Motley Crew
By
Denise
By
Denise
Jack O'Neill stood in the wheel house, his sharp eyes surveying the scene before him. The docks at Dutch Harbor were bustling with activity, the crews of countless boats busy provisioning and readying their craft for the journey to come. Hydraulic cranes were used to hoist pallets of supplies from the docks to the ship decks, where men hurried to stow the supplies below deck.
Although the harbor was calm, the chill winds bore the promise of the winter yet to come, as evidenced in the snow and ice capped hills that surrounded the town.
It was a scene Jack had seen many times before, but this time was different. This time he wasn't merely a deck hand or deck boss. He wasn't following orders. He was the one giving them.
He turned his attention closer and ran his hand over the console in front of him. The Stargazer. She hadn't sunk. No one knew why, no one could say how, but, defying all odds, the sturdy lady hadn't succumbed to the waves and sank, instead, days after Jack and the rest of the crew had been rescued, the Coast Guard found her, righted, and floating in the currents. They'd taken the ship into tow and brought her back to Dutch Harbor.
Jack would have thought George Hammond, her captain, would have been relieved to find his precious ship still intact and sea worthy. And, he supposed, in one way the man was. But, in another, she seemed to just be a reminder of all he'd lost over the years.
They'd fixed the ship, repairing the damage and restoring her to seaworthiness, but, in the end, George decided that he'd never sail her again.
She was Jack's now. Jack captained her in George's stead with Jack's ultimate goal still undecided. On one hand, he'd given serious thought to buying the Stargazer from George. On the other hand, there was something to be said for starting new. A new ship with a new name, a new chapter in his life.
Jack pushed the thoughts out of his mind. It was a decision that he wouldn't have to make for years. Unless he picked up a lucky lotto ticket, he wouldn't have the finances to be buying anything for a while, so he might as well take care of matters at hand.
And those matters were readying the Stargazer for the king crab season.
On deck, Murray and Daniel were loading the supplies, aided by Jonas Quinn, the greenhorn from last year who, despite being set adrift in a life boat, had returned to the crew. And they had a new greenhorn to deal with, Evan Lorne, a man from the lower forty-eight, who seemed to possess an even enough temper to get along well with Murray and Jackson.
Jack knew things were going to be a bit rough this cruise, all shakedowns were, so he couldn't even say that he had high hopes. In fact, his main goal was to get their quota and get back in one piece and with everyone intact. After the way their last mission ended, he felt the need to break the jinx, so to speak.
"How do you expect me to work with this?" a strident voice demanded.
Jack turned, glaring at the woman who'd just barged into his wheel house. She held a can in one hand and a bag of frozen hamburger patties in the other.
"I dunno, you're a cook, figure it out," Jack responded, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Exactly, I'm a COOK. How am I supposed to produce quality meals for your crew with this…this…"
"Chili," Jack said, reading the label.
"Precisely!" She held up the can and moved closer. "Chili?"
"Vala, trust me, after twenty hours pulling pots, these guys will eat anything that's hot. Quantity not quality," Jack said, quickly losing his patience with the other new member of the crew.
An outraged look spread over her face and she fluttered around the wheel house, her dark hair flying, sputtering with rage. "Quantity! Why don't you just hire a trained monkey to toss some things into a pot and—"
"There you are," Sam said, climbing the stairs up to the wheel house. "Vala, I've been looking all over for you."
"Did you hear what he said?" the dark haired woman demanded. She gestured with the bag of frozen hamburger.
"No, but I'm sure you're going to tell me," Sam replied.
"He said I was a bad cook."
"I did not."
"He did not," Sam said. "Vala, we may be out for weeks, and shockingly enough, there aren't many grocery stores in the middle of the Bering Sea. So you're going to need to work with what we'll have to work with. This is why we hired you. Anyone can make a good meal out of fresh vegetables and meat. It takes a true chef to make nutritious food out of…frozen patties and canned chili," she said, craning her neck to see what Vala had in her hands.
"Really?" Vala asked, her bad mood fading and a smile creeping across her face.
"Really," Sam said, shooting a glare at Jack.
"Yeah, really," Jack said quickly.
"Oh, well, that's different then," Vala said.
"Why don't you go down and finish putting stuff away and take one last inventory. If there's anything we need, we'll need to get it in the next couple of hours or you'll have to wait until our first off load," Sam said.
The woman left the wheel house and Jack turned to Sam. "Explain to me again why we hired her?" he asked.
"Because neither you or I can cook for crap," Sam said. "Vala's okay, you just need to know how to deal with her."
"Obviously a skill I have yet to learn," Jack said, sitting down in the chair.
"Ya think," she said, moving to stand beside him. "She'll fit in, we just need to wait for her to find her place."
"And hope she doesn't kill us in the meantime," he groused.
Sam smacked him on the arm. "Give her a chance." Together they looked down at the deck, the men working around the stacks of crab pots. "We can probably head out tonight," she said.
Jack shook his head. "We'll wait til morning." Sam frowned at him. "I don't want to hurry out and miss something. Twelve hours won't make that much of a difference. We'll leave at first light."
"Okay," she said. "Want me to go and tell the guys?"
