Buried Treasure Ch. 51-55

She hit a few keys. "There is a flight leaving at one, arriving at two that I can book you in first class. The morning flight is full, but I can put you on standby if you want."

"Yes to both." I handed over my credit card. "Can you make sure my baggage gets tagged for the new destination?"

"Of course, sir. Enjoy your time in Duluth." I got some breakfast, finished Windswept Stars then moved on to reading JoLeeHunt's "Heart of Stone" on Inkitt. I didn't make standby for the early flight, so I did some shopping and bought a heavier jacket and a Minnesota Vikings stocking cap so I wouldn't freeze so bad. I bought a cinnamon roll and a large coffee, then sat down in the gate area to wait for the flight.

"That roll smells amazing," a woman said as she stopped in front of me. I looked up; she was a striking woman, probably in her late forties. She had her hair pulled back from her face, a little bit of grey streaking through it. Her eyes drew me in, and I smiled as I waved for her to take the empty seat next to him. She dressed comfortably; designer jeans tucked into tan Uggs, a turtleneck ski top with a fleece vest. She wasn't wearing a ring; in fact, she wasn't wearing any jewelry.

"It's way too much for me, would you like some of it?"

"Oh, I couldn't," she said.

"You'd be doing me a favor; this thing has about five million calories, and it will save me an hour on the treadmill tonight if you share it with me." I reached my hand over the small table between us. "I'm Frank, I flew in this morning from Los Angeles," I said.

"Colletta, and I had a redeye from Seattle," she answered as she took my hand in a firm handshake. "Can you watch my stuff? I need a big coffee, and I'll get myself a fork."

"Of course," I said. I watched her closely as she got up and walked off. She was effortlessly beautiful, and her body would make the starlets in Hollywood envious. Maybe this trip wouldn't be so bad if I could get a phone number and a dinner date out of it.

She came back a few minutes later; I'd taken the box the Cinnabon came in and tore the top off, placing half of the cinnamon roll in it. Her face lit up as I offered her the extra icing I'd bought. "You're very kind, Frank," she said.

"It's my pleasure. It's all part of my devious plan to attract desirable young maidens into my lair by using flour, butter, and spices as bait."

She laughed as she spread the icing. "Well, it clearly isn't working if you ended up with me," she said. "I'm nowhere near young."

"You're the most beautiful woman I've seen in a long time, and I live in Los Angeles," I said. "I'd say it's working perfectly for a soon-to-be-retired guy on a trip to see his twin granddaughters."

"Oh my word, you have twin grandchildren too?" Her face lit up, and she pulled out her phone. Pulling up a photo, she turned it to show three babies, all sitting together on a blanket. "I'm going up on the North Shore to visit my son and my daughter. That's my grandson Mark and his twin Cheryl on the right, and my daughter's girl Hope on the left. They sent this picture last week; I can't believe they are six months old already."

"They are beautiful," I said as I pulled my phone out. "You realize that Federal law requires me to show you the photos of my son's twin girls now."

"Well, don't get in any trouble on my behalf," she said with a smile. I showed her my granddaughters, both wearing Air Force shirts and pink pajama bottoms. "Oh my, they are so cute!"

"I think so."

"I love the shirts, is your boy in the Air Force?"

I nodded in between bites of the still-warm Cinnabon. "He is. He went to the Air Force Academy, and now flies the B-52 Stratofortress out of Minot Air Force Base."

"That's wonderful, and you must be so proud of him! I don't think I've ever seen a B-52, but we see B-1 bombers sometimes flying over. I mostly live in the Cascade Range, east of Mount Ranier in Washington."

"Beautiful country out there," I said.

"Winters aren't fun. We've seen six feet of snow, and it's not even Christmas yet. I think you have the better winters," she said. She finished up her Cinnabon, taking my box and throwing the trash away. "That was more sugar than I needed, but it's soooo good. Thank you again." She glanced down at my left hand and looked away when I caught her.

"Divorced sixteen years ago," I said as I showed her my ring finger. "We're still friends; it just didn't work out for us. I was always tied up with my work in the Drug Enforcement Administration, and she was always tied up naked in our neighbor's bedroom." Her jaw dropped, then she busted out laughing. "I got my son out of it, and now grandchildren."

"You never remarried? No girlfriend?"

"I was bitter, and I threw myself into my job. I rose to the highest levels of the DEA, only to lose everything yesterday. Now I'm sitting here in an airport, with nothing but the company of a beautiful lady. Today is the best day I've had in a long time." She blushed, and I reached over and took her left hand, turning it to show her empty ring finger. "No ring or tan line for you, what is your story? How is a smart, beautiful, and classy woman like you stuck here in an airport, eating pastries from a stranger?"

She giggled but didn't pull her hand away. "My husband died a little over a year ago."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not. He was a good man and a good husband at first, but at the end, he was a real asshole. I left him before he could hurt us more." I squeezed her hand, and she squeezed back a little. "It's been hard, but I still have my three sons and one daughter, all but one who are now m... married. I spend some time with each of them, moving on when they get 'Mom'd Out' as my oldest boy says." I laughed a little at that; my Mom used to have us that way by the end of her visits. "So, I'm going to spend a few weeks with my son and daughter to celebrate their first Christmas with the babies, and then I'll visit my boy in the Donner Pass area of California."

I just shook my head. "You need one of your kids to move south. The Donner area gets more snow than you do in the Cascades!"

"I know. If only I knew someone in a warmer climate." I'd moved my other hand over hers, lightly stroking the back of her smooth skin. Her eyes were wide, her mouth slightly parted, and she licked her lips. I started to lean forward, and she tilted her head slightly. I couldn't believe how lucky I was that my flight plans changed so I could meet Colletta instead.

"Now boarding, Delta Flight 2429 to Duluth in Gate Bravo Forty," the announcement came.

"That's us," I said. I grabbed my new coat while she picked up her things before we walked together to the boarding line. "What seat do you have?"

"Three A, window seat," she said.

"I think God is smiling on me today," I said as I showed her my boarding pass. It was Three Bravo. "I get to enjoy your company a little longer."

We sat in our first-class seats and talked, as I learned more about this woman who fascinated me. She asked about my job, and I was honest with her as I gave her a condensed version of my past week. I could see the emotions on her face as I told her of the raids and the loss of life that led to my suspension.

"They didn't even ask your side of the story," she asked.

"No, and now that it's tied up in disciplinary space, I'm not inclined to cooperate. I already told my boss that when my suspension is over, I'm retiring. I've had enough."

"I heard about you on the news, Director Frank Grimes. You seem to be a good man; I'm sure it will all work out in the end."

"Just Frank now. Or Grandpa Frank." I held her hand as we taxied out and waited our turn. We didn't say anything for a while, we took off, and she looked out the window at the city below.

She finally turned to me as we got above the clouds. "So why are you going to Duluth? Your son is in Minot, that isn't exactly on the way."

"There's a blizzard in the Dakotas, so I found out this morning that getting out there isn't happening for a day or two. One of the Steel Brotherhood members I worked with in Orlando, he and Canvas live up near Two Harbors. I wanted to clear up some questions, and let him know in person that I'm off the case now."

"Frame and Canvas?" Her face was white as a sheet as she pulled out her phone. "These two?"

She showed me a photo of Chase and Rori, standing next to their motorcycles on an overlook on Lake Superior. It was my turn to have my jaw drop and turn white as a sheet. I just nodded. "Your son is Chase Nygaard?"

"Yes, I'm Colletta Nygaard, and Chase is my youngest." What are the odds? I should buy Lotto tickets as soon as we land. "What the hell has that boy done now?"