Pavel and the two security guys who’d arrived in the helicopter stood off at a discreet distance, while Grigor and the two principals took off their gloves to greet each other with firm handshakes, walked a few steps farther from their guardians to talk. My impression, from too far off, with too little information, was that the three of them were deliberately maintaining an appearance of calm while engaged in an exchange of great intensity.

—

This is what Allison told me, later that evening, about what happened with Kaylee.

I admit it, I sort of, not sort of, totally, felt like we were doing something heroic. And dashing, too. Rescuing the beautiful princess from the dragon. Or the villain. Like every story and fairy tale and Disney movie we all grew up on, except this time, it was a girl hero rescuing the princess. In my mind, I wasn’t your sidekick or assistant or an accident, I was the daring, dashing, sneaky, heroic rescuer.

And this dumb twit wasn’t having any of it.

Do you encounter that much? Rescuing people and they say, “Uh, duh, I’d rather lay here like a drunk in the mud?” Do they? Or wives saying, “Oh, he beats me, he beats me…I think I’ll just go home for another black eye.” What is that about? Inertia should be a concept for psychology not physics.

Well, I wasn’t going to take it. When we got to a two-person chairlift, I elbowed my way past Stephan and got on the lift with Kaylee. Once we were up in the air, I said, “Come on. What’s going on?”

She said, “I can’t.”

I said, “Why not?”

She said, “I just can’t.”

I would have yelled at her, but I couldn’t let anyone hear us, I kind of whisper yelled—snarled?—that might be it, I snarled. “You said this was what you wanted. We flew four thousand miles. For you. Just for you. We’ve been here days, maneuvering, watching, trying to get close, and now you’re telling me that what, we’re a pair of shoes that you didn’t mean to order?”

Kaylee didn’t say anything. Just sort of drew herself straighter, like I was supposed to notice how beautiful and perfect she was. She is amazingly beautiful, but she’s not perfect, I knew that now that I knew that she needed contacts. And she’s not that bright. At first, I figured she dumbed herself down for all the girly chitchat we’d been having, but now, no. She’s really not that bright. I kept at her. I said, “You better do it!”

Something happened. She nodded. Then she spoke, very politely and meekly. I don’t know how often I’ve ever seen anyone do “meekly.” Who does “meekly” anymore? She said, “Tell me what to do.” I think that’s the key to her. She takes orders.