Righting a Wrong

 

Month 17 Day 21

10:28 Hours

Jane Burke

The door to the hallway opened, and Lt MacDowell walked into the captain's office. “You wanted to see me, captain?”

“Yes, come in, lieutenant. Take a seat.” Jane watched the redhead put something under the indicated chair and then sat. She noticed a faint fuzz poking up from behind her red curls. “It looks like your hair is growing back in.” I hope she’s not sensitive about that. I’m trying to be her friend. Jane, I do believe you’re going to miss her.

“Yes,” MacDowell agreed, and smiled. “It tickles when a hand is run over it.” The smile faded. “But it isn’t red. I’ll have a streak up the back of my head.”

A small price to pay, when she could have paid with her life. “Well, that will make you even more unique.”

MacDowell gave a quick grin. “That’s right.” She folded her hands in her lap, apparently ready for whatever she’d been called here for.

Jane sighed mentally. They always expect something bad. “I wanted to catch you up on some recent developments. Regarding your desire to get married.” Now she really looks worried. Afraid I’ll tell her she can’t marry Smitty for some arcane reason, even if she does resign from the Fleet. Keep going, Jane, don’t keep her in suspense any longer than you need to. Jane opened her top desk drawer and pulled out a few sheets of paper. “I did something for you, lieutenant. I spoke up on your behalf. I did even more. I asked others to send in a letter commenting on you.”

“Others?” Her eyes were round and worried.

“I asked Captain Valentine and Chief Engineer Facchini of the St Elmo to send their thoughts on your skills and professionalism. I don’t know what they said, but I hope they were suitably impressed by you. For my own part, I sent a lengthy reply to the refusal for Smitty to marry you. In that reply, I pointed out the various discrepancies in your personnel, discipline and medical files from your time on the tugs, and the fact that all the ’trouble-making’ in your Academy files completely disappeared during your senior year, when Cadet Baker was no longer at the Academy. I also sent in your records from the time you came aboard, and pointed out that the only time you were in the brig was while security investigated your fight with Mr Winthrop. Which they determined was self-defense on your part.”

“That… was a lot of… work for you to do.” She seemed stunned that anyone had done so much on her behalf.

“You haven’t been treated fairly since you arrived at the Academy,” Jane pointed out. “The denial of Smythe’s Request to Marry was a further compounding of that disservice. If I allow such behavior to stand, unchallenged, then I am condoning it, and I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. So I objected, with every reasonable point I could find. It took some time, but I was able to make some headway.”

MacDowell’s stunned expression had started to look hopeful, but that light in her eyes now faded. “Oh, some,” she repeated quietly.

Jane selected one of the papers she had removed from her desk. “I have here a Request to Marry form that has been approved. The one Lt Bugalu submitted, listing you as his intended bride. It has been approved. You may marry him without having to resign from the Fleet, if you wish to do so.”

“Oh. Bugalu. Well, that’s good. I guess.”

Not a lot of enthusiastic passion in that response. Sorry, Lt Bugalu, I don’t think you’re going to be chosen. Not that I think you’ll be heart-broken if she doesn’t choose you. She selected another form. “Here is the Request to Marry from Dr Drake MacGregor, also listing you as his bride. It has been approved also.”

“Okay. MacG—MacGregor. Kind of unexpected, but okay.”

Nope, no passion in that response, either. Only one left to tell her about. Jane picked up the final form, the one that  had come back with the note, ‘We’re dying to know which one—if any—this woman wants to marry.’

“This is the request from Lt Cmdr Smythe…”

The girl sat a little deeper in her chair, looking defeated. “The one they denied.”

“It has been approved.” Jane watched her carefully.

MacDowell suddenly sat forward, hope in her eyes and a faint color in her previously white cheeks. “Approved? I can marry him?”

“Yes.” Definitely interested now. Not any great display of passion, but maybe she’s afraid it will be snatched away from her. Like she feared her first shore leave with us would be cancelled at the last minute.

“And I don’t have to leave the Fleet to do it?”

“That’s correct.”

“Oh! We’ll have to look at transfers for Smit! And for me!” She surged to her feet, grabbed Jane’s hand and shook it strongly. “Thank you, captain! I can’t begin to thank you!”

Okay, enthusiasm, and passion, too. It’s not a completely one-sided affair. Good. I will report that to Admiral Longview. I could still wish I wasn’t losing Smitty. And MacDowell. But it’s not fair to keep them apart. “You don’t need to thank me too profusely, lieutenant. I’ve heard a good deed is its own reward.”

“Not in this case, because you’ll be losing Smit.”

“From the sounds of it, I was going to lose him anyway, as well as you. Now, I’m sure you want to go tell him the news. Tell him I don’t expect him to join me for lunch today. I’m sure you 2 have things to talk about, now that circumstances have changed.”

“We do! I wonder if he’d rather—“ Her face suddenly drained of color, and her hands clutched the desk top as her upper body wobbled.

Jane hurried around her desk and took hold of the girl’s upper arms, trying to steady her. “Sit down, MacDowell, before you fall down. The chair is right behind you, just bend your knees slowly and I’ll steady you.” Once she got the young woman seated, she realized MacDowell’s eyes were closed, and her body limp. “Blossom, call MacGregor, get him up here.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Take a deep breath, lieutenant,” Jane told the redhead. “Are you feeling sick?”

MacDowell took a breath, but it wasn’t very deep. “No,” she answered. “I suddenly got… dizzy.”

“That can happen to women in your condition,” Jane told her calmly. “Just breathe deeply. I’ve sent for MacGregor, just to be safe.”