Ch 65

Back in Sydney, Kate was doing some typing when her phone rang; she frowned because she wasn't expecting any calls.

"Lieutenant McGregor speaking."

"Lieutenant, It's Commander Marshal from Cairns NAVCOM" Kate gulped in fear when she heard him

"It's everything okay with Mike, sir?" she asked nervously.

"Calm down, Lieutenant. He is fine, angry as hell but fine. And that's, in fact, the reason why I called; I got a message from a couple of members of the Hammersley's crew to tell me that the new XO managed to screw up with Mike's humor."

"Already?" Kate asked pinching the bridge of her nose. Steve hummed.

"Who's the Lieutenant, sir?" she asked

"Adam Miles," he read, and Kate groaned. "You know him?"

"Yes, sir. We did a couple of courses together. He has a big mouth on him, sir. Do you know what he said to upset Mike?"

"You won't like it, Kate," Steve confessed. "The message said that he told the crew that Mike's whore mistress, a woman called McGregor, gave Mike plenty of TLC during the weekend." Kate clenched her jaw. "I'm sorry, Kate. I think he overheard me teasing Mike."

"Don't worry; I know you wouldn't if I hadn't told you that in the first place." She sighed. "Sir? I know this might be too much to ask, but is there any chance for me to talk to the Captain of the Hammersley?" Steve smiled.

"That's why I got this message; they were hoping you could talk to the Captain. Yes, Lieutenant, you can but I warn you, I'll be listening."

"Thank you, sir," Kate saw the Commodore walking over to her

"Lieutenant, there is time and place for private phone chats," he warned her.

"It's Commander Marshal, from Cairns NAVCOM, sir. He asked for my help."

"Very well."

"Lieutenant, are you there?"

"Yes, sir. I'm still here."

"Go ahead, Lieutenant."

"Mike, it's Kate."

"Kate? It's something wrong? How are the kids?"

"Nothing wrong, Mike."

"Then why did you ask Steve to call me?"

"I didn't, he called me. He received a message from the situation with Lieutenant Miles. What happened?"

"Kate, I don't have time."

"Mike, tell me. Please? Commander Marshal has already informed me about part of what he said," Mike sighed and told Kate what happened.

"Mike, don't worry. No one wants you in a bad mood for three weeks. As for the lieutenant, you say these words to him: Daniel Andrews. With that you will shut him up after that I would suggest toothbrush duties for him"

"Daniel Andrews? Care to share"

"A transvestite, he thought Daniel was a woman named Danielle. Commodore Mathews found him asleep in his office wearing a leather G string, studded collar, chains and makeup."

"Thanks for an image I did not want."

"Well, you did ask. Feeling better?"

"Much, there's still that mental image you left me."

"You could change that image to your wife," Mike smiled

"Yes, I rather have an image of you than the XO," Kate grinned

"That's good to know. Look, I better get back to work. On your next shore leave, you will have to buy whoever messaged the Commander a drink."

"I still need to find out who it was"

"You are welcome, fair winds Mike," she said before she hung up.

"Mike."

"Steve! I hope you weren't listening."

"Sorry, couldn't help it. Did the talk work?"

"Yes, who let you know?"

"Your coxswain Chief Petty Officer Blake and Petty Officer Tomaszewski."

"Buffer and Swain, thanks, Steve."

"Should I start looking for a new XO?"

"Please"

"I'll get profiles for you to look at and you decide the next one."

"Thanks, Steve"

"Fair winds, Mike."

Mike lowered the phone and turned towards Swain and Buffer and glared at them; they took a guilty step back.

"Swain. Buffer." He called and the two of them blanched. Then, he smiled brightly at them. "Thanks for what you did." They left out a breath.

"You are welcomed, sir," Swain said

"But the truth is we did it for ourselves, and the crew," Buffer blushed. "We didn't want to go through the next three weeks with you being upset."

"Yeah, sorry about that"

"It's alright, sir. Hope that whatever your wife said worked"

"It did, Buffer. It sure did."

Barely three days had passed since the first incident, and the Lieutenant was already starting to cause problems, not only with Mike but with some of the crew. Mike managed to keep his cool. That night, Mike walked into the dining room just to hear Buffer and Miles arguing about their last boarding.

"Lieutenant, Buffer made the right call. Am I clear?"

"With all due respect, sir. On the files, I'm the one in charge of the boarding, am I wrong?"

"Yes, in the files, you are. But tell me, how many boarding have you done, Lieutenant?"

"Eight, sir," he said proudly.

"And you Buffer?"

"Over a thousand, sir."

