Morning brought their time to go to Sundance. Kit talked Buz
and Savanna into coming with them, Code wanting Buz's Marine
Corps experience and instincts around Jess. Felecia, Josh, Kenja,
Evan and Stefi were coming too. BR decided to stay in Santa to
catch up on work, he and Flee steaming up the walls while agreeing
to get back to their world tour as soon as they could. The others
deferred to stay at Truchas or would be going on back to somewhere
else over the horizon, goodbys to Jasmine and Sage plucking all their
heartstrings, besides the excitement of Jess going off to the movies.
        They finally got Essy and Phil to come along, getting Estrella
over her humility. Julio and Gabrielle decided to stay at Truchas to
let the folks get to know her some, plus Julio wanted to help Julian
and the other 'migos with the work. Kit told the vatos that he was
awful sorry that he couldn't stay to pitch in, and Ria gave the
travelers bags of popped popcorn to take along. Quite the sendoff it
was, the others taking a break from building the studio.
        They took the wagons down to Santa and Jessy's jet to Provo,
scrunching into the seats. The Gulfstream would have been roomier,
but it would have been up against the edge of safety at Rockhead.
Besides, Jess just liked her jet better. They took a couple Jeep
wagons up to Sundance, that little ski and film arts village, and got
the escort to the ranch house, where Sunny and others involved in
the movie most warmly welcomed them all.
        A big horseback ride was first on the agenda, then a campfire
that night high up in the Wasatch, still chilly even those last nights of
July. They played some music, Navajo blankets wrapped over their
shoulders. And then Jess was the one, the whole cast voted, after
the fast script read around the fire. Well, just...the ONE. You know.
        They went through the contracts the next day back at Sunny's
after showers. Jess was going to get a million, plus gross points, for
playing herself - the scenes from Sarajevo and Beijing, mostly. Flee
would get three quarters of a million, Kit a half and Buz and Savvy
and the others the guys wanted in it some less, also for playing their
parts in the movie-documentary of the WPG creation. "Cool" was
the operative word for the guys.
        Later that night, Jess fulfilled another long-standing dream of
hers, after checking its allrightness with Kit. She went to bed with
Sundance. Mm mm mm. Kit understood, though. Jess and Sunny
had both been ogling each other, and God knows they both deserved
each other. And she had been in love with the Redman ever since she
first saw "Electric Cowboy" when she was seven years old.
        Kit played poker with Flee and the guys and passed out a little
drunk on a couch. Flece cleaned up on the poker pots, then layed
down with him. Jessy woke Hotey around dawn, wrapped a blanket
around them and took him for a walk outside. She told him how
much she loved him, and that she knew that he would always give
her anything she wanted and knew how much he adored her. And
she mentioned some of their words from the studio back at school
and that first day and the night flight to Washington as they walked
into a pristine meadow and the sun began to warm everything. She
put the blanket on the ground and gave him every piece of her love.
And that was, verily, that.
        Later, they found out that the shooting - cameras, Jess kept
stressing to Kit - would be in a few months, their parts in Sarajevo
and Beijing being their concern. They tied all the movie things down
by afternoon, then there was a sweet vaya con dios between Jess
and Sunny and all, Kit and Sundance shaking and smiling to each
other as heartily as everyone else, and our heros were on to Alaska.
        Evan and Stef got off in Cody, Wyoming with Josh and Kenj,
instructed to buy a plane and get their tails up to Rockhead. Ev just
wanted to check on the crops. And they would fly up in a couple days
with stash. Of course, the Navajo was still in the barn, but as far as
they knew agents might still be watching for it, our guys remembering
the ID on it in Santa way back when.
        Well, ole Wiley was still the king. "Hey, you didn't get this one
blowed up!" he yelled to them as he and the other Rockheaders
walked out to the jet as the guys emerged. "Must be there're no
RADIALS on it," and deeply hugged his "grandgirl", then even gave
Kit a manly hug, surprising Hotey some. Then the Wi-ster was intro'd
to Buz the Red and Savanna. "Well, 'least you choose big friends,
Buffalo...and a lot of 'm," shaking with Buz and hugging with Savvy
as Phil, no small man either, and Es and Flece deplaned. "Awmigod,
there's Essy!...and Felecia!..." and grabbed onto the girls for hugs.
        The new guys wondered who "Buffalo" was, then got it as Kit
answered, "shute far, Wile, we figured we'd have to replace you
someday."
        "Ooooo, a deep cut, Dub'ya," Orv threw everybody's direction
before diving himself into the girls' arms.
        "That's a day that'll never come," Jess added, hugging the
elders hard again, giving them kisses on their days-old bearded faces,
then noses, as Flee moved on to Tommy and Kit laid into Elaine.
And the greets kept on, meaningfuller than ever.
        "Well, did'ju guys come up just to hug and slobber, or 'r you
into gittin' some more lessons on real aviatin'?" Wi sassed.
