Chapter Eighteen: An Explanation

Once aboard the icebreaker Dr. McLaren had hired for the voyage, Emily changed into an ivory cashmere turtleneck and a warm pair of jeans over some knit leggings. Helping herself to the ship's galley, she made herself a mug of steaming hot cocoa – complete with marshmallows – and dropped a peppermint into it for flavor. She returned to the navigation area where the rest of her companions were gathered and settled into a chair by the table where Davis and Charlie were engrossed in a game of checkers. Jerry had disappeared somewhere, and Katie got up to leave shortly after Emily's return, probably intending to find Jerry and talk to him for a little while. Emily pretended to ignore Katie's movements and looked around instead at the other passengers. Davis McLaren sported a fleece jacket, dark blue jeans, and heavy snow boots, while Charlie had returned to his classic Antarctic look – heavy jeans, thick woolen sweater, a sporty winter vest, and his ever-present multi-colored beanie with the long tassels. Bryan Rice sat at another table a few feet away, playing solitaire. He had abandoned his usual military uniform for a simple set of military winterized pants and a fuzzy olive-green knit sweater. His presence was a continual surprise to Emily. She had never expected to see him in Jerry's company – heck, she didn't even know they knew each other – and had been even more surprised when he insisted on going with them to look for the dogs, saying that he'd helped Jerry this far and intended to see it through. But how did he get involved with Jerry's search in the first place? Emily wondered. It was a question she sorely wanted the answer to.

"Excuse me," she said quietly to Davis and Charlie, who nodded their assent as she got up carefully and walked across to where Bryan sat. He glanced up as she sat down across from him before returning his attention to the cards in front of him.

Now that she was actually in front of him, Emily had no idea what to say. She sat in silence for several moments, watching Bryan shuffle the cards around. After another round, he sighed and set the cards aside. He focused his full attention on her face. "Something on your mind? I'm sure you didn't come all the way over here just to sit and watch me play solitaire." He smiled, a hint of his old flirtatious swagger returning to his features. "Or maybe you just love being near me… is that it?"

Emily chuckled, drawing a pleased smile from him. He'd been trying to make her laugh. "Actually I was just wondering how you got involved in this whole mess," she ventured when he said nothing more after his initial teasing. "As far as I know, Jerry wasn't very open about this and I didn't know you two knew each other."

Bryan sobered, his face growing serious. "I didn't – and still don't – know him very well. I only knew who he was." He shrugged his shoulders. "I saw him on the docks a couple of days ago. He looked so tired and discouraged that I took pity on him and bought him a drink. We sat down and talked and the whole story about his dogs came out. After that, I decided to help because it seemed like the right thing to do."

Emily was impressed in spite of herself. She'd always thought of Bryan as rather shallow, always showing off and flirting with the ladies. Now she realized that that was just an act, a pastime to amuse him during the long hours he stood behind in the flight registration booth. The real sergeant Rice was actually a decent man, inclined to be thoughtful and helpful rather than impulsive and foolhardy. "Thanks," she murmured.

He raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

She glanced out the window, where the coal black sky was visible, speckled with stars. "I'm Jerry appreciates your kindness, and it means a lot to me that you wanted to help him out."

Bryan's registered mild surprise, then took on a closed expression. "Of course," he replied gently. "Jerry means a lot to you. That's why you're here, too."

Emily nodded, slightly puzzled by the subtle change in Bryan's tone. Almost sarcastic, but not quite. She shook it off and stood. "Well, thanks anyway."

As she walked away, she barely heard him say, "You're welcome," over the low thrum of the engines.

Author's Note: Sorry it's a short chapter. It's kind of on its own here, but I thought it was kind of sweet. Let me know what you think!