by Bob Blanton
“Yes. You’re crewed like a naval vessel. You can get by with a lot fewer people. Watch standers just need to know enough to call for help. So, you’re about thirty percent over what you really need.”
“That should help,” Liz said. “I’ll go over it with Catie; she might want to talk with you about it.”
“I’m always available.”
◆ ◆ ◆
“Let’s walk over to my place,” Braxton suggested. “You can take a cab from there.”
“Sure,” Catie replied. “You’re right across from the cherry tree park, aren’t you?”
“Yes, we can stroll through it if you’d like.”
“That’d be nice.”
Catie and Braxton held hands as they walked the four blocks to the park. They entered it on its southeast corner and starting meandering along the pathways between the trees.
“This is one of my favorite parks,” Catie said.
“It is, why is that?”
“The cherry blossoms. They’re really beautiful in the spring.”
“I’d guess so, I never really noticed.”
They walked a bit more before approaching the edge of the park where Braxton’s dorm building was. “Alex, my roommates are gone this week. Do you want to come up?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Oh, come on,” Braxton said, pulling Catie into an embrace. He kissed her slowly. He raised his hand along her side and started to caress her breast. Catie flinched and used her elbow to push his hand lower. It took all her self-control not to grab his wrist and break it.
“Sorry,” Braxton muttered as he deepened the kiss.
“What!” Catie sputtered when Braxton’s tongue bumped into hers. She pushed him away. “Hey!”
“What’s the problem, it’s just a little French kiss!”
“Well, I don’t know you well enough to be doing that.”
“What do you mean, this is our third date?”
“So, what does that mean?”
“Well, the third date is when you take the relationship to the next level. Don’t you want to do it?”
Catie’s face flushed. She was glad that it was dark and he couldn’t see.
“No!” she said turning away and walking toward the other side of the park.
“What’s the matter? I thought you liked me.”
“That doesn’t mean I want to sleep with you,” Catie spat as she continued to walk away.
Braxton started to walk after her, but some other walker brushed by him, almost knocking him down.
“Hey, watch where you’re going!”
“You should watch where you’re going,” the woman said as she kept walking away.
With the woman now between him and Catie, Braxton gave up and turned back toward his dorm.
As the woman walked by Catie, Catie whispered, “Thanks, Morgan.”
“Just my job. I’m just glad I didn’t have to call an ambulance for him.”
Catie walked to her dorm, mad and embarrassed at the same time.
◆ ◆ ◆
“How was your date?” Yvette asked.
“Terrible!”
“What happened?”
“He made a pass. Said something about a third date.”
“Oh Chérie, you are such an ingénue, and he is such a cad.”
“What do you mean?”
“Many people think of the third date as when you should have sex. It’s really that you shouldn’t have sex before the third date, otherwise you are, what do you say, a slut. But some men think that it is their right after three dates.”
“That is ludicrous.”
“Yes it is. And if he made a pass to ask you to have sex with him, then he is an imbecile. Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m just mad!”
“See, I told you he was too into himself. If he wasn’t interested in what you do and care about, then he’s not worth your time. There are plenty of men out there.”
Chapter 15
Justice
Sophia had Chaz filming her in front of the courthouse.
“Today, Ms. Dorothea Randall gets her day in court. Under Delphi law, once a suspect is arrested, the Delphi Prosecutor has thirty days to present the evidence to the defense and a judge at a hearing. It has been twenty-five days since her arrest.
“Unfortunately, we won’t be able to film the hearing or even report on it. Delphi Law only allows the defense, the prosecution, and the judge to be present. If there are any witnesses called by the prosecution, they are only allowed in the courtroom during their testimony.”
Sophia moved up the steps of the courthouse before continuing.
“After the hearing, the judge will decide if Ms. Randall will be held over for trial, or have the charges against her dismissed. The judge could even enter a verdict of not guilty, which would prevent any further prosecution of Ms. Randall by the DA. This reporter is confident that the DA will present a compelling case.
“It may interest viewers to know that Ms. Randall has been released under her own recognizance while awaiting this hearing. She has had a subdermal tracking chip inserted, is being required to wear a Comm at all times, and has to report to the police once a day. Delphi law is very kind to the accused. Those and the confiscation of her passport were the only conditions placed on her release. It will be interesting to see how Delphi City handles someone once they’ve been found guilty and has to be sent to prison.”
◆ ◆ ◆
“Your honor, I wish to present to you the facts of the case as we have reconstructed them.”
“Please proceed,” the judge said.
“The defendant, Dorothea Randall, was having an affair with the victim, William Markham. We have here sworn affidavits from a hotel in Wellington where on six separate occasions they checked in under assumed names. We also have affidavits from the staff at five other hotels that state that despite checking into separate rooms, the defendant and Mr. Markham did in fact share the same room.
“We also have an affidavit from the superintendent of Ms. Randall’s condo building that states that Ms. Randall was in the habit of personally admitting an unknown man into the building and taking him up to her condo. We can substantiate that on five of those occasions, Mr. Markham received a text from an unknown phone telling him to ‘come over.’ We can trace his movements from his condo to Ms. Randall’s building.”
