probably end up having to keep the whole cabin clean or do her laundry or both.
Grace returned to the living room, unsure now of what to do until morning formation. After putting her things away, she sat down on the couch and laced up her boots.
"Do you drink coffee, Waters?"
"Yes, ma'am," she said, turning to see Carey open a cabinet and pull out a red mug. Real coffee, she thought excitedly, loathing the brown liquid that came from the large urn in the mess hall. Grace quickly jumped to her feet and entered the kitchen. "Thank you, ma'am."
'This is the only mug I want to see you using. Cream and sugar?"
"Cream, ma'am."
Carey opened-the refrigerator, pulling out a pint of half-and-half. "I tried the mess hall coffee once," she said, then scrunched up her face. "Tastes like they filter it through dirt."
Grace smiled. "We figure they use the swamp water, ma'am," she said, taking the pint, putting a splash into her coffee, then handing it back.
"You may be right about that," Carey said, leaning against the counter. "I was on duty on a cutter off the coast of Connecticut and we ended up reusing the grounds two or three times. It still tasted better than the mess hall coffee."
Taking a sip, Grace hummed at how good it tasted. "Oh, this is great," she said, taking a larger swallow. "Ma'am," she added belatedly.
"All right, let's make a deal before you ma'am me to death," Carey said. "Here in the cabin you can skip the ma'am, but you slip up out there and I'll drop you for ten, you got it?"
"Yes, ma'am, I mean yes. A cutter, that's a ship, right?" Carey smiled and shook her head.
"That's one way to put it."
"Were you in the Navy?"
"Coast Guard," Carey said, holding out her mug, which Grace now realized sported the Coast Guard emblem. "And that's enough about me. Now, let's talk about you and math." She drained her coffee mug. "What do you want to do about it?"
"About it?"
"Do you want to stay in math class?" Carey asked. "Or would you rather have free period?"
Grace finished her coffee, surprised at how quickly she drank it. "I don't mind being in class," she said, looking from her empty mug to the coffeepot. "I'll just work some more in the workbook." Taking a chance, she gave the instructor a small smile. "I didn't think it was a good idea to do my English homework in math class."
Carey reached for the coffeepot. "That's probably one of the brightest ideas you've had since you arrived here," she said, pouring the aromatic brew into her mug. "I know I'd drop you for twenty easy if I caught you doing your homework during SR." She held out the coffeepot. "Maybe I should be checking to see if you're really taking notes?"
"Thanks," Grace said, holding her mug out. "I'm taking notes. Ask Instructor Gage. She checks."
"She checks to see if you're taking notes for Sexual Responsibility?"
"Um, would you mind if I...?" She pointed at the refrigerator. "It's part of English class. Note taking and studying. We have to show her that we're taking notes in our other classes. Well, except for Self-Defense. Thanks," she said when Carey handed her the pint of half-and-half.
"So do you want to stay in math class or not?" Carey asked.
"No," Grace said. "I'd rather use it as a free period."
Carey sipped her coffee. "I'll speak with Instructor Donaldson."
"Instructor Carey?"
"Yes?"
"Um... about barracks inspection?"
Carey took a sip of coffee before responding. "Your footlocker is here and you're using the closet as you would the big locker in the barracks. Since you don't have a bed to check, make sure the sheets and blanket are neatly folded and centered on your footlocker." She had another sip. "I'll have to think about what chores I can assign you."
"Yes, ma'am."
Grace took her place next to Latisha. "Hey."
"Man, how did you survive a night with Instructor Scary?"
Looking at the group of leaders, she spied Carey. "It was okay," she said, turning to spot Jan standing behind her. "How'd it go for you?"
"It sucked," Jan said. "Gage snores worse than Campbell."
Grace rolled her eyes. "Wonderful," she said.
“Yeah, and how do you tell an instructor that?" Latisha asked.
“Better figure out a way to make some earplugs," Grace said.
"So what happened with you?" Jan asked.
Grace shrugged. "I can't touch anything. She probably has a fingerprinting kit to check and make sure I don't."
"I'm going to kill Grenner for this," Jan said.
"Save some for me," Grace said. "I thought it was bad enough dealing with Queen Bitch on A schedule when we have two classes with her. Now I have to spend free time with her watching every move I make." She deliberately looked away when the dark-haired woman's head turned in her direction. "See?"
"Just like having Big Brother on your ass," Jan said. "All right, she's looking somewhere else now."
Grace looked back. "More like Big Sister," she said. "Big Sister Queen Bitch from Hell."
"Marilyn, do you have a minute?"
"Sure, Carey," the tall blonde instructor said.
"Let's go in my office," Carey said, leading her down the hall. "I wanted to talk to you about Waters."
"Sure, I don't have my grade book with me but she's been passing the tests with flying colors," Donaldson said as they entered the office.
"Did you know she's over a hundred pages ahead in her workbook?" Carey said as she sat down behind her desk.
"I knew she was ahead, but not by that much," Donaldson said, settling in a nearby chair. "Is there a problem?"
"I'm thinking of releasing her from math and letting her have it as a free period. She can do her math independently and turn it in to you."
"We all had to take classes that we didn't like, Carey," Donaldson said. "If this was high school..."
"If this was high school, we'd have an advanced class to put her in. What are you going to do when she finishes that workbook?"
"I don't know," Donaldson said. "We only have the two math workbooks, remedial and standard. Once she finishes that workbook, I'd be just as happy to have her out of class. Teenage girls with nothing to do tend to be disruptive. Right now she sits in the back of the class, keeps quiet and doesn't cause any problems."
"That won't last if she gets bored," Carey said. "And I bet our chances of getting a better math book for her are just as good as they were at getting a new mattress."
The tall blonde laughed. "It would be startling what we could get done if it wasn't for bureaucrats."
"Amen to that," Carey said. "Whenever you feel like releasing her from class, go ahead. I'll note it in her records."
"She's not going to stop tutoring, is she?"
Surprised, Carey looked up at her. "Tutoring? I didn't know she was. When is this going on?"
"You didn't know? Every time I see her in study hall she's helping someone with their math," the blonde woman said. "I know Jones and Rosetti are both getting help from her, and she might even be helping some of the girls in Judith's class."