“My God!” Sirocco said. He hoisted himself back up on the cigaret deck and Mealey followed him.
“Captain!” Don Grilley’s voice was strangled, almost unintelligible. Mealey rushed to the small bridge. Grilley was pointing down at the forward deck, his arm and body shaking violently.
There, sitting squarely on one of its flat ends near the forward deck gun, was a Japanese depth charge.
It was Dusty Rhodes who finally figured out what to do with the depth charge. After following Cohen’s suggestion that a careful copy be made for Naval Intelligence of the characters on the face of the depth charge exploder plate, Rhodes got a small rubber boat that was stowed in the after end of the Forward Torpedo Room bilge. The boat was unrolled and laid beside the depth charge and then Rhodes and Ginty lifted the heavy charge and placed it carefully on its side in the fabric and rubber folds of the boat and inflated the boat. They lashed a dozen turns of heaving line around the boat and depth charge and, standing knee-deep in water as Captain Mealey flooded down forward, they gently pushed the rubber boat and its deadly load off the ship after Rhodes had carefully made two small holes in the boat’s fabric.
As the boat drifted away, the air hissing slowly out of the two small holes, Mako raced away from the area.
Later that night Mako’s message to the submarine command at Pearl Harbor caused a duty officer to begin making telephone calls and a hastily arranged-for Staff breakfast meeting was held. On those submarines at sea on patrol where the message was intercepted and decoded there was joy and, inevitably, some envy. It read:
Please give kudos to those people who sent us the Kongo. BB arrived on schedule at northeast entrance, Truk.
Mako dove under twelve destroyer escort and fired ten repeat ten torpedoes at BB, scoring six repeat six hits. When last seen target had large fires forward and what appeared to be a substantial explosion in that area, with heavy list to starboard, but still under way slowly on one screw. Believe her captain may have been trying to beach his ship on the reef. Mako does no further report on target because of enemy retaliation which was of unprecedented ferocity.
Mako endured ten hours of repeated depth charge attacks. Near end of period Mako surfaced to periscope depth and fired one- torpedo at Fubuki-class destroyer, hitting it amidships and breaking it in two. Unable to stick around for second look but heard unmistakable breaking-up noises on sonar.
Mako regretfully reports death in action of Machinist Mate Third Class Joseph P. Richards, who was thrown against the starboard engine in the forward engine-room, fracturing his skull. The remains were buried at sea in the traditional service.
Mako reports sustaining considerable and severe materiel damage. Attack periscope is bent over until it touches deck. After deck gun has disappeared from its mount. Much of main deck has been torn away. Exhaust line welds in both engine rooms have been shattered. Starboard propeller shaft believed bent. After Trim tank ruptured.
Mako is returning home for repairs.
Two nights later as Mako plowed steadily toward Pearl Harbor at a steady 18 knots Lieut. Nathan Cohen came to the bridge and handed Captain Mealey a message. Mealey held the message up in the bright moonlight so he could read it.
To U.S.S. Mako
From COMSUBPACS:
Well done Mako and well done again. Intelligence reports that Mako scored seven repeat seven hits on target. The target is now aground on the reef east of the Northeast Passage, Truk, and considered to be out of action for at least two years. Casualty list given as three hundred seventy-five dead. Mako also gets confirmed sinking of a Fubuki destroyer with all hands.
COMSUBPAC congratulates Captain Mealey on his aggressive patrol and his fourth gold stripe. We are waiting to welcome all hands. Again, a hearty well done to Mako’s Captain, Wardroom and crew.
Captain Mealey handed the message to Joe Sirocco, who had followed Nate Cohen to the bridge. Sirocco read the message and then stuck out his big hand.
“Congratulations, sir, on your promotion. You’ve earned it.”
“Thank you, Joe, but damn it, she didn’t sink! They beached her on the reef. With seven fish in her she should have sunk!”
“She’s out of commission for two years, Skipper. We had our cake and paid for it and you can eat it with a good appetite. Hitting a battleship guarded by twelve destroyers, hitting it seven times and putting it out of commission and sinking a Fubuki, that’s a whole plateful of cake!”
“I suppose you’re right,” Mealey said slowly. “But this means that I go ashore! They don’t put four-stripe captains in command of a submarine.”
“There’s that,” Sirocco agreed. “But at least you can be in a position to tell others how to do what they’re supposed to do. And I’m glad that you decided to say the cause of Richard’s death was due to battle action, sir.”
“Against my better wishes, Mister,” Mealey said shortly. “I shouldn’t have let you and Grilley change my mind!”
Chapter 20
Lieut. Comdr. Arthur Hinman’s eyes opened slowly and he rolled his head on the soft pillow, trying to remember where he was. He lay quietly for a moment, thinking. Then he smelled the faint odor of the sea and a harbor mixed with the reek of auto exhaust fumes coming through the opened window and the foreign scent of a woman’s perfume.
San Francisco.
He turned his head and looked at Joan Richards. Her crisp black hair was slightly tousled. Her eyes were closed and her full breasts were rising and falling slowly and evenly under the sheet and light blanket. He studied her face in the morning light. Without make-up her skin was clear with a rosy tint underneath. Her full lips were parted slightly, showing her front teeth. He reached out and very softly touched her hair. Her eyes opened and closed and then opened again and she smiled, a slow, soft smile.
“You’re staring at me,” she said.
“Not staring, adoring,” he said. “Did you know that you have flawless skin? It’s marvelous!”
“Of course.” She covered her mouth with one hand and yawned hugely. “You’ve been telling me for a week that I’m perfect so I guess I am. But is that all you’re going to do, just lie there and stare at me? Does a woman get a cup of coffee in this miserable life or has the war stopped room service and morning coffee?”
“I’ll call right now,” he said, throwing back the covers. He stood up beside the bed and her eyes widened.
“Forget the coffee for a little while! This woman can’t ignore a challenge like that! Get back in here, man!” He looked down at himself and grinned and got back into bed.
“Not heavy, romantic love,” she murmured as she rolled onto her side facing him. “Just fun and games on Saturday morning in old San Francisco, okay?”
“You’re the Captain,” he said, fitting himself to her. “You give the orders and I’ll obey them.”
“Now hear this!” she said. She put a leg across him and reached downward with her hand. “You’ve got the right angle on the bow and the range is right and you can load and fire that torpedo when ready! How’s that? Am I learning your submarine talk?”
“You’re doing fine,” he said. He moved in response to her guiding hand and then moved strongly and smoothly and as she gasped and closed her eyes he put his hand around her buttocks and drew himself deep into her.