to go back to work. One last thing before she takes her net back -- I sure could use a cigarette."
This time it was Sarah who rolled her eyes and shook her head. Her voice sounded crisp and clear as though she'd slept for a week, but her eyes were heavy and drooping, "Navy, this is Magnolia Net Control extending great appreciation for your help. Okay guys, please check in."
"NE7G."
"NE, good to hear your voice this morning, over."
"Sarah, I'm at the park next to the courthouse downtown. I walked over to the bluff a while ago and looked down Third Avenue. If you haven't already heard, the bus tunnel did collapse. The Mainland Tower, the one that was leaning against the Winningham Blue Building, fell in the aftershock. We've got all kinds of help down here now. I can't imagine where they all came from. The Salvation Army has coffee and food and snowplows are trying to clear the streets. NE7G, over."
On the forty-third floor, Tim sat with his legs crossed listening to the transistor and munching on a small bag of chips. "Coffee ... hot coffee. I can smell it clear up here."
Jenna giggled and took another sip of water. "I sure hope that chopper comes back. Are you sure we can't go down the stairs?"
"No, I'm not sure. But suppose we go down and the chopper comes?"
Seely lightly touched her swollen jaw and slowly exercised it. When she talked, her words were slightly slurred, "You know, I hardly remember getting hit. I'm not even sure what hit me."
"Well I know what hit me," Jenna said. "That putrid modern art painting by the elevators just flew off the wall. Oh Seely, I was hoping we would wake up and this would be just a bad dream. It's real, isn't it? I wanna go home."
Seely tenderly touched Jenna's hand, "Me too."
"I think we should try to go down the stairs. We don't know for sure the stairs are blocked and the chopper might not ever come back," said Jenna.
Tim lowered his head and looked at Jenna through the tops of his eyes, "I've got ten bucks says we can't get down. A floor collapsed, remember?"
"Well, maybe we can find a way to climb around that floor, you know, down the side of the building. The windows are broken and we could get back in."
Instantly Timmy perked up. "Hey, you might be right. We might get to use the fire hoses after all."
*
A7BB was awake. The early morning glow began behind the city where scattered clouds dotted the sky. The fire was out downtown, but South Center still burned, as did Bremerton. On the Aircraft Carrier, a dozen choppers sat ready to lift off and teams of men with search dogs climbed into three. Boxes of blood and supplies bound for hospitals were loaded onto others and just as the day before, Canadian choppers waited to land.
He moved a tree branch and looked down. Beneath him, several more bodies sloshed in the water. Quickly, A7BB released the branch. The cat was nowhere to be found and none of the choppers coming or going seemed at all interested in him. Jim Sarasosa sighed, wiggled his hand between the tree and the dirt, and then dug a fresh radio battery out of his pants pocket. He loaded it, closed the cover and listened to his friends report in.
Mattie called in to say a team with a search dog arrived at the department store in the night. They pulled six more people out of the rubble, but not the little girl. Now, the little girl named Charlie was quiet. Hopefully, she was just sleeping. Nevertheless, the searchers were trying to get a microphone down to her. Reports of more collapsed buildings poured in, each sounding grimmer than the last. Emergency calls took priority and occasionally, A7BB saw a chopper head in the direction of the call.
On the I-5 freeway, where a landslide buried cars and an overpass crushed a metro bus, Marines dropped from choppers with a cherry picker and equipment. All who could be saved would soon be on higher ground. Attention then turned to the collapsed Convention Center tunnel where the drunk driver started a chain reaction pileup. Yellow tiles were scattered in front of the collapsed tunnel entryway.
A7BB watched a chopper hover over the people trapped in cars on what remained of the Alaskan Way Viaduct, now several yards out in the bay. Chopper after chopper flew to downtown, returning to the Aircraft Carrier with still alive, but horribly injured Saturday shoppers.
Water still dripped from the pipe behind his head, although he'd slid nearly out of reach. Occasionally, Sarah checked on his welfare. Occasionally the ground trembled a little and a chopper seemed to be heading his way, but none came and the sun rose higher and higher in the sky. He spotted the big blue chopper right away. It had a distinctive sound amid the other choppers, but there was no new balloon basket hanging from its belly. When it flew right over him without stopping, he put his free hand on his hip, "You saved everyone else, why not me?"
