Stormcrow Read online

  “I own a freighter, Mitchell,” Meredith snorted. “I'm always interested in good paying jobs.”

  “I'll send them your way, then,” Cauldoon nodded firmly. “And Meredith I really appreciate this.”

  “I haven't done it, yet,” she reminded him.

  “You will. Wait and see,” he nodded. “Gotta go. Oh, tell Linc that was some show he put on. There's a pool going on whether or not he can get you guys out of atmo when you lift.”

  “Very funny,” Linc muttered behind her, and Meredith hid a smile. Cauldoon was just jerking him around about the pool.

  Probably.

  “I'll tell him,” Meredith promised. “Now I gotta go and meet your crew and this wayward waif of yours. See you, Mitchell.” She cut the call off and turned to where Lincoln was glaring at the screen.

  “That was uncalled for,” he sniffed and Meredith bit down on the inside of her mouth to keep from laughing.

  “So it was,” she said stoically instead. “Well, I'm going to get a look at this girl and check the load out.”

  “Keep your girlfriend away from her,” Linc called out to her back. She shot him a death glare over her shoulder as she hit the passageway again, Lincoln's laughter chasing her toward the cargo bay.

  Meredith didn't often take passengers aboard, having found they were far more trouble than they were worth as a rule. Her ship was meant primarily as a cargo vessel and her amenities were more limited than a regular passenger liner or shuttle service. Room was more limited and creature comforts a bit more thin. That usually led to complaints and ill-tempers which she could do quite well without.

  That being said Mitch Cauldoon was not the charitable type. He rarely did anything that didn't have a profit margin attached to it. If he was willing to help this girl get home, then she would at least consider it.

  She could hear Faulks bellowing before she ever arrived in the bay. Meredith sighed as she stepped onto the catwalk and started down the steps, wincing at about every other step. She'd have to see if she could wheedle Lincoln into a back rub later tonight.

  “Who are you?” she heard Faulks demand and quickened her step. Cauldoon's men were already wheeling the cargo containers aboard, ignoring the bellowing Faulks since this wasn't their first encounter with her. Enraged by their blatant disregard of their authority, Faulks had turned her ire on the first person she could find. A tiny brunette that had to be Cauldoon's charity case.

  “Um, I…my name is Jes. . .Jessica Travers? Mister Cauldoon sent me here to-”

  “What are you, a mouse?” Faulks demanded. “Speak up, you little runt!”

  “I said my n…name is Jessica Travers, and Mister Cauldoon told me to come and see Captain Simmons,” the girl repeated perhaps a fraction louder.

  “Well, you can go back and tell Mister Cauldoon that the Captain ain't got time for no-”

  “Gunny, how about you let the Captain decide what she has time for?” Meredith spoke softly, but the steel in her voice made Faulks stiffen as if shot. She turned on her heel.

  “Beg pardon, Cap'n,” she said at once. “Didn't know you was here.”

  “For the future, Gunny,” Meredith kept her voice conversational, “when I want you to speak for me, I'll be sure and let you now. Until and unless I do, I'll be doing my own speaking. We clear on that?” The tone was unmistakable, the tone of a commanding officer speaking to her chief NCO. Faulks stiffened to attention out of long habit.

  “Aye aye, ma'am!”

  “Very well,” Meredith nodded, satisfied that she had made her point. “Now that you've terrified this young girl and made yourself feel strong and brave, why don't you make sure that the deck dollies get the load set and tied down correctly. We'll be lifting soon and I'd prefer not to have that load shifting as we do so.”

  “Ma'am!” Faulks stiffened even further and then stomped toward the dock crew, red-faced from the dressing down. Shaking her head, Meredith turned to regard…

  “Miss Travers, was it?” she asked, holding out a hand. “I'm Captain Simmons.” The younger woman looked up at her and cautiously held out a hand to clasp Meredith's.

  “Yes ma'am,” the girl nodded. “I'm Jessica Travers. Mister Cauldoon-”

  “He called me,” Meredith nodded. “I apologize for Faulks. I'm afraid she's not much good in civilized company. Please feel at ease.”

