Nikki has arrived at Navcom for her meeting with Marshall, before boarding Hammersley as the new XO. When she gets closer to the office, she notices Mike and Kate are already in there talking to Steve, before too long Mike leaves and Nikki is ushered in by Steve.
Half an hour later the three of them head down to the docks so Marshall can inform the crew of their new CO and XO. While in the car, Kate sends Mike a text.
Mike is at home sitting on the floor with the scotch again when his mobile goes off, informing him he received a text message. He notices it is from Kate and contemplates opening it; just before he does he downs another mouthful of scotch.
Thanks for my hat, u ok? He responds
What's it to you? When Kate receives this she knows she hurt him
Mike talk to me? Oh, so she wants me to talk now, does she? But last night she didn't.
Why you didn't want to talk last night, you walked out on me remember? Nikki sees the lone tear fall down Kate's face
I'm sorry I did that, I got to go we're at Hammersley now
Why did I believe that she would stop running when things didn't go her way? Why am I putting my heart on the line again, just to get it broken. I am so bloody stupid. I should have cut all ties in the first place. I should have stuck to my giving up the Navy and walked away from it all. We should have been talking about this last night, not now because she has seen what it's done to me and before she sails on Hammersley.
God, why did I listen to dad? The engagement was meant to make things better, not worse. Maybe I'm not meant to be happy, or get a happily every after? Maybe I'm meant to stay single and alone for the rest of my life.
Now who's the one using the boat to hide behind so they don't have to deal with this, with us he finally replies to her with. Ok Flynn, that might have been a low blow, but it is too late now to take it back.
Back at the Naval Docks, the car has pulled up all the crew are assembled on the boat deck as per Marshall's instructions to RO.
They are all paying attention to the vehicle when it pulls up. Dutchy gets the crew to stand at attention. As Kate, Nikki and Marshall get out, some of the crew recognise Nikki, and of course Marshall, no one has seen Kate till she comes around from the other side. As the three come across the gangway, the crew notice the new stripe on Kate's uniform.
"Thank you all for getting yourselves all here on time. Now I would like to introduce you to your new CO, Lieutenant Commander Kate McGregor which you all know of already, and your new Executive Officer Lieutenant Nikki Caetano. Fair winds, Hammersley, Marshall says before turning and leaving Hammersley. Once back on the dock, he turns around and sees everyone saying their own things to Kate and Nikki and notices that Kate is not her normal upbeat self.
I hope I did the right thing by getting the Brass to leave her as CO. I just hope it doesn't end her relationship with Mike; they were both not themselves this morning and Mike looks like he spent the night drinking. I so hope they can handle what is ahead of them.
While on the deck Kate's mobile goes off Nikki watches her face to see how see reacts to whatever the message says. She looks on as Kate quickly leaves and heads away. Nikki stands there and watches her walking away she then gives her head a small shake.
"Nikki, everything ok?" asks Charge.
"Um, yeah. Fine thanks Charge, got sidetracked."
"Is everything ok with the boss? I thought she would be happy about this, over the moon."
"She is most likely tired, Charge. It's been a full on three weeks and we flew in late last night." God, I hope that lie is convincing enough for Charge.
"Ok, thanks Nikki." Phew, it was. I just hope she snaps out of this soon.
I have a job to do Mike. Don't make this any harder than it already is she replies back to him.
A job to do, now you're using the same lines as me
Don't be like this
LIKE WHAT, I told you not to run,
I didn't run
Yes you did comes his reply five minutes later. Kate rings his mobile, he decides that answering it was better than texting her, he can then say what he really thinks.
"I wasn't running."
"Yes, you did. I wanted to talk and you slammed the door in my face, the one thing I asked you not to do you went and did," he says, trying to control his emotions and mainly not cry on the other end of the phone.
"I'm sorry, Mike."
"Sorry, yeah right. It takes you how long to say that? You didn't think to say it before showing up to Navcom only now after seeing what I looked like after you walked out on me, on us."
"Mike."
"Kate, you're being called. Go do your job, I might not be here when you get back."
"No, Mike, don't. Please don't be like that."
"Bye, Kate," he hangs up the phone. Kate plays with her engagement ring and again ignores the call to go to the bridge. Great, I stuffed it up again. He not once called me honey. Why did I walk out last night ? Why didn't i just stay and talk. She was brought out of her thoughts by Nikki entering her cabin.
"Ma'am, we ready to sail."
"Thanks, Nikki." Nikki can see her eyes are all glassy as if she is about to cry, and notices her ring is missing from her finger.
"Kate, you ok?"
"I'm fine," she replies as she gets up and heads to the bridge to guide Hammersley out on her first patrol as CO.
During the afternoon the crew notice how Kate seems to be a million miles away. Nikki thinks it has something to do with what happened yesterday, she has no idea about what happened last night. She also puts down the fact her ring is not on is because she wants it in a safe place, the ship's safe.
