“Surface the boat.”
The USS Stonewall Jackson broke surface on an overcast but warm afternoon. There was a slight rolling sea from the west.
“Crack the hatch, COB.”
“Aye sir.”
Chief of the Boat was the senior enlisted man aboard. The boat’s COB was Seamus Cox, known as Dick, a tough shit eating Texan. The COB was in charge of all enlisted men, watch station assignment, racking assignments, and crew discipline. He was indispensable and could train, blame, curse like a rap star and chew ass.
The boat came to her assigned berth and tied up.
“Comms, make to COMSUBPAC that we’ve arrived.”
“Aye sir,” said Lieutenant Commander Lemineux.
The COB organised a roster and three skeleton crews to look after the boat, while most of the crew took a walk on shore. It was their first taste of land for four weeks.
Several hours later, the boat’s officers met in the wardroom for dinner. It was a simple affair but well made, with fresh vegetables that the cook had brought on board from the base store.
“Good to be off the boat for a while,” said Sayers.
“Yeah, fresh air blowing in your face. I grabbed a burger too,” said Weaps.
“I walked into a regular store,” said Kaminski, “and bought a magazine. Out there, they don’t know what it’s like to be able to do that,” she sniggered. After the meal, Nathan walked towards the control room. Lieutenant Kaminski squeezed her way down the companionway close by him, and pushed a note quietly into his hand. She picked up a few papers in the control room. “XO, sir, I’m going ashore for a time,” she said, “to make the most of it.”
“OK see you later.” Nathan wrote up the log, it didn’t take long, and then walked aft to his cabin. He took out her note from his pocket and read it; he smiled faintly. He changed into civvies and left the boat. At the main base entrance, he walked over to the first cab at the rank.
“Hi, boss. Come on in. Where are you going?”
“Take me to the Tamuning Hotel, South Marine Drive.”
The Tamuning hotel was an unassuming beige concrete building. Nathan took the elevator to the second floor, walking down the corridor until he came to room 211. He knocked softly. After a short pause, the door was opened by Lieutenant Nikki Kaminski. Her hair was down and she wore a blue bathrobe. She smiled and stood aside as he walked in.
“Hi sir, I’ve got something for you.” She put her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. “But first, you’ve been having those quick showers in the head while on the boat. You need a real shower, come on.”
He’d been involved with Nikki for a little while now. He knew he shouldn’t, but at least they’d kept it away from the boat. He hoped.
She pushed him into the bathroom and ran the shower. Nikki looked into his eyes and pulled his shirt off, unfastened his belt. Then roughly, quickly, pulled down his trousers and boxer shorts. She walked a few paces to the door and turned to face him. She smiled, lowered her chin and looked at him doe-eyed as she opened her robe, revealing her nakedness. Nikki let it fall to the floor. She slinked over to him and pushed him into the shower.
“Right sir, let’s get you scrubbed down. Then I’ve got someone who wants to meet this.” She took him in her hand and squeezed.
Later, she sat astride him on the bed.
“Look at my hair, Nathan. It’s all wet.”
“You look flushed.”
She got off him. “I need another shower, I’m fucked.” She smiled. They’d sleep on the boat tonight, travelling back at different times.
He dressed, then pushed the bathroom door open; she stood in the shower with her back to him. He ran his eyes up and down, taking in her shapely bum.
“I’m off back to the boat now.”
She turned and blew him a kiss. “See ya.”
THE FOLLOWING MORNING Nathan and XO Larry Sayers walked into Jeff’s Pirate Cove Bar and Grill, on the east side of the island.
A waitress wearing a cutlass and a black skull and bones bandana approached.
“What can I get you guys?”
“A Pirate breakfast with coffee.”
“Make that two.”
Nathan sipped his coffee. “Sooty raised an issue with me back at Pearl. Asked me how I’d feel about being permanently forward deployed here. What do you think?”
Larry shrugged. “Fine by me, it’s a good island. What did you say?”
“Pretty much the same as you. We’d get several free rides a year back to the mainland.”
As the waitress poured their coffee top up, Larry was vaguely aware of some guy walking towards their table.
“So, how are my dirty job boys?” They turned to see a smiling Rear Admiral Sutton; he was out of uniform.
“Hello sir.” They both stood and shook hands. The Admiral sat.
“I didn’t expect to see you out here sir. How did you know where we were?”
“I asked my secretary to track your cell phone.”
“Ain’t no place to hide now,” said Larry.
The waitress brought the food over, and Sutton ordered the same. “As far as the reason you’re here… Nathan, who’s on your war committee?”
Nathan quickly decided it would be the same as last time. It’d worked out well. “The XO here and Lieutenant Kaminski.”
The Admiral nodded. “I’ll brief you all together when we’re on the Jackson.”
THE THREE MEN CLIMBED down the ladder from the sail down into the submarine’s main companionway and Nathan stuck his head into the control room.
“Lieutenant Kaminski, come to the Wardroom. It’s a war committee meeting.”
The Admiral looked at them one by one. “The reason I asked you to come to Guam is that we have a mission for you. It’s going to be the most dangerous one that the USN’s carried out since the Cold War. The Joint Chiefs asked me to bring out the big stick for this one, so here we are. Do you know about operation Ivy Bells?”
“No,” said Nathan, “go on, sir.”
“Back at the end of the seventies, we…
…SO THAT WAS IT. A SPY sold the information to the Soviets and that was that. You’ll be aware of the recent events in the South China Sea.” There were nods around the table. “The Chinese occupied islands. We need to know more about them and what’s going on there. Therefore, we want you to do an Ivy Bells operation on these Islands. If the Chinese catch you at it, they’ll consider you to be hostile.” Admiral Sutton leaned forward and stared them one by one in the eyes. “They will attempt to sink you. This one is so secret that only the President, the NSA, The Joint Chiefs, me and you will know about it. Don’t tell wives, husbands, girlfriends, boyfriends or even the pet dog about it. Do I make myself clear?”
They nodded.
“I said, do I make myself clear?”
“Yes sir.”
“Yes sir.”
“Yes sir.”
“We’ve flown in the bugs, as we’re calling them. They’re the listening and recording devices, they’ll need to be placed over the cables by divers. Also, we have two divers here who’ll join you to place the bugs, it’s a two man job. I’ll bring them aboard. I know space aboard is limited, so they’ll try to keep out of the way.”
“We only need one of them,” said Nathan, “we have a very capable boat’s diver in CPO Innes.”
“These men are Navy Divers First class, specially trained for the task.”
“Then one of them will be able to teach Innes what to do,” said Nathan, his jaw set.
“No, they’re specially trained for the task.”
“How much diving have they done from a submarine?”
“They did some practice dives from a boat in San Diego.”