“We … uh … were just leaving, weren’t we, Sydney?” Jennie said, rising abruptly to her feet.
“That’s right,” the cameraman echoed, following her example. “Thanks for the dinner, Captain. Nice seeing you again, Colonel.”
“That was really unnecessary, Colonel,” Phule murmured as the two left. “Jennie and Sydney are okay.”
“Forgive me if I don’t share your love of the media, Captain,” Battleax growled, her pasted-on smile slipping away, “but my own experiences with members of the fifth estate have been less than pleasant.”
“So, to return to my original question,” the commander said, “what are you doing on Lorelei? Forgive me, but I hadn’t expected to see you-or anyone else from Headquarters, for that matter.”
“I was on Brookston when I caught the media coverage of your arrival here,” the colonel explained, “and realized why Blitzkrieg was so eager for me to take my vacation. Since I was having trouble figuring out what to do with my off time, anyway, I thought I’d drop by to see how things were going.”
Phule made a few mental calculations and realized that to make the trip from Brookston to Lorelei by commercial transport, Battleax would have had to start her journey almost immediately upon seeing the newscast. Despite his surprise at her appearance, he was nonetheless touched by her obvious concern for himself and his troops.
“It was good of you to come,” he said, “but we pretty much have things under control. I can probably get you a complimentary room, though, for the balance of your vacation. I have an `in’ with the management here, and Lorelei really is a spectacular place.”