Stormcrow Page 3

  “I think we're finished, ma'am,” one of the gang crew said to her, interrupting her thought process. Angry in a flash, Faulks whirled on the man.

  “You're finished when I say you're finished, maggot!” she stormed and the man flinched in spite of himself. He remembered the she worked for someone who depended on his boss for work, however, and steeled himself.

  “Actually, we were finished when we got the cargo here,” he told her flatly. “Securing the cargo is a courtesy afforded you by Mister Cauldoon. You'd do well to remember that, ma'am, if you want us to continue assisting you in this manner. Otherwise you'll find yourself handling the loading and tie-down after we leave the cargo and head back to the warehouse.”

  It amused the man to watch the red creeping up on Faulks face as he spoke. He truly hated this abomination of a woman. Of all the crews he and his men dealt with, she had to be the worst person he'd ever met. And he was tired of her attitude. He turned away from her suddenly, looking toward the Celia's Captain as she approached.

  “How dare you speak to me li-”

  “Gunny, that will be all,” Meredith's voice cut her off, and Faulks whirled to see her Captain standing behind her. Frowning .

  “Cap'n,” Faulks managed not to stammer. “I was just explainin' to this gentleman-”

  “Yes, so I heard,” Meredith said dryly. “What say you inspect the load while I sign for it. I assume that all is in order? You've checked the manifest? Since you have the time to explain things to our guests who were lending us a hand?” Faulks face flushed even deeper as she endured the second dressing down from her Captain in less than an hour.

  “Yes ma'am!” she braced to attention. “I'll inspect the load now, ma'am.” With that she turned on her heel and stalked away, the remainder of the gang crew parting to allow her passage. Meredith shook her head slowly as she turned to the gang crew foreman.

  “I'm sorry,” she said simply. “I'm afraid Faulks is still in the Marines up here,” she pointed to her own temple. “It's a hard mindset to get out of,” she admitted from experience.

  “It's all right,” the foreman sighed. “She's not the first I've met like that, and it's not like the rest of us don't owe veterans for keeping us safe. Just sign here, Captain. We've got you loaded out and ready to fly. Oh, and Mister Cauldoon's compliments, ma'am, there's a food locker we brought aboard from him,” he pointed to the insulated carrier. “He said to enjoy,” the man added with a smile.

  “Tell him I appreciate it,” Meredith smiled. “And thanks again for putting up with Faulks.”

  “No problem Captain,” the foreman smiled. “Let's go!” he called louder and his crew assembled outside the ramp.

  “Fly safe. . .” the foreman started, then paused as he apparently remembered who he was talking to. And who her pilot was.

  “Yes, we'll try,” Meredith nodded grimly. “Maybe the pool won't pay out today,” she added with a grin and the foreman looked sheepish.

  “Good-bye ma'am,” he settled for saying and left the ship, his men following in his wake. Meredith turned to find Faulks watching from a distance.

  “Load secured?” Meredith asked.

  “Yes ma'am,” Faulks nodded. “They did a good job,” she added, trying to sound friendly.

  “Faulks, you need to remember that these men are helping us. If they wanted to, they could just drop the load at the ramp and leave. Is that what you want? To have to load the ship alone and be responsible for securing the load in the bay? Even with all hands on deck, we can only muster two more people to assist you. Doc would try, I'm sure, but he's hardly strong enough to wrestle cargo containers around the bay. That would leave just you, Galen and Linc. How long would this,” she indicated the newly acquired cargo, “have taken the three of you?”

  “A while, Cap'n,” Faulks admitted. “Galen won't be much help,” she couldn't stop herself from adding.

  “Faulks,” Meredith sighed, “I don't know why you can't seem to overcome your urge to bully, but there are two things you need to consider. First, I will not allow you to continue to treat the rest of the crew in such a manner. I'm tired of it and it stops, now. I've been patient, knowing from experience how difficult it is to transition from military to civilian life. But after nearly three years you're no better at interaction than you were when you first came on board. Your attitude is starting to affect how my ship runs and how it does business,” she pointed to the now distant gangway crew.

