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Liberty was delayed while the customs officials certified the embargo locker, of course, but once that was over, the parade off the ship started with the captain, and David Burnside. As the afternoon wore on, almost everybody who wasn’t on duty left the ship, and it seemed almost like old times.

I still remembered my first impressions when I had come through the lock, and I didn’t want to be embarrassed that way again. Anybody could come to call and I was afraid what that would say about us. So for a couple of stans that first afternoon, Juliett, Charlotte, and I got busy with the sweepers and swabs. We cleaned from the lock back through the main passageway to the ship’s office—deck to dock, bulkheads around. After the first rush of liberty goers, there wasn’t anybody to get in the way or leave foot prints in the freshly swabbed deck. When we had finished, I took a moment to step off the ship and get a good snoot-full of cold dock air, then stepped back aboard. The sour smell that I had associated with the lock and the
William Tinker
was gone. A faint chemical smell from the cleaners replaced it, but we left the big lock open for half a stan to let it air out. It chilled the main corridor down, but it was much fresher after that.

About 16:30 Mel stopped by the office. “Nice job on the lock and passageways,” she said.

“Thanks,” I told her. “I think that’s the last bit of the ship that needed to be brought up to snuff, except maybe here in the office.” I looked around embarrassed because I hadn’t thought of it even after sitting in there for over a stan.

She chuckled. “Don’t sweat it. We’ll only be in port a couple of days, and just so the OOD knows, I’m going ashore to get dinner at a real restaurant. I’ll have my tablet. Bip if you need me.”

“Okay, that leaves just me aboard as officer?” I asked.

“I think so. Try not to break the ship, okay?”

I laughed and agreed.

When she’d gone, I headed to the galley. Mel had reminded me of something. I found Mr. Vorhees with his head in an oven looking over a tray of cookies. The smell was wonderful, and the cookies looked absolutely gorgeous.

“Mr. Vorhees?” I called from the galley door.

“Yes, sar?” he said, pulling the sheet out and shutting the oven off.

“I’m going to be the only officer aboard for dinner tonight. Is there any reason why we have to use the wardroom?” I asked.

“Sar? You don’t fancy dining alone, then?” he asked.

“No, Mr. Vorhees, I don’t,” I said with a grin. “Is there any reason why I can’t take my chances on the buffet here on the mess deck with the other six people aboard?”

“No, sar, if you don’t mind eatin’ with the common people,” he said with a grin.

I laughed. “Well, I don’t know about the common people, Mr. Vorhees, but I’d be honored to dine with the crew. I’m guessing that would save you and the duty messmate a bit of work?”

“Yes, sar, it would indeed, and you’re welcome on the mess deck any time.”

“Thank you, Mr. Vorhees. I’ll take you up on that while we’re in port.” I made a mental note to see about getting the wardroom secured. We were eating the same food, so it just made extra work for the galley to serve an individual plate in another room just for me.

“Thank you, sar,” he said and went back to getting the evening meal ready.

I prowled the ship looking for anything amiss or out of the ordinary until 18:00 and then headed back to the mess deck for a bite to eat. As I worked through the buffet, I found a small pebble of envy for those who were eating ashore. Still, it seemed like old times to have a mess deck tray in my hands again, and I took a seat at one of the tables. It didn’t matter which. I was the only one there.

Charlotte D’Heng came in shortly after I sat, and she did a double take when she saw me on the mess deck. “Sar?”

“I couldn’t see having the wardroom set up when I’m the only officer aboard. Join me if you’d like, Ms. D’Heng.”

She got a tray and did just that.

“Pardon if me I nibble and go, sar,” she said. “I want to give Juliett as much of a break as I can.”

“I’ve stood my share of brow watches, Ms. D’Heng. No need to apologize.”

The pleasant company made the bland food more enjoyable, and she soon traded places with Juliett who came to join me for her dinner as well. By then I was down to coffee and some of Mr. Vorhees’s cookies. There was no question that the man could make great ones. Apparently he was more baker than chef, and I wondered if he’d mind a few pointers.