"Six AM, we'll leave with the tide."
Sam pecked him on the cheek. "I'll tell them, then I'll go ashore for a bit and be back in a couple of hours."
"See ya."
Sam left the wheel house and Jack watched her make her way across the deck, talk to the crew and then leave the boat, deftly maneuvering her way around the pallets up the dock before he turned his attention back to his charts and graphs. As captain, it was his job to find the crab. The sooner he found them, the sooner they'd catch their quota and the faster they could go home.
SSSSSSSSSSSSS
Evan Lorne grunted as he pushed a tote of cod across the deck, tucking it into the bait area. He stood up and arched his back, trying to clear the stench of dead fish out of his nostrils. "Fresh air, my ass," he muttered.
He made his way back to the others to do his part in loading the boat. Murray and Jonas were loading boxes of frozen herring while Daniel busied himself helping Vala carry boxes of groceries down into the galley.
"Guys!" He looked to see Sam walking across the deck towards them. Jonas and Murray stopped working.
"What's up?" Murray asked.
"We're not leaving until morning," she said. "Jack wants to go out with the tide. So, once you guys are done, you can go ashore and finish up anything you need to." She looked at Evan. "If you hit the bar, hit it light, don't come back drunk," she warned.
"Yes, ma'am," Evan said, glancing at the others, wondering why they didn't get the warning.
"I don't know about Daniel, but I'll come back and sleep on the boat," Murray said.
"Me too," Jonas said.
"Great," Sam said. "Make sure that Daniel and Vala know."
"I will," Murray said.
She nodded. "I'm going to go ashore, I'll see you guys later tonight."
With that, she left the boat and hopped onto the dock.
Evan frowned and watched her go. "What's wrong man?" Murray asked.
"Nothing." Evan shook his head, not wanting to get into anything. He was the greenhorn here, it was his place to fit in, not to make an ass of himself.
"Look," Murray said. "You know what happened last year?"
Evan nodded. Everyone knew. In fact, Evan wondered if the ship's history was why he got his job. Sailors were a superstitious bunch, and few wanted to work on a Lazarus boat.
"Sam's the one that pulled Cap, and the previous captain, out of the water. She saved his ass."
"She was Coast Guard," Jonas said. "Took a medical discharge a few months ago to be with Cap."
"She's cool, man," Murray said. "And, if you got a problem with women on a boat, you better get over it."
"I don't," Evan said. "I just…It's cool," he said. "I don't have a problem."
"Good," Murray said. "Let's get this done so we can go and get something to eat." He looked towards the part of the ship where the galley was. "For all we know, it might be our last good meal for a while."
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Jack made his way down to the galley, the smell of sausage and eggs doing little to calm his mood. The Stargazer was headed north, steaming to the crab grounds at nearly full speed. After leaving soon after dawn yesterday, they'd arrive at the grounds in a couple of hours and would be able to drop the first pots of the season.
It was always a gamble, where they dropped their pots. The crab migrated along the ocean floor in massive groups, sometimes miles wide. But there were no established routes or preferred places for the animals. They basically wove their way back and forth on the ocean bottom, stripping the mud bare of anything edible before they moved on.
Crab served the purpose of the ocean's cleaners, consuming and processing tons of garbage off the ocean bottom - mostly dead fish and plant matter. Just like surface crab cleaning the corpse of a dead whale in days, the bottom dwelling crab did the same.
Because of this, they were always moving. And that movement was what made Jack's job all that much harder. Because he had to find the masses of crab, and he had to do it blind, through hundreds of feet of water.
It was a challenge that he - and every captain - faced. Not only finding the crab, but finding them fast, catching them first, and getting home alive. His boat was only one of dozens out here doing the exact same thing.
Jack stepped into the galley, his eyes narrowing as conversation dropped off the second he crossed the threshold. "Hey, Cap," Murray greeted.
"How long until we need to be on deck?" Jackson asked.
"About half an hour or so," Jack answered.
"Let me get you some breakfast," Vala offered, picking up a plate. She started to pile massive quantities of food onto it.
"Take it easy," Jack said. There was no such thing as a diet on the Bering Sea.
Deckhands, because of the hard physical labor and to keep warm, often needed five thousand or more calories in every meal. But Jack's job largely consisted of sitting down and steering the boat so the thought of eating all the food she was dishing up was more than a little daunting.
"You and Sam can share a plate," Vala said, ignoring his request. "I don't do leftovers so this all needs to be eaten."
"Whatever," Jack shrugged. "Just remember, that food may need to last us for a week or three. Don't go cooking it all up the first day." He poured himself a mug of coffee. "So, I just got off the radio. Do you guys have something to tell me?" he asked, taking a deliberate sip.
The five of them fell silent, forks in mid air for a second. "I dunno," Jackson said. "I can't think of anything. Murray, can you think of anything?"
"Nothing, man."
Evan shook his head while Jonas suddenly became very interested in his plate. "Quinn?" Jack pushed, identifying the weak link.
"I have no idea, boss," he said, still not looking at Jack.
"So, no idea why the Time Bandit would be calling me."
Jonas' face colored, confirming Jack's fears. "No, I--"
"My god, is Jonathan whining like a baby?" Vala exclaimed, the plate in one hand, a spatula in the other.