  “I'll work on it, ma'am,” Faulks said stiffly.

  “No, you'll fix it,” Meredith allowed a bit of her anger and frustration to bubble over, fueled by her own pain. “If you don't, then you're out,” she added flatly, and Faulks stiffened again.

  “Ma'am,” she started to protest, but Meredith talked right over her.

  “Secondly, your attitude is going to come back to bite you on the ass one day. You're going to try that routine on someone who will beat you into the ground and leave you in a bloody heap. Don't assume even for a minute that it can't happen because you know it can. I've seen you do it, more than once,” she added. Faulks closed her mouth abruptly at the reminder. Meredith leaned in and despite her size advantage Faulks felt the need to step back. She forced it back and stood her ground, but only just.

  “And when that time comes, it had better not affect this ship or the rest of this crew, Faulks. Am I clear?”

  “Crystal, ma'am!” Faulks snapped out.

  “Now,” Meredith took a deep breath to clear her mind. “Let's secure the bay and get ready to lift. No one has notified me that we need anything and we are on a tight schedule at the moment. Do we need any supplies while we're on the ground?” she asked.

  “Not that I'm aware of, Cap'n,” Faulks shook her head, still reeling from the Captain's flat declaration.

  “Very well,” Meredith nodded. “I need you to get it together Faulks,” she said more kindly. “I depend on you. I count on you. So I need you to get it together and stop being a bullying ass.”

  “Yes ma'am!” Faulks stiffened again.

  “Right then,” Meredith nodded. “Carry on.” With that she headed for the bridge, careful to use the handrail when climbing the stairs. Her back was really hurting.

  

  Celia was well away from Halcyon by supper time. As the crew gathered in the galley Jessica felt a tiny bit of apprehension at the prospect of facing the large woman, Faulks, again. She watched as Sean Galen took his seat at the far end of the table, and immediately sat down to his right as Faulks filed in and went directly to the seat to the Captain's right. That put her as far from the overbearing woman as possible.

  Anthony Giannini had politely refused her offer of assistance in the kitchen, telling her to enjoy her first night on board and relax. She had roamed the ship exploring the areas that she was allowed to visit, always with a wary eye out for Faulks.

  Sean Galen had struck her as a very nice and polite young man. For some reason she felt reasonably safe around him and didn't hesitate to trust his advice. It seemed completely natural to her that she would move to his side when he sat down.

  The smell from the kitchen had been surprisingly wonderful. Jessica had held no illusions about how good the food quality would be on a freighter but as Giannini set the food on the table she decided she would need to re-evaluate that. Whatever it might taste like, it smelled delicious.

  “All right, folks, let's dig in!” Tony called, clapping his hands. Everyone gathered around the table. Jessica watched as the crew sat silently for a moment. Lincoln appeared to be praying and Sean had his eyes closed, his lips moving almost imperceptibly. And then, the moment was over and food was slinging around the table.

  “Captain has a moment of silence before meal times,” Sean explained softly. “Everyone is free to pray as they deem fit. You don't have to do anything, just respect the rest.” Jessica nodded as she accepted a bowl from the cook. She took some of the pasta and passed it along to Sean. Next came a meat sauce which smelled wonderful
. She ladled it onto the pasta and passed the bowl along, accepting bread next.

  “This smells wonderful,” she smiled at Tony, who beamed.

  “Thank you my dear,” he bowed slightly. “It's nice to have someone besides the Captain who can appreciate the finer foods available in the world.”

  “Hey, I enjoy your cooking,” Sean offered.

  “You do indeed my young mechanical friend, and for that I thank you,” Tony allowed. “I was mostly referring to our resident cretin and our designated crasher,” he looked down the table.

  “Who you callin' cretin, you little pansy?!” Faulks snarled.

  “I didn't call anyone cretin directly, but since you responded to it, well…” he trailed off, spreading his hands wide as if to say Faulks had proved her point for him.

  “And I must admit I completely object to the title of 'designated crasher',” Linc frowned at the notion that he and Faulks were actually on the same side of any argument.

