Andrea hammered her fist into the rock face, watching as the solid wall exploded in a hail of small stones. It felt good to be able to take out her frustrations in the course of her duty.
“Come on!” she called to the men behind her, stepping through the now open gap into the larger cavern beyond, where a few telltale shafts of light broke the gloom.
She turned her eyes upwards to the source of the light, grateful to be out of the oppressive confines of the lower areas of the mine. When she had gone to the briefing at the base she had been surprised to find they were needed to aid in a rescue mission at a mine in Yorkshire – Andrea had thought they’d closed all the coalmines in Britain down long ago. But this one was still active, just unfortunately in the grip of a series of cave-ins and fires. A number of groups of men had been trapped underground, one of which she was presently leading to safety, while the other members of her team carried out other tasks.
Andrea touched the communicator in her ear, checking it was still in place after crawling through the mine. “We’re in the main shaft,” she informed whoever was on the other end.
Ok, we’ll be sending a cage down to pick you up, came back the Major’s response.
Andrea couldn’t help the small flutter in her stomach on hearing the commanding voice, trying to remind herself that she was still meant to be angry with the other woman. They hadn’t spoken at all since they’d left Andrea’s quarters, Andrea sitting silently on her own on the trip from the island base to the mine and then merely listening to her orders and following them once they did get there.
Many of the men around her were taking the chance to rest, a few of them nursing cuts, bruises and broken bones. Andrea looked down at herself – she was absolutely filthy, covered in a layer of soot and grime. She patted at her black vest to shake some of it off, but gave it up as a bad job.
A grinding noise from above indicated the arrival of their means up to the surface, the men climbing aboard in subdued quiet, Andrea being the last to get aboard. She could have flown up under her own steam, but she found herself feeling strangely tired. When they did reach the top they came out into the main factory area of the mine, a large building with huge sections of machinery for processing the coal. A thick fog of smoke still clogged the atmosphere up there and the men didn’t waste any time heading for the nearest exit. Andrea was following them when she caught sight of another group on the far side of the room, fighting one of the still raging fires.
It wasn’t so much the fire fighters that had drawn Andrea’s attention, but the figure that stood behind, directing operations with a calm authority. The Major looked assured as ever in her combat outfit, barking orders at the people around her, attempting to drive the fire back. A loud creaking noise resounded somewhere above Andrea, pulling her eyes up to the ceiling, seeking out the source of it. The metallic grinding continued until Andrea finally spotted a section of walkway swaying precariously over the Major’s position. It omitted one last wrenching noise as the final bolts holding it in place popped from their housings.
“Major! Look out!” yelled Andrea, flinging herself across the room in the officer’s direction. She cannoned into a surprised Major, wrapping her arms around the smaller woman’s waist and hauling her out of the way of the gantry as it crashed to the floor behind them. Their momentum sent them tumbling to the ground in an ungainly sprawl as it hit, tearing up the metal plating of the floor. Then suddenly Andrea was falling as the whole floor gave way beneath her.
Everything was happening too fast for Andrea to react. She spiralled downwards, banging haphazardly against rocky walls as a barrage of debris followed her down into the darkness. As she finally hit something solid and came to a halt, she realised there must have been an old section of the mine beneath the factory floor. A movement above her permeated the pall of dust flung up from the falling rocks and Andrea’s eyes swung upwards in time to see a huge section of floor plunging straight towards her. Scrabbling frantically to her feet she thrust her hands up to catch it before it crushed her. The metal rammed into her palms, Andrea grimacing at the impact and struggling to keep the massive block above her head. She could feel more and more debris landing on the other side of it, adding to the weight all the time and burying her beneath tonnes of rock, earth and masonry.
Eventually the rain of debris slowed, though now Andrea’s arms were quivering under the immense weight above her. She could just about maintain her hold, but had no hope of pushing it up so she could escape. Total darkness enveloped her, the young woman unable to see anything in her underground tomb where the air was thick with dust.
“Major?” she called into the darkness, knowing the other woman must be down there somewhere too – she had been right next to Andrea when the floor caved in. There was no answer from the blackness though.
She coughed a couple of times to clear her lungs of the clogging dirt. “Major?” she tried again, still receiving silence as a response.
The first spikes of fear where pricking at her heart now, as she wondered whether the Major had she made it under the safe umbrella of the section she held up.
“Kate!” she cried frantically as horrendous visions of what might have happened if the Major hadn’t fallen in the safe area filled her mind.
