Chapter 14

Mike knocked on the open door of the infirmary. Rios looked up from his work at the desk and saw Mike; he wore a mixed expression which Mike expected. The man was probably worried he'd pull a stunt like Tom ad was at his limit. He was still in his khaki service uniform from the service for the fallen soldiers.

Mike had been at the service but had stood in the background not wanting to make his presence known as Command had a way of affecting how the crew reacted and processed their grief when it came to informal ceremonies. They of course would take the bodies home to have a proper burial and funeral services as they had the freezer space thanks to the famine.

"Hey Doc, how are you?" he asked Rios.

"Not great Sir, but managing." Rios said being honest, Mike appreciated it as he didn't have to worry about Rios being a ticking time bomb unlike some of his crew.

"We all are, if that helps at all." Mike offered with empathy as they all felt the loss of their comrades deeply. For Mike, he felt it differently as they were under his command. His responsibility and he had failed them. Rios gave a closed lip smile.

"Not really, I assume you're here to talk to Ms Khan." He said as he closed the file he was working on it, and turned to give Mike his full attention.

"Yeah, how is she?" Mike asked, he didn't step into the room as he wanted Rios' permission. After Tom, he wanted Rios to understand that the infirmary was his space and Mike respected his position. Even if it did kill him to stand at the door when he wanted to see Naz. She had been moved from the main bed into the room offside from the infirmary. It was a good sign.

"She's awake but weak. The Nostos in completely out of her system. I think the adrenaline and trauma of the cardiac arrests and broken arm burned what was left out of her system." Rios offered as supposition as he truthfully didn't know enough about Nostos to know what would happen.

"How do you know?" Mike asked out of curiosity.

"You'll know," Rios told him, Mike gave him a look to explain. "She's angry and very emotional. I still don't know all the effects of Nostos, but I have notice among the refugees that there are behavioural impairments from the drug. They are less violent, they show emotional disassociation. I don't know if it's how the drug interacts with the brain and how they process stimuli or social cues..." he looked a little sheepish as he realised he had lost Mike. "They don't feel emotions as a 'normal' person would." he said oversimplifying it for him.

"Yeah, been there." Mike reminded him, "You going to block me?" he asked him in a casual manner. He'd accept Rios decision if the man told him to go.

"Only if you're here to interrogate her." Rios said.

"I'm not. You have my word." Mike promised, Rios gave a nod and gestured for him to come in.

"Ok, but make it a quick visit as she really needs to rest." Rios told him.

"Would it be too much for a few minutes alone?" Mike asked him.

"Sir, I really-" Rios stopped and thought about it. He looked at Mike and gave a nod, "Yes, Sir." he said, but his tone and demeanour spoke volumes. He was giving Mike a chance, and hoping that he wasn't disappointed. Mike watched him go and then turned to the room.

He stepped into the room where she laid curled up on the bed. Her right arm was in a cast that rested on her side while her other arm was tucked under the pillow. She looked up and saw him before she turned her face back to the wall.

"Hey." He said, he sat on the bed by her curled legs.

"Is is true?" she asked not looking at him. His heart broke for her as she sounded so despondent and lost. He knew it wasn't personal; she was wrapped up in her own problems or the ones Tom had created.

"Which parts?" he asked as he had no clue what Tom had told her.

"That I can't go home because I'm considered a Foreign fighter and are subject to criminal charges if I return home." Naz told him.

"Yeah, we were waiting until you finished detoxing from the Nostos. Tom is-"

"An asshole." Naz finished dryly, Mike huffed a laugh as he wouldn't disagree.

"In fairness we all have our moments. Don't hold it against him, he gets real touchy when people hurt Sasha's feelings." he said, Naz nodded as she didn't argue it further and he had a good feeling that she took whatever Tom said on the nose. She knew how the game was played when it came to interrogations especially when it was personal. It still didn't stop the pain but she like Mike knew there was no point in having ill will towards Tom.

"How much time do I have until you kick me off the ship?" she asked him.

"I'm not kicking you off the ship." Mike told her, he hated that she ever had the thought in her head. She looked at the wall, tears slipped down her face. He just wanted to hold her and soothe the pain in her. He didn't know where the motivation came from but he ignored it. Not because of the impropriety but because Naz wasn't in the head space to be held or comforted.

"My asylum status has been revoked as I wasn't able to tell Tom anything. I can't go anywhere." Naz said as the realisation hit her. She closed her eyes and more tears slid down her face. She just looked so twisted with grief and sadness and Mike watched the menagerie of emotions that went hand in hand with grief played through her expression, it had to be overwhelming for her to feel her emotions after a year of numbing herself with Nostos. He had felt his emotions twofold when the Nostos wore off. Sometimes he still did, but he was in better control of himself.

