Thanks to all who reviewed. I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. Again, I own nothing, jut the laptom I am writing my stories on.
Two weeks later, in Dutch Harbor, Alaska...
"We're here! Finally!" Karen said, stepping off the small charter plane they had to take to get to Dutch Harbor. Johnny followed her off the plane, taken aback by the beauty of this little fishing town. Following Johnny was Bob Bellingham and Craig Brice, who had been on the same flight.
"God, it's beautiful, isn't Karen?" Johnny asked, grabbing his duffel. He was hoping he packed enough Dramamine to get him through the first few days on the boat.
"Yeah, it is. I've always wanted to see Alaska, just not in these terms," she replied, also grabbing her bag. Karen was still a little undecided about the whole situation. But, a job is a job and she was going to go through with it.
"I've been in Alaska before, but man, this is better than where I went!" Bob exclaimed, also grabbing his gear and following Johnny and Karen. He loved cold weather and skiing, so this seemed only natural to him.
If only it wasn't so cold! Craig thought to himself bitterly as he grabbed his bag, pushed his glasses back up on his nose and followed the other three.
They started across the tarmac when a voice greeted them. "Hey, you guys the paramedics?"
The four looked to see a man standing near the doorway to the airport.
"Yeah we are. And you are?" Johnny asked.
"Names Todd Stanley, I'm a producer/cameraman for Deadliest Catch. I'm picking you guys up to take you to the boats. Which one of you is Craig Brice?"
"I am," Craig responded as Todd led them to his SUV.
"Cool, you'll be with me on the Cornelia Marie. As for the rest of you, I'll take you to your boats, introduce you to the guys and get you settled. I don't have to tell you to be careful out there. I know you will be and you will be fine," Todd replied, helping them throw their stuff into the back of the SUV.
As they climbed into the vehicle, Karen replied, "Thanks for the warning and picking us up. I guess you realize this is totally different for us. I mean we live in southern California. We are used to warm weather and getting called to emergencies everyday. This is going way away from what we are used to."
"Oh, I realize that. But I think you guys will do fine. As long as you have warm clothes and respect the captains, you should be fine," Todd replied, pulling away from the airport.
"So will we be near each other, you know, do the boats fish near each other?" Bob asked from the back seat.
"No man, the boats go their separate ways to fish. You will be with the crew and that's it. We don't even see our guys until we pull back into Dutch at the end of the season," Todd replied, pulling up to the docks. He got out and helped them get their gear out of the back.
"Okay guys and gal, follow me to you new home for a few months," Todd said, starting to walk the docks. They passed boat upon boats, until they stopped at one that was black and red. A man with a baseball hat came to the edge of the boat and waved.
"Bob, this is your boat, the Wizard. That's my brother Dave. Dave, this is Bob, he's the paramedic assigned to the boat," Todd said, throwing Bob's gear over to his brother. Bob leaped and landed next to Dave.
"Welcome aboard Bob," Dave replied, shaking hands with Bellingham.
"Well Bob, this is it, until we come back into port. Have fun man and be safe," Johnny said, waving to his friend. Craig saluted him and Karen waved heartily.
The kept on walking down the dock, leaving the Wizard behind as they kept on going. They stopped beside another black vessel.
"John, this is your boat, the Time Bandit. That's Chad, one of the cameramen from the show," Todd said, watching as Johnny nimbly jumped to the boat, gear and all.
"Nice to meet you Johnny, let's get you settled in," Chad said, turning for the house. Johnny paused for a moment, looking at his partner. He knew very well that this might be the last time he saw her alive. The Bearing Sea had claimed so many lives, it could happen again, taking the lives of anyone.
"Bye Karen," he said simply, the emotions threatening to overtake him. Todd and Craig pulled back some to give the partners some time.
"Bye John. Be safe out there. I want to see you here at the end to share a drink with you and the others," Karen said, waving. She could see the emotions playing across her face. She didn't want to lose her partner. But they had a job to do.
"You too Karen," Johnny replied, watching his youngest partner turn and walk down the dock with Todd and Craig.
Be careful partner, come home in one piece, Johnny thought as he turned and followed Chad into the house of the Time Bandit.
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