Suddenly there was a small clicking noise and a luminous green stick-flare flashed into life close by, held up by the Major from her position on the floor. Andrea heaved a great sigh of relief, almost losing her grip on the rough metal in the process. She locked her arms again; even more determined to hold on now she had the other woman to protect too. The Major rose into a kneeling position, tentatively touching her forehead that had been scraped in the fall. In the dim glow Andrea could see that her face was streaked with dirt and grime, her normally bright hair caked in dust. None of that mattered to Andrea though; all that mattered was that the Major was alive.
The other woman’s eyes dazedly tracked up to Andrea, blinking a couple of times to try and clear her head. “Andrea? Are you all right?” she asked rather stupidly.
“Just about,” said Andrea, having to grit her teeth as she felt her arms shaking once more, “Though I have to say this is bloody heavy!”
The Major seemed to realise their position for the first time. “Bloody hell!” she cried, clambering to her feet and looking up above Andrea, “Can you keep holding that up?”
“I’m not sure,” admitted Andrea, seeing that the Major was having to stoop to stop her head scraping against the floor section now Andrea’s arms were starting to falter, “It seems to be getting harder.”
“Ok, hang on,” said the Major, noticing Andrea’s quivering arms too. She put her hand to her ear, to see if she could raise urgent help.
Andrea’s arms were really starting to tremble now, the weight above her pushing down unremittingly in a constant reminder of their impending fate if that help didn’t arrive soon. Andrea glanced up at the imposing mass above as sweat started to break out on her forehead.
“I don’t think I can hold it much longer,” she said to the Major who was still in the process of talking on her radio, “I don’t understand, I’ve held up things heavier than this I’m sure.”
The Major’s brow creased as she considered that, before her eyes widened in realisation. “It’s the darkness!”
“What?”
“Your powers,” clarified the Major, “They rely on light to recharge your energy.”
Andrea saw what she was getting at. “Of course, so when it’s as dark as this, the light isn’t enough to recharge what I’m expending holding this up. Which means sooner or later my reserves are going to be completely depleted,” she added grimly. “When are they going to get to us?”
“Not soon enough,” confessed the Major.
“Shit!” cursed Andrea, her eyes searching for some inspiration in the enclosed space. In the faint green glow she spotted a girder lying on the ground. “I’ve got an idea that might buy us some time,” she offered.
The Major followed her gaze to the floor. “You’re going to try and wedge that against the roof?” she queried doubtfully.
“It’s either that or get squashed very soon,” Andrea noted.
The Major pursed her lips and nodded, knowing that Andrea was right. Andrea took a couple of deep breaths, preparing herself to try and grab the girder as quickly as possible. Slowly she removed one hand from the ceiling, the mass crunching down a few inches as she did. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the Major flinch momentarily before the downward movement ceased. Then in one swift movement Andrea darted her free hand to the floor, grasping for the thick girder. It was heavy and it took her a couple of goes to haul it off the floor. The ceiling was creeping ever downwards as she brought it upright, pushing it against the metal of the roof. The girder creaked under the weight and Andrea watched it, holding her breath as she waited to see if it would hold. Fortunately it seemed it would for the time being, and Andrea allowed herself to slump to the floor, succumbing to the aching tiredness she felt. The Major joined her too, leaning back against the rock wall as she sat next to the young woman, giving Andrea’s shoulder a small grateful squeeze as she composed herself. Apart from the girder emitting an ominous creak every now and then the small space was now quiet, Andrea able to hear her own ragged breathing.
It was the Major who broke the silence. “Since we’re stuck here without anywhere to go, we may as well try and finish what we were discussing earlier.”
Andrea swung to the Major, her mind racing as to what she could mean.
“Your request to leave?” outlined the Major.
“Oh,” said Andrea. She had forgotten about that in the adrenaline packed situation.
“I just want to understand what’s behind it,” said the Major gently.
Andrea glanced away, thoughts of what had provoked the request now filtering back into her mind. “I thought I told you earlier?” she said evasively.
“You told me something,” agreed the Major, “But why did I get the impression it wasn’t the full story, that there was something else you weren’t telling me?”
Andrea’s mouth was suddenly dry. She was trapped with nowhere to run, both physically and emotionally. “I don’t know, maybe it was your mind playing tricks on you?” she suggested, trying her best to avoid the probing, “Why do you care what I do anyway?”
“Of course I care,” commented the Major.
Andrea wasn’t sure if it was the soft way the Major had said it, but all of a sudden she was getting the impression that this conversation had taken on a whole different turn.
“I thought we were friends,” continued the Major.
Andrea groaned internally. Friends? Was that all they were?
“I want to try and help if there’s something wrong,” added the Major.
“Not all things can be fixed,” said Andrea quietly, her eyes trained down at her feet.
“So there is something wrong?”
“No, it’s not wrong, it’s just…just…” Andrea was getting frustrated at her own inability to confess her feelings. “It doesn’t matter!” she stated in the end. “Anyway I thought you’d be glad to see the back of me?”
