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"I'd gotten used to giving orders," Megan said, finally. "And I've got a
question; who's in charge here?"
"Oh," Herzer said, blowing out a breath. "In all honesty, I suppose you are.
You're the Keyholder."
"True," Megan replied, shaking her head. "But I'm not the rightperson to be
in charge. I wouldn't have known to contact...Colonel Carson and I wouldn't
have known to ask for...that officer you asked for. So what are we doing?"
Herzer thought about it for a moment, scratching his chin with his prosthetic
and then nodded, sharply.
"Council Members, with a few exceptions, are responsible for strategic
decisions, not operational or tactical, agreed? And, with the exception of
Duke Edmund, they are defined as civilians, not military."
"Agreed," Megan said. "So you're saying I get strategic calls and you get
operational and tactical? I get civilian, you get military?"
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"When we're prepping the mission and when we're on the mission, I'm in
charge," Herzer said, bluntly. "Up and until we come to a strategic decision.
Then you make the call and I carry it out. Agreed?"
"Agreed," Megan said.
"Now," Herzer said, delicately. "What the hell was that with Mike?"
Megan's face worked again and Herzer just waited.
"He has a tendency to piss me off," Megan admitted. "And the whole 'me man,
me work, you woman, take care of babies and cook' really..."
"Triggered something?" Herzer asked.
"You could say that," Megan admitted with a breathless chuckle.
"Very...strong stab of anger."
" 'Irrational' stab of anger?" Herzer asked.
"Oh, I dunno," Megan said, smiling unhappily. "I think it was pretty
rational, don't you?"
"The degree?" Herzer asked.
"No."
"You know what was happening there?" Herzer asked, carefully.
"I'd analyzed it myself the moment you brought it up," Megan said, bitterly.
"Thank you."
"There is going to be a lot of stress on this mission," Herzer pointed out.
"A lot of tension. Probably a fair degree of shouting. Certainly orders that
are going to have to be acted on, sometimes without thinking about it. There
isnot room for someone who is not in control of their emotions."
"I'm in perfect control," Megan said, coldly.
"No, you're not," Herzer replied, gently. "Not if Mike can get you that angry
by just being...Mike. Stress is not cumulative, it's multiplicative. There's
small background stress, then you another stress on and another and finally
there's that one that sends you right up to the brink of loss of control, or
over. And life threatening stress is worse than what we've been dealing with.
If you panic, up there..." his jaw worked and Megan reached up to stroke it.
"You'll lose me," she whispered. "Are you trying to find a reason for me not
to go on this mission?"
"I'm not willing to lose you," Herzer replied, tightly. "I don't, frankly,
give a damn about the Key. I'm not willing to lose you, Megan Travante.I'm
not. Hell, for that reason if no other, one or the other of us shouldn't be on
this mission. And, of the two, I think you're the one to worry about."
"Herzer," Megan said, "I'm strong, okay? And we'reboth coming back from this
mission. Get that through your head."
"You're strong," he admitted. "But you've got weird stress points. And you
get stubborn. I won't have time to let you work things out for yourself up
there," he added, pointing.
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"What about when I tellyou to do something or not to do something?" Megan
asked. "When it's astrategic decision."
"You tell me to jump off the damned ship, and I will," Herzer said,
definitely. "But you'd better have a damned good reason."
"I won't ever ask you to do that," Megan said, chuckling.
* * *
"Ten'hut!" someone bellowed as Herzer walked in the orderly room of the Blood
Lord headquarters.
"At ease," he bellowed. "Where's the captain?"
"In there, sir," one of the sergeants in the room said, gesturing at the rear
door.
Herzer knocked on the door and entered at a bellowed "Come."
"Hey, Bus," he said as the captain started to get to his feet. "Chill. When'd
you pin on your third pip?"
"Last month," the captain said. "Congratulations on your promotion, sir."
Captain Van Buskirk was nearly as large and broad as Herzer but where Herzer
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