*
At KMPR, Sarah took call after call, seldom pausing to drink or rest. "Okay, who's up next?"
"WC7NJT."
"Well good morning, Mister Mayor."
"Sarah, it's me again. Please tell everyone the water in Lake Washington has been tested and is contaminated. Continue boiling the water before you drink, over."
"Thanks, we'll do that. Next?"
"NG7L"
"NG, go ahead."
"NG7L. We've still got people stranded on Interstate five between NE 75th and 85th. We sure could use some help. The off ramps have fallen on both ends, over."
"Copy NG, do you have injured?"
"Negative. We've got about fifty people here and some are kids with nothing to drink. NG7L, over."
"NG, you might have to wait awhile, but we'll put you on the list."
*
Seely was exhausted. So much so that the sound of an approaching chopper hardly interested her. Several times Tim went to the conference room and watched, but the blue Angel didn't come back. Finally, he gave in to Jenna and was about to head down nearly thirty flights of stairs when at last, he heard it. Instantly, he grabbed Jenna's arm and nearly pulled her back down the hall. Well-traveled by now, the carnage in the hallway seemed easier to navigate and soon they turned, passed the elevators and walked into the conference room.
Again, the noise was deafening and again they couldn't see it. The chopper hovered somewhere above and the waiting seemed endless. Jenna was about to turn back when two feet appeared at the top of the blown out window. Inch by inch, legs, knees, thighs and a woman's waist descended from above.
Tim quickly glanced around, scouring the carnage on the floor for something to pull her in. But there was nothing. Helpless, he turned back to watch.
Jackie sat in a full sitting harness with a thin steel rod across her lap. On the end of the rod was a small hook. She wore a headset complete with earphones and a microphone wired to a cell phone in her pocket. When she was low enough, she reached inside her vest and withdrew a rope. Already tied to the seat, she looped it around her hand several times, aimed and tossed the other end of the rope toward Tim. The first time, he missed. So Jackie coiled the rope again and hurled it harder.
As soon as he caught hold, Jackie put a hand up palm out to keep him from pulling. Assured of his compliance, she took hold of the long steel rod. Cautiously, she brought it out of the safety belt, turned it and shot it toward an inside wall. The rod bounced off the wall, fell to the floor and began to roll toward the window.
Jenna grabbed Tim's arm, reached out and grabbed the rod.
Jackie heaved a sigh of relief, nodded to Tim, and then spoke into her mike.
As Tim pulled her in, the cable holding her up lengthened, allowing Jackie to step inside the badly damaged, monster of a building.
"Boy are we glad to see you!" Tim said.
Jackie wasted no time unbuckling the safety seat and letting it fall to the floor, "The girl goes first."
"Jenna's eyes grew large, "Me? But I..."
Tim glared and yanked the rod out of Jenna's hand, "You want to go home or not?"
Jenna slumped and stood still while Jackie and Tim helped her into the harness.
"Here's the deal," Jackie said, tightening the strap over Jenna's legs, "don't jump. Just walk to the window. When you step off..."
"Step off? But I ..."
"Look, rollercoasters are more dangerous than this. The trick is to let the chopper pull you away from the building. Don't hang on to anything except the seat. Just relax and let us do the worrying, okay?"
Jenna didn't have time to protest. Instead Tim and Jackie were walking her closer and closer to the edge. Suddenly, she was two steps away from the window, and then one, as the cable above her head got shorter. She closed her eyes, gripped the side of the chair and stepped off. Instantly, her body sailed through the air, swinging away from the building as the chopper quickly banked and veered away.
Jenna was barely away when Jackie grabbed Tim's arm. "We don't have much time, this building is in trouble. Where's Seely?"
"This way." One last time, Tim traveled the beaten path into the dark bowels of the forty-third floor.
Behind him, Jackie's eyes darted, her ankles twisted in the rubble and hanging electrical wiring repeatedly got in her face. Finally, she spotted Seely Ross sitting on the floor near the ladies room. In one sweeping motion, she dug a hypo out of her pocket and knelt down. She quickly ripped the small slender cap off, pushed the liquid through the tip of the needle and jabbed it into Seely's arm.
