Stand Against The Storm (The Maxwell Saga Book 4) (27 page)

Wu nodded slowly. “You seem to have thought of everything. Having seen your initiative and competence in action at Midrash and again here, I’ve no doubt you’ll succeed, but only on a small scale compared to what you could achieve with all the resources of the Fleet available to you.”

“Yes, Sir, but with a reprimand like Captain Davis’ on my record, and his promise of a court-martial, you know as well as I do that I may as well accept the inevitable and resign my commission. I’ve no future in the Fleet anymore.”

“And if that were to change?”

Steve looked at him for a long moment. “I don’t see how it
can
change, Sir. Even if I’m not court-martialed, or found not guilty, the competition for advancement is so stiff that with a reprimand like that on my record, no matter how well I’ve done elsewhere, it’s going to be like an anchor holding me back. No Selection Board is ever going to recommend me for promotion again.”

“You have a point; but reprimands can be withdrawn, and their after-effects can be offset by other factors.” The Commodore thought for a moment. “I can’t make any promises right now, but I think that within three months I can provide you with proof positive that your career is not only intact, but flourishing. Will you give me three months?”

Now it was Steve’s turn to think hard. “I… I guess I have to, Sir. If you’re prepared to go to what must be a heck of a lot of trouble on my behalf, the least I can do is give you a chance to make it work.”

Wu exhaled in relief. “Thank you. There’s an ulterior motive behind my offer. If I can turn things around I want you to work with me in BuIntel, using what you learn in your personal capacity from the Dragon Tong to help our anti-piracy operations overall. Also, by rescuing the Eksalansari you’ve gained an inside line to Karabak’s Royal Family. I spoke with him this morning about that. It’s a wonderful opportunity for us, through you, to boost cooperation with Karabak against piracy in this part of the settled galaxy, where it’s a real problem. By using your connections to the Dragon Tong and Karabak, BuIntel may make better progress than we have for a long time. In return for your cooperation and top performance I’ll guarantee you plenty of opportunities for advancement, including early command responsibilities. You’ll work for me directly for at least the first couple of years. Interested?”

Steve grinned, suddenly feeling enormously relieved. “How can I refuse an offer like that, Sir?”

“Good man! I’ll provide initial evidence of my
bona fides
this very day. You’ll know it when you see it.”

Steve wanted to ask what Wu had in mind, but decided discretion was the better part of valor at a time like this. He settled for, “Thank you, Sir; and I apologize for any offense caused by my earlier remarks. I’m afraid I wasn’t at my best.”

“No, you weren’t. We’ll put it down to post-combat stress, and forget you said anything.”

“Thank you, Sir.”

“Very well. Give me back my pilot and loadmaster. I’ve got a lot more work to do today.”

~ ~ ~

Captain Davis and his Department of State adviser, Mr. Mixson, were waiting in the Captain’s office when Commodore Wu was shown in, escorted by LCS
Matapan’
s Executive Officer.

“Good to see you again, gentlemen,” Wu said briskly as they sat down. “Thank you for making time to see me.”

“You said it was urgent, Sir,” the Captain pointed out uneasily.

“Yes, it is. I’ve had discussions with Governor Sirhan and the Eksalansari yesterday and this morning. I’m afraid they’ve put the two of you in a very difficult position.”

Alarm showed in both men’s faces. “Why us in particular, Sir?” Mixson asked apprehensively.

“Two reasons. The first is that both the Governor and the Eksalansari feel under an obligation to Senior Lieutenant Maxwell, because he rescued first the Eksalansari, then the Governor’s wife. They take your criticism of him very personally. That leads to the second point, Captain: your conversation with Maxwell following the attack on the supply depot at Carsamba. You used a radio circuit. The Eskishi authorities recorded it.

The Captain sat bolt upright. “But, Sir, that’s… how could they do that? Why?”

