Back on the ship, Kristin decided to take a small detour on the way to the
Doctor's Office and went to the bridge. Worried about Nathan and Lucas, she
was hoping to find the Captain to see what was being done about the people
who had gone ashore. The ship continued to shake and tilt as she made her
way up the steps to deck 10. Quiet chaos reigned, with lots of sick people,
children crying and crew people scurrying around. Finally, she made it to
the bridge area but could not catch sight of the Captain
. Another officer came over to her. "Ma'am, no passengers are allowed in this area. Why don't I find someone to accompany you back to your cabin?"
"I need to see the Captain," Kristin requested firmly. "My traveling companions went ashore on a glacier excursion."
"I'm sorry, Ma'am. Captain Shea is extremely busy right now. If you give me your name and cabin number, I'll have someone contact you later," the officer politely offered.
Kristin did not think of herself as hysterical female type. Certainly, she did not usually allow herself to act like one. Unfortunately, she felt as if this was one of those times for an exception to the rules. "I must see the Captain! My friends may be in need of help!"
"Ma'am, with all due respect, I have shipload of people to think about, not just two people. We cannot help them right now." His voice was firm, his expression serious. "An iceberg has broken off the glacier and there could be more. We need to move this ship away from the shore. I'm terribly sorry but your friends are on their own for awhile. Now, I really need to get back to my job." With that he turned to talk to an officer who was walking by.
Panic started to overtake Kristin as she walked away. All this time, she had been so worried about Nathan and Lucas - and now she might be in more trouble than they were.
**********
Several hours had passed and night had fallen. Nathan was sitting at the table wrapped in a warm blanket, his damp jacket and pants drying by the fire. Over dinner, he had told Annie about the glacier excursion and the exploding helicopter, which had resulted in their confused wanderings. Annie was a friendly, down to earth sort of person and Nathan found her easy to talk to. Most of the time he was in the company of his officers and crew, who never could see past his Captain stripes. Lately, it seemed Kristin and Lucas were the only people he could have a casual conversation with and even then, they were still technically part of the crew. But Annie was like a breath of fresh air, with who he could just be Nathan, with no military garbage to go along with it. So he had ended up telling her all his past, with Carol and Robert, and about his new found family of Kristin and Lucas. Once in a while, he would drift over to the bed to check on Lucas, touching his hand or smoothing back the hair from his face.
Picking up his coffee cup, and taking a long sip of the warm liquid, he smiled at Annie. "Well. Now that I've told you my life story." He let out a short laugh. "I don't know what got into me. Usually I don't .well, let say I like my privacy. But I know nothing about you."
Annie got up and took some of the dirty dishes over to the sink. "Not much to know. I'm a schoolteacher. Once, in another life, I had a husband and a son. They were killed in a car accident ten years ago. I moved up here to spend some time with my brother and his family and I never went back. I decided I liked the peace and quiet."
Rising quickly, one hand holding the blanket around him, he caught Annie's arm with his free hand. "So, now I know why I feel so comfortable with you. We share a similar past." Annie moved out of his grasp, piling the cups and dishes and carrying them to the sink. "There are a lot of people like us, Nathan," she commented bluntly. "People suffer loss all the time but then they get on with their lives." After cleaning the table off, Annie took her coat from off a hook by the door and put in on. "There's a sleeping bag in the wooden chest by the window if you want to lay down and there's lot of books to keep you company."
"Where are you going?" Nathan asked in surprise.
"Going to get some help," Annie informed him. "My radio broke a few months back and I never fixed it. I have a small pickup and it's about ten miles to my brother's help. You should be fine here until I get back." She shoved a hat on her head, and picked up her shotgun.
"Well, we'll go with you!"
"Not in this weather and the truck's too small anyway. And I don't want to wait until the morning. He needs a doctor to take a good look at him." Fishing the keys out of the pocket, she flashed Nathan a smile. "Make yourself at home, I'll try to be back within the hour."
After Annie had left, Nathan washed all the dishes. Thankfully, his pants had dried and slipped them on. Getting the sleeping bag out, he laid it out on the wooden floor, and dropped the blanket on top of it. Lucas was moving fitfully on the bed, moaning softly. "Shh, it's ok, son," he soothed, stroking the teen's arm. "Everything fine, Lucas." It had been a long time since he had the opportunity to comfort a sick boy.
Finally, Lucas fell back into a deeper sleep and Nathan found a ragged old paperback copy of a John Grisham novel. Grabbing two pillows from the armchair, he made himself comfortable on the floor. Three chapters later, he was rudely nudged out of the written fantasy world by a large jolt to the cabin as the earth shook.
Lucas sat up straight in the bed, half asleep crying out in pain and fright. "Noooooo!"
Moving quickly to the teen's side, Nathan gathered him into a tight embrace. "It's a small tremor, always happens after an earthquake. We're safe. Relax."
Blinking several times, Lucas struggled to emerge from the remains of the dream that had invaded his sleep and shrugged out of Bridger's arms. Feeling too warm as pain burned through his injured arm, he pushed the blankets off and lay back on the pillows. "The bear!" he gasped. "He had me. I.I. and then the shaking started again." He stopped, trying to control his booming heart. Becoming more aware of his surroundings, he looked around and asked, "Where the heck are we?"
