3 comments/ 12479 views/ 5 favorites Georgie Girl Ch. 13-15 By: coaster2 This story was edited by ErikThread and DaveT with my thanks and appreciation. Any errors are mine alone. It was previously posted on another site. * Chapter 13 Making Progress It took me less than two hours to provide Kevin with a list of the sequence of components for the prototype. The next three hours were spent trying to come up with some dimensions for items that didn't yet exist. Kevin and I would be doing something he called a "SWAG." "Scientific Wild-Assed Guess," he grinned. "Used it all the time at L-M. They have a design place called the "Skunk Works" in Burbank. Been around since the thirties. That's how the SR-71 got built. It was the fastest winged aircraft in the world. Still is. Nowadays, they're designing stealth aircraft." "I've heard of that place," I said. "One of my engineering professors was lecturing us on how fast they could get things done. 'Just get the damn thing built' seemed to be their motto." "Well, that was pretty much their attitude all right," Kevin confirmed. "Mind you, they had a couple of guys who were flat out geniuses, so that didn't hurt." "You'll have to be my genius," I kidded. "John, with this project, one plus one can equal three if we do it right." "What do you mean?" "I mean, if we work as a team and we both know where we're going, we'll have our own 'Skunk Works,' although in this case it might be a 'De-Skunk Works.'" I chuckled at the reference, but hoped like hell he was right about us as a team. We ran into a problem not long after we got started on the prototype. The chemical treatment component had grown too big for our frame. It had to perform a number of functions, not the least of which was inhibiting the formation of scale and the collection of suspended solids. To allow the capacity that we were looking for from the unit, the size had grown bigger than we had anticipated. We were kicking various ideas around one evening when Georgette wandered into the room. "You still trying to get a quart into a pint jar?" she asked. "Yeah," I said, not looking up. "No luck so far." "How much does the height of the unit matter?" she asked. "Not as much as length and width," I answered, "but it can't be too tall. I'd say sixty inches, maximum." "Can you make the unit wider and stand it on edge?" she asked. I saw Kevin turn and look at her, a funny look on his face before I saw a smile. He began to nod. "I thought of that, but I've been trying to get this to work the way John intended," he said. I leaned back in my chair and tried to mentally calculate how wide and how tall would be enough. "I had another thought, too," Georgette said. "You know those big pillow-shaped bags they use for shipping liquid chemicals. Could you fold a smaller version one of those into the shape to make it fit?" Again, Kevin turned and looked at her, then at me. "I think we've got another skunk in the Skunk Works." "Hey ... what's that mean? My ideas don't stink," Georgette protested. "Not only don't they stink," Kevin said, "but they've got us thinking again." "Go look up 'Skunk Works' on Google and you'll see what we mean," I said to Georgette. She stepped over to my laptop, typed in the two words, clicked on one of the many choices and began to read. Two minutes later, she walked up to Kevin and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I should have known," she said. "Thank you for the compliment." "You're welcome," Kevin said with a grin. "Any time you've got something to say, don't hesitate to say it. I like the way you think." "Two linked bags, maybe?" I said aloud. "Now we're cooking," Kevin said with some enthusiasm. We were too. Next on the agenda was the reverse osmosis process, once again requiring a membrane that Dow Chemical produced. One phone call got a number of samples and specifications that we could evaluate. We were still stuck with filters to protect filters to protect filters. Three stages of filtration were necessary to make the system work. When you had a space 40' X 8' X 8' this wasn't a problem. In a space of 8' X 4' X 5' it was a big problem. We still had a long way to go. "This is starting to look like a tub of spaghetti," Kevin complained one evening. "It goes against my grain. I'd hate to think of trying to repair or replace something inside." I had to agree with him. Our solutions were making the design more crowded and complex. This wasn't at all what I envisioned. Worse than that, it looked like bad engineering. It might have been sound mechanically, but it was far too complex and complicated for something that was designed to be durable, portable, and effective. "Who's your customer?" Georgette asked. "Uhhm ... what do you mean?" I asked. "I remember you saying that not all of the components were needed for all of the tasks. What if you had more than one model that did one or two jobs really well? Another model might do something else. Right now, you're trying to make one size fit all." I looked over at Kevin, then started to laugh. "What's so funny?" she asked, an annoyed look about her. I was shaking my head. "How come you're the one with the common sense engineering and I'm the dope?" I heard a guffaw from Kevin and saw a shy smile from Georgette. "You're way too smart for me, Georgie," I said. *** There wasn't any question about renewing Kevin's contract at the end of the first two months. It wasn't just the spirit of the approaching Christmas, either. Kevin was everything I was hoping for when it came to fitting the components into the tight confines of my imaginary box. He was relentlessly tidy in his thinking, not frustrated easily by our trial-and-error attempts, and even-tempered when things went wrong. And they did go wrong. "You know that saying, 'This isn't brain surgery?'" has asked one evening. "Sure," I admitted. "Well," Kevin said with a wry grin, "I'm beginning to think maybe this is." I nodded. I knew what he meant. "Is there another way we should look at this?" He shook his head. "If there is, I can't come up with it. We're close, but trying to meet all the criteria is like pushing into a balloon full of water. You push in one side and it pops out the other. I'm wondering if we can combine functions into a single internal structure." I leaned back in my chair and thought about the question. What could we combine, even in the more dedicated systems we were designing? The answer kept coming back "nothing." "Kevin, how much more height would we need to get what we want into the box." He looked at me and smiled. "Thirteen and a half inches. Call it fourteen." I gave him a hard look. "You've already calculated what it would take then?" "Yeah. Couldn't see how we could make it fit the original box, no matter what we did." "We gave it a hell of a try, Kevin. So let's go with reality. Maybe some day in the future we can figure out a way to bring it back into the original box, but for now, let's go with what we can do." "Smart plan, John. Products evolve over time. If there's a way to make it more compact, we'll find it." "I guess you've got some frame modifications to do," I suggested. "Already done," he grinned. "I was pretty sure that was the only way to make this work in the short term. Our exterior height dimension will be a skosh short of six-foot-four. I don't see that being a major drawback to a portable system. Tell me I'm wrong." I let out my breath and slumped back in my chair. "You're right," I admitted. "It isn't that big of a deal. I got so hung up on my fixed dimensions that I forgot the main objective. It won't weigh so much that it will unbalance a conventional full-sized pickup. I'm sure we can put the heavier equipment in the bottom of the frame." "Now we're talking. Let me show you what I've been thinking." He went to his desk and pulled out a legal size pad and showed me a rough pencil drawing with a potential layout. I looked at it without comment for some time before I asked a question. "What do you think the weight distribution is?" "My guess is about two thirds in the bottom thirty-six inches. We