The senator quit talking as the steward approached bearing his pie. He
waited until the white-jacketed mess man had set the plate down and
carefully repositioned the fork nearby. As the steward left. Senator
Williams continued. “The Navy’s gone through this spate of accidents
before. You usually shut down operations for a while and try to figure
out why, right? A safety stand-down?”
“When we can. But Jefferson’s in the middle of operations down off
Cuba. I don’t have to tell you what’s going on there.”
“And what else is near Cuba?” the senator pressed.
“Damn it, don’t you see what this means? It’s a golden opportunity you
piss this one away and you’ll not get another one like it anytime
soon.”
“The Arsenal ship?”
“Oh, the light finally goes on,” the senator said sarcastically. “The
one project you and I have been working on for a year and a half now,
and you finally think of it. Nice. I like a team player, Keith.”
“Quit calling me Keith,” the admiral said, his temper flaring
suddenly.
A cold, still silence settled on the table. The senator carefully and
meticulously placed his fork down on the tablecloth. “Fine. Admiral,
then.” The venom in his gaze left no doubt about his opinion of the
formality. “Well, Admiral, let me just recap the situation for you, if
I may, sir. In case you don’t realize it, a large part of your future
is riding on the successful performance of that Arsenal ship.”
“I’m an aviator.” The statement was almost an anguished cry.
“Besides, you’re the one who” “I’m the one who what?” the senator
snapped. “Helped you get that second star? Shoved your nomination and
promotion through committee? Made sure nobody asked any nasty little
Tail hook questions? That guy?”
Admiral Loggins suddenly realized how far he’d gone over the line.
Everything Senator Williams had said was true the politician had been a
major influence on the admiral’s career. “Look, I didn’t mean anything
by that. And come on, we’ve known each other too longI was out of
line. Call me Keith.”
The senator leaned back in his chair and assessed the man opposite him
with a cold stare. “Make up your mind. Which side of the fence are
you on?”
“I want what’s best for the Navy. I’ve always said that.”
The senator sighed. “And we agreed when we started this that the
Arsenal was what was best for the Navy. A lightweight, easily built
ship packed to the gills with every kind of advanced weaponry and with
a skeleton crew on board. Hook up the electronics that allow for
remote control of the firing, and you’ve got a perfect political
platform.”
The senator’s voice was low and urgent. “At least that’s what you told
my committee when you were testifying as a member of the research and
development team. You remember? It was your first political move,
your maiden appearance in front of the Senate.”
“I remember,” the admiral said gruffly. And a pleasant experience it
definitely had not been. Yet, despite an extensive grilling by the
senators, who understood so little about the military, the project had
gotten their blessing. Ten Arsenal ships were to be built in the next
three years, and Admiral Loggins’s name and reputation were firmly
riding on each one.
“This is what you do,” the senator said, speaking quickly and
quietly.
“Things are going to get worse in Cuba real soonno, don’t ask me how I
know. I just do.” He grinned.
“As you would, if you paid any attention to your fiancee.”
“Pamela?” the admiral said, confused by the sudden change of
subject.
“What’s she got to do with this?”
“Everything and nothing.”
Admiral Loggins frowned. Eight months ago, he’d finally screwed up his
nerve and asked the luscious Pamela Drake for a date. They had quickly
established that they had more in common than either had thought.
Loggins found her sharp, analytical mind refreshing, and Pamela had
never been shy about sharing her political acumen with him. It had
been through her connections that he’d met Senator Williams, as well as
a host of other powerful men and women in both the House and the