Nathan told him about Annie and her shotgun. "How are you feeling now?" Putting a hand on the boy's forehead, he was concerned to feel how warm the skin was. "I should check your bandages to make sure you're not bleeding."
Staring at the ceiling, Lucas was subdued as Nathan peeked around the bandages. He flinched when Bridger pressed down firmly on his arm. "Your back is fine, but your arm is bleeding again," the Captain explained putting pressure on the wound. "I need to stop it."
Needing a distraction, Lucas said, "So. When the cavalry suppose to be coming over the hill to rescue us?"
A worried expression passed over Nathan's face. "I thought Annie would have been back by now, hopefully with a medic or a helicopter."
"I am NOT getting onto a helicopter!" Lucas protested.
"We'll cross the bridge when we get to it." Nathan checked the wound again, relieved to see the bleeding had stopped. "Would you like something to eat?"
"I could really use a glass of water. It's hot in here, can you turn that fire down?" Lucas used the sheet to mop the sweat from his forehead. He shifted slightly so he could take a sip from the glass of water the Captain handed him. Groggy from fever, he watched as Bridger rummage through the first aid kit and pulled out an ear thermometer. Eyes half opened, he was only vaguely aware of Bridger searching through the kitchen cabinets. Suddenly, to his surprise, the Captain appeared before him, wearing a yellow bonnet with blue flowers, doing a dance while singing "I Enjoy being a Girl".
**** "Lucas? Lucas?" A voice was calling him from a far distance, as he felt a cooling wetness soothe his burning skin. Once again, the Captain's face, wearing an amused expression, appeared before him as he struggled back to consciousness.
"That must have been quite a dream you were having," commented Nathan, sitting back. Lucas noticed the yellow washcloth with blue flowers in the Captain's hand. "It was.interesting," he explained briefly in a weak voice. "What's happening?"
"You're running a temperature. I'm not really sure why." Actually, Nathan could think of a few things, none he really wanted to consider seriously. "And Annie has not shown back up yet." He handed Lucas two pills and the glass of water. "Here, take these pain relievers. When morning comes, I'll go out and see if I can find some help."
Tossing the pills in his mouth, he gulped down some water. "Ok, so really nothing has changed. Great." Lucas' eyes drifted closed again. "If that damn bear gave me rabies." And he was asleep again.
Bridger dropped the washcloth back into the bowl of cool water and went over to collapse in the armchair. At least there hadn't been anymore tremors. A sick teenager was enough to deal with. There was not much he could do until daylight came. Maybe Annie would show up by then. He didn't want to leave Lucas but he had to go find some help. As he slipped into a light doze, he wondered how Kristin was making out.
. Another officer came over to her. "Ma'am, no passengers are allowed in this area. Why don't I find someone to accompany you back to your cabin?"
"I need to see the Captain," Kristin requested firmly. "My traveling companions went ashore on a glacier excursion."
"I'm sorry, Ma'am. Captain Shea is extremely busy right now. If you give me your name and cabin number, I'll have someone contact you later," the officer politely offered.
Kristin did not think of herself as hysterical female type. Certainly, she did not usually allow herself to act like one. Unfortunately, she felt as if this was one of those times for an exception to the rules. "I must see the Captain! My friends may be in need of help!"
"Ma'am, with all due respect, I have shipload of people to think about, not just two people. We cannot help them right now." His voice was firm, his expression serious. "An iceberg has broken off the glacier and there could be more. We need to move this ship away from the shore. I'm terribly sorry but your friends are on their own for awhile. Now, I really need to get back to my job." With that he turned to talk to an officer who was walking by.
Panic started to overtake Kristin as she walked away. All this time, she had been so worried about Nathan and Lucas - and now she might be in more trouble than they were.
**********
Several hours had passed and night had fallen. Nathan was sitting at the table wrapped in a warm blanket, his damp jacket and pants drying by the fire. Over dinner, he had told Annie about the glacier excursion and the exploding helicopter, which had resulted in their confused wanderings. Annie was a friendly, down to earth sort of person and Nathan found her easy to talk to. Most of the time he was in the company of his officers and crew, who never could see past his Captain stripes. Lately, it seemed Kristin and Lucas were the only people he could have a casual conversation with and even then, they were still technically part of the crew. But Annie was like a breath of fresh air, with who he could just be Nathan, with no military garbage to go along with it. So he had ended up telling her all his past, with Carol and Robert, and about his new found family of Kristin and Lucas. Once in a while, he would drift over to the bed to check on Lucas, touching his hand or smoothing back the hair from his face.
Picking up his coffee cup, and taking a long sip of the warm liquid, he smiled at Annie. "Well. Now that I've told you my life story." He let out a short laugh. "I don't know what got into me. Usually I don't .well, let say I like my privacy. But I know nothing about you."
Annie got up and took some of the dirty dishes over to the sink. "Not much to know. I'm a schoolteacher. Once, in another life, I had a husband and a son. They were killed in a car accident ten years ago. I moved up here to spend some time with my brother and his family and I never went back. I decided I liked the peace and quiet."