The Major looked startled. “Why would you think that?”
“I’ve hardly been the easiest person to have around,” explained Andrea, “Running off the base, causing trouble with the troops. I’m sure things will run much more smoothly without me.”
“Maybe, but it wouldn’t be half as interesting.”
Interesting? Andrea didn’t want to be interesting; she wanted to be irresistible. Though she did note how the Major had made the comment in a fondly amused sort of way.
“I admit that at times you have been…difficult,” said the Major, choosing her words carefully, “God knows how I wanted to give you a slap and tell you to stop acting so petulantly some times.”
Andrea couldn’t help thinking that at least that would have been something – to have ignited some sort of passion in the other woman.
“But then there have been other times when I’ve been impressed by way you’ve acted,” added the Major, “Especially on these two missions. If you hadn’t knocked me out of the way of that walkway and stopped the rock fall god knows what might have happened. It’s hard to think you’re the same person some times. And then there’s how you’ve been behaving recently, avoiding me all the time…”
“I wasn’t avoiding you,” Andrea said quickly, wondering at the same time why the Major sounded so disturbed at the prospect.
“Really,” noted the Major doubtfully. “It’s felt like we’re almost back at square one. I thought we were becoming friends, I enjoyed spending time with you, and then suddenly you were being difficult and challenging again. Why was that?”
Andrea had to fight the urge to roll her eyes as a few possible answers swept through her mind. Because I want some attention off you? Because you drive me crazy? Because I just want to spark some sort of passion in you, even if it is anger?
“I don’t know,” said Andrea eventually, “Maybe I just don’t like authority figures.”
“See there you go, doing it again!” cried the Major in frustration. “Are you deliberately trying to provoke me, because you’re doing a pretty good job!”
Andrea could hear the Major’s impassioned breathing, see the flash of anger in her eyes. She found it all incredibly arousing.
“You really do have a certain knack for getting under someone’s skin,” continued the Major, shaking her head, “Half the time I want to knock some sense into you and the other half….”
Andrea studied the other woman’s face. What did she want to do the other half? What was that almost shy look now crossing her face?
“You know earlier, when you were asking for a reason why you should stay,” said the Major slowly, “I do have one, though I don’t know how important it is.”
Andrea stared at the Major whose voice had been so huskily low that it sent chills right through the young woman. That, accompanied with the soft, longing look in the other woman’s eyes, left Andrea hanging on the Major’s words. Andrea hardly dared to hope that the Major was going to say what she so desperately wanted to hear.
“The main reason I can think of is that I don’t want you to go.”
Andrea’s heart was hammering so fast now that she found it hard to think of anything beyond the blue eyes that seemed to shine through the gloom of their surroundings. The aching yearning in her chest was all encompassing, as the moment became long seconds that felt drawn out into minutes. Andrea had absolutely no idea how long she had just been staring when the Major started inching towards her. Andrea was like a deer caught in the lights, unable to move as her breath came short and fast.
When the Major’s hands came up and took the young woman’s face in them, Andrea’s breathing ceased altogether. The Major paused minutely before she closed the final tiny distance and placed her lips gently on Andrea’s.
At once Andrea was awash with a tumult of amazing sensations, closing her eyes subconsciously to wallow in them. The Major’s lips were so soft, gentle as they brushed over Andrea’s, the delicate contact sending trickling shivers through her whole body. There was a small moan in the darkness, Andrea only realising after a second that it had escaped involuntarily from her own mouth.
Then as quickly as it had begun it was over, the Major drawing away while Andrea just remained where she was, her eyes still closed, her lips still parted. She wanted more. She needed more.
“Sorry, sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”
Andrea heard the Major’s voice but found it hard to concentrate on the words. All she could think about was the heavenly feel of the other woman’s lips and the urge to feel them again, along with so much more of her. All her dreams had never prepared her for the reality of the wonderful arousing sensation of the simplest of kisses.
“Just forget it ever happened,” continued the Major.
Andrea forced her eyes open again to see that the Major was glancing nervously at the floor. “I don’t think that’s likely,” said Andrea.
The Major’s eyes flicked up, still uncertain. “Sorry?”
This time Andrea crept closer to the Major, reaching out trembling fingers to caress the warm skin of her cheek. “I said, I don’t think I can forget it,” repeated Andrea.
The Major’s lips parted invitingly as if to respond and Andrea seized the moment, pressing her mouth eagerly to the Major’s once more. Again the rush was astounding, more instantly erotic than she had ever felt before. Her hand snaked round behind the Major’s head, her fingers gliding into the auburn strands and drawing the other woman close as the kiss deepened. The Major didn’t pull away this time, her own hands slipping round Andrea’s waist, melding their bodies together.
