Accelerating Universe: The Sector Fleet Book One

by Claire, Nicola

  My eyes landed on Nico first, who looked fit to strangle someone, and then shifted to a woman getting dressed. I blinked. Then blinked again. Yes, that was definitely Ana Kereama, and she was slipping into a new uniform jacket, buttons polished, creases pressed, collar stiff. She had a singlet on beneath the jacket, no doubt to protect her modesty. But it hugged her athletic frame perfectly and instead left me feeling all kinds of wonderful.

  Or that was the residue of pain meds.

  I cleared my throat. Two sets of eyes flicked across the space towards me.

  “You woke him,” Nico accused.

  “I wasn’t the one being difficult,” Ana countered.

  “Don’t give me that, Commander,” the doctor growled. “This is my domain.”

  “Wouldn’t want it if you gift wrapped it,” Ana snapped back.

  She strode across the medbay to my bed, doing up the last of her buttons on her uniform jacket.

  “You don’t have to get dressed for me,” I said.

  She cocked her head at me and scowled.

  “How many fingers am I holding up?” she asked, holding up three fingers on one hand and two on the other.

  “You’re worse than Nico,” I muttered. “You expect me to focus and add.”

  “Well?”

  “Come a little closer,” I urged.

  She stepped up to the side of the bed.

  “Closer,” I whispered.

  She leaned in.

  “Closer.”

  She arched her brow and put her hands on her hips.

  “Can’t count them if they’re hiding,” I said.

  She turned and glared at Nico. “He’s fine. Unhook him.”

  “I am the doctor here, Ms Kereama.” Ah-oh, she was in trouble now; Nico wasn’t even using her rank.

  I glanced at her collar out of habit. Sure enough, she now wore the four pips to indicate she was a commander. Four pips which although different from my four bars were now closer than they had ever been. I smiled up at her.

  She blinked. Then scowled. Then looked back at the doctor.

  “I need him,” she said.

  I might have grinned even bigger.

  Nico sighed. “He is still very much under the influence of strong pain medication, Commander. I must insist he stay in bed and rest.”

  “I’m fine,” I said.

  “He’s fine,” Ana agreed as Nico said, “No you’re not.”

  They stared at each other.

  It was quite amusing to watch, but there was a reason why Ana was here. A reason that might or might not have been to do with a mutiny on the bridge. But I couldn’t clarify that without admitting I wasn’t sure if it had all been a dream. Ana was here, after all, dressed as my 2IC, so if there had been a mutiny, she’d overcome it.

  Or had she?

  Damn, I needed to have my wits about me, and nothing was making sense.

  I sat up. The room spun. Ana’s hand gripped my upper arm to steady me. I didn’t even have the wherewithal to grin at her like a lovestruck teenager. But I did raise my hand to let them know I was OK.

  “Just give me a moment,” I said.

  “This is insanity,” Nico muttered.

  “This is war,” Ana countered.

  My eyes met hers. “Tell me,” I said, as I started to pull tubes out of various places on my arms. Nico stepped forward muttering and took over. I kept my eyes on Ana.

  “We can’t find Archibald’s men,” she said. “Which means they’re still out there, and so is Aunt Mara.”

  I nodded as the last tube was discarded and all the sticky things were removed from my chest. The viewscreen above my head let out a whine of complaint and then retracted into the ceiling silent.

  “And Pavo?” I asked.

  “Still operating within acceptable parameters,” the AI said.

  “And still hiding within our systems,” Ana added.

  “They will not find me, Captain.”

  “Good to know.” I looked at Ana. “There’s more, isn’t there?”

  “The mayor has requested a meeting.”

  “With me?”

  “No, with the officer in charge.”

  “Then he knows I’ve been out for the count.”

  “Lieutenant Commander Maxwell did make a ship-wide announcement; the mayor might have suspected Maxwell was replacing you on the bridge.”

  “Do you believe that?” I asked her.

  She shook her head.

  “You think he’s up to something,” I guessed.

