Different Circles

“I’m flying back to Oceano after rehearsal today. Going to stay the weekend. Come with me. You can see my new plane and then hole up at my house where the reporters can’t get to you. On Sunday morning, I’ll fly you up to Coos Bay and you can hole up there as long as you want.”

Greg thought this over for a few moments and then tried to dismiss it. “It won’t work,” he said. “They’ll just circle your house in their helicopters instead of mine. They’ll just send the mobs to your front door instead of mine. And then they’ll just follow us to Coos Bay.”

“Well, they can’t show up at my front door,” Jake countered. “My property is secured. The most they could do is cluster around the access road where it comes off of the PCH, and I don’t think the SLO sheriff’s department and the highway patrol would be very keen on that.”

“There’s still the helicopters,” Greg said. “Do you really want two or three of those vultures circling over for hours every day.”

“Not really,” Jake admitted, “but I think there’s a way we can avoid that as well.”

“What do you mean?”

“They won’t show up at my house if they don’t know you’re there.”

“How would we keep them from learning that?” Greg asked. “If you pick me up, they’ll just follow us to the airport with their helicopters. Even if they don’t see us fly off, they’ll know I’m with you and they know where you live.”

“Then I should not be the one to pick you up,” Jake said.

“Who is going to pick me up then?” he asked. “A limo? I will still have to fight my way through the horde in order to get inside.”

“How about you drive yourself to the airport, Greg,” Jake said.

“Drive myself?” he asked, as if Jake had suggested that he club a baby seal.

“You do know how to drive, and you do have a car, right?”

“Well ... yes, but ... I still don’t see how that solves the problem. The helicopters will still just follow me.”

“They can only follow you so far,” Jake said. “They can’t fly in the airspace adjacent to the airport. They’ll have to break off when you get close. In fact, if you just take North Hollywood instead of the Golden State, you’ll pass right by Burbank Airport. They’ll have to break off pursuit there and you will likely lose them at that point. They won’t even know you were in the vicinity of Whiteman by the time you get there. And I can have the plane all ready to go as soon as you arrive.”

“Hmmm,” Greg said, pondering this plan. “It would be nice to be able to get out of town without anyone knowing where I’ve gone.”

“All you have to do is leave from your garage,” Jake said. “Just back out onto the street and drive away. That way, none of them will have time to get in their cars to follow you on the surface streets. By the time the helicopters realize they have to break off, you’ll be too far ahead for them to catch up.”

“But what about my car?” he asked next. “Will it be safe at that airport for a week or so?”

“They have security there,” Jake assured him. “And even if something happens to your car, you’re rich. You just buy another one out of the cash in your pocket.”

Another few moments of pondering and then, “I find you make some good points. Let us put the plan into action.”

“Right,” Jake said. “I’ll be heading to Whiteman at 4:00 PM and should be there by 4:15. I will be ready to fly by 5:00. You time your drive so you get to the airport about 4:45. Don’t forget to account for the detour up North Hollywood. That should add another ten minutes or so.”

“Uh ... right,” Greg said. “Ten minutes.” A pause. “So ... what time should I leave here then?”

Greg did not do much of his own driving and was quite inexperienced at estimating travel time.

“It’s a Friday afternoon,” Jake said. “Traffic will be a little thick. You should probably leave your house at about ten minutes to four. If you arrive a little early, it’s no big. If you arrive more than ten or fifteen minutes late, however, things start to get more complicated.”

“Right!” Greg said. “Ten to four. I’ll be there.”

“See you then,” Jake said.

“See you then,” Greg agreed.