While Juliett and I were eating, the engineering crew came in—the elegantly tall Lignaria from power, Ari Baronofski from environmental, and Mosler from grav. When they entered, all in a bunch as they did, they looked like any group of crew I’d seen anywhere. Seeing me sitting at the back of the mess deck with Juliett brought some confused looks, but they collected their food and took a table near the buffet.

Juliett finished her dinner and headed back to the lock, and the engineering crew left shortly after. With nobody else around, I figured I might get away with talking to Mr. Vorhees. Since the coast was clear, I took the chance.

“Mr. Vorhees?” I called when he came out of the galley to check the buffet, which was another adequate but largely monotonous collection of soup, sandwich, and casserole.

He smiled and came over.

“This isn’t quite the same ambiance as the wardroom, is it?” he asked.

I chuckled. “No, but there are times when I think this might actually be better.” After a couple of heartbeats I added, “If you’ve got a few ticks before you have to pick up here, I’d like to talk about…menus.”

He shrugged and settled across from me. “Sure thing. You’ve helped me out a lot in the last few weeks, Mr. Wang. How can I help you?”

I leaned forward and cradled my coffee cup between my hands.

“This is awkward, John. I don’t want to stick my nose in where it’s not wanted but as I’ve been watching you and your crew over the last few weeks, a couple of things seem pretty obvious.” I looked him in the eye then and said, “This is just me talking here, John. If you think I’m out of line, I’m out of line. Just let me know, okay?”

“Okay, sar, I think I can do that.”

He looked a little apprehensive, and I knew full well I was pushing my luck.

“First, let me just say you’re an excellent baker. Your cookies and cakes are marvelous.”

His smile lit up the mess deck. “Thanks, Mr. Wang. I love to bake. It’s the reason I took the lateral into the Steward Division.”

“I thought as much. You’re also really good with your staff. Penny and Karen are both hard workers and very personable, at least from the ‘customer’ side of the house. They take good care of us. You may have issues I don’t know of, but if you do, they’re sure not obvious from my seat.”

“Thank you, Mr. Wang. That’s very nice of you to say. They’re both great people to work with. To be honest, they treat me like a rather dim uncle at times, but we get along I think.”

“I have a watch section like that myself. Just between you and me…I’m not entirely sure they’re not right some days.”

We shared a chuckle over that.

“So? What’s the
but
, Mr. Wang?” he asked as the chuckles petered out.

I didn’t even try to pretend. “My sense is that you’re having problems with the everyday meals. You’re great with the baking, but when it comes to the rest, you’re following a recipe, but it’s not really working out a well as you’d like.”

He sat very still for a few ticks.

“Am I wrong, John?” I asked. “Tell me to butt out, and I’ll say no more.”

He thought about it for a few more ticks and then shrugged. “No,” he said, “if I’m gonna be honest with myself, these aren’t meals to remember.”

“You’re a good man in a tough job, John, and I didn’t want to joggle your elbow, but I didn’t want to leave you floundering if I can give you a hand.”

I watched him considering the idea and I left him to his thoughts.

“Well, you were right about the coffee and cleaning up the mess deck,” he said at last. “What’s your idea this time?”

“What’s in your spice pantry?” I asked.

He shrugged. “Normal stuff. Salt, pepper…”

“Parsley, garlic, basil, oregano?” I asked.

“Yeah, I guess. Come on. I’ll show ya.”

He stood up and I followed him into the galley.

He walked to the back of the prep area and pulled open a locker door. There was a canister of salt and a large can of ground black pepper on the handiest shelf. Under that was a collection of dusty cans, jars, and bottles. The oregano didn’t look like it had been opened in a month. Tins of onion and garlic powder were so covered with galley grime that I would’ve been afraid to hold them over a steam kettle for fear the crud might melt off, drip into the pot, and poison the crew.

