The Gauntlet. Lindsay McKenna
He stood imperiously, hands on his hips, while he glared down at her.
“Yes, Lieutenant Martin?”
“You see the pair-up list?”
Molly hesitated. “You mean who we fly with?”
“Hell, yes. That list, Rutledge!”
“Lieutenant, there’s no need to shout. Obviously, you’re upset about something.”
His nostrils flaring, Martin jabbed his finger in her direction. “Damn straight, I am. You’re assigned to me for the first test flight on Wednesday.”
Molly saw the door open, and Cam Sinclair silently enter the room. Her lips parted, and she looked between the two men. Cam stood just inside the door, poised and listening. Evidently, Martin hadn’t noticed his entrance. “I don’t make up the schedule, Lieutenant Martin,” Molly said without rancor.
“You’re the last person I want to fly with, Rutledge. You’re a woman. You can’t possibly have a handle on testing.” He gestured violently toward the printout sheets surrounding her. “Paper chase, that’s all you’re playing, and at my expense. Within a month, you’ll be out of here. You aren’t qualified to be a flight engineer in any way, shape or form. The whole damn thing’s a sham, and I’m gonna pay for it!”
Cam’s eyes narrowed as he heard the anger in Martin’s lowered voice. His glance flicked to Molly. All week, he’d tried avoiding her. It had been nearly impossible. Curious how she would handle Martin’s second attack, Cam stood quietly, his arms folded across his chest. Molly knew he was there. Would she alert Martin? If she were smart, she wouldn’t. Let Martin tip his hand. Still, Molly ought to be standing up and defending herself better. Sitting at the desk, her blond hair in mild disarray, she looked like a college ingenue, not an engineer.
“Lieutenant, I’m sorry you feel that way,” Molly stated quietly.
“My career hinges on you!” Martin exploded in exasperation. “You don’t get it, do you? Hell, you can get knocked up, have a kid and get out. Me, I’ve gotta stick around. Flying is my whole life. You see this as some kind of game that can be played while it’s easy, knowing you can walk away from it any time you damn well please.”
Molly saw Sinclair’s face remain passive. Wasn’t he going to interfere? And then she realized he wasn’t, because this was her fight. “I can assure you, Lieutenant, the Navy is my career, too,” Molly said determinedly. “I just survived four years at Annapolis on my own merits. And as for getting pregnant and asking for a medical discharge, that’s not in my plans. I’m here because I want to be a good flight engineer. Why can’t we throw down the red flag and be friends? We’re bound to work together sooner or later.”
“Yeah, well, I guess it’s sooner. Someone at TPS has got it in for me. I suppose you went to your ‘significant other’ and complained, and that’s why I got it in the neck with this flight assignment.”
Molly refused to get angry. “I don’t have a ‘significant other’ here at TPS, Lieutenant,” she said coolly. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got work to do—and so do you.”
Martin cursed and his hand snaked out. He gripped her shoulder.
Molly flinched, feeling his fingers dig deeply into her. She opened her mouth to protest, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sinclair react instantly.
“Martin,” Cam whispered tautly, coming up behind him, “I suggest you get your hand off Ensign Rutledge. Right now.” What was the idiot going to do? Take a swing at her? Cam took a step back and tensed, almost expecting Martin to turn and punch him. The pilot’s face was livid when he whirled around. When he saw who it was, he looked startled.
“Captain Sinclair…”
“What were you going to do, Martin?”
“Er, nothing, sir.” Martin backed away and shrugged weakly. “We…uh, were just talking.”
His tone lethal, Cam said, “Let’s get a couple of things ironed out here and now, Martin. Ensign Rutledge has the finest academic record of all the students in this class, pilot or engineer. Got that?”
Martin jerked his head in a nod.
“Second, she has a degree in aeronautical engineering. Do you?”
“No, sir—”
“Third, the commandant makes out the flight schedule weekly. You will be flying with every test engineer a number of times, including Ensign Rutledge. Now, I suggest that if you’ve got a problem with the assignment, you talk to him directly.”
Martin took another step back, pale. “Yes, sir.”
“Dismissed, Martin.”
Molly cringed at the iciness of Sinclair’s voice. A chill worked its way up her spine. He’d positioned himself near her chair, facing off with Martin.
“Yes, sir!” Martin spun on his heel and left promptly.
Molly released a breath of air, giving Cam a grateful look. “Thank you, Captain.”
Cam stared at her. He saw the turmoil in her huge green eyes. Yet her voice was unruffled—soft, without any indication of how troubled she was by Martin’s attack. And an attack was what it had been. “You have a problem, Miss Rutledge.”
Molly blinked belatedly. “Problem?”
“Why didn’t you defend yourself?”
Sinclair was pulverizingly male in a way that shook her. Molly turned around in her chair, facing him squarely. “I did.”
Cam shook his head. “That’s twice Martin’s attacked you.”
“He’s upset, that’s all.”
“And you weren’t?”
“Of course, but—”
“What’s it take to get you to raise your voice and really defend yourself?”
Shocked, Molly stared at him for a long, painful minute. “Captain, just because I’m not one of ‘the boys’ and don’t choose to act in an aggressive manner doesn’t mean I can’t defend myself.”
“Really?” Cam drawled. “What were you going to do when Martin grabbed you by the shoulder? Sweetly ask him to let go?”
“I suppose you think my retaliation should have been a fist in his face?”
Cam nearly smiled. Nearly. So, she had some spunk, after all. “That would have been against regulations.”
“I’m glad one of you macho jet jocks thought of that.”
His mouth twitched. For the first time, Cam felt like laughing. It was a breathless discovery. Molly Rutledge sat there with that spun-gold hair, in her rumpled olive-green flight uniform and black boots, looking positively beautiful and defiant.
“So, what would you have done if I hadn’t stepped in to save you?”
Molly eyed him. “Save me? I had everything under control, Captain. Sooner or later, Lieutenant Martin would have eased off the throttle. I wasn’t giving him a reason for further aggression.”
Cam shook his head. “Lady, you’ve got a lot to learn here at TPS. Don’t you understand that flight engineers have to defend themselves at all times? You’re responsible for the test that’s flown. A pilot can make your test look good or bad. And many times it’s hard to prove who’s at fault. Believe me, in the debriefing room after the flight, I see the test-pilot students trying to blame the engineer’s flight program for their poor performances.”
“I know pilots don’t always fly well, Captain. They have bad days, too.”
“A friendly piece of advice, Miss Rutledge—protect and fight for your territorial rights at