And as if the savings weren’t enough to make everyone happy, the footage we got this past week is incredible. Ash nearly fell to his death from the side of a cliff while trying to film a majestic bull tahr. The close call made me sick to my stomach. I barely got to him in time. But as harrowing as itwas for us, the network will love it. It also got me thinking, and I might actually have a solution that would work out for everyone.
Ash comes walking up with the memory cards from our cameras.
“When’s the last time you talked to Elsie?” I ask.
He hands the cards to Top. “I don’t know. It’s been a while. Why?”
“She’s meeting with Maddie tomorrow.”
“Seriously? Where?”
Good question. Before I can ask, Rhonda volunteers what she knows. “In Sweetbriar.” She hands Ash a large mug of coffee. “I haven’t been able to talk to her either, not much anyway. She said she’s drowning with some new project and told me she would explain everything when it’s over. I called the shop this morning and some girl told me the store’s owner was coming to meet with Maddie tomorrow so she’s out shopping for dog treats. I assumed that meant your sister was coming and she’s bringing Arlo and Odie. Does that sound right?”
Why would Elsie want to meet with Maddie? And what project? None of this makes sense. The fabric shop is too small to be of any concern to our sister. The only thing that makes sense is the dogs. Elsie doesn’t like to go anywhere without them, and I can see Maddie wanting to have some dog treats on standby. That was good thinking on her part. “Yeah,” I tell Rhonda. “You don’t know what it’s about?”
She sighs. “You’d think she’d tell her best friend. She’s acting like she wants it to be some big surprise.”
“It’s good timing,” Ash comments.
“Yeah, reallygood timing.”
My stomach grumbles and I notice a pot on the stove in the ATV. “What are you cooking?”
Rhonda’s brows shoot up and she flies up the three steps. “Shit!” She gives the pot a couple of stirs with a wood spoon. “It’s not burned,” she calls out. “I hope you like jambalaya.”
“I’ll start a fire,” Ash says.
I know what he has in mind. “I’ll grab some chairs. We can talk while we eat.” Before taking on the task of digging through the undercarriage bins for the folding chairs, I give Rhonda a nod with, “Smells great!” I think she’s been missing Maddie nearly as much as I have, so I’ve tried to lighten her mood with compliments whenever I can. She seems to thrive on them.
“Thanks,” she says thoughtfully. “Maddie and I used to love to make this on Sunday afternoons.”
I want to tell her I miss her best friend too, but then she might tell on me.
Sitting around the fire, Ash takes a bite and rolls his eyes. “Hope there’s more where this came from.”
Rhonda gives him a forced smile. “Don’t worry. I know how much you two eat.”
“So, what’s going on?” Top asks. “You were saying something about good timing. What’s that about?”
“Great jambalaya,” I tell Rhonda. “This really hits the spot.”
The smile she gives me is anything but forced. “Thank you, Riggs.”
Ash shakes his head as I turn to Top. “Working with the network like this takes all the fun out of these trips. There hasn’t been anything enjoyable this whole time, which begs thequestion—how much longer are we willing to do it?”
“Not long,” Ash mutters. “Everything about this has been miserable. That’s not what we signed up for.”
Leaning back with a bowl of Rhonda’s jambalaya in his lap, Top takes a second before responding with, “What choice do we have? The network has us by the balls.”
“Maybe not,” I explain. “Before this trip, we spent some time in Oregon. I checked out a few places, but Rhonda took Ash all over.” I give Ash a nod.
“I don’t know why we’ve never paid much attention to the Pacific Northwest,” Ash says. “It has everything. We could do all three seasons in Northern California, up through Oregon, throughout Washington State, and even around Vancouver. But it would be different.”
Top sets his spoon in his bowl. “I’m listening.”
I’m practically licking my bowl clean.
“Here,” Rhonda says. “Let me get you a refill.”
