Chapter Eight

Jake’s scars

Jake and Carlos arrived shortly thereafter with all the tools to skin and cape the monster bear. Carlos was astonished at the sheer size of the creature.

“I thought the other bear was big but this is muy grande” he said to Don Jose'. Look at how big he is, look at his teeth! And his claws, my god, such claws. You should be very proud Don Jose', he is a tremendous prize.”

After much hand shaking and back slapping, picture taking and story telling they set to work skinning the great beast. The hide, with feet and skull still in it must have weighed two hundred-pounds or more when loaded on a pack board. The meat of a brown bear is not usable so they did not need to take that but Horton cut open the neck to see where the first shot had gone. Don Jose' had placed the bullet nearly perfectly but the bear had swung his head a little to the side. The shot had hit dead center but had angled just enough to break the wing off the side of the spine and drive through into the brisket. It had knocked the bear unconscious but was not fatal or even incapacitating. Horton shuddered at the thought that they could have been starting to skin this monster when he woke up!

Carlos helped Jake to his feet with the loaded pack on his back. The others gathered up the guns and gear and they headed for the beach. Carlos offered to carry the load for a while but it was more effort to stop and trade off than it was to keep going. Jake had a walking stick in each hand and Carlos and Horton helped him over any obstacles in the path. Carlos took the pack from his back and Jake dropped to the ground. “Damn, that was a load and that’s for sure” Jake said. “I think I’ll just rest up a bit and then you can row us to the boat.” Jake said to Carlos.

They had the skiff loaded when Don Jose' remembered he had left his camera out by the bear. He rattled off a string of Spanish and Carlos nodded and headed back down the trail.

“Where’s he going?” Horton asked Don Jose'. Jose' told him about the camera and said that Carlos would be right back. “Jose' he can’t go back there unarmed” Horton said. “There could be another bear on that carcass by now.” “I am sorry, I did not think of that, he is gone too far to call him back now, I will go after him.” Said the old gentleman.

“Naw, that’s OK” said Jake, “I got a kink in my back and don’t mind the walk, I’ll go after him. We should outta be back in twenty minutes or so.” Jake grabbed his rifle, checked the load and trotted off after Carlos.

Jake didn’t really expect any trouble, just figured on a stroll out to the meadow and back. It was a pleasant evening and it felt good to be off the boat. Jake didn’t catch up to Carlos until he was at the bear carcass. Carlos had found the camera and was about to start back. When Jake first walked up he noticed some brush and grass on top of the naked bear carcass.

“Did he do that” Jake thought to himself. Jake pointed to the brush and looked questioningly at Carlos. Carlos looked where Jake pointed and was startled to see the sticks and grass on the bear. He certainly did not recall seeing anyone put it there.

Seeing the look on Carlos face Jake got a real bad feeling in the back of his neck. He quickly chambered a shell into his rifle and when he looked up he saw Carlos eyes suddenly go very wide. Jake spun around and saw the bear in full charge at thirty yards or less. Not a sound came from it, just a ripping noise as it came through the grass. Jake whipped the rifle up and fired all in one motion. He saw the bullet strike the bear in the mouth breaking the lower jaw, then the bear hit him. Jake flew through the air and landed on his back, knocking the air out of him. He rolled over, gasping and saw the bear on top of Carlos trying to bite him. Jake still had his rifle and tried to chamber another shell. The lever action was bent all to hell and the stock broken. The rifle had taken most of the impact of the blow that had sent him flying. Dropping the useless gun Jake pulled his skinning knife and charged the bear. Leaping on its back he drove the large bowie knife into the hollow in the bears armpit. Screaming with pain and rage the bear whirled around and slashed at Jake. The blow caught him high on the shoulder and traveled down across his chest to the short ribs. The huge claws peeled off Jake’s clothes and made four huge, ugly, ragged cuts clean through to the bone.

The bear came at Jake spitting blood from both its shattered jaw and bright red frothy blood from the knife wound. Jake told himself to get up and fight but his body just didn’t seem to listen. He felt no pain, just numbness and nothing would work.

Suddenly he heard a yell and saw Carlos leap onto the bears back. Carlos hung on grimly and drove his own knife again and again into the side of the bear. With a gagging roar the brownie collapsed to the ground. The bullet had severed arteries in the neck and the multiple stab wounds in the lungs had finally taken their toll.

“Jake, Jake” Carlos gasped as he climbed off the bear. “My god, he is dead” he thought, “he is dead saving me”. With a shuddering gasp Jake at last drew breath into his lungs, Carlos could see Jake’s lung inflate between a couple of ribs that were out of place and exposed.

