Modern Day Cavegirls - Bobbi's Tale

They fell silent again for about twenty minutes, though neither one minded it much.

Malikah was the first to break it after seeing Bobbi turn a display on and watching the colors as the pilot twisted the range switch a few times.

"What is that one? There is so much here for a person to look at."

"Weather radar," Bobbi said, "I just wanted to get a look at what's up ahead of us."

The next thing came right out of left field, "Damian is your cousin?"

"Uh-huh," Bobbi nodded, "Though we're not the sort of cousins who only see each other once in a very long while.

Well," she admitted, "I've got to say that it has been that way for us the last few years. We grew up on adjacent farms, so Damian was also my best friend, playmate, and fellow slave laborer back then."

She looked over and chuckled at the expression that Malikah wore. "No, not exactly, Malikah. It just felt that way.

When you're a farm kid, you work. And if the work is all done at your place, then the same thing is waiting to be done at your uncle's farm. To us, Damian and I, it felt like the only thing that our folks didn't do to us was chain us together.

We did grow close out of it, that's for sure. Because it's awful hard to hate somebody that you're almost tied to. There were times when we'd had the kind of fight that some people never get over - the kind that can end a friendship easily. But after a few hours of having to throw hay bales into a hay mow in a barn together, well, your issues fade away and after a little while, you wonder what was so important.

It also removes a lot of the mysterious wonder that a kid can have over the opposite sex.

When you spend your days haying or shoveling cow shit out of a barn, and you spend your evenings in clothes that still have straw on them here and there, well, ... let's just say that you don't have a whole lot of interest in learning about boys - since you've already seen far more than you'd have ever wanted to.

If you're a girl who's never seen a boy's willy, well it might be of some interest to watch as he walks off a little way in the middle of a hay field because he has to pee. Heck, if you're both young enough, you might want to step over to watch the first time.

But if you've seen him do that a thousand times as you were both growing up, it's not worth watching at all - other than to maybe know where he is so you don't back the combine over him while he's doing it.

Believe me, Malikah, I've seen what Damian's got about as often as he's seen what's between my legs."

Malikah felt her mouth opening in her shock and it caused Bobbi to laugh for a moment.

"Hey," she smiled, "girls need to pee too, right?

Well if HE can just step away and do it and it's no big thing, what was I supposed to do when I had to go? Just drop everything and walk the quarter mile back to the house?

What for?

Hell no, I'd do about the same thing, only the girl style. There was nobody out there to see us anyway and it saves time. Besides, there was always the small chance that if I went back to use the bathroom, Momma would snag me to help with something and when I got back, Damian would be pissed because he'd still have had to work and carry my half of the job while I was gone.

Anyway my Momma sure wasn't one to have me helping out in the kitchen when there were other things to do helping my Dad, though it did happen the odd time."

"Why?" Malikah asked, not seeing it.

"I don't know how it goes where you're from, but here, doing work on the farm feeds everybody. It's nice to have a big farm dinner to go home to, but without the work on the farm, there sure won't be much on the table after a while.

Besides, there are a lot of jobs that don't NEED a man to do. I can drive a tractor as well as anybody, so while I did the tilling, Dad could do something else, right? A lot of the time, I was doing most of the farm work myself with Damian's help while my Dad was out spraying somebody else's crops to earn a bit of money."

The radio came to life again at that point. "De Havilland 746, contact Albuquerque Center at 132.8. Good day."

Bobbi had been enjoying this with Malikah but she was back to the sharp aviator in the next second, "Albuquerque Center, de Havilland November 7746 with you."

"November 746, Albuquerque Center, roger."

Malikah smiled for a moment, "So you have seen that part of Damian?"

Bobbi chuckled, "Honey, I've seen ALL of him plenty of times. From the time that we were about ten years old, if it got stupid hot in the summer, it didn't matter whose farm we were on, either his father or mine would see by our faces that we were overheated."

She thought for a moment, "Malikah, please forgive me if I sound stupid or ignorant, ok? I don't really know if it would even show on somebody like you with that amazing skin of yours, but on a white kid, it's not hard to miss when we turn pink on the edge of sunstroke. The next step is to go almost pale and lose the ability to sweat and after that, we just fall down.

