On The Mountain

By Steve Blum

Lane and Anna were the only two survivors of a plane crash. Four other passengers had been killed. Three of Lane`s friends and Anna`s copilot were killed leaving them alone in the mountains.

On the Mountain

Her leg was broken and she had to depend on his skills to survive. She had been treated badly by her alcoholic mother's male friends which had made her very untrusting. He had a very bad marriage. His wife abandoned him and his baby daughter for the party life, alcohol, and drugs. This caused him to build a wall between himself and any woman who might try to get close. They had to depend on each other to survive the winter on the mountain. He had to set her broken leg and make sure she was taken care of plus make sure they both survived. Not until he saved her life a second time did she start trusting him, and working with him to survive. When the weather started to break, they decided to try to get off the mountain. They were both exhausted when they stumbled onto a hunting cabin belonging to a man named Steve Walker, which saved their lives.In the cabin there was food and a map showing them the trail out, and to a small town which was no more than a long day`s hike. There they parted ways and went back to their own personal lives not realizing how much in love with each other they were. With the help of Steve Walker, they were brought back together. This time she courageously saved his life when they found him in the high country where he had been helping Steve find some missing cattle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Proisle Publishing Services
• Release date: Apr 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9781960224927

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

Lane Hance was on his way home from a successful elk hunting trip with his hunting party when a severe thunderstorm appeared out of nowhere. Lightning struck the private jet causing instrument failure and when the pilot, a beautiful young lady by the name of Anna Baest, tried to turn back had no way of knowing that her plane was too low to clear the mountains until she felt the bottom of it connect with the snow and ice in a clearing, which meant that it was just high enough to keep it from flying directly to the side of the mountain.

The co-pilot and the three other members of his hunting party were killed leaving just himself and the pilot, who suffered a broken leg, and a few cuts and bruises to survive in the mountain wilderness alone with no hope of being found or finding help.

Everything he did was thought out carefully. His will to live was strong, and the fact that he had a ten-year-old daughter at home who loved and needed her father as much as he loved and needed her.

The pilot, the beautiful woman that she was, hated men and trusted next to no one. It was going to be hard enough to survive himself, let alone keep her alive also. He had to do his best even though he just wanted to get himself home.

Their experiences together drew them closer every day and more dependent on each other without either of them realizing it. Especially Anna, and when the time came for them to part, she did without understanding why she was feeling the way she did.

They both fought their feelings as they came back together to help an old rancher who had unwittingly helped them survive coming down off of the mountain, and then later through some problems, or was the old man a lot wiser than themselves and able to bring them together in his own sly sort of way.

Only time can tell a person how things might work out. Especially when it comes to one's feelings and needs, and when they don't understand them themselves.

CHAPTER 1

It was over now, or so he thought. Lane Hance had had a great hunt and now he was loading his gear onto a small jet at a small airport in Billings Montana.

He was thirty-five years old now and had dreamed of this, since he was fourteen years old and had finally gotten the opportunity to go.

He had gotten a six-by-six elk and thought he might have to fight to keep it but had gotten lucky with a well-placed shot that had persuaded a six to seven-hundred-pound grizzly bear to change its' mind.

They finished loading the meat and the rest of his supplies onto a private jet along with three other members of the hunting party. Lane had been the only one lucky enough to score a record bull but the others had all gotten smaller elk plus a couple of mule deer. They had been camping in the mountains for three weeks and for the most part were ready to end their hunt.

The hunt maybe, but Lane was having a hard time leaving, he just didn't want to leave the open spaces, or the mountains and really only had one good reason to get back to Ohio.

At least, he told himself, he still had his memories and they would last him the rest of his life. Little did he know that the time he'd be spending in the mountains was just getting started.

The small jet was warming up now and about ready to take off. The pilot was a young lady maybe thirty years old and seemed very professional. What little she said was very short and to the point. The copilot was a man of about the same age and a real high-to-do ass. A real uppity s.o.b. He was trying to impress the lady, but Lance could see he was wasting his time.

There was no impressing this young lady. He didn't know what her story was, nor did he care to know, but he had seen her type before. He had learned over the years that the best way to impress this lady who is not to try. Not that he cared but he had to laugh to himself. If she ever found someone it would be a total accident and then she probably wouldn't realize it.

The plane was starting to taxi out onto the runway, and Lane laid his head back in the recliner to rest. He felt the engines thrush and the plane lift as he half-slept thinking about the hunt he had somehow won.

Lane had never won anything in his life nor had he tried, but for some reason, he had filled out a contest card in a magazine and sent it in. Six months later he had been contacted and informed that he had won. That day he had started making plans and gathering up everything he thought he would need.