"What did you do?" Jack demanded.
"Nothing," Jackson said quickly.
"Lorne, what'd they do?" Jack asked. The man stayed silent. "If you ever want a hope of getting full share, tell me," Jack threatened as he shoved a couple of forks into his pocket.
"Now, Captain, you must remember, Jonathan tends to over react," Vala said, pushing the plate of food towards him. "Their actions were warranted, especially given the events of last year and...last night."
"Vala. I don't have time for this crap. Tell me what the hell happened," Jack said, taking the plate of food.
"I think a picture would be better," she said. She reached into a drawer and pulled out a digital camera. She turned the camera on and messed with it for a second, before turning it so that Jack could see the small view screen on the back.
He squinted, struggling to make out details. "What the hell?"
"We were out to dinner last night, quite behaving ourselves, I must say. Then we were accosted by the Time Bandit's crew," she said.
"Accosted?"
"They were in our faces, boss," Murray said.
"They made scurrilous accusations. Quite inappropriate, especially in a business such as that restaurant."
"She means bar," Evan said. "We all ate dinner at the bar on the dock."
"What accusations?" Jack asked.
"You know, boss, I don't think we ever told you," Jackson said. "Last year, when they fished us out of the water...Jonathan was...well at first he was cool. They were all hyped that they picked us up and all that. But then..."
"They started picking on Jonas," Murray said.
"It wasn't that bad," Jonas said.
"Yeah, it was," Jackson said. "Jonas didn't want to say anything, but sometimes, Jonathan was just...mean. But we didn't feel like we could say anything, and we just ignored it. I mean, they did save our butts."
"But Jonathan and his crew got right back in their faces last night," Evan said.
"It was quite intolerable," Vala chimed in.
"So you got in a fight?" Jack said.
"No," Murray said. "We weren't going to do that. Besides, we didn't want to get banned from the only bar in town."
"So Vala suggested that we needed to get even," Jackson said.
"They called them Pansies," Vala said. "And panty waists and girly guys and...really, it was so juvenile."
"So?"
Murray smiled at the memory. "We got even."
Jack looked at the camera, hiding a grin at the sight of the Time Bandit, her black and red paint job marred by a massive yellow smiley face. He flipped through more pictures, some blurry but others revealing what looked like a line of laundry dangling from the boat's railing.
"I have no idea where Vala got all that underwear," Jackson said, standing up to look over Jack's shoulder.
"Is that a bra?" Jack asked.
"Yes, Isn't it a nice touch?" Vala bragged. "Although, I must admit, some of those colors would be most unflattering on Jonathan. Some might work for Andy though. But some of the sizes, the boys will never measure up."
"Boss, we used latex paint," Murray said. "It'll be worn off before they catch their quota."
Jack shoved the camera into his pocket. "Get finished eating and get your asses on deck," he ordered, motioning for Vala to pour him two mugs of coffee. "You need to get some bait ready so I don't have to wait on you once we're ready to drop pots."
He turned on his heel and left the galley, carefully balancing the plate and coffee as he made his way back to the wheel house. Sam was in the chair, driving the boat in his absence. "Well?" she asked, taking the coffee from him.
"They did it," he said. He set the plate down and dug the camera out of his pocket.
She turned it on and flipped through the photos, he hand coming up to smother her laughter. "Oh god, these are great. We need to get them framed."
"Don't," he chastised, gesturing with his fork. "Don't encourage them."
"Jack, you have to admit it, it's funny," Sam said, picking up her fork and spearing some eggs.
"This trip is going to be challenging enough without--"
"Exactly," she interrupted. "It's Jonas' first time back on the water," she said. "Don't you think he's nervous? Don't you think he's got a few demons to wrestle?" She stared at him.
"Just like you. We all have something to prove on this trip."
"And pranking the Hilstrands?"
"What better way to get your mojo back?" she challenged. "Besides, it's good for morale."
Jack sighed. "They are going to be dogging us," he warned. "Jon and Andy won't let this go."
She shrugged. "I think we can handle it."
SSSSSSSSSSSSS
Sam braced herself as the Stargazer cut through the waves. They were steaming north, having just off loaded a hundred thousand pounds of king crab. With more left to catch in their quota and reasonably good weather forecast, there as no reason not to head back out.
Jack's hope was for them to catch the last of their quota and be done in about a week or so. Then she and he would go back home and have a quiet holiday season, and presumably their crew would as well. And, if all things worked out, a New Year's wedding.
The rest of the crew – including Jack – were asleep while she watched the wheel. She knew that some would find the graveyard shift lonely, but she enjoyed it. There was something to be said for peace and quiet and alone time. Solitude was a rare commodity on a crab boat and she enjoyed the serenity of the wheel house at night, the only noise the wind and waves and the chatter on the radio.
During the day, there wasn't that much for her to do. Jack drove while they were fishing. Vala didn't need any help cooking and about all Sam could do on deck – without getting in the way – was to help sort crab.
She may be the captain's fiancée, but she was just as much a greenhorn as Lorne.
