Chapter 79
Phillip Bradley looked out over the Richmond waterfront toward the James River. It was a pleasant summer morning, with a temperature in the mid 70s and a gentle breeze off the river. The humidity had yet to percolate. The river ran fast on the incoming tide, sparkling in the bright sun.
He watched a flock of seagulls loudly greeting an arriving fishing boat, swooping and squabbling over the morning’s offerings.
“Ready!” shouted the young Lieutenant.
Bradley wondered why seagulls set up such a commotion when they spotted food. Why squawk so much, why not just eat?
“Aim!”
Maybe they’re yelling at their friends, worried about being betrayed, Bradley thought.
“Fire!” shouted the Lieutenant.
Bradley’s body slumped toward the ground, held up by the ropes entwined around the execution post.
The young Lieutenant ordered the firing squad dismissed. The burial detail began their grim assignment.
Chapter 80
At 1700 hours Captain Patterson ordered the California to steer toward Richmond and the encampment of the Army of Northern Virginia. The ship would arrive at its destination after darkness and would attack at dawn.
Ashley walked from her office to the bridge. As she rounded a corner in the companionway, Jack Thurber was heading the other way. They almost collided. They looked into each other’s eyes, and they both wished they could resume where they left off.
“Well Jack, we’ve changed history,” Ashley said softly. “Pretty soon we’ll commence Operation Wormhole.”
Jack laughed. “Why does everything we do need to have the word ‘operation’ in front of it?”
“It’s the Navy way, Jack,” Ashley said, smiling. “It helps us to focus on our mission. And I’ve just come up with another operation.”
“And what would that be?”
“It will be a very exciting mission, Jack, one that I’ve been thinking about for quite a while. I’m calling it, “Operation Jack and Ashley Take Some Time Off and Get to Know Each Other.” And show each other the love that we both feel, she thought.
“May I volunteer to take command of that operation, Captain?”
“I think you’re the perfect man for the mission, Lieutenant.”
Ashley looked both ways. Seeing no one, she leaned over, held Jack’s face in her hands and kissed him. She then continued on her way to the bridge, stroking his face as she walked away.
Ashley entered the bridge smiling from ear to ear, wearing what a vulgar sailor would call “a shit eating grin.”
“You look happy this evening, Captain,” said Ivan Campbell.
“Oh, yeah, Bull Run and all that,” Ashley mumbled. Not to mention Operation Jack and Ashley.
Chapter 81
At 0515, just after sunrise, the California was on location off the southern coast of the Delmarva Peninsula, about 110 miles east of Richmond, Virginia. Captain Patterson was in CIC, along with Lt. Conroy. The sky was clear except for a line of clouds moving from the southeast. Ashley knew they would need to act soon because laser homing technology is affected by clouds. She had ordered a drone launch three hours before.
Lt. Bob Nathan, one of the drone pilots, stared at the screen. Ashley had chosen him specifically for the job because of his experience and skill. He also showed a steely professionalism. Piloting a drone, especially one armed with missiles, is a stressful job. It’s not like playing a video game. The pilot knows that he can pour death from above with the click of a button.
“You did a hell of a job yesterday at Bull Run, Bob. I’m putting you in for a medal and a promotion.” Hopefully it will take place in the twenty-first century, Ashley thought.
Nathan flew the drone over the camp of the Army of Northern Virginia. Conroy confirmed what he saw on the screen from the photos he had taken while on the SEAL mission. In front of them appeared the artillery park the size of a football field.
“Isn’t it dumb to place artillery so close together to make such a convenient target?” Ashley asked Conroy.
“Yes, Ma’am, it is. The idea is to enable the guns to be closely guarded. But that idea is out the window with aerial warfare. Even as late as December 7, 1941, people still thought that you should cluster your assets for security. Dozens of American planes were destroyed on Ford Island during the attack on Pearl Harbor, clustered in groups, using that same outmoded doctrine. Yes, it’s dumb. I guess Robert E. Lee hasn’t heard of our capabilities.”
“He’ll hear soon,” said Ashley.
She told Nathan to lock in his laser sights on the upper third of the artillery park. Because of the size of the field she would launch three Tomahawks at the park.
“Battery three, advise when ready,” said Ashley
“Battery three ready, Captain.”
“Fire one!”
The ship rumbled as the cruise missile rocketed toward its target.
The Tomahawk scored a direct hit on the upper section of the field. The Captain waited until the smoke cleared to get a view of the damage. What had been neat rows and columns of artillery pieces looked like tooth picks.
Ashley then ordered another missile fired, this time toward the bottom of the field. Same result. After they viewed the damage from the third Tomahawk, they could see that Robert E. Lee had virtually no artillery left.
Ashley told Nathan to focus on the huge area of ammunition carts. She ordered a fourth Tomahawk fired at the ammo. The explosion, which they viewed on Nathan’s screen, was fearsome. It was almost 15 minutes before they could assess the damage because of so much smoke. When it finally cleared, they saw that the ammunition dump was now a very large crater.
As a parting shot at Lee’s Army, Ashley ordered Nathan to shoot his Hellfire missile at the command tent. The tent went up in a confusion of fire, smoke, debris, and canvas. Lee was not in the tent at the time, although no one could tell.
The final part of their mission was to attack the large Armory in Richmond. The drone hovered over the site within a few minutes. The clouds had not yet moved in, so their laser guidance was still good to go.
Based on planning with both Conroy and Andrea Rubin, the weapons officer, Ashley decided to use two Harpoon ship-to-ship missiles and one Tomahawk on the target. The Harpoons are made to penetrate the hull of a ship, and would work their destruction on a building as well.
An actor named John Wilkes Booth walked in front of the Armory on his way to a rehearsal for a play in which he would soon star. He heard an odd sound in the sky and looked up. In the final moments of his life he admired the beauty and speed of the strange machine as it rocketed over his head toward its target.
The resulting explosion was so large and dramatic it almost looked like a nuclear blast. The Armory and its contents were reduced to rubble, as was a large part of the Richmond waterfront. At the old Customs House, the Executive Office Building a few blocks away, the Armory attack spread its violence. The shock wave smashed the windows along the side of the building facing the Armory, and large cracks appeared in the walls. The impact on the building was similar to the after effects of an earthquake. On Lincoln’s specific orders, the Executive Office Building was not targeted. Lincoln wanted to have plenty of Confederate government officials to bear witness to the Armory’s destruction.
A British blockade runner had dropped anchor in the middle of the James River, having made it through the Union blockade to deliver its cargo. Not far from the British ship were three Confederate gunboats, also swinging on their anchors. All four vessels were destroyed by the firestorm of debris hurled from the Armory.