He had flown from Ohio the first week of November and by Sunday evening was sitting in a camp in the Rocky Mountains with an outfitter and three other knowledgeable hunters who had hunted the same area on two other occasions.

They stayed in the main camp for two nights and one day, checking supplies, and camping gear, making sure rifles were still sighted in, and being shown from different high points, landmarks, trails, and studying maps of the area.

It was a big country and just in case anything went wrong, such as a guide getting hurt, a person would have a better chance of finding his way back to the main camp.

The food was great but anyone who has spent any time in the outdoors knows that cooking out over open fires adds a flavor that's unforgettable. A man can get up in the morning, eat half a dozen eggs, a quarter pound of bacon, and several pieces of toast. By the time breakfast is over he'll find that he has also drank a pot of hot black coffee.

On the second morning after breakfast backpacks were loaded and they were off hiking into God's country.

Lane and his guide hiked for the bigger part of the day traveling up another fifteen hundred feet before cresting a ridge overlooking a big flat area that was maybe twenty acres in size. Just a small clearing with a stream and grass and a small rock overhang at the North end, and with a few pine trees in front which helped block the wind.

They set up camp there and started supper. The wood supply was already there for them and they had packed in enough food for the week. Lane took a walk and looked around for about an hour while the guide fixed supper. When he came back the food was ready and the coffee was hot. This really hit the spot and he felt like he was in heaven. It had been a long time since he had felt this relaxed and good about life.

Talking to the guide after they had eaten they laid out a game plan for the following morning. The guide, Jay was what he liked to be called, told him that there was a small trail at the South end of the clearing which led down off the rock wall for about fifty feet and opened up into another small meadow.

Jay told him that the meadow had plenty of water and lots of covers for the elk. The perfect place to find a record bull elk.

Lane commented that he had seen no fresh sign over the ground he had covered while he was gone but he also realized that didn't necessarily mean a hell of a lot. He guessed that that could change overnight.

As he dozed off in the recliner of the plane he was remembering listening to the wolves howl in the distance and Jay telling him to make sure to keep his eyes open if he killed and elk if he happened to not be there. Grizzly bears were starting to investigate shots fired and were showing up at kills made by hunters. Just be aware of your surroundings at all times he said.

CHAPTER 2

Lane woke suddenly when he heard the co-pilot cuss and the pilot told him to shut his mouth. The plane was pitching back and forth, being thrown around like a piece of paper trying to float to the ground in a heavy wind. The door to the cockpit was open so he could hear what was going on easy enough.

The copilot was talking loudly and a person could tell he had lost all his composure. He was scared to death and Lane figured the pilot was too, but she was obviously handling things a whole lot better.

Shut up and help me, she shouted, I'm going to try and turn back.

Lane hollered asking, what's wrong?

Bad electrical storm or something, was all she said.

He sat back in his chair and pulled his seat belt tight. They were in trouble he knew and enough had been said.

Looking over at the other passengers he saw that they were doing the same as he was. Belts tight and pure fear on her face.

He felt the plane twist and jerk and heard the engine screaming. Everything seemed magnified by at least three times in the panic and listening to what was being said he was well aware of the trouble they were in.

We're losing altitude she was saying and I can't hold it. My instruments aren't working correctly and you're just sitting there staring at nothing. Snap out of it and help me she was saying trying as hard as she could to keep the plane under control.

It was to no avail, the copilot was out in left field somewhere, fear had overtaken him and turned him into a zombie or something.

Lane heard her cuss then felt the plane hit something with a terrible crunching sound. Then it lifted up and came back down with the same crunching sound again. He felt cold air hitting him and debris flying everywhere.

Everything was spinning and coming apart but for the most part they seemed to be staying flat and upright. He thought to himself that they must've hit the ground somewhere, skipping across the surface.

He was guessing, but as fast as everything had started it seemed to stop almost as fast.

He sat there in his recliner for what seemed like an eternity. Unbelieving was the least of what he was thinking.

At first, he just thought about himself, but nothing hurt and he didn't know if that was good or bad. He moved his head from side to side before raising his arms. Then, looking at his hands he made a fist and worked his fingers just checking one thing at a time for any pain plus to see that everything was still working.

Then he proceeded to check his legs, feet, toes, and every other part of his body. Everything seemed to be okay.

Unbelievable he told himself as he slowly got up and looked around. There was snow, pieces of tree limbs, pine needles, twisted metal, and trash in general thrown everywhere.

