by Grant, Peter
Brooks frowned. “Why would they still produce bodies for an obsolete shuttle?”
“The Mark IX doesn’t have a turret or missile tubes – it was a transport shuttle, not an assault shuttle. That makes its hull legal for use as an ambulance shuttle, which by interplanetary treaty can’t be armed or capable of being armed. Orion will offer Rolla a decent trade-and-purchase deal to buy enough refurbished shuttles to equip their present armored battalion, plus a second one they want to raise. They’ll be the launch customer for the Mark XIII Plus, if they agree.”
“Sounds fair to everyone. Where do I come in?”
Steve shifted position in his chair. “Major Venter’s candidate to command the instructor unit, a Captain Barton, was hurt in a training accident a few days ago. He’ll be OK, but he won’t be fit for duty in time to go with them. When I heard about it, I mentioned your qualifications and experience, and told the Major you’d be advanced to Captain when the mid-year promotion signal takes effect. He was very interested, because he’s running flat out to get everything organized on a very tight schedule and hasn’t got enough time to head-hunt a replacement. He said you seem to have most of the experience he needs in the instructor unit commanding officer. Even better, he said it’d be useful to have someone commanding the instructor unit with whom I’d worked before, as I’ll be liaising with them on shuttle training issues.
He sat forward, resting his elbows on the table. “He asked me to find out whether you’d be interested in a six-month TDY to Rolla. He’ll be visiting Orion Industries with me tomorrow morning. I can drop him at the Armor School in the afternoon to meet with you. If he accepts you for the slot, he should be able to arrange a temporary assignment for you with no trouble, because the Rolla mission has a high priority. He’ll ask you to find your own second-in-command, too. We’ll all meet with Colonel Houmayoun on Monday next week. He arrived yesterday to consult with PFD on the latest developments, and I’ll be returning to Rolla with him in two weeks. The instructor unit will follow three weeks later.”
Brooks’ eyes were sparkling with excitement. “That’ll be great! Thanks for mentioning my name to him. It’s advanced training rather than basic armored instruction, which will be good to have on my record; and it’ll give you and I a chance to have some more fun together. I’ve got just the person for the Lieutenant’s slot, too – one of my training platoon commanders, Second Lieutenant Abha Sashna. She’ll be promoted to First Lieutenant when the mid-year signal takes effect, at the same time that I move up to Captain. Not only is she an experienced instructor, she’s also a qualified shuttle pilot.”
“That might be useful for both of us,” Steve agreed. “I’ll mention her name to Major Venter tomorrow morning. He’ll probably want to see her at the same time as you, if you can arrange that.”
Brooks’ brow furrowed in thought as he picked up a piece of bread, mopped it through the remains of the sauce on his plate, put it in his mouth, chewed, then swallowed. “Tell you what – Carol’s spending the weekend with me, so I’ll ask Abha to join us for supper on Friday night, to make a foursome at a local restaurant. I like her, and so does Carol, so I think you will too. You’ll have a lot to talk about, because she grew up in an orphanage and entered the Fleet through the Foreign Service Program to earn Commonwealth citizenship, just as you did.”
Steve’s eyebrows rose. “I’ll look forward to meeting her. It’s rare to come across someone with an orphanage background, because most planets use foster parenting rather than institutions like that. If you and Carol both like her, that’s a pretty good recommendation right there.”
~ ~ ~
Carol Voorhees arrived early on Friday evening, blowing into Brooks’ apartment like a welcome spring breeze, her long red hair flowing loose. She wore a low-cut green blouse matching her eyes above a pair of stylized breeches and, incongruously to Steve’s eyes, what looked like Earth-style cowboy boots with long, pointed toes, covered with faux snakeskin.
Carol hugged and kissed Brooks, then turned to Steve, noticing the direction of his eyes. “D’you like ’em?” she asked as she hugged him. “I just bought them the other day.”
“It’s those toes. Aren’t they a lot longer and sharper than your actual feet?”
“All the better to kick lover-boy here when I need to get his attention!”
Brooks mock-winced. “Let me tell you, Steve, whoever first said ‘Love hurts’ wasn’t joking!” The grin on his face belied his words.
