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'Weird, Alaska'
Chapter Five
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The five team members stood talking amongst themselves while they waited for Sheriff Reischl to finish his call, and for Reid and Garcia to come back from the grocery. "Everything okay, Sheriff?" Hotch asked, seeing him approach.
"Everything is fine, thank you Hotch. David's unit is back in Baghdad for three days. Seeing as how they're in a Green Zone, maybe I can relax a little. Not that Baghdad is the safest place in the world by any stretch of the imagination."
"My son Jack is four years old. I can't imagine how I would be reacting if he were where your son is right now."
Sheriff Reischl sighed. "It isn't easy to deal with, that's for certain."
"I can't get over this scenery," Rossi commented.
"Most people can't, Agent Rossi. It's quite spectacular, isn't it?"
"Definitely."
"Agent Reid and Miss Garcia are on their way back."
"Reid and I went to the restroom. Anyone else need to go?" Garcia announced cheerfully as they approached. The rest of the group indicated they were fine.
"Garcia, only you would make a public announcement you had used the restroom," Prentiss teased.
"We brought everyone bottled water and granola bars," Reid added, passing plastic bottles and granola bars to each member of the group.
"Thank you Agent Reid," Sheriff Reischl said, immediately opening his water and taking a drink. He pointed to the north. "If it was clear we would be able to see Mt. McKinley from here. When you're able to see it from this distance it almost looks like it's floating in the air."
"The man at the store was talking about the salmon fishing in this area," Reid commented. "Do you know Alaska has all five species of Pacific salmon?"
The Sheriff nodded. "It is good if you like to fish. Me, I don't catch them, I only eat them."
Morgan chuckled as the group headed back to their vehicles. "I don't mind catching them; it's the cleaning I don't like."
"A few miles up the road the speed limit changes to sixty-five miles an hour; and about twenty miles after that it changes back to fifty-five miles an hour."
"Uh, I noticed in the guidebook sometimes the speed limit northbound and southbound is different on the same stretch of highway."
"When in doubt just watch the speed limit signs," Rossi quipped.
"That's pretty much it," Sheriff Reischl commented.
The group climbed back into their respective vehicles and they were soon back on the Parks Highway heading north. "So Reid," Morgan said. "What are the five species of Pacific salmon?"
"King, silver, pink, cum and red," Reid answered with satisfaction.
Sheriff Reischl smiled. "What type of music do each of you listen to?"
"I prefer classical, but I'm okay with some popular music."
"I like a lot of different types of music," Morgan said.
Sheriff Reischl switched on the radio. "I can pick up this rock radio station broadcasting from Anchorage fairly well. When I lose it I pop in a CD." The sound of U2 singing Beautiful Day soon filled the SUV. As they passed the Talkeetna Spur Road, he pointed out Talkeetna was an aviation and supply base for climbing expeditions to Mount McKinley.
Reid lowered his window and looked out with the breeze whipping his hair around. "I would love to see more of this scenery. I want to really look at Alaska close up sometime. I've never seen any place like this."
"You'll have to come back on vacation sometime, Agent Reid. Alaska isn't going anywhere; it will still be here." He glanced in the rear view mirror at the younger agent. "It's a harsh but beautiful place; and you've only begun to see what Alaska has to offer. You've barely scratched the surface of this place."
"Reid, roll up the window man! It's cold," Morgan complained.
"Don't be such a wimp, Morgan!"
Sheriff Reischl laughed. "You two don't talk or act like any F.B.I. agents I've met before."
"Have you met a lot of F.B.I. agents?" Reid asked.
"A few. I met a whole pile of them down in Seattle."
"What about Hotch?"
"He kind of fits the image of an F.B.I. agent, physically at least."
"Hotch is definitely one of the best," Morgan said.
"I don't doubt it," Sheriff Reischl answered. Suddenly he reached over and turned the radio up and Pour Some Sugar On Me by Def Leppard filled the car.
