The next instalment in Tammy's life is to be published at the end of August 2023. Given that a whole year has passed since the last chapter of Royal Retreat I felt it was a good idea to put some character pen pictures down and to summarise Tammy's history up to this point.

For info, this refers to Book 14 ... there's another prior 13 books in serial format and 10 on Kindle!

Main Characters in "Rank Stupidity" at the time of this story:

Tammy Smart 21yo, Thurso, Northern Scotland. Captain, Broadsword. Superior of FL Lizzie Harrison, fiancée Maisie Staines. Resident Thurso. Attends University of Highlands & Islands (2nd year of degree course in criminology). Owns Smart Properties company, employs Joey Cooper. Personal firearms certificate, Glock 19 & Glock 26. Private pilots licence. Military helicopter (Puma) licence. Royal Navy dive trained. Parachute trained. Speaks French. Apartment in Paris, uses house in Epping, London. Drives Racing Green Mini Cooper with rallying capability; skidpan & protective driving qualified. Also known as Thistle Maiden and Maiden One.

Maisie Staines 22yo, Thurso. Sergeant in Broadsword (formerly Corporal, Black Watch). Also qualified personal trainer with own PT business. Qualified firearms. Fiancée Tammy.

Lizzie Harrison 22 yo, Aberdeen. Flight Lieutenant. Qualified Puma helicopter. Not firearm qualified. Flight training for private pilots licence, fixed wing, and conversion of military helicopter licence.

Thomas Staines, Aberdeen. Retired/Discharged from Master Sergeant REME. Mechanical & electrical qualified. Maisie’s father. Temp housekeeper to Lizzie.

Joey Cooper 19yo. Smart properties office assistant. Daughter of Col Cooper (estranged & deceased)

Col Sean MacTaggart. Tammy’s superior. Broadsword. Enjoys Wolfburn Whiskey. Wise & protective, hates idiots.

Cmdr Geoff Traegar, SBS/Broadsword. Tammy's immediate superior.

Major Elliot. Military Intelligence.

Kyle Fielding. New Zealand Special Boat Service (dismissed)

Paul Dannigan. Major, head of OICA (US Mil Intel & independent militia)

Kimberly/Krystel-Kerri/Krystie/Carl OICA operatives

Emily Keane. Detective Chief Inspector, Counter Terrorist Unit London

Kevin Edmunds. Detective Inspector, Counter Terrorist Unit London.

Ben Franklin. Lecturer in Criminology University of Highlands & Islands. Former Detective Constable Police Scotland. Known Tammy over 3 years.

Sophie Grieve. Detective Chief Inspector, Devon & Cornwall Police, formerly Counter Terrorist Unit London and Royal & Diplomatic Protection Team.

Heather Young. Security Service Financial analyst. Forensic accountant. Sophie’s wife. Based in Cornwall.

William Burgess. Former member of House of Lords. Believed head of True Freedom. Wanted.

Richard Smart. Tammy’s father. Former merchant banker. Chair of Smart Air Services, Chair of Governing Body of St Andrews School Thurso. Married to Joan.

Joan Smart, formerly Joan Small. Welfare manager St Andrews School.

Suzie Small. Tammy’s step-sister, lives in Epping London. Employed in Financial Unit Security Service. Has been sacked once, but reinstated after Tammy intervention.

Angela Smart 21yo, Thurso. Formerly Angela Small. Tammy's step sister. Nursing student. Former student St Andrews School. Transwoman.

Zara, Thurso. Housekeeper to Smart Family. Employed by Tammy 3 years earlier at Richard & Joan’s wedding.

Sandy/Joanne. Thurso hair & beauty (wax torture) salon. Known Tammy since Book 1.

Anne McIntosh, Thurso. Wife of Steven McIntosh

Steven McIntosh, Thurso. Chair of Mill Theatre Trust, former headmaster St Andrews School.

 

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Tammy potted history

Tammy (Tamara) Smart is a 21 year old transwoman. who transitioned at eighteen whilst still at school (St Andrews, Thurso). Her father, a merchant banker retired to take care of her.

She was inducted into the world of Intelligence, age 18, after becoming a witness, and victim, to terrorism. Security Service paid for her Gender Confirmation surgery.

She was issued a firearms certificate just before her nineteenth birthday (losing her virginity as a post-op girl the same day) and received a firearm for personal protection two weeks later. Her hesitation to use the weapon caused her to be sent on a military course alongside Special Services personnel. She met New Zealand born Capt Kyle Fielding for the first time.

Tammy started work for the Security Service after her first university course was disrupted and became involved with an American Intelligence (OICA) Agent who brought intel on an emerging terrorist group “True Freedom” to the UK. That group sponsored an attack in a London coffee-shop where Tammy and the US agent were sat. The attack failed, because of Tammy and her OICA associate, but a subsequent inquest also turned bloody.

She started back at university on a criminology course but helped repel several True Freedom attacks alongside the Counter Terrorism Team of the Met Police and Security service. Around this time she gained a private pilots licence.

Tammy formed her own commercial property company and is a board member at the family-owned Smart Air Services based at Wick Airport. She eventually employed Joey as an office assistant.

She was inducted into the Army (Broadsword Regiment) as a Lieutenant by Captain Marcus Wade and Colonel Sean MacTaggart, but didn’t go through recruitment. Meets Fielding again on an exercise. He eventually beds her on whilst a subsequent dive training deployment. She gains a replacement 2 seater plane and a commercial turboprop Epic.

She’s suspected of being a True Freedom operative and is frozen out of the intelligence community. Counter terrorism officer Kevin Edmunds supports her, as do American agents. That’s resolved but Tammy’s confidence is damaged.

She become involved more with the Americans and flies out to take part in training. Back in the UK she’s pulled between university and the Army. Eventually she meets Sir Thomas Addington, now Chair of the Intelligence Oversight Committee. Kyle has discovered she’s trans and tries to prevent Tammy from having access to military intelligence and then physically assaults her. She meets Corporal Maisie Staines and brings her back to Thurso against orders.

Tammy has bought a house in middle of Thurso and moves in.

The girls become lovers, Maisie Staines proposes and Tammy arranges Maisie’s promotion to Sergeant - she joins Broadsword. Tammy meets Maisie’s father Master Sergeant Thomas Staines. Tammy and Maisie decide to try for a baby, using material saved from Tammy. They start IVF process.

Tammy is sent for helicopter training with the RAF and meets a feminine airman. On her final flying assessment she hears that her office assistant’s mother has been kidnapped and her office is under attack. She abandons her test flight and takes second seat in an Apache. The threat is eliminated.

At pre-deployment training Tammy meets Lizzie, formerly an airman on her helicopter course and now a Flight Lieutenant. She takes Lizzie home to sort out her formal transition, before Marcus sends her somewhere else.

Tammy, Maisie and Lizzie are deployed to protect Royalty on a Caribbean holiday. Tammy is field promoted to Captain. Kyle tries to attack but is thwarted and detained. He tells the local Lieutenant-Colonel that Tammy is trans. Many of the protection team turn against her. She, Maisie and Lizzie fly back to the UK but become embroiled in a True Freedom insurrection. They were secure in Royal accommodation with others until the emergency was over and the main players, bar William Burgess, were detained. Tammy, Maisie and Lizzie had tea with Her Majesty before leaving London.

Maisie’s father was implicated in the insurrection having been coerced by (Captain) Marcus Wade. Wade is dismissed, Thomas Staines is retired but keeps pension. Thomas was flown to Aberdeen to look after Lizzie who has joined Broadsword and is on flight training courses.

Commander Geoff Traegar had worked with Tammy during the deployment and now joins Broadsword as her superior.