I know, it has been forever. I'm sorry! Somehow, every time I sat down to continue writing, my thoughts drifted of to about two to ten chapter further down the line! Apparently, I'm getting a bit tired of working for what I want. :P But now here it finally is. The tenth chapter!
As always please R&R.
Sasha had never considered her life to be boring. First working in Navy Intelligence, then the virus outbreak had made sure the last fifteen years of her life had been at worst interesting and at best exhilarating, but then Thomas Chandler had walked back into her life and suddenly everything she had ever done paled in comparison to what she had witnessed in the last couple of days … and the worst part? She didn't even understand half of what was happening.
She still didn't know why Peng had tried to kill them by blowing up the plane.
She still didn't know who Dr. Sheffield was or what her relationship with Tom was. And now, he had sent her and Lt. Green on a virus sample hunting trip in Japan … alone! And how had the woman known, there would be information hidden in the hostage video? Because as it turned out, there actually had been some! The hostages had taken their service numbers and hidden approximate coordinates within them!
On top of that, it had taken Tom only one helicopter ride to get Jesse on his side, the most distrusting woman, Sasha had ever met, and now she was off to God knew where on some kind of secret mission!
And above all that hung the danger of Takehaya's ultimatum, what it meant for the missing crew members, and the possibly impending war with Peng.
All that and more went through her mind while she was watching Tom conferring with Lt. Granderson and the Lts. Burk.
"In short, we need fuel, but we won't get it because Peng closed the refueling station … So, how do we get around that?" Tom asked his crew.
"Well, we can't do it by force! That would start a war we can't afford at the moment." Lt. Granderson said and Sasha agreed. A war was madness, she just wasn't sure if Tom saw that the same way. He was so single-mindedly focused on getting his crew back, she wasn't sure he would listen to reason.
"We could try to sneak past the ships." Lt. Burk the elder suggested. It was really impractical to have brothers serving on a ship where everyone was always addressed by their last name, Sasha thought to herself. This whole situation was impractical! Only a hand full of days and being stuck on this swimming tin can was already beginning to get on her nerves. She had never been one for tight places and it didn't really get tighter than a warship … except maybe a submarine.
"That brings us back to the same problem," his brother disagreed. "If we get caught we started a war."
Tom nodded. "Maybe we should go directly to the source." he mumbled.
Questioningly his crew looked at him curiously, only Sasha was weary. She had a feeling she knew where this was going.
"We could break into Peng's house and talk to him directly," he explained.
Pained Sasha closed her eyes. That's what she had feared. "Are you insane?" she asked.
"We need fuel, we won't get past the battleships without force, but we can't use force, so the only way I see, is to approach Peng directly and have him lift the barrier. Or do you have better idea." he had turned to her. Standing tall, his eyes fixated on her, he challenged her … and she had nothing to say. He was right, there was no other way to get more fuel and they needed more fuel to save the crew. The only way not to get around this confrontation was to follow Takehaya's ultimatum and just leave. But she knew Tom would never agree to that.
"A small team, a coordinated attack … that might actually work." Lt. Burk the younger agreed.
Surprisingly Lt. Granderson shook her head. "Maybe if you weren't injured, or if Danny was here, but like this? We can't man a risky mission like that without our best people! If this goes wrong, there is absolutely no way this won't end in your deaths and, again, possibly war."
The men fell silent.
"But it's the only plan we have." Tom eventually said. "... unless."
"Unless, what, Sir?" Lt. Granderson asked.
Hesitantly, Tom reached for his chest pocket and retrieved the paper, Dr. Sheffield had given him. He scanned the lines, first in confusion, then we growing understanding. When he looked back up, he wore a grim smile. "This might work, too. Come on, let's get this over with, so we can get our people back!"
He turned and left, leaving no chance fro questions. A smiling Lt. Granderson and Lt. Burk the younger followed. How didn't they question Tom? How could they just accept his new plan without hesitation, when the last had involved breaking into the best protected house in this part of the world and take the most powerful leader of Asia as a hostage? Shaking her head, Sasha followed them.
They arrived on the CIC, still unsure what Tom was planning, but everything had to be a better idea than breaking into Peng's house ...
"Open a communication to all ships in the vicinity!" Tom ordered.
Or not.
"Tom!" Sasha hissed.
"Either we do this or we go with the first plan and break into Peng's house," he said calmly not even looking at her. His eyes were firmly fixated on the ocean ahead of them where in the distance four Chinese warships waited to destroy them. "Now, hail them!"
The Com Officer nodded. In complete confusion Sasha watched as Tom reached for the com. "Don't worry, Sasha. I'm not crazy. This is going to work." He turned to the Com Officer: "Keep the line open for everyone to listen in until I signal you otherwise. Then close the communication for only us."
"Aye, sir."
"This is Captain Chandler speaking of the USS Nathan James. We request permission to approach and refuel!"
After a second of silence an answer came. A male with a strong accent answered. "Captain Chandler, this is Captain Li. Your request is denied. You can not approach. If you try we will fire."
"Captain Li, you will do no such thing. You will let us approach and you will let us refuel." Tom stated with undeserved conviction.