He looked into the locker with me and said, “Doesn’t look very good does it, sar.”

“Well, John, let’s just say, I think I can help if you’re willing and interested.”

He stood there for a couple of ticks looking into the crufty locker.

“I don’t really have anything to lose, do I, sar?”

“You’re a good cook, John, and a great baker. I think you could be a great cook as well with a little help and some honest feedback.”

“Where do we start, sar?”

I grimaced into the locker and said, “Make some room here. Toss anything you haven’t used this trip. We need to make some room.”

“Okay.” He shrugged. “Then what?”

“Then tomorrow morning we’ll go shopping.”

He began to grin. “You’re having fun, aren’t you, sar!”

I shrugged. “What can I say? I started on the mess deck, and I’ve got a soft spot in my heart for it.”

He chuckled.

“Oh, hi, Mr. Wang,” Penny Davies said from the galley door. “More big plans?”

“Shh,” I said. “It’s a secret.”

She smiled and turned to Vorhees. “Are we ready to break down the buffet and do the clean up, Mr. V?”

“Yes please, Penny. When I’ve cleared out this mess, I’ll give you a hand,” he said with a glance at me.

I headed back to the office by way of the brow. Juliett was working on her ship handling course and keeping an eye on the lock.

She grinned at me when I came up to the watch station.

“You planning more changes, sar?” she asked.

“Changes, Ms. Jaxton?” I asked.

“Yes, changes, Mr. Wang. You know? When what we do today isn’t the same thing as yesterday? Those kinds of things, sar.”

“What makes you think I’m responsible for any changes, Ms. Jaxton?” I asked innocently.

“Sar,” she said patiently, “please don’t play innocent. Charlotte saw you in the galley with your head together with Mr. Vorhees. Are we going to be getting something good for dinner any time soon?”

“I think so, Ms. Jaxton.”

“If you can do for the menu what you did for the coffee, Mr. Wang, the crew will be in your eternal debt.”

I chuckled as I made my way to the office.

C
HAPTER
T
HIRTY-SEVEN
B
REAKALL
S
YSTEM
2358-
S
EPTEMBER-09

After weeks of standing bridge watch together, standing watch in the ship’s office felt a little lonely. I think Charlotte missed my company, because she soon camped out in the office too. She had only a couple of weeks to get ready for her test and was fretting over it. Personally, I thought she was ready, but I couldn’t say anything. I spent some time drilling her on her able spacer practice tests anyway. There wasn’t a lot else to do.

At around 20:30, Arletta came into the office. “Hey, there!” she said. She looked like she was up to something.

“Hi, yourself,” I replied.

Charlotte added a polite, “Good evening, sar.”

“Ishmael, I need a favor…” she said.

“Do you want me to leave, sar?” Charlotte asked.

“That depends on how badly you want to see an officer beg, Ms. D’Heng,” Arletta said with a grin.

“What do you need, Arletta?” I asked.

“I need you to trade watch with me. If you’ll take my watch tomorrow afternoon, I’ll take yours the following morning.”

“The whole section or just us two?” I asked her.

“Just you and me. I’ve got an appointment that will pretty much take all day. I tried to change it to the day after, but I can’t.”

I looked at Charlotte. “You have any problems with that?” I asked.

“Standing watch with, Ms. Novea?” Charlotte asked. “No, why would I?”

“Just checking. Nope that’s no problem for me either,” I told Arletta.

“Thanks, both of you,” she said with a grin in Charlotte’s direction, then headed off into the ship.

“What do you think?” I asked Charlotte. “You really going to be okay with Ms. Novea?”

“That depends, sar. She’s not going to try to form her own harem, is she?”

“You’re an evil, wicked woman, Ms. D’Heng,” I told her with a laugh.

“You’re quite welcome, sar,” she said and went back to her studies.

At 23:30 Charlotte got up and stretched. “Well, sar, I’m gonna head to the mess deck now. Apones will be dragging in soon.”