The DA gave Ms. Randall a knowing look. She just stared ahead.
“On the night of his death, Mr. Markham received a text from an individual in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Upon contacting that individual, we confirmed that he had been paid five hundred dollars to send the text on Sunday, the fifth of March at twelve forty A.M. CKT, with a promise of another five hundred dollars after the text was delivered. He agreed to do so. He was told where to find the five hundred dollars. It was hidden in a park in Vancouver, British Columbia; the second installment was hidden in another park in the same city. This occurred two days after Ms. Randall was in Vancouver on business.
“On the night of the murder, Ms. Randall was present at the party with Mr. Markham for approximately one hour. She then left the party to attend a charity event at the Four Seasons Hotel. The victim’s condo is only three blocks away from the Four Seasons.
“The police have interviewed the other attendees of the event at the Four Seasons. Everyone remembers Ms. Randall’s attendance. Several witnesses swore that she excused herself around twelve forty A.M. to use the facilities. No one can remember seeing her between then and two o’clock.
“We have surveillance video that shows an individual matching Ms. Randall’s general height and build, leaving the Four Seasons just after twelve fifty A.M. and reentering the facility just after one thirty A.M.”
“Your Honor, the prosecution weaves a fine story. But it is ridiculous to say that my client, who was dressed in a formal gown and high heels, made her way across four blocks, entered the victim’s building, killed him, and returned to the pa
rty without anyone noticing, or getting blood on her gown.”
“If it pleases Your Honor, I’m just getting to that,” the DA said.
“Please proceed.”
“A search of Ms. Randall’s condos revealed several items. First, a microfiber hood, which can be folded up into a package smaller than a package of Kleenex. Second, it revealed a black microfiber hoodie which can be folded into a similar sized package. And third, a pair of microfiber pants which would allow the legs to be pulled up over themselves so that they hugged the defendant’s thighs and would have been above the hem of her gown.
“We surmise, that the defendant entered the lady’s room at the hotel, removed the hood and hoodie from her handbag, as well as the weapon and a pair of slippers that all our women wear when they want to carry their heels while walking on the street. She then removed her gown, folded it, and secreted it and her handbag in the bottom of the trash bin, beneath the liner. Then after lowering the pantlegs, she put the hood on her head to protect her hair, donned the hoodie and slipped out the back way, with the weapon secreted in the pocket of the hoodie.
“She then entered the victim’s condo building, tailgating on a group of residents that were coming home from work. She then made her way to the service entrance and waited for the victim, who she knew would be coming to meet her due to a text message he’d just received.
“When the victim entered the building via the service entrance, which provided the shortest path to the elevator from the party he had just left, she came up behind him and stabbed him in the throat with the murder weapon.”
“What murder weapon?” the defense demanded. “The kitchen knife that the prosecution has presented does not match the wounds.”
“The kitchen knife, a chef’s knife to be exact, has a six-inch blade that is two and a half inches wide. It shows signs of having been sharpened on the back side, then dulled afterward. It matches the wound exactly if you assume the sharpened edge, which we postulate the defendant added using the knife sharpener she had delivered to her condo one week before the murder.”
The DA closed the folder containing the notes he had been using during his presentation. “Your Honor, that is our case. We await your ruling.”
“Does the defense wish to make a statement at this time?” the judge asked.
The defense attorney stood up and flipped through the notes he had been taking during the prosecution’s presentation. “Your Honor. The prosecution’s case rests on the vivid imagination of the Chief of Police and a reporter. Their leading questions to witnesses have added to this house of cards. I submit that this case should be dismissed and that you should enter a verdict of not guilty on behalf of my client.” With that the defense attorney sat down.
“If there is nothing else, I will end this hearing. You will have my ruling by the end of the week,” the judge announced.
◆ ◆ ◆
“Ms. Randall, what did you think of the prosecution’s case?” a reporter asked while running beside her and jamming a microphone into her face.
Her lawyer stepped between her and the reporter, allowing Ms. Randall to get into the taxi. “My client will not make a statement. But I am looking forward to the dismissal of this ridiculous case,” the defense attorney said. Then he got into the taxi with Ms. Randall and they were driven off.
Chapter 16
Simulations
Catie walked into the simulation room. This was to be the first group simulation exercise. Until now, all the simulations had been individual events. She was curious how they were supposed to manage a group simulation. Everyone had just been given a room and time to show up.
“Hi, Miranda,” Catie acknowledged the Cadet Colonel as she entered the simulation room right behind her.
“Hi, Alex. Anyone else here yet?”
“It’s early, I think the rest of them are worried about getting trapped with the professor. But here they come.”
“Hi, weird instructions; just show up on time, no prep work or anything,” Cadet Major Baker said.
“Yes, they are,” Miranda replied. “We don’t even know who will be in the group until they show up.”
The rest of the group slowly filed in. Catie groaned as Cadet Jamison walked in. “Why did he have to be in my group?”