The kiss became more fevered as both women succumbed to weeks of repressed desire. Andrea could hardly contain her lustful urges, fighting hard to take time to savour the wonderful moment. Her hand was roaming down the Major’s back and sneaking up round her front when suddenly there was a loud crunching noise from above.
Both women’s eyes shot upwards in unison as they realised what was happening – their rescuers had arrived. A shaft of light broke through the rock above and the two of them instinctively let go of one another as more of the rock was cut away. The Major’s command presence was back in place as first Tom and then Bel lowered themselves through the opening. Andrea didn’t know how she managed it, she herself was floating somewhere off in the clouds on a high of untold eroticism. If before she had found herself watching the Major more than was appropriate, now she couldn’t tear her eyes off the other woman. She studied every little movement, finding herself unhealthily preoccupied with the Major’s lips.
“Andrea!”
Andrea started, seeing the Major glaring at her, no doubt sensing the theme of Andrea’s thoughts and finding it out of place given the situation. Andrea mentally shook herself, climbing up out the hole to be winched to safety. Once up at ground level she lost track of the Major who had disappeared to organise the remaining rescue efforts. Andrea was fussed over by a medic who she brushed away so she could scan the factory area for the Major. Andrea was disappointed to see she wasn’t nearby, and it wasn’t until she was heading back to their transport plane that she finally spotted the familiar red head in front of her. Andrea’s heart leapt perceptibly and she ran to catch up as the Major went up the ramp into the back of the small aircraft.
“Major!” she shouted eagerly, breathless as she drew level from a combination of the run and the excitement she felt.
The Major’s head swung to her and suddenly all Andrea’s soaring emotions came crashing back down to earth. The Major looked pensive, worried. “Not now, Andrea,” she said in a low voice, continuing towards the plane.
“But…” began Andrea.
“I said not now!”
And with that the Major swept on up the ramp, leaving a confused Andrea where she was. Numbly the young woman followed her on board, taking up a seat in the back as her mind raced. She barely noticed the take-off as her thoughts spiralled through question after question.
What was going on?
Why had the Major acted like that?
Was she already regretting what had happened?
Andrea prayed that wasn’t the case, though growing doubt was filling her. She began to feel physically sick at the prospect of the Major rejecting her just when it had seemed she was so close. Through the flight she tried to control her mounting unease, but as they touched down she knew she couldn’t wait any longer to find out where she stood. Andrea let the other superhumans disembark, avoiding their questioning stares as she remained seated. She was thankful to see she had guessed correctly when the Major was last to enter the cargo bay, looking surprised for a second to see Andrea still there before she schooled her features into an impassive expression.
Andrea’s emotions were so raw and out of control that she stood up and leapt straight in with what was bothering her. “What’s going on? Why were you like that before?”
“Like what?” asked the Major flatly, “I’m merely carrying out my duty, which includes maintaining a professional demeanour.”
Andrea couldn’t believe the other woman’s coldness - it was as if she was trying to pretend nothing had happened below ground. “Oh really?” scoffed Andrea, “And does that include kissing those under your command?”
The Major paused, glancing away now she had been forcefully reminded. Andrea’s heart was constricting painfully in her chest as she noticed the reaction.
“That was a mistake.”
Andrea wanted to cry in dismay at the plainly stated words, but she held herself together with anger, not wanting to give the Major the satisfaction. “A mistake?” she bristled, “That’s all I am – a fucking mistake?”
The Major’s eyes finally met Andrea’s in a pleadingly apologetic stare. “Andrea, I didn’t mean it like that, but I can’t do this…”
“Oh just save it!” snapped Andrea. She didn’t need to hear any more of the Major’s excuses. The Major was reaching out, trying to place a calming hand on Andrea’s arm, but Andrea batted it away furiously. “Leave me alone!” she cried, “Just leave me the fuck alone!”
She turned and ran from the plane, not caring about the loss of dignity with the hasty retreat, only knowing the need to get away from the pain of her unrequited love. She didn’t stop running until she made it into her quarters where she could finally fling herself on the sofa and let the tears come. As she lay there, she realised she was back where she had started the day – wondering desperately what her next step was and if there was any hope at all.
……
A week later The Major sat at her office desk, trying to bury her head in work and push any other thoughts to the side. Before her were all the reports on the mine accident. They fell into two distinct categories – those produced by the members of her team, which covered all the details, and those produced by the government spin doctors for public consumption that nicely omitted any mention of super powers or secret army units. The Major never ceased to be amazed at the power of the Ministry of Defence’s spin machine, able to cover up anything with one swift stroke. She’d watched news reports and read a few newspaper articles on the accident and there wasn’t even a hint of her unit’s involvement. There was a knock at the door saving her having to read any more of the dry documents.
