“Walker, you’re with me!”
Somewhere at the back of her mind Andrea knew she had
been here a dozen or more times before, yet she seemed unable to divert from
the course of action that was prescribed for her. She and Walker dashed over to the far side of the warehouse to
look for a means of exit, Andrea knowing the whole time that they would find
none.
Constable Walker was searching desperately along the wall
now, as he did every time, his fingers clawing at the corrugated steel. Andrea forced herself to look away to break
the repetitive cycle. Instead she
looked up, for the first time noticing something that had never been apparent
to her before. Watching from a gantry
above the warehouse floor was another figure.
They were hidden in the shadows, their face obscured from view, but
Andrea got the sense they were watching the unfolding events with interest
rather than panic like those on the ground floor.
Leaving Walker, Andrea hurried for the ladder to the
upper level, suddenly having the urge to find out who the mysterious watcher
was. The sound of her shoes on the
rungs echoed round the cavernous room as she frantically clambered up. Reaching the top she could see the figure
was still there.
“Hey!” she yelled to get their attention.
The shadowy face swung towards her but she still couldn’t
make out their features in the gloom.
All she could discern was that they were of a reasonably large build,
making her think it was a man. Then
they were off and running in the opposite direction, Andrea giving chase along
the narrow walkway.
“Wait! Who are
you?” she called after the person.
She was getting close now, almost within touching
distance when suddenly the metal gantry gave way beneath Andrea and she was
falling, hitting the concrete floor of the warehouse with a hefty thump.
Groaning she lifted her sore head, experiencing a
profound sense of déjà vu when she saw what was in front of her - a pair of
shiny black boots. Andrea realised she
wasn’t in the warehouse anymore, the whiteness of the corridor where she lay in
stark contrast to its oppressive gloom.
She started to slowly track her eyes up the olive green trousers, taking
her time since she had yet to find out what lay above.
Then suddenly her eyes opened and she was back in her bed, none the wiser. Wearily casting the duvet aside, Andrea padded across the room and out into the dark lounge. This was becoming an all-too familiar ritual now, she considered as she crossed to the kitchen to retrieve a drink of water. Though she pondered that the shadowy figure had never featured in her nightmares before. She deliberated over whom the person represented – had they in fact been there in the warehouse at the time, or were they some figment of her nightmare’s imagination?
Swigging the cold water, Andrea wondered if the counselling she was undertaking would eventually help resolve things. She’d only had the first session with Dr Shah a few days previously, and they hadn’t even got onto the recurrent nightmares during that. Thinking she would find it hard to get back to sleep again any time soon, she decided to complete her usual routine with a late-night walk round the corridors to try and calm her racing thoughts. She pulled on some jeans and a t-shirt, quickly doing her hair up in a ponytail before she left the room. She knew she probably looked rather dishevelled, but it wasn’t like she ever saw anyone while wandering the halls after hours, at least not anyone important.
She followed the carpeted corridor round and out of the section that was for the superhuman’s quarters, continuing on her loop of the second floor. As usual the halls were deserted, her only companions the cameras that tracked her movements. Sometimes Andrea got the perverse urge to wave up at them. If nothing else it might give those watching a small smile during their mundane work. She was heading past the Major’s office now, the desk outside where her secretary normally sat empty, the Major no doubt long ago tucked up in bed. Andrea was just turning to continue her circuit when she noticed something different from all the previous occasions she’d passed this way. There was a door open just to the side of the Major’s office, through which a set of stairs was clearly visible.
Unable to resist the urge to investigate, Andrea went through and up the metal steps, finding herself out on the flat roof of the building when she opened the door at the top. She shivered as the chill crispness of the night air hit her immediately, bringing goosebumps to her exposed arms. It might have been early May, but up in Scotland that didn’t stop it being rather cold come one in the morning. Glancing up she could see that it was a clear night for a change, the moon bright against the blackness speckled with stars. As she took a moment to gaze at the impressive vastness of the vista viewable from the roof, she suddenly realised she was not alone.
Standing near the edge with her back to Andrea was the Major. Or more precisely the other woman was bending forwards, her hands on her knees, looking into the eyepiece of a telescope that pointed at the heavens. She still wore her uniform, though more sensibly than Andrea she had a thick camouflage jacket on her top half to protect from the cold. She appeared engrossed in whatever she was looking at, though every so often she would have to reach up and brush her auburn hair back round behind her ears as it flopped in the way.
Andrea was just wondering whether it was polite to announce herself in some way or disappear back the way she had come, when the Major suddenly swung round and spotted her.
“Sorry,” I didn’t mean to disturb you, said Andrea quickly, “I just saw the open door and, well….”
“You couldn’t resist taking a peek?” finished the Major. The leading question was delivered with an obvious edge of amusement.
Andrea shrugged. “I’ve never seen it open before,” she explained, walking across the roof, since it seemed the Major wasn’t adverse to her presence.
“You often walk past late at night then do you?” queried the Major.
As the Major’s eyes narrowed slightly, Andrea realised she had been caught out. “Sometimes,” she said evasively. She didn’t know what it was about the Major, but Andrea found she seemed to have a tendency of speaking without always calculating her responses when the other woman was around, not something she was usually guilty of.
The Major raised both eyebrows, fixing Andrea inquisitively with her blue eyes. The moonlight glinted off them, almost making them twinkle as the white light caught the grey shade that underlay the blue. Trying to avoid the questioning stare, Andrea shifted her gaze ever so slightly away from direct eye contact. Now though, she couldn’t help noticing the way the moon lit up and defined the features of the Major’s face, playing across her cheekbones.
