Rev perked up. That meant he could still meet up with Tsao, and he’d even have a little more time playing tourist. This could actually work to his benefit.
Not that he’d admit that. No trooper ever would.
“OK, I’ll make sure I’m there. What’s their name?”
“I don’t have that.”
“So, I’m supposed to meet someone, but I don’t know who?”
“Shit, Rev. Just look for a Union Marine staff sergeant. Geez.”
Which was true, but he’d still like to have a name in case they missed crossing paths.
“Can you at least try and find out, Rice?”
“OK, I’ll try and find out. I’ll see who’s in the office from personnel.”
“Or ask Lemonade, if he can get off the can long enough to tell you.”
“You’re a cruel man, Reverent Pelletier.”
“You have to be cruel to survive in this galaxy. But tell the first sergeant I’ve got it, and I’ll be back tomorrow towing our little lost lamb behind me.”
Rice paused. “So, what do you think of the hall?”
Rev just said, “Wow!”
“Yeah, like I told you. Well, I’ll let you go. Enjoy yourself, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Yeah. Take care.” Rev cut the connection.
This really was shaping up well. He still had time to hook up with Tsao and get an insider’s tour of the capital, then get up to the station and pick up his fellow Marine.
That’s what you get for being a fine and upstanding young trooper. Sometimes, the cards just fall right.
* * *
A little over nine hours later, Rev was in the passenger reception area. He’d been cutting it close, arriving at the station after the liner had docked, and he’d gotten to the port just as the first passengers appeared. He still didn’t know who he’d be meeting, only that they were a Union Marine staff sergeant.
There were two doors leading from customs. Rev stationed himself at one but where he could see the feed for the other. The Marine would be in uniform, so he shouldn’t have too much of a problem spotting them.
He’d wanted to check in with the Home Guard liaison desk to leave his name and number in case he missed his pick-up and to ask for their name, but that would have taken some time, and he didn’t want the Marine to arrive without someone there at the exit to meet them.
It turned out that he would have had the time. The first dozen or so passengers must have been pre-cleared because after they passed through, no one came for ten minutes. Finally, another appeared, then another. The trickle was turned on again.
A uniform caught his eye on the monitor, and he hurried over to the other door, but it wasn’t a Union Marine. The Tigana 3 Naval Infantry uniform was pretty similar to the Union Marines, especially when seen over the monitor. He was going to go back to his spot, but then he figured it was six of one, half a dozen of the other, and he stayed where he was.
So, of course, the Marine emerged from the first door. Rev hurried back, pushing his way through the crowd, but when he arrived, there was no sign of the Marine.
What the heck? I know I saw them.
He moved through the people, scanning for the familiar uniform. Nothing. He made it to the edge of the people, then stood on a bench to get a better view.
There!
He caught a glimpse of the back of a Marine cover. Not much else, though. The Marine must be pretty short for the people between them to be blocking his view. It was only because he was standing on the bench that he saw them. Rev noted the position, hopped down, and wove his way forward.
It took a few moments, but finally, he could see the Marine through the press of people, back toward him as they craned their head trying to find him. The Marine was short, as Rev had figured.
“Hey, Marine! Union Marine!” Rev shouted. The body started to turn just as people in front of them shifted their position, blocking his view again.
“Really?”
He didn’t want to lose the other staff sergeant again, so he pushed forward. “Excuse me, excuse me.”
The people didn’t have much choice. Rev was a big, augmented Marine, but he hoped his little “excuse me” would serve to keep anyone from getting angry.
He finally made it up to where he’d seen the Marine, who was now pushing their own way into the people, presumably to get to him.”
“Staff Sergeant, I’m—”
Rev halted dead in his tracks as the Marine stopped and turned to face him.
“What . . . what are you doing here?” he asked, his mouth hanging open in shock and surprise.
Staff Sergeant Tomiko Reiser, Perseus Union Marine Corps, said, “Trying to get to my new duty station. What are you doing here, Rev?”
* * *
Tomiko told Rev that she’d only been surprised to see him at Titan Station, not that he was in the Home Guard. She hadn’t expected to see him until she arrived on Enceladus.
Once Rev got over his shock, he was torn. Of course, he was happy to see her. Despite everything, she was still his best friend. But he was angry that the Union, be it the Corps or someone else, thought he needed still another nanny.
Do they really think I’m going to erupt like a Genesian with a burning spike up his butt?
Tomiko drained half of her Coke. They’d just missed the last shuttle, so Rev had brought her to the USO to wait the three hours for the next one.
Rev hadn’t touched the drink sitting in front of him.
“It’s sure good to see you, Rev.”
“Yeah, good to see you, too.”