  “When are politicians not?” she hedged.

  I let out a breath of air. No, it wasn’t just the usual jockeying for position that politicians went through, although with Archibald gone - even if only thought to be missing by the mayor - Cecil would want to secure his position as leader of the civilian population.

  “Does he know about the lease being void?” I asked.

  “Not from us,” Ana confirmed.

  I leaned back on the bed and tried to think. I was in no fit state to face the mayor and outmanoeuvre him. And I couldn’t think right then which path to take. Tell him he was out of a job? Keep him happy for now to contain fallout? Which?

  I shook my head, angry at my inability to think clearly.

  “May I make a suggestion, Captain?” Ana finally said.

  “By all means,” I replied, waving my hand for her to continue.

  “Let him continue to think you’re compromised.” I blinked. “We might have cut off the head to the snake when Archibald was dealt with, but the body is still wiggling.”

  “You think Cecil is involved.”

  “I’m not sure, but we won’t find out if we shut him down too early. Let him make the next move.”

  I didn’t like it. It meant Ana would be left to Samuel Cecil’s mercy and despite the man being a slimy lump of lard, he was a cunning and devious opponent. I didn’t know if he was involved in Archibald’s plans to take over the ship, but it made sense to progress as if he were.

  Believing otherwise could be the last mistake Anderson Universal made on board Pavo.

  “You wear an earpiece connected to Pavo and me,” I said.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “And have security standing by to enter if needed.”

  “Out of sight, but yes.”

  I smiled. She was good at this. She might not believe it, but Ana Kereama was made to challenge me, to lead by example.

  To place herself in front of any target and face it down with true grit.

  “Well done, Commander,” I said. Something flashed across her eyes. There and gone again.

  For a moment I couldn’t decide what it was I had seen.

  And then it hit me.

  Regret.

  Forty-Three

  Definitely The Pain Meds

  Ana

  He was my captain; I told myself as Doctor Medina gave Jameson one final check. He was my superior officer. Due to AU chain of command, I had to follow his orders. He had to believe I would carry them out. There was no room for emotions. For feelings. For a relationship.

  He was my captain. I was duty bound to obey him. He was duty bound to honour that trust. He would never overstep the mark. Never take advantage of my position beneath him in the command structure. He would never take the risk Sam had.

  And I had to believe that was for the better. What I was beginning to feel for Captain John Jameson would not help anyone. I would never make the same mistake I’d made on Earth.

  “Pavo,” Doctor Medina was saying. “Captain Jameson is returned to duty. I relinquish medical override Alpha-Delta-01.”

  “Alpha-Delta-01 relinquished. Welcome back, Captain.”

  Jameson shook himself.

  “I feel like I’ve just been doused in cold water,” he said. “If you ever do that again, Nico, I swear to God I will make you suffer.”

  “You are such a baby, John.”

  I snorted. Jameson grinned at me. The doctor rolled his eyes and muttered under his brea
th.

  I could fall in love with this man, I realised as Jameson held my stare. He winked and jumped down from the bed, looking for all intents and purposes as if nothing had happened to him at all. His uniform had been removed, and he was in scrubs, but Pavo had already slid out a tray from the gel wall with the captain’s insignia draped uniform waiting for him to put on.

  “Turn around, Commander,” Jameson instructed. “Unless you’d like to help me get dressed?”

  I blushed and turned to face the opposite wall. Pavo created an image of greens trees for me to look at, a soft wind rustling their leaves. It was meant to soothe, but instead, I felt like my skin was on fire and the branches were making me itch.

  Some indeterminate amount of time later, Jameson appeared at my side.

  “I didn’t realise you were so bashful,” he said.

  “I’m not bashful. Sir.”

  He studied me for a moment, then leaned closer and said, “You didn’t even peek.”

  I shook my head. “That would have been inappropriate.”

  He pressed closer and whispered, “I give you permission to be inappropriate whenever you want, Commander.”

