"My opinion is, if Jack is fit, he, Carl, and Pete will discover a way to find us. My money is on our people."

The group was silent as they waited for Niles to finish what they knew he was going to say.

"I also don't want anyone here at this table to have any false illusions about us escaping. It's not likely." Compton looked at McIntire, who was dipping her spoon in and out of her soup. "Sarah, I'm going to say something you may not like. We owe Colonel Farbeaux nothing--not for saving you at the complex, or for what he did earlier today. He's dangerous, and we have to consider ... eliminating him."

"Sarah, you told us about Jack. Your explanation of Farbeaux's reaction to the news that the Colonel was alive has confirmed your suspicion about his stability."

Sarah was silent as she turned toward Niles. Her look said she was lost as to how to answer both him and Virginia.

Garrison Lee broke the uncomfortable silence.

"How do we do that, Virginia--have the captain dump him at sea, or allow this Sergeant Tyler to place a bullet in his brain?"

The table became silent at Lee's question.

"Obviously not--we decided a long time ago that we play by our rules and not everyone else's, regardless of cost, or what the opposition dictates," Lee said, looking from person to person.

"I'm sorry, but Farbeaux could become a very large liability when the time comes for us to act," Virginia said as she rubbed her temples.

Yeoman Felicia Alvera walked up to their table. She looked at other crew members watching her approach the table, and she eyed them until they turned away.

"Can we help you, Yeoman?" Alice asked her, noticing that the girl was, for the first time, unsmiling.

"Your opposition to our captain. I would like to know"--she half-turned and gestured to the table of twenty or so midshipmen in the middle of the compartment--"just as many of us would--why you do not see she has no other choice but to act as she has?"

"Young lady, no matter the kindness Captain Heirthall has shown you and these others, she is killing people, and making very little discrimination as to who they are," Niles said, seeing a different girl before them than the one they first met on the hangar deck.

"Yeoman, you may return to your meal, or your quarters," Sergeant Tyler said, having stepped up without anyone hearing or seeing his approach.

Alvera looked at Tyler and narrowed her eyes. Then she suddenly turned and left, not going back to her own meal; she left the mess area altogether. Niles and the others saw that the other midshipmen, after a brief glance toward them, all followed the girl out.

The sergeant was starting to walk away, and then stopped and turned. He looked down at the five Group members. They saw there was still a spot of blood on the bandage wrapped around his head.

"From this moment forward, you are not to converse with the crew, especially the middies. If you disobey this command you will be locked in the brig and gagged. For the present time, we are putting the problem of you people on hold, but you may have company soon. We are making a detour."

"What about the reason you brought us aboard in the first place, Sergeant?" Niles asked.

"What you know or what your Group knows no longer concerns us. For the moment just consider yourselves ..." He paused and smiled. "... ballast."

Tyler turned and followed the midshipmen out, ignoring the way the adult crew looked at him.

"What a dick," Sarah said.

"My word exactly," Alice agreed.

"Yeoman Alvera and the other midshipmen--have you noticed the paleness of skin? It's almost see-through," Virginia stated.

"Now that you bring it up, they are pale--even for submariners," Niles said.

"Here's something else for everyone to chew on. Have you noticed the way the older crewmen look at them is almost resentful?"

None of them had an answer or an opinion as Leviathanstarted her thermal-dynamic drive for the first time in twelve hours. They were all silent and more than one of them stared at the table, knowing the great submarine was once more under way and was continuing whatever hellish work she still had to do.

14

USS MISSOURI (SSN-780)

ONE MILE OFF SABOO ISLAND,

FIFTEEN HOURS LATER

The captain of USS Missouristared at Jack Collins, thinking the man had gone mad. He tossed the grease pencil on the charting table and looked over at his XO.

"You're just going to walk right onto the island and say, 'Hey, we would like a ride'?"

"It's either that or waste the lives of a lot of young boys by trying to take Leviathanby force, all alone, when and if she surfaces," Jack said, not turning away from the captain. "Personally, I've had enough of people dying lately. We want one chance to get our hostages back.... Just one, then she's yours, Captain."

Jefferson lowered his head. "Okay, Colonel, we may be able to track Leviathan, I'll give you and the president that much, but we lost a bunch of subs and men learning that fact. Also absorb this little tidbit: We hit her with two Mark forty-eight torpedoes, and they didn't even slow her down, as far as we know. Now explain to me how we can get any advantage on this thing whatsoever, if we even find her again after this little detour of yours."

"Once aboard, my men and I will have to play things by ear. Captain Everett here is trained on how to get an edge against enemy subs, so you'll have to wait and take advantage of what it is we come up with. Twenty-four hours. After that, hit her anyway you can with what you can. Captain, I want our people off that damn thing."

Jack looked at Carl, then nodded his head. Everett handed the captain a yellow envelope with a red border.

"I think you'll recognize the name and letterhead, Captain," Carl said. "I think this will explain our sincerity about that one chance if we fail."

Jefferson looked at the plain yellow envelope and then, without removing his eyes from Collins, broke the plastic seal. He pulled the single set of orders out and looked at them. When he was finished reading, he closed his eyes.

"Jesus Christ," he mumbled, and handed the letter over to First Officer Izzeringhausen. The lieutenant commander read what the order called for, and his face went slack.

"You'll have to excuse us, Colonel, we're just not that experienced with sending men out on a suicide mission. If you ask me, you guys are out of your fucking minds," Izzeringhausen said after reading the letter and the code that was attached to it.

"Take it easy, Izzy, I think they know what they're asking."

The first officer gave the letter from the president of the United States back to the captain and went back to speak with the chief of the boat.

"You know, it's not only suicide for you fellas, but for the Missouriand any other American boat in the area. A nuclear war shot in a confined area will smash us to atoms, and we have to be within range of the target to guarantee a hit," he said, tossing the letter onto the navigation console.

"Let's hope we can do something other than that, Captain. We can be pretty sneaky at times," Jack said.

The presidential order authorizing the use of Missouri'snuclear capability was having a profound effect on Jefferson, and Jack could see that. The order would be the first in naval history to be carried out, if it came to that, and the responsibility was etched on the captain's face.