Chapter 52

You might think that, I couldn't possibly say.

"Do you deny gifting military equipment to the military?" the ranking salad hats asked.

It's times like this that the term military intelligence flits fleetingly across Andrea's mind and dissolves into the mists. 'Some folks have been in charge far too long, ' she thought.

Every branch of every service has them. Too politically connected to court marshal ... too accident prone to keep in a position of responsibility ... the only thing that has ever been done with them? Kick 'em up stairs ... put them some place where they will do the least amount of damage when the shit hits the fan. If you're lucky they won't kill too many people before something nasty happens to them ... unless the competent find out and promote them away. Back in the day of wooden ships and iron men they were 'yellowed' ... and Admiral with no squadron ... no fleet ... no flag.

"I don't know if you'd noticed or not ... I rank you," she said. "That would be 'Sir' from you to me."

"Don't be ridiculous," the Admiral said. "That uniform is a joke."

Andrea looked down at her whites, "It is a little much ... Auntie Beth likes it, though." Andrea's Admirals uniform was a blast from the past ... and personally ... she hated it.

Black shoes with bullion buckles, white silk stockings, knee smalls with white belt, bullion buttoned white waist coat, white jacket with tails, blue jacket lapel with bullion braid facings, bullion epaulettes with bullion braid, scarlet hanger under the right shoulder epaulette to left hip with black and bullion ornate sword sheath and basket hilts sword.

She hated it mostly because it was so fricken' heavy ... she hated the hat more than anything ... it was a two row bullion scrambled-egg leather brimmed officers hat.

With this outfit she wanted a tricorne.

The drawings for the uniform came in the mail after they were taken by the CoastGuard just off Freeport, Grand Bahama.

"David, they didn't have to make me pay for it. It's bad enough I have to wear the damn thing.

"Officers buy their dress uniforms. I had to buy mine."

"Yours didn't cost thirty thousand dollars."

She had a raft of medals and ribbons ... all either issued by the Nevis and Saint Kitts Navy or by places like The Bahamas, Key West, Panama, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Honduras ... all places the Penny had seen combat in one form or another.

"So you claim first name connexicion with Her Majesty," he spluttered.

"No,"

He looked triumphant.

"But she does ... it only seems fair to accede to her wishes," Andrea gave a pause just long enough for the Admiral to open his mouth and she said, "Don't you think?