should be fine with that." "Yeah, that would be okay. Well," I sighed, "I guess we can start working on the revised layout then." "I guess we can," Kevin grinned. *** Christmas and New Years were, as planned, held at Lake Tahoe with both families. We invited Kevin to join us but he declined in favor of flying to Colorado to spend it with his former colleague and friend, Charlie Prendergast. Kevin was sure he'd be more comfortable in that environment. He would return to San Francisco a day or so after we had come back from our little holiday. "How's the system coming along?" Thomas asked me as we relaxed in the great room of the lodge after a day of skiing. "We're making more progress now," I said. "I've had to compromise on both function and dimension, but not so much that it won't meet most of my objectives. Kevin is a real find, Thomas. He has such an orderly mind and his layout is so clean that I'm sure anyone looking at it, even in the prototype stage, is going to be impressed with it. And Georgette has been the outside observer that asks the questions we forget to ask." "When do you think you'll be at the testing stage?" "Soon. We're going to build a second prototype to feature the functions that the first doesn't do, then test them both. I'm hoping early May or thereabouts if all goes well. We seem to have gotten over the major hurdles now." "Do you intend to show it to others ... potential investors perhaps?" "Not until we're satisfied it will do what we claim and do it under stressful conditions. Kevin and I have talked about it and we think we'll do a lot of our testing in Nevada. Probably around Nellis Air Force base. He says that area has both the terrain and water conditions that will meet our needs. Then we'll do some testing in areas that have known contamination problems. We'll have to work that out, but some of the cattle ranches in Idaho and Montana have water contaminated from animal wastes. That would be a good place to test as well." "That sounds like a lot of time and effort still to complete the trials." "I think that's in Kevin's nature. His air force and Lockheed training pounded that into him, he claims. When it comes to airplanes, if it ain't right, they often fall out of the sky. Not good," I chuckled as I recalled Kevin's comments. "Looks like you've been keeping the budget under control according to Georgette. How are your classes going?" "I'm doing fine. I just have to remember to put them first and finish what I started. I'll be done in late April and then I can devote all my time to the project. In the meantime, Kevin will be working on it full time and I'll be able to get updates daily." "Good for you, John. Keep your focus on school and let Kevin carry the load for now. By the way, have you given any thought about our conversation on how to reward him for his design work?" "I think a piece of the action would be the best solution," I said. "He's been great and very easy to work with and his ideas are always well thought out. The question is, how big a piece?" "I don't think there's any set number in these kinds of situations," Thomas mused. "It could be as small as five percent or as large as twenty percent. I would suggest beginning at ten percent and see how he reacts. He claims money isn't a big motivating factor for him, but he should be properly rewarded if his efforts make a significant contribution toward success." I nodded. "You ... your family ... and mine ... have provided the seed money for this project. I conceived the idea, but Kevin has been a huge contributor to making it a reality. I don't want to short-change him for his efforts." "If you succeed and if it's as important a development as we think, then it will ultimately go public with an IPO. At that point, shareholding will be very important. I was going to suggest a meeting with Kevin to discuss this. Might as well get him thinking about what he wants from this." I nodded again. "Sure. That makes sense. Do you think we'll have any trouble raising capital for production if the prototypes are successful?" "You never know. However, this is such a universal idea that its appeal will be very widespread and that makes finding investors that much easier. Where are you with patents on it or any of the processes?" "I've already prepared applications for several patents. One for the overall concept and a number of them on the components. I'll need to find a lawyer to help us with the formal work." Thomas smiled. "No need to worry. We have that all in hand in the family. Devon can find someone to handle it. You will need to keep some security on your work though. Any testing you do should be away from prying eyes." "Yeah. Kevin mentioned that. We're not quite as secretive as his former employer, but we'll be careful." "Not long until the wedding now," Thomas remarked. "You getting nervous yet?" "I've never not been nervous. Georgette continues to astonish me that she's chosen me. It all seems like some storybook tale that I can't quite believe." "I don't detect any doubt in her mind, John. Even before the incidents with Brad, she was showing signs of interest in you. You had quite an effect on her when she interviewed you. That invitation at Thanksgiving was Nan's idea, but Georgette leaped at it when it was suggested. I think Sarah was a bit worried and wary because of the previous problems with Brad, but you proved yourself to her. And ... as you know, when my daughter makes up her mind, it's very difficult to shake her from her beliefs." "I know Nan is a big supporter of me too. I'll never understand how some people can see the real person with very little exposure to them, but she has that gift. I watched her accept Kevin and I never detected a moment's doubt in her mind." "I had a boss and mentor over twenty years ago with that gift," Thomas said. "He would constantly surprise me with his ability to see through phonies and fakes. I guess it's a sixth sense that they possess." "I wish I had it, but I'll settle for acceptance by Nan and you and Sarah." "I only wish Nan had been a little more forceful when she had doubts about Brad. I might have looked a little more closely at him. It might have saved Georgette from a great deal of pain and upset, not to mention your wounds." "Who knows, perhaps I would never have met her in that case. I'll take life as it comes right now. I'm very, very happy with it," I smiled. *** "Are you hearing us okay?" I asked my parents as we set up the Skype conference call. "Fine. Loud and clear, and so is the picture. Hello everyone," my father called. "Hello Carter and Marjean," Thomas said. "Good to see you again." "How are you, Nan?" my mother asked. "Fit as a fiddle," she chirped. "How's the new house coming?" "Good," mother replied. "I'm really looking forward to showing it to you when you come for the wedding. It should be all done except for the landscaping by then." "Perhaps we should get on with business," I suggested carefully. "Agreed," my father said with a smile. "Meeting called to order," Devon announced. "The Smithton Investment Syndicate, now known as the Smithton Group, is assembled to discuss current and future funding of the portable water treatment systems, hereinafter known as Smithton PWTS." "Do we really need to be this formal?" Sarah asked. "My dear sister, this is an important project and demands a certain level of decorum." "Spoken like a true lawyer," Sarah said with a smirk. "First order of business, the budget. Would you please report, Georgette?" "Everything's fine. Nothing to worry about," she said, looking somewhat furtively at me. "Mary, don't put that in the minutes," Devon instructed. "I think we need a little more detail than that, young lady." He was not amused. Georgette grinned before passing out a sheet of paper to each of the participants. A copy had been e-mailed to my parents earlier that morning. "We really haven't spent as much as we expected," my fiancée said more seriously. "The samples received from Dow and Charlie Prendergast cost nothing as did the trial bladders from Goodyear. Thank Kevin