The Commodore shook his head. “During the Second Global War on Old Home Earth the German Wehrmacht had a saying:
‘Alle funkverkehr ist landesverrat’
. It means that all radio traffic is a betrayal of one’s country. It was intended to drive home the point that an enemy can glean information from any radio transmission – not just its contents, which they may or may not be able to read, but also callsigns, traffic patterns, code changes and so on. As you can imagine, we take that very seriously in BuIntel. In this case, forces planetside were monitoring all channels to listen to what the rebels were saying to each other. It’s hardly surprising they picked up your transmission as well, particularly because you failed to encrypt it.” He looked at him severely.

The Captain went white. “I… I thought using the Marine’s frequency-hopping network meant that wasn’t necessary, Sir.”

“It is if listeners have frequency-hopping receivers, with AI software that can predict and follow the movement of transmissions up and down the spectrum. That’s opened up a real can of worms, because while reprimanding Maxwell you said, and I quote verbatim, ‘I don’t care about the hostages. Neither does the Department of State,’ unquote.”

“I… I don’t recall using those words, Sir.”

“You did.” Wu sighed theatrically. “The Governor was furious. It seems that not only was his wife one of the hostages about which you said you and State don’t care, but she’s also the Sultan’s cousin, and very close to him – they grew up together. Sirhan warned me that when the Eksalansari mentions that conversation to his father, the Sultan is going to be livid. He’ll almost certainly instruct Karabak’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take it up with the Commonwealth’s Department of State. If that happens, I’m sure I don’t need to tell either of you that your careers are going to be so much chopped liver.”

There was a long silence in the office. Both men were staring wide-eyed at the Commodore, unblinking, as if they’d been hypnotized. At last Mr. Mixson said, his voice hoarse, “Can… can you persuade the Governor and the Eksalansari not to do that, Commodore?”

“I don’t know, but I’m going to try,” Wu answered frankly. “I might –
might
– be able to persuade the Governor, but the Eksalansari is much younger. He’s more emotional, less diplomatically minded. I’ve asked him to allow me to accompany him to Karabak, so I can work on him during the journey and call in a few favors I’m owed from my last visit there three years ago. It’ll take all the influence I’ve got to succeed – and I’m going to need your help to do so, Captain.”

Davis sounded almost pathetically eager. “What do you want me to do, Sir?”

“I need you to formally withdraw the reprimand you issued for Senior Lieutenant Maxwell’s file. It has to be done by signal within the next half-hour, and I need a certified copy of the signal to take planetside with me to show to the Governor and Eksalansari. That’ll remove one reason for their anger. The rest will take all the powers of persuasion I can muster. Fortunately, I’ve had a lot of negotiating experience. Given time, I think something can be worked out.”

Davis’ face went red. “But, Sir, that’ll mean Maxwell will get away with disregarding my orders! What will that do to discipline in the Fleet when it becomes known?”

The Commodore slowly nodded. “I can see how that would upset you, Captain. However, consider the perspective of the Fleet. It can certainly act against a junior officer in whom it hasn’t yet invested a great deal, despite his heroics here and there. However, by doing so it risks destroying the career of a senior officer with twice as much service, who’s already demonstrated command abilities and may possibly attain Flag rank one day.”
Not if I can help it,
he thought grimly to himself.
I’ll be making an entry on your confidential record about this. How the hell did you reach the rank of Captain with such poor judgment, and without learning to keep your tongue under control?

“The Fleet’s invested far more in your career to date than it has in Senior Lieutenant Maxwell’s,” he continued, his face showing nothing of his thoughts, “and it doesn’t like to waste such investments. There’s also the question of a senior adviser from the Department of State. I’m sure people of Mr. Mixson’s caliber aren’t common. Is it worth seeing two such careers destroyed, merely to make an example of a much more junior and less important officer?”

“I take your point, Sir.” Davis’ voice and face were worried.

“Thank you for thinking about my situation, Sir; but what about the medal?” Mixson asked petulantly. “If Maxwell gets away with disobeying orders
and
receives the Commonwealth’s second-highest award for gallantry in action into the bargain, the Fleet will laugh its collective head off!”

“He’s right, Sir,” the Captain affirmed indignantly. “We can’t have that!”