Reid shook his head. "I don't get this song. I don't dislike it; I just don't get the meaning. I put sugar in my coffee, but why would anyone want to pour sugar on themselves?"
"Uh, Reid…" Morgan began.
"What?"
"Never mind."
"Never mind? Why?"
"Agent Reid, have you ever heard someone say 'give me some sugar' when they were asking for a kiss?"
"Not that I can recall. Like I said, I use sugar in my coffee."
"Right, ridiculous amounts of it."
"Morgan!"
Sheriff Reischl suppressed a chuckle. "Agent Reid, 'give me some sugar' in this case is slang for 'give me a kiss'. Do you follow?"
"Yes, okay."
"So, if 'give me some sugar' refers to a kiss, what do you think 'pour some sugar on me' refers to?"
"Well, I… Oh. Okay. I, uh, think I get it now." Reid blushed. He cleared his throat and then continued to blush while wondering why he had to have something like this explained to him.
"Great, missed half the song talking about it," Morgan laughed.
"If you and Prentiss and the others would explain things to me the first time I ask instead of saying 'never mind' I wouldn't have to be embarrassed so often by not knowing what something means," a still blushing Reid said as he folded his arms in front of him.
"When did you ever ask me about this song?"
"That time someone played it on the jukebox in that diner we ate at in Arizona. You laughed and Prentiss said 'never mind, Reid'. That was years ago you could have explained it to me."
"Oh. Sorry, Reid."
"Whatever, Morgan."
Morgan looked over at Sheriff Reischl. "Everything you never wanted to know about the BAU 101," he joked.
"Right," the Sheriff responded.
They continued to head north toward their destination with Sheriff Reischl providing occasional commentary on the sights and scenery they were passing. When he mentioned they should be watching for bears, Reid sat up straight and asked where, eliciting laughter from Morgan. They passed the Alaska Veteran's Memorial Rest Area without stopping, though the Sheriff pointed it out to them, and a few minutes later he pulled the vehicle off the road and parked. "Where are we now?" Reid asked.
"Climb out and look to the north," Sheriff Reischl replied. Reid and Morgan opened their doors, climbed out and looked off to the north.
"We can finally see Mount McKinley," Reid said, as he looked to the north.
Morgan turned around as the two Bureau SUVs came to a stop behind the Expedition. "What's up?" Hotch called out to them.
"We just got out for a minute so Agent Reid could catch a view of Mt. McKinley."
"Hey Reid," Hotch called. "Sorry, but it's getting late. Come on, back in the car."
Reid sighed and reluctantly climbed back into the Expedition and fastened his seatbelt as Morgan also climbed back in. Sheriff Reischl put the vehicle into gear and pulled back on to the highway. "You'll have plenty more chances, Agent Reid."
"Hey," Morgan said suddenly. "Can you turn the radio up, Sheriff?"
"You like Joe Walsh?" he asked as In the City filled the car.
"Oh man, this song comes from one of my all-time favorite movies!"
"You like The Warriors?"
"Definitely, like I said, one of my favorites!"
"I've never seen it," Reid commented.
"Naturally," Morgan replied.
"It was a little before his time," Sheriff Reischl added. He looked at Morgan. "Yours also, actually." Morgan chuckled in response.
Reid once again rolled down the window to try and gain a better view of the magnificent scenery he was passing. He vaguely heard Morgan and Sheriff Reischl talking in the front seat, however what they were saying wasn't registering since he was too busy looking at the landscape whizzing by at fifty-five miles per hour. He could still see Mount McKinley in the distance, but couldn't help wondering if he would ever have the chance to see it up close. Not that he had any intention of ever joining one of the expeditions to climb the mountain; however at some point in time he would love to be closer to it than he was now. Of course, he had never expected to be in Alaska in the first place, so at least he was finally here in the flesh. Reid could feel the vehicle shifting gears as the grade of the road changed and they passed over a high bridge above a creek and then began a gradual descent. Within a few miles the grade changed again as the road started to climb toward Broad Pass Summit.
