The next morning the sky was vastly clear, and the sled dogs were hooked up, with all of the supplies sitting on said sleds. Each person was placed in their respective station, gripping tight to metal handlebars, watching husky tails wag side to side. They could see Sargent Abraham ahead of them leading the group. He called to the fellow mushers and commanded, "Alright everyone, to reiterate the drill, team one will reach Base Frost, the previous vacation home of Mr. Hailey and his wife! Team two are heading to Ito outpost! Team three and four fork out to bases Edgar, and Shelley! Team five is to reach Outpost Wilde! After three days of investigation, follow the trails assigned to you! Go slow as to not miss any key evidence that may appear in the snow! Now everyone, mush!"
The five teams separated in different directions and the two first teams went straight forward to their destination. It would take a full four days to reach the outpost Frost with the speed they'd be going, especially with sled dogs. If it was was by snowmobile, they would make it in maybe a day or so, but this was an investigation and they needed to take it slow to find any clues along the way. The team was in a mixed formation, but they kept a good distance from each other as to not collide. Ryan could see Mr. Hailey ahead of him with Sargent Abraham and could feel the presence of Roberto and Elucid behind him. He didn't know where Chuntao was, but he was pretty sure she was to his left.
He could hear the blinking of Samson's Human DNA contraption that was hooked to the back of his sled. Samson said something about his men configuring it in a way that as they sled, the device would detect anything they pass over. Ryan felt that might have been a bit far-fetched, but he wasn't a scientist.
The landscape was flat as flakes of snow bounced off their skidding sleds. Dogs sped along the planes as the morning sun kept ascending. A cold air burned their nose and exposed skin, but there wasn't really any wind that was pushing past them. Ryan could deduce that it was a very fair morning to begin the expedition. There was a glazing haze in the distance as the sun gleamed on the ice, something that almost gave the illusion of mirages in the desert, but not quite.
Ryan glanced up to see birds high in the sky, too high to really see what type they were, but he could tell they were flying back to the shore. Besides that, there wasn't much wildlife. He kept an eye out for any indentations in the snow. It was made easier to look for things when Samson also introduced them this morning to an attachable metal detector that they would click onto the front or the back of the sleigh alongside with the portable Human DNA detector. Apparently, Mrs. Hailey was wearing her wedding ring, a watch, and a metal necklace so she had plenty of metal to wear when she went missing.
They sled all day, took breaks for themselves and the dogs periodically. Near midafternoon Sargent Abraham ordered everyone to set up tents for the evening. Ryan was setting up his tent when he saw Chuntao by herself, pitching up her own. Talking to her at the prior base more, Ryan came to understand she was a geologist specialist, knew how to measure the ice, and was quite familiar with the landscape ahead as well. He went to her and asked, "Hey, Chuntao?"
"Yeah?"
"Do we know what rendezvous point we'll be meeting at is?"
"No, Sargent Abraham hasn't talked to us about that yet," she answered.
"Okay, I'm going to ask him now."
"Please do."
Ryan left her to find Sargent Abraham who he thought he saw enter one of the already pre-made tents. He looked in to find inside that the Sargent was talking to Mr. Hailey about something, but he stopped when Ryan entered.
"Sorry, I can come back later," Ryan hesitated as he started to pull away.
"No, no, come in. Ryan, wasn't it?" the Sargent welcomed.
Ryan came back through rather awkwardly as Mr. Hailey didn't pay too paid much mind to him, seeming to be lost in thought. He noticed his face was flushed red a bit. Were they arguing?
"So what is it that you need?" the Sargent asked.
"Um, it's about the rendezvous point," Ryan stated. "The one that we'll be meeting up a dozen days after we part from the base. What is it? We didn't talk about it."
"Ah, well we had some ideas, but we were going to let you decide Ryan," Sargent Abraham answered.
"Me?" Ryan questioned a bit taken aback.
"Yes, you are the best navigator in this expedition," Sargent Abraham noted. "It would be best to have the most experienced and well-versed pick the location. I mean you have come down here before, haven't you?"
"Not in several years," Ryan answered, "But considering the latitude of some of the areas and the weaknesses in some of the ice, I'd suggest we meet at Languid Arch. It's a rememberable stone structure that peaks out of the ice fifty knoxs south east of here. There aren't many bases inwards, but there are two in that direction. They should have some people stationed there this time of year."
"I see," the Sargent hummed in thought. "Then that will be our course of action." He glanced up at Ryan with a bit of a nervous but abrasive look, "Is that all, Ryan?"
"Uh, yes, that's all I wanted to know," he stated.
"Then if you don't mind Mr. Hailey and I had something we needed to discuss," Sargent Abraham wanted him out of there, so he nodded and left. As he departed, he saw Elucid talking to Chuntao. He noticed Elucid glanced his way, furrow his eyes brows in a quick scowl then turned back to her with a smile. Ryan was taken aback again by such an expression and didn't know what to think of just yet. He hoped it wasn't what he thought it was.