Steve looked at him sadly, shaking his head. “I bet you’ll still be saying that when you’re long and happily married, with a passel of kids.”
“A ‘passel’ is right!” Carol said emphatically, winking at Brooks. “I want at least a dozen, so you’d better keep Steve happy. He got you aboard Achilles just in time to earn all that lovely prize money from smuggled rhodium during your last commission. That’s a good start to pay for the family, but we want him to find you a lot more where that came from!”
“What do you mean? That prize money is my fun fund!”
“And who says starting our family isn’t going to be fun?” She wriggled her hips suggestively.
Brooks tried to look hard-done-by, without much success. “Huh! You’d better write some best-selling articles or biology textbooks. The royalties can pay for the kids, and you can keep me in style with what’s left over.”
“Have you set the date yet?” Steve asked, laughing at their mutual teasing.
“It won’t be for at least another year,” Carol assured him. “I’ve got to finish my Doctorate, which’ll hopefully happen towards the middle of next year. Once I’ve got that under my belt, I can settle down and start popping out babies. Thank heavens for pod gestation! At least I’ll be able to teach, do research and write without having to carry all that extra weight around with me.”
“You’re serious about wanting a big family, then?”
“You bet I am! We’ll just have to find enough money somewhere to afford decent help to look after them while I work. I’d have thought you’d want a big family too, after growing up an orphan. Don’t you want your kids to have lots of company?”
“I’ve not given it much thought, in the absence of anyone with whom to have them.”
“Then we’ll just have to arrange that, won’t we?”
Brooks rolled his eyes. “That was the wrong thing to say, buddy. Now you’re in trouble!”
Carol grinned. “Matchmakers of the world, unite! We have a new target! Anyway, enough of that for now. What’s this about stealing my man for six months?”
Steve explained briefly about the Rolla training mission and his involvement with Rolla’s shuttle upgrades and training program. “Orion’s agreed to send a production-standard Mark XIII Plus to Rolla with me. Brooks will bring three more with him, and the rest will follow over the next year.”
“I get it. I don’t really want to lose lover-boy here for that long, but at least I’ll be able to work uninterrupted on my thesis. He has the damnedest way of distracting me when I should be writing!”
Laughing, she and Brooks disappeared into the master bedroom to unpack her overnight case. Steve busied himself dropping his and Brooks’ exercise clothing into the laundry. He’d just set it running when the doorbell rang. He walked over and opened the front door.
A petite brown-skinned woman stood outside, military-cut close-cropped raven-black hair crowning an attractive oval face with high cheekbones. She was dressed in a plain white blouse, open at the neck to reveal a thin silver chain supporting a single pearl, above black trousers and low-heeled shoes. She wore a black handbag slung over her left shoulder, hand resting easily upon it.
Her deep, dark eyes lifted as he opened the door, met his… and clung. Neither spoke for a long moment. Steve felt as if an electric current were fizzing through him. He knew he was standing there open-mouthed, probably looking like a fool; but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from hers. He finally managed to stammer, “H – Hi. I’m Steve Maxwell.�
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The color rose in her face, wine-dark, flushed. “Hello. I – I’m Abha Sashna, Sir. Brooks told me about you.”
Steve recovered himself enough to realize he needed to do something. “Please forget the ‘Sir’ – we’re off parade and off duty. Call me Steve. Come in. Brooks and Carol will be out in a moment.”
“Oh, she’s here already?” Abha sounded relieved, he thought, as she stepped inside, finally breaking their eye contact. She looked as flustered as he felt, he realized suddenly.
“Yes, they – they’re just unpacking her bag.” What’s wrong with me?, he thought frantically to himself as he searched for words. I’m behaving like an idiot! “Er… can I get you anything? Coffee? Tea? Something cold?”
“Nothing right now, thank you. I’ll wait until we eat.”
Carol bustled out of the bedroom. “Hi, Abha! Nice to see you again!”
Steve got the impression Abha was relieved to see someone she knew, almost as if she’d been thrown a lifeline. “Hi, Carol!” The two hugged. “How are things with you?”
