36 Heading into the cold (2/2)
”Youre just like fokkin Piet” Frits laughed opening his laptop ”Did you and your dad communicate in any way?”
”Yes, via email” Phillip gave Frits his email account details and showed him the conversation he and Bertus had.
”So it looks like he went slightly koekoe?”
”It seems”
”Dont worry, i have a way of tracing an email from its last sent location” Frits typed away.
”How accurate is it?” Phillip asked.
”Up to three meters, Bingo, check this” he turned the laptop to Phillip, the pin is somewhere in a forest on a map, but in the middle of nowhere.
”That's where the last email was sent from, its fokkin heavy off the beaten path boet” Fris said.
”Dont worry, just give me the coordinates, ill go check it out myself” Phillip said and looked at Suzette.
”Im coming too” she said.
”I would rather you not”
”Make me” she folded her arms again.
A few hours later Frits took control over the plane again, Phillip stood infront between him and Koos watching out. Over Alaska there was a darkness that fell, and what looked like a cloud bank.
”Is it raining there?” Phillip asked.
”No, its fog” Frits said switching on the outer lights, as they entered the fog, it was asif the darkness semi swallowed them, the sun's light faded out, and it got cold just by the feel of the hue in the white blue mist.
Suzette still sat strapped in watching out the window, Piet was asleep in a chair on the other side of the plane.
'Hello?' She heard a voice and looked away from the window, it wasn't Piet, and the men in front looked forward. She shrugged, thinking it's her imagination.
'You came from very far away, arent you beautiful?'
Suzette looked in again, she forgot about Natasha, she sat reading a book this whole time.
”Natasha?”
The girl looked up ”Yes?”
”Did you say something?”
”Uh, no, why?”
Suzette felt a tingle of uncomfort, she remember in the emails of Bertus speaking of a voice.
'Ah, you've heard of me?'
”Who are you?” She asked in her head but there was no answer, instead she felt her body get cold.
”Hold on Phillie, no need to go strap in, it will be a quick landing” Frits said flipping the landing gear switches.
”How do you know where to land?”
”Radar boet? Hello?” Frits looked up at him.
”What ever man!”
The dark runway suddenly appeared out of the fog and Frits touched down on it, Phillip couldn't help give a yell.
”The fokkin thing wasn't even lit up!?”
”No, this is a covert landing, we have some friends who owe us a favour, we wanted money, but i guess this time a favour will do” Koos said as the plane got to a halt.
”Ok boet, time to send you two off, we orgenised a Jeep for you and sussa to use” Koos said as he helped him with the bags.
”Come Suzette” Phillip said seeing she still stared out the window.
”Get, off... This plane, and... There will be no... Turning back” She mumbled not looking up, her voice sounded diffrent.
”Suzette?” He asked again and she flinched.
”Huh?”
”Are you ok?”
”Yes” she stood up and took her bags.
Both of them have dressed in trenchcoats, it was the warmest attire they could find. When Frits opened the plane door the cold rushed them like water, the wind howled and the snow pittered against their faces.
”Fffok its cold!” Frits yelled.
”Get the plane refeueld so we can fokof here Frits” Koos said leading Phillip down.
'You have been warned' Suzette mumbled again, Phillip looked at her estranged.
”Suzi?”
She looked up at him, her eyes even seemed different, the blue slightly purple now.
”You sure youre ok?”
She smiled ”Yes? Why?”
”Never mind” Phillip thought its all in his mind.
Koos opened the back of a Jeep close by and loaded the duffle bag, then Phillip and Suzette also loaded their bags.
”Ok boet! Be careful!” He yelled over the wind ”We have some business to take care of here in America, so if anything goes wrong let us know asap!”
”Got it! Thanks oom!”
The two men shook hands and parted. Phillip climbed into the Jeep and started it, allowing its engine to run warm alittle.
The man who helped Koos set everything up came over to him ”Now our dept is repayed!” The Russian accent bellowed.
”Sure boet! If we have some interesting well paid missions that require some extra man power, ill call you!”
The man smiled ”Sure, that sounds fun!”
”All fuelled up Koos! Ready to rock and roll!”
Koos and Frits climbed back into the plane waving at Phillip as they entered. The plane powered up, turned, then rocketed into the fog, not long and even its noise was gone.
Phillip and Suzette sat patiently waiting for the car to warm up, the closed vehicle couldn't quite drown out the howls of the wind somewhere in the mountains, it felt like a bad omen. When the heaters finally started working he phoned Benson.
”Were here”
”What!? That was quick hey son?”
”Where are you?”
”In a tiny town called Chitina, im booked into a log cabin here”
”Ok, were on the way” Phillip said and punched the town into his gps.
***
”What do you think well find?” Frits asked but Koos shook his head.
”No idea”
Bringing Phillip to Alaska was just the excuse they needed to come over to America. They were planning to come with or without Phillip anyway, the timing was just perfect for him as it seemed. For a year now, maybe slightly more, America went dark, not as in no power stone age dark, no news came from there on the telivision set, no good or bad news, the channels all froze. Reports came in of aircraft landing, but none took off again, no boats came out of the harbours, it was like shut down. Any means to communicate with the country failed, or got no answer. This is why Koos came to investigate. They already had the plane loaded with their weapons and had the parachutes ready. All they wanted to do is do a low flyover, and see what kind of response they will get.
End chapte