“He lives, God how can he be alive like that” Carlos thought. Blood was welling up in a flood but was not spurting badly from anywhere. Carlos knew that Jake’s only chance was to get to the boat. Carlos took off his shirt and wrapped it tightly around Jake he also tucked in scraps of cloth from Jake’s shirt. Then he lifted Jake up and threw him over his shoulder and headed for the beach.

Old man Horton and Don Jose' had heard the shot and after listening for a moment had started in after Jake and Carlos. They were shocked to meet Carlos on the trail traveling at a trot with the two hundred-pound man over his shoulder. One look was all it took Horton handed his rifle to Don Jose' and helped Carlos along the path.

The men stumbled along the faint trail, Don Jose' clearing the way and Carlos carrying Jake and Horton helping him. They arrived, gasping at the skiff and pushed off for the boat. Carlos was exhausted and lay in the skiff panting like a dog. Don Jose' held Jake’s body still and Old man Horton rowed as hard as he could. When they reached the boat the three men hoisted Jake onto the deck.

“Jose' cut the anchor line and let the skiff go, I’ll get the engine fired up” Horton shouted. Don Jose' spoke to Carlos relaying the orders and then went below for the first aid kit. When the engine caught Horton backed away and headed out into the main channel.

Jake was breathing, shallow and rapid, he was still not conscious and was still bleeding heavily. Horton shouted from the wheelhouse to Don Jose' “Do you know what to do to fix him up?” “No, Senor Horton I have no idea what to do” Don Jose' replied shakily. “Come up here and take the wheel, just keep us in the middle and headed up the channel. I’ll go see what I can do for Jake.”

Horton had spent a lifetime in dangerous work and had picked up a lot of rough first aid skills. The first thing he did was to run below and grab some clean sheets and dishtowels. He also grabbed a big bottle of rubbing alcohol. When he got back on deck and looked down at Jake he nearly despaired. The damage to Jake was truly awful to behold.

Horton took a deep breath and cut the shirt and rags from Jake’s chest. When he lifted the soaked rags away some of the bleeding began again. Horton started to wipe the blood away so he could see the damage. Carlos saw what he was doing and spoke to him. “Do you need water to wash his wounds?” Horton did not understand him. Carlos shouted to Don Jose' and Jose' yelled out “agua, agua, water do you need water for him?” “Yes, yes water please” Carlos tore below decks and returned with a large dishpan full of water that he placed on the deck beside Horton. Horton poured in part of the bottle of alcohol, dunked in a towel and started swabbing Jake’s chest. As the gore rinsed away Horton could see right into Jake’s chest and see his lung flexing. Horton carefully shifted the two displaced ribs into their proper place and pressing with the flat of his hands molded the flesh back into place. When he was done he indicated to Carlos that he should hold Jake’s head while he poured on the rest of the alcohol. When the pure grain alcohol hit him Jake arched up and shuddered violently, then collapsed to the deck again.

Horton placed damp towels over the wounds and then showed Carlos how to tear the sheets into long strips. Horton took the strips and with Carlos holding Jake up, wound them around and around Jake’s torso. When he finished and Carlos lowered Jake to the deck Horton said, “Well that’s all I know how to do, the big problem is shock and bloodloss. We’ll keep him warm and run for town as fast as possible.

They placed Jake on a mattress from the bunk below and wrapped him in blankets. Carlos sat beside him all through the long night while they ran flat out in the dark. Fortunately at this time of year they only had a few hours of darkness and the sun came up again.

When they reached the Juneau harbor Horton laid on the horn and kept the throttle wide open. With other skippers shouting curses at him Horton waited until the last second then whipped the wheel hard left. With a screech of abused gears he slammed the boat into reverse turned the wheel full right and hit the throttle again. The bow sheared off part of the bullrail on the dock and then crashed broadside into it.

“Goddam you,” Horton shouted at some men on the dock. “Get these lines tied fast and call me an ambulance!” The men stood with their mouths gaping, “Move you sons a bitches move” Horton screamed.
Now old man Horton had a voice that could be used for a fog horn and them men moved. Helping hands took Jake off the boat and carried him up the ramp to the street level. Soon the ambulance rolled in with siren screaming they loaded Jake in and took off for the hospital.

“You guys can stay on the boat” Horton said “but I got to go see about Jake”. Don Jose' relayed the message to Carlos and then said “Let’s go, we may be of some help there.” They piled into Horton’s old truck and roared off.

When they got to the hospital Jake was already in surgery. They were standing at the desk trying to find out what was going on when a nurse ran out saying they needed blood. “do any of you know what type you are? We need whole blood right now.”

“I don’t know what I have” said Horton “do you?” “Yes, I am A-positive. I am sure Carlos has never been typed before.” The nurse said “the patient is O-negative so we cannot use you sir, you two follow me and we will type and match your blood.” Horton and Carlos followed the nurse into a room where she drew a sample of blood from them. After a short time she came back and said that Horton’s blood was AB and could not be used, but Carlos’ was O-negative and would he please come with her.

