Seawolf Mask of Command (23 page)

But the XO had already heard his wife and came over. “What is it, Babe?”

Kristen stood uncomfortably as Penny explained her dilemma.

“No problemo,” Graves assured them easily. “I’ll get my keys.”

But Penny put a firm hand on her husband’s chest. He was a good foot and a half taller than she, and he probably outweighed her by a hundred pounds. But the way she stopped him left no doubt who ruled the Graves’ residence. “Uh-uh,” Penny said firmly. “Not so fast. How many beers have you had?”

“Just a couple,” he replied with a meek smile. “I’m fine.”

“Oh, no you’re not, Jason Abner Graves,” Penny told him emphatically, making it clear he was going nowhere. “And don’t make me call Sean over here,” she threatened.

“Call Sean about what?” Brodie asked as he appeared unexpectedly, having just come in from playing with the kids.

Kristen hadn’t noticed him enter and, like he had a nasty habit of doing on the submarine, he had appeared as if out of nowhere. Kristen stiffened slightly, almost coming to attention as her captain joined the conversation. Then, much to Kristen’s dismay, Penny explained the situation to Brodie, adding that none of the officers were likely to offer her a ride considering the way their wives were acting.

Brodie understood without a lengthy explanation. “I’m heading back to the base,” he said simply and jerked a thumb over his shoulder toward his bike parked out front. “You can ride with me.”

“Sir?” Kristen responded with alarm to the unexpected invitation.

“Thanks, Sean,” Penny said, settling the matter and giving Brodie a kiss goodbye.

“No sweat,” Brodie returned her kiss. He then glanced at the television and the final score. “Looks like we licked’em again,” he commented.

“No thanks to you,” Graves chided his friend as he walked with Brodie to the front door. “You didn’t watch a single play.”

Kristen, not entirely certain she wanted to be alone with her captain—or anyone for that matter—on the back of a motorcycle followed, suppressing her panic.

“How many times do I have to remind you,” Brodie teased his XO. “Football is a game for fat men and wimps. Now, if you want to play a real sport, meet me on the rugby pitch sometime.”

“Rugby?” Graves mocked dismissively as they walked out the front door. The day was unseasonably warm, with the temperature in the low fifties. “Isn’t that a game guys wearing skirts play back in England?”

Brodie just smiled, paused and turned back to look at Kristen who was still rooted to the floor just inside the house. She’d never been on a motorcycle before and considered this a condition she would like to maintain.

“Coming, Lieutenant?”

Oh, shit.

Bremerton, Washington

“S
ir,” his newest lieutenant said nervously, “I’ve never driven a motorcycle before.”

Brodie chuckled as he straddled the bike. “If it’s all the same to you, Lieutenant,” he replied, “I’ll handle the driving part. All you have to do is hold on, relax, and enjoy the ride.”

She finished pulling on a pair of gloves Penny had lent her along with a scarf so she wouldn’t get too cold during the brief ride back to the base. Cautiously, she slipped onto the bike behind him, and Brodie could almost sense her nervousness. He’d taken quite a few people for their first motorcycle ride before, and he’d expected her apprehension. He then felt her gingerly grasp his waist.

“You might want to grip a little tighter, Lieutenant. I wouldn’t want you slipping off the back,” he advised. Most first time passengers had no idea what to expect or just how hard to hold on. But he assumed she would relax once they were on the road, and she realized he wasn’t going to be hot-dogging it.

Graves gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder, and Brodie shook his friend’s offered hand. “I’ll see you in the morning, Sean.”

Brodie just nodded his head in reply and then started up the big 1250 cc Revolution engine of his V-Rod. The bike was his only excess. He owned no car, no house, nothing but the bike, and a couple of bags of clothing. It’d been all he’d ever needed since his divorce.

He gave Jason, Penny, and the kids a slight wave. Then, checking to make certain his newest officer was ready, he accelerated away easily, taking it slow and giving her a chance to get comfortable before they reached the highway. With the
Seawolf
all but ready for sea, Brodie had hoped to take the V-Rod out for a lengthy ride, and the unexpectedly warm day provided the perfect opportunity. The detour back to the base to drop Kristen off would be only a minor inconvenience. But he didn’t mind. The feel of the powerful engine responding to his touch and the throaty roar of the engine helped him relieve tension.

And if he’d ever needed a stress reliever, now was the time.

The National Command Authority wanted the
Seawolf
at sea, not tied up pier side. The Chief of Naval Operations himself was demanding daily updates on the progress. So, Brodie had not only been attending daily briefings from members of the CIA, the NSA, DIA, and Naval Intelligence, but he’d been forced to fight daily with his squadron commander to expedite the repairs. All this combined with what was shaping up to be a real nightmare of a deployment, had pushed his nerves to the very edge.

But he’d always liked the edge. It was where he felt most alive.

He slowed down and came to a stop at a traffic light and glanced back. “You okay, Lieutenant?”

“Yes, sir,” she answered, but he could hear the anxiety in her voice.

“Just try to relax,” he reminded her. “Scoot forward a little more. That’ll help you keep your balance, and don’t be afraid to hold on a little tighter. I won’t break.”

“Yes, sir,” she replied, tentatively adjusting her position closer to him.

“Also, when we come to a turn, just lean into it with me, got it?”

She nodded her head under the helmet and gave him a forced smile which caused him to chuckle to himself. She’d gone through literal hell to make it to the
Seawolf,
fighting everyone from the Secretary of the Navy to her peers for the right to serve her nation. Yet riding a bike was making her nervous!

He came to another traffic light a few minutes later and again glanced back. “You doin’ okay?”

“Yes, sir,” she responded, with a little more confidence this time.

“Think you’re ready for the highway?” he asked, knowing the highway would take them right next to the main gate.