"Tom was lying about the Asylum status. He doesn't have the power to revoke it. I know you can't get exactly what you want. You can't get back to Australia but you could make a permanent home in America. If you wanted to and I can help you with that. I want to help you." he told her, he ached to reach out and touch her but there was a sense of fragility coming off her that told him that if he touched her; she might shatter.

"What are you going do? Adopt me?" she asked drily. Mike looked out into the main room to make sure they were alone before he leaned over just slightly as he was about to share a secret.

"Marry you, actually." he said casually.

"What?" she sputtered as she turned and looked at him incredulously, he gave a boyish smile. He couldn't help it given his unorthodox plan. It crazy, not like him at all but he liked it. He liked that he would be helping Naz as he didn't want to carry her on his conscious. Frankly, she was an easy save unlike others.

"Marry me, then you can apply for permanent residency in the US as my spouse and then become a citizen through naturalisation." Mike said laying it all out for her. She pushed herself up and winced as she held her broken arm that was encased in a plaster cast. She reached out her good hand and Mike watched in amusement as she poked him in the bicep.

"You're here." she stated as she wasn't sure what to make of it.

"I am." he told her, she grabbed his wrist and checked his pulse. Her fingers were so cold against his skin. They locked eyes, she analysed him; he couldn't help but be weirdly amused by it all even though for her she was trying to assess whether she was sober or not.

"Really, here and talking crazy." Naz murmured as she took her hand off his person and moved it to cradle her arm that was in a cast.

"It's a little crazy but it solves many of your problems." Mike assured her.

"What are you getting out of it?" Naz asked him suspiciously.

"Nothing untoward, just a house sitter when I'm deployed. A friendly face to come home to, I'm a simple man." he told her with a shrug, just the idea of coming home to someone and not an empty BOQ sounded amazing. There was a fact the house had been locked up for years, knowing he'd reopen it with someone at his side was hell of a lot better than doing it alone.

"You could lose everything." Naz said pointing out the obvious fallout of if they were caught.

"I already have. At this point I'm gaining a friend who saved my life. Now, I want to repay that by vouching for you, and giving you a place to stay and time until you sort out what you want. The US is fully aware of your past, Immigration won't care as overpopulation is not an issue. We will get the seeds and the famine will break. Hell, no one will question our marriage as we already have the perfect love story." he told her.

"Really?" she asked him sceptically, she shifted until she was leaning against the wall. She closed her eyes for a moment and worried that maybe she needed to lay down but decided to let her make that decision for herself.

"You saved my life, nursed me back to health and witnessed my crew's success in finding the seeds that saved the world." He said with a closed lip smile as it sounded pretty good in his head. Naz huffed a laugh.

"While the real story is that I saved your life, drugged you and then attached myself like a leech to you to get off an island for Asylum to America." She said in amusement before she grew serious,"What if there are no seeds?" she asked him, Mike tried not to think of that outcome as it was unacceptable.

"We won't go back until we have the seeds. It's not an option to go home empty handed." he told her, she nodded weakly in understanding.

"Ah, so until then I am here with you all?" she asked, Mike nodded, "Good, it give us time to get to know one another and drop breadcrumbs. Or for you to come to your senses and back out." she said, a small smile playing on her lips for the first time since he arrived. It felt good to see her smile when she had so little to smile for.

"Not a chance. It's my plan, I always follow through on my word." Mike told her as he knew their fake relationship could cost him his career, and reputation with Jail time. But he looked at the positives of giving her a new lease on life which well worth the risk after everything she had given up for him without even knowing him. He knew he was giving her a second chance at life but at the same time he felt like he was getting one too.

"How are we going to fake the physical side of things in your master plan?" She asked him. Mike pursed his lips as he wanted to laugh at the ludicrous nature of the conversation. It sounded like they were negotiating a business deal. He refrained from laughing as he didn't want to offend her in thinking he found her unattractive. She didn't need an ego hit after everything else she had been through.

"We don't have to have sex to prove we're in a legitimate relationship." he assured her, she gave a nod taking in his words, he wanted her to be comfortable and for his sake as he was not a sleaze who needed to use blackmail or coercion to bed a woman. "We got a time to sort everything out and get used to one another's space. The main thing is that we make it look real with emotional intimacy and friendship in front of the crew or whoever needs to be convinced. It'll be easy to drop enough bread crumbs for them to put two and two together." he told her.

