Pacific Standoff by Richard Deming

Author:Richard Deming
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: navy, world war 2, submarine, war, nazi
ISBN: 9781479405800
Publisher: Wildside Press LLC
Published: 2015-04-29T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Jack found the Kamehameha Highway and turned the motor pool Chevy coupe in the direction of Pearl. A slight smile crossed his lips as he recalled details of the night just behind him. It had all started in Trader Vic’s.…

As usual the bar was jammed, and as usual, he found himself wondering what the hell he was doing there, then reminded himself that the alternatives were to go to another crowded bar or to hang around the Royal Hawaiian. He had already read all the current magazines and the first fifty pages of Captain Caution, a sea novel that Bob had left lying around the living room of the suite they shared. He had bought presents for his sisters and paid courtesy calls on the wives of two senior officers whom he knew from his Washington days. He had even spent part of an afternoon hanging around the sub base, until the relief captain of the Manta made it subtly clear that he was in the way. He swam every morning, to burn up the calories from the previous night’s drinking, but even that had started to bore him. He could feel himself going stale, losing the fine edge of alertness that combat gave him, and he wondered what desk-jockey in the Navy Department had decreed that submarine crews needed two weeks of relief between patrols. Hell, it would take at least a week of refresher training to bring them back up to fighting trim!

He was starting to edge his way up to the bar when someone called his name. He turned and saw Ted “Ballsy” Bolsover, an old friend and Academy classmate, waving from a booth. As he made his way over, he noticed that Ballsy had gotten his third stripe and that, as usual, he had one of the most attractive women in the place with him. Nearing the booth he corrected that to two of the most attractive women. That didn’t seem quite fair, considering the number of single men around.

“Jack, you old son of a gun! You’re just in time to help us celebrate! What ill wind blew you to Oahu? Oh, meet Susan and Ramona. Girls, this is Smiling Jack McCrary, the dashing submarine captain you would have heard so much about if he wasn’t the pride of the Silent Service.”

Jack grinned and said hello, then took the seat next to Ramona, a brunette with a pageboy haircut, enormous eyelashes, and a cute snub nose. “It’s great to see you again, Ballsy. What are we celebrating?”

“I’m getting to sea again! I’ve just gotten orders to a baby flattop. From now on the efficiency ratings of fleet laundry facilities are some other poor bastard’s worry. I was starting to have this nightmare: years from now, my kids ask me what I did in the war, and I have to tell them I spent four years in Honolulu counting towels. But what about you? Are you still skipper of that sub with the funny name?”

Jack’s face sobered.

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