Chapter 10
In the early afternoon Dylan went to Kate's house and rang the doorbell.
She opened the door and turned back saying, "Come in. I'll be yours in a minute!"
He entered and smiled by her demeanour, "Hey Kate", he simply said.
She came back, holding her handbag in one hand while trying to fit her other arm into a blazer. "Hey. I'm here now. It remains only the shoes", she said, slipping on a pair of pumps.
Then she took her sunglasses out of her handbag and put them on.
He looked at her and smiled. She wore a dark blue trousers, a pastel green blouse and a bright blue blazer. "You look lovely", he said
A smile appeared on her face, "Thank you".
"You look cool with those sunglasses?", he added
"Don't overdo it, come, we've three people to visit and I want to buy them something from the shop", she said, opening the door.
At the hospital, they headed for the lift. Dylan was carrying two baskets of fruit, Kate the third and a bunch of flowers. "Now I know why you needed me", he said deadpan.
She gently nudged him, "Stop teasing me!"
"Hey hey, don't hit me. If I drop them, then the mates will have compote", he said , smiling which earned him a glare from Kate.
They stopped at the first patient and Kate knocked at the door. It was Nikki's room. They entered.
Nikki was leaning against thick pillows, her left arm firmly bandaged. "Hey Kat!", she said faintly.
Dylan looked amused when he heard Kate's nickname.
Kate put the basket on the nearby table, "Oh Nik, how are you? I have flowers and fruit for you", she said sitting down.
"Hi Nikki", Dylan said as he sat down in the second chair.
"Hey Dylan", she replied and looked at Kate, "Still weak, I don't think that I can lift a pillow. They say I lost too much blood", she said.
Kate shook her head slowly, "Oh Nik, I'm so sorry about what happened. I should have anticipated that".
Nikki placed her hand on Kate's, "No Kat. You don't have to apologize. It's totally my fault. I didn't have to be so stubborn. If I had listened to Dylan, we wouldn't be here". Then she looked at Dylan, "Sorry Dylan. You were right. I lack experience", she said.
"No worries Nikki, next time we go together we won't think about it anymore", he replied.
Kate patted her hand, "Yeah, the only thing you have to do now is get better".
Nikki nodded, "Yes, I don't have much choice, huh. But what are you going to do now? Who's will be XO and buffer?"
"Dylan will replace you and I don't know yet who we are going to have as a buffer. On the way back it was 2Dads and he did it really well. We finally made him a real sailor", Kate chuckled at the last sentence.
"At least it's already something", Nikki replied weakly.
The short talk seemed to have made her tired as she was trying not to fall asleep.
Kate noticed it and stood up and patted her hand, "Nik, I see you're getting tired. We'll keep in touch with you. We're going to see the others now, okay?"
Nikki smiled faintly, "Thanks for coming Kat, Dylan".
They both left the room and Dylan looked at Kate, "Kat?", he said.
Kate glanced at him and gave him a poke, "Don't even think about it".
"Why?"
"She used to call me that when we were in our cabin or when we went shopping in town. Sounds ridiculous for a commander, doesn't it?"
He shrugged, "It's a nice pet name. I don't see why it would be bad".
Meanwhile they were at Harpie's room. Kate knocked and entered.
"Hey Harpie", she greeted him.
He was sitting against the pillows and trying to read a newspaper, but that wasn't that easy with a bandaged shoulder.
"Hi boss, Dutchy. What a surprise. Thanks for coming", he greeted them joyously.
"We've something healthy for you", she said putting the fruit basket on the side table.
"Wow, great. I like fruits", he said enthusiastically.
They sat down, "How are you feeling?", she asked.
He shrugged but immediately regretted it, as his shoulder ached, "Still sore, but I can already sit. They really grazed me, the bastards!"
Kate smiled faintly, "I still see the shooting".
"I'm angry with myself. I could have avoided that, but the X told me to wait. I could see right away that those rogues were up to something. But what could I do? Put the X aside? Then World War III would have started", he said, shrugging and wincing. "Damn shoulder!"
"Harpie, don't worry. Nobody will blame you. You just did what the officer said. We are all learning from our mistakes", Kate said.
"Okay, if you say so, ma'am, but it will take time before I can forget. It will be over when I can get out of here. Thinking about something else, you see". As soon as I can get out from this bed, I'll go and see the other two", he said.
"That's a good idea. It will cheer them up", Dylan replied.
They talked a little more and they paid a visit to the third, Sharky. When they left the hospital, Kate was extremely quiet.
"Are you all right?", Dylan asked her when they reached her car in the car park of the hospital.
She looked at him, her green eyes darker than ever, "Normally, I would say I'm fine despite how I feel, but now I can't even. All these people are so strong despite what happened to them. It all makes me feel so guilty", she said sombrely.
"Hey, hey. You don't have to feel guilty. They're well. It's the learning curve, a hard one, but next time, we won't make that mistake again. Everyone learned from it", he said to sooth her.
"Do you think so?", she murmured.
"Absolutely. And I know what you need now", he said joyously.
"Ah?"
"A nice cup of coffee and a nice piece of cake. A little sugar will make you feel better. Come", he encouraged her.
