Chapter four

Before Jack was even released from the hospital he called his friend, Chris McNab, who it just so happened did still live in Alaska….Juneau to be exact. And though Chris didn't have a business of his own, he was involved with planes.

"I fly tourists around in a float plane. You know, so they can get a close look at the glaciers. I even land on them sometimes…the glaciers not the tourists," he added with a chuckle. "The pay is good, and I don't have to work when the weather's bad. Come on up, and I'll introduce you to a few people in the business. As good as you are, I bet you get a job offer in no time."

"I doubt that. I don't get around so good anymore. Lost my left leg a few weeks back in a accident." He'd have to start from scratch; take lessons, and pass tests in order to get a license, and he didn't feel up to it.

"Ah, hell, Jack, that's rough. Flying accident?"

"No, but let's not talk about it. How are you? Did you ever marry that girl you were living with?"

"As a matter of fact I did. We have five kids now."

"Five! Wow, once you get started, you don't quit," Jack laughed.

"Yeah, Marie finally made me get snipped, 'cause she didn't want any more babies. I heard what happened to Charlie. I'm real sorry, Jack."

"Yah, he was a great kid."

"You still with Sara?"

"No, she left me after Charlie died."

"Shit, that's harsh, man!"

"Yah, well, I guess I deserved it. Listen, would it be okay if I came up to see you in a week or so? You don't have to put me up or anything like that, just show me around town."

"I can do even better than that. If you want to, you can use our hunting lodge. Actually it's an old cabin that belonged to my wife's father. But he's dead now, and no one ever uses it. It's not fancy, but it's in a nice spot out by a little lake. I think you'd like it there."

"Thanks, Chris, it sounds good. I'll phone you as soon as I book a flight."

"Yeah, call me and I'll pick you up at the airport. It's good to hear from you, Jack."

"Same here! Thanks, I'll see you soon!"

After Jack hung up he felt a little bit better. At least now he had a goal in mind, although it didn't involve much. He loved forests and mountains, and he'd have a friend in town and a roof over his head, at least for a little while. He'd have his retirement salary and a disability check coming in too, so he wouldn't be hurting for money. He could even buy his own place, if he wanted to. If he liked it there well enough, that is. What he would need was something to keep him busy, but he could figure that out later on, once he got the lay of the land.

When Jack was released from the hospital the following week he took a taxi home. He was pretty good at using crutches, having used them so many times before, so he got around okay. He decided he might try one of those prosthetic things later on, if he felt he really needed it. For now he was just happy to be able to move around the house on his own. As far as the pain he felt in his missing leg, he was able to deal with it most of the time through sheer will. When that failed and he couldn't get to sleep some nights, he would take one of sedatives the doctor at the hospital had prescribed.

Next he had to decide what to do about his house. He really loved it and hated to sell it, so he listed it for sale, but at a very high price. He also arranged for the listing agent to take care of the property for him, like seeing to it that the yard was maintained and that repairs were made when needed. So now all he had to do was pack up his personal belongings and his clothes, decide what to take with him and what to throw out, and he would be ready to move to move North to Alaska!

Jack arrived in the capital of Alaska the following Thursday afternoon with two suitcases, one duffle bag and two boxes of his most treasured personal possessions. Chris met him at the airport as promised, and together the two tall men loaded Jack's stuff into the Hummer. Chris was broad, where Jack was thin, but otherwise they were a lot alike. Even their coloring was the same, and both had dark brown hair with some silver in it. And as they loaded the truck, women passing by turned to look at the two attractive men, even though one of them was hobbling around using a crutch.

Chris turned his head and gawked at a tall blonde girl who couldn't have been more than twenty. She looked back over her shoulder at Jack as she passed by, and Chris laughed. "You're gonna do okay up here, Jack."

"Nah, it's you they're looking at. Not a guy with only one good leg," Jack responded. Then he quickly changed the subject. "This is some ride you've got here," Jack said as he opened the passenger door. He got in, but not without some trouble. He was thankful that Chris did not offer to help him.

"When you've got five kids and two dogs, and you live up here, you need something big enough and tough enough," Chris replied as he climbed up behind the steering wheel. "You good to go?" Chris asked, glancing very briefly toward Jack's missing limb.

"Yah, sure you betcha!" Jack replied cheerfully. He was still having trouble maneuvering with only one foot, but he was determined not to be a burden to anyone.

"I'll take you to Pop's cabin first, so you can put your stuff away. Then you're having dinner with Maria and me and the kids."

"Are you sure? I don't want to put you out? Loaning me the cabin for a while is more than enough."

"If I don't bring you home with me, my old lady will have a fit, so shut your trap!"

