“Sir,” Jacobs said softly. “There were some extraordinary acts of courage and bravery that allowed most of my crew to survive. In my report I recommended…”
“Yes, Captain,” the Squadron Commander interrupted.” I’ve made some of my own recommendations as well. I’ve approved your recommendations and passed them on up the line. I’m afraid the Massachusetts will be the last sub you command. Your crew will be reassigned to other subs.”
Jacobs lowered his head. The Navy didn’t take the loss of a 3 billion dollar submarine lightly. He wondered if he might be able to patch things up with Lynn Waggoner. She might be in another relationship by now, but he could ask. He waited in silence for the rest of the Squadron Commander’s decision. Instead, the Secretary of Defense spoke.
“You showed great courage and skill in handling this situation, Captain. I know what you must be thinking. The thing is — this whole disaster was created by someone I trusted — someone who took it upon himself to use the force of one of America’s secret technologies to covertly attack mainland China without authorization. He has confessed to his crimes and will go to the hell he created. We have given his wife the pension he earned in exchange for his cooperation and her discretion.
“You have discovered part of the secret technologies in your encounter with the Chinese sub — the use of explosive devices to trigger what appear to be natural disasters. Your action of taking out that Chinese sub and stopping the placement of more mines cut the strength of the earthquake to a quarter of what it would have been. In doing that, and warning us before the earthquake struck, you saved several hundred thousand lives. I don’t take that kind of action lightly.
“Publically, it will be just that — a natural disaster. I don’t want to turn a man of your experience and, let’s say your knowledge, loose. You think fast on your feet and you make good decisions. You did not hesitate to make tough life and death decisions. You are a valuable asset to your country. Vice Admiral Billingsly’s departure moves General Jankowitz of the Air Force up to the position of Deputy Director of Covert Operations. I would like you to move up into the General’s position as Assistant Deputy Director. It will mean a desk job at the Pentagon and a promotion to Rear Admiral Lower Half. You will also receive the Navy Cross per your Squadron Commander’s recommendation. Does that interest you?”
Jacobs felt relieved on one hand and stressed on the other. He didn’t know if he could go back into another submarine and risk his crew again. But instead of taking on fewer life and death decisions, he was about to have more. It was that or resign and take his pension. But what would he do? The Navy was his life. He had never married or had a family. The Navy was his family, Lynn Waggoner notwithstanding, and serving his country was the only thing he was actually married to; there really was only one option.
“There’s more than bombs and earthquakes, Sir?” Jacobs said, managing a partial smile.
“There’s a lot more, Admiral Jacobs.” The Secretary of Defense replied. “You’re stepping into a whole new world — one you may not have imagined existed at all.”
“When would you like me to start, Sir?”
“You have some leave accumulated — you tell me when you can start.”
“I will do that Sir. I just have one more duty as Captain of the Massachusetts to perform.”
CHAPTER 62
Senator Elizabeth Bechtel stepped out of the Oregon National Guard Humvee in front of what was the City of Portland Office Building. The driver had taken her past her local office two blocks away, or what was left of it. She stood in shock at the level of devastation. I expected storm damage; wind, water, some local flooding. She slowly turned a 360 degree circle, her left hand covering her open mouth. My God, how could this have happened? She knew from the news reports that an earthquake had occurred, but even from the photos that she had seen, she was totally unprepared for what lay before her.
Oregon National Guard bulldozers had pushed enough building debris and vehicles aside for large trucks to move through the streets. She watched a large front-end loader lift pieces of glass, bricks, broken concrete, splintered wood and sign parts from the side of the street into an oversized camo-colored dump truck. The Portland City Hall stood, partially collapsed floors running at diagonals between cracked and tilting columns. Pieces of cloth, roofing and fractured wood hung from the open sections of the building. The sixty-foot high tsunami had completely engulfed the City Hall Building as it passed through the downtown section of her home city.
This is what the attack by China has wrought. This is the new way war is being waged in our world — and I can’t say anything about the real cause without making things immensely worse. Glen Liechtfield was right. We can’t allow this to escalate — we can’t let nuclear weapons be used in response to this attack or any action to be taken against China. It has to stop here, before the whole world dies. As she turned, her gaze locked on a brown fuzzy object protruding from under a piece of broken concrete. She walked slowly over, lifted the ten-inch piece of what looked like part of a bus stop bench, and retrieved the item. It was a child’s Teddy Bear, missing its right arm and an eye. It was still wet and covered in mud, and the left foot was damaged. What happened to the child who held this? Is she still alive, or did she drown? What about my friends, the people who worked in my office? Are any of them still alive?
“Ma’am, are you alright?”
She turned to see who had spoken to her. The Oregon National Guard Sergeant who had driven her into the city stood there, his hand out to steady her.
“I…” she wobbled slightly.
“Ma’am, why don’t you sit down for a minute?” He gripped her arm and guided her back to the Humvee.
“How many… How many died?” she asked, as she held the Teddy Bear close to her chest.
She saw the muscles in his jaw flex as he gritted his teeth. “We don’t know exactly, ma’am, but somewhere in the ball park of 20,000. The good news is that it happened early in the morning, before most people were downtown. It could have been a lot worse. We’re still recovering a lot of bodies that were trapped in the collapsed buildings, people who would have been saved, except for the tsunami.”
“They were trapped, and then they drowned?” Nausea added itself to her feeling overwhelmed. I’m going to be sick. She closed her eyes, bent forward and tried to breathe deeply.
He looked at the pavement. “Seattle fared a little better than we did,” he replied, trying to sound positive. “The tsunami was only twenty feet high there, and they had more time after the earthquake, but the damage to the buildings is still severe.”
“My sister, she lives in Dolphin Beach, she’s on the coast. I can’t get her to answer her phone.”
“Look,” he replied. “Electricity is out all over the Pacific Northwest. No cell phone towers are functioning, land lines are down. She could be alright. The warning went out just before the earthquake hit. That alone saved thousands of lives. You can’t…” He stopped, breathed deeply, obviously trying to hold back tears.
“I can’t assume she’s dead?”
“No, ma’am, you can’t,” he said.
“You have family here?”