“Come in!” The Major looked up eagerly from her work hoping she would see a certain blond head coming in her door. Instead the sight of a bald forehead fringed by black hair met her eyes. “Doc,” said the Major flatly, identifying her visitor, “Come in, take a seat.”
The doctor crossed the carpet, taking the offered seat on the opposite side of the Major’s desk. “Afternoon, Major,” he said breezily, “I thought I’d come and give you an update on activities, since we haven’t seen you downstairs much this last week.”
“I’ve been busy, you know how it is,” she remarked, rifling absently through some of the papers before her to show what she meant, “I’m sure Lieutenant Chadwick has been keeping an able eye on things in my absence.”
“Indeed, he’s been his usual mix of attentive and annoying.”
The Major wasn’t really listening to the man, thinking about the real reason why she hadn’t been out of her office much – Andrea. Everything was such a mess and she knew it was all her own fault. The kiss they had shared had been amazing, sensuous, mind-blowing and a million other wonderful things. That was despite the fact that her heart had been thumping ten to the dozen at the time, so erratic that she could hardly think straight. It had seemed so right to take Andrea’s face like that, and then the sensation of her warm inviting lips…
Even now the Major felt the corresponding warmth spreading through her at the thought of it. However, it hadn’t taken long for the doubts and worries to start afterwards. Foremost amongst those was recollections of Adam and what had happened last time she had allowed herself to fall for someone. That time she had been cruelly betrayed and she knew she couldn’t let that happen again, even if it meant she had to shut herself off. In the end it had seemed easier to say that it was all a mistake. If she thought that would be the end of it - that she would easily be able to banish Andrea from her thoughts - then she had been totally wrong.
“Major?”
The Major stared at Doc, who was regarding her curiously. “Sorry?”
“You looked like you had drifted off there,” he remarked, peering at her through his spectacles.
“Sorry,” she said with a wave of the hand, “Go on.”
“It must be catching,” he noted under his breath before he did.
“What?”
“This easily distracted malaise,” he clarified, “It seems you aren’t the only one affected.”
“Oh?”
“Andrea has been acting strangely all week,” Doc explained, “Since you got back from that last mission at the mine.”
The sound of Andrea’s name caused a small flip in the Major’s stomach and she knew without a doubt that she had it bad. It had certainly been a surprise to find she was attracted to another woman, but there was just something about Andrea that she found fascinating – that strange mixture of fiery passion and cool, intelligent aloofness. Not to mention the fact she was utterly gorgeous.
When Andrea had fled from the plane, the Major had restrained the overwhelming desire to chase after the young woman and try and explain things. She had been certain that Andrea would leave the base completely at that point and the Major would have only herself to blame, but then Andrea had confounded her by staying put. That small fact gave the Major some hope that she hadn’t completely blown things, though at the same time Andrea had avoided her all week, as much as she had avoided the young woman in return. The Major considered their reasons were most probably different, though. Andrea was no doubt still upset and furious with the Major, while she herself felt guilty for toying with the young woman’s emotions and didn’t even know where to begin apologising.
Doc continued on, breaking the Major’s thoughts. “She’s been performing her duties all right though,” he informed her, “Completing her training, doing everything we ask of her.”
That was some small consolation to the Major who was worried about the affect her offhand attitude might have had. It had been unfair to lead Andrea on like that when she had a strong inkling as to the young woman’s feelings. Andrea’s reaction only served to affirm the Major’s prior suspicions that Andrea was attracted to her and maybe also held even stronger emotional feelings. Yet the Major knew she could never give Andrea what she wanted if that was the case. That wasn’t because she didn’t want to; in fact she wanted to with a fiery passion so strong it surprised the Major. But there was still that small rational part of her mind overriding her more base desires. That part that told her she couldn’t become involved with anyone under her command.
“But at the same time it’s like…” Doc cast around for the right words, “She’s not all there, like she has something on her mind.”
“Right,” said the Major, thinking Andrea wasn’t the only one with something on her mind. It had gotten so bad, that it was actually affecting her work and her performance - she just seemed unable to concentrate properly and sleeping was proving difficult too. She knew she couldn’t go on the way she was – she had to talk to Andrea even if it was just to tell her that there could never be anything between them. At least that would hopefully clear the air. “I’ll have a word with her,” she said to Doc, “See if I can find out what’s troubling her.”
“Good,” he noted. “Anyway, everyone else is doing fine, which brings me onto the next point of business.”
The Major glanced at him as he paused, staring expectantly at her. “Oh god,” she said, rubbing her hand roughly over her face, “Is it that time again?”
