Chapter 5: On the Water

Charlie's POV

The next morning, the sky was a dark rosy hue. Over coffee, Wyatt had told Charlies some of the basics of working on a fishing boat. Charlie had listened carefully. Most of it was common sense. It was a matter now of learning some things the hard way.

Charlie stepped down onto the boat. He felt a slight bit of queasiness, but Wyatt had warned him of that and given the younger man some motion sickness medicine to help him. Lewis began directing him on what to do.

Acting quickly to the older man’s commands, Charlie had the boat ready to depart. The unease continued as they moved out of the harbor.

Looking down into the water where he stood next to the bridge, Charlie's stomach rolled. What was wrong with him? Something told him that being on a boat wasn’t anything new to him. Charlie had been on the beach and not felt any issue looking out at the waves. But now it was different.

An unexplainable sense of fear enveloped him. He knew that he had never been afraid before, but every time he looked at the water, he felt a sense of panic rise up.

A few miles out, Charlie couldn’t hold the fear back anymore. Rushing to a bucket set off the side, he knelt over it and emptied his stomach of his breakfast. His stomach felt like he had been punched as it continued to seize.

“You okay, Charlie?” Lewis called from the window of the pilot house.

Charlie nodded as he retched again. He took in deep breaths and begged his stomach to calm down. Spitting into the bucket, he leaned back and rested against the pilot house. He shook his head as Lewis inquired again.

“I’m...I’m good,” Charlie managed to get out.

“Here.”

Charlie took the offered bottle of water and rinsed his mouth out before taking a swallow. His stomach began to settle down. When he looked back up over the horizon, Charlie began to feel sick again.

“Want me to go back in?” Lewis offered him. “Not unusual for rookies to get sick at the motion of the waves.”

Charlie shook his head again at the thought of the waves. It was more than motion sickness.

“I’m good. Go on.”

Lewis nodded and returned to piloting the boat. Charlie closed his eyes and focused on his breathing.

Going back was not an option. Charlie couldn't bear to see the look in Suzanne’s eyes if he couldn’t cut it out as a fisherman. She had been so happy when she had returned home to say that Lewis would be willing to take him on as a part of his crew. Her eyes had lit up in a way that took his breath away.

Suzanne. Just the thought of her eased his discomfort. She had been with him from the moment he had opened my eyes. She had nursed him and been with him every step of the way to finding out who he really was.

That rankled him. What had happened to take his memory away? It was evident that from a physical standpoint it was the knock on the head. But what had he hit or what had hit him?

The next logical conclusion was that he had been on a boat. Was it his boat? A friend’s? So many questions, and not a single answer.

Then there was the biggest question of all. Who was he? When Suzanne had asked him that question, Charlie had felt such an intense level of fear. The inability to identify himself was like an atomic bomb to his soul. There was nothing there. A big void charged with electricity.

“We’re here. Ready?” Lewis asked.

Charlie looked around. He hadn’t realized that so much time had passed. With a nod, he pushed himself up and dumped the bucket over the side. Getting a grip over his anxiety, he leaned down and rinsed the bucket with sea water.

There was no way that a little water was going to defeat him.

The hours flew by as the two men put their backs into their labor. Charlie didn’t balk at the work and had the strength to get some of it done only once without any help. The surprised look on Lewis’ face pleased him.

Maybe it was pride. He was not going to let the other man think he was weak. He felt confident that he could hold his own. There was a feeling of competition inside of him.

Why, he wasn’t sure. The man did help in saving his life, but he still felt a need to come out on top with him. Something primal.

When they took a break for lunch, Charlie was pleasantly surprised to find that he had an appetite despite that morning’s sickness. They sat on the deck in the warm sunshine and let the sea air wash over them to dry the sweat.

“You handle yourself pretty well there,” Lewis said before taking a bite of his sandwich. He had a lunch bag similar to Charlie's, stained and worn after years of use on fishing trips.

Charlie shrugged. “Your work is pretty intense.”

Lewis nodded as he looked the other man over. “Yep, most newbies can’t handle it. But you didn’t even grunt. Used to labor of some kind, it seems.”

With a nod, Charlie replied, “Appears that way.”

Then Charlie looked down at his hands where the skin had been rubbed raw. He wasn’t new to hard labor, but it appeared to have been a while. His muscles screamed in pain, yet it felt welcome. Something about the burning sensation felt good and... familiar.

“No ideas yet as to what you used to do or who you are?”

He looked out over the water and swallowed his food. “Nothing yet. Some things feel familiar to me, but nothing concrete.”

“Suzanne seems to be taking good care of you.”

Charlie smiled at hearing her name. “Yes, she is. Great family.”

Lewis gave him a hard stare. “Yep, she’s a good girl. We all care a lot about her, if you know what I mean.”

Charlie held back a smile. “Yes, I know what you mean.”

Maybe it was male DNA from the Stone Age, but something inside of him told him that Lewis was more than just a friend to Suzanne—or, at least, he wanted more. Charlie had noted the looks Lewis gave Suzanne even when she wasn’t looking.

The other man had the hots for Suzanne, and it didn’t sit well with Charlie. He didn’t like it one bit.

Lewis’ head snapped up, and he stared off toward the western horizon. He frowned.

“What’s wrong?” Charlie swung around to look.

“The morning sky was right. There’s a storm coming in.”

Charlie peered in the direction Lewis indicated. “Storm? I don't see anything.”

Lewis began putting up his lunch. “You won’t yet. But those small puffs of clouds are the scouts for an army of them. We need to head in.”

****

Suzanne's POV

I had turned on the radio to a frequency that would let me hear any of the fishermen, mainly Dad and Lewis. I did that occasionally.

This time, I had my ear more turned to it than usual. It was evident in the half-washed dishes and badly folded laundry.

I heard one of the boats come in on the radio and comment on the bad weather approaching. Stepping out onto the deck, I looked out over the western horizon. There was a thin line of dark clouds moving in under the setting sun.

To most, that thin line was nothing, but over water, that could be something severe. The worst storms could seem innocent at first.

Still watching the oncoming storm, I made my way down to the docks to wait for the men.

The first of the boats came in. Not Dad. Not Lewis and Charlie.

The men who came in worried at what they thought would be a bad storm front. They unloaded their catch quickly and prepared their boats for a full onslaught.

I bit my lip and continued to scan the water for the next boat that came in. When Dad’s boat showed up, I rushed to help him.

“How was it?” I asked, taking the rope and securing his bow.

“Not too good. Fish knew the weather was coming in. Did Charlie have a good time?”

Dad stopped what he was doing when he saw my face. It must have screamed my concern.

“They’re not back yet.”

“What? Lewis is always one of the first.” Dad scanned the docks. “Well, don’t worry yet. They have time to get in. We’ll help them unload to make it faster. Don’t want to be out here when that wind whips up.”

Half an hour later, the two men had not shown up. Their boat was the only one not in dock.

The wind increased. I felt like a rock had settled in the pit of my stomach. Dad put his arm around me. For once, it was no comfort.

“Dad?” I asked as the rain hit us hard.

“Time for the Coast Guard.”