  “Yes, ma'am.”

  “Mitch tells me you're heading for Gateway and looking for a ride?” Meredith got down to it, giving the girl a once over. She was a pretty little thing, Cauldoon had been right about that. Perhaps five two, no more than a hundred and ten pounds with brown hair that trailed over her shoulders and lively green eyes. Eyes that showed more than a little apprehension at the moment, but also hinted at intelligence.

  “Yes, ma'am, that's my home,” the young woman nodded. “I'm trying to go home for the first time since I left to go to school on Beria. Almost five years ago.” Meredith resisted the urge to whistle. Five years away from home to go to school. Poor kid. The girl had one duffel and one shoulder bag along with a small backpack she probably used as a purse. Meredith suspected that everything the girl owned was in those bags.

  Her skirt was clean and neat, though Meredith could see at least two places where it had been repaired. Both it and the blouse she wore looked close to threadbare, a hint of the girl's bra showing through the thin fabric of the blouse. Her shoes were clean but clearly had seen long use.

  But there was a pride in the girl that Meredith couldn't help but admire. Her stance was not one of cowed submission but simply a healthy fear of strange people and places. Completely understandable and in no way out of place. She began to see why Mitch Cauldoon had wanted to help the girl.

  “Well, here's the deal,” Meredith looked the girl in the eye. “Yes, we're going that way, but it's going to be a bit roundabout. Probably take right at three months to get there and we'll stop several times along the way to drop off and pick up cargo. Since it's going to take so long the fare won't be very much, basically enough just to cover your keep. And that's been paid already,” she added without thinking.

  “What?” the girl's eyes widened in shock. “How?”

  “Let's just say that you've got at least one friend around who wants to help you make it home,” Meredith smiled down at the small young woman. “The accommodations aren't like a liner by any means, but they aren't bad and the food is good. We don't have much in the way of recreational pursuits, I'm afraid,” she warned. “We play cards and a few other games around the galley table some nights, and we all read a good bit to pass the time. And like I said, it'll take right at three months give or take to get you there. Are you going to be okay with that?”

  “Oh, yes ma'am!” Jessica replied, nodding eagerly. “I've been gone so long, ma'am, a couple more months more or less won't make any difference. I…I spent most of my savings getting this far so I was looking for the best, least expensive way to go on from here.”

  “Not always a good move this far out of the Sphere,” Meredith shook her head. “Things aren't always too nice out here. But if you're from the Frontier I shouldn't have to tell you that.”

  “No ma'am, you don't,” Jessica nodded again, more subdued this time. “I can't possibly thank you enough, ma'am, and I'll work. To help pay my way I mean. I know you said someone-” She stopped as Meredith held up a hand.

  “You can help in the kitchen if Doc needs or wants it. Help with the clean-up and such. It'll probably help you pass the time. If you're certain you can spend that much time penned up in here, then. . .welcome aboard, Miss Travers.”

  “Thank you, Captain!” Meredith watched the girl struggle with her bags for a moment then tried to lend a hand. No sooner had she leaned over though than her back reminded her of why she was no longer in the Navy. A gasp of pain escaped her lips before she could catch it.

  “Ma'am, are you okay?” Jessica asked.

  “Fine, just a little back trouble,” Meredith lied. Damn that had h
urt. She carefully straightened up again, testing her ability to stay erect.

  “Captain, are you all right?” she heard a familiar voice behind her and grinned. She turned to see her engineer standing close by.

  “Sean, this is Jessica Travers,” she introduced. “Jessica, this is Sean Galen, our engineer. Sean you are just in time,” she added. “Miss Travers will be a guest aboard Celia until we hit Gateway. Would you help her with her bags and show her to Dorm Three, please? Make sure she knows where everything is and gets settled in, right?”

  “Of course, Captain,” Sean nodded and bent to take the duffel bag. He hefted it with ease and then looked at Travers.