“I’m doing great!” Carol turned to Steve, noting the direction of his eyes and his somewhat sandbagged look. Her eyes suddenly twinkled. “I guess you and Steve have already introduced yourselves?”
“Er… yes.”
“He’s good people. I first met him going on four years ago, when he and Brooks graduated from Officer Candidate School. They went off-planet for separate two-year assignments, but somehow managed to pull enough strings to end up serving together aboard a destroyer, LCS Achilles. They’re as thick as thieves!”
“We were roommates at OCS,” Steve explained to Abha.
“I see,” she said, face lighting up. “That explains how he knows so much about you.”
Steve pretended horror. “It’s all lies, I tell you! We’re just good friends!”
She giggled. “He’s very complimentary about you, so you don’t need to worry.”
“I’m glad to hear it. He said good things about you, too.”
She blushed again. “Let’s hope his judgment’s reliable, for both our sakes.”
“I’ll have you know my judgment is both impeccable and unimpeachable,” Brooks called from the master bedroom. He emerged with what was clearly intended to be a superior expression on his face, instantly spoiled when Carol snaked out a hand and poked him in the ribs. “Hey! Stop that! I asked you to marry me, didn’t I? Isn’t that proof of my good judgment? Right, Steve?”
“Under the circumstances – and because I’m scared of Carol – I’d have to say you’re right, ol’ buddy.” They all laughed.
Brooks took them to an upmarket steakhouse that had just opened nearby. The food was doubtless as good as he’d promised it would be, but Steve found he just couldn’t concentrate on it. It seemed as if his whole focus had narrowed to encompass the woman sitting opposite him. He felt as if he’d been bewitched.
At one point Carol took Abha off to the ladies’ room, and Steve looked at Brooks. “Do I sound as half-witted as I’m feeling?” His voice was chagrined.
Brooks sniggered. “Probably not quite that bad, but I’d say you’ve been hard hit, buddy!”
“That obvious, is it? I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s come over me!”
“Abha’s come over you, that’s what! The only consolation is that she seems to be affected by you the same way.”
“She does?” Steve perked up at once. “D’you really think so? She seems… I don’t know… a bit distant.”
“Oh, don’t worry. Abha’s pretty reserved. I’ve known her for only five months, but that’s long enough for me to have learned that she’s more serious than most, and doesn’t fool around. I’m sure this has come as a surprise to her, just as it has to you.”
“Surprise is right!”
Brooks laughed, then sobered. “One thing, Steve. I hate to be a killjoy, but remember Fleet Regulations. It’s a no-no for officers in the same chain of command to form a personal relationship. They’ve either got to wait until their tours of duty end, or one of them has to transfer to another unit. We’ll all report to Colonel Houmayoun on Rolla, so that puts you in a tricky situation.”
Steve nodded. “It might; but on the other hand, she’ll report to you, while I’ll report directly to the Colonel. That means we won’t be in a direct chain of command with each other. Also, she’s a Marine, while I’m a Spacer.”
“You have a point, and I don’t mind at all, but a stick-in-the-mud, by-the-book type might try to make difficulties for one or both of you over it. We don’t know how the Colonel will react.”
“I hear you. Fortunately, this is a short-term temporary assignment. We can get to know each other, then if we both want to take it anywhere, we won’t have long to wait until it’s over.” His face fell. “I won’t have much time to get to know her before I have to head off to Rolla, though.”
“You’ll have more time together there. Don’t rush your fences. Abha’s well worth taking your time over.”
“I’ll do my best – if I could just stop behaving like a fool!”
Brooks sniggered again. “I’d have thought you’d gotten used to it, after all these years.” He ducked as Steve threw a half-eaten bread roll at him.
They returned to the apartment for coffee, with Steve at last beginning to feel more comfortable with himself and with Abha. She was still reserved, but also appeared to be more relaxed, as nearly as he could judge. He reminded himself firmly, more than once, to remember what Brooks had said and not rush things.
There was no opportunity to speak with her alone until she stretched at last. “I’d better get going. I’ve got a long day tomorrow.”
“May I walk you to your car?” Steve asked, trying to sound casual.