for Goodyear's willingness to provide some custom sizes and specifications for us. The filter housings and framing were all fabricated by Kevin from over-the-counter metal components. He hasn't charged anything for his time of course, since he's on contract. All in all, with all the bits and pieces and stops and starts, our expenditures are almost ninety thousand dollars, including Kevin's salary." "However," I interjected, "the reverse osmosis system we're using might not stand up to rigorous testing. Kevin's of the opinion that we need to team up with a manufacturer to get the ruggedness we want. That means revealing to someone what we're up to. A secrecy agreement is in order, because if anyone leaked what we were doing, it might cause us some headaches. "The commercial model we've chosen has a capacity of up to ten thousand gallons per day, and it's the primary reason we had to increase the height of the unit. Plus, it weighs more than we expected. We still have some technical issues to solve, but Kevin is confident we can overcome them." "Ten thousand gallons sounds like an awful lot of water per day," Thomas said. "It is, but we really don't know how much is too much. If we could get away with half that much, it would change the dynamic of the design for the better. We have some research to do and Georgette has taken on that responsibility." "I'm going to be doing some traveling in the next month or so," she said, "doing interviews with prospective users to find out what their needs are. I've been studying the system that John has designed and I know what the capacity parameters are, so if I can get some basic volume information, I can help John and Kevin pick the right size or sizes for the system." "Are you going to be back in time for the wedding?" my mother asked in a worried voice. "Oh yes, I wouldn't miss that for the world," she laughed. "I'm going to be spending my time in the southwest where a lot of the water problems are known. If I have time, I'll retrace John's original steps in Idaho and Montana with the ranchers and farmers." I picked up the thread of the conversation. "When I did my original project in high school, I interviewed a number of local ranchers and farmers about my concept, trying to find out what their needs were and how much they thought they'd be willing to pay for a portable system. Some of them didn't take me very seriously and I got answers that were just silly or given without any thought behind them. "But a few of them knew exactly what good quality water cost them and they were very helpful letting me know how much they used, what it cost and what kind of system made sense to them. I used that information to sketch out my concept and handed in my report. I got an "A" on it and that encouraged me to continue to work on the concept." "My job," Georgette announced, "is to confirm John's numbers and see just what kind of price range and throughput would make sense for our units. If we know how much they are paying now for a given volume of water, we can calculate the amortization rates for the units. We want to make this affordable, but we also want it to be profitable." "You seem to have gotten yourself very involved in this project," my father remarked. "I have. I'm fascinated by it. It seems so important, not just to John and our families, but to a lot of people who need clean, usable water. I've been taking some additional courses at the university to familiarize myself with the concept and the chemistry." Georgie Girl Ch. 13-15 "You haven't given up on your doctorate, have you?" my mother asked. "No ... not at all, although I'm not sure I'll ever practice when I'm finished. I didn't realize just how much I'm intrigued by this whole idea. It has limitless applications and potential. It just seems to me to be a whole lot more important than the psychological problems of young, educated males. I'll still hand in my thesis and likely get my PhD, but it doesn't seem as critical as making John's project a reality." "Any other issues on the budget?" Devon asked. Silence indicated that the issues had been discussed. "On to discussion of remuneration for Kevin Riordan's involvement, then. John, I understand you and Thomas had a meeting with him to discuss this. Would you like to reveal the outcome of that meeting?" "We met with Kevin earlier this week and discussed how we might fairly include him in our group as a minority partner in recognition of his contribution. He was reluctant at first, but when Thomas and I laid out our longer range plans and our desire to have him as a partner with some equity, he understood he wasn't just a short-term hire and we wanted him to be in on the ground floor. "We discussed what we thought would be a reasonable share at ten percent and he was more than willing to accept that. He could see that this might be a company which would go public and that could mean a great deal more than just a salary. We suggested we would be willing to increase his salary, but he declined, saying he was happy with the arrangement we had. He was getting free room and board at Nan's and enjoying every minute of working with us toward our goal." "He's a damn fine man to have around, too," Nan said, speaking up for the first time. He's been fixing up a lot of little things that needed fixing in my place and I don't think I've ever met anyone as organized or neat as Kevin. I've finally got someone to talk to in my own home and it's a real pleasure, let me tell you." "Well then," Devon said with a smile, "can I assume his attendance at the Smithton board meetings would be welcomed?" The vote, as informal as it was, was unanimous. Kevin was now formally part of Smithton PWTS. His attendance at our unscheduled meetings would contribute more to our deliberations on the future of our company. Chapter 14 Making it Happen Devon had drawn up the papers of incorporation for our little company, registering us as Smithton PWTS, Inc. I was the nominal CEO, while Thomas was CFO and Georgette was Director of Market Research with Kevin being Director of Manufacturing. All the other investors were listed as Directors at large. Georgette's primary responsibility was to make sure we were filling the right need(s) with our designs and she took her job very seriously. I expected nothing less, of course. That was her personality, as I discovered when she interviewed me. I was upset that she was going to be gone for some time as she did her survey. I had become so used to having her with me every day that I hadn't figured on her being away for any length of time. The only thing that tempered my concern was my need to study for my final examinations and make sure that I earned my degree. That would keep me occupied. When she planned her trip, she decided to fly to her main destinations and rent a four-wheel-drive SUV. She expected she would be driving some rough roads and trails to get to the sites she had to visit. I was not surprised, but quite pleased at how much her involvement with our project had drawn her in. As far as I could tell, she was completely immersed in it and totally committed to helping wherever she could. We had long since passed the one-hundred-thousand dollar mark in expenses when she left for her assignment. I drove her to the airport and said our loving good-bye as she proceeded through the security gate. She would be gone for a month, give or take. We would talk on the phone or by Skype daily, but it was no substitute for having her with me in our bed. There were going to be some lonely nights. Kevin continued to soldier on with our prototypes that were now taking shape in the shop we had rented. He had worked with the supplier of the reverse osmosis system and had convinced them to strengthen what we thought were weak points in their system. It had never been designed to be portable or operate in hostile environments and they saw no need to "over-build" their units. An amount of cash was required to convince them that it was important to us. What our supplier didn't know was that we were replacing some of their components