Chapter Five-
Kate escaped to her cabin, and sat down for a moment, allowing her a chance to wallow in her emotion. She missed Mike so much that it hurt her to even think about him. He'd been her life; they'd promised each other that they would never part. Unfortunately, they had after Kate had lost her baby. Mike had been overcome with grief and emotion, and he'd lashed out at her. After a week of him sleeping at Knocker's house with Ryan, he'd left her a note, telling her it was too hard. Kate had spent the following week moping about the house, depressed with the loss of her unborn child, and cut at the loss of the relationship with her husband. Dutchy had inadvertently come to her rescue, although he'd always told the story differently…
It had been a quiet night when Dutchy had knocked on her door. She'd been sitting on the couch, staring at a photo blankly; her wedding photo with Mike. Nikki had been over earlier in the day, to convince Kate that Mike was a bastard, and that she was better off without him, however, Kate hadn't seen eye to eye with Nikki. Eventually Nik got the message and left, and now it seemed like someone else was at her door. Kate put the photo down on the table, and headed for the door. She passed a mirror on the way to her front door, and realised her hair was in a mess, and her pyjamas were ruffled. She shrugged her shoulders, not caring what she looked like. She just missed Mike. She opened the door, and was surprised to find Dutchy standing on her doorstep in the rain.
"X. Do you mind if I come in?" He asked. Kate opened the door wider, allowing a soaked Dutchy inside. She closed the door quietly behind him, and headed upstairs. She returned with a stack of towels, and handed them to Dylan, allowing him to dry off. She returned to her seat on the lounge. Dylan dried off, and dropped his bag near the door.
"Ma'am, what's going on?" Asked Dylan, taking a seat next to her on the lounge.
"Mike left me," she said simply, staring at the photo on the table. Dutchy could feel his blood boiling; he'd been there when Mike had sworn he'd never leave Kate, and Dutchy had hoped their wedding vows would have reflected that. Clearly he'd been mistaken.
"Ma'am, I'm so…"
"And I lost the baby," said Kate, tearing up for the fourth time that afternoon. Dutchy felt compassion towards Kate, and put an arm around her. She dissolved into a fresh torrent of tears, and Dutchy held her close.
"He's not worth your tears ma'am," said Dutchy quietly. After a while, she quietened down, and her breathing deepened. Dutchy realised she'd fallen asleep, and lifted her sleeping form. He took her upstairs and laid her down on her bed, covering her with a blanket.
That had been the start of everything…
Kate's reverie was interrupted by Bird knocking on her door. Kate swiped the tears away.
"Enter," she called, dropping the handtowel on her rack.
"Ma'am, my initial assessment of RO is he has some sort of infection. Based on the fact that none of the rest of your crew are ill, I think it's safe to say that he's not contagious. I've spoken to Fleet Medical; we're to keep him hydrated and comfortable, and they'll have an ambulance waiting for us when we get back to home port," reported Bird.
"Thanks Bird. It's good to have you back. Keep RO company for me, will you?"
"Of course ma'am." Bird left without asking any other questions, and Kate headed upstairs to the bridge. 2Dads had the helm, Lexie watching the radar and the EOD.
"Anything yet?" Asked Kate.
"No ma'am. Nothing yet… Wait. Ma'am, I have a contact. It's the Silent Star," said Lexie. Kate got out of her chair to peer over Lexie's shoulder.
"Good job Hunt. 2Dads, set a course. We're going to get Charge, Bomber and Buffer back now," said Kate.
"Aye ma'am. Revolutions 2 – 0 – 0 – 0. Heading for target. Estimated time to intercept, fifteen minutes," reported 2Dads.
"How long until they reach the border?" Asked Kate.
"Twenty-five minutes." Dutchy appeared on the bridge.
"That gives us ten minutes to get in and get our people out. Have the boarding parties ready; we'll take both RHIBs. I want 2Dads leading the other team, and Bird with me. We don't know what sort of trouble the three of them are in. Put Chefo on the other team, and keep Mia, Sophie and Oliver under guard. If we have Hardaker here, I don't want him to get hold of any of them. Can you keep NAVCOM informed?" Asked Dutchy. Kate nodded.
"Of course."
"They're not going to make it here if we keep going at these spe…" Charge was cut off as Keith came down the stairs.
"Shut up," he snarled. Charge and Buff shut their mouths. Bomber was still unconscious, head resting on Buffer's lap. She was pale and wan, and Buff wondered if she had internal bleeding of some sort. The blood from her face was still flowing, and the back of her head was covered in matted hair, stained with blood. Keith looked at both the men.
"In twenty-five minutes, we'll be in International Waters, and then I can finish you off." Charge looked at Buff, and then back to Keith. Hardaker hadn't finished speaking.
"If you had just taken Mia, Sophie and Oliver off the boat, I could have escaped, and dumped Simone's body overboard, and no-one would have ever known. Then you decide to board and 'help' out, and now I'm got to get rid of you!" He heard a noise on deck, and disappeared up the stairs.
"I'm going to try and disable the engines; buy the Hammersley more time," said Charge.
"Be careful Charge. Don't do anything too stupid," said Buffer. Charge nodded, and disappeared towards the engines. Buffer stayed where he was, stroking Bomber's hair. He didn't want to lose her now; he wanted to be able to get to know her better. He wasn't sure if he should tell her what her mother had told him, but he'd find the right time to broach the subject with her. Keith came down the stairs, his face redder and more strained than it was before.
"Where did he go?" Asked Keith menacingly. Buffer didn't say a word.
"Where did he go?" Roared Keith. Buffer refused to answer, trying to buy more time for Charge. Keith punched Buffer, Buffer's head bouncing back and hitting the bulkhead. The resounding clang reverberated through the ship, just as the engines spluttered and stopped.
"He's in the engine room!" Screamed Keith. Buffer let him go, his own head ringing noisily. He heard two shots from the engine room, and then silence. He moved Bomber to the side carefully, her head lolling back. He got up, staggering like a drunk, seeing double.
"Charge? Charge!" He called. Keith came up the stairs, blood seeping from a wound in his lower abdomen. He held a hand over the wound, trying to stem the flow, his other hand occupied with holding the gun steady and pointed at Buff. He leant against a bulkhead.
"I shot your precious Charge, just like I shot Simone. I should have just killed Mia, Sophie and Oliver. The voices keep telling me to kill you, but you've been trying to help me… Maybe I should let you live…" Keith started getting paler until he slid down the side of the bulkhead. He kept mumbling right until he took his last shuddering breath, and was still. Buffer felt his own eyes become heavier, and he stumbled back to Rebecca. He fell to his knees, and caressed her hair before he collapsed.
"I'll never leave you…"