Looking for a way to avoid the implied question and distract her wandering eyes, Andrea decided to switch the focus to the other woman. “So, what are you looking at?” she asked, glancing at the telescope.
The Major eyed her for a moment, seemingly deciding she would allow the change in topic. “I was having a look at the Mare Tranquillitatis, also known as the Sea of Tranquillity,” she said, “Would you like to see?”
Andrea tipped her head in acknowledgement. “Sure why not?”
The Major moved aside to allow Andrea access to the sleek black tube set on a tripod. Andrea closed one eye and squinted down the eyepiece, trying to focus on the mass of white visible to her. She took a few moments before straightening up. “Er…what exactly am I looking for?”
The Major let out a low throaty laugh and Andrea found herself shivering again unsure whether it was the night air or the laugh that had caused the prickle down her spine. “You might need to focus it, for the specifics of your eyes,” suggested the Major. “Here, turn this knob.”
The Major leaned over and indicated the one she meant on the far side of the telescope, accidentally brushing up against Andrea’s arm as she did. It was purely accidental, but Andrea was surprised at the small tingle that danced up along her arm and down to settle somewhere in her stomach. In its wake Andrea just about managed to fumble her fingers onto the knob and turn the dial. Suddenly the mass of white became defined, a landscape of plunging craters and soaring peaks coming into focus. She let out a small gasp of wonder at the breath-taking view of something that she would normally have taken for granted.
“Do you see it now?” asked the Major. “It’s the largest crater.”
“Yes,” Andrea said, still studying the details, “That’s it by the Sea of Serenity.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Andrea glanced up from her perusal. “Was I incorrect?”
“No, you were absolutely right,” said the Major with no small degree of surprise. “You know about astronomy do you?”
“Not really,” said Andrea with a shrug, “I must have read it in a book at some point. I have quite a good memory.”
“I’d say,” agreed the Major, still sounding impressed.
“It’s an amazing sight,” commented Andrea, peering down once more.
“Yes, it is,” agreed the Major. Andrea could see her out of the corner of her eye, turning her face skywards and staring up at the sphere with the naked eye. “Of course a lot of astronomers forget about the beauty of the moon when they’re chasing after all those exciting stars, but I always like to come back to it every now and then.”
As the other woman glanced her way
again, Andrea swiftly fixed her eyes on the telescope, pretending she had been
looking at that the whole time. Though
she didn’t want to go back in just yet, Andrea couldn’t help shivering again
and had to rub her arms to get some life into them.
“Would you like a little something
to warm you up?” offered the Major.
Andrea’s eyes shot up in shock
until she saw the Major was holding up a metal flask, its silver surface
reflecting the moonlight. Of course
she had meant a drink; Andrea didn’t know what she had been thinking.
“Is it like your drinks on the
boat?” asked Andrea suspiciously.
The Major’s lips curved into a
knowing smile. “How did you guess? I only have coffee though I’m afraid.”
“I’m sure I can make an exception
for once,” said Andrea accepting the proffered cup.
She wouldn’t
normally touch the stuff, but she thought it would be rude to decline the
offer. The Major had now perched
herself on the low wall that ran along the edge of the roof and Andrea
naturally joined her, taking a tentative sip of her drink. As she expected it wasn’t really to her
taste, but she tried not to let that fact show on her face.
“You carried the
telescope up here from your office then?” noted Andrea conversationally, “Hence
the open door.”
“Yes, as you’ve
probably noticed the weather up here in Scotland isn’t exactly great,” replied
the Major having paused to take a sip of her drink, “But when we do get a clear
night it’s perfect stargazing weather, what with the lack of background light.”
Andrea realised
that was her cue to do or say something.
She had been distracted again, watching the way the Major liked to play
with her mug, running her fingers along the rim in a most teasing fashion. Kicking the sensible parts of her mind into
gear, Andrea swept her eyes round the view from the rooftop instead. Apart from those of the base, there wasn’t
an artificial light in sight. The
building sat at the foot of a slight slope so that it wasn’t visible from the
mainland and conversely the coast wasn’t visible from there. Not that those lights would have been close
enough to interfere with using the telescope anyway. In the other directions, beyond the trees and undulating
grass-covered ground of the island, stretched the vastness of the sea, the
light from the moon playing off the swell.
Andrea completed her circle, coming back to the Major. “You do a lot of stargazing then do you?”
The Major
nodded. “I’ve always had a fascination
for the stars, maybe something to do with my birthday.”
Andrea narrowed
her eyes into a quizzical look.
“I was born on
July 20th 1969,” clarified the Major.
The date rang a
bell in Andrea’s mind and she quickly identified the connection. “The day of the Apollo 11 moon landing,” she
noted, nodding her head in understanding.
“Spot on,” said a
surprised Major, “You do know your astronomy.”
“No, as I said…”
“You just read it
in a book,” finished the Major quickly.
“Now you’re
spot on.”
The Major broke
into a spontaneous laugh, the sound echoing across the roof. Andrea noticed that that strange chill was
back again, surmising that it really must be getting cold at that point. Still she was reluctant to say anything,
especially when she looked at the smile on the Major’s face and found that she
was starting to feel warmer anyway.
Meanwhile the
Major was continuing with her explanation for her astronomy hobby. “I don’t know if it was just some weird
coincidence but I can always remember going out in the back garden as a child,
and gazing up at the stars, wishing I could be out there too.”
“It sounds like
you wanted to be an astronaut.”
“I did!” agreed
the Major, “But unfortunately I soon found out I was too short. So then I settled for more earth-bound
ambitions, though it didn’t stop me studying physics at university.”