“Yes, sir,” she answered, forcing excitement into her voice. He’d been watching her closely since she’d come on board, as he did all his officers. The hellcat he’d briefly seen in his cabin during their first meeting had yet to reveal itself again, and she was playing her cards close to the vest. Which he figured he understood. She was a minority, and minorities tended to try to fly under the radar. However, just like Jason, who—despite his bad knee—was the best friend and executive officer Sean could have ever hoped for—and Gibbs, Brodie had always cottoned to those who didn’t walk the straight and narrow corridors of convention.

He accelerated toward the on ramp, picking up speed smoothly as he shifted gears. Brodie had been riding since he was a kid, and it was—besides being on a submarine—his greatest pleasure. He accelerated into traffic but kept his speed down so as not to cause her to get too uncomfortable. Once cruising at a satisfying sixty miles per hour, he glanced back. “How ya doin’ back there?”

“Good,” she answered sounding a little more relaxed. The death grip she’d had on his waist when they first accelerated up the on ramp had subsided, and he could feel the tension in her arms lessen somewhat.

Brodie felt his own body relaxing as he let the concerns and responsibilities that were part of a captain’s life fade away while they cruised comfortably back to the base. It took only a few minutes before they approached the off ramp. He decelerated and pulled off the highway, turning in toward the main gate. “How was it?” he asked her as he stopped at the gate to flash his identification.

“That was awesome,” she replied with apparent glee.

He looked back at her with a curious eye, not having expected such a positive reaction. Her persona was so reserved, so completely in control at all times, he hadn’t expected her to relax so quickly. Then he considered just how much pressure she’d been under for the last few years. No friends, no one to commiserate with, no one to trust… If anyone needed some time to unwind it was her. They pulled through the gate, and he cruised slowly down the main road. “Where to, Lieutenant?” he asked, not certain where her barracks was.

“Are you kidding?” she asked. “If I had my choice, we would still be on the highway, sir!”

Brodie chuckled, knowing exactly what she meant. “Are you sure you weren’t too cold?”

“No, not at all!” she insisted.

Brodie could feel her warmth now against his back, which made the ride just that much more enjoyable considering the cool temperature in the air. He’d been planning a short road trip ever since the previous evening when the last major repair was completed and it became clear they would have the
Seawolf
ready on time. Mount Olympus National Park was close by, and Brodie had always enjoyed the ride around the park, especially the Pacific view in the late afternoon when the sun set. He glanced at her in the mirror. Her eyes were smiling though her visor. She’d clearly loosened up.

On a whim, he tapped the brakes and decelerated, pulling into an opening in the median. “Back to the highway it is,” he replied, making up his mind. He half expected her to argue, but instead he saw her eyes open a little wider with excitement.

Thirty minutes later, Brodie was as relaxed as he could remember. Thoughts of Russian sub sorties, North Korean saber rattling, and the mission ahead had faded to the back of his mind. He had one hand on the throttle and the other on his thigh, cruising along Highway 101 with Puget Sound and Canada off to his right and Mount Olympus on his left. He could hardly have been happier.

Kristen had been anxious at first, but after thirty minutes, she was now ignoring her usual caution and just enjoying the ride as Brodie had advised. Initially, she’d been extremely uncomfortable with the close physical proximity between them. But a combination of the throaty rumble of the bike, his clear expertise, and the wonderful view had allowed her to unwind more than she could remember.

She’d been surprised when he’d turned around and headed back off base. She’d assumed he would take her on a short ride and then turn around. But, every time she thought he might be about to turn back, he just kept going. And with each mile, she could feel the tension fade little by little. She’d noticed the same with him. Like her, at first he’d been tense, the muscles beneath the riding jacket tight and constricted. But the further away from the base they rode, the more at ease he became, mimicking her own feelings as she found the methodical rumble of the engine acting like a tonic on her nerves.

After the second hour, Kristen might have relaxed a bit too much she decided when a sudden change in the pitch of the engine and then a slow deceleration caused her to start slightly. She’d almost fallen asleep. She looked around and saw they were now on the Pacific side of the mountain, and Brodie was pulling off the road on to a small clearing.

Kristen then saw the sun. It was just beginning to reach the horizon, and the Pacific was illuminated in a brilliant splash of color. Brodie came to a halt and turned off the engine. Kristen, assuming he was stopping for the view, slid off the back, removed her helmet and looked out toward the setting sun. “Oh, my,” she offered.

“It’s really something, isn’t it?” he agreed from where he sat on the bike.

Kristen pulled her long hair back out of her eyes and stretched her legs as she admired the sunset. “How did you find this place?” she asked as she stretched.

“Oh, I came across it a few years ago,” he admitted.

“Do you come here often?” she asked, having forgotten the customary “sir.”

“Hardly at all,” he replied with a hint of sadness. “But, if you think that’s something, take a look over your shoulder,” he advised.

Kristen turned away from the setting sun and saw him seated jauntily on his hog with one leg cocked over the seat and looking incredibly at ease. For a brief moment she thought he’d been referring to himself, and she felt a curious sensation develop deep within her. It was an odd feeling, like nothing she’d previously experienced. But no sooner did she take note of him and his rugged good looks, she realized he wasn’t talking about himself at all. Instead, he was referring to the way the setting sun and the burning ocean caused the snow-capped mountain behind him to shine like gold. Kristen felt herself gasp at the heavenly beauty of the mountain bathed in shimmering light.

“The word breathtaking comes to mind, but it doesn’t quite seem adequate enough,” she offered.

He was looking up at the mountain, his head turned away from her. He glanced back and she saw a genuine smile on his face. Previously, on the submarine, he’d always been remote, in control, untouchable. Some distant paragon of cold resolve.