That night the wind howled, but the sky was still clear. They each had their own tents, but even through that comfortable space, Ryan still couldn't sleep. Perhaps it was just getting situated to a new place that made it hard to pass out. It certainly wasn't the cold; he was used to sleeping outside, even in the winter. He rubbed his eyes and pulled himself up, tugged his coat on and exited the tent to an empty night. The icy land was quiet besides the wind that skirted across the snow, drifting apart from the rest. There wasn't a cloud in sight, the sky was filled with stars that could illuminate an entire city.
He saw a figure walk across the snowy planes; it was a thin silhouette who was also looking up at the peaceful lights that dazzled the sky. The silhouette passed the sleeping dogs and other tents, as it slowly traversed, admiring the world above.
It took him a while, but he recognized the figure as Mr. Hailey who was silent as he gazed at the endless night sky. For some reason Ryan felt like he wasn't supposed to approach him, that if he walked to him now, he'd be interrupting something. Maybe he could have talked to the billionaire about the beauty of nature and all its brilliance, but at the moment the man seemed content being left alone. So, Ryan didn't cut in, he didn't barge into this man watching the stars. He shortly returned to his tent and pretended to forget he ever saw him there.
When they reached the base, it was emptied for their arrival. There weren't any other people stationed there at that time, giving the group room to move around freely. Sargent Abraham directed them to go over the camp and unlock all the rooms, gather everything they could need. Chuntao was given the job to take her sled and the DNA device; and go off to look over the grounds to find any indication of Mrs. Hailey. The previous detectives couldn't find a trace of her in the frozen landscape, but since the snow around the area had melted a bit, she could begin to investigate layers underneath. Even if it is unorthodox to search after an entire year.
Roberto was housing the rest of the dogs while Sargent Abraham was turning on communications. Radioing in that they had reached the base and communicating with other team members who had reached their destination. Virgil Hailey was out of sight.
Ryan and Elucid were assigned to turning on the main generator that was stationed in a building branched off from the main base. The two reached the door, only to find it locked.
Ryan turned to Elucid and asked, "Did Abraham give you any keys?"
Elucid eyes narrowed and said, "Why? Don't you know how to pick a lock?"
Ryan was a bit pulled back by that remark, but then scoffed, "Oh, I get it now."
"What?"
"Why you have been giving be nasty looks ever since we met," Ryan frowned. "I get it now."
"Are you going to pick the lock or not?" Elucid sneered.
"I'm going to ask Abraham for the keys," Ryan stated as he trudged back inside, leaving Elucid outside in the cold.
He found the Sargent, talking into a microphone, that was running on a secondary generator that was in the basement, "-Over, we have reached Site 60, over."
"Hear you loud and clear Sargent," a voice called from the other end. "Over."
Ryan tapped his shoulder, grabbing the Sargent's attention, "Got keys for the generator?"
The man blinked then nodded, going to a key cabinet and finding the ones he needed. He went back to his communications, giving an ample report, and Ryan left the room seeing Roberto along the way who was carrying a big bag of dog food.
"Oh Ryan," he called. "There's one more bag in the closet behind me, can you get that?"
"Sure, Rob," Ryan stated as they both carried food to the huskies in their pen.
"You know," Roberto confessed. "I don't think Chuntao is going to find anything out there, don't you?"
"No, not really," Ryan agreed. "If multiple trained detectives couldn't find anything, I doubt she can with that Human DNA scanner." Ryan sarcastically embellished the last part which made Roberto chuckle.
Ryan left to return to Elucid who was pacing irritably. When he saw him, he groaned, "What took you so long?"
"I was helping Roberto," Ryan told him.
"Tsk, that fat little Mexican," Elucid muttered. "Well come on, I don't got all day."
Ryan bit his lip, but just unlocked the door. Getting mad at guys like Elucid would just prove any point he would try to make against him. Best to just ignore him.
They turned on the generator which converted power to the lights and heating so it wouldn't have to rely on the puttering one downstairs. Elucid did many maintenance checks, just to make sure everything was in order. The two returned to find Chuntao talking to Sargent Abraham, "I'm telling you, she most likely headed more inland, I took my dog sled and circled the base. No indication that she is even buried in the snow."
"How do you know that?" Elucid interrupted their conversation.
"That DNA scanner picked up nothing in the vicinity," Chuntao stated. "I went out more and nothing. The way where the camera is positioned, if she went south like Mr. Hailey explained then she would be going into the direction of the mountain pass."
The men solemnly nodded at that.
"We'll still check more," Ryan suggested. "In places you think she'd be buried, Chuntao. We don't wanna run off to the mountains just to find out that she was here the whole time."
"Yeah…" the Sargent sighed. "Mr. Hailey is not going to like that."
"We'll be discreet then," Ryan exclaimed.
"I suppose."
"If we don't find her here though, we'll have to go more inland," Chuntao noted.