with our more rugged pieces. Their nylon tubing and brass fittings would all be replaced by Charlie Prendergast's products. We were also swapping out their filter materials with Dow's new specification material, designed specifically for us. It would void their warranty, but that wasn't an issue in our prototypes. We were getting closer to beginning our testing. Georgette had been away almost two weeks when I got a call from her late one morning. "John, I think we might have a problem," she began after our usual greetings. "What kind of problem?" "I think someone might be working on the same idea as we are. I've been talking to a number of people in the Amarillo area and they're telling me I'm not the first person to ask about water costs and volumes. They were around here about two months ago asking questions of some of the ranchers and other landowners." I sat quietly for a moment, thinking about what this might mean. "John? John? Are you still there?" "Yeah ... still here. Just thinking for a moment. It might not mean what we think. It might mean someone with the larger units trying to figure out if there's a market for them. What about the water board. Did they show up there?" "Not that anyone mentioned." "Good. So maybe it's like I said, someone with a large unit surveying the possibilities." "Maybe," she said, not sounding too convinced. "Some of the questions they asked made it sound like a more portable unit at lower cost. That's really what we're talking about isn't it?" "Yeah. Definitely. Did they leave any business cards or mention a name to anyone?" "Yes. The guy said he was representing Clearwater Resources out of Detroit. His name was Milos Czerny. I'll spell that for you." I searched my memory and couldn't recall any company called Clearwater or the distinctive name of the man. "Detroit, huh. That's unusual. Did he talk about their development at all?" "Yes, but just in vague terms," she said. "You know, portable, cheap, does all the things we are trying to do. One of the guys I talked to said he got the impression they were bringing this in from Europe somewhere. I'm not near an Internet connection right now, so I haven't looked him or the company up." "Hold on, let me do that now." I quickly googled Clearwater Resources and found a web page. They were located in Hamtramck, a suburb of Detroit I presumed. "They feature a whole bunch of equipment, but I don't see anything related to water purification. They've got pumps and pneumatic equipment, apparently supply some stuff to the auto industry. No names on the website that I can see." "Do you think your contacts in Midland might know something about them?" "Good question. I'll call Dow this morning and see what I can find out." "Okay. It was just dumb luck that I interviewed two ranchers who they called on as well. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known anything about them." "This may not amount to anything, Georgette. But let's not take anything for granted. When are you leaving for Boise?" "This afternoon. I'm meeting with the local rancher's association tomorrow morning and with the state water board that afternoon." "Good work, girl. You're really diving into this, aren't you?" "No half-measures for my guy, John. We'll do this together and do it right," she stated emphatically. "Good luck, love. I'll call if I learn anything new about Clearwater or this Milos guy. Otherwise, we'll talk tonight as usual. Love you, Babe." "Take care, John. Love you," she said, hanging up. Even though we talked to each other every day, it was no substitute for being together. I was counting the days until her survey and research project was complete and she was home in my arms once more. It was the first time we had been apart since New Years of the previous year and I missed her terribly. I didn't waste any time calling Bob Mears at Midland. "Mr. Mears, it's John Smith. Can you spare me a minute? Something's come up that you might be able to help with." "Go ahead, John. How can I help?" "Have you ever heard of a company called Clearwater Resources?" "Nope. Never heard of them. I can ask around if you like." "What about a man named Milos Czerny?" "Hmmm. That does have a familiar ring to it. Again, I'll ask around. Rex is probably the best guy to ask. He has more contacts than I'll ever have. What's this about?" I explained what Georgette had learned and the reason for my trying find out about both the company and the man. "Tell you what, John. You call Rex and talk to him. I'll call our legal department and have them check out the company and the name. I'll let you know what they learn as soon as I hear. In the meantime, keep me informed about what Rex knows." "Great. Thanks, Mr. Mears. I really appreciate your help." "No problem ... and it's Bob, remember?" I could hear the friendliness in his voice. "Right. Thanks, Bob." I was punching in Rex's cell number as soon as I signed off with Bob. It went immediately to voice mail and I left a quick message outlining what I wanted to know and why. Two hours later I got a call from him. "Hey, John, good to hear from you. What's this about a competitor showing up?" "Not sure, Rex, but Georgette was doing some surveying of potential customers in and around Texas and New Mexico and heard about someone asking similar questions. Some guy named Milos Czerny representing Clearwater Resources. Ever heard of either of them?" "Sure, I know Milos. He's a broker for eastern European equipment. Lives in Brno in the Czech Republic some of the time, near Detroit other times. Fairly reliable guy I hear. Never heard of Clearwater, though." "Okay. Bob is checking out both names with your legal department to see what he can learn. What do you know about Milos?" "He's been trying for years to get a foothold in the North American market for equipment and machinery. Most of it is from the Czech Republic, but some from Slovakia, some from Poland and Romania. That's where all his contacts are. Some of the stuff is pretty good and some of it is junk. You think he's got something like what you are building?" "Could be. Georgette said that's what he was implying to some of the ranchers." "Well, as far as filters go, there is one good supplier in Germany who could come close to our specifications, but they don't really work in our area of interest. They are more involved in filters for high-end automobiles, aircraft and ships. They have a medical division for hospitals and clinics, but that's a different technology too. Your specification is very precise and I can't see this company doing development work in a whole new field." "Okay, that's helpful I guess. I wonder what he's up to? I'd sure like to know for some peace of mind. We're close to testing our prototypes and I don't want to rush the process if I don't have to." "I wouldn't worry too much, John. Even if he's on the same track, you and I both know just how complex the equipment is. A cheap knock-off isn't going to cut it. And as far as water quality goes, you just can't mess with that. Way too dangerous for health reasons." "Okay, Rex. Thanks a lot for getting back to me so quickly. I'm sure Bob will have something in a day or two, so I'll hang on for him. In the meantime, we'll continue at our current pace." "Good thinking, John. Don't rush anything. It usually comes back to bite you sooner or later." We signed off and I stuck the phone back in its cradle. Was this a false alarm or not? I knew we were building a piece of equipment that we considered "bullet-proof" and we weren't prepared to compromise. Kevin was adamant that it would be the key to our success. It might be more expensive than a cheap imitation, but it would stand up to the test and its lifespan would be considerably longer. Value for money, he preached. I was a believer. We had talked with Thomas about the possibility of cheaper Chinese product showing up once the market was established. There were a couple of options for us, we decided. Stick to our plan and continue to build and source our machine in America was our first objective. If forced to go