“The helicopters are flying forward now to assure that the nets become draped over the Goliath’s cargo bed.”
“They’re cutting it close to the wave tops.”
“Don’t worry. Military pilots enjoy testing their skills.”
Jake watched the first aircraft drop a pulsating light atop a buoy that marked the end of its net. The helicopter shot upward, freed from its load. A minute later, the second Lynx sprang skyward and joined the first in repositioning itself ahead of the Goliath. “So that’s it?”
Jake appreciated the Australian submarine commander’s confirmation of his observations. “That’s it for the first run, Jake.”
“Doesn’t sound like either net is doing us the favor of catching the Goliath’s propeller.”
“That would have taken some luck.”
“I could’ve told you this isn’t our lucky day.”
“Then we’ll win with skill. Look, speed has dropped.”
Jake saw lines between the limpets and the Specter’s hydrophones showing the Goliath lagging the submarine. “Seven knots. Already an hour of helicopters flying around just for two tenths of a knot of drag.”
“Let’s see what the next pass brings. They’ll dump the lockers overboard with the nets to act as sea anchors.”
As the aircraft lowered their second nets, Jake noticed the Goliath complied by maintaining its course. He questioned why the hijackers feared turning away, but he realized the time invested in steering clear of the helicopters would create worse delays than the unwanted drag — at least in the short term.
His reasoning convinced him the assailants sought a nearby target, a goal close enough to taste. The conclusion abraded his thinning patience.
Anxiety became tapping fingers, inviting a glare from his Australian colleague. “Are you always like this? You’re behaving like a wuss.”
Behind Jake’s shoulder, the mechanic failed to bite back a guffaw. The American turned and offered his French retort. “Shut up, whore.”
“Sorry, Jake. It’s just that he’s right.”
“That’s enough, you bastard asshole.” Jake switched to English for Cahill’s sake. “You might have a good point, my friend from Down Under. So good, in fact, that I’m going to excuse myself and let you serve as my command duty officer, to include weapons launch authority.”
“I was just trying to cheer you up, mate. It’s just a joke.”
“There’s something I need to do in the torpedo room. Now’s as good a time as any to hand the ship over to you. That is, if our fleet admiral will allow it.”
Over the loudspeaker, the French boss sounded skeptical. “It depends where you’re going with this.”
“I’m going to break into a slow-kill warhead myself and see if I can modify it to yield a single bomblet.”
“At least see what the second set of nets does to me ship.”
“No, let him go, Terry. He’s creating another option. I won’t have any more helicopters for several hours due to readying assets at this time of night. I was lucky the Omanis could pull three crews together on short notice. I’m afraid we’re at a limit.”
“One on station with guns to keep me ship under, two running back and forth for more fuel and more nets.”
“Right. And barring the luck of a net entangling the propeller, each net would have a diminishing effect. I’m inclined to discontinue this fishing expedition and dedicate the helicopters to a reliable rotation of gunships over the Goliath.”
Jake glanced at the periscope optics before stepping away. “Looks like the second nets are catching.”
A young sonar operator cried out. “They’re harder to hear the second time with all the noise from the first nets, but I can hear them now.”
“You’re sure you don’t want to stick around and watch me ship get slowed even more?”
“No, thanks. I’ve got work to do.”
“All by yourself?”
Jake looked to his silver-haired mechanic but knew Henri’s ship control skills were vital in supporting Cahill this close to their submerged prey. His thoughts gravitated to his crew’s other technical genius.
He lifted a sound-powered phone to his cheek, flipped its address to the engine room, and whipped the dial.
LaFontaine answered. “Engine room.”
“Claude. You’re just the guy I’m looking for. Meet me in the torpedo room and plan on spending a few hours with me.”
“May I ask what this is about?”
“Care to guess?”
“It can mean only one thing.”
“You like the idea enough to try it with me?”
Jake waited while the Frenchman gathered himself. “I’ll bring my tools and a pack of cigarettes.”
CHAPTER 9
Olivia scrutinized the message behind the Frenchman’s words. His tone, his pace, the chinks in his emotional mask… they informed her faster than his words.
He’d been afraid, but now he held hope. “Four nets are applied, and I slowed the Goliath to seven knots.”
“My latest update has it moving at eight point seven.”
“Yes, that’s true. After my team laid the nets, the hijackers brought up the remaining MESMA plants.”
The monster threw a jab. “Your claim of seven knots was misleading.”
“No, it was a true at the time, for reference. But with all six plants running, the Goliath should be making over nine knots. So now that the Goliath is making only eight point seven knots, the nets are performing well at the higher speed.”
Acknowledging the Frenchman’s confidence, the monster receded, but Olivia questioned if the outcome justified the effort. “It still sounds like tin cans tied behind a car of newlyweds.”
“It’s a powerful ship and hard to slow, even with just the one propeller. But the time invested in the fishing operation has paid for itself in the added delay between the Goliath and the tripwire.”
“The netting may help, but it sounds like a stalemate in a game we need to win.”
“A stalemate or perhaps better, depending when we recapture the Goliath.”
“Let’s cut to it, then. What’s your plan to recapture it?”
The Frenchman’s hesitance suggested uncertainty. “I have several options I intend to exercise in sequence until one works, or in parallel wherever possible.”
“I’m listening.”
“My security team’s developing a plan to attach swimmers and force the surfacing, and Jake’s modifying a slow-kill weapon to yield a single bomblet, with the same desired outcome. There are other options, but these two are the most viable.”
She tested his confidence. “Those ideas are your most viable? Why not just send in Dmitry’s dolphins?”
“They’d attack windows and only damage the dome. They’re useless in slowing the Goliath, unfortunately.”
The Frenchman’s serious response negated the jab of her sarcastic dolphin comment. She admired his subtle shrewdness and shifted her tactics. “Okay, Pierre. I’ll trust your planning since you’ve got a perfect track record. I’ve got updates for you on the positions of naval assets, and—”
“One moment, please.”
His tone tightened her chest, and she strained to speak. “What’s wrong?”
“Jake and Dmitry both report the Goliath turning.”
“Which way?”
“To the starboard, steadied already on course zero-zero-six.”
Having spent weeks aboard a submarine with Renard a decade earlier, she remembered the patience required in resolving a submerged target’s change in direction. The Frenchman’s rapid response surprised her.