In The Beginning by Gail Daley (top 100 books of all time checklist .TXT) 📕

"Yes, sir," the boy, Joseph, replied. "It has a double seal in case the rising storm water breaks past the first one. The second door leads into a tunnel running down into the cavern. That way late arrivals won’t have to risk traveling overland in the storms. Those storm winds can blow you away."

The crews passed swiftly through the room and headed down into the tunnel with their cargo. The Fleet Captain, Joel Margron, stopped at the room’s console, tapping the screen. A close-up of his bearded face came onto the command center screen. "Greetings Milady," he addressed Katherine "On the way in we got a request from two Independent ships to take shelter in our harbor from the storm," he said. "I Okayed it, but I have a bad feeling about them."

Zack tapped the boy on the shoulder and gestured for him to move over. "Any reason for that feeling Captain?" he asked.

Margron looked at Katherine who nodded. "Captain, this is my new husband Zack Jackson. He has taken over security for us and he has a lot of experience with hostile situations. Please give him your full cooperation."

The Captains face relaxed. "Glad to meet you sir. They’re Independents with no Clan affiliation and when the Captain who contacted me was speaking, she was nervous as Hell. I had the feeling maybe she wasn’t in command of her ship any longer."

"Are all your people safe inside the tunnel?"

"Well, except for the three on each ship who volunteered to man them during the storm."

Zack turned to Katherine. "Can we communicate with the ships directly from here?"

She nodded, and Zack turned back to the Captain. "Okay. Give us the frequency of the ships you spoke to and get yourself into the tunnel. I will seal it after you. Before we let these people inside the Lodge we need to find out a little more about them."

The Captain nodded and headed into the tunnel. Behind him, the airlock door hissed as it slid into place.

Zack opened a channel to the two ships that had asked for refuge. The woman who answered after a short delay looked a little battered. The Captain's shirt was torn and blood showed around the edge of the sleeve. A bruise covered one whole side of her face. Zack was unfamiliar with ship type injuries, but he was very familiar with the wounds coming from combat, and the Captain’s wounds looked like fighting injuries to him.

"This is Lord Zackery Jackson, head of security for Veiled Isle. Captain, I understand you need to take refuge from the storm?"

The woman slid a nervous glance over to the left, outside the viewer. "Yes. We need to get under cover from the Storm. We also have injuries—"

"Very well. May I have your name and your ship’s name?"

She licked her lips, took a deep breath, and said formally, "I am Marga Logan. This is the Ship Sea Runner and her sister ship, the Aphrodite. We are Independents and request shelter from the storm and care for our injured under the Sailors Covenant."

Zack nodded. "I understand. Have your ships arrived at our port?"

"We are making landfall now."

"As soon as your ships have been battened down for the storm, take the steps to your left. There is a safe room and a medic station there where your injured can be treated by our robo-doc with assistance from our Chief Medic." As he spoke, Zack had been doing a quick review of the plans for the Safe Rooms. "There is food and dry clothing in the room to the right. As soon as all your people are inside the Safe Rooms, the outer door will seal. We will send an escort to take you to a more comfortable area as soon as we can spare them. The Medic will contact you when you enter the medic station."

He shut down the two-way viewing and motioned for the boy to take his place. "Keep an eye on them," he instructed. "I want eyes covering all corners and sound as well. If they contact you again, have them wait and send for me."

The boy nodded, his eyes as big as saucers.

The refugees entering the Safe Rooms seemed to be two groups. One group was in rough shape. This bloody and battered faction staggered into the Safe Rooms and headed into the Medic station. The other group looked tough, were carrying weapons and did not try to help their wounded comrades. Several people passed by the door, but didn't enter the safe room. Katherine suddenly leaned in so she had a better view of the screen.

“Zack! Look who it is," she exclaimed.

He too leaned in and then he nodded. "Looks as if you did see her that day in the channel," he remarked.

"That was Lister!" exclaimed Juliette. "What’s she doing here?"

"Up to no good, probably," Zack’s voice was dispassionate. Lister handed a knapsack to a man in the doorway as she passed.

"Where does she think she’s going?" wondered Katherine. Even as she voiced the question, the screen monitoring the Top Side Landing Room came on. They could see Lister and about twenty others settling into the dome as if preparing for a long stay.

"I would guess she doesn’t intend to be trapped in the safe room," Zack thoughtfully stroked his chin. "If I was planning something, I sure wouldn’t."

He turned to Lolli, the sub-security chief, "How secure from the storm is the Top Side Landing Room?"

She looked contemplative. "Well, it’s fairly uncomfortable during a storm, but as long as the water doesn’t come up into it, it’s reasonably secure. There’s a good foundation and minimal power so they’ll have light and enough heat to keep from freezing, but that’s about all."

"I don’t like it. They’re planning something. If I wanted to attack this place, I’d wait until there was a lull in the storm, and then try to break in through ground level doors at either the main house or the barns where it’s easier to access."

"But if they really are