Wu pretended to think for a moment. “You’ll have to forward the medal citation to the Sector Admiral on Cassius, of course, as per Regulations. I suggest you do so as impartially as possible, choosing your words with care so as to neither support nor oppose it. Leave the decision up to her. In my capacity as a special envoy from the Board of Admiralty, I’ll have a private word with her. I give you my word, Maxwell will
not
be awarded the Lancastrian Star in Gold for his actions on Eskishi; but by handling the situation like this, you can’t be accused of having blocked the award out of spite.” He made very sure to keep a straight face as he spoke. All that mattered was for his audience to take his words at face value, without considering what he might not be saying.

Davis relaxed, and a smile crossed his features. “That should do it, Sir. Thank you for finding a way out of this that protects us.”

“Senior officers have to work together for the good of the Fleet, Captain,” the Commodore said sententiously. “It’s the least I can do. In fact, Mr. Mixson, it might be best for you to reinforce the perception that you’re neutral in this affair too. How about submitting a memorandum to Captain Davis, suggesting that some form of recognition for Senior Lieutenant Maxwell might be appropriate? Don’t be specific – put it in vague, general terms. The Captain can include your memorandum when he forwards the Marines’ nomination to the Sector Admiral, also using vague, general terms. It’ll make both of you look good. I’ll take care of business on the receiving end.”

“Of course, Commodore, I’ll be glad to help,” the State representative gushed, relief written all over his face.

“Thank you. Captain Davis, if you’ll be so kind as to prepare that signal withdrawing your reprimand of Senior Lieutenant Maxwell, we need to get it out at once. In fact, I’ll help you draft it. I’ll use it to calm down the Governor. The Eksalansari will take much more effort, I’m afraid – he’s young and hotheaded, after all – but I’ll have a few days to work on him on the way to Karabak.”

~ ~ ~

Steve emerged from the airlock into LCS
Cybele’
s docking bay and saluted the Commonwealth flag below the ship’s crest on the bulkhead. He felt a stab of renewed sadness as he remembered that the last time he’d done so, Gunnery Sergeant Kinnear had come aboard with him.

The NCO on duty snapped to attention behind her counter. “Welcome back, Sir!” Her smile held genuine warmth. “We’ve heard all about what you’ve been doing planetside. Well done, Sir!”

“Thanks, PO. It’s good to be aboard again.”

“Commander Doibro sends her compliments, Sir. You’re to report to her office at once, please.”

“Very well. You can let her orderly know that that I’m on my way. Would you have one of your working party take my dunnage to my cabin, please?” He gestured at his bags as they emerged from the cargo handling mechanism.

“Aye aye, Sir.”

As he rode the high-speed walkway forward to the administrative offices, Steve glanced over his Number Two uniform. It had come through his time planetside in reasonable condition, but it hadn’t been cleaned since he left the ship. It wasn’t up to his usual standards – or Commander Doibro’s. Given the opportunity he’d have changed before seeing the CO, but her summons left no room for discretion.

The orderly on duty, a Petty Officer First Class, was seated at a desk in the anteroom of the Commanding Officer’s suite. He smiled as Steve walked in.

“Good afternoon, Sir. The Commander’s expecting you.” He pressed a button on the comm unit on the desk. “The Navigating Officer has arrived, Ma’am.”

Doibro’s familiar voice came over the speaker. “Send him in, please.”

“Aye aye, Ma’am.”

Steve crossed the carpet to her desk and came to attention as the orderly closed the door behind him. “Senior Lieutenant Maxwell reports to the Commanding Officer as ordered, Ma’am!”

“Good afternoon, Lieutenant. Take a seat.” She smiled at him, and reached into a drawer of her desk as he sat down. “This arrived a couple of hours ago. I thought you’d like to see it at once.” She handed him a printed copy of a signal.

Steve read it, and was unable to hold back a broad grin of satisfaction. It had an Operational Immediate priority, but was not an operational message. Instead, it stated baldly that the reprimand placed on his record by Captain Davis had been issued on the basis of ‘incorrect information’. Now that the information had been corrected, it had become clear that the reprimand was unwarranted. It was therefore withdrawn with immediate effect and should be expunged from his record.