  “I'll try to come up with something else, then,” Tony shrugged, taking a bite of his own food.

  “Try 'pilot',” Linc suggested.

  “Something accurate,” Tony amended. Linc frowned at that, muttering under his breath as he returned to his food.

  “All right, that's enough,” Meredith observed from her place at the head of the table. “We have a guest. Miss Travers will be with us for as long as three months so let's do try to act civilized, can we?”

  “Where are we taking you, Miss Travers?” Tony asked politely.

  “Gateway,” Jessica replied. “And please, just Jessica. Jess even is fine.”

  “Sounds good, Jess,” Tony winked and the girl blushed. Tony Giannini was smooth to say the least. Handsome and sophisticated in a way you rarely saw outside the Sphere. And Beria was not a Sphere world.

  “Why in the hell would you want to go to a dump like Gateway?” Faulks demanded around a mouthful of food. Jessica blushed deeper at that.

  “It's her home world, Gunny,” Meredith's voice was icy and Faulks' face reddened as she realized she had angered her Captain for at least the third time today.

  “Sorry,” she muttered, casting a withering glance at the girl as if it were Jessica's fault she had been reprimanded.

  “I've been away going to school,” Jessica explained. “Now, I'm returning home to be a teacher. To help the children of my home world be better educated. Hopefully to improve their lives.”

  “That sounds like a worthwhile endeavor to me, Jess,” Tony told her. “I'm sure your parents are very proud of you.”

  “I hope so,” she admitted. “I haven't seen them since I left home. I get a letter once in a while, but it's not really the same. I can't wait to see them,” she admitted.

  “Jessica, you've met Sean, and Gunny of course,” Meredith cast a quick glare at Faulks. “And I see you've introduced yourself to Tony. This is my husband, Lincoln. He's our pilot.”

  “Jessica,” Linc nodded, smiling. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Thank you, sir,” Jessica smiled. “You as well.”

  “We don't get passengers aboard very often as you can tell by our conduct,” Linc told her. “Try to ignore us if you can,” he grinned, and Jessica laughed lightly. She liked this man.

  “I'm sure it'll be a blast.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  Over the next week Jessica found a niche in the crew and began to fit in a bit better. Her only difficulty was avoiding Faulks. The overbearing woman had not directly confronted her in the time she'd been aboard, but her hostility was clear to Jessica. She mentioned it to Tony Giannini one evening after supper as she helped with the clean-up.

  “She's a bully,” he had shrugged. “Captain's got a soft spot for her but I think that's coming to an end. Faulks has gotten on her last nerve lately I'd guess.”

  “I don't know why I rate her anger,” Jessica shrugged helplessly.

  “You don't have to do anything to rate it, sweetie,” Tony told her. “Poor Galen takes the brunt of her tongue when we're on the move. I don't know how he stands it,” he admitted. “I'd have killed her by now.”

  “She doesn't bother you?” Jess asked.

  “She knows better,” Tony smirked. “She can mouth at me all she wants but she knows not to push it too far, since I'm not just the cook, I'm also the medic. She just might need me to patch her sorry ass up one day.”

  “Ah,” Jess nodded. “Got it.”

  

  “We'll be sitting down on Dry Commons later today,” Meredith announced at breakfast ten days after Jessica had come aboard. It was the first stop since Jessica had arrived.

  “We'll be taking on fuel which means we'll probably stay overnight,” the Captain said. “We'll have to stand watch, but we should still be able to get some shore time, considering the fueling delay.” Fueling required the engines be shut down completely rather than left on idle. They would need to cool before fueling could begin. Afterwards it would take three to four hours to idle the engines back up and prepare for lift off.

  “Anyone who wants to go into Common Place needs to be aware of the dangers,” the Captain continued. “It's not exactly lawless but it's not known for its civility, either. Jessica if you want to get off ship, I don't want you going alone. Okay?”

  “Yes, Captain,” Jessica nodded. “I don't really have a reason to leave the ship anyway,” she admitted.

