Everyone was trying to sleep on the Saratov. Nick couldn’t. He returned to Marina’s quarters to see what she had been up to since the launch. She was very distraught over the situation.
“Nicholas, we have no alternative but to sink the ship and go with it. We can’t let him surface again. If he does, then he’ll launch another missile.”
Nick knew the consequences, but he wasn’t ready to die just yet. Andri was keeping the crew uninformed of his intentions. He couldn’t risk anyone second-guessing his decisions before his plan was complete. “Don’t panic.”
“Don’t panic! It wasn’t your country that received a nuclear bomb. It wasn’t your country that now may be in the throes of a revolution! Don’t tell me not to panic.” She was seeing the situation as hopeless. Knowing that her death was imminent made her even more unnerved.
“Shut up, Marina,” said Nick sternly. It was the first time he had really asserted himself, and it was the signal that he was now going to take charge. “The only way we are going to die is if we lose our heads. We can still get out of this if we can think of a plan. Jesus Christ, we were closer to dying when they recruited us.”
His forcefulness was calming to her. She felt that now she didn’t bear all the burden of the mission. “Yes, I remember.”
“Good. There are opportunities here. We just have to figure out the right one.”
She relaxed, embarrassed at her moment of confusion. “I’m sorry. For a minute, things overwhelmed me.”
“A cool head keeps us alive.” Nick sat next to her to help get her mind focused again. “I know that we can’t be out here all alone. Someone has to be following us. We have to assume that.”
Marina got back to her old self. “Sonar hasn’t picked anything up. How can you be so sure?”
“Because I know the US and its equipment. I also know their captains. If those men don’t want to be heard, they won’t be. We may have to give them some help in finding us, though. This ship doesn’t make enough noise.”
“It’s not like we can bang on the side with a hammer.”
“No, it’s not. We have to think of something obscure and repetitive. Like the radio.”
Marina shook her head. “No. Andri specifically said that the radio would only be turned on once. Not before that time, not after. One message. That’s it.”
“When?”
Marina shrugged.
Nick grabbed Marina by the hand and quietly led her to the communications room. Once the door was closed, he quietly said, “Turn it on.”
“Nicholas, they will know.”
Without hesitation, Nick reached over and flipped on the master switch. The radio came to life. She tensed, waiting to see if anyone came storming in to see who was on the set. When no one appeared, they relaxed.
“Someone will see up front.”
Nick smiled. “They have too many gauges and dials and so few people. It won’t even be noticed. Set this for the lowest frequency and turn the volume all the way down. Does it have a repeater?”
Marina nodded yes, and then flipped another switch. The radio made no sound, but it was emitting a very weak, extremely low repeating frequency. “If they find this, I’ll be killed.”
“Raped, then killed.” Nick meant this to have some levity. Marina didn’t understand the spirit it was said in.
“Nicholas—”
“Don’t worry. No one will touch you. Remember, I’m a friend of the captain.” The sentence brought up a notion he had, and he decided to follow it up. “Maybe I ought to see the captain.”
When Nicholas stood outside Andri’s cabin door, he could feel his palms sweat. He had been through a lot to get to this point. None of it scared him as much as conversing with this man and the possibility of giving himself away.
Come was the word from the other side.
The cabin was small. The saving grace was that one person occupied it instead of two. Andri lounged on his cot, causally looking over some charts on his computer.
“Captain.”
“You should be resting.”
Nick closed the door and leaned against the wall. “I can’t, sir. I am troubled about the mission.”
Andri sat up in bed. Concern printed itself across his face. “I was afraid of this. That some of my crew would worry about the implications of the launch. I was counting on the selfishness of every individual to keep himself removed from the situation. Only to act as my crew until it is all over.”
“Captain. It is hard to ignore our actions.”
“I am somewhat glad, Nicholas. I am glad that one man other than me on this ship would struggle with the implications of a nuclear missile. No one else has stepped forward.”
Nick wondered if he’d get an explanation.
Andri continued. “You need not be worried about where the missile hit. I can absolutely guarantee that the target was unoccupied. A garbage dump. Too lethal for any person to live nearby. It was a safe place to detonate a bomb.”
“May I ask why, Captain?”
“I’m not here to destroy anyone, Nicholas. I am here to help my country. It is in jeopardy, and drastic measures need to be taken.”
“What I mean is, why launch a missile at all? Especially if it’s basically ineffective.”
Andri jumped up and grabbed Nick’s head with either hand. He stared into his eyes trying to read his mind. Nick was confusing to him. He couldn’t decide whether to be worried or pleased that Nicholas was trying to figure out his plan. The curiosity told him that Nick was bright and intelligent. Something to look for in a crewman. On the other hand, Nick’s question posed a threat. He presented himself as a man with a conscience. Any man with a conscience was unpredictable in these circumstances. He did feel some type of kindred spirit with him. They were both navy men, of that he was sure. “Do you know why I built this ship?”
Nick shook his head.
“I built it because I wanted to prove to the Soviet government, the United States, and the world, that communism works. That it was the right way to live because it could accomplish great things if its leaders were just in their thinking and benevolent in their actions. You have to understand, Nicholas, any government designed to serve the people cannot be bad. It can only have bad leaders.” Andri stepped back and sat down.
“My whole life I heard the world speak about the inefficiencies of the Soviet system. How our products were inferior and we were not allowed to participate in the world economy. These were the things that defeated my country—the inability to prove our merit.” He paused for a moment. “Unfortunately, we had poor leadership. They understood mass, but they neglected quality. They couldn’t see the concept that a few quality things were greater than many poorly created things. That is what the Saratov was to prove. This one ship, one vessel, would be of more value than many other vessels of lesser quality. I was hoping that they could finally understand that philosophy by seeing this creation. That it would then be applied in every figure and form of our country. Only then could we enjoy what communism was really meant to do. Serve the people, serve them well, and serve them equally.”
Nick was transfixed by the emotional reaction and the passionate spillage. He had to literally shake himself to clear his head.
“Do you understand now, Nicholas?” Andri lay back down and placed his arm over his eyes to signal the end of the meeting.