Clarity held up both hands. “No, you need to read this. Our illustrious Flag Lieutenant completed his task. I took a look at it last night. Didn’t get to sleep until three a.m.” He looked hard at Hammond. “Admiral, I’ve never seen anything like it in my career. You really need to read it,” he emphasized.
Hammond looked at the binder. “But it’s only been a week and a half. It can’t be that good.”
Clarity lifted an eyebrow. “I said the same thing, but you won’t believe what he’s come up with. Our Tennessee boy just impressed the hell out of me. Besides, you have an eight hour flight. You have nothing better to do,” he grinned.
The CNO entered the office. “All set?”
Hammond placed the binder under his arm. “Yep. Aren’t you coming?”
Johnson shrugged, “No, I have to go over to the White House. But your transportation is all set,” he said.
Hammond nodded. “Fine. By the way, how much can I share with these folks? I was thinking about the new materials we tested at David Taylor and the drone stuff,” he said.
Johnson thought a moment. “Share what you need. We’ll probably need to give the stuff to them anyway. They need to know what you are thinking and what we can do to help. Make them feel better about things,” he said.
Hammond nodded. “Will do.” He started out the door then turned back to Johnson. “By the way, don’t feel bad about messing up the weekend. Turns out Patricia has to go to the funeral anyway, so I just can’t hold it against you,” he said with a smirk.
“She’ll probably have more fun than you will,” Johnson said from the door as Hammond left the office.
Hammond and Clarity made their way down the corridor and exited the doors by the river entrance. The official car was there to take him to Andrews Air Force Base where the Gulfstream was waiting. Lieutenant Jeffers was there holding the door. “Your bags are in the trunk. Wish I was going with you,” he said.
Hammond smiled at the young man. “I wish you were too, but this will be fast and dirty. But I have a little something of yours to read,” he said holding up the binder, “so I doubt I’ll have much time to myself. We’ll talk when I get back,” he said as he climbed into the car.
Closing the door, Jeffers watched as the car went down the ramp and around the corner of the building. He had been working day and night to do something to help his boss. Somehow he knew that Hammond was being looked at for something special. He hoped he could be there with him.
Bugayev was already in his safe house. All of his team had been captured, but in reality it didn’t make any difference. A separate group would carry out the final big demonstration, then his job would change. From the invasion until the operation was over, he would run an underground unit to sabotage what military operations he could.
He pulled his coat tighter around him. It was getting colder and being in a damp basement wasn’t helping. All he had now was a small cot, a two burner hot plate, a table and a chair. He swore at the circumstances. How did they find out about his operations? The unit that cornered them was with the state police. It was only with the sheerest luck that he had been able to scramble to the laundry chute and pull himself up to the second floor using the rope he had managed to attach to a steam pipe. The SVR training he had received had saved his life. True, he had to continue with a backup crew, but he would be able to continue. At the same time, he would discreetly check on each of the men at the meeting. One of them must have betrayed him. He would find out which one, then take care of that business personally.
It wasn’t often you met a King. In this case it was for the second time. King William V had come aboard USS Iowa when she had led the round the world cruise after the Korean War. This time, the meeting was more business than pleasure. The King had a keen interest in the military and was very concerned about what nearly everyone knew was a coming war with Russia. He had urged his Prime Minister and military leaders to begin moving toward a war footing early on, but was concerned that it may be too late. Sitting in the meeting with the Prime Minister, he asked the most questions of all the people in the room.
Most of the questions they had were of his opinion on where the Allied cause should go and how they might accomplish their goals. More to the point, how would the United States respond? Although he had told them that he didn’t really know how far the United States would go, he did assure them that there would be a large response. Europe would not have to proceed alone. Hammond also shared his ideas on using every technology each nation possessed to suppress the enemy. He shared several technologies the United States was working on and was surprised to hear of several in Great Britain itself. He urged the sharing of information and manufacturing so that they could be exploited to the fullest. As the conference wound down it became obvious that Hammond needed to make a sort of closing statement.
“Your Majesty, Prime Minister, I appreciate your asking me to come and share my views concerning the possible conflict in Europe. As my President has said, this is a cause which involves all of us — not just Poland or Germany, but every European nation. Each of us brings a unique part and portion to the battlefield, whether it is in armor, people, materials or technology. We all have our own unique warfare style and history. That is no more felt than the history of this great nation and island. My own family history started right here outside London. All my life I have studied the military tactics and exploits of English leaders. It is the richest of any nation. So what you bring cannot be measured. The United States, by comparison, has only been around for a relatively few years, but few understand that our history is also your history. We too have proven ourselves on the field of battle and the ties between us are unbroken.
“In the coming days we shall come together again. We shall join nations large and small, but join them we will. In my NATO role, I hope to be a small part of this immense operation. It will be a daunting task, since we are outnumbered by a large margin. But remember, we have been outnumbered many times before. The Spanish Armada was far larger than any English force. Nelson found himself rushing in against the odds. In the Pacific, we both were on the losing side before Midway. Even the pundits thought we would lose that battle. But it wasn’t numbers that won the battles, it was strength of will. This is no different. If war comes, we shall win because we must do it. To do otherwise would be unthinkable. I truly look forward to working with each of you,” he said as he sat back in his seat.
For a long time no one spoke. Then the King stood and walked over to Hammond, taking his hand. “Admiral, you make us all proud to be a part of this. Thank you for sharing time with us today,” he said warmly.
“My pleasure, Your Majesty,” Hammond said softly.
Prime Minister, would you be so kind as to accompany me for a moment?” the King asked. The Prime Minister nodded, “Of course, Your Majesty.” The two left the room via a separate door as the others in the room gathered round to shake Hammond’s hand before leaving. Sir Richard was the last. “Bloody hell,” he expounded. “You certainly know how to stir the loins. I felt like I would pop down to Portsmouth and get underway. Heaven help the Russians,” he boasted as he shook Hammond’s hand. “Come on, let’s stop by a pub on the way. I feel like a good wet.”
***
In the corridor the King stopped and looked at Nicholson with a questioning face. “What is your opinion?” he asked.
Prime Minister Nicholson took a deep breath. “Your Majesty, if we put any European officer in charge, the same old bickering and squabbling will occur. From what Sir Richard tells me, that man even got the French to agree with him. We both know he is brilliant and he has demonstrated that he has the tact and patience to get the job done. I believe that, once again, we need an American to spearhead this effort,” he said.