Don Jose' explained to Carlos and he followed the nurse into the operating room. She sat him in a reclined chair beside Jake and stuck a large needle into his arm. Carlos watched the blood drain out of him, into a jar and then into Jake’s arm.

The surgeon said to the nurse, “take all you dare from him, this guy has lost a bunch and needs it bad.” “Yes doctor, I’ll drain him right down to the add mark” she said with a smile. Carlos became thirsty and tired feeling, Jake started to regain some color and to breath a little stronger. “That’s it Doc, we better quit now or we’re going to have two patients”. “That’s fine nurse, I think we are over the hump now anyway.

The surgical team worked on Jake for many hours and placed over two hundred stitches in him. When they were done he looked like a poorly made quilt. They also found a broken arm and wrist that they set in plaster.

“He’s out of surgery now and looks like he’ll be OK. The first aid you guys did on the boat prevented most of the infection and lessened the shock. The whole blood was what he really needed and now if we don’t have any major complications he should be fine.”

“Will he heal up so as to be fit again Doc?” Horton asked. Given time for the muscles to rebuild he should be” responded the doctor. “You should all go home now, it will be twelve to twenty-four hours till he wakes up.

It was a sober and tired trio of men who left the hospital that night. Carlos was slightly dizzy and felt faint whenever he moved too fast. They drove back to the boat and dropped onto their bunks.

Don Jose' woke the next morning to the smell of coffee and the sounds of the harbor. Carlos came below and handed him a cup of steaming black coffee. When Don Jose' came on deck a few minutes later he found Carlos resting and Horton fleshing out his bear hide.

“I called the hospital this morning and Jake is doing OK. He woke up once and then went into a good sleep. They said we could come see him later.” “That is very good news indeed” said Don Jose'.
Carlos looked at Horton and said “Jake”. Frustrated at not being able to communicate he turned to Don Jose' and talked to him for several minutes. Carlos looked very relieved when he was finished.

“You are working on my bear, how can that be it was left in the skiff” said Don Jose'. “Yup it was left there alright, a friend of mine spotted the skiff drifting in the channel and brought it in early this morning. This old skiff leaks pretty bad but that was good ‘cause it soaked the hide in salt water all this time. It should have been ruined but it ain’t.”

“Mr. Horton, I am deeply sorry for what has happened on this hunt. It was my fault that your man was injured. I will of course pay for his medical bills and take care of any expenses.” “Well, hell’s bells Jose' that’s what an Alaskan bear guide is for. It’s my job to take just these kind of risks. Was it me I couldn’t let you pay for anything but that young man will need it and I ain’t got no money to take care of him. If you can do what you say I would be most eternally grateful.

Carlos knew by the tone in their voice they were talking about Jake and he spoke to Don Jose'. “Jake was hurt defending me, the bear charged and he shot him, then faced him like a matador. When the bear knocked Jake over then hit me and had me down, Jake attacked it with only a knife. The bear left me and that is when Jake was slashed by the bear claws. It is my responsibility to help him now in any way that I can.”

Don Jose’ translated Carlos, words for Horton and they looked at each other in silence for a moment. Three men of honor who wanted to do what was right but did not quite know just what that was.

In the end Carlos stayed in Alaska for a time, helping Horton on the boat and doing what he could for Jake. Horton visited whenever he could and worked extra to help with the bills. Don Jose' paid for his hunt, with a large bonus for Jake, he paid most of the hospital and doctor bills and to repair the city dock.

Carlos visited with Jake whenever he was not working the boat with Horton. He rapidly learned more English words from Jake and cussing from Horton. After a time Carlos went back to his home and Jake began to heal. It took nearly a year before Jake could work much. Over the next several years Jake worked again with the logger Smith and worked as a guide for Horton. He eventually became a full-fledged guide and when Horton got to old Jake bought him out. Jake learned to fly a plane and used a supercub to increase his guiding operation. Over the years Jake had many more adventures in the bush, a few close calls and more trouble with bears, but he never had another one get ahold of him or touch a client.

Jake and Carlos kept in touch with each other by letter as each went on with their lives. Don Jose' never went on another dangerous game hunt but remained closer to his home and walked the fields and hill with a shotgun and favorite dog. Don Jose' loaned Carlos the money to buy his own boat and became the godfather to his children. Jake never married, he had always been slow with the ladies and now he thought the horrible scars he carried would frighten off any woman.

After nearly ten years Carlos was finally successful in convincing Jake to come to his home for a visit. They had not seen each other since Jake was in the hospital but had become close friends.

...man Horton, you've got a gift!