"Lieutenant, you are still new at this. If Buffer tells you to back off, I'm pretty sure he won't do it without a hell of a good reason. You should trust your team, they've been at this longer than you. And Buffer is the best man around to cover your back, understood?"

"Yes, sir. However, considering what happened I'm going to report him to Commander Marshal for disobeying an order," Mike inhaled deeply.

"If you want to report any member of my crew, you still have to follow the chain of command. That means you complain to me. If you go to Commander Marshal, it still comes to me. And considering what Buffer did, I will back him up. He knows the rules better than you do." The lieutenant stood up looking at Mike

"Sounds like you didn't get enough TLC, sir," Miles let out. Buffer eyes widened.

"You are way out of line, Lieutenant. I spoke to my wife a few days ago, and she told me something very interesting about you," he snorted

"It so predictable of her marrying you. Princess perfect would do anything to climb up the ranks," He said with a smug look

"Kate worked hard to get to where she is today, unlike you I hear."

"What have you heard?" Mike looked at him in the eyes

"Daniel Andrews," Miles blanched, he sat down in shock

"Yes, Kate told me about it. In Commodore Mathews office nonetheless," the lieutenant looked defeated. "Now, the next time you have a problem with one of my crew members you come to me. Are we clear?"

"Yes, sir." Mike walked away from the dining room just as Nav walked in.

"Lieutenant, are you ok?"

"Yeah," he stood up and walked out of the room.

"What is it with he shocked look?"

"No idea. Boss said a name and that was his reaction."

"What name?"

"Daniel Andrews," Nav frowned.

"It doesn't ring a bell."

When the three weeks came to an end, the crew got twenty hours of shore leave. As they touched port, Mike when to see Steve and give him his report and talk about Lieutenant Miles. They finished talking when the new XO showed up. Mike picked him a few days before Hammersley reached port. Finally, he went home for a shower and to the pub where he joined the crew.

"Hey, boss! You've made it!" Nav said smiling

"Yes, I made it," he said as he sat down.

"Sir, what's going to happen with Lieutenant Miles?" Buffer asked

"The decision was easy after the issues with the boarding."

"Cool, he was an ass. Do we know who's going to be the new XO?"

"Lieutenant Hale, Buffer you will need to keep an eye on him."

"Why?"

"It's his first time on a patrol boat."

"Yes, it's been five years since the last time he stepped on any boat."

"Five years," ET whistled. "That's a long time, sir."

"Yes, it is." Mike agreed. "Anyway, don't get too drunk tonight, guys. We leave in the morning and a hungover crew it's not the best crew."

They laughed at him, but they all knew he was right. They had dinner, and Mike bought Swain, Buffer, and RO the drink Kate told him he owed them. After that, he left, taking his cell phone away.

"Guava mojo!" Charge shouted making the crew cheer. Mike chuckled as he heard Kate sleeping voice over the line.

"Kate, did I wake you?"

"Mike?" she asked in a raspy voice. "Yes, you did. Is everything alright?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up. But I wanted to talk you before we leave tomorrow."

"So soon? How did your patrol go?"

"Okay, I guess. Lieutenant Miles is being charged and sent to Captain's table."

"Really, that bad?"

"Yup. Tomorrow I get a new XO."

"Good luck."

"Thanks. How are the kids?"

"They are great; they miss you."

"Only the kids miss me?" he said smiling

"I miss you terribly, Mike. How long is your next patrol?"

"Two weeks and we get five days off. And then, we leave for two months," he sighed

"Ok. What time do you leave in the morning?"

"Ten. Why?"

"Will you have time send the Cairn's newspaper to Hannah?"

"I guess so. Brad hasn't found anything, huh?"

"He actually has a couple of interviews although no luck yet. I told her I saw that Cairns had more options," Kate explained.

"That's very thoughtful, Kate. I'll do it in the morning before we leave."

"I guess so. Maybe if he gets some interviews, he can stay at home while he's up there."

"Make sure to tell that to Hannah."

"I will. Anything else?" She asked softly

"Yeah, one question."

"Shoot"

"What are you wearing?" Kate giggled

"A red silk nightie."

"the lace one?"

"Yes," she purred over the phone.

"Kate," Mike groaned.

"Yes?" she added huskily.

"Stop teasing me like that," he growled.

"Why?" She asked innocently.

"You know perfectly why."

"Well, what image would you like? Me on a red silk nightie or Lieutenant Miles?"

"Ow! Stop it right there."

"Well, then?"

"These next few weeks are going to be torture," he groaned.

"How do you think I feel Mike?"

"I know. I'll hang up so you can get some rest."

"Ok, Mike. Let me know when you return."

"Sure. Night, Kate, I love you."

"Good night, Mike, I love you too," then they hung up while smiling.