"Ouch!"
"Sorry, I didn't have much time to practice."
"What's that? And who are you?"
"That was something to keep you calm and I'm Jackie." She tossed the hypo away, and then looped Seely's right arm around her neck. "Come on, we've gotta get moving."
"Jackie from the Internet?"
"That's right, I've come to take you home." Just as they got Seely up, the building began a sorrowful groan. "Don't stop, keep going." Yet, it was Jackie who was terrified, stumbling through the rubble, gasping for air and fearing each new sound of the screeching, wailing building. Endless seconds passed and Seely grew more and more dependent on their strength, and when they at last reached the conference room, the chopper wasn't there.
Jackie nearly yelled into her mike, "Michael, where are you?"
In the aft bubble, Michael began lowering the chair again, "The girl panicked. We just now got her inside."
"Hurry Michael, hurry!"
Suddenly, there was a different sound deep within the building -- a whining. It was loud at first, and then seemed to drift away, growing softer and softer, "What is that?"
Tim shrugged, "We think it's the elevators. That's the third one this morning." Finally, it hit the bottom; it’s sickening crash muffled somewhere below.
Jackie's eyes grew still wider, "Do you think..."
"I hope not."
"Man, I can't wait to get out of here."
"I know what you mean."
Finally, the dangling seat appeared. Jackie quickly picked up the hook, looped it through the harness and pulled it in. Working as quickly as they could, Jackie and Tim strapped Seely in and walked her toward the edge.
But Seely balked. She stiffened her legs and refused to budge, "No!"
"You have to, it's the only way out," Jackie said.
"No, you're trying to kill me."
Jackie grabbed hold of Seely's arm. "Listen to me. No one is trying to kill you and if I wanted you dead, I'd just leave you here. Now Go!"
Seely's mind was a fog and just before she stepped out the window, she thought she heard Jackie say that Evan was waiting for her. That was impossible. Still, she smiled. She became oddly relaxed and calm, moving through the air with music in her head, and a long forgotten memory of a silk pink dress and Evan Cole. The sky was a bright blue, the sun felt warm on her skin and she could see forever. White fluffy clouds drifted across the western horizon, the waterways of Puget Sound shimmered and she was swinging -- back and forth, back and forth -- just like a child in a backyard swing.
Below, the Winningham Blue still voiced its distress with odd screeches, deep-throated moans and frightening shivers. Tim took a slow look at the broken and cracked ceiling. "It's starting to lean, isn't it? That pole wouldn't have rolled last night."
"Yes. The eighth floor can't hold up much longer and one side looks weaker than the other. You mind if I ride piggy back?"
Tim grinned. He removed his imaginary hat, and then slowly and elaborately bowed. "My pleasure." Then he paused, "How much do you weigh?"
Jackie nearly laughed, "A lot less than this building."
"Good point."
At last the chopper came back and once more the harness appeared. Jackie quickly hooked it, pulled it in and helped Tim with the straps. As soon as he was secure, she climbed into his lap, wrapped the rope around both of them and tied a quick knot. "Ready?"
"You bet." He walked closer and closer to the edge with Jackie's weight full on him and her arms gripping his. Finally he heard her say, "Go Michael, go!" And they were away, swinging through the air a thousand feet above the ground below the Blue Angel.
The top floors of the Winningham Blue began a slightly more exaggerated and torturous sway. As it seesawed, it added and subtracted weight on the weakened and crumbling eighth floor. Abruptly, it stopped and for a moment the building rested. Suddenly, the entire eighth floor collapsed. The upper floors landed with a reverberating bang, sending a new round of broken metal, concrete, dirt and glass cascading out of the windows to the streets below.
Tim cast his eyes upward, gazing at the hole in the belly of the air crane. The cable became shorter and shorter with the giant hook growing bigger and bigger until, at last, the huge pulley drew both he and Jackie into the helicopter. With the flip of a switch, Michael retracted the steel doors in the floor, unbuckled his safety belt and scrunched through the small door into the chopper body. In the first passenger seat, Jenna gazed aimlessly out the window. Behind her, Seely sat slumped with her head bowed and her eyes closed.