Her Commanders - M.K. Eidem Page 0,49

Brink.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

An hour later, Mae was behind the bar filling Cali in on what happened the shift before when a group entered The Brink, moving in tight military formation. Tay followed close behind them, a concerned look on his face.

When they neared the bar, the front two peeled away, revealing an older male Cali didn't know, and Vaine, who was smiling like the Cheshire cat from a story her mother had read to Cali as a youngster. Looking back to the male, Cali realized he must be the general tad Vaine was always talking about. She also took in the weapons his security team carried and put herself between them and Mae, who was still behind the bar.

"What can I do for you, General Masala?"

"I see you recognized me." The general's expression went smug.

"Actually, I didn't, but since Vaine is with you and she's always spouting off about her tad being a general, it was pretty obvious." Cali's eyes narrowed, and she tipped her head slightly to the side as she paused for a moment. "Although, you could have been one of the many, many, many males who spend their credits on her."

"How dare you!" the general bellowed.

Cali shrugged, not intimidated by his display. "Just calling it as I see it. Now, as it appears you're not here for drinks, why don't you tell me why you are here."

"I'm here to arrest you for assault," the general told her.

"Assault? Me?" Cali widened her eyes and gave him her most innocent look. "Who did I supposedly assault? And why would the Coalition general in charge of Supply and Distribution have any jurisdiction over the matter?"

"Because it was my datter!" the general all but roared then gestured to his men. "Arrest her!"

"Tay!" Mae's distressed cry had the guards in the back, spinning around and training their weapons on the Protector.

"No!" Cali quickly took a step forward to wave Tay off. "This is Wik Corp property. You fire on him, and you'll answer directly to the Supreme Chairman."

As a threat, it did the job. It was well-known how rigorously Wik Corp protected their property and people.

"Then come with us now, and no one will get hurt," Masala told her.

"Fine." Cali turned and looked to Mae. "Do you remember what I said to do if The Brink’s security was compromised?"

"Y… yes," Mae stuttered.

"Good, then do it." Cali turned back to the general and gestured with her arm. "After you."

"Restrain her," the general ordered.

"Seriously?" Cali gave him a disbelieving look.

"You've already assaulted my datter once. I'm not giving you the chance to do it again." He gestured to one of his guards.

"You do know your datter initiated the contact," Cali asked him even as she held out her hands, "right?"

"Lie!" Vaine claimed, flipping her long fur back, exposing the darkness around one of her eyes, then smirked at Cali.

Cali knew the mark was from Vaine hitting herself. They both did. But Cali also knew Vaine’s father would never believe it.

"Let’s go," Masala ordered.

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

Taarig rubbed his eyes as he activated his screen in the Command Center. He hadn't rested well. Dreams of Cali holding offspring with glowing hair and eyes swirled with silver had him tossing and turning the entire dark shift.

Scrolling through the reports filed while he was supposed to be resting, his eyes sharpened. Flight Deck Controllers kept detailed information on the flight deck and reported each shift. The report detailed the number of ships on the flight deck at all times. It took into account those docked, departed, and arriving. The crew performed a visual count to verify data at the end of each shift. Now the counts were off by one.

He immediately touched his link and connected with the flight deck.

"Naveen," the on-duty Deck Officer responded.

"What the ruk is going on down there, Naveen!" Taarig all but roared, drawing Jamis’s attention from his Command chair.

"Sub Commander, we've just finished matching each ship on the deck to what was on the report. The additional ship is a transport ship registered to General Masala."

"What?!"

"The general ordered the controller not to register it or notify anyone of his arrival."

Taarig turned to look at Jamis, who had just walked over, "How long has he been on base?"

"Approximately half a standard-hour, Sub Commander," Naveen told him.

"Lock the coupling mechanism on that ship, Deck Officer. That ship doesn't get off this base unless the Base Commander or I authorize it. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Sub Commander."

"If it does, you will be held