The monitor in the front of the room lit up and Admiral Clark started talking. “Hello, welcome to your first group simulation exercise. For this exercise you have to provide all the structure. You’ll be the command staff for a fleet; figure out the roles and divide them up. You need to pick an admiral, then assign the other roles. Good luck.”
“What does he mean pick an admiral?” Cadet Jamison asked.
“I think he means we vote on who we want to lead us,” Miranda answered.
“Why, everyone knows you’re going to be the admiral.”
“I don’t think so. And for my part I would nominate Cadet MacGregor to be the admiral,” Miranda said.
“Why? She’s just a second-class!”
“Because she’s got the best aggregate score on the individual simulations,” Miranda said. “In fact, her scores are so much higher than the rest of ours, she could probably win this thing if we all sat in the corner.”
“You expect me to take orders from a second-class cadet? You’re insane!” Jamison said.
“Hey, it’s up to the group. I’ll do whatever we decide. But although they say failure is the best teacher, I’m not all that fond of that method. I like to do my learning while I’m winning,” Miranda said.
“I agree with her,” Baker added. “What about the rest of you?”
It only took a minute before everyone except Jamison agreed. He just stood there looking mad while each of the others confirmed Catie as the admiral.
“Admiral MacGregor, what are your orders?” Miranda asked.
“Are you sure you shouldn’t be the Admiral?” Catie asked. “I don’t think I could have done what you did to get us organized on the schooner.”
“That was then, this is now. We’re all here to help. Right Jamison!” Miranda said.
“Sure, sure.”
“Okay, then let’s figure out the rest of the roles. We need a captain for the carrier, a wing commander, a captain for frigate A, one for frigate B, someone in charge of the Marines, and a squadron commander for each of our two squadrons. Suggestions?” Catie asked.
“I’d be happy to command the Marines,” Baker said.
“Thank you,” Catie said as she examined the scores for each of the seven cadets she was now supposed to lead.
“I did well in the simulation where we ran the frigates,” Cadet Julie Delacroix said.
“Why don’t you take frigate Alfa,” Catie said.
“Wait, we just get to choose?” Jamison said.
“I think the Admiral is reviewing our simulation results,” Miranda said.
Catie just nodded her head.
“I did almost as well as Julie on the frigate simulation,” Hector Muñoz said.
Catie looked around the room; seeing general agreement, she turned to Hector, “Then you have frigate Bravo. So, captain for the carrier and the flight wing commander,” Catie prompted.
“I’d like the flight wing,” Cadet Ivan Castel said.
“You would, but your scores on those simulations aren’t that good,” Catie said.
“They weren’t that bad,” Ivan countered.
“Winning!” Miranda said.
“Okay, where would you put me?” Ivan asked.
“Captain of the carrier,” Catie said. “You excelled in fleet maneuvers and managing fleet defenses.”
“Wow, sure.”
“Flight wing commander,” Catie prompted looking at Miranda.
“Those are my best simulations,” Miranda said.
“So that puts Jamison and Harris in charge of the squadrons,” Catie said. “Any suggestions, or problems?”
“I’m fine,” Jamison said without much enthusiasm.
“Okay, apparent
ly they allocated the whole hour for this part of the exercise, so the simulator is locked. We all now have access to the files on the fleet and specifically on your command. You have two days to review them then we’ll be back here where we’ll begin our training exercises,” Catie said.
“Since we’re done early and this is our last class, I suggest the admiral buy us all drinks,” Miranda said.
“You’ve been trying to get me to buy drinks all semester,” Catie whined.
“Winning!”
◆ ◆ ◆
“Did you get everyone in the positions you wanted?” Miranda asked in a whisper.
“Yes.”
“Even Jamison?”
“Well, he’s your problem now,” Catie whispered back.
“Maldito!”
Catie led the group to the Fox and Hound, a favorite pub for all the cadets. It was right next to the campus and served a great fish and chips as well as burgers and such. She dutifully bought a round of beers for everyone and sat back while they all chatted about the upcoming series of simulations.
◆ ◆ ◆
The next day, Catie met with Miranda and Baker to talk about tactics for the two weeks they had for training before live team-on-team battles started. They decided to separate the team into two groups. Baker would join Catie’s team, and he and Catie would work on boarding strategies. Miranda would take her two squadron commanders to one simulation room to work on flight maneuvers, while Catie took the captain to another to go over fleet maneuvers. After a week, they would run two training exercises as a full unit.
◆ ◆ ◆
All the teams had been given two weeks to train. Now they would enter a double-elimination competition. There were sixty-four teams, so the winner would have to win seven simulations, eight if everyone lost once. With two simulations per week, it would take a month to get through them all. Catie and Miranda as well as the rest of their team were figuring on being the last team standing.
They had breezed through their first week of simulations, but now they were supposed to get harder, and, of course, they were facing teams that had also won the first two rounds. Each simulation exercise would consist of two parts. First, they would take in the parameters of the exercise and configure their fleet. The exercise would proceed until the first sensor contact with the enemy. Second, after a day of prep outside the simulation room, they would meet again and engage the enemy. Then events would proceed in accelerated time, based on the square of the distance between the opposing forces. Once actual contact with the enemy was made, things would drop back to 4X time.