Our fathers weren't slave drivers. They needed us to work like any farmer needs his kids to help when they get big enough for it, but they did make sure to keep an eye on us. When either one of us got like that, they'd tell us to head off to the swimming hole for an hour. It was a little place in the shade of some trees and there was a pond there.

Well, the pond was fed by a stream, but by about the middle of July, the stream would dry up until about September. Anyway, we'd go there and go skinny-dipping for a little while to cool off."

One look told Bobbi that she had to explain the concept to Malikah who then sat with her eyes open enough to make Bobbi laugh. "I uh, ... I guess that it's not done where you're from, huh?"

Malikah shook her head, "Only when children are very young."

"Well forget about the little things that I can see in your mind from here," Bobbi grinned, "It was the same as about anything else. We wanted to swim and cool off. So we took off our clothes and did that.

Yeah, he got to see a naked girl who looked about as much like a sunburned stick as he did. I got to see a naked boy AND his stick. So what?

We did that until about the time that we were eighteen and it was still no big deal to us, because we'd seen each other for so long anyway.

Remember something here. We're cousins and we were best friends over all of our childhoods. By the time that he became really interested in girls, he had more interest in about any OTHER girl but me."

She wasn't quite being truthful and she chuckled then, "I can't say as I really blame him, either."

"Does Damian have a girl now?" Malikah asked.

Bobbi shrugged, "We haven't been able to get together to talk much this last while. I have the feeling that he hasn't got anybody at the moment.

I do know who you are now, though. A couple of years ago, we were talking about things like that and I remember him telling me about somebody that he'd been sent to bring here for somebody.

He was some stuck on you back then, Malikah."

Malikah couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Bobbi, I - "

She sighed audibly, "I have always cared about Damian. He has done SO much to help me from the first moment. You are right. I was that person. He came to where I lived and then next thing, we were in Algiers and then I was in Chcago."

Bobbi nodded, "Well, I don't know what all that it is that Damian does to make a living, but I know that he won't tell me, so I never ask.

There are some things," Bobbi said as she looked out at the cloud front that they were just about to slip under, "that he cannot ever do, Malikah. I don't know who it is that he works for."

Malikah watched Bobbi's face as it was illuminated by a few of the distant flickers of lightning for a moment.

"I know that he does what he is told to do," she said, "I know that he does the things he does as exactly as he is told to do them. I know that sometimes the exactness is what is all-important, and at other times, Damian is given a fairly free hand in what methods he uses to accomplish his task."

"I know who Damian works for," Malikah said, "He is an old man in Chicago named Faisal. I knew nothing of it, but my father worked for Faisal once too. He was the one who sent Damian to bring me here. My father was dead and I lived all alone. I was very poor, though I worked hard every day.

When I met Faisal, he told me that he was very sorry that he did not remember that my father had a child sooner than he did. I do not know what else he does, but he was very kind to me. He paid for me to finish university and he helped to get my career started.

I wish now that I had a chance to speak with Faisal alone once more. I wish to ask him about Damian. He is very straight in how he talks. You ask and he says what he knows - which is always a lot. I might have confessed to him that I care about Damian."

Bobbi looked over at Malikah then, "You're not the only one who has feelings for Damian. I kind of doubt that there are any others, though I can't know that for certain."

She smiled a little and it looked a little sad.

"I've loved Damian forever, Malikah - but I know that I can't ever have him.

We're related after all, though we were each other's first lover a long time ago. There was never anyone for me like him - even as young as we were. I'll tell you about it later if you really want to know.

When he told me about this girl that he'd had to fly halfway around the world to get, he mentioned that when he was given the job, he already knew that it would likely be the hardest one that he'd ever have to do.

He told me that when he saw a photo of you, he knew then.

When he met you, it began his test."

She looked back out at the storm and considered contacting the controller for that sector to ask for permission to climb above the clouds, but she knew that the tops of the towering storm clouds were at about thirty thousand feet - higher than the service ceiling of her aircraft.

It required a decision on her part and she made it, electing to fly through the rain underneath as planned, since there hadn't been any reports of wind shears or turbulence.

