MacIntyre suddenly made the connection. "Well, Jesus to Jesus and nine hands "round," he muttered. "So you're Wils Garrett's kid."
He must have seen a younger variant of her picture an uncountable number of times back in the Persian Gulf, sitting on the desk of his old CruDesRon Commander.
"I hope there's something to this genetics business, honey, because your old man was one righteous destroyer driver."
* GRADUATE U.S. NAVAL ACADEMY! CLASS OF 1992*
* 23RD OUT OF GRADUATING CLASS OF 997*
A fellow ringknocker.
* SERVICE HISTORY*
* U.S.S. SHENANDOAH AD-44: 7/19/92-7/21/94 ORDNANCE DIVISION
+LETTER OF COMMENDATION FILED: C.O. SHENANDOAH.
+PROMOTED LT. J.G. 6/1/94
* NAVAL SURFACE WEAPONS CENTER, DAHLGREN VIRGINIA: 8/1/94-6/27/95 * ADVANCED SURFACE COMBATANT PROJECT.
* T.D.Y. NAVAL SHIP WEAPON SYSTEMS ENGINEERING STATION, POINT HUENEME, CALIFORNIA: 6/27/95-9/6/95.
+ AWARDED NAVY ACHIEVEMENT MEDAL 5/1/95
Obviously a fast-track kid. She was one of the new breed of gundeckers too, coming up the ladder from the ordnance divisions instead of from engineering, as the bulk of his generation had done.
* T.D.Y. U.S. COAST GUARD: 9/20/95-1/20/96, ANTI-DRUG INTERDICTION OPERATIONS.
+ LETTER OF COMMENDATION: C.O. U.S.S. SPENCER
+ LETTER OF COMMENDATION: COMMANDANT U.S. COAST GUARD
+ AWARDED BRONZE STAR FOR VALOR: 1/11/96
+ AWARDED PURPLE HEART: 1/11/96
"Whoa!" MacIntyre stopped scrolling and called up the particulars on the file.
* ON THE DATE SPECIFIED, LT. J.G. AMANDA GARRETT, SECONDED TO U.S.C.G. AND SERVING ABOARD THE MEDIUM-ENDURANCE CUTTER U.S.S. SPENCER AS SENIOR BOARDING OFFICER, LED THE INSPECTION PARTY DETAILED TO INVESTIGATE THE ECUADORIAN-FLAG TUNA CLIPPER BERNARDO GUZMAN OFF THE COAST OF BAJA CALIFORNIA.
POST-OPERATIONAL ANALYSIS WOULD REVEAL THAT THE GUZMAN WAS, IN FACT, A CARTEL SMUGGLING VESSEL TRANSPORTING A CARGO OF 18 TONS OF RAW MORPHINE BASE WITH A STREET VALUE IN EXCESS OF 8 MILLION DOLLARS.
AS THE BOARDING PARTY CAME ALONGSIDE, THE CREW OF THE GUZMAN OPENED FIRE IN AN APPARENT ATTEMPT TO SEIZE HOSTAGES. DESPITE BEING WOUNDED IN THE FIRST EXCHANGE OF GUNFIRE, LT. GARRETT RALLIED THE BOARDING PARTY, AND THEN LED THEM IN THE STORMING OF THE GUZMAN'S WHEELHOUSE. SHE AND THE OTHERS THEN HELD THEIR POSITION UNTIL THE ARRIVAL OF REINFORCEMENTS FROM THE SPENCER
* MEDICAL LEAVE: 1/20/96-3/3/96
* T.D.Y. NAVAL SURFACE WEAPONS CENTER, NORFOLK, VIRGINIA. 3/4/96-6/1/96
* NAVAL SURFACE WARFARE SCHOOL, NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND. * 6/2/96-6/1/97
+PROMOTED TO LT. 6/1/97
* ASSIGNED: C.O. FLEET OCEAN TUG U.S.S. PIEGAN 6/20/97-7/5/99
+PIEGAN AWARDED LANTFLEETCOM "E" FOR EXCELLENCE 1998-99
+LETTER OF COMMENDATION, COMMANDER, ATLANTIC FLEET SUPPORT FORCES.
+LETTER OF COMMENDATION, COMMANDANT 5TH COAST GUARD DISTRICT.
+AWARDED NAVY AND MARINE CORPS MEDAL 12/18/98.
MacIntyre again dialed up specifics.
*ON 11/22/98, WHILE OPERATING UNDER FLEET SERVICE FORCES COMMAND, U.S.S. PIEGAN WAS ONE OF SEVERAL VESSELS CAUGHT OUT IN OPEN WATER BY THE UNEXPECTED DEVIATION OF HURRICANE "ARCHIE" TOWARDS THE ATLANTIC COAST OF THE UNITED STATES.
AFTER RIDING OUT THE FIRST PHASE OF THE STORM OFF HAMPTON ROADS, LT. GARRETT ELECTED TO RUN FOR SHELTER AT NORFOLK AS THE EYE OF THE HURRICANE CAME ASHORE AT THE MOUTH OF CHESAPEAKE BAY.
