The Queen's Hammer

by Sean Benjamin

  Hawkins turned to Baby Doll. “Dress her.”

  Baby Doll gave an elfin smile. “What you looking for?”

  “Business woman with shady ties. She has sexy overtones while using her feminine wiles to further her own despicable goals with no regard for others.”

  Baby Doll’s smile broadened. “Professional and a little slutty. My strong suit.” She stood up. “No problem.” She turned to Terrant. “Let’s go.”

  Terrant didn’t move. She addressed Hawkins. “If you wanted a particular look, you should have told me.”

  “You got slightly slutty in your closet?”

  “If I do, I’m not telling you that now.”

  Baby Doll cut in. “She doesn’t.”

  Terrant quickly turned to her, but the pirate was not intimidated. “You probably had slightly slutty in the closet to get your way as a politician, but once you promoted yourself into the military leadership, you had to leave it behind as you wanted to be taken seriously.” Baby Doll gave her a gleeful smile. “Well, guess what? Slutty is back with a vengeance.” She gestured to the hatch. “Let’s go do an overhaul.”

  Baby Doll departed the compartment with Terrant following reluctantly. Tactical let them get out of earshot and then asked, “You really think she can pull off an oversexed Destiny Flores?”

  “I wish. She’s used to getting her way by being in command. Not sure she knows what feminine wiles are anymore, let alone how to project them. Like Baby Doll said, maybe she actually did do that during her political days, so she can revert back in a hurry. We will have her just sit there and look bored with Yossian and his demands. If she just plays it subtle with a certain disdain while looking enticing, it might work.”

  “Disdain is a strength of hers. Subtle and enticing are not.”

  Baby Doll and Terrant went to a small stateroom at the end of the corridor. In the Edinburgh Navy, this stateroom would have been used by two junior officers. Now it was a storeroom. Baby Doll entered, flicked on the overhead light, and maneuvered around stacks of consumable parts, cartons of food, and stacks of cleaning materials. She proceeded to the wide closet on the back bulkhead. She moved the sliding door to reveal a long line of women’s clothes on hangers. On a shelf above and the deck underneath were a variety of accessories. Baby Doll slid hangers along the short open area on the pole as she looked at each outfit. Terrant stood beside her in silent amazement at the wide variety of clothes in a single closet. Finally, Baby Doll stopped and pulled out a daring business suit. Made of silk, it shimmered in the light. Dark red jacket and skirt with a cream colored, low cut blouse, all tailor made. The clothes were made to highlight the body in them and, on the right body, this outfit would draw the attention of everyone within sight. Baby Doll held it up in front of Terrant and eyed the match. The color would go well with Terrant’s dark hair, brown eyes, and light complexion and she had the right body. Baby Doll nodded in acceptance. “We put your hair up. Matching red lipstick. A bit of rose rouge for the cheeks. A couple of pieces of jewelry that shout ‘Hey, I’m rich.’ It works.” She passed the outfit to Terrant to hold as she pulled a couple of accessories from the shelf. She glanced down at a long row of shoes on the closet floor. “No need. Nobody will see your shoes. May not fit anyway.” They moved to Baby Doll’s stateroom to change clothes.

  Fifteen minutes later they returned to the officers’ mess. Terrant stood in front of the table as Baby Doll walked around her pointing out the highlights and addressing further improvements to be made shortly. Heads nodded in approval. Terrant frowned in slight disgust at being judged like a prized racehorse at auction. Just then Doc Windsor entered the compartment. He was unshaven and unwashed. Despite shipboard time being late afternoon, he looked like he had just gotten up from sleeping in his clothes. He looked that way because that was exactly what had happened. He moved to the coffee urn and helped himself to a large cup as he looked at the gathering. Curiosity overcame him and he wandered over with mug in hand. He took up a standing position on the opposite side of the table from Terrant and regarded her with no readable expression on his face as he scratched his three-day beard with his free hand.

