“I’m fine, and no more contractions.” She pointed a finger over to Larry. “The doctor said everything’s okay this morning and told me to take it easy today.” She was too intuitive for her own good, because she squinted those dynamic blue eyes at him as though he were a puzzle she was determined to solve. “You look tired. I’m so sorry I kept you up.”
He grinned. “I’ll survive, and you didn’t keep me up. I wanted to be here. I need to talk to the doc for a minute. Don’t go anywhere.”
“As if I could,” she answered in her soft voice. Eric left, with Larry behind him.
****
The last thing Eric wanted to do was speak with Larry in the passageway, where every crewmember could chance to pick up on what they were saying, especially in light of what Gail Carruthers had set in motion. So he led Larry straight to his cabin and shut the door.
“Captain, I am so sorry about Gail. If I’d known what she was going to pull, I would have put a stop to it.” Larry shook his head, clenching and unclenching his fists in front of him. “I spoke with her in the mess hall, and she never even gave mention to this, this…” Larry gestured wildly with his hands as his face glowed a faded pink. Then he stopped and said nothing further. He stared like a helpless man at Eric, as if he somehow felt responsible. “I’m sorry.”
Eric reached out and slapped him on the arm. “Larry, stop beating yourself up. I know you would have stopped her. Did you get a copy of the report?”
“Yes. Joe was down earlier and brought it to me. He questioned me, but I’m afraid I wasn’t much help.” Agitated, Larry began pacing the length of the office, clenching and unclenching his fists.
Eric watched him for a while until his own unease and anxiety, and anger, threatened to get the best of him. He stopped Larry, saying, “Frankly, I don’t understand. Why the hell would she pull this?” He didn’t wait for Larry to reply, because his mind was spinning a mile a minute. “What do you know about her past? I mean, when she transferred in under your department, were there any problems she had at other postings?”
Larry finally stopped pacing and approached the desk. He shook his head, his eyes blank. “I read her files and made a few inquiries, but nothing I could see.… And no, she has never spoken of anything.” Larry shrugged. “But she wouldn’t talk to me, anyway. She might’ve talked to some of the women.”
“Is there anyone you know she’s close to?”
“I don’t think there are many. I’ll check around, but she is pretty isolated, keeps to herself. Does her work, though, so I’ve had nothing to complain about.” Checking his watch, he winced at the captain. “She hasn’t reported for duty yet, but I expect her in about twenty minutes. When I spoke to Joe, I told him I wanted her out of my department. What really pisses me off is that right now, he said I can’t move her. If I start reassigning her or posting her to shit jobs, she could yell and scream that you’re trying to get back at her.”
“He’s right, but let me be clear: I don’t want her around Abby right now.”
“Captain, do you think she would physically hurt her? Is that what you’re worried about, because I can assure you…”
Cutting him off with a wave of his hand, Eric said, “No, no, it’s not that. I don’t want her to say something that would upset her. I don’t want Abby to know of these charges, and I definitely don’t want Gail telling her this fictitious story she created. How safe is it right now to move Abby?”
“Move her off the ship?”
Eric didn’t miss the surprise that registered in Larry’s voice. “No, not off the ship, but to one of the cabins reserved for the visiting officers and guests.”
“Not right now. Maybe in a day or two. If we do, she can’t be left alone. She’s too close to delivering.”
Eric sighed, hearing an edginess creep into the man’s voice.
Larry continued. “I’ll find a way to keep Gail out of sickbay and away from her as much as possible.”
“One more thing, Doc. I don’t want any word of this getting back to Abby. She doesn’t need any more stress.”
“As her doctor, I agree. She’s just stabilized. The contractions have stopped, but any stress right now could bring labor back on. I doubt we’d be able to stop it a second time. I’d be happy if the baby held off for another week, and we could get her into Bahrain.”
“No, she won’t be going to Bahrain. Not yet.”
The doctor looked rattled for a moment, but he didn’t say a word.
Eric squeezed his neck, trying to work out the tight knots that burned like hooks up the back of his neck. “I’m going back to talk to Abby,” he said.
