The Alaskan Catch

by Beth Carpenter

  “Having fun?”

  “Sure.” Sam sunk his putt. “I haven’t done anything like this in years.”

  “Chris used to take me to movies or bumper boats sometimes when he was in high school.”

  “Sounds like he was a good brother.”

  “The best.”

  “Hey, I’m waiting.” Chris stood at the next hole, his putter in hand. “Chop, chop.” Dana hurried on ahead and Sam watched as Chris explained his strategy for the hole, and Dana promptly disregarded his advice and putted right over the middle to leave her ball stranded in a puddle in the center of the fairway.

  They had dinner at a popular seafood restaurant. Chris joked that he wanted to keep demand high so they could get better prices for the fish he caught. Sam needn’t have worried—none of them brought up the will or the information they’d uncovered in Fairbanks. Instead, Chris told Dana stories about life in Alaska, of the moose that got drunk on fermented crab apples and staggered around town, and a neighborhood woman’s ongoing quest to try to find a way to hang a bird feeder so she could fill it but the bears couldn’t reach it.

  “She ran a cable on a pulley to the middle of her yard, but one morning she looked outside and a black bear cub hung upside down from the cable, batting at the bird feeder until he knocked it to the ground. Bears love sunflower seeds.”

  “So, they’re not just after pic-a-nic baskets, I guess. Do you get a lot of bears?”

  Sam nodded. “Because we’re next to the park, we get quite a few. The tracks this morning were from a black bear, but once the salmon spawn, the grizzlies will be around.”

  “I’d like to see a grizzly,” Dana said. “From a distance. And preferably through a window.”

  They returned home and Sam made an excuse to leave Dana and Chris alone in the living room. Dana’d had her day of fun, but now she and Chris needed to finish their business. Sam still wasn’t sure if she had a prayer of convincing Chris to take the money, but he wasn’t ruling it out. Chris’s sister had a way of getting under your skin.

  * * *

  DANA WATCHED SAM disappear down the hall. It was nice of him to come along today. He was clearly annoyed with Chris, but they had been friends for a long time and that wasn’t going to change. She was glad, for both of them.

  Chris opened the door to the refrigerator. “Want a beer?”

  “I’m fine, thanks.”

  He opened the bottle and returned to the living room to sit in the chair across from her. After a long pull on the bottle, he wiped his mouth with his sleeve. “So, you and Sam went to Fairbanks together.”

  “Uh-huh. We found out about the bar and the fire.”

  “And that’s all you did there?”

  She frowned. “Pretty much. I mean, we ate a couple of meals and went for a walk. Why?”

  “No reason. Just making conversation. How’s Mom?”

  Dana shook her head. “Worse than ever, I think. Without Dad to rein her in...”

  “How is she taking care of everything? I mean bills and money and all the stuff he did?”

  “I was doing it. Before I came up here, I hired somebody to pay the bills and balance the checkbook, and I showed Mom how to write a check.” She sighed. “That may have been a mistake.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “She apparently almost emptied the checking account. I had to make her promise not to write any more until the first of the month, and transferred enough from my savings to pay the utility bills until then.”

  “This has to stop.”

  “It’s a sickness. She can’t stop.”

  Chris leaned toward her. “Wayne should have done something a long time ago. Instead, we all pretended it was a normal thing. She needs help, Dana.”

  “She doesn’t see a problem.”

  “You have to make her see.”

  Dana stared at him. “You don’t know how hard I’ve tried. You haven’t been there. Once Dad had his heart attack, he couldn’t handle her anymore and it all fell to me. I had to keep her under control, and the business under control, and the whole stupid system under control, but nobody gave me the authority to do any of it. I’m tired of being the one with all the responsibility and no power, of trying to coax everybody into doing the right thing.”

  He gawked at her. “That’s the first time I’ve ever heard you complain. You always did exactly what Dad told you to do without question.”

  Dana shrugged and looked away.

