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neutral. It was 0750. The official start to his day was 0800. Things were on a fast track, it appeared. He changed his trajectory and headed to where his boss waited for him.
    â€œThis will only take a moment,” Dornier said briskly, standing aside to allow him into the spacious office.
    â€œYes, sir?”
    â€œThis Lieutenant Kane investigation?”
    â€œYes, sir?”
    â€œShe’s a media disaster just waiting to bite the Navy’s ass, Mr. Cochrane, and that’s worse than being a hot potato.”
    â€œYes, sir.”
    â€œDo you know she was up for early lieutenant commander and rotation to the Pentagon for a cushy assignment? It’s obvious she had a sponsor shadowing her career. Admiral Caruthers, Chief of Naval Operations, is very upset over her death. He wants answers now.”
    Didn’t everyone? Cochrane nodded but didn’t say that. “I’m on it, Commander.”
    If an officer was lucky enough to gain a sponsor—someone of higher rank who followed the junior officer’s career and helped get plum assignments—it was like having an unofficial guardian angel. Not all officers had sponsors. And the junior officer never knew who his or her sponsor was. The benefits went only to promising officers who had a hell of a lot on the ball and the moxie and intelligence not to screw up when handed a rare opportunity to show their stuff. These officers got rewarded lavishly as a result, gaining early promotion or working with the powers that be—the admirals.
    â€œGood. This could get nasty, Mr. Cochrane. You may dig up some shit that no one wants the sun to shine on. Be sure to interview the Top Gun people about Kane. They won’t like it, but that’s tough. I know you have other, less important cases to handle, but you’re going to have to juggle them, regardless. How are you and Agent Tanner getting along?”
    Jim paid strict attention, and if he didn’t know better, he’d swear he saw curiosity in Commander Dornier’s eyes. “Fine, sir. No problems at all.”
    â€œThat’s what I wanted to hear. Dismissed, Mr. Cochrane.”
    Cochrane left the office and headed past the large secretarial pool. He saw Ellen Tanner waiting for him in the passageway that lead to their office. It was exactly 0800. His heart pounded to underscore her presence in his life.
    Her hair was wild as usual and she wore her characteristic bright clothing. Her loud crimson skirt, white short-sleeved blouse and red vest had him wincing internally. There was nothing remotely conservative about Ellen. Not to mention the dangly gold-and-red earrings made her look more like a gypsy fortune teller than an agent from OIG. However, her face was more set than usual, her eyes serious. Despite all of her contrasts something good and cleaned flowed through him. Cochrane nodded in Tanner’s direction and murmured, “Good morning.”
    Ellen’s heart sped up. “Good morning.” Last night she’d realized she was attracted to this officer. There was a nice connection between them, even though their beginning yesterday had been awkward. Her reaction to him stymied her, and she was still too tired to examine it too closely. She followed Jim into the office.
    â€œYou get a good night’s sleep?” he asked, motioning for her to sit down across from his desk.
    â€œI did. But now you have dark circles under your eyes.”
    â€œComes with the territory, Ms. Tanner,” he told her teasingly. Lifting a file, he said, “I’ve been warned things could get real rough on our investigation of Kane. The possibility of an officer or officers from Top Gun being involved in this investigation is on the table. The aviation fraternity will close up tighter than a drumif they think they’re being investigated. It’s possible I’ll make a lot of enemies of officers above me, and trust me, they won’t forget. I’ll be