  “Miss, if you'll follow me I'll get you situated.”

  “Thank you,” Jessica nodded and turned to Meredith. “Ma'am, I sincerely appreciate this. I wish I could help with your back.”

  “Thank you but I'll be fine in a few minutes,” Meredith lied with a smile. “You run on with Sean and he'll get you squared away.” She watched the two depart and only when they were gone did she allow herself to show how much she was hurting. She took a halting step or two trying to shake herself down. She needed to get this under control before she got to the bridge and Linc saw her like…

  She looked up just then for some reason. The first thing she saw was her husband watching her from the catwalk, a scowl plastered on his normally pleasant features.

  Aw, hell.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Jessica followed Sean Galen up the stairs, passing a tall man in a gray jumpsuit on his way down. The man nodded but never slowed.

  “That was the pilot, Lincoln Simmons” Sean told her quietly. “He's the Captain's husband.”

  “That must be nice, being able to work together,” she commented.

  “I guess,” was the only reply. She followed the taciturn engineer as he led her onto the catwalk and then into the passageway. She noted there were several hatches in the passageway which they passed by, stopping at the last hatch before what looked like an open area.

  “Here we are,” he said. He opened the hatch and then stepped aside to allow the young woman to enter first. She smiled her thanks and stepped inside. The room was larger than she had expected and looked comfortable.

  “There's a head in there,” Sean indicated the doorway. “Shares with the other suite, but you're the only passenger so really it's yours alone.” He set her bag on the bed. “If you'll come with me I'll give you the rest of the tour.” She left her other belongings on the bed and followed him out, closing the hatch behind her.

  “This is the galley,” he told her as the stepped into the open area outside the passageway. “Off there is the lounge,” he pointed to a doorway off the left side of the galley. “Kitchen is through there,” he pointed back to the right. “This is the passageway to the bridge and the crew quarters,” he indicated the passageway opposite the one they had taken to get there.

  “The showers and laundry are off the lounge,” he said finally looking down at her. “Unless the Captain gives your permission, the cargo bay, crew quarters and engineering are off limits, as is the bridge. You can go out on the catwalk in the bay, but not down on the floor without permission.”

  “The lounge has a treadmill and weight machine if you want to exercise. There's a video library and a text library that the Captain keeps fairly up-to-date. There's also several games in the lounge. I guess that's pretty much it.” He paused, looking down at her.

  “Stay away from Faulks if you can,” he told her finally. “That's the large woman who was yelling at you down on the ramp. She's a bully. Try not to be around her alone if you can help it. The Captain won't let her bother you so long as she knows what's happening.” He paused again.

  “That's pretty much it for the tour,” he almost smiled. “If you need anything else. . .” he walked to the com unit on the wall by the passageway entrance, “. . .just hit this green button and call for Sean. I'll hear you call, so just tell me where you are and I'll be there as soon as I can. Might take a minute since I'm usually in engineering.”

  “Thank you Mister Galen,” Jessica smiled at him and he shook his head.

  “Just Sean,” he told her. “My father was Mister Galen. I'm just Sean.”

  “All right, Sean,” she smiled again. “Thank you.”

  “Anytime,” he nodded. “I'll leave you to settle in, then.” With that he disappeared back down the passageway toward the bay. Jessica returned to her cabin and unpacked, thinking about how fortunate she'd been. Thanks to Mister Cauldoon and now Captain Simmons she was going to go home for the first time since leaving to go to school. She had not seen or spoken to her parents since she'd left, the cost of such long distance communication being far too expensive for her family. Letters took a very long time to cross the immense distance between worlds so they had been few and far between. Jessica assumed for every letter she'd received there had been more that she hadn't.

  She had written to her parents to tell them she was coming home but there was every possibility that she would get there before her letter did.

  Her fare had taken almost all her remaining money, but she had been extraordinarily fortunate to secure passage on a good ship for so small a fee. The fact that she was taking a roundabout route to get home didn't bother her. As she'd told the Captain, two more months, give or take, wasn't that much more time alongside five years away at school.