A different voice cut through the chatter and Sam sat up, listening closely. She recognized the voice and tone of a Coast Guard dispatcher. Grabbing a pen and paper, she listened to the advisory, taking notes of the pertinent information. When it started to repeat, the turned down the volume on the radio and picked up the phone. "Jack, I need you up here," she said as soon as he answered.
A few minutes later, Jack bounded up the stairs, his clothes hastily tossed on and his hair a mess. "What's wrong?" he asked as he scanned the controls.
"We're fine," she reassured. "The John Hooker took a wave. Crew of six. Two went in the water with no suits and are gone. The other four are going in, or maybe already are. The Coast Guard is at least twelve hours out from their last known position. We're four."
"What about other boats?" he asked, sitting down to look over their position and the location of the John Hooker.
"No one else is closer," she said "At least no one that has spoken up. Jack, half the fleet is between here and Dutch or Adak. Or their tanks are so full they can't risk it."
Jack nodded. He looked down at the instruments. "You didn't have to wait for me to change course."
"It's your boat, Jack."
"It's OUR boat," he corrected. He took a breath and looked her in the eyes. "Are you okay with this?"
"Yeah," she nodded. "I can't NOT do anything. But, the decision to risk this boat and the crew—"
"I trust your judgment," he said, turning the boat towards the last known position of the John Hooker. He looked towards her and pulled her close, giving her a quick kiss. "Wake the guys. Once we get close I want every hand and set of eyes looking for survivors."
Sam nodded and turned to go below. "And get Vala to get the coffee on," he called after her as he reached for the radio to tell the Coast Guard that they were on their way.
SSSSSSSSSSSSS
Vala stood in the wheelhouse, the tension in the room a near palpable force. Jack was driving the boat with grim determination while Sam stood beside him, one hand on the back of his chair.
Murray and Evan were staring out the windows, their eyes glued to the surging waves. Out on deck, Jonas stood at the bow while Daniel readied their rescue gear – long ropes with flotation rings attached to the end.
"We should be almost there," Sam said.
"Depends on which way the current's running," Jack said.
"Anything on the EPIRB?" Murray asked. Every boat was equipped with an emergency position indicating radio beacon. Usually, if a boat got in trouble, they could radio for help, but sometimes they couldn't. So many EPIRBS were designed to literally float free. Sometimes they were the only way anyone would know if a boat went down.
"We're receiving it," Sam said. "But, even with the GPS information from the Coast Guard, it's not exact. It could be a couple of hours old and a mile or two away from where it really is."
"Not to mention that the survivors may be no where near where their EPIRB is," Murray said.
"Then why have it?" Evan asked. "I mean, if it only gets you close."
"They're meant to be a Hail Mary," Sam said. "And, if you're in a plane or chopper flying a search pattern, all you need is to get close."
"How far away is the Coast Guard?" Vala asked.
"Six hours before they can get a plane here," Jack said.
"A cutter is another eight away," Sam said.
Jack had been remaining in contact with the Coast Guard, apprising them of his location as they planned the search. They all knew, but didn't say, by the time the Coast Guard could get to the site of the sinking there wouldn't be much rescuing to be done. The most they would be able to hope for was to recover any bodies.
"I'm going to go help Daniel," Vala said.
"I'd feel better if you stayed inside," Jack said. "If things get dicey we don't need inexperienced people on deck."
"Inexperienced is not a term I would apply to myself," Vala declared. "I'll be fine."
She turned on her heel and descended the stairs, quickly putting on the orange waterproof pants and slicker of a deckhand before going out onto the deck.
She saw that Daniel was finished with his preparations and joined Jonas on the bow. "See anything?" she asked, joining them.
"You think we'd keep it a secret if we did?" Daniel shot back.
"No need to be testy," she chided. "I’m merely making conversation."
"Lots of water and waves," Jonas said, ignoring Daniel. "Ignore him. The thought of people in the water is making him grumpy."
"I'm not grumpy."
"Yes, you are," Vala said. "I dare say, participating in a rescue is bringing up memories of your experiences of a year ago. As you struggle to deal with the emotional turmoil you own temper is shortened and you are willing to use it as an excuse to keep others at bay until you no longer feel vulnerable."
He stared at her, blinking slowly. "She's got you pegged," Jonas said. Daniel frowned at her.
"We can argue later, darling." She patted him on the arm. "Let's see if we can find these poor souls." She turned and focused her eyes out onto the sea and he did the same just a few seconds later. She jumped as Jack sounded the boat's horn. "What the hell did he do that for?"
"Sound carries," Daniel said. "If we make noise, maybe they can do the same and help us find them."
"That makes an astonishing amount of sense," Vala said. "Why didn't you come up with the idea?" She hit Daniel on the arm.
"Why didn't—"
"I see something," Jonas said, interrupting Daniel's bout of indignation.
They both turned and looked the way he was pointing. "What did you see?" Daniel asked.
"I thought…I thought I saw a flash of orange."
"Where?"
"That way."
Daniel stood up, climbing up on a ledge to gain a bit of height. "Don't do that, you'll fall over," Vala said, digging her hand into his slicker.