“Listen, before all the stuff with Gail happened this morning, I was going to talk to you about the nightmare Abby had, the one that brought on her early labor. The fear she had in her eyes, it’s something I don’t think I’ve ever seen before,” Larry said.
“Shit, I was going to talk to her. I know some of her fears, and maybe I can talk to her and reassure her again.”
“Yeah, well, I’m no shrink, but if it happens again next time, her labor probably won’t stop. I can give her a sedative to help her sleep. That will probably keep the nightmares quiet, but I don’t want to keep doing that. It’s just not safe.”
Wincing and then lowering his voice, Eric said, “I’ll talk to her right after we’re finished here.”
Larry gestured to the door. “I’ll make sure you’re not disturbed, and as far as Miss Carruthers, I’ll make sure she’s occupied elsewhere for the day.”
****
Eric was just behind Larry as he opened the door to sick bay. The guard outside flushed a deep red when he glanced nervously at the captain and then at the doorway. He started to say something when Eric spied Gail holding a chart and speaking with Abby, and in that instant he felt a red tide hamper his vision. It was the first time in his life that he thought he could kill someone.
He didn’t realize he had even made it through the door until he saw Abby’s wide eyes fix on him, then over to Carruthers and then Larry. Of course she knew something was going on.
Larry stepped in front of the captain. “Carruthers!”
Gail dropped the clipboard. It thunked on the floor as her head snapped toward Larry.
“I need to speak with you, now!” He pointed stiff fingers at the door. When she refused to move, opening her mouth as if to protest, Larry snapped, “I said now, Carruthers.”
Slowly, so slowly, she stooped and picked up the clipboard, then dropped it without care on a side table. She appeared to thrust her stubby nose in the air and pace unhurriedly past the captain. Eric had to dig deep inside himself to not look at her, because all he wanted to do was give her a good kick in the rear to send her flying just as she walked past. He didn’t, but he did count until he heard the door close and then looked over at Abby, who was watching him with a questioning look filled with such worry that he thought she’d leap out of bed and come over to him.
“What was that all about?” Her voice sounded breathy, and she pointed a finger towards the closed door.
With an edgy sigh, he turned a brief, heated look at the solid door before sliding a chair up to the bed and straddling it, resting his arms over the back. “Forget it. Just a little trouble that will be resolved shortly.” The weariness crackled in his voice. Then he reached forward and squeezed her arm before allowing his hand to fall away. “Abby, I’m more concerned about what happened last night. Your nightmare scared you enough to put you into early labor. I want to talk to you about it.…”
The buzz of the phone interrupted Eric.
“Just a minute, I need to get this.” Jumping up, he reached the phone in two long strides. “Hamilton.” He gazed back at Abby, realizing his talk would have to wait, as the admiral was on the line, waiting to talk to him. “I’ll be right there,” he said, hanging up the phone. He hesitated. “I have an important call coming in. I have to take it.” He paused briefly while his eyes softened. “I’ll be back to talk to
you in a while. See if you can’t get some rest in the meantime. Okay?”
She just nodded. “I’ll try.”
Eric hurried to the door and glanced back at a woman who would not sit quietly by and do nothing. She was quiet, honest, but she had a fighting spirit that he’d swear would go to the death. She was one woman he prayed he’d never disappoint.
Chapter Fifteen
“Admiral James, thanks for returning my call.” The pounding headache Eric had struggled with earlier returned, pulsing viciously, as the tentacles tightened at the back of his neck. He leaned back in his chair and reached around, grasping his neck, squeezing, trying to relieve the building pressure.
“Sorry I couldn’t get back to you earlier. Listen, I was going to call you anyway about this report I received via a Petty Officer Jennifer Hampton, filed by an HM3 Gail Carruthers. When I read the accusation, my first response was ‘What the hell?’ Frankly, I’m speechless. Tell me, is any of this true?”
Eric realized he would be questioned by so many as to whether he had done such a dirty, dark thing. However, having a man he had looked up to for years question his morals and whether he could even consider assaulting a woman had him wanting to throw the phone against the wall. “Admiral, I hope you know me better than that. Yes, it’s bullshit! I would never do anything like that.”
