“Let me put a drop of this stuff in your coffee, sir,” he said. He poured a scant quarter inch into the coffee and put the bottle down on the table. Masters reached out and picked up the Coke bottle.
“Just a nip to clear the passages,” he said. Rhodes and Barber stared in horror as Masters tipped the Coke bottle and took a mouthful of the pure alcohol.
Rhodes was the first to move, bolting around the end of the table to catch hold of Masters as he staggered, coughing, gasping for air, his eyes wild and frightened. Barber grabbed a dish towel and held it to Masters’ mouth as Rhodes pounded him on the back.
“Spit it out, man!” Rhodes rasped in Masters’ ear. “Get rid of it!”
They sat him down in a chair when he had stopped retching and Barber gave him a glass of water to rinse out his mouth, holding the towel so he could spit out the water. He sank back in the chair, his hands massaging his throat. It was several minutes before he could speak.
“Oh bloody Yanks! Japs will never beat a people who can drink whiskey that strong!”
Ginty was the last of the Mako’s crew to report back for duty. He jumped out of the Bluey’s car as it rolled to a stop on the pier and bolted down the gangway and into his place in the morning quarters line with seconds to spare.
“Glad to see you, Ginty,” Captain Hinman said cheerfully. “Glad to see that you have a driver to help you make quarters.” He looked up and down the line of Mako’s crew.
“Well you all look rested and relaxed. Shows you what going to the zoo and taking daily walks in the park will do for you!” He grinned as a ripple of laughter went down the ranks.
“Fun and games are over,” Hinman said. “We’re going back to sea. Two section liberty from now on, Chief Rhodes. Liberty to be granted only if the Division officers and the Chief Petty Officers of the division agree that you can be spared to go ashore.
“If any of you have contracted a venereal disease tell Doc Whitten at once. No one is going to court-martial you for anything like that but for your own sake, I don’t want to take you to sea with something we can’t treat correctly.
“Division officers will meet with their people right after quarters and with me in the Wardroom in one hour. Now I have some changes and promotions to announce.” He turned to Chief John Maxwell, whose dark eyes were completely rimmed by bruised-looking flesh after nine days with the buxom wife of an Australian Lieutenant who was stationed somewhere in North Africa. Maxwell handed Captain Hinman a sheaf of papers.
“I don’t much like reading this first item,” Hinman said slowly. “Lieut. Comdr. Joseph J. Sirocco, USNR, you are hereby detached from duty aboard the U.S.S. Mako and transferred to Pearl Harbor for further assignment.” He looked at Sirocco.
“I’ll say this in front of all hands, Joe. You are the very best Executive Officer a submarine Captain could ever have! I’ll miss you. Chief Maxwell has your travel orders.
“Lieut. Peter Simms, USN, you are hereby promoted to Lieutenant Commander and will take over as Executive Officer. Pete, my congratulations.” Simms grinned, unable to conceal his joy.
“Lieut. j.g. Nathan Cohen, you are hereby promoted to full Lieutenant. I congratulate you, sir, you earned it.
“Gordon L. Rhodes, Chief Torpedoman’s Mate, USN, you are hereby promoted to the rank of Lieutenant, Junior Grade, by the order of Admiral Chester Nimitz. The rank is temporary for the duration of the war. Mr. Rhodes, Chief Maxwell has your orders. You will report to Captain Mealey’s staff in Pearl for duty.
“John R. Barber, Chief Machinist Mate, USN, you are hereby promoted to the rank of Lieutenant, Junior Grade, by order of Admiral Chester Nimitz. The rank is temporary for the duration of the war. Mr. Barber, Chief Maxwell has your orders. You will report to Captain Mealey’s staff in Pearl Harbor.
“Arnold Samuel Ginty, Torpedoman’s Mate First Class, you are hereby promoted to Chief Torpedoman.
“Michael P. DeLucia, Torpedoman’s Mate First Class, you are hereby promoted to Chief Torpedoman. My congratulations to both of you new Chief Petty Officers.” He went on, noting a number of other promotions for members of the crew.
“That’s it, gentlemen. Carry on the ship’s work. I want to see Mr. Sirocco and Rhodes and Barber in the Wardroom at once. Chiefs Ginty and DeLucia, stand by to see me later this morning.”
Sitting in the Wardroom over coffee Captain Hinman looked at Sirocco, Rhodes and Barber.
“It goes without saying that I hate to see you guys go. I never served with three better men, I mean that. Here’s what happened.
“Captain Rudd has been detached to work on a project he has been trying to do for a long while — develop a method of using our submarines in groups. The Germans do this. They call their group operations ‘Wolf Packs.’ It should work for us.
“Captain Mealey has taken over Bob Rudd’s job.” Hinman looked at Rhodes and Barber. “It was Captain Mealey who made the recommendations for your promotions. He beat me by about two months, I guess. I wanted to do the same thing and keep you aboard. He wants you on his staff. Dusty, he wants you to take over the torpedo problems and he wants you, John, to take charge of engine room refits.”
“Is there any chance of refusing this, Captain?” Barber asked. “I just don’t see myself as an officer doing shore duty in a war. I don’t think Dusty does either. Although we haven’t had a chance to talk about it, so I’ll let him speak his own piece.”
“I think you could refuse the promotion,” Hinman said. “But if you did it wouldn’t sit well. I might be able to keep you aboard for one more patrol run but once that was over you’d probably find yourself assigned to Alaska or Iceland for the rest of the war.” He leaned back in his chair. “You’ve both got close to twenty years in, haven’t you?”
“Yes, sir,” Rhodes said. “Let me explain something that John didn’t make clear. What John said doesn’t reflect on either of you, you know that. It’s just that we’ve been working stiffs all our lives, white hats and then Chiefs. It’s pretty hard to imagine ourselves as officers.”
“Why don’t you talk it over and come back in half an hour?” Hinman said. “You can do me one more favor, Dusty.” He dropped Rhodes’ nickname casually. “If you decide not to take the jobs I’ve got to get rid of Ginty and DeLucia. Can’t carry even two Chief Torpedomen aboard on a patrol. If you do decide to take the promotions would you give me your thinking on which one I should make the Chief of the Boat? Not that anyone could take your place but someone has to take the job.”
Rhodes thought for a moment. “Ginty is a marvelous torpedo-man. He knows this ship from stem to stem. DeLucia is a damned good torpedoman, one of the best, just not as good as Ginty. He knows the boat as well as Ginty does. But I think DeLucia has the edge on Ginty in organizing and managing ability. If it were up to me I think I’d give the job to DeLucia.”
“I don’t want to hurt Ginty’s feelings,” Hinman said.
“Let me talk to him,” Rhodes said. Hinman nodded.
Rhodes found Ginty in his Forward Room, checking the work he had asked be done on his torpedo tubes.
“Damned relief crew bastards don’t do nothin’ right,” he growled. “Can’t even grease things right! Look at the gobs of guck hangin’ off n these fittings!”
“You should be up on the tender buying yourself a Chief’s hat and some khakis,” Rhodes said. “Let the other people worry.”
“Whaddya mean, let other people worry? This is my fuckin’ room, Chief! I mean Mister Rhodes! This is my room! If I don’t do it who the else fuck is goin’ to do it right?”