Suns (LGBT - Sci-fi - Romance)

Chapter 4

Chapter 4 

"Lieutenant Connell," Rice nodded with cool formality, showing no other sign that he recognised him from their earlier meeting. He must have, of course, but he wasn't going to acknowledge it. 

"Ah, Captain Rice, sir," Connell managed to force the words out. God what a disaster. He had tried to hit on his Captain. He had tried to hit on Colonel Rice's son. It was probably just as well Rice was acting as if this was their first meeting. The man in front of him now was strictly professional, his eyes hard, mouth set in a firm line, bearing no resemblance to the man who had laughed at his own misfortune not long ago. 

"I hope you don't make a habit of being late, Lieutenant." Rice reproved coldly. 

Connell opened his mouth to protest then thought better of it. "No sir, I'm sorry." Perhaps Rice was as thrown by the meeting as he was. He should give him a bit of leeway. 

When Connell reported for duty the next day, he was still tossing up whether to refer to their earlier meeting or not. He entered the Captain's office with a tentative smile, hoping that Rice might relax a little when they were alone, that the man he had found so attractive might reappear.  

Rice got in first with a cold expression that wiped the smile from the other man's face. "Come in Lieutenant. Please close the door behind you." Scarcely waiting for Connell to turn back to him, Rice continued. "I see from your records you are homosexual." He raised an eyebrow as if waiting for an answer. 

"Uh. Yes sir, that's right." He was getting a bad feeling about this. 

"I'll tell you frankly I don't approve of allowing homosexuals into the Patrol, they cause too much trouble." 

Connell was silent, he couldn't think of anything to say which wouldn't be seen as insubordinate. Now he was holding himself as tightly controlled as the other man, he had obviously made a huge mistake the other night. This man wasn't remotely interested in him, in fact he looked as if he despised him. 

Rice was regarding him rather as if he was something unpleasant he had nearly stepped in. "I'll be keeping a close eye on you. The first hint of any inappropriate behaviour and you'll be out of my station. Do I make myself clear?" 

"Yessir." Arguing with a superior officer would only make things worse. Connell bit his tongue to stop from saying any of the things he was bursting to. He didn't know whether Rice didn't like him because he was an om or whether it was because Liam Connell was his father. He certainly hadn't appeared to dislike him the previous night, before they had been introduced. He wondered what the Colonel had said about him to cause that reaction. 

XXX 

Colonel Rice had a bad feeling about this whole business. He had tried, both openly and covertly, to have Stefan promoted to another star system for his first command. Anywhere in fact, except the Alnath system. 

"I don't want you to go to Aykut, your presence there might stir up ..." he had paused, searching for the right words. Stefan knew most of the story of course but there were still quite a few things he had kept secret for his own good. He gave up hunting for the right words. "Might stir up all sorts of things that are better left alone. Isn't there another position you could take?" 

But Stefan, usually so obedient, had dug his heels in. 

"I have to face up to the past sooner or later Dad," he had said firmly. "It might as well be now. It's been over twenty years," he had added persuasively. "It's probably ancient history for most people, I doubt it will be as big a problem as you think."  

Rice had smiled grimly, "I hope not, for your sake." Then he'd gone behind Stefan's back to try and pull a few strings to get him moved but to no avail. There simply had been no other Captaincies available. 

He had tried to make the best of it, warning him against Nick Connell, just in case he ran into him on Aykut. 

"Steer clear of Connell at any rate. He's an om, so associating with him won't do your reputation any good apart from the fact he's the person most likely to try and make trouble for you." 

"Yes Dad," Stefan had agreed absently, already thinking ahead to the excitement and challenges of his first command, even though it was only a post on a small space station. 

Rice wished futilely he could explain to Stefan exactly how Connell might make trouble for him, but he had decided years ago what version of events he was going to tell Stefan, and now he was stuck with his own story. Maybe he was worrying unnecessarily, the last he had heard, Connell was Third Lieutenant on the Tamar. It was quite possible he and Stefan would never meet. 

XXX 

Unfortunately things didn't get any better with Captain Rice and all Connell could do was try to be as professional as possible and keep out of his way. It appeared Rice was an officer who liked to do things by the book. He was stiff and formal with the men, strict and unyielding with those charged with an offence, who came before him. Perhaps he was merely over-compensating, a young man trying to show he was in control of his first command. If Connell had had a better relationship with him, he might have taken him aside for a quiet chat over a drink, but he knew any attempt to intervene would be seen as a personal attack.  

Ser Mitcham and other senior businessmen rather approved of the new Captain's authoritarian style, but there were many who resented it, who spoke fondly of Captain Okiro's more laid back methods. Not that Okiro had been easy, as Bill Thorpe, an occasional drunken brawler, confided to his mates but a day or two of mending the furniture he had broken and cleaning up the bar was much more reasonable than a fine that he didn't know how he was going to pay. Tam Wilson wasn't particularly happy either when he had to hire someone to make repairs to his front bar. 

Connell soon found himself in an awkward position. The other men at the station preferred to see him with any problems or cases they wanted to discuss, rather than going directly to the Captain, and he had to tread very carefully not to undermine Rice's authority. He felt as if he was walking a tightrope.