Doc nodded. “You know how the Colonel is when it comes to his reports. He needs to keep those government guys happy and satisfied that everything here is under control.”
“I’m not sure I like the allusion that I might not be in control,” noted the Major, with a warning edge.
Doc squirmed slightly in his seat. “You know I think you’re doing a fantastic job, but we don’t want to give these people any ammunition to shut us down do we?”
“I suppose not,” agreed the Major ruefully, “Though I think our two successful missions will have gone some way to proving our worth. But I’ll do the report like a good officer.”
“You’ll need to get some fresh readings…”
“I know what I have to do,” the Major interrupted, “I’ll arrange that too, all right?”
“Ok, I won’t go on,” said Doc, sensing that was an end to it. “On another note, I do have some good news.”
“I could certainly use some of that right now.”
“You know I told you before that I didn’t find any signs of tampering with my energy device, the one I tried using on Andrea.”
The Major nodded, indicating she knew what he was referring to.
“Well, something was bugging me about it, so I took it apart again and I found something.”
“Really?” noted the Major, knowing that could be good news - if they could find their potential saboteur then that would be one less thing for the government officials to hold over her. Plus it would be safer for everyone on the base. So far no one had been seriously hurt, but it was only a matter of time before one of these ‘accidents’ ended fatally.
“I found a single fingerprint on one of the components,” Doc informed her, “It’s strange, because I could swear I checked the component involved before, but there it was, plain as day.”
“And have you run this print?”
“The guys in the surveillance room are doing it now.”
“Then let’s get down there and get our results,” suggested the Major.
……
Andrea took another long, slow swig from her drink, allowing the liquid to ease down her throat, burning the whole way. She grimaced as she swallowed, coughing a couple of times once it had gone down. Normally she wouldn’t touch whiskey, but it seemed somehow appropriate since it was the Major’s tipple of choice.
It appeared she couldn’t get away from the other woman no matter what she tried to do, so she had decided she may as well embrace her fate of being in love with someone who didn’t love her back. Andrea hadn’t even seen the Major since their brief argument on the plane, yet the other woman still occupied most of her waking, and non-waking, thoughts. The rest of those sleeping thoughts were filled with her nightmares that had returned with a vengeance.
Seeking its numbing qualities, Andrea picked up the bottle and sloshed another good helping of the golden liquid into her tumbler, spilling some of it on the coffee table in the process. Then she leant back into the sofa and poured it straight down her throat.
How many was that now?
Five? Six?
She staggered to her feet, crossing to the window in a zig-zag line, having to lean against the pane when she got there to keep her balance. It was still light, despite the fact it was nearly nine in the evening, the sun just disappearing over the horizon out to the west of the island. Staring out over the landscape, her mind started to drift back to thoughts of the kiss, a moment she had replayed a thousand times since it had happened a week ago. Her fingers subconsciously brushed over her lips, and she closed her eyes to recall the fantastic sensations she’d experienced. Her head and heart were floating again as she could practically feel the soft touch of the Major’s lips. Suddenly Andrea was swaying and before she could stop herself she had slumped to the floor in an ungainly heap. Crawling across the room she heaved herself back onto the sofa.
The bottle of whiskey still sat invitingly on the table and she helped herself to another of her own measures that were much larger than anything available in a pub. She considered that the only way she was going to be able to stop thinking about the Major was to drink herself into oblivion. The glass was just at her lips when a sound resounded around the room.
What the bloody hell was that? thought Andrea through the fog of drink, looking round the room in confusion. All she was met with was Gerry watching her accusingly from a safe distance. “And you can sod off!” she told him, though he didn’t budge.
The sound came again and she realised it was the door chime. “Bugger off!” she called out in the general direction of the door.
Her caller was persistent though, ringing the bell for a third time. “Oh for Christ’s sake,” muttered Andrea, “All right, come in!”
Andrea was lounging on the sofa as the Major crossed the threshold into the dim room. There were no lights on, and she had to squint across the distance to where Andrea sat. “Is there any reason you’re sitting in the dark?
“Because I like it?” offered Andrea obstinately. She attempted to clamp down on her mutinous thoughts that were suggesting all sorts of possibilities for what she could do with the other woman in her quarters.
The Major ignored the blunt response. “I thought you might like to know we’ve found out who was responsible for the sabotage.”
“I hope you threw the book at that wanker!”
“Who?”
“Chadwick of course,” said Andrea as if that much was obvious.
“Lieutenant Chadwick wasn’t the one responsible,” the Major stated evenly, “Doc found a fingerprint on his equipment which we traced to Sergeant Patterson.”