"Right…" Ryan replied, "We'll take mountain passes to try and locate her remains."
"Ryan, we'll do that," Sargent Abraham directed. "If we can't find anything here, we'll need a route readied to satisfy Mr. Hailey. You got that?"
"Yes sir."
"And what should I do, Sargent Abraham?" Elucid asked.
"Find Mr. Hailey, tell him our plan, but give him the softer version," Sargent said. "And after that help Roberto, make sure his dogs are in top shape for the future expedition."
Elucid smile sunk at that, and he scoffed off somewhere to find Mr. Hailey. Ryan wanted to chuckle, but then he realized that now Roberto had to deal with him. Him and Chuntao left the radio room and he leaned over to ask, "What's Elucid's position here again?"
Chuntao blinked then snorted, "He's done survivalist work and he has mechanical experience, duh."
"We don't need a mechanic," Ryan mumbled.
"What if the generators at the outposts we go to don't work, Ryan?" Chuntao countered. "We need a mechanic."
That night, Mr. Hailey wasn't found anywhere again, absent from dinner and pretty distant the whole time. Chuntao and Ryan were scoping out the area again, talking amongst themselves, "I don't think those ice cleats are the best brands for walking," Chuntao stated.
"Oh?"
"Yeah, I've had them before," she explained. "The latches break easily. If they have any different spare ones here, we should take those instead."
"Hm," Ryan hummed.
"Also, we want to stay clear of these coordinates," she told him. "There is a frozen lake there and we shouldn't risk that."
"Then we won't tell Mr. Hailey about it, so he won't know we're skipping," Ryan suggested.
"Mm."
"Hey, Chuntao?" Ryan tore her attention away a bit.
"Yeah?"
"What do you think of that Elucid guy?" Ryan asked.
"He seems nice," Chuntao answered, having Ryan frown a bit. "He's quite friendly."
"Yeah?"
"Hm," he realized then, that this Elucid guy had his own preferences on who he disliked.
"Why do you ask?"
"Um… just curious, he is rubbing me the wrong way is all," Ryan responded.
"Well, he'll probably come around," she assured him.
Ryan silently gritted his teeth a bit, "I'm sure he will."
The following day they checked around the perimeter again and found nothing, Mr. Hailey came along so there was no room for any possible slacking around. They drilled the snow, used the dogs for tracking, and handled that odd detector thing Samson gave them. Nothing was found and Ryan was already feeling some hopelessness in this endeavor. But it wasn't the worst thing because he'd at least get paid for his efforts.
The next few days Sargent Abraham kept pushing them to focus on this area, hopefully not needing to go too far. But Mr. Hailey was edging to turn upside down all of Antarctica for his wife, so on the fifth day he voiced his opinion, "I want to look further inland."
Sargent Abraham sighed at that, but understood, informing the team as well. Chuntao and Ryan showed him the route they'd be taking through the mountains and explained to everyone the basics of what they'd expect to see out there "The most dangerous part will be the climate since there are no large animals on land. So possible snowstorms to get lost in, falling ice, ice breaking under our feet into deep holes. When scaling those unpredictable regions with our sleds, we should be hooked together unless we have made camp."
During the group meeting there was a lag in the discussion where Mr. Hailey was focusing on the routes written on the map, Elucid smoothly came over to him and asked, "Do you understand it?"
"I think so," Mr. Hailey answered, his eyes still analyzing the map.
"I feel like a big cat like yourself hasn't faced the wickedness of the wild, huh?" Elucid chuckled.
Mr. Hailey's eyebrow raised but then he responded, "I've gone on a few hiking trips."
"How long did they last?"
"About a day."
"Hm… You aren't scared?" Elucid asked, a fox-like smile dawning on his face.
"No, not really," Mr. Hailey stated "I'm more worried about Kathlyne.
Elucid frowned a bit, but then grew his smile back as he cooed, "Don't worry, if you do get scared, I'll protect you."
Mr. Hailey glanced at him, but then turned back to the map as he nodded.
Elucid got up and leaned into Mr. Hailey's space, pointing at parts of the map, "We'll be returning from this point, after traveling through a pass in the mountain."
"I see…" Mr. Hailey huffed; for he clearly already knew that.
Ryan watched this conversation unfold, seeing Elucid deep into Mr. Hailey's personal space and wondered if Mr. Hailey knew what Elucid was trying to pull.
he Sargent assigned them into groups of three in case something would happen. It would follow as Roberto, Elucid, Chuntao and Sargent Abraham, Ryan, Mr. Hailey. Ryan let out a sigh of relief, grateful for not having to be in Elucid's team.
They took off the morning of the sixth day and started heading more inland. It was mostly flat lands from there on out with a few hills and curves. But for nights and days they stayed in the open, under the unwavering sky.
It wasn't until the third day out from the base that they were hit by their first snowstorm, but they were prepared for it and came across an enclave under this mountain range where they would establish their tents. It was a cavern-like enclave, and it kept them sheltered from all wind or to be buried by snow.