to Plan B, partner with another company for components, some of which could be made offshore if they met our specifications. Whatever the choice, it was important that we continued to refine and develop our equipment continuously. The Japanese taught us that lesson. Later that morning I briefed Thomas and Kevin on Georgette's call and my conversations with Bob and Rex. "Looks like you've done what needs to be done, John," Thomas said thoughtfully. "We'll just have to be patient and see what Bob comes up with. I don't think we should panic at this stage. Let's stay the course and keep working toward the goal at our pace." "I agree," Kevin added. "I think we have something very good developing here. Let's keep working toward the original target and make sure it's the best we can make it." I was pleased with the support and confidence that Thomas and Kevin had in our project. Perhaps I was overreacting, but I'd been working on this development for a long time and to have a competitor show up out of nowhere was very disconcerting. Georgette called at her usual time of eight o'clock that evening. "What did you find out, John?" "Not a lot. Rex knows who Milos is. He's an importer of equipment and machinery from the former eastern bloc countries. Operates out of the Czech Republic as well as the Detroit area. Bob Mears at Dow is having his legal people do a search on Clearwater Resources and Milos to see what they can learn." "Are you worried?" she asked, sounding worried herself. "I was, but your father and Kevin helped settle me down. We went through the objectives of the project and decided we didn't want to rush anything or change direction now. We have a good plan and we're sticking to it. Rex didn't seem to take the threat very seriously, so I'm trying to put it in the back of my mind and not let it bother me." "Good. I'm glad to hear that. Don't get distracted with things that you can't control. I'm all set up for my appointments tomorrow and I'll call as soon as I'm done. I'm hoping to get some good information from the Idaho Water Resource Board." We talked for another half-hour about anything but our project. Mostly we discussed the wedding and the plans that were being made. "Our mothers are carrying the load on this, aren't they," I suggested. "Yes. I'll have more time when I get back from this trip so that I can help too. This is going to be a big event in both our families," she said. "June 25th is coming sooner than you think." "You've gone through this before. What was the first wedding like?" "Let's agree that we won't talk about that," Georgette said immediately. "It's not going to be the same and I don't want to go back there." "Okay ... sorry ... didn't mean to get you upset," I quickly apologized. When was I going to learn to keep my curiosity about her past to myself? "So, what is your bridal gown going to be?" I asked, hoping I was on safer ground. "Full length, not much cleavage," she chuckled. "Sorry about that. Mother insisted it be a modest design." "As befits her modest daughter," I chuckled. "So what color? White?" "Do you remember what I was wearing the first time I interviewed you?" "Of course. Pale green blouse and navy skirt." "Wow! I'm impressed. Well, my gown will be an even paler green. Very subtle color and I think you'll like it." "It wouldn't matter what you wore to our wedding. It's you I'm marrying, not the gown. But I like the idea of that color being almost the first thing I ever saw you wear." "What was the first?" "The sorority mixer. You were wearing a bright blue top and your extra tight designer jeans. Very distracting as I recall." She laughed. "I recall that too. Ginny didn't seem too impressed. You have a good memory despite your problem." "You might as well have been wearing a flashing neon sign. I couldn't help but notice you and remember exactly how you looked and what you wore." "Well, to tell the truth, I was trolling for interview candidates and my appearance wasn't accidental. It worked too. I hooked you." "You hooked me good, girl. Hooked, landed, and soon to be filleted." "So, how am I going to serve you?" She was well into the spirit of this nonsensical conversation. "Just the way you have since we got together, smokin' hot." The laughter was contagious and it took a while before we settled back into a normal conversation. "I miss you, Georgie. I really do. Where are you going after tomorrow?" "It depends on what I learn from the Water Resource Board. If I can get enough information from them, I'm heading for Montana to talk to some of the high plains ranchers. I'll leave here and drive to Butte, then up to Great Falls and maybe a little farther north toward Canada. It's a two day drive but I'm confident I'll get the information we're looking for." "You might as well come back to Coeur d'Alene when you're done. You're going to end up there anyway." "That thought crossed my mind. You can drive my car up there and be waiting for me. I'll unsaddle my horse, knock the dust off my Stetson and chaps, spit out the last of my chewing tobacco and give you a big kiss." "Don't forget to scrape the cow shit off your boots," I laughed. "And make sure you use mouthwash before I kiss you." "Aw you college boys are all the same. A bunch of pussies. What's a little tobacco juice among really good friends?" "A mood killer, that's what!" It was fun to tease each other like this, but underlying it all was a longing to be together. The humor was a mask for the loneliness and hunger we had for each other. It wouldn't go away until we were together again. "I'll call you tomorrow and let you know how my meetings went. I'll write them up and e-mail them to you. That way I won't forget anything." "Good luck, love. I'll talk to you again tomorrow." As I signed off I looked up at the calendar and tried to estimate when she would be back in Coeur d'Alene. I would be finished my exams five days before she would return. That would give me enough time to pack up and drive back to Idaho, arriving before she did. Georgette called at her usual time the next evening. "John, I got some great information from the Water Resource Board. They have all kinds of quality measurements for quite a few areas and some of the numbers are not very good. They are very curious about what we have in mind, but I gave them only vague generalities about our project. That still provoked a lot of questions, but I think I got a lot more information than they did." "How about the ranchers association?" "Not bad. They have some problems, but they are very reluctant to share information for fear someone will quarantine their cattle if they suspect contaminated water or feed. However, the idea that there might be a cost effective system for making sure their range water was safe got their attention. They're holding their cards close to the vest, but I know I got their interest." "Any indication anyone else has been nosing around like you heard in Texas?" Georgie Girl Ch. 13-15 "No. None at all. Some of the big operators have been here, but their systems don't fit what these people need. Too big and too expensive. The ranches are too far apart to pool their resources as well. This looks like a real land of opportunity for us." "Good work, Georgette. Do you really have to go to Montana?" "Yeah. The people in Boise said they were in the same boat up there as the Idaho ranchers were. We might as well do this properly and get as much information as we can. It will help us make good decision in the end." "You're right," I admitted. "I've decided to drive up to Coeur d'Alene a little earlier than planned. I'll be finished my exams and I can meet you there. I don't want to be apart from you one hour longer than necessary." "That's what I wanted to hear," she said with a happy note. "What about Kevin?" "He's flying up the day before the wedding, then heading over to Pueblo to visit with his friend, Charlie. He's still using up those airline passes. He seems to have an unlimited supply of them." "If I can get back early, we can have three weeks to ourselves," she suggested. "Something