Back in Cairns
Having dropped Kate and Nikki off at Hammersley, Steve goes back to Navcom to finish off a few things. The way Mike turned up not looking his best has been bugging him since Mike left his office. He decides he needs to pay Mike a visit to find out what is going on.
At 1700 hours Steve arrives at Mike place. He knocks on the door and hears some noises from within the house. He knocks again and calls out to Mike, who comes and opens the door, and he enters and walks to the lounge seeing a few bottles on the coffee table.
"Bloody hell, Mike. What has gotten into you?" There is no response from him.
"Mike, were these full when you started them?" He just nods his head and takes another drink from the one he had poured before he answered the door
"Did you start last night?" Mike nods his head
"Mike, talk to me please, as a friend. Has Kate got something to do with this." Steve says pointing to the two empty scotch bottles, and the one he has started on.
"Yes," he gets out quietly.
"Mike what happened? I have never seen you turn to the bottle when things get hard or bad." He says nothing, Steve sees a flash of pain come over his face.
"Talk to me. As a friend. Whatever you say won't go on record, it's between friends not between you and your CO." Still nothing from Mike as he keeps on drinking.
"Ok, Mike. Give me that damn glass." Mike downs what's left and passes it to Steve, who takes it and the bottle and empties the remaining scotch down the sink.
"Mike, where is the rest of your alcohol supply?" Mike points to his cabinet, and Steve heads over to it. He decides to put what is there in a box after seeing that some of it is very expensive. He won't pour it down the drain, but take it away from him. Mike doesn't seem at all worried or concerned by what Steve is doing, he just stays sitting on the floor. Steve is not one hundred percent sure Mike has told him where all of it is, so he checks in the kitchen and finds some wine and beer in his fridge and takes that as well. He checks all the cupboards and also the garage, wanting to make sure he has everything.
"Right, Mike. Where's your wallet?"
"In the kitchen, in the bowl." Steve walks over and gets it.
"I'm taking it and your car keys."
"WHAT THE HELL FOR?" Mike yells, and snaps at him.
"Mike, you're not talking to me. You're drunk, well more than drunk I would say, and I'm not letting anything happen to because I don't want to be the one to tell Kate what happened to you, especially when I know I could have prevented it by taking your keys and money away from you."
"Like she'd bloody well care anyway," he says.
"Mike, she does care about you."
"No, she doesn't care about me. I set one damn stupid rule for her to follow and she breaks it. I told her not to but she did anyway." Mike then breaks down into sobs on the floor of his lounge.
What the hell has she done for him to be like this? What rule was it that she wasn't allowed to break? Does it have anything to do with the stuff that Maxine and Brad are saying about her? Damn, I'm going to need to ask a few questions just to make sure.
"What rule did she break?" Nothing from Mike.
"Ok Mike, you've left me to guess now. Did she break the 'don't sleep with anyone while with me' rule?"
"Damn you, Steve. Of all people, I wouldn't have expected you to say that about her," he snaps.
"The damn rule she broke was not to walk out the damn door when things got hard, or we had a fight. She was supposed to talk to me but no, she put her damn walls right back up thanks to Brad and now those walls are worse than before."
"It can't be that bad."
"It is. She reacted to something small and then it blew way out of proportion and walked out. I asked her not to, but she did. She knew if she did that it would be over for good, that I won't take her back."
"Mike, you're engaged now. You have to fight."
"Why? She knew what would happen. It wasn't like I was trying to get information about her life before the Navy."
"What did she react to, Mike?"
"She reacted to me wanting to use extra protection, of all things to go nuts over. Then she has a go at me about not trusting her, for Christ's sake. I've stood by her with everything Maxine has done and said and found out. No questions asked, not even about the abortion. I never got mad at her for what she did. I felt like demanding answers from her, but it wouldn't change the outcome and it was years ago. And now she thinks I don't trust her. I have believed everything she has said; stood right there with her supported her and then she throws it all back at me." Mike gets up off the floor and goes to another room and comes back with a bottle of vodka.
"Mike, no more. Give me that. You're not going to find the answers in the bottom of a damn bottle, and take it from someone who has tried. Now Mike HMAS Anzac needs a CO I'm going to send you to fill this role. It's six months in the gulf. It's going to give you time to think. Away from here, away from the bottle, and also give the two of you some space. By the time you're back, everything around Kate, Brad and Maxine should be over with and you two can move on together."
"Do I have a choice?"
"Either take it or I make it an order, and Mike, don't end things just yet give yourself time. You've been through so much in the last twelve months, don't make any bad decisions, more so when you have drunk as much as you. Now, I'm going to order in some food. We will eat and then you are to go to bed and sleep this off. I'm staying here to keep an eye on you, Mike. I don't trust you not to go find another bottle somewhere, somehow." Steve goes and orders in some food for them both, he then make Mike go have a shower while he rings the brass.
The food arrives and they eat in silence. Once done, Mike has a drink of water then heads to bed to sleep.