Henry was not at all surprised by Old George's thoughts.
Quite a few rookies who boarded crab boats probably lasted only one trip. But some could adapt to the work and become full-time crab fishermen.
Even if they did not treat it as a lifelong career, it was perfectly reasonable to make a few extra runs while they were young.
Old George then spoke of his own plans. "After I get back, my wife will arrange another crew. Annie 21 will spend a day in port resting, resupplying, and undergoing maintenance before setting out again.
"I'm not sure how many days they'll need before returning to port. If you're still interested in sailing with me, come find me at the harbor again in about a week, to be safe. The pay will be the same as this time. I won't treat you like Little Green anymore.
"If you think you've rested enough and want to get back on a boat sooner, you can have Polack contact me. I'll help you find a reliable boat. But your job right now is to rest properly. Don't even think about this stuff until at least three days from now, all right, kid?"
Naturally, Henry would not say he was fine and could head back out immediately. Even if he dared to say it, no captain would dare take someone who had just gotten off a boat back to sea. He simply nodded in agreement.
But Old George warned him again. "Rest means resting properly. I don't welcome junkies on my boat. An addict is trouble aboard ship. Other than tossing you into the Bering Sea to cool your head, I won't be offering any help. You understand what I mean?"
Raising both hands in surrender, Henry said, "Understood, boss. I'll do exactly as you say."
As a Kryptonian who felt absolutely nothing from whiskey, Henry doubted those powders could affect his body. Still, he had no interest in trying them.
Seeing the earnest look on the young man's face, Old George knew the kid had taken his words to heart. Reassured, he patted Henry on the shoulder and said,
"Deposit that check in the bank as soon as you can. I've seen too many people pass out drunk in bars, get their checks soaked and ruined, or have them stolen. You'd better pray the thief isn't too quick about cashing it, or even I won't be able to help."
"A bank..." Henry touched the pocket holding the check and asked, "Is there somewhere I can get cash?"
"Cash... Don't tell me you don't even have a bank account." Old George sighed.
Though he had not asked much about the young man's background, he had seen enough to roughly guess what was going on.
Old George said, "I'll find someone to help you. That old guy is very good at handling this sort of thing, and you can ask him if you have questions. Afterward, he can take you back to Old John's bar.
"Even if you need advice, the person I introduce you to won't give you anything too outrageous. My legs feel like they're floating right now, so I can't keep taking you around to handle all this. Does that work for you?"
"You're helping me out a lot, boss." Henry naturally had no objections. Being introduced by someone was better than blundering around on his own.
Patting Henry's shoulder again, Old George said, "If that's fine, come with me to the harbor office. I'll make a call there, and you can wait."
"Sure, I'll follow your arrangement."
The harbor office was only a small room, though there were tables and chairs beside it for people to rest. Old George used the public phone to dial a number. After explaining the situation to the person on the line, he hung up.
Before leaving, he bought Henry a cup of coffee and said, "That old guy should be here in about ten minutes. His name is Tom. I told him what you look like and what's going on. The rest is for the two of you to handle yourselves. All right?"
Taking the coffee, Henry nodded. "Thanks, boss."
"Get it done early and get some rest early. After a run at sea, it's hard to recover without at least three days of rest. The older you get, the longer it takes. I can't run off to bars like you young people still dare to."
After making that sour remark, Old George really did leave. He still had to get his car from the parking lot and drive home. If he did not leave soon, he would not be able to hold himself up.
The coffee sold at the harbor was utterly disgusting. Henry nearly spat out his first sip. But perhaps because of that, it was especially effective at waking him up. With his super senses of taste amplifying it, he became so alert that he felt like he could charge straight out of the atmosphere.
Before long, someone drove up in a light-brown vintage car Henry had only ever seen in television dramas or old movies. Instead of parking, the driver rolled down the passenger-side window beside the rest area.
The man inside shouted, "Hey, kid, yeah, you. Get in. George, that damned bastard, sent me over."
"Tom?" Henry asked as he stood.
"Yeah, that's me. Where else would you find a Tom as handsome as me?"
The man in the car was an old white guy with plenty of character. His hair was half brown and half silver, and he wore a pair of sunglasses wildly out of place for the weather.
Henry was not worried that the man had ill intentions. He opened the passenger door and got in.
But before he had even settled down, Tom said in disgust, "Wow, did you pickle yourself in a vat? You smell only slightly better than canned herring."
"Is it really that bad?" Henry sniffed himself and explained, "You know how it is. On the boat, we were either wearing rain gear or heavy coats. It was hard not to soak up the smell."
"God, have mercy on me." No matter how cold it was outside, Tom rolled down the driver's-side window too. "Come take a shower at my place."
"Is that necessary?"
"George said you might need to get some documents handled. You can't exactly take photos looking this unkempt, can you?"
Looking at himself in the rearview mirror, Henry saw a mass of messy hair nearly covering his eyes and a face full of stubble. Using that directly for an ID photo would be like telling everyone he had problems.
So Henry stopped insisting. "All right, I should clean myself up. But I don't have any spare clothes."
"If you don't mind wearing old clothes, I have some clean ones you can change into. If you want new clothes, we can swing by a store first."
"No need. As long as I have something to wear."
"Then let's go." Tom stepped on the gas, and the car shot forward smoothly.
As he drove, Tom continued, "First, we'll get you cleaned up at my place and take a photo. Then I'll take you to the bank to withdraw some money. Anything you want to ask?"
"You can get documents done? Any kind?"
Tom replied, "My main job is labor brokerage. I help outsiders obtain employment certificates, introduce them to crab boat captains, then take a reasonable commission. The whole process is legal.
"Your situation is a little special. If you don't want the IRS watching you, you'll still need to make up the employment certificate, related paperwork, and taxes you should have paid afterward.
"Everything I handle is legal, so don't mistake me for someone who makes fake IDs. Since George asked me to handle this, I'll naturally get it done properly, but I'll still charge you some processing fees. You can understand that, right?"
Before you continue