  “No, really. Other teenage girls threw fits because their parents gave them a curfew. You worked at the store on weekends and cleaned up after Mom, and half the time you made dinner because Mom was still out shopping and you didn’t want her to get in trouble with Dad when he got home, and I never heard a word of complaint.”

  “Somebody had to do it.”

  “What do you mean about keeping the business under control?”

  She rolled her eyes. “When he got sick, Dad hired Jerry Brinkman as manager.”

  “Not good-time Jerry.”

  “Yeah. He’s completely incompetent, but since Dad hired him, the trust managers left him in charge. When I was in the office, I could work around him to make sure everything got done, but I understand there have been some problems since I’ve been gone.”

  “I didn’t realize you were under so much pressure. I’m sorry I said what I did.”

  Dana nodded. After a few minutes, she spoke. “Chris, about that inheritance.”

  He paused, obviously torn. “Dana, I don’t know. It doesn’t feel right.”

  “You’re his son. My brother. We’re family. We should share equally.”

  “But it was money Wayne was never entitled to. I can’t accept it and keep my hands clean. That’s why I cut ties.”

  Cut ties. Exactly what she didn’t want now that she’d found him again. She tossed out the first argument she could come up with. “You don’t know for sure. And it’s clear Dad was entitled to half the money at least. Maybe your part of the estate was earned with that half.”

  He shook his head. “You’re splitting hairs. He couldn’t have started the same business with half the money. It’s all built on a lie, and I can’t be a part of it.”

  Which meant he still wouldn’t be a part of the family. She closed her eyes and her shoulders sagged. Finally, she opened her eyes and locked onto his. “Is that your final decision?”

  He looked into her face for a long while, and eventually shook his head. “Can you give me time to think it over?”

  “Sure.” Maybe there was still hope. “The lawyers do need an answer before they’ll distribute, though, and if I expect to get the classes I need this fall, I need to make a tuition payment soon. But didn’t you say you’re leaving tomorrow?”

  “Yes, but I’ll be on a salmon boat in the bay. We’ll come to shore at night, so you can reach me on my cell phone.” He gave her the number.

  A spark of hope surged. He planned to stay in contact. Dana entered it into her phone and texted him back her number. His phone chimed.

  “Got it. I’ll give you a call in the next couple of weeks, once I make up my mind. All right?”

  Dana nodded slowly.

  Chris scooted closer. “So you found what you came for. There’s really no reason for you to stay in Alaska any longer. Just leave the papers, and if I decide to sign, I’ll overnight you a notarized copy. Would that work?”

  Leave Alaska? Why did the idea startle her so much? Of course she was going to leave Alaska. She’d come here to locate Chris and investigate the possible claim on her father’s estate, and she had. But something felt unfinished. “I still don’t know for sure what happened in Fairbanks.”

  “You know as much as you’re going to know.” Chris gave her a searching look. “It is just business, isn’t it? This
thing with Sam?”

  “Well, yeah. I mean, uh, I’d like to think he and I are friends, too.”

  “Friends is okay. But, Dana, Sam is married to his job. He has a plan to move into upper management within five years, and that’s his entire focus. He doesn’t have a lot of extra time for friends and family.”

  “What about Ursula?”

  “She understands what drives him. So do I. We don’t get in the way of his career.” He patted her knee. “Sam’s a great guy, but he is who he is. I don’t want you hurt.”

  Dana tried for a laugh. “You’re imagining things. I have no illusions about Sam. Besides, you’re right. I have to get back to Kansas before Mom digs herself any deeper.”

  “Good. Well, I’ll need to leave in the wee hours of the morning to make it to the boat on time. So I guess this is goodbye.”

  Dana blinked back the stupid tears that suddenly filled her eyes. “It was good to see you again, Chris.”

  “Hey.” He pulled her into a hug. “It’s not forever. Now that Dad isn’t standing between us, we don’t have to be strangers anymore. You can call me, you know, just to talk. Maybe I can come see you in Kansas one of these days.”