"Yessir!" Jack replied, giving Chris a half-assed salute.

"I haven't been your CO for many moons, Jack, so just call me Chris…..or Pit Bull."

"You know about that?" Jack asked, laughing. It was the nickname he and the other guys had called their CO behind his back.

"Yeah, I know about it. But what I don't know is who started it?"

"Hey, don't look at me! They were already calling you that when I got to camp." Jack had been only nineteen when he'd first met Chris who was ten years older, which meant he was 56 now. Jack thought the man looked great for his age. "I thought the name fit you though," Jack added with a wicked grin. Chris responded by slapping the back of Jack's head.

"Just like old times, right Airman O'Neill?"

"If you say so, Pit Bull." Both men laughed big belly laughs as they drove off down the street.

Twenty minutes outside of town, where the roads were unpaved and the forest was so thick that the sunlight barely reached the ground, they arrived at the cabin. Jack liked it immediately because it reminded him of the one his Grandfather had built in Northern Minnesota. It was small and simple, but sturdily built. When his grandfather died Jack had already been stationed overseas, and since he had no siblings to care for it, the cabin had fallen into disrepair. There was no telling what shape it was in now. And though Jack had considered going there to live, he knew he wasn't capable of making the old place livable.

"This is great, Chris," Jack said enthusiastically, as he inspected the big bedroom. Not only was there a large bed, there was also a desk and a bookcase filled with books. There was a fireplace in the living room and also baseboard heaters in each room. "But I can't accept this without giving you something for it. How about I pay you eight hundred a month rent?"

"Five hundred and you've got yourself a deal. All I ask is that you try not to break anything that belonged to Pop, and you don't burn the place down. Marie would shoot both of us. I'll show you where the generator is before I leave, and the propane tank was just filled, so you should be set for a couple of months. The local gas company comes out and fills it regularly."

"How can I pass up a deal like this?" The two men shook hands, and then Jack checked the refrigerator to see how much room there was inside. He figured he'd need to rent a car and go get some chow pretty soon, but he found the box full. "Hey, you bought all this stuff for me?"

"I couldn't very well leave you out here with nothing to eat, now could I?" Chris had stocked it with enough food for two weeks, plus two twelve-packs of beer.

Twenty minutes later…

"You always did know what I like," Jack commented, as he sat on the sofa tipping back a bottle of beer.

"Yeah, I did. You remember that little red-haired Navy nurse down in Sydney? What was her name?"

"Carla." Jack remembered her alright. She had almost made him late for his flight. One more hour in that hotel with her and he would have ended up in the brig.

"Yeah, Carla. You really had a hard-on for her."

"Yah, I did. But I got over it," Jack said with a chuckle.

"Next thing I knew you were married with a kid on the way."

"Yah, I met Sara that year when I went back home to see the folks. She was a friend of Joe Taylor's sister. Remember him? He was in Kuwait with us."

"Yeah, I remember. Remember his sister too. She had long black silky hair and big tits. Her name was Tricia. I sure loved them tits!"

"You love anything with tits, Chris," Jack teased. "Five kids, Jeezus! It's a wonder Marie didn't have you castrated!"

"You were always ready for a little something too, as I recall. I'm surprised you haven't hooked up with someone since your divorce. Or have you?"

"Actually there was someone, but it's over." He didn't like to think about Sam, so he tried to push the image of her smiling face out of his mind. He still missed her something awful, but his macho side wouldn't allow him to admit it. He might not be the same man he was, but he still had some pride left.

"Well, there's always more fish in the sea, Jack. Knowing you, I'm sure it won't take you long to find someone to warm your bed at night, and in the daytime too," the older man assured Jack. "Hell, you may only have one leg, Jack, but as I recall it's that other appendage of yours that the women really enjoy," he said with a wink and a smile.

Jack just laughed, but inside he wondered if Chris was correct? Maybe he should try to meet someone else? After all, Sam had made it clear that she didn't want him anymore. Besides, if he hadn't been good enough to hold her interest before, he certainly wasn't good enough now.

That Sunday at Chris and Marie's house Jack met a Native American man who owned a gift shop in town. He said he needed someone to help out on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, which were the busiest days of the week. He sold pots, jewelry, blankets and other crafts made by the Native Americans who lived in the area. Most of his customers were the tourists who got off the cruise ships. Jack thought the job sounded like something he would enjoy, and the talk of pottery reminded him of his mother. When he was a child his mother had worked in clay, and he could still recall her trying to teach him how to make a pot on her big wheel.

So Jack gladly took the job, figuring something new might be just the thing to take his mind off the people and things he wanted to forget.

TBC