JAS AWAITED MACADAM’S arrival at the mission room, which remained a meeting and planning place during the emergency situation. It was the only part of the ship apart from the bridge where the emergency power extended to computer access.
Jas had asked the engineer to meet with her to give a full verbal report on the state of the engines, but she had another reason for requesting a one-to-one with the engineer. She hadn’t yet gotten over her shock at finding the woman drunk. Jas wasn’t naive. Though she didn’t take part in the alcohol and drug abuse that everyone knew went on aboard the ship—a minor part of her job was to try to keep it under control, in fact—she couldn’t comprehend what had gotten into the engineer’s head that she’d thought it was an acceptable alternative to reporting on