  “You’d do that?” Did he mean it? That they could be family again?

  “Sure. I have some downtime between fishing and snow seasons.”

  “You can stay with me. I have a guest room.”

  “You live in an apartment?”

  “No. I own a two-bedroom cottage, yellow with white shutters. Do you remember those houses over by the park, on Redbud Street?”

  “Oh, right. Cute little houses with big lawns and gardens. It’s settled then. I’ll come visit in a few months.”

  The lump in Dana’s throat made it hard to speak, but she managed to squeak out a reply. “Okay.”

  Chris stood, and Dana scrambled up to face him. He patted her on top of the head. “Good night, Dana. Take care of yourself. And whenever you need your big brother, call me.”

  Her brother was back. She still wanted him to take the inheritance, to reconcile with their father’s memory, but this was what she wanted most of all. “I will. Goodbye, Chris.”

  Dana went to bed, but sleep eluded her. Instead, she stared at the ceiling as if the answers to her questions might be hidden there in the grain of the cedar planks. Chris was right. Her business here was done. Whether Chris took the inheritance or not wasn’t important. The important thing was that he was back in her life. Sam said he didn’t want to pursue any claim to the inheritance, so there was no need to chase that thread any further. There was no reason to stay in Alaska, and every reason to get home to Kansas.

  So why did it feel so wrong? Why did the idea of saying goodbye to Sam cause an ache inside her chest? She twisted the silver feather ring on her finger. So Sam kissed her. Once. And yes, it was the most amazing kiss she’d ever experienced. So what? Sam was a good kisser. It didn’t necessarily follow that the kiss meant anything to Sam, or that she meant anything to Sam.

  They had very different lives, in very different places. Sam had dreams and hopes she couldn’t comprehend. She had responsibilities. Her time with Sam was a diversion, an experience she would draw on and remember fondly when she needed a boost. It wasn’t real, just an illusion, and any feelings she might have for Sam were part of that illusion. When her real life resumed, they would disappear.

  She almost believed it.

  CHAPTER TEN

  ANOTHER EARLY MORNING. Sam looked through the front window to check the driveway. As expected, the spot where Chris’s truck had been parked was empty. He hoped Chris had a chance to set things right with his sister before he left.

  Kimmik came to greet him, and Sam rubbed his ears and let him outside before returning to the kitchen. He pulled the package from the cabinet and set it on the counter, but instead of starting the coffee, he stared blindly at the countertop. Chris lied to him. A few weeks ago, Sam would have laughed at the very suggestion. Chris, his best friend for so many years, had lied about who he was from the very beginning.

  Oh, Sam understood. It started off innocently enough, just curiosity to see how the boy left after the tragedy had faired. In the same circumstances, Sam might have even done the same thing, and he could see how, as more time passed, it became more and more difficult for Chris to confess. But somehow, it shook Sam’s foundation to know that this enormous lie stood between them all these years and he’d never suspected.

  Dana could never have gotten away with it. Those big brown eyes of hers would have given her away in an instant if she tried to lie about something so important. But was it important? Maybe who Chris used to be before he met Sam didn’t really matter. He’d been nothing but a loyal friend ever since. Really, wasn’t that what counted?

  Chris and Dana seemed so different, but they were alike in one important way. They did the right thing. In spite of his shady history, their father must have instilled a moral compass that pointed them in the right direction.

  The trouble was, to Chris the right thing was to reject his father and all wealth associated with him. To Dana, the right thing was to defend her father’s reputation. Sam wasn’t sure which side he was rooting for.

  He needed some time to think about all this, to let it settle in his mind, and he always thought better outdoors. Preferably far from civilization.

  “Hey, are you going to make coffee or just look at it?” Dana smiled as she reached into the cupboard for a filter.

  “You mean I can’t just absorb the caffeine telepathically?”

  “Afraid not. Believe me, I’ve tried. So, Chris is gone?”