She looked at him for a moment, then nodded. “Thanks.”
Brooks and Carol said their goodbyes inside, pointedly not accompanying them as Steve and Abha walked side-by-side out to the parking area. He resisted the temptation to take her hand or offer her his arm. Don’t rush it!, he mentally reminded himself once more.
“Er… Abha, I’ve really enjoyed this evening. May I see you again, please? I don’t have much time before I leave for Rolla a couple of weeks from now, but I hope we can fit in something before I go.”
She stopped, looking up at him. “I’ve enjoyed tonight, too. What are you doing over the weekend?”
“I’ll be at Orion Industries’ shuttle plant tomorrow, but I’m free on Sunday.”
“I’ll be in Lancaster City tomorrow – a friend’s holding a bridal shower, and I promised to be there. On Sunday I’d planned to take a solo hike in the hills, with a picnic lunch. It’s lovely up there in springtime. Feel like joining me?”
He smiled. “I’d love to. If you like, I’ll prepare the lunch. I’m not bad in the kitchen, if I do say so myself.”
A slow smile dawned on her face. “You’ll have to live up to that boast, you know! I’m a pretty good cook.”
“Me too. I learned in the orphanage. I do things the old-fashioned way.”
She nodded thoughtfully. “Brooks said you were orphanage-reared, like me. That gives us something in common. Actually, it’ll save me a lot of time if you’d fix the food – I won’t have to stay up late tomorrow night to prepare it after I get back from Lancaster City. Are you sure you don’t mind?”
“Not at all. Shall we meet here on Sunday morning, or somewhere else?”
“Here will be fine. About eight?”
“See you then.”
~ ~ ~
Sunday dawned clear and bright. Brooks and Carol didn’t stir as Steve dressed in casual clothes and foot-cradling ankle boots suitable for hiking, and packed the meal he’d prepared the previous night. His eagerness betrayed him, so that he was ready long before Abha was due to arrive. He left the front door open to be able to hear her footsteps approaching as he paced impatiently back and forth.
At last he heard her small runabout outside, and felt the same internal frisson
he’d experienced on Friday. He had to restrain himself from going out to meet her. He busied himself checking the wheeled lunch cooler and his day pack as he heard her approaching.
“Hi, Abha!” he called as she appeared in the doorway, dressed in civilian hiking boots, hard-wearing blue shorts and a light T-shirt.
“Hi yourself. Are Brooks and Carol still asleep?” She looked around.
“Yes.”
She lowered her voice. “We’d better be quiet then. Ready?”
“You bet.” He slung his backpack over his shoulder and grasped the cooler’s handle. “Where are we going?”
She stepped back from the doorway to let him through. “I thought I’d take you to a valley in the foothills of the mountains. It’s about thirty kilometers out of town. I don’t often go there, because my little runabout can’t handle the dirt road that leads to it, but you’ve got an all-wheel-drive truck. It’s about ten clicks off the main road. We can park your truck five kilometers out, then hike the rest of the way. It’s a tough climb up a rocky slope, then easier going along a ridge and down into the valley.”
“OK. Will we have to break trail through brush? Should I bring a machete? I know Brooks has one.”
“There isn’t a path, and the brush will have grown thicker since I was last there several months ago, so it might come in handy. We certainly won’t be able to tow that cooler behind us! Can we put the food in our backpacks?”
Steve turned to fetch the machete and its belt sheath from the hall closet. “Sure. It’s in smaller containers. I just put it in the cooler to keep it cold on the way there.”
“Oh, good! Do you have a swimsuit with you? Further up the valley a stream empties into a pool, shaded by trees. It makes a great swimming hole.”
“I have a pair of running shorts. Will they do?”
“They sure will.”
He added the shorts and a towel to his pack, joined her outside, locked the door, and led the way to his pickup. He opened the passenger door for her and began to offer his hand in support, but she reached up, grasped a handle and lifted herself lithely into the seat, tossing her backpack into the rear of the cab. He put the cooler and his pack beside hers, then climbed in himself and energized the power pack. With a muted whine, the truck pulled slowly out of the parking lot.