        "Hell, I want 'a slobber, you ole rockhead," Jess came back,
and Wiley gave her a gentle slap on her amazing 'arse'. He was the
master of ceremony from there, nothing had changed, proceeding on
to tell them that they had gotten the DC 7's engines from Sara and
were already overhauling them and rebuilding an old Tiger Moth and
a Wright Whirlwind "J dang 5" engine for the Ryan project as they
toured the hangars on the way to the B'ar, our three just amazed
over how much the place had grown with people, planes, cabins,
RV's and all.
        They spent hours catching up on each other, Jess being asked
to explain exactly what was in her mind in Beijing, again. Then they
got on to the plans for the winter move and the spaceship company,
totally flooring Wi, Orv, Tom and Elaine.
        "Hoddurn, pudknocker!" Orville clamored, "you h'ain't got
enough flying machines YET?!" Well, of course, they all understood
the opportunity and even demand for what they were talking about,
considering the hundreds and hundreds more of WPG billions that
would be poured into space development.
        But Wile perked, "hey, the rate they shoot at him, O Dub, he
needs all he can GIT!...They just don't care that you had that ole TV
show, Buff," he kept on, "...they just don't care," and gleamed over
to his partners while he took a glug on his Frog.
        "Wull, you're right there, Dub," Orv added, "...and the more
that find out he's got Jessy and Felecia...the more he IS goinna git
shot..." and took his own chug of the suds.
        "OK guys," Kit broke through the laughs, "who wants to go
punch through some clouds?"
        "Hot dam! Ev'rybody watch their tailfeathers!" Wiley yelled
back.
        Jess took Wi in the Stearman, Kit took Elaine in the Jenny,
Orv took Es and Phil in the Waco, Buz and Savvy commandeered
the Spad and Fokker and Flece the Sopwith Camel, and they all
barnstormed that part of the Alaskan sky for one fool hour and
three by heck quarters, then recommenced the party back in the
Polar B'ar. They went way through that night, the ranch guests fully
realizing the privelege that was theirs, undoubtedly, when they saw
Jess. Then the guys started in on the songs, and anyone who had
not known whom they were in the company of before then
certainly knew then whom was there.
        Jess was awfully happy. What the hay, you know, she told us
all that she was feeling on top of the whole world. And that is all
that mattered to Buffalo, who was way beyond his dreams himself.
She came up with a new song about a man who had had the biggest
dream ever dreampt but was getting even more.
        The day after was Anchorage, and Amelia and Hank were
there waiting for them in the office. Jess passed out bonus checks
and stock options to everyone, delighted to no end with the job that
the pards had accomplished. Bama and Trevor showed up and
offered a ride over to Provideniya in the Goose. 'Meal and Hank
followed with supplies in North Air's new-bought used 737, and
they partied up with the guys and Rachel and Doc Rob after
making milk runs to a few other towns.
        "The prophecy came true," 'Melia's and Hank's old friends
were also there to remind them. "You did it in the spirit of the
North..." they told and thanked the guys.
        "That wasn't the only spirit," Flee added a little cryptically,
which led to Jess starting in on the story of  Lion and Swan. But
the party overtook that, the locals all belting out their favorite folk
songs and lovingly demanding that Jess and the others learn them,
then got Jess to do her songs of Sarajevo, Beijing and some others.
Her rep was certainly spread. And she loved it.
        They were back at Rockhead by noon the next day, and AD,
Aileen and John flew in to see them. Later, they all hiked up to their
cabinsite, then on up the stream and tried some flyfishing until Jess
found a Gold nugget, clueing Kit and Flee right in. So they
continued on up the wild water, finding a few more nuggets along
the way, and discovered the cave with a tiny stream flowing out
from it, Gold flakes all along its bed.
        "Aw Lord..." Kit was the first to break their silence, "'miz'
Midas has done it again, Flee!"
        "O Jesseeeee!" Flee cried, "you're goinna be the richest
woman in the world!"
        The others were all going crazy with excitement, digging out
palmfulls of Gold. Kit was checking and thinking it was still on their
land. Then they entered the cave a little and saw the Gold veins
sticking right out on the surface of the rocks! They danced in each
others' arms a while, then Jess asked everyone to stand around in a
circle holding hands and they promised that they would keep it
secret between them and the few others they agreed on - Elaine,
Tom, Wiley and Orv, BR, the guys back at Truchas, the "kids" still
in Wyoming and the families. Everybody else was right there with
them, and Jess lit up a puro to consecrate their pact.
        "She IS Midas!" Flee cheered, giving Jessy another hug.
        "She's EVERYbody's ass!" AD tweaked, hugging both of
them.
        "YEA she is!" Buz heartily agreed, joining the hug.
        "Um..." Kit Mac Daddy demurred, "please...not everybody's
..." but laughed with everyone, "though I certainly don't want to
deny you, Buz...."
        "Hey...no denyin' taken, sire," Buz smiled back.
        "Don't 'chu worry, darlin'," Jess was there for her love of
loves, "my ass ain't goin' nowhere," and pulled Kit into the hug.
And everybody joined in.

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