Jake glared at the chart while the icons merged.
“Our first weapon is detonating,” Remy said.
“Any idea if the second weapon is on the other Seagull?”
“It’s a coin toss,” Remy said. “Limpets are attaching to the first Seagull.”
The technician seated beside the guru became animated and rattled off a report to Remy.
“He thinks the second weapon just detonated under the second Seagull. We may have gotten a lucky coin toss.”
“Count the detonations,” Jake said.
The guru leaned over a technician while listening to his headset and watching multiple screens. After quick banter with his two closest accomplices, he turned his toad-head to Jake.
“Eight detonations on the first Seagull. Four on the second. The first Seagull is already slowing, probably with water weight and extra friction caused by riding lower in the water.”
“The first Seagull is sinking?”
“Yes.”
“But it can still shoot a torpedo until it’s underwater. Have one of your guys listen to it. I want you listening to the other one.”
Renard’s data showed the hunters four miles away and driving behind the Specter, but Jake knew they posed a continued threat to his submarine.
Worse, with the battle against the robots revealing his location, the rest of the task force angled towards him. The speedy helicopters presented the greatest new danger, provided he survived the Seagulls.
“The first Seagull is under water,” Remy said. “The second is still making turns for thirty-four knots.”
“It’s adjusting its protocols to hunt alone,” the Aman officer said. “It knows it lost its partner and will reduce its sprint cycle and increase its drift cycle.”
“But its sprint would still be full speed, right, slowed for any damage we may have inflicted?” Jake asked.
“I believe so, but I only know what the manufacturer shared in confidence while selling the product to the Navy. I don’t have access to any data which was shared beyond that. And I don’t understand why you’re asking”
Jake pointed to the line of sound between the crosshair of the Specter and the remaining Seagull.
“Because the bearing to the Seagull is lagging where it should be if it’s moving at thirty-four knots. So it turned towards us, turned away from us, or slowed. But I’m hoping it slowed due to taking on water from our weapon.”
“It’s taking on water,” Remy said. “I hear sloshing.”
“You hear…”
The guru angled his head and offered a cold stare defying the questioning his abilities. Jake had lost count of the times Remy had heard noises he’d considered beyond audible discernment.
“Of course, you hear sloshing. That’s great news. Reassign tube three to the closest corvette, tube four to the farthest corvette.”
“Tube three is assigned to the closest corvette, tube four to the farthest corvette,” Remy said. “And the second Seagull is now under water.”
Jake felt the mortal fear of the robotic threat flush from his flesh. In a moment of calmness, he braced himself for the next phase of battle.
Helicopters, corvettes, a second pair of Seagulls, and the Crocodile.
“Do you want to shoot at the corvettes?” Remy asked.
“Yes. God willing, we’ve got some time to drive slow and regain the advantage while keeping wire control of the weapons against the corvettes.”
“I hope so, too,” Henri said. “But look at the chart. The helicopters are getting close. We may need to shift our focus.”
“Let’s get the torpedoes out there and let them make their runs. Then we’ll focus on the helicopters.”
“Understood,” Henri said. “Shall I prepare a communications buoy for Pierre informing him of our status?”
“Yeah, good idea. Give him a feed from Subtics and let him know I’m going to try to double back towards Terry. Launch it when it’s ready.”
The mechanic acknowledged and departed.
“Antoine,” Jake said.
The toad-head faced him.
“Shoot tubes three and four.”
CHAPTER 10
Cahill wedged himself between the shoulder of his sonar supervisor and that of a seated technician.
“How bad is it?” he asked.
“Bad,” the supervisor said. “I’ve never seen pressure on Jake like this.”
“Worse than the Black Sea?”
“Yeah, because there’s no deterrent this time. The Israelis know he’s using slow-kill weapons, and I’d bet my arse Jake doesn’t even have a heavyweight loaded.”
“I know he doesn’t, mate,” Cahill said. “But he can reload fast enough, and the Israeli’s know it, and so does Pierre. Negotiating is always a possibility when Pierre Renard is our boss.”
“That’s a crutch we can’t always lean on.”
“And I plan to avoid putting Pierre in that position.”
“You mean to rescue your friend?” Dahan asked.
Her voice stunned him, as always. He found it strong, sexy, and distracting.
“Yes,” he said. “Jake is me mate, and I plan to rescue him.”
“You can achieve your mission objectives without him.”
Her words infuriated him, and he clenched his jaw.
“Join me on the bridge,” he said. “We’ll discuss it there.”
He escorted her to the other side of a watertight door and stopped at the bottom of the stairs. Though cramped and within muffled earshot of Walker above, the space provided the best privacy he could find.
“Do you have no soul?”
“Are you questioning my comment about not needing Jake to finish your mission?”
“Yes!”
“I pointed out a fact. Was I incorrect?”
Her coldness continued to stymie him.
“Yes. No. I mean, it’s the way you say things.”
“I see no need to waste words.”
“But you know I’m close to the Specter’s crew, yet you suggest I abandon them like pawns on a chessboard.”
“If you can’t see your colleagues as expendable during battle, your emotions will poison your judgment.”
Though unsympathetic, she made sense to him.
“I’m not arguing that. But you can at least be discrete when you talk about them.”
He braced for her escalation to a shouting match, but she lowered her voice.
“I wasn’t discrete because I needed your attention. I can see how important the Specter’s crew is to you, and I know that strong team cohesion is a valuable military asset. But you were planning to put this ship at risk without considering the larger picture.”
“You’re bloody well right I was thinking about Jake and his crew first, but I am also considering the fleet’s objectives.”
“Even if you are considering the objectives, I’m concerned. If you’re that invested in your colleagues’ safety, you risk going insane if you lose them.”
“Then let’s make sure I don’t lose them.”
As her frame relaxed in resignation of the argument, he turned from her and yelled up the stairway.
“Liam, maintain propulsion on the MESMA systems and surface the ship.”
The stairs angled upward, complicating the climb, and Cahill used the handrails to yank himself forward. Nearing the summit, he continued his orders to his executive officer.
“Set all rounds in both cannons for splintering until I say otherwise, and get the weapons bays ready for battle. We’ll control the firing from the bridge.”
He heard Walker relay the order to the relevant crewmen as he reached the bridge’s leveling deck and saw the sun glimmering through translucent fluid above the broaching dome. As Dahan entered the space behind him, the Goliath’s speed created an artificial wind that whipped liquid sheets over the plexiglass.