Climbing back down into the boat, Kurshin left the after hatch open and hurried forward, where he began removing bodies from the crucial control and reactor room spaces. Five submariners, a drunken doctor, and an assassin. Even now he didn’t think it was possible.
Captain Kenneth Reid stood just within the doorway to the communications center, sipping a cup of coffee. “Nothing yet” he asked. Chief Petty Officer Sally Powell looked up from her console and shook her head. “But we’ve still got the downlink” She glanced at her board. “Yes, sir. Unless they’ve got a malfunction aboard, they should be receiving us ” Reid was a worrier, had been all of his life. Barely in his forties, his expressive face already showed stress lines, especially around his eyes and mouth. His blood pressure was on the high side of normal for a man his age, and his cholesterol level had gone through the roof with his assignment to Italy. Just now the base doctor was on his ass.
“I’ll be in my office for a minute, buzz me if anything comes in” he said, putting his cup down on top of one of the consoles. “Aye, Sir”
the chief radio operator said. She looked up. “Do you think anything is wrong”
“I don’t know” Reid said, but he was developing a very bad feeling about this one. He walked down the corridor to his office and telephoned the CINCMED, Admiral Ronald Delugio, at his home north of Gaeta.
“Admiral, we still haven’t gotten any reply from the Indianapolis. We’ve got our downlink, but there’s been nothing since their last nearly an hour ago”
“What about that Liberian freighter, Ken? How close is she”
“Should be on the scene within the next few minutes. I’ve held off communicating directly with her”
“No, I don’t want you doing that yet. JD. is a good man, could be he’s just got his hands full. What else have we got in the area” Reid glanced up at his status board. “Not a thing within a few hours. I’ve got an Orion standing by on the apron. Could be out there in under twenty minutes counting roll time”
“All right, listen up, Ken. We’re going to stop screwing around on this one. I’m on my way in. In the meantime, query JD. one more time. Tell him it’s imperative that he report his status. You can put the Orion up, but just for an overflight unless she detects trouble, then she’s authorized to stay on station”
“Will do, Admiral”
“One more thing, Reid” Admiral Delugio said. “Yes, Sir”
“Call our ASR crew in. Have them standing by” The suggestion took Reid momentarily aback, even though he’d had the same thought himself. Just now the ASR 21 Pigeon was in port from her support mission on LOOKUP.
She was designed for submarine rescue. “Will do, Admiral” he said.
“Anything comes up, Ken, anything at all, call me enroute. I should be there within fifteen minutes”
“Yes, sir” Reid said and he hung up. Back in the communications center he scratched out a quick message and handed it to Sally for transmission. He had marked it with the Z designator for a flash message. If nothing else it certainly would get Webb’s attention.
Z280417ZJUL TOP SECRET FM: COMSUBMED TO: USS INDIANAPOLIS
A. MOST URGENT YOU IMMEDIATELY REPORT YOUR STATUS.
B. ORION P-3C ENROUTE YOUR POSITION.
TALK TO ME, JD. KENNY SENDS. xx EOM 280418ZJUL BREAKBREAK
Reid picked up the phone and called Lieutenant Commander Morris Segal, the on-duty Air Operations Officer. “Morris, this is Ken. I want you to send that Orion up now. I I “No word yet”
“Not a peep. Delugio is on his way in. He says to have your people report back, but that they’re to stand by on station only if there is an indication that Webb might be in some sort of trouble”
“You got it”
Segal said. “But it won’t be light for another couple of hours yet, won’t be able to do much until then”
“I know” Reid said. “We’ve got the Pigeon standing by, just in case “
“Jesus” Segal said. “That bad”
“I haven’t a clue, Morris. I just hope to Christ we won’t be needing her”
Kurshin had just dragged the body out of the reactor auxiliary control room when he heard the distinctive metal clang of the after hatch being closed. Pulling out his pistol he stepped through the hatch into the machinery spaces forward of the reactor, and held up in the shadows. After a second or two he could hear them coming forward.
Their voices were hushed, almost subdued, yet he could hear their excitement. An act of this sort would be totally unprecedented, Baranov had warned him.
“There will be no room for err-or, Arkasha. No room”
to Yes, Comrade General” he’d replied. “I have no wish take a one-way ride”
“No” Baranov had smiled. “I have other great things for you. Do not fail me” Captain First Rank Makayev stepped through the hatch. Kurshin moved forward, placing the barrel of his pistol against the man’s temple before he could react. “The code” Kurshin said softly. Makayev shrugged away from the gun and looked into Kurshin’s eyes. “That freighter was right on our ass, Colonel. So unless you want to serve her crew tea and blinis you’d better let us get to work” There weren’t many men whom Kurshin admired, but he was beginning to like Makayev already. He lowered his gun, switched the safety to the on position, and holstered it. “The after hatch is sealed” Makayev grinned. “There are no screen doors on a submarine. How about forward”
“The boat is ours, and ready to go”
“Then let’s get the hell out of here” Makayev said. He turned back to his crew. “Aleksei, get started with your baby. I want her ready to go within the hour, just in case we have to bail out”
“Yes, Comrade Captain” his missile man snapped. He turned to his starpom (executive officer) and sonar man.
“Gennadi, take Aleksandr forward, get him set up on sonar, and then check the board for diving status” They brushed past Kurshin and hurried forward to the control room, leaving only the nuclear engineer, Captain Second Rank Ivan Pavlovich Abalakin. “You’re our most important crewman, Ivan Pavlovich” Makayev said. “Think you can handle this monster”
Abalakin shrugged and smiled, though it was clear he was extremely nervous. “I have studied the systems, Comrade Captain. The Americans have designed most of their controls to work on automatic function. I will manage”
“Good” Makayev said, clapping him on the shoulder. “We shall keep the ship’s comms open at all times. We will talk to each other” Abalakin turned and went into the reactor auxiliary control room, and Makayev and Kurshin started forward. “Have you ever steered a submarine, Comrade Colonel” the captain asked. “No, but I’ve been aboard one of our Alfa-class boats” Kurshin said. “Ah, she is a good boat, but much smaller than this one, and cruder too, I think. But this morning you will be our helmsman. I hope your hand is steady”
Passing the sonar room, Lieutenant Rama had already donned the earphones and was fiddling with the controls on the center console. “Watch that freighter, Aleksandr Ivanovich, and anything else in our vicinity”
Makayev said. The kid looked up and nodded. Makayev’s starpom, Captain Second Rank Gennadi Gavrilovich Fedorenko, was busy at work when they entered the control room. “How does it look, Gennadi”