  And when she got home she'd be reunited with her family and have a job as a teacher, helping the children of her under-developed planet get a better education that they could have managed otherwise.

  That would make all her sacrifice worth it. Humming happily at the thought, she went about unpacking and settling in.

  

  Lincoln had seen Galen leading the girl up the stairs but had no interest in her at the moment. He had seen Meredith from above as she had reeled in pain. A brief flare of anger had been immediately replaced by concern as he had descended the stairs to the bay.

  She saw him coming and stood stoically in her place, waiting for the storm she knew was coming. It was kind of unfair, she thought to herself, considering that she hadn't told him because she didn't want him to worry. It wasn't like he could do anything about it that he hadn't already done.

  Meredith had spent nearly six months in the Commonwealth Naval Hospital on Wayfair, home of the Navy's Beta Quadrant Fleet Headquarters. In that time she had endured six different surgeries to repair the damage done to her spine during the battle that had cost her both her ship and career. She had been awarded the Navy Cross, the second highest honor available to the military, for her actions in the battle. As a result, the staff had done their best to make her as comfortable as possible while she was being treated. That had included being a bit too free with the pain meds to keep her suffering to a minimum. Despite safeguards that were supposed to prevent such things from happening, Meredith had become addicted to the painkillers.

  Upon her release from direct care into rehab she had entered withdrawal. That was the first inkling anyone had that she was addicted to the pain relief medicines that had eased her suffering while confined to her bed. At the same time, she was also dealing with the loss of half her crew in action against the Freeborn Destroyer, the loss of her ship, her career, and a future filled with pain. The Navy had assigned her a counselor to help her deal with all these problems, beginning with her withdrawal from the pain medicines and the survivor's guilt that weighed her down.

  That counselor was currently storming across the cargo bay with a mighty frown on his normally pleasant features. He slowed as he reached her, stopping right on top of her. Though Meredith was still a tall woman even after the loss of nearly two inches of height as the result of losing several discs in her spine, Linc towered over her. Normally she enjoyed the feeling of smallness that his build gave her, but in situations like this she was less enamored with his large stature. She looked up at him steadily.

  “You're hurting,” he said flatly.
br />   “I'm always hurting,” she replied evenly. “You know that, Linc,” she added softly.

  “You're hurting more than normal,” he amended, looking down at her as if daring her to challenge the statement. She didn't, merely nodding her agreement.

  “You should have told me,” he said to her finally.

  “Why? So you could stress over something you can't do anything about?” Her voice was kind but firm. “Linc, I love you, but you know there's nothing you can do for this. Well,” she corrected, “I was going to ask you for a back rub later,” she admitted, allowing a hint of mischief to creep into her eyes.

  Lincoln tried to stay upset, but he couldn't. Finally, he grinned slightly and gently put his arms around her, hugging her close to him but careful not to put any pressure on her back. She briefly returned the embrace but then pushed him gently away.

  “Let's keep it professional,” she joked and he had to laugh in spite of his desire to be angry. It wasn't as if she were wrong. There was nothing he could do. He would hurt for her if he could manage it but he couldn't.

  Keep it professional was Meredith's mantra when working. When they were on a job, he was the pilot and she was the Captain. There could only be one boss on a ship, and they had agreed that she was to be it. He knew next to nothing about commanding a ship.

  “All right, Captain,” Linc replied, taking one step back. “Professional it is. But,” he raised a finger, “there will be consequences later,” he threatened, eyes twinkling.

  “I look forward to it,” Meredith replied straight-faced, and she did.

  “I'll be on the bridge,” Linc told her, turning to go. “Make Faulks do the lifting and tugging, Mere,” he added finally, his voice soft. “That's what you pay her for.”

  “I will,” she promised.

  

  Faulks had watched the exchange between her Captain and the pilot (she refused to call Lincoln Simmons her Captain's husband) with narrowed eyes, chastising herself for not realizing that her Captain had been in pain. She should have been more aware.