That night they were huddled in their tents, snacking on energy bars for dinner. Ryan got out to take a piss and after he was done, he saw something in the snow, something unbelievable. It was a white wolf, and Artic wolf out in the middle of the storm. He then heard shuffling behind him to see Mr. Hailey coming out of his tent too. He whispered to him, "Mr. Hailey, Mr. Hailey," it caught his attention as Ryan cautiously approached him and he quietly gesture to the outside. "Look at that out there."
Mr. Hailey's eyes traveled until it landed on the white wolf, he gasped in surprise. The wolf had not noticed them yet, the wind must have made it difficult to catch their smell.
"I thought… there were no predators like that down here," Mr. Hailey thought.
"There shouldn't be, that guy over there should be in the north," Ryan answered.
"Are you sure it's a wolf?"
"I am," Ryan assured. "I've met with wolves on reservations before, so that's no stray sled dog."
"What do we do?"
"Nothing," Ryan said. "We don't want to draw him closer to us."
"Could there be more of them?"
"I don't know, he looks like he's alone," Ryan replied. At that the wolf sniffed the ground for a bit, searching for something. They stared at the white creature; it was a beautiful thing. It lifted its head and darted off into the snowstorm.
They stared at where it vanished, but it never returned. And a couple of minutes later Chuntao's voice broke through the silence, "Was that a wolf?!"
They saw her sticking her head out of her tent as she beamed with excitement. Ryan responded, "Yeah, it was."
"Oh my god," Chuntao grinned widened as she exited her tent. "How is that even possible?"
"I don't know, it's not their habitat," Ryan noted.
A shuffle came from one of the tents and Elucid stuck his head out next, "What are you guys talking about?"
"There was a wolf out there, Elucid," Chuntao explained.
"What?" he glanced out to the snowstorm. "That's not possible."
"Well it was there," Ryan stated, and he noticed the nasty glare he received from Elucid. Obviously, he didn't want him to talk about it.
"You saw it too Mr. Hailey?" Elucid asked.
"Yes, it was very beautiful and white," Mr. Hailey nodded.
"White, huh?" Elucid thought, glanced towards Ryan and cleared his throat, "Well that isn't good. We won't be able to see it in the snow."
"True," Chuntao worried. "We should be on guard now. Someone, tell the Sargent."
They informed the Sargent and Roberto of the wolf and that's when he pulled out a rifle from his sled. He announced to them that he'd stand on guard at night if it came back, and he wanted others to routinely switch out. That night it was a bit restless, imagining a wolf out there.
They were slow with their traveling, as Mr. Hailey was convinced his wife was still out there, so they had to go the whole nine yards. During those travels the snow was getting heavier and the storms were becoming more frequent. They had to take shelter more times than they could count. There was one night that they stopped, with Chuntao and Roberto helping the dogs, and the other four huddled in one of the bigger tents, looking over the region.
"We got to head into the mountain pass, we've been in this area for about a week already," Sargent Abraham noted. "There isn't anywhere else to look."
"I agree with you, but the mountains might be too dangerous right now," Ryan said. "We should wait until the weather settles more."
"We can't wait anymore," Mr. Hailey huffed. "Kathlyne is out there, we have to find her as soon as possible."
"Yeah Ryan," Elucid sneered. "His wife is out there, alone and cold. Stop being so insensitive Ryan."
"I-I'm not, I'm just trying to keep us safe," Ryan was thrown back at that accusation.
"And in turn you're not protecting Kathlyne," Elucid scoffed. "Do you even care about what could be happening out there to her?"
"I-"
"Now Elucid, this is no place for arguing," Sargent Abraham countered sternly.
"You too, Sargent," Elucid frowned. "We're going at a snail's pace out here. How in the world are we going to find her at this rate?"
"Elucid, you don't need to…" Mr. Hailey trailed off. Ryan noticed how confused his expression was.
"Come now, Mr. Hailey," Elucid leaned into his space. "I'm only thinking about what's best for you and your wife. Your best interests are what I have at heart. Nothing else."
"T-Thank you…" Mr. Hailey mumbled, uncertainty swelling on his face.
Elucid gave off a smile then explained, "I want to reunite you with your wife, Mr. Hailey. I'll never give up on this expedition."
"I… okay."
"Yes, well, I've put in my input," Elucid rose up. "I vote we head through the pass as soon as possible." And he exited the tent.
Ryan watched him go, but he got up too.
"Ryan, where are you going?" Mr. Hailey asked.
"I'll be back," he answered as he followed off to Elucid who was a bit away, stretching his arms in the air leisurely. Ryan approached him and snapped in a low voice, "What was that? We need to wait until the snow blows over. Why are you so gun-ho about going through the pass?"
"What? I can handle a bit of wind and snow," Elucid smirked, the whistling flakes framing his fair face.
