Author's Note: Tempest was an amazing episode. I feel for Jamsha and Sasha. Bridget Regan was brilliant. Warning Spoilers ahead.
Aftermath
Sasha bit into the pad of her thumb, using the slight pain to focus on instead of the fact she was on the verge of sobbing like a woman with a broken heart. She couldn't seem stuff her emotions down and be a professional like her usual self. It pissed her off as she was doing her damnedest not to cry in front of Meylan, Mike and Tom.
It was not a good look, her emotions so close to the surface. Deep down, she knew she and James wouldn't work out. Their work, their allegiances they ran parallel to one another most of the time but tonight showed where they diverged. How painful it was to be betrayed for other's patriotism.
She cared deeply for James. There was something that had felt comfortable and right about being with him. He'd been her rock and now she felt unsteady in herself. He couldn't have played her the entire time they were together. She refused to believe he could have been so conniving with over a year working together less than that as a couple. She would have seen the signs of him manipulating her. There would have been something. But there wasn't. There was nothing, he had been genuine with her, there had been nothing suspect of his behaviour.
She tried to figure it out as she kept her eyes averted from the wardroom table as it had the contents of the Trawler Captain's belongings on the table. They were trying to find some sort of link between him and Fletcher, a link to something. Nothing. There was nothing.
Sasha sucked in a shaky breath as she started to feel overwhelmed by the anger, disbelief and heartsick. Meylan and Mike were being good about the investigation. They didn't demand she explain herself, explain how she missed Fletcher's deception and eventual defection from the Nathan James. They just tried to make sense of it from outsider's view and gave their unspoken support of her by allowing her stay involved. Allowing her to make sense of it with them.
Like them, she couldn't make sense of it. She just felt like she was suffocating from all of it. But she couldn't walk away without answers. She smoothed her fingers over across her forehead; wishing she could wipe away the past 12 hours and redo them.
"Anything?" Mike asked as Jeter came into the room.
"Helo's still in the air, scanning the water with infrareds, but so far, nothing, sir." Jeter said, Sasha pressed her lips into a firm line, she slid a quick look at Tom wishing he'd stop staring at her. She hated him looking at her in that moment.
He made her feel like a fool. She knew it was unintentional but it still had the effect. He didn't seem to respect her need for privacy in the this moment. To be left unnoticed and the same as everyone else in the room. No, he just had to stare at her in his calm and confident manner.
"There is absolutely nothing in these belongings to suggest that refugee was an actual trawler captain or even Middle Eastern, for that matter." Meylan said in annoyed tone as he slammed the photo of the trawler captain onto the table.
"No question he and Fletcher were working together from the beginning. Much as I hate him right now, I hope to God he survived the swim, for the seeds' sake." Mike said.
"He survived." Tom said, speaking for the first time since this debrief had begun. Sasha looked at him, pained by his words. Of course, James survived and it was because she had let him jump overboard. "Greeks must have had a ship waiting behind Asteris. That's why they were pushing us towards the island." Tom told them.
"England's Prime Minister claims Fletcher went rogue. That he was acting alone. POTUS isn't buying it." Mike said.
"Neither should we." Tom told him.
"But why throw away an alliance with the U.S.? It's not like they're any closer to finding a cure for the Red Rust than we are." Sasha pointed out, she shook her head as she just wished James had told her what was going on. If the US and UK's alliance was breaking down, James should have told her and then they could've worked something out. They potentially could've avoided all of this.
"They cut a side deal with Vellek. Planted the trawler captain on the refugee boat, knowing we'd be compelled to pick 'em up." Tom said pointing out what was now completely obvious. Mike nodded as he moved to the map on a board as he connected the same dots Tom had.
"He got the word to Fletcher, then they killed five of our men. O'Connor saved our asses more than once. Heggen, too. Now they're dead. If Fletcher's still out there, then so are the seeds. So we all know what our mission is. I want damage and readiness reports in one hour. That is all." Mike said dismissing them all. He, Meylan and Jeter left the room. Sasha knew she had work to do. She had just wished Tom had left with the others. But he just stood there. She rose from her seat and wiped at her nose.
"There's no way." Her voice broke slightly and she sniffed as her emotions were slipping out of control. "There's no way he could have played me this long." Sasha told Tom as she couldn't stand to hear whatever was brooding inside his head. She felt the need to defend James as much as herself to Tom. She was not a fool even if the past few hours seemed to state that assumption.
"Sasha," he started, his voice sounded as though it was drenched in pity to her ears.
"Tom," she cut him off sharply, as she sucked in a breath."He was on our side until we went to rescue that boat. I know it." She told him firmly, she was not going to be dissuaded by Tom or anyone else.
They clashed eyes for a moment, her daring him to tell her otherwise. He gave a nod and said nothing. She looked back to the table and waited for what Tom did best in the past- walk away from her. When he did, she sunk down in her chair again.
She pressed her hands to her face allowing herself just a few moments to just go through the emotions before she pulled herself together and got back to the task at hand.
End