"Like being seen together publicly?" She asked clearly needing specifics.

"Yes, for the sake of my friends we have sell it. If on the off chance we're caught, I want them to have plausible deniability." Mike said, he didn't know why but he didn't think they'd have a problem.

"Are you really sure about this?" Naz asked him, he gave a nod as he had given it a lot of thought. He knew in his bones it was the right thing to do.

"Yeah, I am. This will work and once you're naturalised, you'll have a passport again. One that will allow you travel wherever you want to." he told her.

"Besides Australia." Naz stated, she took a shaky breath as she was clearly still coming to terms with the fact she couldn't go home. Mike vowed in that moment, that he'd give her a new home. Even if she didn't stay, she'd always know she could come back to him.

"Yeah, I am sorry about that." Mike told her sincerely.

"Me too." She replied with a huff, she quickly swiped at her eyes before the tears fell. They lapsed into a companionable silence for a long moment before she spoke. "Ok, let's do it." she told him in resigned acceptance.

"You don't want to think about it a bit more?" he asked her, he wasn't worried or backing out. He just wanted her to be sure and in hindsight, he should've waited a little longer after a near death to ask. But he knew she could easily back out if she wanted to.

"No, I'm good. We should write up a prenup as I want to protect you. I wouldn't want you and your friends to think I'm only marrying you for your assets." Naz told him drily, Mike snorted a laugh as he like most military in the current climate had minimum access to saving and a mountain of back pay owed to them. The property market meant his house was currently worthless.

"I'm not worried, but if it makes you more comfortable then we'll do it." He told her.

"It would." She replied, Mike looked out to the door as he heard footfalls. Rios stepped into the main infirmary with a cup of coffee. Mike turned to Naz and placed a hand on her knee.

"I should go, I have to get back to work. But I'll come by later," he told her, he wasn't sure if later meant that afternoon or tomorrow but he'd visit.

"I'd like that." She replied.

"How do you feel about Scrabble?" He asked her, she gave him a quizzical look unsure of what he was asking.

"Indifferent?" She offered as she was unsure what the right answer was.

"Get some rest." Mike told her as he took her answer to be a 'yes' to scrabble. He rose from the bed and moved into the main infirmary, "Thanks Doc." he said as he passed Rios and headed for CIC.

"What have I missed?" Mike asked as he came into CIC to find Sasha, Danny and Tom standing around a station in CIC. On the table were blueprints and an aerial shot of a lavish property.

"Location has been confirmed, just ironing out the wrinkles." Sasha told him, Mike looked to Tom.

"Have we changed course?" he asked.

"Not yet, as it's your call." Tom told him, Mike appreciated being included but on the other hand didn't like how redundant it felt for them to wait when Tom could've easily changed course.

"Bridge, this is the Captain. Set a course heading 0-6-5, all ahead flank." Mike hung up the phone and moved back to the table. "So let's hear it." he told them.

"We're looking at a straightforward smash and grab. Target and secure map room located in the northeast wing of Giorgio's mansion, It's outside the main staircase. here." Danny said pointing at the blue prints of the property on the table.

"Nathan James will cruise in a basket 30 miles off-shore while Vulture Team helos up the coast, fast exits 4 clicks from Giorgio's place." Tom added as he pointed to the maps, Mike nodded as it all sounded good. He just wanted to know where the wrinkle was.

"What kind of resistance are you expecting?" Mike asked him.

"We'll engage security elements. But nothing we can't handle. Once we're inside, Vulture Team demo-breaches the map room door, which is steel-reinforced. So we're going to be loud and he's going to know we're there." Tom said.

"We'll grab anything and everything, paper or electronic. We'll uplink what we can't carry or copy onto a drive; to the ship." Sasha said.

"If we're lucky, something inside that room will tell us where to find Vellek and his lab." Tom said, he slid a glance at Sasha who wore a calm exterior but he like Mike could see she was simmering with anger and god knows what else. Not a great attitude while out on mission but Mike knew Sasha could keep it professional as she had when Tom left. She could do it now again.

"Ok, let's make it happen." Mike told them.

Some time later, Sasha was in the helo bay with Vulture team. They were gearing up for the mission, Sasha focused on double checking she had enough ammo in her vest and checking her weapon making sure it was serviceable.

Danny at the end of the table laid out the details for the others. She barely paid attention to them as she knew what was going to happen. She just hoped Fletcher was at Giorgio's so she could deck the man and drag his ass back to the Nathan James. She'd get her answers and salvage some of her pride.

