Thanks everyone for reading/reviewing!
For anyone who hasn't heard yet, there is a D.C. forum on this site now! Check it out when you get the chance!
And I wrote a one-shot fan fic called A Day on the Bering Sea….
Found some free time today so I decided to go ahead and update a little earlier than normal…enjoy!
Chapter 11: Rogue Wave
It seemed like only a couple of minutes had gone by when Jake shook Jack awake.
"What?" snapped Jack, irritably.
"Come on!" urged Jake, "We gotta pull two strings in today before that storm hits us!"
Jack narrowed her eyes at Jake, but sat up and stretched briefly before following him out onto the deck. As she gazed out on the water she saw the first buoy out on the horizon. The sun was setting and before long they would have to rely on the deck lights to see. The ocean was up to fifteen foot swells. According to the weather forecast, it could reach up to forty foot swells that night.
Jack shuddered at the thought. Just a couple of days ago, another storm system had moved through the crab grounds. That storm nearly wiped Edgar off the boat. Thinking about Edgar made something tighten in Jack's chest. She was not sure whether it was apprehension…or something else.
"Alright, show time!" yelled Nick, standing near the block.
Jack shook her head to clear her thoughts and ran over to help Jake wrestle the pot back onto the launcher. As the pot broke the surface of the water, they leaned over the rail, trying to see if they had caught a decent amount of crab.
Jake suddenly cursed angrily and slammed his fist into the rail. Jack's heart plummeted as they dumped the pitiful amount of crab onto the table.
Edgar moved to help them sort the crab. He exchanged an uneasy glance with Jack as he tossed two of the crab into the holding tank.
"How many?" called Sig as he leaned over the rail outside the wheelhouse.
"Ten!" shouted Nick.
Sig cursed angrily and stalked back into the wheelhouse.
They continued pulling up the string throughout that evening. All in all there was an average of only eight crab per pot. By the time the Northwestern crew had hauled the last pot, the deck was beginning to roll and the wind whipped sea spray into their eyes. The waves slowly began to crash onto the deck, increasing in size and speed.
"I want everyone below deck until we reach the next string!" ordered Sig over the intercom.
The tired, beaten, and frustrated crew had no problem obeying that order. They stripped off their rain gear and made a bee-line for their bunks.
By now the boat had begun to rock violently, causing some of them to stumble on their way to the bunks.
Several minutes later, without warning, a massive rogue wave slammed into the side of the Northwestern. The boat careened wildly on its side as wave after wave pummeled it.
Sig had been thrown from the captain's chair and landed on the other side of the wheelhouse. He struggled to get up and climb over to the controls.
Below deck, the crew had been thrown from their bunks. They shouted and cried out in fear and surprise.
After several tense moments, the boat finally righted itself. Sig reached up as he felt a trickle of blood run down his face. He had hit his head on something when he fell. A jagged cut ran across his eyebrow. He cursed as he grabbed the radio and began calling out to his crew.
"Is everyone okay!?" he yelled.
Edgar stumbled over to the radio and picked it up.
"I…I don't know, hang on!" he called as he turned to take a quick head-count.
He felt himself begin to panic when he realized they were one short.
"We're missing someone!" he yelled.
The crew began to glance around, trying to figure out who was not there.
Then Edgar felt his stomach flip over and his breath caught in his throat.
Jack was missing.
"Edgar!?" shouted Sig, growing more afraid for the missing crew member, "Who is it?"
"Its…its Jack," he muttered in shock, "She…she isn't here."
Matt and Jake exchanged horrified glances. They ran over to the rain gear and prepared to go out onto the deck.
"We'll look outside!" yelled Matt into the radio.
"If she was outside then she's off the boat!" shouted Sig, panic rising in his chest.
Edgar's heart raced and he felt like he could not breathe.
"Come on!" shouted Nick, grabbing Edgar's arm, "You, me, and Norman can search inside!"
Edgar nodded numbly and made his way into the galley. Norman and Nick began searching the other rooms on the boat, calling for Jack.
Edgar walked into the galley. It was pitch black and he fumbled for the light switch. He flipped on the lights and began to glance around. He gaped in shock when he saw Jack lying on the floor. Beside of her, one of the cabinets looked like it had been smashed in. With a thrill of fear, Edgar realized that she must have been thrown into the cabinet when the ship went over on its side.
But what scared him even more was the fact that she was not moving. He ran over to her and cradled her head in his hands.
"Jack?" he asked, voice shaky, "Jack…come on, baby."
Jack was completely unconscious. With panic rising in his chest, Edgar began to yell for help…
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