"Agent Reid, what do you know about Broad Pass Summit?" Sheriff Reischl asked, interrupting Reid's musings.
"It's at 2400 feet in elevation, and is the highest point on the Parks Highway. Broad Pass is also known as Caribou Pass, and marks the divide between drainage for rivers and streams that empty into Cook Inlet, and those that empty into the Yukon River." He looked around before continuing, "I can see Mount McKinley off to the southeast now." He undid his seatbelt and slid over to the driver's side and then lowered that window as well.
"Damn it, Reid!" Morgan complained. "Do you need to have both of those windows open?"
"Agent Morgan, it's close to forty degrees. Where you live you must be used to temperatures a lot colder than this."
"I am, but not in April," Morgan grumbled. "You're not even wearing a jacket, Sheriff."
Sheriff Reischl laughed. "I don't need one. It's barely even cold. I was actually sweating earlier." The speed limit dropped to forty-five miles an hour as they approached the town of Cantwell. "Agent Reid, if you look to the north you will see the only operating limestone mine in Alaska. And we are back to sixty-five miles an hour on the other side of town."
"I so want to get out and look at all of this up close," Reid sighed.
"I get it, Reid. However, we're here for a case kid," Morgan told him.
"I know, Morgan. We have a case to help solve. I know I'm not here on vacation," Reid sighed. "I was thinking maybe I could ride the train along this route sometime in the future. A lot of these towns have airstrips don't they, Sheriff?"
"Oh yes. Cantwell has one."
"What would be the closest airstrip to Weird?"
"That would be Healy, which is basically just a few miles down the road from Weird. In fact, the Healy city limits start just south of where my jurisdiction ends. In another twenty minutes or so we'll be passing the entrance to Denali National Park."
Reid gazed out of the windows trying to see as much as he could in the fading light. Despite the fact Sheriff Reischl had told him Alaska wasn't going anywhere he still felt like he wanted to see it all now, as soon as possible. The Expedition was whizzing past beautiful scenery, cabins, campgrounds, scenic turnoffs and other roadside attractions, and he tried as hard as he could to take as much of it in as possible at sixty-five miles an hour. He had yet to see either a moose or a bear, however. Reid was so engrossed in looking out of first one side of the vehicle and then the other that he barely registered Morgan's voice calling his name. "I'm sorry, Morgan. Did you say something to me?"
"Yes kid, I did. And so did Sheriff Reischl. You ignored both of us."
"I'm sorry! What did you want to say to me?"
"The entrance to Denali National Park is coming up on the left. After that we'll be passing through Nenana River Canyon, which encompasses the commercial area outside of the Park. Once we pass through that area we'll only have about twenty miles to go."
"We should let Hotch and Rossi know."
"I already did kid; I called both of them a couple minutes ago."
"Oh, okay then." Sheriff Reischl slowed down so Reid could see the sign announcing the entrance to the Park; however without being able to explore any of the Park's six million acres, all the sign represented to Reid was something else he would have to wait to explore. He leaned his arms on the car door and peered through the window to the west as they passed through the area and approached Healy. "Did you know Healy has Alaska's only commercial coal mine?"
"Actually Agent Reid; yes, I did know that," Sheriff Reischl grinned as he pulled the Expedition into a combination service station and gift shop and up to a gas pump. "This is one of the closest gas pumps to Weird," he explained as he opened his door and climbed out. As the other two vehicles pulled up behind them he walked over and explained to Rossi and Hotch what he was doing and then turned to walk back toward Reid and Morgan who had also gotten out of the vehicle to stretch their legs.
"I'll pump the gas," Morgan offered, lifting the nozzle off the handle.
"Isn't the scenery magnificent?" Garcia gushed, as she walked up beside Morgan and Reid.
"Amazing Garcia," Morgan responded.