"What about avalanches and the snow breaking underneath our feet?" Ryan growled.
"You worry too much," Elucid chuckled. "I can handle anything." The wind howled above them, blowing their jackets and almost Ryan's hat. It was getting loud, but this conversation needed to be done, even if Ryan was chancing frostbite.
"What about everyone else?" Elucid just yawned, not answering so Ryan asked him a different question, "What are you even doing? I've noticed, you know. You trying to butter up to Mr. Hailey, constantly convincing him that his wife is still alive. We all know she's dead, he's just in denial."
"Yeah, yeah," Elucid sighed.
"So, what gives?" Ryan snipped. "What are you planning?"
Elucid hummed and snickered, "Well Sir Crow, I'll tell you," Ryan's face began heating up with rage at that, suddenly it was no longer cold outside anymore. "But first I got a question for you, don't you think Mr. Hailey looks kind of like a twink?"
"…What?" Ryan glared.
"He's got such a skinny frame and a pretty face, he ain't that bad looking for someone so old," Elucid explained. "And he's got those dick sucking licks too. He probably gets around a lot. Bet the whole wife thing to cover up his homosexuality. He thought he loved her, but he's been closeted this whole time. I mean how can you do business when all your business partners are calling you a fag behind your back?"
Ryan couldn't believe what this guy was saying, it sounded so unscripted, so unreal.
"He's all lonely and vulnerable now," Elucid hummed. "He just needs a good friend to keep him company, and I don't mind being that friend at all. He's cute enough."
"Are… you gay?" Ryan questioned, wondering if there was any saving grace to this guy, it might be a homosexual identity.
"Heh, no," Elucid snorted. "But I sure can play the part, especially if it's for a lonely billionaire."
"I can't believe you," Ryan said.
"Well, believe it," Elucid replied. "Go ahead and tell him, not that it's any of your business. Am I right Ryan?"
Ryan stared at him, then turned away, returning to the tent where the Sargent and Mr. Hailey were waiting.
Mr. Hailey asked, "What did he say?"
Ryan stared at him for a few then answered, "He wouldn't change his mind," for once Elucid made some sense: this was none of his business.
Roberto was parked outside the tents one day, checking his dog's paws and seeing if they were dehydrated. He was sweet with them and they loved him; all sixty of them. It was a lot of work and maintenance, which the others helped a lot of the time, but in the end, he was the dog guy. Ryan helped him in his spare time in between navigation and checking on all their supplies. Ryan was always surprised how they were always so well behaved.
Roberto was explaining how he raised the dogs and how much he always loved them, "As a kid, my parents would never get me a dog, no matter how much I asked 'Oh mama, can't I? I'll feed them! I'll take care of them all the time!' but then mama would say 'Roberto! You know your papa hates those things! Always biting! Always barking! They are so bad! There is no way you can control one.' And look at me now! All my dogs are so well-behaved and trained. They'll get you anywhere."
"I do like a lot of them," Ryan said as he held two resting in his lap. "They are very well behaved, you must have worked with them quite a lot, Roberto."
"Not just me," Roberto told him. "I have a whole organization back home that helps train these guys. But I am the most involved. I do put a lot of money into it."
"Sounds fun," Ryan smiled.
"Yeah well, it's not all fun and games…" Roberto sighed sadly as his voice trailed off. "One of my partners a couple years back, she went sledding with her dogs and well… she was never heard of again. She had sixteen dogs with her, and who knows what happened to all of them. But we've all assumed by now that she died."
"But how? What was she doing?" Ryan asked.
"She was located in Alaska and was taking a mountain pass to get back to us," Roberto explained. "The train wasn't able to run because of the ice on the tracks. We told her it was too dangerous to come back now, wait until spring. But she didn't want to wait, and she was supposed to take a mountain pass, but we never found anything."
"Maybe she got lost in a storm?" Ryan suggested.
"Yeah, maybe that was the case," Roberto nodded. "I wish she didn't do it. She was so nice and fun; she had a family she left behind. It was really hard on everybody."
"It'll pass Roberto," Ryan said. "It'll pass."
"Yeah, you're right," Roberto agreed. "It'll pass."
To Ryan's surprise, he saw something that was rather rare for him when he ventured down to Antarctica. There were Southern Lights filling the night sky, they danced and jumped in waves as the patterns of colors changed sporadically. It was green then yellow then blue as it shifted in light to dazzle his eyes with this frosty phenomenon.
He watched them alone for a while, staring at their endless beauty until he noticed someone. Someone he once saw the other night not so long ago. Someone who couldn't sleep just like him and left the tent instead of trying to endure his restless slumber. Mr. Hailey was sitting a bit far away from the dogs as he admired the lights and the vibrance they held. His eyes were dazzled by the infinite universe above him and the many colors it had to offer. But this time he didn't seem so closed off or distant. This time he didn't seem so far away as he sat there gazing at the glory of the night sky.