He could hear something in the admiral’s voice on the other end of the line, and he wasn’t sure what it was, but he also knew he was so tired that he could read anything into a situation that wasn’t there.
“I’m sorry, Eric, but I had to ask,” he replied. Eric could hear tapping on the other end. “I’ve been questioning this, though. Why didn’t you call me before I got it?”
“Actually, Admiral, believe it or not, none of us knew. This blindsided me. Since that scheming bitch fabricated the entire accusation…” Eric had to bite his tongue before he continued, because he was headed off track. “She didn’t follow proper channels in filing the report. Joe was the first to get it, and he got it from your assistant.”
The deep voice growled on the other end. “Are you telling me she did an end run around her commanding officer, sending it directly to the top?”
“I’m afraid so, Admiral.”
“Why, that fucking little bitch! And this Petty Officer Jennifer Hampton who filed it for her, what’s that all about?”
“I can’t believe any of this, Admiral, so it makes no sense why Hampton would do that. Admiral, what do you know about her past postings? Any trouble there with former commanding officers or other sailors? I mean, something like this…”
“Eric, you’re grasping, and there will be an investigation. Don’t go poking your head into her past and do something that will blow up in your face. I don’t think I need to tell you that there is more focus right now on women’s rights in the military. The media is all over any abuse, especially assault on women.” The Admiral paused before continuing, his tone sympathetic. “Eric, I’ll do what I can to help, but I gotta tell you, if the media gets a hold of this, shit’s going to hit the fan. You of every male have been quite vocal in your low opinion of women, saying they’ve no place in the Navy. The rest of us have learned to find a way to deal with them, checking our mouths before we say something really stupid or what we’re really thinking. You haven’t, and I’ve warned you on more than one occasion to find a way to deal with it, to stop getting in every female sailor’s face and telling them they should be bed warmers for their husbands.”
“Are you saying I asked for this?” Eric fumbled in the top drawer and grabbed the bottle of Tylenol. He popped off the lid with his thumb and dumped a couple pills in his mouth straight from the bottle.
“Oh, don’t be an ass, Eric. That’s not what I’m saying. What she’s done is reprehensible. What you’ve done with your mouth has made you an easy target. What I want to know from you is what really happened.”
Eric dug his fingers into his scalp. “She disregarded protocol, refused to acknowledge me as her commanding officer. I dismissed her abruptly. I believe I was too easy on her. I realized I can be quite abrupt, but, having said that, the attitude and the situation in sickbay at the time warranted the dismissal. With all due respect, Admiral, I am concerned more by her complete disregard for my authority as captain of this ship. Look where we are, for God’s sake. I mean, how did she get it to you…?” Eric stopped cold midsentence as it hit him, the security breach. How had she been able to get it off this ship without anyone knowing? God, what the hell was happening on his ship?
“Eric, you have a ship to run, and when your people are sending information off your ship without anyone knowing, I’d say that you have a major security breach. All those involved need to be taken to task.”
“You’re absolutely right, Admiral. I’ll lock it up tight.”
“Listen, is there any way to disprove this claim of hers quickly and easily, any witnesses? Or were you truly alone with her, like she said? Because I got to tell you, that’s about as bad as it gets.”
Sighing heavily, he rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. “There were no witnesses, no one. There was someone there, but they were asleep at the time.”
“You know, Eric, unofficially, I’ll do everything to block this thing, but between you and me, it’s going to be real tough to squelch an official investigation. It’s gone too far. I’ll find out who else has it. If she sent a copy here, where else did she send it? Unfortunately, you and I both know what that means.”
He answered for the admiral, the pain lingering in his voice. “Yeah, I know, suspension of duties.” Eric felt as if he had swallowed his heart, finally admitting aloud what he’d already known could happen.
“Is Joe investigating on your end?”
Eric nodded. As he did, his throat was so thick he couldn’t speak for a moment. “Yeah, he’s already begun speaking with the crew.”
“Okay. Well, I want to talk to him. In the meantime, make sure you’re never alone with the girl, got it?”
