what are you observing?”
Talia stared at Nick and considered actually telling him the truth.. “I observe foolish Americans crashing planes in the middle of the taiga.”
“I hear that’s a real growth industry.” Nick smiled. “Hows about untying me?”
She studied him as if trying to unravel a riddle. “You’re an American flying a Russian airplane. You aren’t dressed like a pilot, so I assume you left in a hurry.”
“There was an air raid siren,” said Nick. “I just got home from the late shift.”
Talia reached into a knap sack, pulled out a thermos full of tea and poured herself a cup. It had cooled to just warm tea, but it tasted good nevertheless.
Nick licked his lips. “I bet you’ve got Vodka in that,” he said.
“ I don’t drink alcohol.” She stood up, gulped down the rest, and then lowered the rope to the ground. “And I don’t tolerate liars.”
Nick watched as she prepared to descend. “No, wait,” he said. “You can’t leave me up here, lady. That wouldn’t be humane.”
“That was a military plane you crashed.”
“ Yeah?”
“ I get the feeling that you shouldn’t be lecturing anyone on what humane is.”
“ Okay, okay.” Nick continued struggling against the ropes, but they held firm. “You sure know how to tie a knot.”
Her left foot went over the side.
“Wait a minute,” he said. He tried to recall what the book said regarding such circumstances. It may have had a chapter on subduing drunken Russian soldiers, but for this, there was no listing. “I’m a pretty good liar,” said Nick.
Talia smirked. This was the man she saved? “I don’t doubt that,” she said.
“How will you know if I’m telling the truth or not?”
“I’ll know.”
For some reason, he believed her. Who the hell was this woman? He hesitated a guess. “I’m an American, your right,” he said. What the hell are you doing, Nicky?
Talia eased away from the rope. “Go on.”
Name, rank and serial number, Nicky. That’s all you gotta give. He jammed his eyes shut, tried to clear his throbbing head. He stammered. “Lady,” he said, then took a deep breath to quell the nausea. He must have suffered a real whack on the melon during the crash. “You have to believe me when I say that I’m no danger to you. Can’t we just leave it at that?”
Talia thought about it for a while. She had risked her very life to save him, and leaving him in the tree was a waste.
She untied the knots, and in a moment Nick was free. He got to his knees, but again experienced nausea and a pounding headache.
“ Uh-oh,” he said, and then a halo of blackness surrounded his circle of vision and he fell backward. Talia lunged for him, managing to grab his coat before he could tumble over the side. She eased him back to the platform and poured him a cup of tea from the thermos.
“ Drink this,” she said.
Nick sipped, wishing it had vodka in it.
Talia looked him over. “You don’t seem to have any debilitating injuries other than the one on your forehead.”
“Don’t tell me you’re a doctor, too?”
“How do you feel? Inside, I mean? Does anything hurt?”
Nick thought about it for a moment, then shrugged his shoulders. “I feel like I went 12 rounds with Max Baer. Considering everything, though, I guess I feel pretty okay. Except for my noggin.”
“ Do you think you can walk?”
“ Depends on how far,” he said. She pulled the cup away in mid sip and tea dribbled down his chin. Grabbing the rope, she started for the ground. Nick sat up, leaning back on his elbows. “Where you going?”
“ Home,” she said, disappearing from view. Nick leaned over and watched her grow smaller in the tunnel of branches. “When you think you can walk,