“Which might not matter,” he added, “if we don't make it home.”

She flinched, again.  “You will not recover whatever money you lost to them,” James said.  “Instead, it will go into the kitty – which should win you some plaudits from your comrades who might otherwise be disappointed.  And, for the rest of this cruise, you will be barred from any further gambling, with anyone.”

He paused.  Chances were she no longer had the money to gamble with, whatever else happened.  “I would suggest, in addition, that you never played for forfeits again,” he added.  “You are not experienced enough to tell the difference between something tolerable and something that will pose a threat to good order.”

“Yes, sir,” Sally said.  “Thank you, sir.”

James smiled.  He had let her off lightly ... but it was her first cruise.  Maybe she’d learn a lesson, without needing to face more formal punishment.

“One other thing,” he added.  He glanced down at the duty roster, then looked back at her suddenly nervous face.  “I'm assigning you to work under Deputy Boatswain Harrison.  You will find her a good mentor, if you learn to listen.”

He watched her go, then sighed.  Seven hours to the jump into unexplored space, seven hours until they knew what was waiting on the other side ... and he was busy dealing with disciplinary problems.  But at least it was a distraction from worrying about the future.  His lips quirked as he realised that was probably what the gamblers had had in mind, too.

But she had been idiotic, he knew.  Naval life could be hard for a woman, particularly one who went out of her way to make it plain she was a woman.  Poor Sally would have lost all the respect she’d earned if she'd gone through with the striptease, her status plunging instantly from fellow crewmember to whore.  Even now, her status had probably been weakened.  At least she’d shared in some of the punishment the two men had earned.  It would save her from losing everything.

But enough of a punishment, he decided, ruefully.  She didn't deserve additional punishment duties – shit duties, as they were called – let alone a public whipping.  Hell, jokes aside, there had only ever been four since the Royal Navy had become a space-based service.  It was far more common for someone to be dumped in the brig and then discharged as soon as the carrier returned to port. Maybe Sally could be transferred to another starship, one where her new reputation wouldn't follow her.

Shaking his head, he made a note in his private log of what had happened, then stood.  The reporters had been badgering for a briefing and he couldn't put it off any longer.  Maybe answering a few silly questions would help him relax.