Rising quickly, one hand holding the blanket around him, he caught Annie's arm with his free hand. "So, now I know why I feel so comfortable with you. We share a similar past." Annie moved out of his grasp, piling the cups and dishes and carrying them to the sink. "There are a lot of people like us, Nathan," she commented bluntly. "People suffer loss all the time but then they get on with their lives." After cleaning the table off, Annie took her coat from off a hook by the door and put in on. "There's a sleeping bag in the wooden chest by the window if you want to lay down and there's lot of books to keep you company."
"Where are you going?" Nathan asked in surprise.
"Going to get some help," Annie informed him. "My radio broke a few months back and I never fixed it. I have a small pickup and it's about ten miles to my brother's help. You should be fine here until I get back." She shoved a hat on her head, and picked up her shotgun.
"Well, we'll go with you!"
"Not in this weather and the truck's too small anyway. And I don't want to wait until the morning. He needs a doctor to take a good look at him." Fishing the keys out of the pocket, she flashed Nathan a smile. "Make yourself at home, I'll try to be back within the hour."
After Annie had left, Nathan washed all the dishes. Thankfully, his pants had dried and slipped them on. Getting the sleeping bag out, he laid it out on the wooden floor, and dropped the blanket on top of it. Lucas was moving fitfully on the bed, moaning softly. "Shh, it's ok, son," he soothed, stroking the teen's arm. "Everything fine, Lucas." It had been a long time since he had the opportunity to comfort a sick boy.
Finally, Lucas fell back into a deeper sleep and Nathan found a ragged old paperback copy of a John Grisham novel. Grabbing two pillows from the armchair, he made himself comfortable on the floor. Three chapters later, he was rudely nudged out of the written fantasy world by a large jolt to the cabin as the earth shook.
Lucas sat up straight in the bed, half asleep crying out in pain and fright. "Noooooo!"
Moving quickly to the teen's side, Nathan gathered him into a tight embrace. "It's a small tremor, always happens after an earthquake. We're safe. Relax."
Blinking several times, Lucas struggled to emerge from the remains of the dream that had invaded his sleep and shrugged out of Bridger's arms. Feeling too warm as pain burned through his injured arm, he pushed the blankets off and lay back on the pillows. "The bear!" he gasped. "He had me. I.I. and then the shaking started again." He stopped, trying to control his booming heart. Becoming more aware of his surroundings, he looked around and asked, "Where the heck are we?"
Nathan told him about Annie and her shotgun. "How are you feeling now?" Putting a hand on the boy's forehead, he was concerned to feel how warm the skin was. "I should check your bandages to make sure you're not bleeding."
Staring at the ceiling, Lucas was subdued as Nathan peeked around the bandages. He flinched when Bridger pressed down firmly on his arm. "Your back is fine, but your arm is bleeding again," the Captain explained putting pressure on the wound. "I need to stop it."
Needing a distraction, Lucas said, "So. When the cavalry suppose to be coming over the hill to rescue us?"
A worried expression passed over Nathan's face. "I thought Annie would have been back by now, hopefully with a medic or a helicopter."
"I am NOT getting onto a helicopter!" Lucas protested.
"We'll cross the bridge when we get to it." Nathan checked the wound again, relieved to see the bleeding had stopped. "Would you like something to eat?"
"I could really use a glass of water. It's hot in here, can you turn that fire down?" Lucas used the sheet to mop the sweat from his forehead. He shifted slightly so he could take a sip from the glass of water the Captain handed him. Groggy from fever, he watched as Bridger rummage through the first aid kit and pulled out an ear thermometer. Eyes half opened, he was only vaguely aware of Bridger searching through the kitchen cabinets. Suddenly, to his surprise, the Captain appeared before him, wearing a yellow bonnet with blue flowers, doing a dance while singing "I Enjoy being a Girl".
**** "Lucas? Lucas?" A voice was calling him from a far distance, as he felt a cooling wetness soothe his burning skin. Once again, the Captain's face, wearing an amused expression, appeared before him as he struggled back to consciousness.
"That must have been quite a dream you were having," commented Nathan, sitting back. Lucas noticed the yellow washcloth with blue flowers in the Captain's hand. "It was.interesting," he explained briefly in a weak voice. "What's happening?"
"You're running a temperature. I'm not really sure why." Actually, Nathan could think of a few things, none he really wanted to consider seriously. "And Annie has not shown back up yet." He handed Lucas two pills and the glass of water. "Here, take these pain relievers. When morning comes, I'll go out and see if I can find some help."
Tossing the pills in his mouth, he gulped down some water. "Ok, so really nothing has changed. Great." Lucas' eyes drifted closed again. "If that damn bear gave me rabies." And he was asleep again.
Bridger dropped the washcloth back into the bowl of cool water and went over to collapse in the armchair. At least there hadn't been anymore tremors. A sick teenager was enough to deal with. There was not much he could do until daylight came. Maybe Annie would show up by then. He didn't want to leave Lucas but he had to go find some help. As he slipped into a light doze, he wondered how Kristin was making out.