Black Tide Rising Read Online Free PDF Page A

few of the younger men got work on the big seiners over at Port Hardy, or at Campbell River on the east side of the island, but most of them left to get jobs in the mines or with the logging companies or even down in the city. Only the old-timers stayed behind to cater to the tourists who arrived each summer in the fancy inflatables they launched up at Fair Harbour, near the eastern end of Kyuquot Sound. By the time Leif decided to beach his boat, unable to justify the cost of maintaining her, the only job available was guiding for the guests at the fishing lodge. It wasn’t the kind of fishing he wanted to do, but it was still fishing, and at least he was out on the water every day. Besides, the guests tipped well, laughed at the yarns he told them, and never left without a salmon.
    The lodge had been busy and Leif had worked twelve-hour days for the past week, taking guests out to the fishing grounds in one of the big Lund outboards. Today had been the last day for the biggest group, and they had wanted to get out on the water early. He had been up at four and on the water by five. By the time he brought them back to shore, off-loaded their fish, cleaned and refueled the boat, and then reloaded both the guests and their luggage for their trip back to Fair Harbour, he had another nine hours racked up. He was tired. Tired of helping other people fish. Tired of telling the same old stories. Tired of hearing the same old jokes. Tired of every damn thing. He was too old for this shit. He needed a break and he was damn well going to take one, even if it was just one afternoon and evening. Maybe tomorrow he would feel better.
    He steered the boat across the tiny harbor and over to the dock in front of the village of Houpsitas, on the reserve side of the water. He and Archie Jack had grown up together, had fished together, had gotten drunk together. They had both married local girls, the weddings held in the same church in the same year, and they had both buried those same girls after forty-seven years of marriage, in the same church, in the same month, just two years ago. If Archie was around, they could head across the inlet to the old village on Aktis Island. The sea otters had eaten most of the rock urchins the two men loved to eat, but there was a good oyster bed there. It would only take a few minutes to pick enough to make themselves a decent supper, and then he and Archie could shoot the breeze, maybe have a couple of beers, play a game of bones.
    He didn’t have far to look. Archie was sitting on the dock, his legs dangling over the side, baiting a crab trap.
    â€œHey, old man. What you doing over here in that fancy boat?”
    â€œNever mind the ‘old man’ shit. I’m younger than you are,” Leif retorted as he slid the dinghy up to the dock.
    â€œOnly two weeks and that don’t count. Us Indians age better than you white folks. Less wrinkles.”
    â€œYeah, right.” Leif’s laugh was more of a snort. “You got so many wrinkles you look like one of them dogs from China. What do they call ’em? Shar-pay or something. Wrinkle dog.”
    Archie’s cackle of laughter echoed over the water. “Wrinkle dog! That’s good. I like that.” He lowered the trap back down, watching as it dropped through the clear water to the bottom. “So what are you doing over here this time of day? Thought you’d be outside, helping those tourists steal our fish.”
    Leif nodded. “Just finished. Took a load of ’em back up to Fair Harbour. Next bunch don’t come in till Monday.”
    Archie nodded. “Guess they’re good for business anyway. Billy James was tellin’ me Old Joe at the store had him take four loads of supplies over to the lodge after the freight boat unloaded yesterday.”
    â€œYeah.” Leif nodded. “They ain’t so bad, most of them. City folks. They just want to catch a few big ones so they can go home and brag