Kate sighed, "Yeah, I really need it".
End of Flashback
"Pffft. What a story!", Maddie said. " You can consider yourself lucky that these three people were still alive".
"Yeah indeed. Otherwise, I believe there would have been an investigation", Kate replied, grimacing.
"But, Dad saved you from the bottle again, right?", Maddie asked with a grin.
"Maddie, don't look like at me like that. But yes, that was it".
"So, he was back in your house and he didn't sleep on your couch anymore?", Maddie asked.
"No… in the guest room".
"Mum! You could have offered him your bed!".
"I didn't know he was going to stay. He decided!", Kate replied with a shrug.
"Did the patrols go better? Did you get more used to it?", the young woman asked.
Kate rolled her eyes, "I don't want that to be remembered. It went from bad to worse".
Flashback
Two days passed and Kate went to Navcom to inquire about replacements and the next job to do. She headed for Maxine's office, but it was empty. A sub-lieutenant saw her and walked towards her.
"Are you looking for the commander ma'am?", he asked.
"Yes, I am", she replied.
"The commander is ill ma'am. She's got flu", he said.
"The flu? In the summer?", Kate replied astonished.
The poor man shrugged his shoulders, "There are more flus during the summer than in the winter. Too many temperature differences between the outside and the inside and then people are not dressed accordingly. Especially women", he added with a smile which made Kate raise an eyebrow.
Watch your mouth, bugger. And the worst part is, he is right. We wear shorts and a top and at Coles it can get pretty damn cold in the refrigerated rooms.
"Commander Flynn is the acting commander now. He knows about it", the man said.
"Okay, I'll go see the commander. Thank you", Kate said and headed for Mike's office.
She knocked at the doorframe and waited.
I better play it officially, otherwise he's going to take advantage of the situation.
He looked up, "Ah, lieutenant commander! Come in.", he said.
Hmm, no more Kate. Alright, if it is the new trend. I sit down and don't wait for an invitation. That's my countermove.
She noticed that her action didn't go unnoticed.
Yes!
"Honestly, I expected to see you earlier", he said disapprovingly.
Bullshit. Neither did he. He never showed up earlier to take his orders.
"What are my orders,…sir", she said, letting a few seconds pass before saying 'sir'.
Countermove two.
He raised an eyebrow.
Yes!
"We have to pay our yearly courtesy visit to the French. Tomorrow, you're going to New Caledonia, Noumea more precisely. You'll see the commander of the French Navy and a few other officials. You must also give them a gift. That's your main goal, no extras.", Mike said.
"Okay, and do I get any replacements?", she asked.
"You'll have to wait for Lieutenant Caetano to recover, but two officers will be enough for a patrol boat, right? For your buffer, I have a well-known man for you, Chief Petty Officer Pete Tomasewski", Mike said.
"Ah! Pete! That's good news", Kate replied happily.
"For the third man, there's no replacement. I think we have covered the most urgent needs. We didn't expect to lose three men at once on an ordinary patrol", Mike said deadpan causing an annoyed frown from Kate.
"Your departure is set at 2.00 p.m. So, that's it, a great tour that's a piece of cake and that you can't screw up", he said with a faint smile.
Kate turned pale and opened her mouth to cue something back, but she was able to contain herself just in time to avoid causing verbal damage.
She stood up. "So, I'll see you tomorrow for the sailing orders and the gift. Good day…. Sir", she said and turned around to leave his office.
As she was leaving his office, he said, "Oh and try to keep the buffer in one piece. Good men are hard to find, you know".
That took the cake! Kate turned bright red, gave him the middle finger and stormed out, tears of humiliation in her eyes.
Kate drove home in a foul mood. At home she angrily took off her uniform and threw it in a corner of the bedroom. She put on the casual dress that hung on her wardrobe and headed for her living room. Still very agitated, she paced back and forth in her living room trying herself down.
Asshole! It's so damned unfair! A piece of cake that I can't screw up. What does he think? That I'm a rookie, a greenhorn? And the worst part is, he is right. I screwed up my first patrol. Damn, damn, damn. He knows it and abuses it to take revenge on me.
Finally she sank into her club chair, wiped away her tears with anger and stared at her smartphone that she had thrown on the table.
Hmm, I have to warn the crew.
Sighing she stood up and sent them the message about the voyage .
"Right. Now what?", she mumbled looking around.
Dylan? No, I can't turn to him yet. He saved me already twice. I really have to pull through on my own. You can do it Kate!
She looked at the sun outside, "I go for a swim. It will distract me", she said faintly.
She went back to her bedroom, undressed and put on a bikini. She put the dress back on, grabbed a beach towel, her keys and put some banknotes in a purse. Kate put on her sunglasses, slipped her feet into a pair of flip-flops and headed for the beach.
With fierce moves she swam for an hour to get rid of her anger. Tired, satisfied and calmed down she came out of the sea and lay down on her towel to enjoy the sun.
After a while, she got hungry. Kate put on her dress, gathered her things and walked to a small beach bistro where she ordered a dish of grilled sardines.
She would have done better to eat at home, but at that time she didn't realise it yet.
To be continued