Ryan glanced to his tent then to the man who should have had it all, sighed and slowly, carefully walked towards the billionaire, wondering if he was allowed to sit so casually in the same presence as someone so much more ahead in the world than he was. But seeing him admire the sights of the stars and lights made him think that maybe they could hold an honest conversation. He trudged over to Mr. Hailey who was still entrapped by the stars, and as he got closer Mr. Hailey must have heard him because he turned to look up at him. They stared at each other and Ryan was the one who broke the ice, "Hi."
Mr. Hailey blinked at him, unsure why he was being brought back down to Earth, but didn't mind speaking in mild curt way, "Hi."
"Beautiful night out," Ryan stated, taking another glance at the stars, "Mind if I sit down?"
"No," Mr. Hailey muttered. "No, not at all."
Ryan sat down, keeping some space between them and after a brief silence at gazing at the lights he asked, "Have you ever seen the Southern Lights before?"
"I…" Mr. Hailey said quietly, "I thought they only happened up north."
"Lots of people get that mixed up," Ryan responded. "It's because people talk more about the Northern Lights."
"I guess so…" Mr. Hailey mumbled. "They are beautiful."
"Yeah," Ryan sighed. "This is my third time seeing them, which is rare for me. Glad I could on this trip."
"Mhm," Mr. Hailey hummed, he twisted his fingers around the hem of his fur coat, solemnly lost in thought.
Ryan didn't speak for a while, more as to let the moment subside between them, but then a question formed in his mind, "Have you been having difficulties sleeping Mr. Hailey?"
"Hm?"
"I've seen you at night before, up late, walking around," Ryan explained. "If you need some sleeping pills, I have some."
"Oh," Mr. Hailey dropped his hand down towards the snow, swirling his finger in the white dust. "It's not like I have insomnia or anything… If that's what you're thinking. Well… I used to not have insomnia." The slow wind hailed past them, circling around their heads and across the frosty planes.
"If it's the cold, we can pull out more blankets and things," Ryan suggested. "You just have to be careful not to get dehydrated."
"Hm…" he flicked the snow and then pulled himself up, letting his feet fall straight. "It's none of those things."
"Then what is it?"
Mr. Hailey turned, looking at him with sleepless eyes that were filled to the brim with silent grievances, "I'm impatient," Mr. Hailey confessed. "I want to find her as soon as possible… it's exhausting me how impatient I am. I want to see her safe and sound. The anticipation… it's eating me alive."
Ryan stared at him as he pulled away from his eyes, to lazily look back at the snow. His fingers squeezed with a tension that he didn't know how to release. This tired man has put himself in the dangers and cold of Antarctica, looking for someone, he probably finds the most precious. Ryan could see the timid frustration swelling beneath those eyes and instead of consoling him that everything was alright or jeopardizing his position by saying that she's most likely already dead by now, he instead said, "I'm sorry."
That pulled Mr. Hailey's attention back up to him, eyes filled with a light that looked snuffed out before, "I'm sorry you can't get any sleep," he sympathized. "It must be hard… the anticipation. I'm sorry you're going through this."
Mr. Hailey stared a bit longer, with lips parted until he finally responded, "T-Thank you," he pulled his gaze back down as if fiddling on what to say next.
"Yeah…" Ryan nodded as he leaned back, gazing at those heavenly lights.
Mr. Hailey didn't say anything for a while, staring at the cravats of snow he slid about with his gloved fingers. When he spoke, his voice was low but hopeful, "Ryan?"
"Yes?"
"Have you… ever lost anyone before?" Ryan took a small glance to Mr. Hailey, who kept his eyes focused on the snow. He could see even in the night air the wrinkles from age, the dry skin, the white hairs. He looked like a man who should be home resting instead of being out here chasing ghosts.
"Yes, yes I have," Ryan answered.
"How did you deal with that?" Mr. Hailey asked.
"It took me years… to recover," Ryan responded. "Years of mourning. It never really ends. Have you not lost people before?"
Mr. Hailey bit his lip a bit, then let go saying, "I have had friends, family die before. I know what to do when someone dies. But she isn't dead. She's out there. Lost. I have to find her."
Ryan didn't correct him, he kept to himself, neither encouraging nor dismissing Mr. Hailey's behavior. He may have said something a bit selfish next, "I hope you find her," Mr. Hailey turned to Ryan as he continued. "I really do. It would be amazing if you can find the one you lost. I'd be happy for you, and also a bit envious."
"Envious?"
"That you found the one you lost and I… couldn't," Ryan sighed. They sat there a bit longer, staring at the lights. Behind them and out of sight Elucid had woken up and was glaring at Ryan with eyes filled with hatred.
The metal detector went off during their investigation through the cold. Chuntao started digging where her drill was at the exact spot where the detector was going off. They dug for over an hour and eventually found that what was hidden in the layers of snow was a broken compass. Its metal dial was what had alerted the detector.