"I see it!" Daniel said. He looked back towards the wheel house and pointed. "Vala, go tell Jack—"
The boat turned and Daniel lurched, only Vala's hands keeping him from falling forward. He fell, landing on top of her. "As much fun as this might be, I'm afraid I must insist upon a better location, unless of course you want to be on the bottom."
"Break it up you two," Jack said over the loud speaker.
Daniel got off her and Vala got up just as Murray, Sam and Evan hurried onto deck. "Stay back where it's safe," Daniel told her as he hurried to the rail, Jonas on his heels. The boat slowed and Vala moved towards the rail where she could see as the others put on their flotation vests, a precaution in case one of them fell in the water.
She could see an orange shape bobbing in the waves and recognized it as a person in a survival suit. "He's not moving!" Murray said.
"Someone may need to go in the water," Sam said. "Evan, go and get one of the suits."
"What do you mean go in the water?" Vala asked, moving towards them. "It's too cold."
"Not in a suit," Sam said.
Evan returned with a duffle bag and Jonas stepped forward to take it. "Jonas, I was going to—"
"I’m a good swimmer," he interrupted Sam. "Ask them."
"He is," Daniel said.
"Like a damn fish," Murray complained.
"Okay," Sam said. "Get suited up."
They got close to the man and Jack cut the engines. He moved, but sluggishly. "He's alive," Sam said. "Murray, get on the crane. Daniel, rig the safety ring from the crane. We'll use it to lower Jonas into the water and to pull that guy out."
The two men hurried to follow their orders and Sam looked at Vala. "Vala, go below and get some blankets and towels. Also some warm water and raid the guy's bunks and get some dry clothing."
"Already done," she said. Sam raised her eyebrows. "This isn't the first time," Vala said. She smiled saucily. "And I know all sorts of ways to warm him up."
Sam chuckled and shook her head. "I bet you do. Let the guys do their work then you can do yours."
Vala nodded and stepped back, staying well out of the way. Within a minute, Murray and Daniel had the crane rigged and Jonas slid the ring over his head and settled it around his waist. "Up and over, carefully," Sam said,
Murray manipulated the controls and Jonas was lifted off the deck, over the rail and down into the water below. Despite being warned, Vala couldn't help but move closer to the rail so that she could see what was going on in the water.
"Give me slack!" Jonas yelled and Murray lowered the crane.
"It's as low as it'll go."
Jonas paddled over to the victim and fought the water as he awkwardly pulled the ring over his head and helped the man into it. As soon as he was situated, Jonas waved.
"Pull him up, slowly," Sam said. "Evan, Daniel."
The two men moved to the rail, ready to help the man onto the deck. As soon as he was in reach, they leaned over and manhandled him on board, quickly sliding him out of the ring.
"Vala, go, Evan, help her," Sam ordered. The two of them picked the man off the deck and dragged him down to the galley.
"Help me get the suit off," Vala said as Evan laid the man down on the floor. Between the two of them they unzipped the bulky suit and pulled it off him. "What's your name?" Vala asked, glad to see that he was at least semi-conscious.
"Kevin…Kevin Gage," he stuttered, his voice shaking with cold and exhaustion.
"Well, Kevin Gage, welcome to the Stargazer," Vala said. "Now, take off your pants."
He stared at her. "How else will we get you warm? And don't worry, sugar, I doubt you have anything I haven't seen before. So no need to be shy."
They heard a commotion and Jonas came into the galley, his own survival suit hanging off his shoulders. "Get that thing off, you're getting water all over my nice clean floor," Vala chided.
Sam followed. "Jonas, get warmed up. Murray, Daniel, get back up on deck. There should be three more men in the water around here somewhere."
Sam knelt beside the victim as Vala helped him out of his clothes. "Do you know where your shipmates are?" Sam asked.
Kevin shook his head. "We tried to stay together but…we just couldn't hang on."
"It's okay. Did you all have your suits on?" He nodded. "We're going to go and keep looking. You're gonna be all right." She looked at Jonas. "When you feel up to it, we can use another pair of eyes. Evan, help Vala. If you guys need anything, just call."
She retreated upstairs. "Evan, let's get Kevin up on the bench. Then wet up one of those hand towels a bit and stick it in the microwave for twenty seconds. I want it warm but not hot."
She put a mug of warm tea, liberally laced with sugar, into Kevin's hands and then took the towel from Evan. She reached down and laid the towel in his lap, grinning at his startled look. "We need to start warming you up." She looked to Evan. "Keep them coming." She smiled at Kevin. "We'll have you snug as a bug in a rug in no time."
SSSSSSSSSS
"He's alive," Sam said, walking into the wheelhouse.
"Good," Jack said.
"He said there were three more, all in suits. They tried to stay together but got separated."
"Okay. I got an updated location from the EPIRB, we'll zig-zag back and forth between here and there."
"Sounds good."
"Hey." She moved over to wrap her arm over his shoulders. "We got one back. Vala may traumatize him for life but he's alive."
"I know," he said. "Go take care of the guys, I got this."
SSSSSSSSSSSS
Jack gripped the controls and watched as the cutter maneuvered close to his boat. Out on deck, Murray and Daniel carried a plastic shrouded form. He heard footsteps coming up into the wheelhouse and he turned, not surprised to see Kevin and the other two survivors of the John Hooker. "Hey," Jack said. "The cutter will use a zodiac for the transfer," he said.
