California Dreaming (Blades Series Part 3)

By J. William Turner

Grateful for the rescue of their sons, Colin and Dale, Julian has been invited by their parents to their home in Los Angeles for a two-week visit during his September school holidays. He arrives in L.A. to be met by the whole Clifford family, except Colin, who is in hospital with complications. He is especially pleased to see Alison. They drive him to the hospital to visit Colin. Alison now has her driving licence, and takes him sightseeing next day to Venice Beach, where, as they are about to head home, he frees another child who has been left locked in a car in the sun. Julian then passes the required flight test and theory exam, and is permitted to fly helicopters in the USA. A friend of Matt's who runs a local radio station, KMAC, lets Julian fly the station's helicopter while the regular pilot is on leave. Julian does traffic reports twice daily. His accent on the radio makes him popular with listeners, as his feelings for Alison deepen.
Due to a prolonged dry spell, and strong hot winds from the desert, a brush fire breaks out in mountains north of L.A. The radio station tells Julian to pack a bag and fly up there with three reporters. He is one of the first to arrive in late afternoon. Next morning the fires flare up with the wind. All available helicopters are requested to assist, including Julian's. On that first day, in the morning, Julian carries two fire observers. They spot an arsonist. Then, they watch from the air as the massive fire engulfs the town where Julian spent the night, and save the life, at the last second, of a woman fleeing the inferno. In the afternoon, Julian assists a ground team in a search for backpackers missing in the fire area.
For the next four days, he flies several hours per day carrying fire spotters, ferrying fire fighters and equipment, and carrying-out evacuations. All the while, thoughts of Alison persist in his mind, especially when in danger. The Cliffords watch the action on TV. They see Julian in the thick of it, and are worried about him. On the fifth day, changes in the weather ease the situation. Julian is sent back to L.A. with the thanks of the authorities. Exhausted, he is welcomed home by the Clifford family, especially Alison. On his last day, the staff of KMAC give him a surprise farewell party. Later that evening, at L.A. Airport, there is an emotional farewell with the Cliffords. Julian takes Alison to one side, and tells her quietly that when they are both older, he wants to come back and marry her, She is delighted, and says 'yes', but it will be their secret until the time comes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: J. William Turner
• Release date: Jan 9, 2012
• ISBN: 9781465882851

J. William Turner

See above website for author info plus the website http://www.eloquentbooks.com/DangerousDays.html Also, search these titles on Amazon Kindle along with author name:- Storm Ridge, Paddle Hard, Outback Heroes, Enemies Within, Street Kid, High Country, California Dreaming, and Aftermath.

Book preview

BLADES III

CALIFORNIA DREAMING

(The autobiography of a rescue-helicopter pilot continues)

‘as told to’ J. William Turner

Copyright 2012 by (James) J. William Turner

Smashwords Edition

(Original version copyright 2004 by (James) J. William Turner

Finally gaining my helicopter-pilot licence had been the ultimate dream-come-true for me after all the loss and pain I had suffered. And then a flying holiday to Central Australia with my new journalist friend, Wesley Auld, had led me to find the remains of a missing baby taken by a dingo, to meet a truly special girl, and then rescue two of her brothers. So I travelled to Los Angeles, California, as a special guest of her parents. For two weeks during my September school holidays, I was to enjoy whatever hospitality they had to offer in return for the safe return of their two youngest sons. Never, in my wildest imaginings, could I have predicted the drama, danger and trauma that I was about to face.

Table of Contents

Chapter One - Seeing the Sights

Chapter Two - Eye In the Sky

Chapter Three - Furnace

Chapter Four - Shell-Shocked

This story is fictional. Any similarity to historical events, or to any person, living or dead, is coincidental and unintentional

Other works by J. William Turner:

Dangerous Days I (Storm Ridge)

Dangerous Days II (Paddle Hard)

Dangerous Days III (Outback Heroes)

Dangerous Days IV (Enemies Within)

Blades I (Street Kid)

Blades II (High Country)

Blades IV (Aftermath)

Fat To Fast

Jake’s Magical Easter Adventure

CHAPTER 1 – SEEING THE SIGHTS

Saturday, 16 September 2000 – I looked out sleepily through the window beside my seat as the aircraft banked over the coastal city. Below me lay a vast suburban sprawl sandwiched between mountains and the sea that stretched to the horizon. The patchwork of buildings and maze of freeways shone brightly under the sunny cloudless sky. I glanced at my watch. The digital time display read 13:22 as Qantas Flight QF007 turned onto final approach for its landing on schedule at Los Angeles Airport. On my right arm, a second wristwatch set to Australian Eastern Standard Time displayed the numbers 07:22 17/09/00.

