Chapter Two-

HMAS Hammersley:-

Mike sat in the captain's chair as they patrolled borders, bored with himself. He knew a long time ago that he'd blown things with Kate; one of his many regrets was that he didn't try and fix things with Kate. He knew he'd overreacted to her losing the baby, and walking out to Maxine's had not been the best idea…

"Mike, what are you doing here?" Asked Maxine as she opened her front door. She was dressed her pyjamas, blonde hair loose around her shoulders, but Mike didn't see any of that tonight. She noticed his duffel bag hanging from his shoulder, and sighed.

"What's going on?" She asked, allowing him inside. Ryan was working on a report for NAVCOM, and had files spread out on the kitchen table, earphones in, music blaring. He waved at his father before dropping his head to continue his work. Mike lowered his body onto Maxine's couch, and ran his fingers through his short hair.

"I made a mistake Max," he started. Maxine put up a silencing hand, and moved into the kitchen. She flicked on the kettle, and stood behind Ryan. He pulled out his headphones to glance up at his mother and smile.

"Listen, Mike needs to talk to me for a little while. Can you take your work up to the study?" She asked gently. Ryan nodded, and collected up his paperwork.

"Do you want a tea Ry?" She called.

"No thanks Mum. Just want to get this report finished and get to bed," he called back from upstairs. She busied herself with two cups, and in minutes, returned with a hot brew for each of them. She settled herself back on the couch, and handed Mike the hot mug.

"Spill Mike. What mistake did you make this time?" She asked.

"I had a fight with Kate," he replied.

"Hmm?"

"She lost the baby, and I'm so angry about it! We were living a fairytale fantasy for the first few weeks, and we'd just finished the nursery. We were so excited about this baby, and then she wakes me up in the middle of the night. A trip to the hospital and four hours later, we're told that she's had a premature labour and that the baby's a stillbirth. I lost it Maxine," exclaimed Mike. She sipped her tea, just being a listening ear for Mike.

"And what are you going to do now?" She asked gently.

"I want to leave her. I want to get a divorce, get as far away from her as I can," replied Mike vehemently.

"Just hold your horses there Mike. Have you thought about what's going on for Kate in all of this?" Asked Max.

"Why would I think about her right now?" He replied.

"Because you two are in a partnership. That's what a marriage is Mike; a partnership. She thinks about you all the time, looks out for you. She's even been handing in your reports when you've been late with finishing them, and this is how you repay her? She's hurting, probably more than you are, and you've just walked out on her…" Mike stood up, incensed.

"Who's side are you on Max? Hers or mine?" He demanded.

"Neither Mike. I love you both, and I'm not about to help you destroy your relationship with Kate. But, if you need somewhere to stay for a while, cool your jets and rethink, the spare room is available," offered Maxine. He looked up the stairs, and then back at her.

"I know what I want to do," he started.

"Oh?" Queried Maxine.

"I'm going to leave her."

"Sir, we have an FFV on radar and EOD," called Mike's XO, Lieutenant Kelly Martin.

"Pipe boarding stations X, and prepare to board her." Pincher nodded at her CO, and piped boarding stations. Buffer met her below deck.

"Ma'am, who else have you selected for the boarding party?" Asked Buffer, securing Kelly's Kevlar vest for her.

"Spider, 2Dads and Bird. Anybody else I should take?" She asked. She only knew half of the crew well; they had served on the HMAS Melbourne with her. The others were old Hammersley crew or new transfers that she was unfamiliar with.

"I'd probably suggest Hunt or Charge for the task ma'am, but otherwise, I think you've selected an adept team," replied Buffer. She nodded.

"Then let's move."

HMAS Victory

"X, can I have a word?" Asked Kate quietly. Nikki nodded.

"White, you have the ship," ordered Nikki.

"I have the ship," echoed Ryan. Nikki followed Kate down into Kate's cabin, and Kate closed the door firmly behind her.

"What's he doing on the ship?" Asked Kate.

"Maxine pulled me aside today. Part of getting Mike to stay on Hammersley was giving him Buffer, Charge, Spider and 2Dads. We ended up with Dutchy," said Nikki.

"I feel like we've been cheated Nik. I'm trying my hardest to keep my feelings separate from my work life, but it is so hard to not order him to clean latrines, or ditch the gash, or clean out the laundry. What do I do Nikki?" Asked Kate desperately.

"We deal with it. Set him to work training them up so we're at our best. Find an island, request an exped and clear it with NAVCOM. Keep him busy so he's not on the bridge with you unless absolutely necessary," suggested Nikki.

"You're right. We've got a few new sailors that haven't been through the Dutchy treatment yet. You're his divisional officer; let him know that we want him to train up the junior sailors. NAVCOM's orders are to take the ship out and put her through her paces, test her limits. We can do with skeleton crew for those runs, and Dutchy is off my ship," said Kate. Nikki nodded in agreement.

"I'll let him know. Who do you want to go with him?" Asked Nik.

"Send Kosov-Meyer, Dodger, Slinger and our new medic, Liam Gordon," replied Kate.

"But Flash is a senior sailor," replied Nik, a little confused.

"Then Seaman Noble can go; he's a junior sailor, and he needs the training. NAVCOM has assigned him to us as his last resort. It's either us or jail," said Kate.

"Great; another 2Dads case," joked Nikki.

"Exactly." Kate started to turn back to her computer, but Nikki interrupted her.

"Uh, Kate, you might not know the answer, but where's Bomber? She's not been assigned to any of us," said Nikki. Kate glanced through her emails on her desktop computer, and found one with Bomber's discharge papers attached.

"She's left Nikki; and it's only noted down as medical reasons," said Kate distractedly. Nikki nodded, and left Kate's cabin, heading for the bridge.

She had to give Dutchy a mission.