“But how do we know her reports are accurate or complete?”
“Look, she’s the SUBLANT Ops officer’s assistant. If he’s doing his job right, he’s coordinating everything with Intel and with all the forces allied in their efforts to find us. And under these circumstances, I’m sure Rowdy Yates is making sure he’s doing his job right!”
“Yeah, the admiral’s not going to let this new guy screw up for a while as a learning experience!” the XO agreed.
“And that means Leona’s sitting in on every briefing and every brainstorming session. So she not only knows everything they’re currently doing to find us, she knows everything they’re even thinking about doing. Her reports are coming in regularly, and as far as her accuracy, I would trust her with my life.”
Recognizing that the captain had made his decision, the XO shook his head in resignation. “I hope you’re right, Captain — all our lives depend on it!”
Although the Louisiana was submerged, she trailed a floating wire antenna that enabled her to receive radio communications and news of world events. Everyone onboard was aware of the fear and panic that was gripping the U.S. because of the speculation the Louisiana had been hijacked by terrorists.
The next day, as the captain studied the navigation charts in the control room, the XO approached and said, “Captain, some of the men have been discussing the decoy radio transmission we plan to make off the coast of Angola. We have a suggestion for the message content.”
“What would that be?”
“‘NO FEAR,’ Captain.”
“It’s okay, go ahead and tell me.”
The XO laughed. “No, that’s the message: NO FEAR. It accomplishes several things. First, it’s short, so as we discussed, it doesn’t give triangulation systems a chance to pinpoint our location. They’ll know generally that we were off the western coast of southern Africa, but that’s about the best they’ll be able to do. Second, intelligence analysts will recognize immediately that this is American slang, not a term used by Islamic terrorists. It will give a clear message to the people of the U.S. that they are not our target. They need that message right now. Hundreds of people have been killed, and the economy is at a complete standstill.”
“That’s good thinking, XO. I like it.”
“There is one other good thing it does for us, Captain — a very important thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Any intelligence analyst worth his salt would look suspiciously at a boomer popping up and making a radio transmission — especially one that’s being hunted by the entire world. They’d conclude for sure that the transmission was a deception — a decoy. However, given the situation in the U.S., and knowing we would be aware of it, they might deduce we took the risk of making the transmission in order to save American lives. They would be more likely to conclude that the transmission accurately reflects our projected track.”
The captain thought pensively for a few seconds and then looked at the XO and said, “You’re right. When we reach the transmission point, we’ll tell the world: NO FEAR.”
Chapter 24
Commander Lannis Wayne was coordinating all intelligence activities associated with the search for the Louisiana. On the morning of August 25, Lannis stood in an auditorium-style briefing room before Admiral Yates, the Joint Chiefs, and their combined staffs to present a hurriedly prepared briefing. He couldn’t remember ever seeing so many stars in one room! The entire top echelon of the U.S. military was there: General Daramus, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Admiral Byers, the chief of naval operations; General Stevenson, the army chief of staff; General Metcalf, the air force chief of staff; General Naeger, the commandant of the Marine Corps; and Admiral Bostich, the commandant of the Coast Guard. Each had ten to fifteen staff members with them, so there were close to a hundred high-ranking officers, eagerly awaiting Lannis’s findings. Lannis stood at a podium directly in front of the Joint Chiefs and tried in vain to stop his left knee from jerking nervously. He began…
“Good morning. I am Commander Lannis Wayne, intelligence officer on the staff of the Commander, Submarine Force Atlantic Fleet. I am here this morning to present the findings of the special investigative team appointed by Admiral Yates on August eighteenth to investigate the disappearance of the USS Louisiana on the night of August seventeenth. Our team consisted of myself, navy intelligence specialists, and agents from…”
General Daramus, the chairman, interrupted. “Commander, we know who you are, we know the team members, and we all know why we’re here. Let’s skip the formalities and move on to your findings.”
“Aye-aye, sir. As you all know, the USS Louisiana disappeared from her berth at Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base on the night of August seventeenth — apparently hijacked. There was no sign of any struggle at the site of the hijacking, and no evidence of forced entry on the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base that evening. Fifty crew members and two marine guards disappeared when the Louisiana was hijacked. Our investigation has revealed that none of them were married and none had any children. This seemed to be a peculiar coincidence at first, until we questioned the submarine detailer at BuPers. We discovered that Captain Adams specifically requested that a large number of such crew members be assigned to his submarine when he took over as the commanding officer of the Louisiana.”
A murmur arose throughout the room. Bodies shifted and chairs squeaked.
“What are you suggesting, Commander?” asked General Daramus.
“Nothing yet, sir. Just presenting the facts.”
The general nodded for Lannis to proceed.
“The night of the hijacking, the crew of the Louisiana held a ship’s party at the Chief Petty Officers’ Club on the Naval Submarine Base at Kings Bay, Georgia. Except for a small watch section that remained onboard, the entire crew and their spouses were present at the party. Shortly after dinner, Captain Adams, the XO, and several other key crew members left the party unannounced. All who left are among the missing. Additionally, the ship’s senior watch officer, who is not among the missing, has revealed that he did not assign the watch section that remained onboard that evening. That task was taken over and handled personally by the XO.”
Another murmur spread throughout the room.
“We know the Louisiana is capable of monitoring worldwide news broadcasts while she is deployed. In the days following the Louisiana’s disappearance, fear and panic were causing a great many deaths here in the U.S. One week after the disappearance of the Louisiana, we received a brief message from her containing simply the two words, NO FEAR. We do not believe that either the content or the timing of this message was accidental. The content is Western slang, and it is highly improbable that Islamic terrorists would be familiar with it. This leads us to believe that Westerners are in control of the submarine. In addition, the timing indicates they were concerned that their actions were causing the loss of U.S. lives, and they wanted the citizens of the U.S. to know that the U.S. was not the submarine’s target. This concern leads us to believe that the Westerners are Americans.”
This time, it was more than a murmur that spread throughout the room. Everyone started talking excitedly at the same time! General Daramus and Admiral Byers, the CNO, exchanged irritated glances. General Daramus rose from his seat in the front, ran his fingers through his silver hair, and turned to the gathered staff members. “Everyone, hold your comments until the commander has finished,” he ordered. The room quickly grew silent, and after glaring a few stragglers into silence, the general turned and resumed his seat. “Please continue, Commander.”