Andrea nearly
choked on her coffee. “You went to
university? And did physics?”
Luckily the Major
seemed to think Andrea’s slightly insulting comments were funny, or maybe it
was just the stunned expression on Andrea’s face that was causing the half
smile on her face. Andrea recognised
this smile as the one that said ‘ah-ha, I’ve caught you out and now I’m going
to tease you mercilessly.’
“You thought I
was some stupid squaddie?” asked the Major.
“That an army officer couldn’t be educated?”
“No…er…it’s
just…” Andrea searched for something more tactful to fill the gap, “…unusual.”
“No more than a
police officer with a degree in Biochemisty from Oxford.”
Andrea realised
there was no sense in prolonging her own squirming agony. “Touche,” she said, with a nod. Now she had conceded she decided to press
for some details. “So what did you
get?”
“Ever the
competitor, eh?” The smile was still on
the Major’s face, but now it had changed to one that indicated she found the
question amusing. Andrea wondered at
how many slightly different smiles the Major had, each one signified with
varying curving of the lips and accompanied by a shift in the expression held
in her eyes too.
“I got a first,”
the Major informed her, “From Birmingham University.”
Now Andrea really
was interested. “You went to the
university at Birmingham? When were you
there?”
The Major seemed
to think nothing of Andrea’s brash questions.
In fact she appeared happy to share these personal details with
Andrea. “From 1987 to 1990.”
Andrea let out a
small snorting laughing, shaking her head.
“What’s so
funny?” asked the Major, bemused by Andrea’s reaction.
Andrea was still
shaking her head incredulously. “Just
another strange coincidence,” she said.
The Major
remained perplexed by Andrea’s obtuse remarks, while Andrea was perversely
satisfied to see she could still catch the other woman off-guard on
ocassion. Deciding to take pity, Andrea
clarified what she meant. “Do you
remember the school next to the university?”
“The posh girls’
school? The King Edward something or other?”
“The King Edward
VI High School For Girls to be precise.”
The Major studied
the patient expression on Andrea’s face for a moment, before the light went on
in her head. “You didn’t go there?” she
asked incredulously, not believing her own question.
Andrea
nodded. “From 1988 to 1995. I’m surprised you didn’t already know, since
you have that dossier on me.”
“That’s not as
detailed as you seem to think it is,” said the Major, with a roll of the eyes,
“It’s not like we had someone following you around from when you were born,
noting your every move, just in case.
No, it only contains a summary of your adult life – university, work
that sort of thing. And then only the
superficial details – acamdemic records, various work reports.”
“So you don’t
know me as well as you thought you did?”
“I never claimed
to know you at all,” insisted the Major.
“I realise that what’s written on a piece of paper is hardly going to
reveal much about how a person thinks, what they’re like in real life. I like to get to know someone to judge for
myself.”
Andrea got the
distinct impression that the way the Major was watching her now was all part of
the way she formed that judgement. The
Major always seemed to have a look of quiet assessment about her when she
wasn’t speaking, like every word and gesture from the other person was being
noted down for future reference. Andrea
could see how it would be unnerving to less strong willed individuals. It was unnerving to her.
Maybe the Major sensed
that the moment had gotten too tense and let out a small chuckle to
herself. “I can’t believe you would
have been one of those posh kids in a boater and blazer,” she said, recalling
what they had originally been discussing, “The ones that always looked down
their noses at us students.”
“And you would
have been one of those drunken students falling in the gutter, stealing traffic
cones and singing rude songs at 2am.”
Though she had said it, Andrea couldn’t quite picture it - the
respectable Major drunk.
The other woman
managed to confound her again though.
“Guilty as charged!” confessed the Major. “Though now you’re making me feel old, considering you were still
at school when I left university.”
“I wish I could
have been leaving school at that point too!”
Andrea could have kicked herself; she didn’t know why she had admitted
what she had. Just another case of
being unable to control her mouth in front of the Major she supposed.
The Major wasn’t
slow to pick up on her outburst either.
“You didn’t like it there? It’s
one of the best independent schools in the country isn’t it? And it must have cost a pretty penny to send
you.”
“Oh yes, I’m sure
it did,” agreed Andrea, unable to keep the bitterness out of her tone, “Only
the best money could buy for my parents.”
“That’s not the first time I’ve
heard you mention them in less than stellar tones,” noted the Major, “Pardon
the pun given the current setting. You
can tell me to mind my own business if you like, but it seems they must have
cared about you once if they were so bothered about your education.”
Andrea realised she had disclosed
far too much by her tone and words. Now
she could either attempt to avoid revealing any more by changing the subject or
else she could answer the Major’s probing honestly. For some reason she was more inclined to the latter.
“Is this part of your ‘getting to
know someone’ strategy?” queried Andrea, at least trying to stall for a moment.
“There’s no strategy, I’m just
curious,” insisted the Major, “But if you’d rather not talk about it…”
Andrea exhaled slowly. She’d spent most of her life not talking
about it, and she guessed it wouldn’t hurt to for once. The way the Major’s eyes had softened seemed
to be inviting her to speak. It was all
very subtle yet persuasive, and Andrea was powerless to resist.
“My parents were actually at the
university in Birmingham too,” she began, “They still are in fact. Professor Magnus and Dr Erin Hallstrom of
the Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics. As you might imagine when you have two eminent scientists for
parents the pressure was on to live up to some pretty big expectations. It seemed like everyone that ever came round
our house while I was growing up wanted to know how me and my brother were
getting on at school, if we’d decided what university we were going to go to
yet. My parents certainly didn’t want
to disappoint them so they drove us on - books, tutors, schools, anything they
could buy or finance to further our education.”