I had been airborne for thirteen and a half hours to cross the Pacific Ocean non-stop after the short connecting flight from Melbourne to Sydney. Between eating meals and watching a movie, I had spent most of the first six hours in the air revising the main sections of U.S. aviation law down-loaded from the Internet. I wanted to fly helicopters while in the U.S.A. since I would be living in Lakewood, close to the Long Beach Municipal Airport. Having woken up only two hours earlier after a five-hour snooze, I still felt some slight tiredness caused by such a long period of doing nothing, and having to sleep sitting-up.

Is this what jetlag is like? I asked myself. It’s not so bad. I reckon I should be okay to sit the theory and flight tests within a couple of days.

I decided the mild symptoms were due to a good sleep on Friday night after watching the live coverage of the Sydney Olympics’ opening ceremony on television. Now, as the ground came closer, my thoughts turned to the people who were to meet me. I expected a very warm greeting from Matt, Susan, and the boys. But it was Alison who was most on my mind. I had enjoyed swapping e-mails often with the whole family since their return home, and the news of Colin’s slow recovery had been most welcome. It was Alison’s messages, however, that I spent a lot of my time reading and replying to. Our feelings for each other were obviously shared, and with Alison back at school during the week, we would cherish what little time we could spend together over the next thirteen days.

The queue for non-U.S. citizens to clear Immigration and Customs was long, but moving fairly quickly. Three quarters of an hour after landing, the automatic exit doors to the public waiting area opened, and I walked out to be faced by a throng of people pressed against a security barrier. I was toting a small rucksack on my back and dragging a large two-wheeled suitcase behind me. Slowly, I walked along the line of faces towards the end of the barrier ten metres away. But after moving less than three metres, I heard a child ahead of me calling excitedly, Jac! Jac! Over here!

Dale’s shrill voice was unmistakable. I turned my eyes away from the crowd and looked forward in the direction of the noise. The little kid was standing at the edge of the restricted area, smiling, and waving happily. I grinned, waved in return, and quickened my pace. But when I was two metres away, Dale’s patience vanished, and he ran forward. When I bent over and lifted him up, a pair of small arms wrapped themselves tightly around the back of my neck, and legs around my hips. Dale was silent, content to let a big hug and a quick kiss speak his words of welcome. Finally, he released his grip, and I lowered him to the ground. Standing nearby, though, I saw only four other familiar smiling faces. Matt, Susan, Barry, and Alison waited their turn. It was Matt, his voice still full of gratitude, who spoke on the family’s behalf. Welcome to America, Jac. Welcome to our home and to our family.

His hug was brief, as was Susan’s and Barry’s. But Alison’s embrace lasted much, much longer. And when we parted, she stood beside me, her hand in mine. An emotional lump formed in my throat as I thanked them for having me, and that it was really good to see them all again. I gave Alison a special smile, and gently squeezed her hand, before commenting on Colin’s absence. Their smiles faded as I asked the question they had been expecting. Susan replied, while trying to stop herself from crying, that Colin had been taken to hospital the day before my arrival to be put on dialysis.

The bad news shocked me, and my pleasure changed to sadness. Their frequent e-mails had said he was slowly getting better. Alison muttered, almost bitterly, that the blood poisoning had damaged his kidneys. He had suffered another infection a couple of days previously, and …When she paused, unable to continue, Barry cut in. He said that Colin’s kidneys had stopped working properly, a condition the doctor said, called ‘Renal Failure’. He may even need a transplant. I sighed deeply, and asked to see him. Matt nodded. Colin, he said, was more upset about not being there to meet me with them than being on dialysis.

The hospital was in North Long Beach, which was next to Lakewood. It was only four kilometres from their house, so we could stop there on our way home. In fact, they had promised him an immediate visit by me already. It was a promise I was more that willing to keep for them.

