Read Online He Who Dares: Book Three by Rob Buckman - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Rob Buckman
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lamps where lovers sat on a park bench and kissed. Memories are made of stranger stuff.
“So why did you come? Just to say thanks?”
“Partly, and to see the man who saved my life.”
“You are welcome.” It was hard to keep the bitter tone out of his voice.
“I came to say that if you should ever want to join the Royal Navy, contact me.”
“So who are you?” Mike asked, more out of curiosity than anything.
“I’m Admiral Sanders, Chief of Naval Operations, the Royal Navy, that is.”
“And why on god’s green earth would I want to join the bloody Royal Navy?”
“Because there is a war coming.”
“War!”
“Yes.”
“With who?”
“My guess is, the Sirriens.” That didn’t sound as strange as he might have suspected. The Sirriens were making a lot of noise about trade routes and such lately. On more than one occasion, they’d attacked Free Trader ships, much to their sorrow.
“Sooner or later, Avalon is going to get drawn into the conflict, on one side or the other. In this war there no such thing as neutrality.”
“Why would Avalon join the Sirriens for god’s sake?”
“Political expediency.”
“Like hell. No way is the president going to side with that bunch of morons.”
“Can you be so sure?”
“Yes! My grandfather and great grandfather might be assholes, but they’d never put the future of Avalon alongside that of the so called Sirrien Empire.” A slight smile crossed Admiral Sanders’ face as he listened to Mike. Clearly seeing there was no love lost between them.
“Anyone who can do what you and Admiral Tregallion, did deserves a chance to do something better with their life than what they seem to be giving you around here.” Mike had to agree. Even when he turned 18 and could legally use his captains’ ticket, he didn’t want the responsibility. Until then, he'd be in a legal limbo. Admiral Sanders held his hand out. “Thank you. Thank you for having the courage to come to the rescue of so many people.”
Reluctantly, Mike shook hands. For the moment, the man’s words were enough. After that, Mike knew what he had to do. One way or another, his grandfather could legally make him take the three-day hyperspace jump back to Avalon and purgatory, by force if necessary. That didn’t leave him with many options. His remaining obligation to Avalon was his mandatory military service having already fulfilled his educational requirements. As an old hand around the docks and shipping yards on Christchurch, it was a simple matter to find a ship’s captain that didn’t ask too many questions and was willing to sign him on to work his passage. And so, less than a week after his meeting with Gordon Tregallion, he disappeared off the planet without anyone being the wiser. He didn’t even bother packing a bag as that would have tipped off anyone who might be watching him. He left the house one evening to go for a stroll a few hours before the tramp freighter was due to leave port and quickly vanished into the shadows of the trees in the park and then the warehouses along the docks, before boarding the shore boat taking the crew up to the ship. By dawn the next day on Christchurch he was beyond his grandfather’s reach. The chains he’d forged since then weren’t that long, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t avoid ending up in positions where he had to make life and death decisions about other peoples' lives.
His thoughts flicked to his service in the Royal Marines, again being thrust into a life threatening position where he had to decide the fate of other people. His first meeting with Taffy and Jenks and their fighting retreat on Borland. He smiled slightly remembering the names he’d called the crown prince before he knew who he was during that fight. That train of thought inevitably led to the Lady Anne, the Princess Royal herself, and the feel of her warm, compliant body against his. At their first meeting, they were fire and water, polar
“So why did you come? Just to say thanks?”
“Partly, and to see the man who saved my life.”
“You are welcome.” It was hard to keep the bitter tone out of his voice.
“I came to say that if you should ever want to join the Royal Navy, contact me.”
“So who are you?” Mike asked, more out of curiosity than anything.
“I’m Admiral Sanders, Chief of Naval Operations, the Royal Navy, that is.”
“And why on god’s green earth would I want to join the bloody Royal Navy?”
“Because there is a war coming.”
“War!”
“Yes.”
“With who?”
“My guess is, the Sirriens.” That didn’t sound as strange as he might have suspected. The Sirriens were making a lot of noise about trade routes and such lately. On more than one occasion, they’d attacked Free Trader ships, much to their sorrow.
“Sooner or later, Avalon is going to get drawn into the conflict, on one side or the other. In this war there no such thing as neutrality.”
“Why would Avalon join the Sirriens for god’s sake?”
“Political expediency.”
“Like hell. No way is the president going to side with that bunch of morons.”
“Can you be so sure?”
“Yes! My grandfather and great grandfather might be assholes, but they’d never put the future of Avalon alongside that of the so called Sirrien Empire.” A slight smile crossed Admiral Sanders’ face as he listened to Mike. Clearly seeing there was no love lost between them.
“Anyone who can do what you and Admiral Tregallion, did deserves a chance to do something better with their life than what they seem to be giving you around here.” Mike had to agree. Even when he turned 18 and could legally use his captains’ ticket, he didn’t want the responsibility. Until then, he'd be in a legal limbo. Admiral Sanders held his hand out. “Thank you. Thank you for having the courage to come to the rescue of so many people.”
Reluctantly, Mike shook hands. For the moment, the man’s words were enough. After that, Mike knew what he had to do. One way or another, his grandfather could legally make him take the three-day hyperspace jump back to Avalon and purgatory, by force if necessary. That didn’t leave him with many options. His remaining obligation to Avalon was his mandatory military service having already fulfilled his educational requirements. As an old hand around the docks and shipping yards on Christchurch, it was a simple matter to find a ship’s captain that didn’t ask too many questions and was willing to sign him on to work his passage. And so, less than a week after his meeting with Gordon Tregallion, he disappeared off the planet without anyone being the wiser. He didn’t even bother packing a bag as that would have tipped off anyone who might be watching him. He left the house one evening to go for a stroll a few hours before the tramp freighter was due to leave port and quickly vanished into the shadows of the trees in the park and then the warehouses along the docks, before boarding the shore boat taking the crew up to the ship. By dawn the next day on Christchurch he was beyond his grandfather’s reach. The chains he’d forged since then weren’t that long, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t avoid ending up in positions where he had to make life and death decisions about other peoples' lives.
His thoughts flicked to his service in the Royal Marines, again being thrust into a life threatening position where he had to decide the fate of other people. His first meeting with Taffy and Jenks and their fighting retreat on Borland. He smiled slightly remembering the names he’d called the crown prince before he knew who he was during that fight. That train of thought inevitably led to the Lady Anne, the Princess Royal herself, and the feel of her warm, compliant body against his. At their first meeting, they were fire and water, polar
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