“So you decided to rebel?”
“Not really, at least not back
then. Sure I played up at school, but
what child doesn’t? And that was more because I was bored than because I didn’t
want to do the work. In fact you
couldn’t tear me away from my books when I did settle down to it - I wanted to
impress my parents as much as they wanted me to get good marks. It seemed like the only way to get their
attention, to win their love.”
“I’m sure that’s not true,”
offered the Major, “I’m sure they loved you no matter your performance at
school.”
Andrea let out a rueful
laugh. “You don’t know them. Everything was measured in terms of
intellectual achievement. So I followed
the route set out for me, went to university, did my degree in Biochemistry so
I could follow in their footsteps. But
then…”
Too late Andrea realised that not
only had she confessed about the problems with her parents, but also that she
was now leading the Major into other difficult areas of her life. Andrea had no idea why she felt willing or
able to unburden herself to the other woman like she was doing - she hardly
knew her really. She’d had other
friends for years that she’d never talked to about this sort of thing. Yet at the same time she felt she could
trust the Major with this information.
“But then…?” prompted the Major
gently.
Andrea shrugged. “Then they wanted me to go on and do a phd.”
“And you didn’t?”
“No, I’d finally had enough,”
declared Andrea bitterly, “It got to the point when I realised that no matter
what I did it would never be enough, especially not with Marcus being the apple
of their eye.”
“Marcus?”
“My older brother. He was always the favourite, maybe because
he was older, I don’t know.” Andrea
paused for a moment as she thought back over her childhood. “That’s another thing I remember from
growing up – Marcus can do this, Marcus can do that, Marcus, Marcus,
Marcus. Why can’t you be more like
Marcus?”
“Sounds like it was tough to live
up to,” agreed the Major, “And what made you come to this realisation that you
wanted to stop trying to do what they wanted?”
It seemed the other woman was
still interested in that particular aspect of the story, even if Andrea had
tried to distract her. “It was a
gradual thing,” explained Andrea, “Most of the time I was at university I was
thinking about it, since it was my first chance to live away from them. In the end we had a disagreement over
something else and it all kind of came to a head.”
Andrea paused unsure if she wanted
to admit this to the Major. Still it
was rather late to back out now.
Sensing Andrea’s reluctance the
Major stepped in. “It’s all right, if
you don’t want to tell me,” she insisted.
“I’ve told you everything else,”
replied Andrea, “I may as well finish the rest of this whole sorry story.” She still paused before revealing the main
reason for the falling out with her family.
“I told them I’d met someone, a woman.”
“Ah.”
“Exactly, ‘ah’” agreed Andrea, “To
say they weren’t impressed is an understatement.”
The Major had a thoughtful look on
her face as if she were trying to work something out. “Was this Meg? The woman at university that you fell for?”
Andrea was confused for a
second. “What? Oh, no, that was much
later,” she clarified, “No, Susie was her name. It only lasted a few months, but you know when you’re that age -
it’s the next great love.”
The Major nodded and Andrea
couldn’t help wondering who the Major’s first great love had been. “So you told your parents and they reacted
badly?”
“Indeed, telling me how unnatural
it was, how I just hadn’t met the right man, how university had corrupted me
and so on and so forth. They wanted me
to come back and live with them, while studying for a phd, so they could keep
an eye on me.”
“And you didn’t want to have
anyone spying on you?”
“No, as you might have realised by
now, I like my privacy. So I basically
told them where to stick it and I’ve not spoken to them in over five years.”
The Major seemed surprised at
that. “Not once?”
“There were a couple of phone
calls near the beginning,” revealed Andrea, “Including one where I told them
I’d joined the police force. That went
down like a lead balloon too – they thought I was wasting my talents.”
“I suppose that was quite a
departure,” noted the Major diplomatically.
“What made you pick the police?”
“I don’t know,” said Andrea
quickly, “I fancied a change?”
Andrea could see the Major eyeing
her suspiciously – her answer had been just that bit too glib. However, Andrea didn’t want to reveal the
real reason behind her decision - she would rather have the Major thinking it
was just chance than have to admit that.
“Does there have to be some great noble reason?” she asked, turning the
question back on the other woman. “Like
‘I wanted to help others’ or some such bollocks? No, there was no grand plan.
It was just something I fell into once I was down in London.”
The Major still didn’t look
convinced; perhaps thinking correctly that Andrea wasn’t the sort to do
anything without some sort of reason.
She didn’t pursue it though.
“And you’ve never thought about contacting your parents since? They might have mellowed or realised they
made a mistake pushing you away.”
“I have thought about it,”
confessed Andrea, “But they’re stubborn and I just know the reception I’m going
to get. I can almost see the
disapproving expression on my mother’s face when she asks if I’ve found a nice
young man yet and I have to tell her that I’m still a lesbian.”
“It’s sad to hear you’re so
estranged from them, that they couldn’t accept you for who you are.”
“Yeah, well their loss,” commented
Andrea dismissively. She was tired of
talking about it now. Discussing it
with the Major had made her realise that it was still painful to think about
the rejection she had felt at the time, and still felt to some extent. “How about you family?” she asked, wanting
to get off the depressing subject.
“My family?”
“Well, I shared my life story, it
seems only fair that you share in return.”
“There’s really not that much to
tell,” said the Major, “You already know about my father.”
Andrea considered that she didn’t
know that much beyond the fact that he came from Liverpool, had been in
the army, had a love of sailing and had died a year ago. However, she knew enough to know that the
last point was still a touchy subject for the Major, so she decided not to
press for further details right now.