  And then walked toward the exit. I stared after him for a second and then glanced over my shoulder at the doctor. Medina was keeping his eyes down and his back to us. If he knew the captain was chatting me up, he was feigning disinterest. I shook myself awake and followed the captain from the medbay.

  “Sir,” I said as I came alongside him. “Will you return to the bridge?”

  “Who did you leave in charge?”

  I’d had no choice. Maxwell had been the most senior officer. He still looked at me funny, but he had warmed a little since we’d had that confrontation. I’d had to extend an olive branch, though, even as it galled me to do so.

  “Lieutenant Commander Maxwell, sir,” I said.

  Jameson’s steps slowed.

  “I want to be close to you should you need me,” he said softly. “But I get the distinct impression you’ve left something out of your report.”

  “Left something out, sir?” I queried.

  “Has everything gone smoothly for you on the bridge?” he asked.

  “As smooth as can be expected, sir.”

  Jameson scowled, clearly irate about something.

  “That’s not exactly what I was hoping to hear.”

  “I am an unknown, Captain. I have to prove myself.”

  “And have you?”

  “Enough, for now, sir.”

  “Quit it with the ‘sirs’,” he snapped.

  “Sir?”

  He stopped walking altogether. We were on Deck B. There was no one else walking the corridors. This deck didn’t have a lot of foot traffic normally; infirmary, gymnasium, officers’ quarters and the launch bay. Right now, we were the only ones moving about down here.

  Jameson turned to look directly at me.

  “On the bridge, I would expect a use of titles,” he said. “When it’s just you and me, we can drop the formality.”

  “I’m unsure if that is wise,” I said.

  He stepped closer. “Why? What are you afraid of?”

  “You’re my captain, sir.”

  “Ana.”

  “I can’t,” I said, stepping away. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t apologise,” he said swiftly. “But don’t run either.”

  “I’m not running, sir.”

  “Hiding behind something, then.”

  “Propriety?” I offered. “Chain of command?”

  He was close now. Too close. I kept stepping back. He kept stepping forward.

  “Don’t tell me you don’t feel this,” he whispered; his voice was husky. Sexy. Like a barely there touch.

  “I don’t feel this,” I managed to rasp back.

  “Liar,” he murmured, then slowly reached up and cupped my cheek with one of his hands. “And if I kiss you right now?”

  “I’d have to stop myself from kneeing you, sir. You are my captain, after all.”

  He stepped back. I forced myself to look him in the eye.

  He held my gaze with a compassionate one of his own. There was more in there, but I refused to acknowledge it. He wasn’t angry though. He understood. But what exactly did he understand? That we couldn’t do this? That I wanted to, but I would never make the same mistakes I’d made before? That we had a job to do and too many people relied on us to do it without distraction and falling for this man would distract us both?

  “You promised me ‘later’ in that maintenance tube above the bridge,” he finally said.

  I stared at him and said nothing.

  “I intend to collect on that promise,” he added.

  “Sir,” I said shaking my head. We couldn’t do this. I felt the loss of something I hadn’t even had the chance to possess.

  Jameson smiled at me; wicked with intent. “You are a challenge, Ana Kereama. I like a challenge.”

  “Sir,” I said again, almost pleading.

  “Be at ease, Commander. We have time. New Earth is still a fair few months away. Between now and then, we’ve got our hands full. But I promise you this, by the time we reach our destination, I will have had my hands full of you, too.”

  I stared, open-mouthed at him, as he practically sauntered off towards the central hub and lifts.

  It was the pain meds, I decided. Definitely the pain meds. He’d think differently once they wore off. And everything would return to how it should be.

  I followed behind him feeling more desolate than I had since we’d escaped a dying Earth.

  Forty-Four

  With Every Bit Of My Head And Heart

  Jameson

  There was no doubt in my mind that I could win over Ana Kereama. She was scared. I understood that. Considering her past, that was acceptable. But we had the chance of a future not everyone back on Earth and been given, and I was damned if I wasn’t going to make the most of it.

  I would just have to convince the commander of that.