  “I'll stand the watch, Captain,” Galen volunteered. “I don't have any need to go into town.”

  “Thank you, Sean,” Meredith smiled. “If you'll be aboard, then Linc and I might take advantage of that to have a night on the town, such as it is,” she smiled at her husband, who grinned back.

  Jessica happened to be looking at Faulks when Meredith spoke and could see the frown pass across the woman's face. It was only there a second, but it was plain to see.

  “Tony, do we need any supplies?” Meredith asked.

  “No, Captain, we're good,” Tony shook his head. “I do believe I'll go into town, however,” he added. “Be nice to be out and about, even for a bit.”

  “Very well,” Meredith nodded. “Just make sure you're back by eight hundred hours. Assuming the fueling goes to plan, we'll start prepping for lift-off about nine hundred. Faulks I assume you're going ashore?”

  “Yes, Cap'n,” Faulks nodded.

  “Same for you, then. We'll head out once the cargo is picked up. I'll see to the fueling and any provisioning we'll need. Remember what I said. This planet isn't completely without law, but slavers do frequent here as well as others of a less than savory nature. Be aware of your surroundings at all times, and if you intend to drink to excess you should do so here, aboard ship.”

  A chorus of 'Aye Captain' and 'Yes Ma'am' replied to her statement.

  “Very well.”

  

  It had been another typical controlled crash landing.

  “Damn you, Linc,” Meredith didn't quite snarl. “If I ever find out you're doing that on purpose…” she allowed the threat to hang between them.

  “I can't believe you would even think such a thing,” Linc replied, hurt on his face and in his voice. “And what was so wrong with that landing? I know we had a bit of a rough patch there about mid-way in, but that was due more to atmospheric conditions than anything I might have done.”

  “Doc, can you come to the lounge?” Sean's voice cut through the ship, interrupting the 'discussion' between husband and wife.

  “What's the problem, Sean?” Tony asked a few seconds later.

  “Girl's a little air sick, I think,” Sean replied. “We're at the head in the lounge.”

  “On the way,” Tony replied. Meredith listened to the conversation and then turned a withering glare on her husband.

  “See what you've done?” she demanded before heading aft to the lounge.

  “It wasn't that bad,” she heard Linc complain as she moved out of earshot.

  Meredith found Sean standing outside the lounge head bracing the door open wi
th his foot. For once his face wore a look of amused concern rather than the usual blank slate she was used to seeing. Sean Galen was still an enigma after nearly three years of being on the same ship with him.

  “She okay?” Meredith asked.

  “She will be, I think, once the rest of her lunch is gone,” Tony Giannini came out of the head, grinning ruefully. “Poor kid. Hell of a way to be introduced to Lincoln's way of driving a ship.” Meredith nodded absently, thinking the same thing. Jessica stumbled out of the head, wiping her mouth with a cloth.

  “I'm sorry,” she groaned.

  “Don't be,” Meredith told her, placing an arm around her shoulders. “It's hard to stomach, er, get used to,” she corrected.

  “I've only been aboard five ships, counting this one,” Jessica explained. “I never realized before how rough it can be.”

  “Better get used to it,” Tony warned, gathering up the med kit he'd brought with him. “Par for the course around here.”

  Jessica nodded weakly, hand still pressed to her stomach.

  “I think you might wanna just take a seat for a while, ma'am,” Galen said quietly. “You may want to be near the head for a little while til whatever Doc gave you sets in.”

  “Not a bad idea,” Jessica nodded, almost staggering to the nearest seat. “Fortunately I wasn't planning on leaving the ship so I'll have time to recover.”

  “If you're not feeling better soon call me,” Tony warned. “I won't be heading off ship until after the cargo is off-loaded, so I'll be around, somewhere.”

  “Thank you Doctor,” Jessica smiled at him. “I think I'm okay.”

  “It's just Tony,” he waved and returned to the sick bay.

  “Sean are we set okay?” Meredith asked as the engineer went to leave.

  “Yes ma'am,” he nodded. “I made a walk through about two hours ago and checked the inventory. We're in good shape.”