like a honeymoon before the wedding." "I'm in favor of that. I'll be there waiting for you," I promised. We signed off and I had a smile on my face as I thought about our being together before the wedding. That would be worth the wait. Chapter 15 Poof We talked daily for the next two days of Georgette's trip. She pushed hard the first day and stayed over in Butte. The next day she made the shorter trip to Great Falls and settled in there as her base to do interviews. It was a Tuesday night when I didn't receive a call from her. The motel desk said she was still registered there but wasn't answering her phone. I made the assumption that she was busy and hadn't come back to the motel yet. I knew she planned to drive out of the city to various ranches to interview the owners. Some of those drives could be quite lengthy. It was the first time she hadn't called, so I wasn't alarmed ... yet. "Are you sure she didn't come back to her room last night?" I asked the clerk later the next day. It was the second successive day Georgette hadn't phoned. In addition, my messages left on her cell phone went unanswered. "Yes sir. The maid reported that the room hadn't been touched since she had made it up the day before." Now I was worried. What had happened to her? I began to suspect it might be something bad. "Can you tell me if her laptop was in the room?" I asked. Perhaps she had an itinerary on her calendar. "No, but I'll check right away. Just hold on, please." I could hear her put down the phone and I waited impatiently until she returned what seemed like several minutes later. "Yes, there's a laptop on the desk. All her clothes are still hanging in the closet and her bathroom things are still here." "Has she had any visitors to her room?" "Not that I know of, but her room is in the back, so I wouldn't necessarily know if she did or not." "Okay, thank you for your help. You have my name and my number. If you hear anything or she returns, please have her or you contact me right away." "Yes, I'll do that. Good luck," the woman said, sounding somewhat vague. I put the phone down and headed next door to see Thomas and Sarah. I had never failed to knock before entering, but at that moment I was sorely tempted. I waited anxiously for someone to answer before Thomas opened the door and greeted me. "Hi, John. What can we do for you?" "Georgette's missing," I blurted out without thinking. The look of alarm on his face was immediate. "What do you mean, missing?" "Just that," I said, entering their home. "She didn't call last night and when I called the motel this evening, she hadn't slept in her bed and all her clothes and toiletries, as well as her laptop were in the room. "I've left several messages on her cell phone, but she hasn't answered any of them. Most of the time, I get a message about not being in a service area." "This doesn't sound good. Where is she?" "Her motel is in Great Falls, Montana, but I know she was branching out from there to talk to various ranchers. I don't have a specific itinerary for her, but it may be on her laptop. I'm going to head up there and see if I can find her." "Find who?" I heard Sarah ask as she entered the room. "John says Georgette isn't answering her cell phone and hasn't been back to her room since yesterday morning." "Oh no, not again," Sarah cried with a look of anguish. "Calm down, dear," Thomas said reassuringly. "I'm sure there's an explanation for her absence. Cell phone coverage can be very spotty in that area. Let's not panic." "I'm going to fly up to Great Falls and see if I can locate her if she doesn't show up tomorrow morning," I said. "What about contacting the police?" Thomas asked. "I'll do that tomorrow morning as well. I don't know the license number of her rental, but I'm sure Avis in Boise can get that information. I'll try and get it tonight." "Oh, Thomas, we aren't going to have to go through this all over again, are we?" "This isn't Brad, Sarah. This is something different. If she doesn't contact John or us by tomorrow morning, I'm going with John to look for her." "Thanks, Thomas," I said. "I could use a cool head if we're going to search for her. I'm hoping we'll get some direction from her laptop." He nodded. "In the meantime, let's call Avis and see what information we can get on her rental." I got the 1-800 number for Avis and told them what we were looking for. It took a couple of minutes to convince the night operator that this was a missing person who had rented one of their vehicles and we needed to know the license number and vehicle description. It took confirmation by Thomas, but at last we got the information out of the reluctant young woman. Georgette was driving a dark blue 2011 Chev Traverse, all wheel drive. We noted the Idaho license number and thanked the person in the Avis office for their help. I was a bundle of nerves and not thinking as clearly as I should. Thomas was once again a leveling influence, something both Sarah and I needed at that moment. I looked up flights on my laptop from SFO to Great Falls and was stymied almost immediately. The routing was from San Francisco to Seattle to Great Falls via Alaska Air. Worse, it took forever. "I can't get a quick flight to Great Falls," I told Thomas. "It doesn't matter whether we go from Oakland, or through Portland, Seattle or Boise, it takes forever." "Okay, calm down, John," Thomas said quietly. "We'll figure something out. Let me make a couple of phone calls." I tried like hell to calm myself down, but between Sarah and me, we were a pair of very uptight people. "What about your exams?" Sarah asked, obviously trying to get her mind off her missing daughter. "They aren't important any more. I can write them later or whenever. Delaying them isn't the big thing in my life right now. Finding Georgette is." She nodded, not arguing with me. I had no idea if and when I could write those three remaining exams, but they were the least of my worries. Like Sarah, finding Georgette was uppermost in my mind. Thomas reappeared about twenty minutes later. "If we haven't had contact with Georgette by ten tomorrow morning, I've arranged for a plane at Hayward Executive Airport to be on standby to take us directly to Great Falls." "Oh, good," I sighed in relief. Hayward was just across the San Mateo Bridge and a half hour from our home. "Thank you, Thomas. That's a big relief." He nodded and held Sarah to comfort her and calm her down. At least we would be on our way to doing something by noon tomorrow if we didn't hear from Georgette. I didn't sleep for more than an hour at a time that night. I couldn't stop wondering and worrying about where my fiancée was and what might have happened to her. Luckily, it was almost summer and the nights weren't freezing any more, even on the high plains. If she had car trouble and got lost somewhere, she could survive the elements. Then I remembered the Avis rep said she had GPS in her rental, so that should keep her from getting lost. Something else had happened to her. I got up at six o'clock the next morning, realizing I wasn't going to get any more sleep. I was tempted to call the Montana Highway Patrol, but decided to wait until eight o'clock when there was more likely to be a full complement of staff on duty. I shuffled into the kitchen and put the coffee on, then had an immediate change of heart. I had found the highway patrol phone number on the Internet and punched in the number. "Hello, my name is John Smith and I'd like to report a missing person." "How long has this person been missing, sir?" an efficient woman's voice responded. "Two days. She was staying at the Grasslands Motel in Great Falls. She left there two days ago to do some research on a project and hasn't been heard from since. I've tried to contact her on her cell phone, but there is no response." "Was she expected to return to the motel?" "Yes. She checked in with me every night, telling me about her day." "What is the name of the person who is missing?" "Georgette Fulton. She's my fiancée." "I assume she was driving a vehicle. Can you give me a