Just hearing the admiral have to tell him to stay away from her, as if he was already guilty, scraped away at the ache, which was so much like a festering scab that he almost flinched. “Don’t worry. I have no desire to be alone with her.”
Eric set the phone back in its cradle and then leaned back into his chair, feeling as if all the starch had gone out of his limbs. It was defeat that was nipping at his backside, and he didn’t like it one bit. He was damn tired, and his head ached, so he leaned back, propping his feet up on his desk and closing his eyes for just a minute, just until the unrelenting pounding went away.
The pounding on the door startled him. Jerking his feet off the desk, he slammed them on the floor and had to blink a couple times to shake off the cobwebs in his head. Glancing at his watch, he was shocked to realize he’d fallen asleep for nearly three hours. He swiped his hand over his rough, whiskered face, which he still hadn’t shaved, and barked, “Come in.”
The door popped open, and Joe stepped in. Eric knew he looked a mess, but Joe confirmed it as his open gaze showed his concern.
“You look like shit. Seriously, did I wake you?”
He rubbed the corners of his eyes, which scraped as if sand had blown into them. “What do you want? Sorry, Joe, I didn’t mean to snap.”
The Tylenol had done nothing to ease the pounding in the back of his head, so he grabbed the bottle and swallowed a couple more pills. He jumped when Joe appeared beside him, handing him a glass of water. He gestured his thanks and downed it, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “What’s up?” he asked, pressing his fingers firmly to his temples while trying to massage away the vicious pounding in his head.
“I spoke with Petey, and he filled me in on your conversation this morning. I followed up with Ernie Biggs and some of the other enlisted men. Well, none of them like her. That pretty much sums it all up, even before this incident. A few even mentioned to me that they would want to teach her a lesson.”
Eric
rolled his eyes but said nothing. He couldn’t condemn any of them, because the same thought had drifted through his own mind.
“I spoke with the admiral a short time ago. I wanted to let you know he agrees with me that Gail needs to be watched closely—you know, for her protection, of course,” Joe said.
Eric didn’t miss the sarcasm dripping from his voice. He turned his chair around to face him.
“Of course, she’ll be given the option of reassignment to headquarters with Vice Admiral James. If she refuses, she will be assigned a female guard who will shadow her. Again, this’ll be for her own protection.”
“Jesus, Joe, how do you come up with this stuff? You’re one sly bastard. Remind me never to piss you off.” He felt better as he watched the devilish spark in Joe’s boyish, charming gaze. You couldn’t help but take him seriously if you didn’t know him well.
“I wanted to let you know first before I talk to her. As you’re probably aware, she’s going to lose it, maybe. She’ll definitely raise shit, but it’ll only backfire on her. You know how it is. We’re doing our best to make sure that she’s kept safe and protected, and that’s exactly how I’ll make sure it’s viewed.”
Eric noted the smugness in his tone. “Holy shit, Joe. I’m so glad you’re on my side.”
“Eric, go get some sleep. You really do look like shit. I’ll get Petey to defer anything dicey to me for a few hours. I need you to be well rested so we can fight this with a level head and not with your temper.”
Eric said nothing because it irritated the hell out of him that everyone had to remind him over and over to watch his step, as if he were a reckless loose cannon.
“We’ll beat this.” Joe signaled to the door, and his grin faded to the concern that Eric was tired of seeing on everyone’s face. “I’ll see you’re not disturbed.”
Eric just watched as his friend left, shutting the door behind him. He realized then that he had friends and they cared about him enough to go to bat for him, to do the damnedest creative things, and Joe would always have his back. That kind of trust and loyalty was something Eric would live and die for. But Joe was right: He needed sleep, and he was tired. If he could get his head to stop spinning and working overtime, creating problems and picturing all the what ifs and should haves, then he might be able to sleep for a bit. It was that constant droning in his head that had made him into who he was, though, and right now, as he groaned like an old man making his way to his bed, he collapsed, boots and all, and closed his eyes, but it was Abby’s kind, soft blue eyes—the color of some of the cleanest waters down south—that followed him into his dreams.
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