“What?” cried Andrea, “You’ve got to be kidding me? Then Chadwick must have put him up to it or something. It was him, I’m telling you.”
Andrea was noticeably slurring her words and a curious Major came towards the sofa, flicking on the lamp that sat next to it. Andrea blinked a couple of times in the bright light, the Major studying her the whole time.
“Have you been drinking?” asked the army officer.
“Yes, I have,” said Andrea without shame, offering the other woman a drunkenly smug grin.
The Major came closer now, noticing the near empty bottle on the table. “Have you drunk all of that?” she asked incredulously
“What are you, my mother?” spat Andrea, snatching up the bottle and walking towards the window once more. She didn’t quite make it, having to slump down in a chair halfway there.
“Bloody hell, Andrea!” cried the Major in consternation as she followed her part of the way, “You can barely walk.”
“So? It’s not like you care is it?” Andrea said bitterly, trying to focus on the other woman as she loomed blurrily into view.
“Of course I care. I don’t like seeing you doing this to yourself…”
“I’m not doing anything to myself,” seethed Andrea, sitting forward in the chair to glare balefully upwards, “You were the one who fucked me up, Kate!”
The Major’s face fell noticeably at Andrea’s harsh words, though she kept her mouth tightly shut.
“Oh, it is all right if I call you Kate isn’t it?” asked Andrea sarcastically, “Only I like to be on first name terms with everyone I’ve snogged!”
The Major sighed, starting to back away. “Maybe I should go, come back another time when you’re more capable of holding a halfway intelligent conversation.”
“That’s it run off,” Andrea called after her, leaping to her feat, “Ignore me as always!”
The Major stopped near the door, her back still to Andrea.
“Come on, stay, have a drink, Kate” suggested Andrea, waving her glass in the air, “It is your favourite after all.”
The Major didn’t answer, though she was still hovering on the far side of the room, slowly turning back to face Andrea. If Andrea had been halfway sober she would have spotted the deathly stare she was receiving and been quiet. Unfortunately she was nowhere near sober.
“No? Don’t want one?” said Andrea with a shrug, walking back over to her low coffee table and placing her glass down uncertainly. It took her a couple of goes to aim the bottle of whiskey in the right direction, allowing her to pour the last of it into the tumbler. Seeing it was now empty, Andrea haphazardly dropped the bottle onto the table allowing it to roll off onto the carpet. She straightened up, wobbling slightly as she raised her glass. “Here’s to mistakes!”
She downed a large portion of the liquid in one go. “So was that all you wanted to tell me about, the saboteur? Or did you come to survey your handiwork too and have a good gloat?”
The Major had stepped closer again, standing within the soft glow cast by the lamp. “No, I actually wanted to talk to you, see how you were. I do still care what happens to you…”
“Ha! That’s rich!” said Andrea petulantly. “Now you care about me! You didn’t seem that bothered last week.”
The Major answered slowly, with consideration. “I reacted badly; I know that. I didn’t think at the time”
“And now you’ve thought about it?”
“I still think we shouldn’t have done what we did but I wanted to try and explain why.”
Andrea rolled her eyes, some of her drink sloshing out onto the carpet at the same time. “Come up with a whole load of excuses you mean? Sweep it all under the carpet as if nothing happened? Pretend all you like, but I know you felt it too when we kissed, that instant chemistry.”
“I never said I didn’t,” said the Major quietly.
Her better judgement compromised by drink, Andrea slowly slinked towards the Major, lowering her tone too. “Then why deny it?” She was within reach of the Major now, her fingers reaching out to stroke down the Major’s arm. Though her uniform shirt covered it, Andrea could still sense the warm flesh beneath the stiff material. “Why turn your back on what you feel?” asked Andrea as seductively as she could manage given her inebriated state.
“Who are you to presume to know what I feel?” asked the Major, her eyes flicking up to meet Andrea’s. Her breath was hot as it tickled out across Andrea’s face.
Andrea quirked an eyebrow questioningly. “Then why are you here late at night talking to me?” she asked, with a sly grin. She was still brushing her fingers across the Major’s arm. “I know you want this, why are you fighting it?”
Andrea stepped even closer, well within the Major’s personal space now as her hand continued its upward path, across the Major’s collarbone and then tracking downwards over her shirtfront.
A brief “Oh god” slipped from the Major’s lips before her hand shot up to stop Andrea’s roaming digits. “I can’t do this.”
The Major dropped Andrea’s hand and took a few steps away from the young woman, placing a more appropriate distance between them. Andrea’s arousal quickly turned to fury now she had been spurned.
“Oh I see, you can’t do it with me,” she spat furiously, “But you could do it with Adam Dixon?”