  “What do you think, Doc?” asked Baby Doll.

  “What you going for?”

  “Successful and a little slutty.”

  “Dead center hit. I am definitely wondering what sort of underwear she has on under that outfit.”

  “You are a pig!” Terrant exploded.

  Doc Windsor had been eyeing the outfit and the body in it but not the woman. He now looked up and realized who it was. He was amused. “Well, I’m not wondering about what’s under there now. She’s wearing something sensible… and white.” He paused for a moment and added. “Besides, Holly fills out that outfit much better.”

  Terrant fell into his trap. She turned to Baby Doll. “Who’s Holly?”

  Doc Windsor pounced before Baby Doll could answer. “She’s the prostitute whose closet you raided for those clothes.” He smiled at Terrant. “Don’t own any of the good stuff yourself, huh?” He was clearly hoping Terrant would have a fit about wearing a prostitute’s clothes. Terrant just stared at him with a silent, cold expression.

  “Thank you for your input, Doc,” Rafe announced to let everyone know the topic was closed.

  “Anything to help. Team player, you know,” Doc replied as he ambled to another table and sat down. Soon he had a cigarette lit and lost all interest in the proceedings.

  Rafe looked Terrant over again. “Undo the top button.”

  “It is undone,” Baby Doll announced to Hawkins. She then glanced at Terrant and saw the top button was firmly buttoned. She looked up at Terrant’s face. “You buttoned it back up.” She reached forward and unbuttoned it again. “I had that unbuttoned for a reason. Leave it alone. Got to show a little cleavage and that you are not above using your assets to achieve your goals if the right offer came along.”

  “I don’t like it,” Terrant replied defensively.

  “Your likes and dislikes aren’t in charge here,” Baby Doll informed her. She turned to the group. “I’ll put her hair up and go with a little bit of rouge and some expensive looking jewelry. We’ll pull this off. She will look successful and available. A woman who knows what she wants and how to get it. Give me twenty minutes or so to put her hair up. We’ll hold the final touches until just before show time.” Hawkins nodded approval and Baby Doll turned to Terrant. “My stateroom.”

  In the stateroom, Terrant took a seat in front of a mirror and Baby Doll moved behind her to put up her hair. Terrant couldn’t keep the revulsion out of her voice. “Who was that vile man, and why do you call him Doc?”

  “We call him Doc because Doc Windsor is a doctor.”

  “That smelly, unkempt man is a medical doctor?”

  “Yep, and you’re seeing him on a good day.”

  “Hard to believe.”

  “He is a superb doctor. Just likes his drugs and alcohol too. Also, smokes like a chimney.” Baby Doll shrugged. “He is worth the trouble. Saved many lives in this ship and other ships. Not afraid of danger. Comes from a long line of medical people. His father is the Lord First Surgeon of the Aurora Empire.”

  “Hard to believe that, too,” Terrant repeated.

  “Most things out here are hard to believe.”

  Terrant switched topics. “All those clothes belong to one woman?”

  Baby Doll replied as she wove Terrant’s hair into an intricate braid. “Yup. Didn’t you notice they were all one size? Holly is a high-end hooker with a broad client base so dresses for all occasions. She works in logistics aboard ship when not working her other job when we get to various ports. I talked to her this morning about using some of her clothes for this, and she was all for it.”

  “Captain Hawkins doesn’t mind prostitution on his ship?” Terrant found that amazing.

  “Holly doesn’t work the ship although we have five others on board who do. There was trouble when Holly first joined us and, after the p
roblem was solved, she promised the Captain she wouldn’t have any shipboard clients. Quite frankly, she is damn good at that job, so if she worked the ship, she would cut deep into the other women’s profits and not have time to do her own log dog work. Best for all involved for her to work dirtside only and focus on her shipboard duties while in the ship.” Baby Doll paused as she made a couple of hair adjustments but then continued. “She has kept the promise of no shipboard dates with one exception. Whenever she has a rare gap in her social calendar while in port, Doc becomes her liberty buddy, and they take it dirtside. Doc is a great doctor and Holly may be the best hooker in Flot 1. We take pride in both. Besides, Doc actually cleans himself up to go out with Holly and that is always a plus. The Captain pretends not to notice and everyone is happy.”