"Everything okay, honey?"
Reid looked at her. "I'm fine, Garcia. I'm just looking at all this beauty as we whiz by at sixty-five miles an hour on our way to look at yet another example of human depravity. I'm great!"
"Oh. Okay."
Reid made a face. "I'm sorry, Garcia. It's just, I want to be able to think about what's right about a place for a change instead of what's wrong, you know?"
"I know. I think we all get that, Reid."
"Yes, I know I know I'm not the only one who feels that way," he sighed.
Once all three vehicles once again had full gas tanks the group once again pulled back out on to the Parks Highway and continued to travel north for approximately ten miles. "Weird, Alaska ten miles to the west!" Sheriff Reischl joked as he pointed to a sign announcing the road he had referred to as the 'Weird Connection', with an arrow pointing west. He turned on his left turn signal and turned on to the road followed closely by Hotch and Rossi's SUVs. Almost as soon as he had turned on to the road a Land Rover headed in the opposite direction nearly collided with him. He stopped immediately, leaned out the window and yelled at the driver of the Land Rover. "Damn it, Colin! What the hell are you doing?"
"I'm just heading for Healy, Jacob," the man identified as Colin said sheepishly.
"Try watching where you're going for crying out loud!"
"Sorry, Jacob! See you day after tomorrow!" He turned right on to the Highway and headed south at a high rate of speed.
"If you don't kill someone in the interim that is," Sheriff Reischl grumbled under his breath. He looked at Morgan and Reid. "Sorry guys." He shifted into gear and started moving again. Fifteen minutes later he pulled up in front of a colorfully painted building announcing itself as 'Weird Lodge and Tavern at the End of the No Name Road'.
Morgan chuckled when he saw the name on the building. "Someone has a sense of humor!"
"Yes, Lloyd definitely qualifies as having a sense of humor." Sheriff Reischl walked into the Inn followed by all seven BAU members carrying their bags. "Hey Lloyd," he called to a man who was poking at the fire in a huge fireplace with a poker.
"Jacob it's 10:30 pm! Where the hell have you been? You said you'd be here by 9:30, and you are an hour late! You think I have nothing else to do but wait for you to show up?"
"10:30? That's 3:30 am back in DC! No wonder I'm so tired," Prentiss groaned.
"Nice to see you also, Lloyd. I called you a couple hours ago and told you we would have two extra people for the night and that we probably would be late."
"Well, probably ain't for certain," Lloyd grumbled as he walked behind a desk fashioned from sturdy looking wooden beams. "I only have ten rooms to begin with, and since the wife has some friends staying here there's only six rooms available. I kept five for your people, but the two extra folks will have to double up in the sixth room."
"Not a problem at all," JJ told him.
Lloyd looked over all seven members of the group as Sheriff Reischl introduced them. "Hmm… None of you look like you're used to staying in a place like this," he said as he pulled out a guestbook for them to sign.
"I think it looks wonderful," Reid told him as he signed.
"Very comfortable and cozy looking," Hotch commented.
"Hm. You look kind of like my son," Lloyd commented to Hotch, who looked slightly taken aback at his words. "He lives down in Anchorage. Nothing fancy here other than you all have a double bed with a closet and a bathroom. I did put TVs in each room, but if the cable goes it's cause of the damn satellite and it's out til they come fix it. I make up the beds every day, and I serve coffee and donuts in the morning. Anything else you have to head over to the grocery or the café." He handed keys to each member of the team and then walked out from behind the desk to show them where their rooms were. "Jacob, why are you still here? Get out and go home!"
Rossi looked at Hotch and tried to suppress a grin. "We'll see you in the morning then, Sheriff." Sheriff Reischl said his good nights to the team and left the lodge as Lloyd led the seven team members to their rooms.
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A/N: I don't know why, but this chapter was so hard to finish! I finally decided I had to finish so I could start working on the next one. Hope you like it anyway!
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