description?" "Yes. It's a dark blue Chev Traverse, rented from Avis in Boise," I continued, giving her the license number. "Can you describe Ms. Fulton?" "Five-foot-ten, one-hundred-and-fifty pounds, age thirty, blonde hair, blue eyes." "Does she have any scars, tattoos or piercings?" "No ... nothing at all." "Do you know what she was wearing at the time she disappeared?" "No, but she would likely have been wearing jeans and a polo shirt with a short leather jacket if it was cool." "What was the purpose of her visit?" "She was interviewing ranchers about water quality, doing research for me and our company." "Is it possible she is visiting friends or is lost?" "No ... she has no friends that I know of in Montana and the rental has a GPS, so I don't see how she could be lost." "Has she ever done anything like this before ... I mean ... gone off on her own without notifying you or relatives?" "No." "Very well, sir. I'll put out a notification to all units to be on the lookout for a dark blue 2011 Chevrolet Traverse with Idaho plates. Can you give me a number where you can be reached?" I gave her both my cell number and the home phone number as well has Thomas and Sarah's number. "Call us on our cell phones at any time, day or night. Mr. Fulton and I will be flying to Great Falls today to help look for her. We'll check in with your office there." "Very well, sir. Please do that." "Thank you," I finished, hanging up. At least they took it seriously, I thought. I felt a slight sense of relief that at I had done something rather than just wait to see what happened, but I wouldn't be satisfied until Thomas and I were on the ground in Montana and actively looking for her. I'd barely had my first sip of coffee when the phone rang. I grabbed it, thinking perhaps it might Georgette or the highway patrol calling back. "Hello?" "It's me, John," Thomas said. "I guessed you would be up early." "Yes. I just got off the phone with the Montana Highway Patrol and reported Georgette missing. They have all her details now and are letting all their units know what to look for." "I'm sure they will check with the hospitals," Thomas said. "Have you called the motel yet?" "No. I'll do that right now. Coffee's on here, why don't you come over." "Be right there," he said, hanging up. I called the Grasslands Motel and had them connect me to Georgette's room. I let it ring six or seven times before I was sure she wasn't in. When the clerk came back on to tell me the obvious, I once again asked her to check the room. "I can't leave the desk, sir. I'm the only one on right now." "Can you have someone in housekeeping check the room to see if it has been used? The woman staying there has been reported missing to the highway patrol. We need to know if she used the room last night." "I'll try sir. It's still early. The housekeeping staff is just arriving." "Just have somebody ... anybody ... check the room. Please!" "Okay, I'll find someone. Call me back in a few minutes, I'm busy with checkouts now." "All right. I'll call back in twenty minutes," I agreed, hanging up once more. I looked up at the clock and saw that it was six-thirty. That would be seven-thirty, Mountain Time. I walked to the front door when I heard a short knock and let Thomas in. He looked like I felt, haggard. "You didn't get much sleep either, I guess," I said. He shook his head. "Sarah didn't either. She's not taking this very well. I can't blame her after what we've been through with Brad. I'm just wondering what we can do that we haven't done?" "I called the motel again to see if the room has been used since we checked yesterday. I'm sure it hasn't but I thought I'd better check anyway." Thomas nodded in agreement. "Can we leave earlier for Great Falls?" I asked. "Let me check," he said, pulling out his iPhone and searching for a number. Finding it, he pressed the screen and waited. "Gerry, it's Thomas Fulton. Is there any way we can advance our flight to Great Falls?" (pause) "As soon as possible. We can be at Hayward in an hour." (pause) "Great, we'll see you at nine o'clock. Thanks, Gerry. I owe you." He clicked off. "Get packed, John. We need to be out of here in forty-five minutes. We'll take my car. You call the motel back and I'll check on getting a car rental. We might as well stay in the same motel as Georgette, so when you talk to them, get us a room." "Right. Thanks, Thomas. The waiting is worse than the knowing." "It always is," he said. It was the voice of experience. He headed back to his unit, presumably to pack and let Sarah know our plans. The motel finally confirmed that the room hadn't been used since we last called yesterday. With a room and a vehicle booked, we made our way to the Hayward Executive Airport and a waiting plane. I was pleased to see it was a jet, cutting our flight time back quite a bit. With luck we would be there just after noon, Mountain Time. I had never flown in a private jet before, but my mind wasn't on the luxury and exclusiveness of the aircraft, it was on Georgette. I had imagined a dozen different scenarios last night as I lay in bed. Was she alive or dead? Had some madman taken her hostage? Had she had an accident and couldn't communicate with anyone? Was she in a hospital somewhere, unable to talk? The one thing about a private jet was its speed. We lifted off from Hayward just after nine that morning and our flying time was a little less than two hours. No scheduled airline could match that. We would have almost a half day to search for Georgette. I don't think Thomas and I said ten words to each other as we flew to Great Falls. Both of us were lost in our thoughts, wondering what had happened to our precious Georgette. Would we be able to find her? I could see the lines of worry on his face and I was sure mine must have shown the same. There was some self-serve coffee and pastries at the rear of the cabin and when I remembered that I hadn't had any breakfast, I helped myself, with Thomas doing so as well. Anything to keep us from dwelling on the situation. Our landing in Great Falls was right on time and the rental vehicle, a Ford Expedition, was ready and waiting for us at the private terminal. We headed directly for the Grasslands Motel and checked in, showing our identification and asking to see Georgette's room. I knew almost right away that no one had been here. I could see a light layer of dust on her open laptop screen. I awoke it and looked at what she had last been doing. We were in luck. It was her itinerary for two days earlier. The only problem was, although we knew who she was going to see, we didn't know where they were to be found. Georgette had a memory stick and I found it in her bag. I downloaded the itinerary to it and stuck it in my pocket. "We can show this to the highway patrol and maybe they can find out who these people are and where they are located." We dropped our bags in the room we had rented, jumped in the Expedition, dialed in the highway patrol office location on the GPS and took off, Thomas driving toward our first destination. We were greeted by Sergeant David Kranowski when we identified ourselves. "Yes, we've checked the hospitals and clinics within a fifty mile radius and there's no report of anyone identified or otherwise matching her description," the sergeant said. "We have notified all units to be on the lookout, but nothing so far. I've got someone coming in who's familiar with the ranches in the outlying area and I'm sure he can help identify where Ms. Fulton's appointments might lead her. At least we'd be looking in the right direction." "That's great," I said. "When do you expect him?" "He's driving in from Helena, so he'll be a little over an hour yet." I looked at Thomas and said, "I haven't eaten anything except that Danish on the plane. We might as well have a lunch instead of pacing around waiting for this guy to arrive." "Agreed. I'm satisfied the highway patrol is doing everything it should be doing, so now it's just a matter of seeing what we can learn about her travel plans." The sergeant recommended a restaurant just down the