In a sombre mood, I left the international terminal with my hosts to walk the three hundred metres to their parked car. I found the warm afternoon air and strong sun to be a welcome change from the cooler temperatures of Melbourne’s early spring. My heavy jeans and thick long-sleeved shirt were certainly different from the T-shirt and shorts worn by the others. The sound of jet aircraft landing and taking-off, plus the smell of kerosene, followed us across the car park. We stopped at the rear of a blue eight-seater Ford people mover. Matt unlocked and raised the hatch for me to load my luggage. He then invited me to sit in the front passenger seat. I would have preferred to sit with Alison, but I politely agreed. After heaving my large suitcase and rucksack into the baggage compartment, I walked along the left side of the vehicle. When I stopped beside the front door, Matt approached with a cheeky grin on his face. He held out the car keys, asked me if I was going to drive, and when had I obtained my licence?

Huh? I did not understand the humour at first. Then I remembered that American vehicles are left-hand drive. I declined his offer of the car keys, and the Cliffords laughed as I, who was also chuckling, walked to the passenger door on the other side. Matt drove us from the car park onto the access road that led away from the airport. Two kilometres further on, he entered the southbound lanes of the San Diego Freeway, where traffic was heavy as we cruised towards Long Beach. I looked with interest at as much of the passing scenery as I could. Los Angeles was very quickly becoming everything I thought it would be. The multi-lane freeways, pollution, streams of cars, and the sheer size of the place were mind-boggling during our slow crawl home. I had thought the same thing during final approach to the airport.

The twenty-five-kilometre journey lasted almost half an hour, and the time was three o’clock when we arrived at the medical centre in Lakewood. The dialysis unit was on the second floor. I stopped outside Colin’s room with a request to go in by myself first, if they didn’t mind. When Matt and Susan said that would be okay, I opened the door, entered, and said, Hi, Col, how ya doing, mate?

Colin was resting semi-upright on the bed, with tubes sticking out of his body attached to a large dialysis unit. But despite his weakness and discomfort, he broke into the broadest of grins when he saw me walk in. Jac, you got here at last?

Yeah, and I didn’t have to bring any school work with me, I chuckled, and sat on the edge of the bed.

Colin raised his arms to hug me as tightly and at least as long as Dale had at the airport, if not longer. When we parted, Colin gazed at me with that same look of gratitude and the same feelings of brotherly love that he had felt in the tent the morning after I’d found them. The boy really was so glad that I was finally there with him. He said that he thought about the mountains all the time, and how the cold and the rain came the day I found them. Before he was lost, he had two brothers, now he had three. He would always think of me like that.

Hearing Colin talk about his deepest, innermost feelings in such a way left me unable to speak for several seconds. Small tears of guilt filled my eyes as I looked at the sensitivity and affection showing in his. I told him that I had often thought about what it might be like to have a kid brother. But Colin nearly died because I didn’t wait for the SES rescue team and the doctor. They were right there, less than a minute away when I took-off. All I could say to him was, I should’ve waited.

With the understanding of an adult, Colin gently wrapped the skinny fingers of one hand around my wrist, massaged the skin with his fingertips and thumb, gazed back, and whispered, You didn’t know, Jac. All you were thinking of was saving me. You’ve done nothing wrong; nothing at all.

He was right, of course, but after they told me later how close the rescue team had been, I felt very guilty, and did so for a long time. Colin squeezed my wrist and told me again not to feel guilty. I ruffled his hair, and sighed, Okay, you win, Little Brother.

We both smiled when I called him that name as Colin’s family entered. He asked them if they were going to give me my surprise. His parents and siblings surrounded his bed as my curiosity grew. Surprise?

Yes, Matt said they did have a special surprise for me, and it involved helicopters. My eyes lit up when I heard the magic H-word. So Matt asked if I had been studying all the aviation rules that I had down loaded off the Internet. When I nodded and said I was more than ready to take a flight test, Matt told me about a family friend who managed the local radio station, KMAC. Her name was Joanne de Wit. It seems the pilot of their leased helicopter, who did traffic reports, was going on holiday for a week and a half, starting midday on the coming Monday. Joanne had agreed that if I passed the theory exam and a flight test on Monday morning…

Yike! I exclaimed quietly. Matt, are you saying I can fly for the station?

My excitement brought quiet laughs from the others. I was