  I smiled as the lift doors opened, and then stepped inside and waited for Ana to join me.

  “Stop smiling,” she grumbled under her breath. I got the distinct impression she thought I couldn’t hear her.

  “The future is looking bright,” I offered in reply.

  She huffed out an aggravated breath that made me smile wider, and slapped her palm to the gel wall saying, “Main deck.”

  “The pips suit you,” I said conversationally.

  She reached for her collar.

  “I wasn’t sure you’d noticed them,” she said primly.

  “Because I’m flirting?”

  She scowled at me.

  “Come on,” I teased. “Flirt back. You know you want to.”

  “You aren’t yourself, sir.”

  “Oh, I assure you, Ana, I am very much myself. You just haven’t gotten to know me yet. But you will.”

  “I’m sure you believe that,” she said as the lift came to a silent stop on the main deck. “But you’re delusional. Pain meds,” she added as if that said everything.

  “Trust me,” I muttered, “the pain meds have worn off.” I was in too much agony right now for that not to be true.

  She stared at me as the doors swished open, thankfully to a deserted bridge hub.

  “Are you going to be all right, sir?”

  I rolled my left shoulder carefully and winced.

  “I know I’d feel better if you offered to give me a back rub,” I said.

  “Sir,” she said, sounding put-upon.

  I leaned in closer as we stepped off the lift. “It doesn’t have to be my back,” I whispered.

  “Sir!”

  I chuckled. “This is going to be fun,” I said as we approached the bridge.

  “Not likely,” she muttered under her breath.

  “I can hear you when you talk like that,” I pointed out.

  She rolled her eyes at me. I grinned back. She was warming to me, I could tell. Falling for my charms.
I was so going to win this.

  “Captain on the bridge!” Marshal practically shouted.

  “As you were,” I said, waving them all back to their seats.

  “Captain,” Lieutenant Commander Maxwell said, his eyes darting between Ana and me.

  Yes, there had been tension there, I was sure. And there still was.

  “Maxwell,” I said, letting an edge enter into my voice.

  He had the wherewithal to look chagrined.

  “Commander Kereama has given me a report,” I announced. “You have all performed admirably according to her. I want to thank you for holding the fort while I was…indisposed. But now we have our work cut out for us.”

  “Archibald’s men, sir?” Maxwell asked.

  “Yes,” I said. “And the mayor. For now, we continue with the former command structure. Commander Kereama is officially the officer in charge. Lieutenant Commander Maxwell, you’re her acting 2IC. I am, for all intents and purposes, incognito. Let’s see if that shakes a few rats free.”

  “Understood, sir,” Maxwell said, I thought perhaps he finally did.

  I held his steady gaze for a few seconds longer, letting him know I was aware of what had transpired in my absence, and then I took up position on a stool beside the ops table, settling in to observe.

  “Well then, Commander,” I said to Ana. “The bridge is yours.”

  She offered me a small smile and said, “I have the bridge, sir.”

  Her eyes met Maxwell’s in a challenge which he wisely backed down from.

  Feisty was my Ana. I was going to enjoy this.

  “Lieutenant Chan,” Ana said as she approached the captain’s chair. “Have you assembled a team?”

  “Yes, ma’am. They’re ready when you are.”

  “Well then,” she said in what I was sure was an unconscious imitation of me. “I guess I’d best go meet with the mayor.”

  Maxwell stepped forward to claim the captain’s chair.

  “You have the bridge, Lieutenant Commander,” she said to him.

  “Yes, ma’am,” he replied, offering her a salute.

  The salute was a bit over the top, but it indicated a clear victory for Ana. I’d be keeping a close eye on Maxwell, though; the fact that he’d needed my presence here to fall into line worried me. But he’d been an outstanding officer until this recent upheaval. And we were in a situation we’d never prepared for. I had to cut him some slack, and I had to let Ana handle this in her own way. Which was why I hadn’t outright called the man on his unacceptable behaviour as soon as I’d entered the bridge.