Not that anyone questioned her, if anything they were all supportive by saying nothing. It was better than them telling her how blindsided they felt by his betrayal as they had no clue how it felt. She had slept with the man and entrusted her heart to him. He was the burned her-

"Captain on deck." Danny announced, Sasha kept her head down as she was pulled out of spiralling thoughts only to feel herself fume at Tom. She knew he pitied her, she could tell by how he looked at her. She just wanted to shout at him that he had some nerve to try and talk to her about this.

"Sasha-" Tom started but she cut him off.

"I don't need a speech." she told him in a curt manner as she didn't need his pep talk or for him to assuage her pain or anger. He wouldn't even begin to understand how hypocritical it was for him to lecture on her on men and how to do her job.

"I'm not making one." he told her, she gave him a look of disbelief. "Ok, a tiny speech." he admitted, with a slight smile but he dropped it when he realised it was only making her angrier. He'd had the best intentions as he had hoped she would smile but she kept checking her hand gun for imperfections. "Look, you don't know what happened with Fletcher. But you know who you are. I just wanna make sure you don't doubt yourself out there." he told her, Sasha gave him an empty look as she holstered her weapon.

"Never do." she assured him, "Only thing Fletcher taught me is that I have terrible taste in men." she said, she pulled her backpack over her shoulder and headed out to the flight deck. She hoped her barb hurt Tom as it was the truth and would get him to back off even if it was for a short while.

"Vulture team are in play, Sir." Kara told Mike a he returned to CIC from the being on the bridge and talking with Meylan. Mike picked up a headset and put them on as he stood by her side. On one of the large screens was a blown up map of Atokos Island with the trackers of Vulture team flashing. They were making good progress to the ship, while the Helo moved away.

"How are we on radar? any sign of the Greeks?" Mike asked, he didn't want any surprises. Hell, he just needed this mission to go successfully; so they could claim back some of the ground they had lost thanks to Fletcher.

"No Sir." Kara replied as her eyes and attention was on the screens before them. He admired her strength to take on role as TAO when her husband was on the teams. It took guts to make the hard calls when someone you loved's life was on the line.

"Let's count our small blessing and hope this works out." Mike told her.

"Yes, Sir." Kara replied.

An hour later,

Naz opened her eyes, tears fell down her face. She had woken from a dead sleep to find herself still in the infirmary. It was a blessing even if the overwhelming emotions were too much for her. She had been so removed from her emotions she had been numb for so long.

Now, they were too vibrant, too close to the surface. She couldn't tell what she felt as she was angry, she wanted laughed in joy even though she didn't know why. She cried, so much that she was pretty sure the IV was connected directly to her tear ducts. She couldn't control it, she wasn't even sure she was crying for anymore.

She had first cried for herself, she had cried as Elias was gone. Truly gone as she knew the Nostos was gone from her system. She couldn't go backwards and she didn't have access to more. She knew the Nostos was gone from her system as she felt everything with a sharp clarity. It was over. Now she had to salvage what she could from the wreckage of her life.

She thought of Mike, his offer. Her insanity in agreeing to it, but she was desperate for a home. To belong somewhere; to someone. They might only become friends, but it would be enough for her as she needed something to hang on to. He was her lifeline at the moment. Fresh tears filled her eyes and she sighed as she hated the dark feeling inside her that reminded her that her life was like a house a cards. It only needed one person to touch a card for it all to tumble down.

"Hey," Rios said from the doorway. He looked concerned she shook her head and wiped at her face with a sardonic chuckle.

"Sorry, can't seem to stop. So ignore the tears. I'm ok." She said as she pushed up in bed, or tried. Her body was so wrecked from her injuries and Tom's visit. Rios came to her side and helped her sit up, and propped the pillows behind her back.

"Are you in any pain?" He asked.

"IV is bugging me, but I'll survive as I need the fluids." She said wryly, she was not going to get into her mental crisis with him until she had a better grip on herself. Rios gave a nod as he disappeared and came back with a tray and placed it on the stool by her bunk.

"I brought you something to drink. It's warm, so you won't burn yourself." He said as he picked up the cup and helped place it into her hand.

"Is this bone broth?" She asked looking at the liquid, the smell wasn't all that appetising but her stomach gurgled in need of something to munch on.

"Yes, you need something more than IV fluids. There will be pumpkin soup for dinner but after your lunch there is apple and pear puree for dessert." He told her, she smiled as Rios was a very kind man.

"You know how to spoil a girl, Doc." She told him, he pulled up another stool and sat down presumably to watch her and make sure she didn't make a mess of herself.

"How are you feeling?" He asked her.