"I do not know if you are more brave or more stupid," the other man replied amused.
"I assure you, I'm neither. Let me speak to President Peng and we will see if we can't come to an understanding."
This last statement was followed by silence.
What in God's name was he planning?! Did he really think Peng would just give them the fuel? Sasha couldn't quite believe it.
"President Peng does not have to be disturbed for this." Captain Li answered.
"I think, that might be a decision for him to make." Tom replied.
Silence again, an even longer one than before.
Suddenly the well known voice of President Peng filled the CIC. "Captain Chandler!" he said. "What a pleasant surprise. What makes you think, you have anything to say that could be of interest to me?"
Tom smiled. He smiled! Why was he smiling?! By now the entire CIC watched their Captain. But, looking around, Sasha realized none of the faces seemed worried or scared, only curiously expectant. These people didn't even consider this might fail!
"Mr. President, how kind of you to speak to me. I only have one question for you." Tom said in a pleasant tone.
"I'm listening, Captain." the other man replied, sounding almost bored.
"Who blew up my plane?" There was no anger in Tom's voice, no accusation, not even curiosity. He almost sounded bored!
A moment of silence followed this surprising question.
"I did," the president finally answered.
"No!" Tom disagreed. "We both know you didn't." Tom answered. He signaled the Coms Officer.
"Do we?"
"Indeed. What reason would you have to kill me?"
"I can think of many. Maybe because you embarrassed me in front of Asia with your accusations. Or maybe because I don't like you. Maybe I did it to hurt the Americans. You are after all one of their most important assets. Or maybe it wasn't about you at all. Maybe it was about the little whore who betrayed me after I welcomed her into my house, my government, and my confidence."
Sasha tried not to react to the man's vile words, but she couldn't help glancing at Tom. He had always been a bit touchy when it came to derogatory language towards women but, surprisingly, he didn't react at all.
"If that was true, you would have done a better job." he said instead. "The plane wouldn't have blown up right after the start. Despite the tape you manufactured, there is no way, the American government would have bought your lie of a crash. My death would have led to war. And no matter how powerful you might be, you can not take on the United States and their allies yet. Not to speak of the riots my death would have caused within your population. Embarrassed you? Little whore? These are arguments of a petty and arrogant man. Worse, they are the words of a stupid man. You might be many things, Mr. President, but you are no fool." he stopped. "So my question remains. Who blew up my plane and killed my computer expert?"
Peng kept silent for a moment.
"I don't know," he finally admitted.
"Well, I suppose, for the moment that isn't really of any consequence. All I want from you, is fuel, so I can go and find my crew." Tom suddenly changed the topic.
Confused all looks turned to him. What was he thinking? What was this all about? First he made it all about the attack on his life only to just drop the topic as if it meant nothing and asked for fuel.
"You really think, you can find them within Takehaya's ultimatum." the other man asked.
"No, I know I will. It can only be in your interest when I deal with your pirate problem for you. After all, you wouldn't want the world to think, you let Takehaya take my people, would you?" Tom asked in a thinly veiled threat.
"Very clever, Captain." President Peng stated. "I didn't think you had it in you."
"Thank you, Mr. President, but I'm afraid I can't take all the credit for this." Tom said, a victorious smile on his face.
President Peng almost laughed. "I just hope for you, she won't betray you as well."
"I don't think she will. Disappoint, maybe even hurt, but betray? Not very likely." Tom sounded thoughtful. Peng was speaking about her, Sasha knew, but Tom, Tom was speaking of Dr. Sheffield and it bugged her! She didn't want it to, but it did! Judging from what she knew, Tom hadn't seen either of them in fifteen years, but his words just now and the fact that he just followed whatever the other woman had written on that paper, made it clear he trusted her implicitly, despite everything. A trust, Sasha wasn't sure, he had ever had in her.
"We will see, Captain, we will see." President Peng said. "You can have your fuel. In fact, you can have whatever you need in order to find your missing crew members and get rid of Takehaya."
"Thank you, Mr. President."
But no answer came.
"They are gone, sir." The Coms Officer reported a moment later.
"Now, let's see if he is a man of his word." Tom mumbled and started staring at the radar, intently watching the four dots symbolizing the Chinese battleships.
"Sir?" the older Lt. Burk asked.
"Burk?"
"What kind of doctor is Dr. Sheffield?" he asked hesitantly.
Tom smirked. "Very observant of you, Lieutenant. She has a Phd in Psychology and was just about to go into law, before she left."
Tom reached into his chest pocket and held out Dr. Sheffield's letter.
Sasha stepped next to Lt. Burk and read it over his shoulder. She read the first few lines and stopped in shock, than some more in the middle. It was unbelievable! On this piece of paper was the conversation she had just witnessed between Tom and Peng … down to the silence between statements … and not only Tom's part, but also Peng's and even the lines for the Chinese warship Captain were roughly the ones Captain Li had spoken.
Who the hell was this woman and how had she done that?!
"That is one scary woman, Sir." Lt. Burk stated calmly and handed the paper back.
"Don't I know it, Lieutenant. Don't I know it!" Tom mumbled.