"Thank you," Kevin said. "We all want to thank you for—"
"Not necessary," Jack interrupted. "Seriously guys, we're just paying back karma."
"We're glad we were close," Sam said, joining them. The three survivors had been guests aboard the Stargazer for the past twelve hours, long enough for all three of them to warm up and recover – physically anyway – from their ordeal. But now the Coast Guard had arrived and was ready to take the survivors, and the one casualty, back to Dutch Harbor.
"Sam, go down and take care of the transfer huh?" Jack asked.
"Sure. Come on, guys."
She led them down and Jack watched as they stepped out onto the deck, the three members of the John Hooker's crew deliberately keeping their distance from the shrouded form of their friend. One member hadn't survived the cold and they'd pulled him dead from the water. Lacking a proper body bag they'd shrouded the man in heavy plastic bags.
Jack watched as the Coast Guard maneuvered their zodiac close, tossing up lines to secure the craft to the Stargazer. Jack saw his crew roll out a rope ladder and one of the Coast Guard came on board. Curious, Jack called Daniel up to take the wheel and he made his way down to the deck.
"What's going on?" Jack asked, as he got closer he recognized the Coast Guard officer as the same one who'd helped to pull him and George out of the water last year.
"Nothing," Sam said.
"Bullshit, nothing," Commander Mitchell said. "Sam's dad is in the Kodiak hospital,"
She shook her head. "Jack—"
"You need to go," Jack said.
"Look, Jack—"
He grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the rest. "Sam, last year you told me that the one thing you brought away from your crash on that island is that life's too short to risk regrets."
"Jack, he disowned me," she said. "He hasn't talked to me since we I resigned. He put 'return to sender' on the birthday card I sent him."
"All the more reason to go," he said. She shook her head and he grabbed her shoulders. "For me. Go. Talk to him, yell at him, whatever. Go." She closed her eyes and sighed.
"Give me five!" she called out to Cam.
"No problem," he said. "We'll just get these guys loaded and wait for you."
Sam left and went below, returning in a few minutes with a small duffle bag. Jack walked over to her and pulled her into a big hug and kissed her soundly. "Take care and let me know what happens."
"I will," she promised.
She walked over to Mitchell and he helped her down the rope ladder before descending himself. In just a few minutes the zodiac was free and skimming over the waves towards the cutter. Jack indulged himself watching before he sighed and turned to his crew.
"Okay, we pulled off our miracle for the day, now let's get fishing!"
SSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Sam stood outside the door, steeling herself to enter. She contemplated turning around. She could just get a hotel and wait for the Stargazer to come to port…and then deal with Jack, who'd never let her live it down.
Cam hadn't gone into details, simply telling her that her dad was sick and in the hospital. So here she was. Sighing, she stepped into the room, not quite sure what to expect.
Her father was propped up in bed, wrapped in a plaid robe with a TV remote lying in his hand. He looked up, clearly shocked to see her. "Sam."
"Hey." She eased into the room. She stepped towards him, shoving her hands into her jacket pockets.
"What are you doing here?"
"I just, aah…just stopped by and—"
"And what? Your fisherman kick you out?"
Sam took a breath and closed her eyes. "No, he didn't kick me out."
"Well, why else would you come?"
"You are such a bastard," she said. She shrugged. "Why the hell DID I come? I should have just stayed on the boat and—"
"The one that's already sunk once," he said, swinging his legs over the side of the bed.
"It rolled over, it didn't sink. And it righted itself," she said, defending her, their boat.
"It's a rusting death trap," he said.
"No, that was my Jayhawk," she shot back, glaring at him. He fell silent, as if not knowing how to respond. "We pulled three men out of the water. Cameron was on the cutter that came to pick them up. He told me that you were sick. Jack insisted that I come." She shrugged. "I came. I'll leave you alone now."
She turned on her heel and headed for the door. "Sam! Sam!" He called out and she stopped, her hand on the doorknob. She didn't turn around and, instead stood there, half wondering why the hell she wasn't walking down the hall.
His hand grabbed her arm and gently turned her towards him. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"I wasn't in the water."
"That's not what I asked," he said.
"We got three out of four back."
"That's good," he said.
Sam sighed. "Dad, I love Jack. He's smart and funny and he makes me laugh and…I want to spend the rest of my life with him, whether it's fifty days or fifty years," she said quickly before she lost her nerve.
"Your career—"
"Was what you wanted it to be," she said. "Yes, I loved flying but…" she broke off and closed her eyes, composing herself, "When I sat there, waiting to die, all I could think of was everything I wish I'd done, everything I wish I'd had. Jack is that everything. I feel more complete with him than I ever did fishing people out of the water."
He looked at her and sighed. He gently tugged on her arm, pulling her towards two chairs in the room. He guided her towards one and then he sat down in the other. "I never knew you felt like that," he said. "I thought you wanted to be in the guard."
"I did,"' she said. "I just…I held Paul while he died," she said. "I felt him die. And then I sat there, and it was so cold, and he just kept getting colder and…I can't do that again, Dad. I know that you're disappointed and…I just can't go back."