HOWEVER, OFF OF FORT MUNROE, A FREE-DRIFTING BARGE WAS OBSERVED JUST BEYOND THE SURF LINE. COAST GUARD TRAFFIC CONTROL IDENTIFIED IT AS A BULK PETROLEUM CARRIER EN ROUTE FROM LOUISIANA TO NEW JERSEY WITH A FULL CARGO OF HEAVY CRUDE OIL, THE COMMERCIAL TUG ASSIGNED TO IT HAVING ABANDONED THE TOW UPON THE ISSUANCE OF THE HURRICANE ALERT.
LT. GARRETT IMMEDIATELY ORDERED PIEGAN TO CLOSE WITH THE BARGE AND COMMENCED PREPARATIONS TO PLACE A LINE ON IT. WITH CONSIDERABLE DIFFICULTY DUE TO THE HEAVY RESIDUAL SEAS RUNNING AND THE BARGE'S CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE SHORE, THE TOW WAS REESTABLISHED WITH THE HEAVIEST AVAILABLE GEAR AND PIEGAN BEGAN AN ATTEMPT TO HAUL THE POL CARRIER CLEAR OF THE BEACH.
AT THIS TIME, HOWEVER, THE EYE OF THE STORM HAD OVERRUN THE AREA AND THE FULL FORCE OF HURRICANE ARCHIE'S SECOND PHASE STRUCK THE CHESAPEAKE APPROACHES. FIGHTING WHAT WERE ESTIMATED TO BE FORCE 15 SEAS, PIEGAN WAS UNABLE TO GAIN GROUND WITH THE POL CARRIER. WITH HER ONLY OTHER OPTION BEING TO CUT THE BARGE LOOSE AND ALLOW IT TO GO ONTO THE BEACH, LT. GARRETT ELECTED TO MAINTAIN THE TOW. FOR THE NEXT EIGHT HOURS, PIEGAN HELD STATION JUST OFF OF THE SURF LINE, UNTIL THE HURRICANE HAD PASSED AND THE POL CARRIER COULD BE TAKEN IN TO A SAFE MOORAGE.
POST-EVENT ANALYSES BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY CONCLUDED THAT: "A MAJOR HEAVY OIL SPILL AT THE MOUTH OF CHESAPEAKE BAY WOULD HAVE HAD CATACLYSMIC CONSEQUENCES FOR THE VIRGINIA AND MARYLAND TIDEWATERS. THE SWIFT ACTION OF LT. GARRETT AND HER CREW UNDOUBTEDLY PREVENTED A WORLD-CLASS ECOLOGICAL DISASTER."
IN ADDITION, THE COMMANDANT OF THE 5TH COAST GUARD DISTRICT STATED: "THE ACTIONS OF THE U.S.S. PIEGAN AND HER CREW REPRESENT ONE OF THE OUTSTANDING PIECES OF FOUL-WEATHER SEAMANSHIP IN A CRISIS SITUATION EVER OBSERVED BY THIS COMMAND."
MacIntyre nodded thoughtfully. Okay, the bloodline does breed true. You aren't just a test-bench sailor.
* STEALTH SYSTMES DIVISION, DAVID W. TAYLOR NAVAL SHIP RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER, BETHESDA, MARYLAND: 7/15/99-6/3/00
+PROMOTED TO LT. CMDR 6/1/00
* ASSIGNED EXEC. OFFICER U.S.S.JOHN ALLEN PRICE DDG-68 * 6/10/00-7/15/01
* NAVAL WAR COLLEGE, NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND:
8/1/01-6/25/02
* STAFF ASSIGNMENT, OPERATIONS OFFICER, FLAG GROUP, TASK FORCE
* 7.1, U.S.S. ENTERPRISE: 7/20/02-6/5/04
+NAVY COMMENDATION MEDAL 1/17/04
+LETTER OF COMMENDATION, C.O. COMSURFORCEPAC
+U.S. NAVY LEAGUE CAPT. WINIFRED QUICK COLLINS
AWARD FOR INSPIRATIONAL LEADERSHIP 2003.
* SPECIAL ASSIGNMENT, NAVAL WAR COLLEGE/DAVID W. TAYLOR SHIP
* RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CENTER, ANNAPOLIS LAB DETACHMENT, ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND: 6/20/04-5/21/05.
+PROMOTION TO CMDR. 1/1/05
* ASSIGNED, C.O. U.S.S. CUNNINGHAM DDG-79: 6/7/05.
MacIntyre leaned back and stared into space thoughtfully. Eventually he became aware that his Chief of Staff had returned and was standing at his side.
"You're right," he said. "I am impressed… to a degree."
"I thought that might be the case. I definitely was when I had the chance to meet Commander Garrett at a Navy League symposium last year. She was speaking on naval power projection in the twenty-first century. She struck me as a woman who was going to make her mark on this man's Navy."
"Okay, I'll grant you that on paper this kid reads out like Arleigh Burke in a skirt. And I can see how they'd consider her qualified to take out the lead ship of the Cunningham-class. But she's short into her first major command and she doesn't have anything like line combat experience."
"That's endemic with a lot of our people, Admiral. It's been some time since the Navy has fought a real blue-water war."
"That may be about to change."
Captain Callendar frowned. "Has something new developed down south, sir?"
"No, not anything concrete. It's just that if I were one with you and Captain Garrett here, I'd say that my female intuition was kicking up."