"Too much. Thank you for stepping in with Captain Chandler before." She said as she took a sip of the broth. She swallowed it down, not bothering to think on the taste as she was used to worse.

"It's my job. I'm sorry that I let it happen to begin with." He told her, she looked down as she only vaguely remembered the conversation but she remembered enough to pang with guilt and heart ache. She placed the cup in her lap and took a moment to collect her thoughts. She looked back at Rios, he looked like he carrying the grief of ten people but he carried it with grace.

"I still appreciate you putting yourself on the line for me." She told him, she didn't know why it was important for Tom to know and if she just said the name, then they could drop the subject. "His name was Captain Harry Sinclair." A shiver of disgust ran down her back, "He's- He was British Military, he was one of soldiers that trained me. I was one of eight women under his command. He liked to brag that he was top dog as he was tapped for special ops missions. His idea of training was to break people down..." She drawled sarcastically, she hated how her voice quavered but she didn't like to think of the war or her time as a coalition soldier. She preferred just pack it up in a box and forget it entirely.

"You don't have to tell me." Rios told her in a gentle manner as he clearly misunderstood what she was implying. She gave a sardonic laugh and shook her head as she wasn't planning to tell him much at all. She didn't need or want sympathy or understanding. She wanted a fresh start, to put her past behind her and salvage what she could.

"I made certain I wasn't his type." Naz assured him, Sinclair had tried to come at her but she'd been prepared. She may have had bite, but she found knife to the leg near the groin sent a clear message to any man that she was not interested in any nocturnal business. "And as Captain Chandler said five people died, I don't even know why or what happened but he thinks it's important." Naz told him as she felt lost as to what was going on. The last thing she remembered was being in the mess and the rest was a blank. Then she woke up in the infirmary, racked with pain. She could barely move without pain lacing through her, Rios told her she'd had a heart attack and had to been in a fight she had no memory but her arm was broken.

"He killed four of the men, one of them was Heggen." Rios said, Naz shook her head and pressed a hand to her mouth as she felt deeply for Rios and the ship crew.

"What happened?" she asked, Rios took a deep breath and then told her everything he knew starting with the storm.

Sasha looked at the floor, taking in the plush carpet she and Tom had ruined with their boots, before she grew impatient and moved closer to the curtain. She peeked out the small sliver of the material she had created, and watched the party goers outside.

The mission had been smooth thus far with barely any resistance on their way in. Just a couple perimeter guards they had taken out but that was it. But when they reached the house, things got complicated thanks Giorgio entertaining over fifty guests with a pool party.

The party was a real pain in ass, as the loud techno music was loud enough to cover any noise they made coming in. But it annoyingly meant they couldn't hear when someone was sneaking up on them. If that wasn't bad enough, the place was filled with civilians, it just wrinkle upon wrinkle that they had to adjust for. Thus here Sasha and Tom were in Giorgio's bedroom waiting for Azima to honey trap the man in her underwear.

An easy task as the woman was gorgeous and had confidence in spades. Sasha saw them coming towards the bedroom and slipped back into her hiding place. A few seconds later, the door swung open and Azima walked into the room with the grace of leopard with Giorgio right behind her. He closed the door behind them, making Sasha and Tom's job that much easier.

"I've not seen such nice things since before the virus." Azima told Giorgio as she moved to the bed, she tossed the towel she had draped around herself onto the bed and looked at Giorgio. The man was ensnared by Azima's beauty as he moved in close to her.

"This is nothing compared to what I'm gonna have." he told her, he pulled off his jacket and Sasha slowly and quietly moved from her hiding spot with her sidearm raised and ready. Giorgio just kept talking unaware of her. "My family are visionaries, doing remarkable things. World-changing things." he told Azima while she unbuttoned his shirt. "You ever do it on 2,000-count Egyptian cotton?" Giorgio asked Azima, Sasha pressed the gun against the back of his head.

"That your best line, lover boy?" Sasha asked him sarcastically, she held out Azima's gear to her. The woman took the gear and blew a kiss at Giorgio as she walked over to the corner to get changed. Tom came out ensuite taking Azima's place minus the honey-trap routine.

"This couldn't have waited till I was done?" Giorgio asked before he huffed in annoyance.

"We didn't have 30 seconds." Tom deadpanned as he ripped the necklace off the man's neck. He turned to Azima and found the woman geared up and ready to go.

"Nathan James, this is Vulture Team. We have Giorgio Vellek in custody." Tom said on his comms, he motioned for them to move.

"Copy that, Vulture Team. Can't wait to see him." Mike replied.