Chapter 1

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Kat desperately needed time to unwind – away from the rest of the crew and the bickering that had become infectious as of late

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Kat desperately needed time to unwind – away from the rest of the crew and the bickering that had become infectious as of late. She felt tired of being on the fly, going from world to world, and she knew the rest of the crew were just as tired. She didn't blame them. They just all badly needed a rest.

She stared out at the tall mountains of ice on the northern horizon. That was not where she and her crew were headed, but the glaciers were responsible for the way the land had been sculpted and the way animals had developed. A reminder there are always forces more powerful than those of humans in shaping the universe. This world bore no resemblance to the one on which she had grown up, but it had a certain appeal to her, nonetheless. There were spots one could sit and hear nothing but the whispering wind. There was the abundance of wildlife with a few truly spectacular animals, and she never tired of watching them. Only of having to talk about them.

Flinging her long auburn pigtails in an arc around her head, she turned and squinted at George. "It was you who insisted on getting this last fricking shoot in. So, are we doing this or what? If you want to just call it off, you know I would be fine with that." There was an edge to Kat's tone. She heard it when she spoke, but she felt as if she had no control over it. It was weariness, really. Nothing a long vacation couldn't fix.

Her producer, George DeMooney, glanced in her direction and harrumphed. He also did the directing and half the filming. "Just keep your Glocks in their holsters." George scratched the top of his shiny forehead, rubbed his hand over what little remained in the back, and then returned back to his fiddling.

Kat rolled her eyes. She had only one Glock on her, a 19C Gen6, but it was not worth the effort to correct him with a retort over that.

"And don't fricking shoot off my butt with them just 'cause I'm the one holding us back this morning." He pointed down at the gadget in front of him. "Been fricking struggling to get this new camera to work. For the show, you know. It'll make it better."

"You've been fiddling with that all week."

"Yeah, no tech support out here. But I finally figured out what I've been doing wrong."

"Oh, for all the heavens' sake, can't you just use one of your old ones? This is our last shoot of the season, right?" Kat didn't like how she felt. Every little thing irritated her, but she wasn't alone in that regard. The whole team was like that. They had been at it, shooting episodes week after week for nearly six months, and they all sorely needed a break. Time away from each other. See the faces of some friends or family or maybe some beach where they could unwind.

"Camera tech's my area," George snapped back. "It's not like I tell you–"

"Tell me what?" Kat glared at him. "How to stand? How to point? You tell me how to do everything except–"

"I'm your director," George cut her off before she could finish the crude remark that dangled on the tip of her tongue. He broke eye contact with her and fiddled with the camera again and then mumbled, "I just want this to be a good episode."

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