“And your mother? Siblings?”
The Major’s eyes narrowed, though
they still carried a friendly glint to them.
“It’s my turn for the interrogation now is it? Have you got the tape recorder out too?”
“It’s hidden in my sock.”
The Major chuckled at Andrea’s
deadpan joke, and Andrea couldn’t help smiling in return rather pleased at
having the ability to make the other woman laugh.
“Well, the brief version is that I
had a fairly ‘normal’ upbringing,” outlined the Major, “If you count being
shipped round to various different army bases to follow my father’s postings
normal.”
“You could have based yourself in
one place though,” pondered Andrea, “Let him go off and do the soldier thing.”
“And break up the family
unit? Oh no, neither my mother or my
father would ever have stood for that.”
“It must be difficult for a child
though,” continued Andrea, “A new place to get used to, new friends to make on
a regular basis.”
“It was a bit I suppose,” allowed
the Major, “But you get used to it. And
it certainly makes you outgoing, all those fresh starts.”
Andrea studied the Major
doubtfully. “I can’t imagine you ever
being a shy child.”
The Major laughed again, a warm
throaty one this time. “No, I
wasn’t. I soon learnt to stand on my
own two feet. And there was always
Penny to keep me occupied too.”
“A pet?”
“My younger sister!” The Major was
chuckling to herself now and Andrea thought she could get used to seeing this
relaxed side of the other woman on a regular basis. “Though I did treat her like my little pet sometimes I
suppose.” The Major leaned in closer to
Andrea on the ledge. “Just don’t ever
tell her I told you so,” she added in a conspiratorial whisper despite the fact
there was no one else on the roof.
Andrea wondered when she would get
the chance to do so; it was hardly likely she would be introduced to the
Major’s sister at any point. Having
sidled closer, the Major had maintained her close position, and Andrea was
convinced she could feel the warmth radiating off the other woman’s body. Though she considered it could equally be
the proximity that had caused Andrea’s own body to heat up in response. At least she didn’t feel cold now. “You got on though,” she managed to say,
“Despite your tendency to treat your sister like a pet?”
“Yes, we were pretty close, still
are,” agreed the Major, “Though we couldn’t have been more different growing
up. She was always the mummy’s girl,
wanting to try on her clothes wear her make-up, whereas I was always much more
interested in the details of the latest tank my father was testing.”
“Sounds like you were a real
tomboy.”
The Major made a low chuckle as
she obviously thought back on it. “I
was terrible,” she agreed, “I think my mother despaired of ever getting me to
wear a skirt sometimes, other than to school.
I don’t think they were too surprised when I followed my father into the
army.”
“Though you did have that pit-stop
in academia,” recalled Andrea.
“Yes, well, I knew my mother was
rather concerned about my plans for joining the army, she already had one
person to worry about where that was concerned. So I made a deal with her that I would go to university first and
if at the end of that I still wanted to join then I could. I think she hoped the experience might
broaden my horizons a bit.”
“But it didn’t?”
The Major pursed her lips for a
moment before replying. “I have to say
I was tempted to pursue another career…”
“Besides being an astronaut,”
commented Andrea jokingly.
“Yes, besides that!” said the
Major, “But my heart had always been set on the army. So when I left it was straight to Sandhurst and the rest is
history.”
The Major had gone quiet for a
minute, glancing back up at the night sky again now. Andrea noted how the other woman had glossed over her entire
military career, but at the same time supposed she had gotten quite a lot out
of her already and wouldn’t press her for details of that for the time
being. Yet Andrea did want to know; she
wanted to know everything she could about the Major.
Andrea turned her eyes to the
stars too, feeling the faint breeze whispering across the rooftop. She tried to hold back the shiver that
threatened, not wanting to alert the Major to the fact that she was cold and risk
her suggesting that they go back in.
Andrea was enjoying this chance to spend some time alone and find out
more about the Major beyond just work.
At the same time, she couldn’t quite believe the things she had
confessed herself. Why she had felt the
need to unburden herself about her parents she didn’t know, but it surprised
her to find that it felt good to have confided in someone.
The Major’s voice eventually broke
the still of the night. “You never did
say why you were wandering around the base at this time of night. Having trouble sleeping were you?”
“Maybe I’m just a late night
person,” replied Andrea.
“And are you?”
Andrea looked over at the Major
who was regarding her keenly. “Ok,
maybe I was having a bit of trouble sleeping.
I just thought I’d come for a walk to clear my head.”
“Nightmares again?”
Despite the fact that she had
already confided in the Major that night, this was a little bit too sensitive a
subject. “I do already have one
counsellor you know, I don’t need another.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”
Andrea quirked an eyebrow. “Really?
You could have fooled me.”
The Major made a dismissive
gesture with her hand. “I was just
interested, maybe a little concerned, but it doesn’t matter.”
Andrea was touched that the Major
would be worried about her. “Sorry, I’m
just a bit touchy on that subject,” she said more gently.
“So how is the counselling’s
going? You had your first session with
Dr Shah last Friday didn’t you?”
“You didn’t get a full report
then?”
The Major merely raised both her
eyebrows, deciding she really didn’t need to answer the question.
“Just checking,” noted Andrea,
“Yes, it was fine, more of a ‘getting to know you’ session rather than anything
else. She seems nice enough though,
certainly a lot more sensitive than other people around here.”
“Oh?” said the Major, seemingly
wanting to know what Andrea was referring to.