"These boats, I've seen so many of them go down," Jacob said. "I've seen so many men, good men, lose their lives to the sea and…I don't want you to be one of them."
"I know it's dangerous, dad. I know the statistics. But nothing is totally safe."
"And fishing is safer?" he asked. "Sam, I've seen those boats. I used to inspect them. I know what they're like."
"Jack is a good captain. And he will never do anything to endanger my life. I love him and I'm going to marry him and—"
"And it's your life," he interrupted.
"That too," she agreed. "Dad, He's going to come and pick me up once he's done fishing. Maybe if…why are you here?" she asked. "Cameron never did say and—"
"I’m fine," he said. "Just a bout of food poisoning that knocked me on my ass." He rolled his eyes ruefully. "And a couple of Coast Guard docs that got spooked that one of their admirals might drop dead. I'm going home in the morning. You should come and stay with me," he said abruptly.
"What?" Sam asked, startled.
"Your crabber might not be here for days. No need to waste a bunch of money on a hotel room."
"Dad, we haven't talked to each other in nearly a year. Do you really think we should share living space?" she asked.
He sighed ruefully. "I guess not."
"I'll come back tomorrow," she said.
They said their goodbyes and she left, pulling her cell phone out of her pocket once she was out of the hospital. She waited patiently as her call clicked and popped its way to the satellite phone on the Stargazer. "Jack? I can barely hear you." She put her finger in one ear and closed her eyes, trying to concentrate. "No, no, he's fine. Yeah, I'm going to get a hotel. Okay, yeah, let me know when you're going to be in and I'll meet you. Okay, later, be safe."
She slipped the phone into her pocket and looked around, taking stock before she started off down the street. She'd just find a hotel and chill out and wait for the Stargazer to finish and come and get her.
SSSSSSSSSSS
Jack steered the Stargazer up to its berth, easing the boat in. On deck, Daniel and Murray were at the rail, holding large bag buoys to protect the boat from hitting the dock. Jonas and Lorne threw the mooring ropes to a waiting person on the dock and Jack cut the engines.
He stopped for a second, gathering his thoughts before he continued with the process of securing the boat. "So, this is Kodiak Island," Vala said, bounding up the steps to the wheel house.
"Yep," Jack responded, barely sparing her a glance.
"And which way is the air base?" she asked, grinning widely.
"Vala—"
"Oh don't get your knickers in a knot," she interrupted. "I simply wish to enjoy the scenery and natural beauty of this fine island."
"There's signs," he said, lacking the patience to deal with the woman. She was fun and light hearted, and certainly got on well with the crew, but sometimes, her ebullient personality simply overwhelmed him. "Just don’t get in trouble."
"I have no plans to cause trouble," she protested.
"I think trouble is your middle name."
"And you, my dear captain, are an unapologetic cynic."
"Glad you've been paying attention," Jack shot back, leaving her behind as he went down onto deck."
"Boss?"
"Do you want us to wait with the boat?" Daniel asked. "We can finish cleaning up while you go and get Sam." Jonas and Lorne joined them, waiting for Jack's instructions.
He hadn't given much thought to what the crew would do while he tracked down Sam. In fact, he hadn't expected them to come with him. The Stargazer was one of the oddities of the fleet, most of her crew were native Alaskans, everyone but Lorne and Murray living in or near Dutch Harbor itself. So, once they'd off loaded the boat, Jack had expected the crew to go home, but they'd all insisted that they go with him to Kodiak Island to pick her up.
"That'd be good," Jack said. "I don't know how long I'll be."
"I won't let them leave without you," Vala said.
Jack nodded, rolling his eyes. "Daniel, don't let her leave the boat," he ordered.
He jumped over to the dock, ignoring Vala's protests. He hadn't been able to get a hold of Sam since her short phone call a few days ago. So, having no idea where she was, he decided to start at the hotel and go from there.
"Jack!" He looked up, smiling as he recognized Sam hurrying towards him. He picked up the pace, meeting her half way. He wrapped his arms around her and swung her around once.
"You made good time," she said as soon as her feet were back on the dock.
"She flies when her tanks are empty," Jack bragged.
"Don’t kill me," she whispered, stepping back. "Jack, this is my dad," she introduced as an older man joined them. "Jacob Carter, this is my fiancé, Jack O'Neill."
"Sir," Jack said, holding out his hand.
"Captain." He took Jack's hand and shook it. Jack kept his face bland as the man looked him up and down, clearly sizing him up. Jack didn’t think it was a coincidence that the man was wearing his uniform.
Jacob smiled. "So, Sam just can't seem to tell me enough about this boat of yours."
"Ours," Sam corrected. "Jack, think we can show him the Stargazer?"
Jack shrugged. "Don't see why not."
He turned and started to lead the pair of them back to the boat. As he was walking his stomach sank. He knew what the boat looked like. And it definitely wasn't ready for a Coast Guard inspection. "I aah, I do have to say we literally dropped the catch at the processors and ran," Jack said.
"Meaning?" Jacob asked.