street from their office and we took off on foot toward it. I could feel some of the tension had diminished when we talked to the officer, but I was still pretty uptight about the whole situation and I could see that Thomas was as well. It was another case of eating and having no distinct memory of what I had ordered or eaten. We were both completely distracted. "I've been thinking, John. We might hire a helicopter to conduct an air search if this guy who's coming to help us with her itinerary can identify the places she planned to go. It can cover a lot more ground than we can in the rental." "I'm for anything that speeds this up. She's been gone for two days. Who knows if she's injured or what. I bet the highway patrol has a helicopter too. Maybe we can get them to use it as well. Maybe plan our search with them." Thomas nodded. "That's what I was thinking too. Come on, let's get back to the station. The guy they're expecting should be along about now." I realize the police have procedures that they have to follow and that they can't have civilians interfering with their work, but it didn't take long for Thomas and me to get frustrated with the roadblocks they were putting up in front of us. "I don't want you flying around in the search area when we have professionals trained to do exactly that," the sergeant said firmly. "We know what to look for and we know where we should look. If you want to do a ground search, go ahead. But forget about hiring a helicopter or a plane right now. We'll have two units up in the designated areas. That airspace will be off limits to you. If and when we discontinue the search, you're free to do your own." "What do you mean, discontinue the search?" I asked, now alarmed. "We'll make every reasonable effort to find Ms. Fulton. But it has a time limit when all the possible options have been exhausted. They don't go on forever." "How long is the time limit?" Thomas immediately asked. "In this case, the air search will probably continue for the balance of the week. Likely four days. After that, it will probably be discontinued in favor of ground searching unless we get a tip or a lead. The picture of Ms. Fulton and a photo of the SUV will be broadcast on all the local TV stations during their news starting today for two days. With some luck, someone may have seen her or the vehicle and we can follow up from there." Georgie Girl Ch. 13-15 We were introduced to Willis Overland, an auxiliary officer in the patrol and a local expert on the ranches in the immediate area. He was a purveyor of feed and grain supplies and knew almost every rancher within a hundred miles. We sat with him and explained what Georgette was doing and what she was trying to learn. "So, you daughter was surveying the ranches trying to learn about water quality and how much water they used, is that it?" "Roughly," Thomas replied. Mr. Overland had the frustrating habit of talking only to Thomas and ignoring me. He was a big man, well over six foot, in his fifties and looking like he hadn't missed too many meals. I bit my tongue and let him continue. "Well, some of those boys won't be too forthcoming, if you know what I mean. Any hint of contaminated water might mean contaminated crops or cattle. Some of the ranches haven't been too responsible about managing their animal wastes. We know some of the wells are polluted from the testing that's done randomly. If your plan is to find a way to identify those wells and report them, then I'd worry about her safety." "No ... that's not what she was doing at all!" I nearly shouted. "We're trying to develop a way that the smaller ranchers can clean up their water and not have to worry about it." I felt Thomas's hand on my arm, steadying me. "All right, Son, don't get all uppity with me," Overland said in a condescending tone. "I'm just tellin' you what's so, that's all. This your boy?" he said, turning back to Thomas. "No, he's my future son. It's my daughter we're looking for, so let's get down to the details. What did you learn from her itinerary?" Overland looked back at me, sizing me up I suppose, then back to Thomas. "Here's what I think she had in mind," he said, pointing to the big state map on the wall. "From what I can see, she was planning to work northeast on 87 to Fort Benton, then south on 80, cutting back northwest on 87 at Stanford. That's a triangle of about a hundred-and-fifty miles. There's at least a dozen ranches both sides of that route, so you've got your work cut out for you. "You see all these skinny black lines here," he said pointing to a spider's web of crooked lines on the map. "These are all unmarked roads. Some lead to the ranches, some are service roads. They're all dirt and can get washed out now and then in a heavy rainstorm. I don't know why she'd need to use them much, but that's another place to look." "There must be thirty or forty of them," I said in frustration. "Yep, at least. But if I was you, I'd stick to the roads that lead to the ranches only. I can't see her wandering around in the middle of nowhere if she had work to do. I know I sure as hell wouldn't." "She has a GPS unit. Would those roads show up on it?" I asked. "Some do, some don't. Some of those so-called roads don't amount to much more than a goat trail. Can't see her messing around in that area." "Do you have any clue which way she might have been heading when she left?" Thomas asked. "Well, like I said, the order that her list of places was in ... if she was following that ... was up 87, down 80 and back on 87. Clockwise on the triangle," he said, pointing at the map. "Thanks," Thomas said, extending his hand. "You know this area very well, I'm told. Do you have a cell phone we can reach you on if we have any questions?" "Sure, I got one of them new-fangled iPods, just like the kids do. Got GPS and everything on it. Here's my card, the number's on it." "Thanks again. We appreciate your help." "Good luck," he said, still ignoring me. "Well," I said, "at least we know where to start." "We'll be lucky to do four ranches a day," Thomas mused. "Let's find out what the highway patrol is doing about the ground search before we get to chasing their tails, going the same places they are going." I nodded. Thomas was thinking a whole lot clearer than I was. I was really glad he was along with me. The sergeant explained that they would follow the clockwise route that Willis Overland had suggested, interviewing the ranchers along the way to see if they had seen or talked to Georgette. "She was missing one day after starting, so if Willis was right, she wouldn't have got very far up 87 in a day. Unless he's wrong and she went in another direction, that's what we think is the best way to find her." I nodded. That made sense. I went back to the big state map and looked at the route we thought she may have taken. It wasn't a topographical map, so I couldn't tell much about what the surrounding territory was like. "Thomas, what if she went the opposite way, southeast to Stanford? Our motel has high-speed wireless. We could use Georgette's laptop to look up Google Earth and see what the surrounding land is like between here and there." "All right, that gives us something to do. I'll let the sergeant know what we're doing then meet you at the car." When we got back to the motel, we used the card we had been given for Georgette's room and I pulled up Google Earth right away, starting with Great Falls and tracking southeast along highway 87. "Thomas, look at this. The flatlands seem to end at a town called Belt. There's only a bit of farmland about halfway between Belt and Stanford. There could be some rough country between Belt and the highway 80 junction." "That's a lot of country to cover, John. I suggest we start in the morning and take our stuff with us. We'll leave Georgette's room just as it is except we'll take the laptop. I'm sure we'll find motels at various way points along the highway." "Yeah, sure, sounds like a plan," I said, not feeling very positive. Perhaps tomorrow would tell us if we were on a wild goose chase. To Be Continued