The Long Black (The Black Chronicles Book 1)
Page 28
“My info doesn’t say. Apparently the captain was less concerned with that than getting you off her crew.” Captain Rain was whispering, but even so it was clear there were things he was pointedly not saying.
“I. . . did not,” Morgan said. “It was tempting, sure. They get a lot more respect than I did. A lot more money too.”
“Indeed. More danger, as well, but given what I’ve heard I suppose that wouldn’t deter you.”
“Okay, what happened?” Gertrude demanded, of both of them.
“Pirates, Chief, pirates,” Captain Rain answered. “And a bit of crazy quick thinking on our friend’s part that very well may have saved the day. It definitely saved some lives, at the very least.”
Morgan was blushing so hard that Gertrude could see it, dark skin or no.
“It was nothing.”
“It was enough to drive your captain into fits with the aftermath. That alone would have endeared you to me, if I wasn’t already so inclined.”
“Excuse me, Captain, but why are you here?” Gertrude asked, looking back and forth between the two of them.
“Is it not normal for a captain to welcome back one of his officers, after distinguishing herself so nobly?”
“His what?” Gertrude and Morgan said at the same time.
“Officer. Fourth Lieutenant, to be precise.”
“Wait,” Morgan said, “Fourth Lieutenant? Did you invent a new position while we were out? Our ships only have three.”
“Normally, yes,” Captain Rain said, nodding, “The Fourth Lieutenant is a training position, there to help the other three with their duties to give them enough extra time to train the new lieutenant on what the job requires. This also lets us be sure the new officer can do the job before putting them actually in charge.”
“Isn’t that a little too big a jump?” Morgan asked.
“If you think you can’t handle it. . .”
“No, no, I’ll take it,” Morgan quickly said. “What about Gertrude? She still needs my help, and she’ll be departing with the Daystar Fading in just a few weeks.”
Captain Rain waved his hand dismissively.
“We’ve got that all figured out. We knew this was coming, remember? In four months the Beacon of Twilight will be back from its run, a few weeks before Steve leaves next. Until then the Chief here will help us get ready and help out while we get you trained on your new duties. I assure you, having the wee one in Steve’s daycare a few hours each day will go much better than your other options. If there are any problems we’ll deal with them.”
“What do you think, G?” Morgan asked.
Gertrude found herself smiling quite widely.
“I think it sounds excellent,” she paused for just a moment, winking briefly, “sir.”
THE END
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
J. M. Anjewierden spends his days hawking others’ books in his job for the Salt Lake County Library System. It’s a job he loves, and being able to recommend good books is a big part of that. He has a degree in English from the University of Utah, and nearly a Masters of Library Science from the University of North Texas.
He presently lives in Sandy, Utah with his wife, who is expecting their first child.
This is his first novel.
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 01
CHAPTER 02
CHAPTER 03
CHAPTER 04
CHAPTER 05
CHAPTER 06
CHAPTER 07
CHAPTER 08
CHAPTER 09
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18