"Well, you know, when we get done we clean her up stem to stern and aah, well, since Sam was here and we wanted to get here and—"
"What Jack is trying to say is they were worried about me and hurried here so don't bust his ass if there's a few fish scales in the bait containers," Sam said.
Jacob merely nodded and shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket, as if he were deliberately biting his tongue.
As they got closer to the boat's berth, Jack's stomach clenched as he saw that his crew were not alone. "Ah hell," Jack muttered. "What's—" He broke off when Sam tugged on his arm and pointed out the Time Bandit, moored just a short distance away. "I told you," he said. "I told you they wouldn't let it go."
"Come on," she urged, breaking into a jog. The admiral forgotten, Jack followed her, coming to a stop just short of the Time Bandit crew. "HEY!" Sam shouted, grabbing Jonathan's hand just as he was ready to toss something at the Stargazer.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Jack demanded, moving to Sam's side.
"Payback's a bitch," Scotty Hilstrand said, a ball of underwear in his hand.
Something sailed through the air and skittered across the dock. Jack looked down and stared as he realized that the dock was covered with king crab body parts. "What are you doing?" he called up to his crew. Jonas, Daniel, Murray, Evan and Vala were all standing at the rail, Jonas and Evan each holding dead crab in their hands.
"They started it, Boss," Murray called out.
"We were just cleaning up, like you told us to do," Jonas said.
"They showed up, started harassing us," Evan called out.
Jonathan turned to Jack. "You owe me a paint job," he said, moving to stand in front of Jack.
"He does not," Sam said. "It's mostly worn off right now."
"You defaced our boat," Andy said.
"We did not," Jack said.
"Looks to me like they refaced it," Jacob said, joining them.
Andy turned to him, his mouth closing as he caught sight of the man's uniform.
"Umm…"
"It also looks to me like you're littering," Jacob continued.
"We're littering?" He pointed out the crab bodies scatted on the dock. "What do you call this?"
"It's biodegradable, your stuff isn't." Jonathan sputtered. "Did you have a reason for coming into port? Other than pestering this crew?"
"No," Andy finally said.
"Then you have an hour before I call the Harbor Master and tell him that you're gonna be staying a while," Jacob said.
"Come on, man," Andy said to his brothers. "Let's go."
Once they were gone, Jacob looked pointedly at the littered dock, then at Jack. He nodded. "Yo, guys, get down here and clean up this mess," he ordered.
His crew obediently left the boat, bringing an empty tote with them. They started to pick up the crab, well aware that it was in appropriate to dump from the docks. "Why didn't you guys dump this dead loss like I told you to?" Jack asked.
It was one of the few chores he'd assigned his crew during their race from Dutch to Kodiak. It was normal to lose a few crab in the tanks, and it was a loss that the crew simply accepted. They were only paid for live deliveries, so when the cannery crew emptied the tanks into massive brailers, they simply tossed the dead ones aside and it was up to the crew to dispose of them. Something they usually did once they were out in open water.
Except it was something his crew obviously hadn't done.
"Umm, I fell asleep," Daniel said. "By the time we noticed it, we were too close to Kodiak to dump it, so we figured we'd just wait until after you picked up Sam and do it on the way back to Dutch."
"So you were the ones that painted the smiley face on the Time Bandit's hull?" Jacob asked.
"Of course we were," Vala said, stepping around Jonas as he picked up crab off the dock. "A brilliant prank if I must say so myself."
"Of course you must," Jack groused, rolling his eyes as Vala smiled brightly at Jacob.
"You do realize, young lady, that defacing another ship is an offense that could cost a captain his license."
Vala's face fell for a few seconds and Sam stepped forward. "Why don't you go and work on the galley," Sam said, nudging her towards the boat.
"So, this is your crew?" Jacob asked.
"This is Murray, Jonas Quinn, Evan Lorne, Daniel Jackson, and you met Vala," Jack said.
"Quite the group of characters," Jacob said.
"They're good people, Dad."
"Sam! Isn't this yours?" Vala called out, tossing a peek-a-boo teddy onto the dock, where it landed at Jacob's feet.
Color crept up the admiral's face, as the turned towards Jack…
Jack woke with a start, the clatter of a rod and reel pulling him from his doze. He frantically scrambled for the rod, aware that Sam would never let him forget it if he lost another one.
"Nice catch," Sam said, holding out a cold bottle of beer.
"Huh? It slipped," Jack said, with mock innocence.
"Aahah. You know, I think I might have figured out how come you never catch anything. The snoring scares them away," she said, sitting down in the chair beside his.
She leaned back, sighing contentedly as she stretched out her legs and closed her eyes. "Don't say it," she said, without opening her eyes.
"What?"
"Yes, I know, we should have done this a long, long time ago."
"Ah." Jack grinned. "You can’t blame me. I really don't get to say 'I told you so', that often." He sighed and looked around, his eyes soaking in the beauty of their surroundings, the sun setting across the lack, its rays turning the water into a large puddle of molten gold. He gave up on fishing, slowly cranking the reel to pull the hook out of the water. "And I wasn't sleeping," he said, laying his rod down on the dock. "I was thinking."
"Solving the problems of the universe," she asked.
"Nah," he shook his head. "I think I want to get a boat."
~Fin~