  “What sort of trouble started when she came onboard?”

  “We had a new crewmember who was pure scum. He and Holly came aboard Predator at the same time, right after we took this ship and were filling out the crew with new people. This guy immediately fell into lust with Holly and began trying to court her. She would have nothing to do with him for love or money. He was caught in the act of trying to rape her. Captain put him out of an airlock about two minutes after that.”

  “No investigation or trial?” Terrant was amazed at the quick manner in which the problem solved.

  “No and no. In fact, the Captain probably was thankful for the opportunity. The incident was tailor made for him to show what he was capable of if provoked. All the new crewmembers got the message.”

  Terrant assumed a disapproving tone. “That’s what happens when you allow prostitution and other such behavior on your ship. Bad for order and discipline.”

  Baby Doll laughed. “That’s funny. I bet you have prostitution on your ship.”

  Terrant was offended. “We certainly do not. I wouldn’t allow it, and it would be reported the instant any officer or senior enlisted came across it. We are members of the Marbella Space Navy and such behavior would not be tolerated.”

  Baby Doll shook her head and spoke softly. “It may have started out that way, but it is not that way now. Your Navy is gone and your ship has wandered space for a few years and counting. Trust me when I tell you it’s there.”

  Terrant was silent as Baby Doll finished her work on the hair. The pirate glanced at her watch. “We got an hour before show time, and I want to wait until just beforehand to put on the finishing touches. The Captain needs to go over the script with you. Now would be a good time for that.”

  Baby Doll stepped back as Terrant looked at the results in the mirror. She stood and turned to Baby Doll. “Very nice. Thank you.” She could have actually meant it. Baby Doll nodded in response. Terrant exited and went forward to Rafe’s day cabin. She knocked and entered after receiving permission.

  Hawkins was in his chair behind his desk. He looked up and motioned to the chair in front of the desk. Terrant sat while Hawkins looked her over.

  He nodded approvingly. “You look good.”

  “Suitably slutty?”

  “Yes,” Hawkins replied evenly. He was not put off by the topic or her sarcasm. “Yossian is a crusader with a highly-developed sense of what he considers right and wrong. He’s on a mission. It will drive him nuts if he thinks you are escaping justice due to your feminine charms and your manipulation of weak men who can’t see your immorality. He will want to correct that injustice.”

  Terrant nodded abstractly. She stared at the front of the desk, deep in thought. It was clear she was not thinking of the mission in her immediate future.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked softly.

  Terrant shook her head side to side. Hawkins continued. “We have called on a lot of people and ships to be in place at exactly the right moment to make this happen exactly as we want it to happen. People risking their lives and their ships. Lots of money and lots of moving parts. If it fails, I can’t put it together again. This has to work the first time and there is no margin for error. You’re the centerpiece of all this so I need your best game here, and right now I have my doubts about getting that.”

  Several moments passed in silence as they regarded each other. Rafe sighed and reached behind him toward his cold storage unit. He pulled out two beers from his seemingly inexhaustible supply. He opened both and slid one across the desk. Terrant caught it and took a big gulp. Ice cold beer. She liked the coldness of the liquid. Rafe took a drink and regarded her as he waited for her to speak. She took a second drink.

  She resumed studying the front of the desk as she spoke. “I was talking to Baby Doll. She is certain there is prostitution on my ship. I disagreed with her, but now I’m not so sure.” She looked up at Raferty. “Could I be that blind about my own damn ship?”

  “How many women in Cottonmouth?”

  “About fifty. A quarter of the crew.”

  “Yup, you got it.”

  “You don’t even know any of my crew.”

