Ill Take Forever

it. But that did not mean he wanted her involved in any way, shape or form.
    Yet he needed her to locate the field. He hoped there’d be satellite reception there. He had a hand-held GPS, which would pinpoint the location. Once that was done, he’d contact Stuart and plan the next phase.
    For now, he wanted to get in and out without anyone knowing.

    ***
    Jenny recognized the landmarks she had so carefully committed to memory. The going was still hard in spots and it seemed to take longer today. Anticipation having an effect no doubt.
    'You hike a lot, don't you?' Kyle said, moving to walk beside her with the trail widened.
    'I love to be out in the open, to see all the empty land, see the beauties of the mountains.'
    'It reminds me a little of picnics my family went on when I was a kid,' he murmured. 'We didn't live in the mountains, though. San Diego was home, but the long endless beaches and vast ocean give one the same sort of peace.'
    'Are you an only child?' Jenny could scarcely believe he was opening up. She knew this was not part of a cover story. Kyle was sharing a portion of his life with her.
    'I had a sister. She and my folks and I used to go to the beach a lot when I was young. It all changed, once I went to college.'
    'Where did you go?'
    'Berkeley. How about you? I know you grew up here, but have you ever gone anywhere else?'
    'Sure, lots of places. I went to college in Sacramento, to Disneyland one summer, the Grand Canyon and skiing in the Rockies. I have all I want here.' She smiled at him. 'I know it doesn't seem likely to you, but I found Sacramento a big city. I was amazed at Los Angeles and San Francisco. I prefer the mountains.'
    'I can see why. I've been all over the state, back East, too, and this area is one of the prettiest I've seen.'
    Shasta ran alongside them, sometimes surging ahead, sometimes lingering behind finding endless scents to explore. Jenny instinctively slowed as they approached the meadow.
    'Just ahead,' she said softly.
    Kyle stopped her and studied the terrain, listening for any other sounds. He nodded and they stepped to the edge of the clearing.
    Kyle stood in silence for a long moment, assessing what was before them.
    'Is it marijuana?' Jenny asked.
    'Yes.' He shook his head slightly. 'Must have a street value of close to a million,' he said softly to himself.
    'That much?' Jenny was surprised. There were lots of plants, but that much? 'It doesn't look like such a big crop.'
    'Who owns this land?'
    'I'm not sure, but I think it's national forest land. That stream we crossed a while back runs along the boundary on this side. We can check it on the map when we get back.'
    'Step back a bit and stay here. Hold Shasta. I'm going to circle the field. Wait for me here, understand?' His eyes were hard, narrowed against the sun, as he looked at Jenny.
    She nodded and moved back several yards before she sank down on the soft pine needles, holding Shasta's collar. She watched as Kyle slowly started down the hill, hugging the shelter of the trees, skirting the meadow, slowly working his way around. After a while she lost sight of him and sat idly watching through the trees at the limited view of the field. Butterflies danced across the lacy plants, the hot sun burned in the sky, the soft pattern of the pine and fir limbs throwing speckled shade where she sat. The slight breeze cooled.
    Kyle came up on her left side and dropped down beside her. She glanced at him questioningly, but he shook his head.
    'There's a road near the end of the field, about fifty yards off. That's probably how they plan to harvest it. They've got an elaborate irrigation set up, they must pipe water in from the river occasionally. The sun's too hot to grow the plant without some irrigation. I wonder how often they water.' He was silent for a long moment, assessing the field. 'Who’s running the show, though, is anyone's guess at this point.' He looked at her, and sensed her mood.
    'What's wrong?'
    'All this.' She waved her hand towards the meadow. 'I never believed it, you know. Brownley was like something out of James Bond. I would be doing a service to my country. Then you came, and sometimes I believed it, but mostly you were just like anyone else. It was like playing a game. But now I know that someone in Palmer is tied up in this. Someone I probably know. I just wish it had never happened here. That it had happened somewhere else and left my part of the world clean.'
    'Everyone everywhere wishes