“It doesn’t matter,” said Andrea
quickly. She had resolved to deal with
Chadwick on her own. For one she
thought she should be able to handle the big oaf herself, and for another she
wasn’t yet sure how loyal the Major was to the people under her command. Andrea suspected that the Major would defend
them with all her might. In that case
Andrea wasn’t convinced the other woman would believe her even if she did tell
her about the incident in Andrea’s quarters the week before. It wasn’t as if Andrea had any proof – it
would just be her word against his, since he would no doubt deny it.
However, the Major didn’t seem
like she was going to let it go that easily. “No, it does matter. If
you’re having trouble with someone I want to know about it.”
“It’s no one in particular,” said
Andrea, “Just the attitude of certain of the military personnel leaves a bit to
be desired sometimes.” She hoped the
answer was evasive enough.
“Well, if there is something
specific you’ll let me know?” the Major continued.
“Yes,” agreed Andrea. She didn’t like lying to the Major, but she
did have some pride.
“Because I take my responsibility
as commander of this base seriously, that means looking out for the soldiers,
the scientists and you superhumans too.”
Andrea decided it was best to try
and change tack, to avoid the need for further untruths. “I’ve been wondering, how comes you’re in
command of the base?”
The Major’s brows crinkled
together in a frown. “I beg your
pardon?”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean it quite
like that,” Andrea tried to explain, realising the question could have come
across as rather rude, “What I meant was you’re a Major, and a major wouldn’t
normally be in command of a whole base like this.”
“Been doing some research have
you?”
Andrea shrugged. “I like to know what I’m dealing with. You must be good if they’ve given you such a
responsibility above what would normally be entrusted to someone of your rank.”
“I do have to report to Colonel
Parsons, he’s the overall commander,” the Major outlined, “But I suppose they
must believe in my ability to run it in his absence, yes.”
“I guess they must since he’s not
here that often is he? I’ve only seen
him that once in the couple of months I’ve been here.”
“He spends most of his time at
Chicksands,” answered the Major, “That’s the corps’ headquarters. Though I do report to him on a near daily
basis.”
This was something else that had
been bugging Andrea, so she seized the opportunity to question the Major on
it. “Wants to know how training’s going
does he?”
“Yes, he is the overall commander
of this unit.”
“And how is training going?”
“Good,” replied the Major,
seemingly not wanting to give anything else away. Andrea got the feeling the other woman sensed she was being
probed for something specific.
Andrea carried on anyway. “And are we ready yet?”
“Sorry, you’ve lost me.”
Andrea doubted that. She thought the Major knew exactly what
Andrea was getting at. “Are we ready
for whatever it is you’re grooming us for.
I mean all this training can’t just be for our health can it. More and more we seem to be learning
military related information, tactics and the like.”
“That’s just because this is a
military base,” the Major reasoned, “It’s only sensible for you to have some
understanding of the sort of thing the other people here are trained in. And we have to do something with you in
between the lab work!”
Andrea thought there could be some
truth in what the Major was saying, but suspected there was more to it. “Then why is the Colonel so interested in
how it’s going?”
“Why indeed?” agreed the Major.
“You don’t know?” asked Andrea,
unable to hide her surprise.
“As you said before, I’m just a
major, I’m not always privy to the workings of my superior’s minds. But you’re right he does keep very close
tabs on the base.”
Something in the Major’s tone
alerted Andrea. “You don’t sound overly
happy about it.”
The Major regarded her for a
moment; her blue eyes studying Andrea intensely. Andrea got the feeling she was being silently assessed, to see
how much the Major could reveal. It was
all Andrea could do to maintain her own gaze and not glance away from the
piercing look. “In the main it’s great
running the base,” the Major finally said, “I just wish I had a slightly freer
hand sometimes without these added requirements to produce constant results and
reports.”
“Sounds like you’re under a bit of
pressure,” noted Andrea.
“Does it?” said the Major with a
small shrug before bringing her hand up to her temple and rubbing it, “I don’t
know, it’s late, I’m tired, I shouldn’t have said anything.”
Andrea was surprised, not for the
first time that night. For some reason
she had thought of the other woman as indestructible, but here she was
confessing to normal human failings just like everyone else.
“Anyway, at least I do have good
things to report at the moment,” continued the Major, “You seem to be doing
rather well in particular.”
Andrea hadn’t been expecting the
compliment so out of the blue and she couldn’t help blushing. Especially when the words had been coupled
with a soft look from the Major, her eyes still fixed on Andrea now.
“I’ve been most impressed by your
change in attitude the past few weeks,” the Major said, “And you seem to be
getting to grips with your powers too.
And I’m not the only one who’s noticed, Dr Todd’s had lots of good
things to say too.”
“Thanks,” managed Andrea, still
slightly abashed. She was also rather
concerned about the strange warm, tickling sensation in her stomach as she
received the praise from the other woman.
“I suppose I eventually saw the benefit of cooperating, it’s in my
interests to know how my powers work after all.”
The Major shook her head, though
Andrea could see she was actually smiling as she did. “It’s all right you don’t need to justify it, I’m not complaining
in the slightest. But it’s all right; I
won’t blow your rebellious cover with the others if you don’t want me to.”
Andrea smiled at the Major’s
assessment of her. It was true that she
did tend to cultivate her difficult persona more as a way of disarming other
people. “Well I don’t want to lose my
confrontational reputation completely, so I may as well ask if you’ve found
anything more out about the accident at the warehouse.”
The Major eyed her curiously. “What makes you think I’ve been looking into
it? I thought I told you on the boat
trip that I couldn’t been seen to be making waves.”