"We're almost at the point where we have to begin our descent," she smiled over, "It could get a little rough, but I don't think that we'll have any trouble. Just make sure that your restraints are a little snug, but not uncomfortable."

She pulled out her cell phone and called to ask if there would be pickup available. When she hung up, she smiled, "They're already there. They've been waiting for us.

I run medical supplies in for them once or twice a month. Sometimes it's just supplies. Sometimes it's stuff like antivenin to keep up their stock for snakebite incidents. Tonight we're carrying refrigerated blood and antivenin, and I think I read something on the bill of lading about tetanus vaccine, gauze pads and tongue depressors."

She smiled, "I guess they thought that as long as I'm bringing what they need anyway, they might as well stock up on stuff.

I like these folks. They treat me as though I'm as important to them as the goods I fly for them. I wish all of my customers were like them. They never miss when I'm flying in. There's always somebody to meet me when I land, so I know that it's important to them. That's why I always do my best to come through for them."

The radio boomed in their ears "De Havilland 746, turn right heading 160. Descend one two thousand, five hundred."

Bobbi acknowledged and pulled back on the throttles a little as she began her turn.

"What was Damian's test?" Malikah asked as she felt the beginnings of their descent.

"I'm gonna be a little busy for the next little while, Malikah," Bobbi said, "I'm a bit sorry that I mentioned it now, but I will tell you when we're on the ground in just a little while. I promise - because seeing that look on your face is making me feel even dumber for bringing it up."

"I must be patient then," Malikah smiled, "though I do wish to know."

"I know," Bobbi said with a nod as she looked through the windscreen, feeling like an idiot.

They received instructions for the next few minutes; mostly asking for more descending and Bobbi complied to the letter.

"De Havilland 746, descend and maintain niner thousand. Airport is at your 1 o'clock, 1-1 miles. Turn right heading 1-6-5, report runway in sight."

Malikah had heard it, but she couldn't see a thing. Rain pelted the windshield as it had for the last twenty minutes. She heard Bobbi pull back on the power a bit as she heard her repeat the instructions.

"There are lights," Bobbi smiled a little, "It's not like we'll have to find the ground by feel."

Suddenly, Bobbi's voice came over the headset, "De Havilland 746, I have the runway in sight."

Malikah stared, but she couldn't see much of anything.

Even so, the response from ATC was immediate, "De Havilland 746, cleared for the visual approach runway One-Seven. Switch to advisory on 122.2. Good day."

At that point, Malikah could at least see some sort of lights out there far away and below. Bobbi set the flaps and pointed the nose down a little more. She changed the frequency setting on a radio, "Traffic, November 7746 is 8 miles northwest, inbound on the visual runway One-Seven."

After ending her transmission, Malikah heard Bobbi telling her, "This isn't even an airport. It's a landing strip. There are about sixty flights in and out of here every month and two of them are me. I doubt that there's another aircraft in the air within about forty miles from here at least, but I still gotta say that on the radio."

Gradually, more and more of the lighted line of dots grew larger. There was a small amount of buffeting as they flared and then Malikah heard the tires kiss the runway.

She heaved a sigh of relief, and then was immediately surprised to find that she'd been holding her breath. She turned to see if Bobbi had heard her.

Bobbi's face showed a little concentration as she finished the roll-out and began to taxi toward the far end of the runway. She was smiling though. "Yeah, I heard you. It's ok, I won't take it as a complete loss of trust in me."

Malikah stared and Bobbi turned her face for just an instant and laughed.

As they rolled to the end, they saw a van approaching from somewhere out in the darkness. Bobbi half-turned away and then she shut the engines down.

"It's gonna take a couple of minutes or so for the props to stop spinning. You can stay here if you want. I'm just gonna move the coolers of supplies closer to the cargo door so everybody won't get so wet, I hope."

Malikah sat there for three seconds after Bobbi was gone before she took off the headset and the oxygen line, hit the release on her seat restraints and got out of her seat to join Bobbi.

"I wish to help," she said.