They analyze the device to realize it was pretty old, big, and mostly made out of wood. There was a carved name on the side "Corporal Finley Jackson," Chuntao read. She turned it over a few times and mumbled, "What do you think of this Ryan?"
Ryan stared at it for a bit then answered, "Definitely looks like an antique," he brushed the glass of snow with his gloved hand as he analyzed it more. "Something you'd find in a museum. Maybe 18th century, early 19th century." He flicked the glass a bit and the dial spun sporadically, "Completely busted though."
"Whatever poor smo had that definitely didn't make it back," Roberto scoffed.
"I'm surprised it's at such a higher depth in the snow," Chuntao said. "Can't believe the detector found it."
Ryan noticed Mr. Hailey was standing next to him and muttered, "Looks like we found something interesting."
Mr. Hailey glanced his way and mumbled, "It is definitely something…"
"Bet it's worth a lot," Elucid leaned in from nowhere.
Mr. Hailey blinked at him then turned away, "Well, it's not what we're looking for," Mr. Hailey huffed. "Let's keep moving."
They watched him get to his sled and was now waiting for them. Elucid turned to Ryan with a quick glare then decided to follow Mr Hailey.
Ryan sighed and turned to Chuntao to give it back. She glanced down at it then to him, "You want it?"
"But… You found it," Ryan reminded.
"Doesn't mean I want it taking up space on my sled," Chuntao countered. "So do you want it?"
"Well…" he delicately took it in his hands. "It looks pretty cool."
"Then there you go," Chuntao waved her hand. "Come on, back to the sleds."
"Mm," Ryan nodded, following them.
Half the week was over when there was a night that Ryan heard whining and whimpering, he was unsure where it was coming from, but he then heard it moving. It was moving closer and faster to his tent, and he heard footsteps smashing through the snow. His tent than opened quickly to the sight of Mr. Hailey who rushed in with a pale face and redden eyes. He slammed into Ryan and fell onto the floor making Ryan groan in pain, as the man fled to the back of the tent. Ryan hissed, "What was tha-?"
"Close the tent, close it!" Mr. Hailey cried as he held his hands in front of his face.
Ryan stared at him, but then quickly sealed the tent. He watched the thin walls, wondering if he could see or hear anything, but all he could hear was the cold wind. He moved back with Mr. Hailey who looked like he was having a mental breakdown and asked, "What is it? Is something out there?"
"I heard… someone outside my tent," Mr. Hailey whispered.
"You did?" Ryan continued, "Who?"
"I don't know," Mr. Hailey muttered, fear riddled in his eyes. "But they were calling me. I heard them say my name."
"You didn't recognize the voice?" Ryan questioned.
"No," Virgil responded.
"Well I'll go look," Ryan said.
"No!" Virgil hung onto him as he whimpered, "Don't leave me alone here, please!"
Ryan stared at him and contemplated his course of action. Should he just wake everyone up and interrogate who was bothering Mr. Hailey, or should he just…
That's when he saw a teardrop fall from this man's eyes and Ryan immediately sunk down at the sight, "Whoa, you're crying…"
Mr. Hailey's face scrunched up as more tears fell, "Please don't go… Please… Don't leave me alone…"
Ryan bit his lip and sat down and sighed, "Okay, I won't go anywhere, but I don't hear any voice right now. So, it probably went away." Mr. Hailey nodded, "Let's get some sleep, okay?" Then he spoke in a softer voice, "Okay, Virgil?"
Virgil sunk down, his eyes were exhausted, and his body looked like it would sink into the ground. Ryan lay next to him, sharing the blanket, and they both fell asleep.
The next morning Ryan woke up to see a groggy Virgil, sitting upright with drowsy eyes. His head was tilting all over the place like he could fall back asleep again at any moment. Ryan had forgotten about the disturbance the night before, but quickly reacted to his new roommate. He shook his shoulder and the man glanced down at him in more surprise seeing Ryan than Ryan was of him.
"How did you sleep?" Ryan asked.
"Oh…" Virgil seemed unsure of himself but concluded, "I actually slept… really well. Better… than I have had… in months."
"That's good," Ryan stated.
Virgil stared a bit, but then nodded, "Yeah."
Ryan sat up and said, "So, about that voice last night…"
"Um, right," Virgil seemed a bit embarrassed by that now.
"You sure you didn't dream it?"
"I… I don't know," Virgil mumbled. "I might have, but it sounded so distinct."
"I don't think anyone here would play a prank on you," Ryan suggested. "I mean… you're our boss. That's highly unprofessional."
"I suppose so," Virgil's eyes sunk shamefully. "Was that childish of me to intrude on you? For those reasons?"
"No…" Ryan thought. "You were scared, and I was just sleeping."
"It seems childish to me," Virgil sighed.
"Well that's for you to decide then," Ryan trailed, "But you really should tell them."
"But if we're wrong…" Virgil responded, "Won't they just think I'm crazy?"