  “No, but I know human nature, and human nature didn’t transfer off your ship just because you’re in command.” He paused and looked at her. “You’ve been in space for years. Mostly young people are largely cut off from any chance for a life outside of your ship. You think the only sex they are getting is in port? These people aren’t going to go weeks without sex just because of the situation. They all work next to each other every day. Relationships develop. One night stands happen. People get together while on liberty. Others sell it. Mostly women, but maybe a few men too. They get money, special privileges, food, clothes. Payment comes in a variety of forms. Happens in most ships with the exception of the regular navy ships. I suspect it happens in them more than is generally known.”

  “I see no evidence of it in Cottonmouth.”

  “You’re not thinking along those lines so the evidence might be there, and you don’t see it. People who always stand the same watches together and then have the same off duty hours so spend all their time together. People who go on liberty together. People who know a little too much about other people. People who are a little too casual around each other regardless of their respective ranks. People who are jealous of other people. If your most desirable and available women are selling, it will be obvious in how they interact with the men and other women. The men will be overly familiar, and the women won’t like them. I bet some of your senior officers know about it and are doing it. Probably some relationships between officers and enlisted are happening too.”

  “I would have to put a stop to that if I saw either prostitution or those types of romantic relationships going on.”

  Rafe shook his head. “Bad move.”

  She stared at him. “You would do nothing? Do you indulge in those types of services on your ship or have you been involved in a romantic shipboard relationship?”

  “Not prostitution, but when I was captain of Bandit, I was involved with my XO for several months.”

  “Nobody complained about you playing favorites?”

  Rafe shook his head. “The ship worked well. We were successful and stayed alive. Also, none of the crew was in competition with each other for promotion or recognition so the XO did not gain an advantage over others by having an affair with me.”

  “What happened to her?”

  “She became captain of Bandit when I took Predator almost three years ago. She was killed in combat when Bandit was destroyed on our Murmansk raid.”

  “I knew about the raid and that loss. I didn’t know about the captain.”

  “Emily Legrand.” For some reason, it was important to Raferty that Terrant knows her name. He owed Emily that much and more. This was the first real conversation he had ever had with Llewellyn Terrant when they were not maneuvering around each other for advantage. He liked it.

  “Do you know why you are in command of Cottonmouth?”

  “I am the ranking officer.” Even as she spoke she knew it sounded hollow.

  Rafe shook his head. “In the beginning that was true, but it was only true for a sh
ort time. Your crew stopped being members of the Marbella Space Navy a long time ago. They probably didn’t even realize it and could not pinpoint when that happened, but it did. They follow you because they want to, not because they have to. You’re in command because you offer the best chance for success, of finding a solution to their problem of living somewhere and staying alive until you get to that place. You get involved in the prostitution or their romantic affairs, you’ll be in trouble. You start quoting regulations and talking punishment, some people are going to realize they aren’t in the Space Navy anymore so none of that applies to them. Then they will choose between you and their various activities. You don’t want that to happen because it stands to reason that some of them won’t pick you. It will be worse if a couple of your senior officers are involved. Then they will have to make a choice and you definitely don’t want that. After all, it is a historical fact that most shipboard mutinies have been led by officers.” He regarded her with a smile. “Times have changed for your ship and crew. You have to make the adjustment. Remember there are much bigger stakes in play here for you and your people. If some trouble develops from the prostitution or somebody’s relationship, then you step in and slam somebody. Hard. Handle that one incident, but don’t turn it into a shipwide witch hunt. The crew will get the fact that you will ignore certain things as long as they don’t affect the ship’s performance. They will also understand that if the ship is affected, then heads will roll. They can live with that arrangement. You need to live with it too.”

  Terrant nodded. She looked on the verge of saying something but remained silent. Hawkins thought this conversation might cause her to reveal the other Marbellan ships, but she backed off at the last moment. She changed the topic. “You really think we can pull this off?”