Chapter 30: At the Salle

Pru's stomach was beginning to grumble. She'd had an early and hasty breakfast; now she was ravenous. And it was only 11:00.

She was beginning to consider tracking down the sergeant major for a rat bar when the very man appeared at her door. Maeve O'Leary followed him.

The sergeant spoke in English. "I believe you were expecting this person, Ms Whiteside." He bowed and ushered Maeve into the room, then turned to leave.

"Wait, Sergeant," Pru said. "I don't know your name, Sergeant, I'm sorry. The captain didn't introduce us."

"I am Sergeant Major Xing, m'am."

"Then, let me introduce Sergeant Major Maeve O'Leary, OSG Special Ops, North Africa." Pru gestured to the woman, who was at least twice the size of Sergeant Xing. She smiled and offered her huge hand.

"A pleasure to meet you Sergeant," Maeve said.

Pru added, "Sergeant, you and the Sergeant are going to have a lot in common for the next few days: she is my chief of staff. I hope you will take the opportunity to get acquainted." Sergeant Xing bowed and left with suitable courtesies.

When the sergeant had disappeared, the two women embraced briefly. Pru's hug was returned gently. "Maeve, I'm really glad to see you. Thanks so much for coming. I hope Captain Ish didn't give you a hard time about it."

"No, m'am, not a word. He still thinks you saved his bacon at Ouled Naïl."

"Maeve, it wasn't me, it was you. You talked him into listening to me. But, come sit down. I need to bring you up to speed."

Maeve sat down and they went over the events of the morning. Maeve had gotten some files to read before she left Cairo and had some background on the case. She'd also talked with Luther over her own secure wrist com. Pru filled her in on her talk with Baltar or Batuk or whoever it had been on the com.

"The big problem is developing a dialog with this guy. The small problem is getting some kind of rapport with Captain Jiang. She's pissed off that I'm not military, not Han, and not someone she can control.

"But the biggest problem is that I'm starving. Come with me. You may not be hungry, but I could eat rare bear."

Pru rose and they started down the hall. As she passed the captain's office, she glanced at Maeve and knocked on the door.

"Enter," called the captain.

"We're going to lunch. Would you like to join us?"

The captain nodded and stood up. She walked toward them. "Yes, I will. May I suggest a suitable restaurant?"

Pru introduced Maeve to the captain and, as they continued down the hall, the captain put her head in another door. "Sergeant Xing! You will join us for lunch, please."

The restaurant was small and excellent. Pru looked over the menu and suggested some specialties to Maeve as the others ordered. She chose a favorite dish of her own, one that was not particularly heavy. They continued to speak English in deference to Maeve's lack of Mandarin.

Lunch was as fine as Pru had expected it to be. The talk was polite and not professional, the two sergeants getting to know one another, exchanging bits of their military backgrounds in cryptic, non-commissioned-officer argot.

Pru and the captain chatted inconsequentially for most of the meal, until finally, the captain said to Pru, "I hope you won't think it impolite if I mention a matter of business."

Pru had noticed that the captain's attitude toward her was somewhat less hostile. "Not at all, captain. I assume it's nothing confidential," she said with a confident smile.

"No. Ms. Whiteside, I have read the file you gave me access to. I believe I may have misjudged you to some extent. You have a most unorthodox approach, which put me off at first. I am prepared to consider your approach to this matter rather differently."

"Thank you for saying so, Captain. I really appreciate it. We'll work on it together, shall we?"

They left the restaurant, walking along the street in the Beijing Sector. Beijing was still the capitol of China, but the Beijing Sector was only one in a huge, interlocking Controlled Area that covered an extent of northeastern China that rather dwarfed any of the North American CAs.

They had walked for a few minutes, when Captain Jiang touched Pru's elbow.

"This is an excellent Salle des Armes, Ms Whiteside. You said you wanted some exercise. Is it too soon after lunch for that?"

Pru, not at all surprised at the suggestion, said, "No, not at all. By all means."

In the Salle, it was clear the captain was well known. They all went into the changing room and stripped to their briefs, Sergeant Xing and Maeve as well. The women put on sports bras, as was customary.

In the practice room, Pru and the captain squared off, while the other two watched for a moment.

As was her habit, Pru watched carefully as her opponent attempted dominance on the field. Once again, she settled into the calm void of the moment and waited until she detected the almost undetectable decision for attack, thinking — far back in a corner of her mind — as she did so, 'Neo-Tantra does help with this.'

The captain began the attack, but in her calm detachment, Pru had noticed her opponent had a tendency to favor her left side and evaded the attack, pressing her own into an opening that appeared for only an instant. She connected solidly and pressed further, wiping the captain's feet from under her. Pru followed her to the mat, looking for a pin.