“True, you can’t be seen,” agreed
Andrea, now the one to study the Major’s face for signs that she had been
correct in her assumption. Apart from
the slightly narrowed eyes, though, the Major really wasn’t giving anything
away, her face set in its usual implacable expression. Andrea pressed on anyway. “That doesn’t stop you doing something below
the surface. I just got the feeling
that you wouldn’t be able to resist the mystery.”
“I’m not sure I’m happy being that
easy to read,” noted the Major.
Andrea felt a small sense of
triumph. “So you are looking
into it?”
“This is strictly between us all
right?” said the Major, waiting for Andrea to nod her understanding before
continuing. “Yes, I have put a few
feelers out, but I’ve not heard anything back yet.”
“I’m just grateful that someone is
looking into it,” said Andrea honestly, offering the Major a smile of thanks.
“The Colonel did say that someone
was anyway.”
“I mean someone I can trust,”
clarified Andrea. The words had come
out before she’d really thought about them, but even if she’d thought for
longer she realised they wouldn’t have been any different.
It was slightly disturbing to her
to discover that she felt the ability to trust the Major after having only
known her for a couple of months. The
Major herself had a small half-smile on her face, as if she was pleased at
Andrea’s comment. Andrea found her own
eyes drifting up the Major’s face, and as she got caught in the other woman’s
gaze, she wondered at her change in attitude over those two months. When Andrea had first arrived she’d been so
adamant that she wouldn’t cooperate and would get out of there as soon as
possible, yet now she found herself experiencing a certain degree of
trepidation at the thought of leaving.
She tried to maintain that the reason for her more compliant attitude
was that cooperating gave her a better chance to find out about the warehouse
accident, and that it served her own interests to know how her powers
worked. However, deep down she knew
they weren’t the only reasons. Looking
into those pale blue eyes, those other factors seemed inconsequential when
compared to the sense of satisfaction Andrea got from pleasing the Major.
As they simply stared at one
another the moment seemed to stretch on in Andrea’s mind though quite possibly
it was only a couple of seconds.
Neither of them looked away, in fact Andrea got the sense that it would
be more noticeable to do so and so she held the piercing gaze. Yet she also knew she couldn’t just sit
there staring like an idiot. She was
opening her mouth to break the awkward silence when something beat her to it,
the sound of breaking glass shattering the calm of the night.
“What the hell?” The Major was up and looking over the edge
in a flash.
Andrea swiftly followed, noticing
flames licking from a window on the ground floor. The Major meanwhile was already on her communicator.
“Activate the fire alarm,
now! There’s a fire in the kitchen!”
Then she was running for the door
to the stairs, and leaping down them two at a time, Andrea hurrying after
her. The sound of the alarm resounded
round the corridors as they sped along the hall and down the stairs to the
lower floor. As they reached the
corridor that contained the kitchen Andrea could see that a gaggle of soldiers
were already there, a couple of them attempting to douse the flames spitting
out the door with some fire extinguishers.
“Why haven’t the sprinklers
activated?” asked the Major as she got to them.
“I don’t know ma’am,” said one of
the soldiers, “We only just got here too.”
“Well, we’re never going to put it
out with those,” she said indicating the extinguishers. “Tardelli,” she barked into her
communicator. There was no immediate
response to her hail. She tried again,
but there was still nothing.
“Patel!” She called to the
nearest soldier.
“Yes, ma’am?” he replied standing
to attention in front of her.
“Go and find Tardelli and bring
her back down here.”
He gave a nod and dashed off to
find the young woman. The Major
meanwhile was instructing a couple of other soldiers to go and fetch the fire truck,
in case Patel couldn’t locate Tardelli quickly enough. Andrea was impressed by the way the Major
had completely taken charge in a few seconds.
The Major was now shielding her
eyes as she tried to look in the room in the face of the fierce blaze. Andrea tried to peer in too, though the heat
was intense. In amongst the fiery glow
there was form lying on the floor.
“There’s someone in there!” cried
Andrea, pointing for the Major to see.
“Shit!” exclaimed the Major,
glancing down the corridor where the soldiers had been dispatched. “Come on Tardelli,” she muttered under her
breath.
Andrea didn’t think they could
wait for the woman with the icy powers to arrive though. The inferno was already growing and whoever
it was might not have long. Without
waiting for approval she leapt into the room.
She heard the Major’s surprised
cry before a flash of flame shot out at her, causing her to stumble and fall to
the floor. The flames rolled over just
above her head, almost singing her hair in the process. The heat was searing, much hotter than she
could ever have imagined and a thought crossed her mind that maybe this hadn’t
been such a good idea after all.
Ignoring that, she turned to start crawling across the floor to the
slumped figure, quickly breaking out in a sweat as she did. The smoke was thick and black, clogging up
her lungs and making it hard for her to see her target as she felt her way
along the tiles. All around her there
was the sound of cracking and popping as the flames swept through the kitchen,
destroying the fixtures and fittings.
Reaching the person she saw it was the cook, Corporal Lister, and that
he was thankfully still alive. Hefting
him over her shoulder, she faced the thick wall of fire that now completely
blocked her exit via the door. A few
hacking coughs rattled through her as she sized up her options, the smoke now
stinging her eyes and the flames getting dangerously close. Then it suddenly dawned on her – if she
couldn’t leave by the door then she would just have to make her own exit.
