Security - Keith R. A. DeCandido [31]
“Yes, Commander.” Soloman bobbed his bald head.
“Tev, you and I will recalibrate the warp field.”
The Tellarite started to say something, then stopped. “Of course, Commander.”
Maybe he is getting better, Gold thought with a smile. It’s just a work in progress.
“Sir,” Corsi said, “if we don’t find them in the seven minutes we have, then we have to come back.” She didn’t phrase it as a question.
“Yes,” Gomez said, “but then we can take another shot half an hour later. We’ll find them, one way or another.”
“That’s what I want to hear,” Gold said before Corsi could do her wet-blanket impersonation again. “Let’s find our people. Dismissed.” As everyone rose from their chairs, Gold said, “Corsi, stay a minute, would you please?”
“Of course.” Corsi gave Stevens a look, followed by a smile. It was a pleasant smile, and one Gold had never seen on his security chief’s face while on duty before—and damn rarely off duty, either.
Once they had the room to themselves, Gold said, “I hear tell you ran the new recruit through the Galorndon Core scenario.”
Corsi’s face clouded over. “Sir, I was under the impression that security was my responsibility.”
“It is—and the da Vinci’s my responsibility. I just want to make sure that you aren’t pushing your people too hard.”
Stiffly, Corsi said, “I’m not pushing them any harder than reality will push them, sir.”
“I only signed off on that scenario even being installed because it came with a notation that it would only be used for ten-year veterans. Kim’s service record indicates that he hasn’t been in the service for ten years.”
“No, sir.” Corsi shook her head, and smiled once again. “I actually met him ten years ago, on Izar, and he was just a kid. Sir, I had some—some concerns about Kim when he signed on. That’s why I ran him a bit rough. Those concerns have been addressed, however, and it won’t be happening again.”
“Good.” Gold looked at the door through which Stevens had walked a few minutes before. “So, is there anything else going on I need to know about? Say between you and Stevens?”
She stiffened up again. “Nothing that will affect my duty, sir.”
“That wasn’t what I asked, Corsi. Humor an old man, will you?”
Again, she relaxed; again, she smiled. “You asked if there was anything you need to know about, sir.”
Gold laughed. “Fair enough. I trust both your judgments. Just be careful, Corsi. I don’t think anybody on this ship needs to be reminded—”
“No, sir, I don’t—in fact, I need that reminder less than anyone else, quite frankly.” She stiffened yet again. Gold thought she was going to strip her treads, switching gears so often like that. Then she relaxed yet again. “But I’ll be careful, sir—we both will.”
“Good. Dismissed.”
Nodding, Corsi departed the observation lounge. Smiling, Gold headed for the bridge. His people were on the case, and he had every confidence in their ability to do their jobs.
Corsi stood in the transporter room, Angelopoulos and Kim by her side, with Poynter, Gomez, and Tev all standing at the transporter station. Corsi thought that was overkill, especially since the transporter was on automatic—all they could do was monitor what was happening, and Poynter could do that just as easily—but she understood why Gomez and Tev would want to be present when the doctors were rescued.
If they were rescued.
It was, of course, as likely as not that the Missouri didn’t survive the encounter with the alien device, that the debris that Pattie found was all that was left of it, and of the two doctors.
Corsi had insisted on a team’s being present, and since it was alpha shift, that meant her, Kim, and Angelopoulos. She regarded the two younger men; they both were in full at-attention mode, hands hovering close to their sidearms.
Taking a breath, she made a decision.
“While I’ve got a minute,” she said quietly to the two of them, “I just wanted to say something. Kim, I know I’ve been a little hard