  “Yeah. Did you get a chance to talk to him about the will?”

  She nodded. “He’s still on the fence. He’ll let me know within a couple of weeks. Are you sure you don’t want to make a claim?”

  “I’m sure. I don’t need Wayne Raynott’s money.” Sam spooned coffee into the filter she had placed in the basket and started the drip. When he turned, she was watching him, her face pensive. “Isn’t that what you want?”

  “I don’t want you to regret your decision down the road.”

  She wouldn’t say it, but Sam knew what she wanted. She wanted him to believe in her version of her father, the man who could do no wrong. Never mind she’d admitted he wasn’t much of a father. Or that he’d lied to them about Chris’s mother. She was still hanging on to her fantasy. Her bottom lip trembled a little. What harm would it do to indulge her? “Don’t worry about those letters from Ruth. He was your father. He built a successful business, which isn’t easy, and he left money to the family he loved. That’s the way it should be. I want you to take the inheritance. Get your teaching credentials. Be happy.”

  She threw her arms around him and pressed her cheek against his chest. “Thank you, Sam. It means a lot to me.”

  He chuckled and rubbed his hands up and down her back. Her undisguised gratitude made it hard to deny her anything. She looked up at him, that pink mouth of hers curved in joy. He wanted to kiss her the way he had in Fairbanks, to taste the joy that bubbled up from inside her like champagne, but he didn’t. He couldn’t.

  Chris was right. Sam had a five-year plan, and Dana wasn’t on it. Kissing her again would only send the wrong signals. Instead, Sam stepped back and reached into the cupboard for mugs. When he handed one to Dana, he thought he saw a small droop of disappointment in her lower lip, but he probably imagined it.

  She licked her lip. “So, I guess now that I’ve talked to you and Chris, I’m pretty much done here.”

  A cold shiver went through Sam’s chest. He took a drink from his cup to cover his confusion and burned his tongue. He set the cup down on the counter with a thump and splashed the liquid over the rim.

  Done. So she was leaving. Of course she was leaving. She lived in Kansas. That’s what peopl
e who lived in other states did. They left. Sam was an engineer, logical and rational. Why were his thoughts running in crazy circles?

  Dana handed him a paper towel. He wiped the spill from the counter. “So when do you leave?”

  She shrugged. “I’ll go online and see what flights are available. What are you doing today?”

  “I don’t know.” What did he do with himself on his off time when Dana wasn’t there? It took a minute to remember. “I might take a fly-in float trip in the next day or two. I’ll probably spend the day getting my gear together and inspect my raft.”

  She cocked her head. “What do you do on a float trip?”

  “This one is a mix of white water and fishing. It takes me about five days to get down Brazzle Creek.”

  “Brazzle Creek? I’ve never heard that name before.”

  “Brazzle is an old name for pyrite, fool’s gold. There was once a mini gold rush on that river. Someone in a saloon in Anchorage had too much to drink and bragged to everyone in sight about the gold he’d found there. The next day, he discovered it was pyrite, but the rumor had already started. There were a lot of disappointed goldpanners, but the fishermen love it.”

  “You have to fly to get there?”

  “A floatplane drops me off on a little lake upriver and picks me up at another lake five days later.”

  Her eyes widened. “So you’re all by yourself for that whole time?”

  “I usually take a buddy along. Occasionally, I’ll go on a short trip alone. That’s kind of the point. To get away from people and into the wild.”

  “Wow. It sounds amazing.”

  “It really is.”

  She set down her cup and opened the refrigerator. “Well, before we each get started, how about if I make us mushroom omelets?”

  “Yum.” His mouth watered.

  After breakfast, Dana departed for her room, presumably to look for flights. Sam dug his raft from the corner of the garage and inflated it in the backyard, checking carefully for leaks or cracks. He got out his checklist and went through all his gear, making sure tent poles, waders and life jackets were all present and accounted for.