Looking into the cockpit he could see where the snow and debris had crashed right through the windows. The copilot's head was twisted at such an angle that he could tell his neck was broken. The pilot's arm was hanging lifelessly from her shoulder as she lay sideways over the arm of the pilot seat. This was a mess he could not believe.

He checked out his hunting buddies but nothing looked good. Bob, who sat on the opposite side of the plane from himself, had taken a side window in the throat where a tree limb had come through. He could tell that his throat was crushed, it was all black and pushed to the side, and his eyes were just staring.

Blake, who had been sitting behind Bob had received the full impact of the tree limb in the chest. It had gone straight through and was receding out his back.

Larry, who had been sitting behind Lane, was now gone. His chair had been torn loose and thrown into the back corner of the cabin. When Lane dug the snow and debris away he could tell that his head had taken a bad beating.

Checking for a pulse he found one. It was very weak but still, it was a pulse. He dug up some blankets and covered him up trying to do what he could for this new friend he had only met weeks earlier.

As he looked around trying to locate a first aid kit he felt Larry's hand tighten around his. He was trying to say something so Lane put his ear closer and listened. Very weekly he said that it was great, and good luck. With that, he took a deep breath, held it for a second, and let it out slowly. It was his last.

Lane's eyes watered as he took a deep breath himself and said goodbye my friend. It was a good hunt and great meeting you. He sat down wondering how the hell he had survived literally untouched.

As he sat there, he noticed that the lights were still on. For some reason, he started staring at the pilot's hand hanging over the armrest of her seat when he suddenly realized that her fingers were twitching.

Actually moving a little, or was he just seeing things?

CHAPTER 3

Lane jumped up quickly and hurried through the debris to the pilot's side. He placed his fingers on her neck and felt for a pulse. It was there, and it was strong.

Looking her over carefully he could see a few cuts and bruises on her face and arms but nothing looked serious. Her jacket and blouse were ripped up badly, covering very little.

Then he unlocked the swivel seat and tried to turn her so she would be facing him but something was holding her. Carefully dragging snow and debris out from under the seat he found that her left leg was pinned back by a tree limb that had come through, under the instrument panel.

Looking closely he could see that her leg was broken. Great, he thought, as if things were not going to be bad enough.

He sat on the floor with his back against the co-pilot seat placing his feet against the limb and pushing with all his strength. He felt the limb snap with a loud crack as it moved free from her leg. Not completely free, but enough to relieve the pressure on her leg and foot. Then he took hold of her foot and gently pushed it back far enough to allow him to turn her ankle and gently lift it away from the limb. Then he was able to gently lift her leg and swiveled the seat around to face him.

During all this, she had only moaned a couple of times from the pain. Then she was out again if she had ever come to at all to start with. Either way, he knew it had to hurt like hell. He looked up and told her he was sorry and said no more.

Leaving her shoulder straps on so she wouldn't fall out of her seat, he went back to the storage department where their gear was stored, he grabbed ropes and a knife. Then as he walked back he grabbed a magazine which he placed around her leg and tied it firmly.

After this was done, he unsnapped her, and as gently as possible he picked her up and carried her to the recliner which he had been in. He placed her in it and reclined it back as far as possible trying to make her as comfortable as he possibly could. Then he went back for the rest of his gear and everyone else's. He gathered up every first aid kit he could find and placed them within reach. He was trying desperately to get the leg taken care of before she came to.

He removed her boots, then the magazine, before her pants.

There wasn't much left of them anyway, and what was left was soaking wet. He could see the break, which was about six inches below the knee. The shinbone was set to one side at least an inch out of alignment.

Taking the rope he tied her ankle to the recliner. Then he took hold of her leg above the knee and gradually pulled. At first, nothing moved so he had to pull harder until the broken ends finally separated enough that he could move them back into alignment.

When they looked right, he gradually eased up on the pressure and watched carefully. The bones started to come back together then stopped.

Looking at her leg everything looked straight. Comparing it with the other leg he thought it looked the same. He sure wasn't a doctor that he knew but didn't have a choice. He placed his left hand around her leg above the break, and his right, just above her ankle with her foot in his chest, and gradually pulled the break together.

For a second nothing moved. Then the leg made a crack as the bone snapped into place. The girl screamed out in pain and then passed back out. Thank God he thought to himself.

Lane wrapped the leg with Gauze then made a crude splint out of a wooden folding chair and taped everything firmly together. Then he wrapped the whole thing with rope so when he was done it was as much like a cast as he could make it.

The lights in the plane were getting dim so he grabbed up lanterns, hanging one in the center of the plane's cabin.

After that, he went back and