244 - elder

lowly, the icebreaker made its progress through the frozen water of the massive lake. Four crew members stood constant guard, two on the bow, two astern. The bright orange coats they wore reflected little apparent movement. Their eyes, though, were in constant motion. Scanning, always on the lookout. Once in a while, if they happened to catch a glimpse of something interesting, further inspection was aided by the pair of binoculars slung around their necks.

The ship crawled close to the coast. The conditions not only tended to be more favorable in these locations, but this was the area where they would be more likely to find what they were looking for.

Ronald yawned, expelling a plume of white breath as he exhaled. He briefly stole a glance at his wristwatch. His shift had technically ended a few minutes ago, but the crew wasn't exactly diligent when it came to watching the clock. They weren't a military vessel, after all.

Still, Ronald knew he could expect his replacement to tap him on the shoulder at any moment now. He wouldn't mind if it happened sooner rather than later, either. Today had been cold, and he was eager to warm up a bit in the heated interior of the ship.

He chuckled to himself. "Today has been cold," he thought, as if every day out here on the ice wasn't a test of man's endurance in hypothermic conditions. Actually, the entire season thus far had been, relatively speaking, quite warm. The somewhat tolerable weather had encouraged more people to venture out onto the ice. This, in turn, had led to a busy season for Ronald and the rest of this vessel's crew.

A warmer season in general, though, did not totally preclude the existence of cold days, nor especially cold days. Ronald could feel the cold seeping deeper and deeper into his bones, freezing his joints. He was certain, then, that today was rather cold. As much as he disliked how he felt at the moment, he reckoned that everyone could have used a few more bone-chilling days like this if it meant a reduction in workload. This was his sixth season, but that experience did not make the job any easier.

Then came the tap on his shoulder. Ronald's body took a few extra moments to respond, his nervous system partially frozen over just as the lake. He turned to greet the familiar face of Titus, his replacement today.

"Anything out there at all?" Titus asked as they both stared out across the frozen white expanse. Ronald just shook his head, sending waves of pain through the muscles in his neck as they remembered how to move.

"Shit," Titus muttered. "The tally is really building up against us lately."

These words got Ronald's attention. "More calls come in?" he asked.

"Yep, two more an hour ago," Titus nodded. "Both female this time, one in her teens and the other in her sixties," he said, letting that final bit of information hang on his tongue before adding, "she's a goner for sure."

Ronald was not always fond of how Titus sometimes appeared callous about their work. No point in saying anything, though. Bad blood among the crew never accomplished anything while they were all stuck aboard the ship. Besides, it was just Titus' way of dealing with what they faced every day. They all had their own coping mechanisms.

"I don't know what we expect. She's alive, she needs to eat just like any of us. These waters give us life, and sometimes they take it back. Y'know?" Titus said while taking up his post.

Ronald nodded, giving Titus a light pat on the back as he headed in toward the heat.