Free Escape 3: Defeat the Aliens by T. Jackson King Page B

working on a plan, he’d told her. This job was her duty. The holo blinked. Four people, dressed in Type III woodland NWU camos, took form in the holo.
    “Fleet captain, good to see you,” called soft-spoken Stefano. The trim, tight-muscled SEAL always spoke softly when he addressed anyone. Which was not often.
    Alicia of the sandy brown ponytail looked away from talking with someone on her Command Bridge. The Ranger smiled big. She had become Jane’s best confidant, a woman who had persevered through the male-led Ranger training, just as Jane had moved up the ranks in the supposedly liberal Air Force. In the high tech work she and others had done at Peterson, ability often mattered more than gender. And a woman now headed the AF. Poindexter had even risked her own active-duty son during the six ship battle above Earth. “Hey gal!” called Alicia from her command seat, her amber eyes bright. “What’s up?”
    “Yeah,” called the gravelly voice of Frank, his bulldog face focusing intently on Jane. “We just left Pluto. What’s up?”
    “If you all will shut your traps, she’ll likely tell you,” called heavyset Joe. The Coast Guard master chief was someone who liked to eat, though his big belly had shrunk during their interstellar assignments. The man had a stash of flipcard recipes he had covertly shared with Jane, who loved surprising Bill with a fancy meal.
    She smiled, hoping it didn’t look as forced as she felt. “Hi gang. Just finished my consult with General Poindexter. She was happy when she heard about the Captives we freed, and liked how we’d captured another Collector ship.” Jane noticed how the expressions on the four combat-blooded vets had gone serious focused. They knew more was coming than just some good news. “She understood the bad news about the impending enemy attack. I filled her in on a plan I’ve developed during our trip to Sol system. You folks knew I wanted to head back out and sneak into the enemy star system. What you have not heard are the specifics of the plan I proposed to Poindexter. It has four stages.”
    Minutes later, after they’d heard all she’d told the Air Force chief, each of them was quietly thoughtful. Joe chewed on his lower lip. Stefano’s pale brown eyes were bright. Frank’s thick black eyebrows were mushed together. Alicia showed a half-grin.
    “Very daring,” Stefano volunteered, surprising her.
    “I hope so,” Jane said, trying not to look as desperate as she felt. “Well? Will the four of you and your fellow vets give up your ships and come with me when I take the Blue Sky outward?”
    “Has the JCS approved your plan?” Frank asked, his wide shoulders hunching as he leaned forward in his command seat.
    “Not yet,” Jane said. “Poindexter liked it. I could tell. But formal approval awaits her consult with General McAuley and President Hartman. No surprise there.”
    “Sister, I’m willing,” said Alicia. “I assume those of us with partners or spouses can bring them aboard the Blue Sky ?”
    “Of course!” Jane said quickly. She licked her lips, wondering if she sounded too needy, versus the sober commander she’d always tried to show to everyone she worked with.
    Joe, who at 51 was the oldest of the group, nodded slowly. “I’m on board. Have loved being captain of my own ship. But I need a break from electric shocks. Having a Command Bridge crew made up only of walking snakes can try a man.”
    Jane felt relief. It was Joe’s nature to joke about a serious matter. And she’d thought Alicia would join up. The other two? She fixed on them.
    Frank gave a sigh. “I’m willing. It’s thanks to you and Bill that any of us are now in space. I’ve loved running this ship. Willing to turn it over to my SOCOM volunteers and whomever joins them. Anyway, your plan gives us a chance to capture more ships for Earth. If we are to defeat a giant fleet, we need more Collector ships.”
    “Thank you, Frank,” Jane said softly. “And