Bobbi looked at her for a second and then nodded and together, they moved the three heaviest of the refrigerated crates to the door. Bobbi opened it then and Malikah saw four men who immediately began to move the crates to the van in the pouring rain. All told, it probably took ninety seconds or less, but even by then, almost everyone was soaked. The men were soaked from being out in the downpour and Malikah was wet from the way that the wind blew the rain inside, since she'd been standing near the open cargo door.

One of the men stepped forward and Bobbi held out her clipboard. He signed and they all stepped back to depart, but two of them were a little slow about it. They were staring at Malikah.

"You got a helper these days, Bobbi?"

Bobbi shook her head, "Just for tonight, I think," she said as she looked over at Malikah, "though I'm thankful."

They nodded and turned away. Bobbi closed the cargo door and stepped over to the flight locker again.

"Here," she said with a grin, "You're soaked. I'm sure that a couple of those guys are gonna have memories to last a lifetime."

Malikah took the flight suit but she didn't understand. Bobbi just turned the rear compartment lights off and turned to walk forward.

"Look down."

Malikah looked and was aghast. She hadn't thought of it and she wasn't wearing a bra. Now she looked like a contestant in a wet T-shirt contest.

Bobbi was back in a second with her flight bag. She rummaged around in it for a moment and held out a towel. "Use this, Malikah. Dry off a little and put on the flight suit - unless you really want to make me smile at you and probably crash us into a mountain or something."

Malikah took the towel and didn't know what to do. Bobbi walked away.

She heard Bobbi's voice from up front, "Hey, hurry up if you want any of these sandwiches that Damian left us - I mean, you."

Malikah didn't move.

Bobbi turned her head over her shoulder but kept her gaze aimed at the opposite wall. "Malikah," she said, "Forget about it. Just take off your top and dry off a little. Heck, take everything off, dry yourself and get into the flight suit. What do you think I have it here for?

I won't turn around and the lights back there are off. Nobody can see you - in fact, I'm watching the van drive away."

Malikah sighed and just began.

Two minutes later, Bobbi saw her come around and slump into her seat wearing the flight suit.

"Look," she said, "That's not the end of the world, and they didn't see anything from your waist down. I'd have told you, but I was busy. That shipment had to get here and the sooner we got it off and into their hands the sooner my responsibility for it ends.

So I didn't see in time to warn you, though I am sorry about it." She went through the engine start procedures again.

"And thanks very much for your help. I really appreciate it. Now come on and eat some of this before I do."

Her hand shot out holding something, "You want a soda?"

Malikah saw Bobbi's no-big-deal expression and she had to smile at least a little so she nodded and took the bottle to twist off the top and throw back a mouthful before she grabbed the rim of the cooler to look in.

They both ate a sandwich each and then Bobbi said that it was probably best that they go. "In weather like this, I only really feel better when I'm home. Let's go Malikah. We're not on the clock now."

They rolled along back toward the end of the runway. "Why must we go back there? Can't we just take off from where we were and go the other way?"

"I doubt that you can see it right now," Bobbi said, "but there's a windsock here and it's pointing north, so the wind is out of the south right now. Airplanes always take off and land against the wind if at all possible."

When they neared the end, Bobbi turned them around and lined them up with the centerline as she stopped and set the brakes. She indicated the oxygen cannula and Malikah put it on.

"I know there's a 25 foot high tree out there, a little over six hundred feet from the end of the runway and a little off to the side. We'll be a lot higher than that by the time that we get there."

She pulled out her chart for Angel Fire and began setting up her navigational radios, "There are nav beacons for us to use. I won't need ATC to guide us in."

She was scribbling on her notepad, "I just gotta call in my flight plan and then we can go home."

"Home?" Malikah asked and Bobbi smiled, "Home for me. Home away from home for you. I hope that you're not expecting a door man or anything like that."

Malkah laughed, "Bobbi, I grew up in a ... I think that you would say a hut. I need no palace and I expect nothing. I have been enjoying this - what you do - flying around, but I can see that it is a lot of work too. Thank you for this. I am having a really good time with you and you already seem like a friend to me."

Bobbi looked up, "You mean that?"

Malikah grinned and nodded, "Very much. But now you must tell me what Damian's test was. You promised."