Balling her fist, her eyes flicked
uncertainly from her hand to the wall next to her that was still untouched by
the fire. Could she really do it? Summoning her courage and pushing away the
logical thoughts that said it was impossible, Andrea hammered her fist into the
wall next to her. There was a loud
cracking as a jagged split shot along the paintwork. Andrea looked at the damage she had inflicted, relieved that she
hadn’t broken every bone in her hand with the punch. Dr Todd had informed her that she now had denser bones than the
average person and thankfully it seemed he was right. Andrea drew back her arm once again, this time putting all her
force behind the blow. The wall
exploded outwards in a shower of bricks and mortar and Andrea vaulted through
the new opening into the cool messhall that lay on the other side. She was just laying Lister down at a safe
distance from the fire, when the Major came hurtling into the room, no doubt
having heard Andrea’s escape.
She hurried over, bending down by
them. “Are you all right?” she asked,
her voice carrying a definite hint of anxiety.
Andrea turned her head from where
she was kneeling. “Yes, fine, though I
think Lister might have inhaled a fair bit of smoke.”
Suddenly there was a loud bang
from the kitchen and Andrea just caught sight of an object hurtling through the
hole in the wall.
“Get down!” cried the Major,
flinging herself at Andrea and knocking her to the floor as a canister whizzed
past their heads.
The Major watched as it impacted
into one of the tables splintering it into several pieces. Andrea didn’t follow her gaze; she was far
too preoccupied with thinking about the warm body now lying on top of her. The other woman was light, but still heavy
enough to press down on Andrea, her breasts rubbing lightly against Andrea’s
own through her thin and now exceedingly grubby t-shirt. Andrea’s mouth was suddenly dry and she
didn’t think it had anything to do with the heat of the fire - at least not the
one in the kitchen.
“That was close,” noted the Major,
turning her eyes back down to Andrea, her hair flopping down across her cheek.
Andrea could only nod dumbly in
response. The Major looked at her
quizzically, but before she could ask anything further there was a sudden icy
blast shooting out of the hole to the kitchen.
Tardelli had arrived. The fire
was extinguished in no time as the young woman put her power to produce ice to
good use. Now instead of raging heat
there was just a cold cloud emanating from the other room, tumbling out into
the messhall through the ugly gash in the wall.
The Major was staring at that now,
not seeming in a hurry to move from her current position. Andrea certainly wasn’t about to point out
that their bodies were still squeezed together if she hadn’t noticed. A sound at the door appeared to break the
Major out of her study and she quickly clambered up off Andrea as if suddenly
realising her inappropriate position.
Andrea followed her up, dusting herself down as a way to avoid eye
contact. Marching over to them were
some more soldiers, including Lieutenant Chadwick.
“What’s going on?” he asked as he
joined them.
Some of the other men were
hoisting Lister onto a stretcher as the Major replied in steely tones, perhaps
not appreciating the way Chadwick had practically demanded an answer. “That’s what I’d like to know,” she
commented. “For a start the fire alarm
and sprinklers should have gone off at the first sign of fire. I want a full investigation into this.”
Chadwick looked perplexed. “You don’t think it was an accident?”
“I’m not ruling anything out at
this stage,” the Major informed him, “Get the room sealed off, just in case
there’s any sort of evidence. We don’t
want everyone traipsing through there in their size tens.”
As the Major and Chadwick
continued talking, Andrea felt a bit like a spare wheel and started to drift
away from them. Now the excitement was
over she suddenly felt tired and decided to leave the military personnel to it. They seemed engrossed with the aftermath of
the fire anyway, and didn’t even notice her departure from the room. She had just turned a corner, heading for
the stairs to her quarters, when she felt a hand on her arm, pulling her round.
“Where are you going?” demanded
the Major, an edge of annoyance in her voice.
Andrea found herself rising to
meet the bristling tone. “To bed. Unless you have a problem with that?”
“I do as it happens,” replied the
Major fixing Andrea with one of her deathly stares, her hands now firmly thrust
upon her hips, “I want to know what you were thinking - leaping into the fire
like that!”
“I was thinking about saving
Lister’s life!” shot back Andrea.
“And what about your life? You may have super powers, but that doesn’t
mean you’re indestructible!”
“Someone had to do something!”
“And Tardelli did!”
“When she finally got here! Lister might not have lasted that long. Christ, you thought I might get a pat on the
back for saving him, not a full-on dressing down.”
They stared balefully at one
another, the fiery look being exchanged almost more intense than anything that
had been burning in the kitchen minutes earlier. The Major was clenching her teeth now, to rein in her anger. Andrea could tell by the way the small
muscle in the other woman’s cheek was fluttering just under the skin.
Finally the Major sighed, taking a
step back, since she had subconsciously imposed herself in Andrea’s personal
space. She pinched the bridge of her
nose as her expression softened.
“Sorry,” she said, resignedly, “Of course I’m grateful you saved
him. I just wish you’d think before you
acted sometimes, and considered your own safety a bit more.”
Andrea wondered at the Major’s
concern and the way she had dashed after Andrea - it seemed a bit of a delayed
overreaction. Or maybe it was her
tiredness causing her to act somewhat out of character. Andrea could see that the other woman was
rubbing at her nose again as she had a tendency to do when she was weary. It was nearly two in the morning after all.
“All right,” conceded Andrea
eventually, “I’ll check before I act next time, ok?”
“Thank you,” said the Major with a
dip of the head, “And I’d also like you to go to the medical bay and get
checked out before you go to bed.”
Andrea opened her mouth to argue
the point, but was cut off by a no-nonsense look from the Major. In the end she just sighed and nodded.
“Good, well I best get back,” the
Major said, making a small subconscious pat of Andrea’s arm before she turned
to go.
Andrea watched the Major
disappearing towards the kitchen, still musing over her behaviour before she
turned for the lift to take her downstairs.