Tomiko frowned and put her Coke down. “You could have fooled me.”
“What do you mean.”
“I mean, no hug? I know we’re in uniform, so that’s OK. But now, you’re sitting like a lump on a log, and you’ve barely said two words to me.”
“I . . . sorry. I just, and don’t take this wrong, but do I really need another nanny?”
Tomiko pursed her lips and nodded. “I’m not your nanny.”
“Come on, Miko. Don’t bullshit me. I know why Bundy’s here. I know why you’re here. We IBHUs are so unstable that they’re sending you nannies here to make sure we don’t embarrass the Union.”
Tomiko just looked into his eyes, and Rev couldn’t read her emotions. That never used to be.
“I told them we couldn’t hide what our prime mission was.”
“So, at least you admit it. You’re my nanny.”
“No, I’m not.”
Rev frowned, confused. “But you said—”
“I said I’m not your nanny. Bundy is. I’m Randigold’s nanny.”
“What? Why?”
“Bundy has three of you, from what they told me. Evidently, something’s come up, something happened. They didn’t tell us what.”
That took Rev aback. What had “come up?” Nothing was remarkable about the three Fox IBHUs. Had something happened with one of the others? Then a thought hit him. Were the results of his last tests off?
“Did it have to do with one of the three of us?”
Tomiko shook her head. “Like I said, I don’t know. But whatever it was, they decided that Bundy couldn’t watch over all three of you. So, I got surprise orders. I know Randigold, and I guess that was the only qualification. I’m going to her platoon.”
“And S-O-R?”
“You mean the regular sergeant? I don’t know. It’s still Bundy for now, but who knows?”
Rev sat back to digest that, picking up his Coke and taking a swallow. On the one hand, it was a relief to know that Tomiko wasn’t his nanny. He still felt a little fragile in their relationship after the blow-up at Leteeka’s so long ago, and he wasn’t sure how that kind of dynamic would affect that. But on the other hand, they’d always been together while in their Raider team. It would be odd to have her in his company but in a different platoon.
Maybe it’s best that way.
“So, are we OK? Or do I have to call up the commandant o
n my secret quantphone to tell him you don’t want me here?”
Rev laughed. “Yeah, right. I seem to have missed getting my secret phone issue.”
“So?”
“So what?”
“So, are we good?”
She acted calm and casual, but Rev could see an underlying tension in her face, in her body language. And he knew none of this was on her. Just like Bundy, just like him, she was issued orders, and she didn’t have the power to change them. He knew this must bother her just as much, if not more, than it bothered him.
Like it or not, they were going to be together for a while. Tomiko was just arriving, and Rev still had nineteen more months. His first seventeen months had been rather busy, and who knew what else was coming down the pike?
And as he looked at her, he suddenly felt better. He could think of no one else with whom he’d rather face the rest of his Home Guard tour.
Rev reached across the little table, took her hand, and said, “You’re my bestie. Of course, we’re good.”
He could see the relief flow over her face, and her body lost a bit of the tension.
“Just don’t tell them I’m crazy. Let Bundy do that.”
* * *
Rev will return in A BROKEN ALLIANCE, coming November 2021. Preorder now on Amazon.
For updates on this series, be sure to join the Facebook Group, “J.N. Chaney’s Renegade Readers.”
Acknowledgments
Thank you to our amazing beta readers!
Kelly O'Donnell
James Caplan
Micky Cocker
Christie Strahler
Neil Rubenking
Tracy Beattie
Sharon Mendez
Mike Belanger
Eliss Wiltshire
Matthew Lewis Titus
Bill and Konnie Kampfer
Geoffrey Morse
Joshua Hopkins
Mike Belanger
Elissa Wiltshire
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About the Authors
J. N. Chaney is a USA Today Bestselling author, has a Master’s of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, and fancies himself quite the Super Mario Bros. fan. He migrates often, but was last seen in Las Vegas, NV. Any sightings should be reported, as they are rare.
Chaney is best known for his Renegade Star series, the Variant Saga, the Messenger series, and Ruins of the Galaxy. For more on his releases, go to www.jnchaney.com.
* * *
Jonathan P. Brazee is a retired Marine colonel now living in Colorado Springs with his wife Kiwi and twin baby girls, Danika Dawn and Darika Marie. He was born in Oakland, CA, but has lived throughout the US and the world, and has traveled to over 100 countries.
He has more than 70 titles to his name in six different languages and is a two-time Nebula Award and one-time Dragon Award finalist as well as a USA Today Bestselling writer. Find out more by visiting his website at www.jonathanbrazee.com.
An Uneasy Alliance: Book 4 of the Sentenced to War Series Page 35