All colour drained from the Major’s face as she stared at Andrea in shock. “How did you know about that?”
“How did I know?” repeated Andrea, “Everyone bloody knows! Though it seems I was one of the last to, and then I had to hear to from Tom and Harry. Why didn’t you tell me about it?”
The Major’s eyes narrowed warningly. “I didn’t realise I had to tell you everything about my private life.”
“No I guess you don’t,” agreed Andrea, “Since you obviously don’t give a toss about me. Certainly not like you did about Adam, eh? I bet he really did it for you didn’t he?”
“Andrea, stop this,” the Major said, her tone still even but carrying an undercurrent of threat. “I know you’re angry but…”
“Angry? Angry? Of course I’m fucking angry!” screamed Andrea, gesticulating wildly in the Major’s direction as she fumed. “You kiss me…you kiss me…and then you tell me it was a mistake and expect me to forget all about it! You can let yourself get involved with a wanker like Dixon, but I get cast aside without a second thought. You’ll tart yourself around with anyone won’t you, like that dark-haired woman who was all over you last week!”
“Dark-haired woman?” The Major was confused for a moment. “Oh, you mean Sophie!” she said in realisation, “She’s just a friend of mine, she was kidding around. Not that I have to justify her behaviour to you!”
“Indeed you don’t! So is this what you do with everyone, suck them in, get them to like you and then drop them from a great height. Maybe I should find this Dixon guy and congratulate him for being the one to do the same to you.”
A small muscle jumped in the Major’s jaw as Andrea’s comment hit home, the other woman’s mouth being held firmly shut while she silently fumed. Andrea noted the reaction with perverse satisfaction, not bothering to say anything else.
Finally the Major broke the pained silence, obviously having to fight to restrain her temper as she spoke. “That’s not how it was with you, and you know it. I didn’t suck you in, or con you. I did like you…as a friend.”
“‘Did’, so now you don’t like me?”
“You’re making it pretty hard…”
“Oh pardon me for being pissed off!” stated Andrea obstinately.
“I don’t know why I bother!” said the Major, throwing her hands in the air as her exasperation began to show, “I’m sorry if I led you on and made you believe otherwise, but there can never be anything between us.”
“Ha! You’ve got dibs yourself!” cried Andrea scornfully, “Who said I wanted anything from you anyway?” Even Andrea knew her words didn’t make much sense, but she was hardly at her most rational at that point. It was obvious from her prior comments and her whole attitude that she had feelings for the Major, but she continued on unabated anyway. “I could have any woman I wanted, what makes you think I’d want anything serious with a dried up old has-been like you? You can’t even carry out a simple thing like an investigation into an accident properly. In fact I think you’ve been deliberately dragging it out so I’ll stay and make your little mutie group look good!”
“Because you’re doing such a good job of that now, a fine example!”
“I never wanted to be anyone’s example!” yelled Andrea, fast losing any semblance of control, “I never asked to be given these fucking powers!”
“Will you listen to yourself – wallowing in self pity,” noted the Major disdainfully her own ire rising to meet Andrea’s now, “I know I hurt you, but you need to get a grip.”
“I don’t need to do anything you fucking say!” challenged Andrea, staggering across the room and banging into the kitchen counter before she managed to negotiate her way around it in the direction of the fridge.
“You do when you’re on my base,” the Major reminded her in steely tones.
“Yeah, well that can be remedied,” Andrea remarked, diving into the fridge in search of something else to drink.
“And where are you going to go?” asked the Major, standing behind her at the entrance to the kitchen area, “What are you going to do?”
Andrea swung round holding a bottle of beer. “None of your bloody business!” she cried. “Maybe I’ll go back to the police, anything’s better than hanging around here with you arseholes!”
The Major shook her head, seeing that Andrea had another drink. “I really think we should discuss this another time,” she suggested.
The alcohol-fuelled red mist had fully descended over Andrea. “No! I want to discuss it now!” she demanded, bringing the bottle she was holding down on the work surface next to her with a crash. It shattered spectacularly into tiny pieces, the beer dripping down the side to pool on the tiles.
The Major merely stared at the enraged young woman. “I’m going now,” she said stiffly. “You might want to get someone to look at that hand,” she added, indicating Andrea’s bleeding palm with her eyes. Andrea hadn’t even noticed the drops of red splattering over her floor.
Without another word the Major turned on her heel and disappeared out of the room. Andrea followed her for a few steps before she sank to her knees bashing her bloodied fists against the carpet in a mixture of rage and frustration at her own stupid behaviour. Reaching up she ripped the power regulator off her left arm and threw it across the room before continuing to drum her hands on the floor, deliberately using her super strength. When the seizure came it was a blessed relief to let the darkness consume her.