"Dunno, are you?" Ryan questioned without thinking.
Virgil stared down at him and huffed, "So you think so too."
"No, I-"
"Excuse me," Virgil sulked as he exited the tent.
"No, wait, Virgil," and Ryan followed him. But Virgil stopped a second and so did Ryan when they saw everyone else up and staring at them. Virgil just clicked his teeth and stomped off. Ryan followed him, but felt the daggers coming from Elucid's eyes.
Virgil went a dozen yards away, but Ryan stayed close behind, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that."
"Then what did you mean?!" Virgil snapped.
Ryan's words froze in his mouth, but then he sighed and confessed, "Fine okay, you got me. I do think you're crazy."
Virgil whipped around with those reddened eyes and he huffed, "I knew it."
"Yeah, I thought you were crazy the moment I read the tabloids on you in my local grocery store," Ryan sighed. "I think you're nuts!"
"Damn you-!"
"But… I don't care if you are," Ryan admitted. "I don't care if you've lost it cause…"
"Cause what?"
"I've been there too," Ryan revealed. "I've lost that special person in my life. And I went nuts too. I went crazy. And I could never find them, Virgil. No matter how hard I looked, I couldn't! That's why I'm a survivalist. I wanted to learn and know how to survive, I wanted to navigate myself, so I'll never be lost again. And maybe I can find those who have been lost before too… I know I am mainly doing this about money, but that's my job Virgil. To find people. It's what I've been doing for so long now… But if you hate me and want me out of the team, that's fine, I'll take my check on the way out."
Virgil stared at Ryan, mouth agaped and hands free. He didn't say anything at first, but Ryan stared back, trying to show how earnest he was. Virgil stepped forward a bit, but then pulled himself back as thoughts clashed through his mind. He looked down, a bit defeated as he said, "You're such an honest guy," he chuckled, which sounded sharp and loud though it was so quiet and happened so fast. "No… I won't fire you. We're far too deep in this to be kicked out now." He smiled a soft one at Ryan, "Besides… you're too cool to fire."
Ryan blinked blankly at that, "Me? I'm cool?"
"Like a hot rod going through sunset boulevard," Virgil chuckled.
Ryan grew a smile too and mouthed, "Cool."
"No, you are," Virgil joked.
What is this? It was nice.
"Come on," Ryan gestured "Let's head back."
"Mm," they came back to the group who was watching their whole argument even though they couldn't hear it. The breakfast was awkward, but Virgil was beaming a bit, so Ryan didn't find it to be a complete disaster.
Virgil apparently didn't want to disclose what actually happened, but didn't tell Ryan not to so when the two separated Roberto approached Ryan and asked rather calmly, "Did you fuck the billionaire?!"
Ryan stared at him with a bit of annoyed resignation on his face, "You know, the subtly you asked that with is much to be desired."
"Are you kidding me?" Roberto smirked. "You both came out of the same tent this morning. And it was your tent. Whoa! Did he come to you? Did he seduce you? Or did you have it planned beforehand? Cause if you did, not very discreet near the end there."
Ryan exasperatedly sighed, "No Rob, we didn't do anything okay," Ryan hesitated but then explained what happened the night prior.
"He heard something?" Roberto questioned quizzically.
"Yeah, and if it was any of you…" Ryan pointed at him and anyone else who may be in hearing distance, "Like stop, that was childish and stupid. No need to freak out your employer, no matter how bored you were."
"It wasn't me!" Roberto stated defensively. "I always feel really guilty after I pull pranks." Ryan narrowed his eyes as him suspiciously, "But I wouldn't! I don't wanna get fired!"
"Well, there's nothing we can do about it now," Ryan said. "We'll have to move on from that."
"Yeah, right, okay, mh!" Roberto nodded drastically. They separated and Ryan then felt sharp eyes on him. He turned and expectedly saw Elucid glaring at him.
"You're such a hypocrite," Elucid snarled. "You diss me then turn around and do that same. Now that's unbelievable."
Ryan felt a bit triumphant making Elucid irritated, but he always made him irritated and there was no point of being extra mad for something that wasn't true, "We didn't do anything."
"Bullshit," Elucid snapped. "That little Mexican might believe you, but I don't!"
"Well believe it," Ryan rolled his eyes. "He was just a little freaked out. He thought he was hearing voices."
"Hah! Whatever reason he came to your tent last night, it doesn't matter," Elucid snarked. "All that matters is that you fucked him after."
"We didn't-"
"To comfort him and gain his approval," Elucid glared then pointed, "Watch yourself. Things don't need to get ugly out here."
He huffed off, leaving Ryan annoyed, wanting to just knock the guy's lights out. But then he'd be to blame, wouldn't he?
He walked off too but caught sight of Virgil who was oblivious to Sargent Abraham next to him, staring down his neck to find any marks. Ryan grimaced at that, but when Virgil saw him there was a smile and he waved to Ryan, and he waved back. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.