Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6 FOUR DAYS LATER FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 1964 4:45 A.M. VALDEZ, ALASKA Roooooooooaaaaar! The winter bear was in the cabin! And now it had come for Jackson, and there was no escape.

Jackson stared in horror at the bear's dripping teeth, smelled its bloody breath. He braced himself for the bone-crunching bite. And then… Jackson's eyes snapped open. It took a few seconds for his groggy head to clear. There was no bear. He wasn't in the cabin. He and Mom and Dad had made it to Valdez last night. They'd gone to sleep in Uncle Solly's attic guest room. Jackson could hear Mom and Dad breathing softly from their bed a few feet away. In the moonlight, he could see the clock on the dresser—4:45 A.M. Jackson pulled the quilt around him. He shivered as he remembered the three bitterly cold nights they'd spent in their tent. His bones and muscles ached from the twenty-mile walk. But they'd been lucky. No blizzards. No sign of the winter bear.

They'd made it to Glennallen with no trouble. The owners of the general store made them bowls of chili while they waited for Uncle Solly. By sunset last night, they were finally here, safe and sound. Jackson eyed the clock again. Should he get out of bed now? Back home Jackson was always up at five o'clock. That way he could do some of his homeschool work before chores. But his school supplies and books were all burned up now. It felt so good to be warm. Just a few more minutes, Jackson thought, closing his eyes. The next time Jackson woke up, the sun was streaming through the window. Mom and Dad's bed was empty. He looked at the clock. What?! Eight o'clock?! He'd never slept that late in his life! One night in Valdez and already he'd turned into a lazy slug.

He scrambled out of bed and threw on his clothes. They stank of smoke and sweat and moose jerky. In a flash he was down the stairs. "Good morning!" Uncle Solly boomed when Jackson walked into the cozy kitchen. He was at the stove. Mom and Dad were sipping coffee at the table. Jackson was glad to see his parents looking cheerful and bright eyed. They'd all been dragging last night when they finally got to Valdez. "Sorry I slept so late," Jackson said. "I could have slept all day," Mom said with a yawn. "Be glad you weren't up early," Uncle Solly said to Jackson. "You escaped helping me shovel the driveway. It snowed last night. Again." Jackson looked out the window. Whoa! There was at least a foot of fresh snow, on top of the five feet that had been there last night. Drifts rose up past the first-floor window of the house next door.

"Did you know we get more snow here in Valdez than anywhere else in Alaska?" Uncle Solly said as he cracked an egg into a sizzling skillet. Dad and Mom smirked at Jackson over their mugs of coffee. Uncle Solly loved reminding them that Valdez was extra special. "Most beautiful town in Alaska," he would brag. "Everyone agrees." Out the window, Jackson could see straight down the street to the waterfront. Fishing boats bobbed in the bright blue water. Across the harbor, a zigzag of sparkling mountains rose into the morning sky. It was pretty, Jackson thought. But he missed the pine trees that surrounded the cabin. Uncle Solly put a heaping plate of fluffy eggs, thick bacon, and toast in front of Jackson. Now, that is beautiful, Jackson thought. They never got to eat eggs at the cabin. And Uncle Solly's toast was made with the squishy white store-bought bread Jackson loved.

"Thanks, Uncle Solly," Jackson said as he shoveled the first forkful into his mouth. "You won't believe it," Mom said, sitting back in her chair. "Dad and I already have jobs!" "How did that happen?" Jackson asked through a mouthful. "Uncle Solly hired us," Dad said. Uncle Solly turned from the stove, his smile bright under his big bushy mustache. He was a carpenter, and it turned out he needed help with a new house he was building. "I'm lucky you showed up," he said. "We're the lucky ones," Mom said, smiling at Uncle Solly. "You've always been there for us." That was true. Mom and Dad had met Uncle Solly during their miserable first year in Alaska. He was living in the bush back then, in a cabin about six miles from theirs. When Mom and Dad ran out of food that winter, Uncle Solly shared his. He'd taught them about hunting and fishing and living off the land. Without Uncle Solly's help,