He snapped his attention back to the scenery before him. He was getting way ahead of his action plan. Jumping to the tenth step wouldn’t get him to the end any quicker.
“Rebel, this is Chief. Come back with an update. Over.” Will’s voice broke through the radio like he’d read Bjørn’s mind and wanted to shake him up.
“Chief, this is Rebel. We’ve gone all along this coast. No sign of the boat or the occupants. Over.”
Bjørn peeked back up at the fog tumbling down the mountain like some giant blew it toward them. The windshield slicked wet with dew, and the air in the chopper turned cold. Bjørn flipped some switches, turning up the heater and the wipers.
“We’re coming up empty here too.” Weariness hung in Will’s voice and mirrored Bjørn’s own feelings. “Weather is rolling in. I want everyone to head back to base. We’ll get updates and come up with a plan for when the weather clears enough to go back out.”
Bjørn shook his head, not willing to give up yet. The air grew thick around them, making it hard to see, but he could still make out shapes. What if the kids were just around the next bend?
“Negative. We can keep going.” Bjørn ignored Sadie as her head snapped his direction.
“Rebel, I know you like to showboat, but this fog is just going to get thicker,” Will said. “I don’t want to have to save you as well. Turn back to Seward. That’s an order.”
The atmosphere in the chopper stilled, like everyone held their breath to see what Bjørn would do. He glanced along the shoreline and clenched his teeth in agitation. Did he want to stay out despite visibility decreasing with each second because he was confident in his ability or to prove he wasn’t the man rumors made him out to be? A gust of wind shuddered the chopper, pushing more soupy clouds over them.
“Rebel?” Will’s sharp voice punctured Bjørn’s indecision.
“Copy that.” Bjørn’s cheek muscle clicked in frustration. “Rebel coming home.”
The air in the cabin heaved like a collective sigh. Bjørn turned his head away from Sadie and scanned one last time out the window to hide his disappointment. He hated the thought of teens out there somewhere, possibly hurt, and rescue not coming. Hated that it brought up the memories of the mission that had tainted his military career. He also knew it wouldn’t do his team any good to stay out there burning fuel when they couldn’t see past the rotors.
“We’ll come back out as soon as the fog clears.” Sadie’s hand rested on his shoulder. “This will give us a chance to rest, regroup, and hopefully get more help.”
He touched her hand upon his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. Was she worried about seeing her dad? Would Will hold it against her that she let the TV crew tag along? Bjørn hoped not. They had needed the crew’s eyes to help search. Bjørn would back her until he was blue in the face if he had to. With a nod and a sinking feeling in his gut, he turned the bird and pointed her nose toward home.