postgraduate study into the man’s lap in the last ten minutes.
“COS, send them in,” Tombstone said.
The chief of staff walked over to the door to the conference room,
opened it, and motioned to the four people seated around the large
rectangular table. They filed into the admiral’s cabin, not speaking.
Tombstone did not ask them to sit. Instead, he glared at them from a
seated position behind his desk, assessing each one carefully.
“Your licenses are gone,” he said finally, pointing at the pilot and
the copilot of the helicopter. He turned his gaze on Pamela. “And if you
had one, yours would be, too.”
Pamela took one step forward. “The icing wasn’t their fault,
Admiral,” she said quietly, her voice betraying no quaver of nervousness.
“I admit, I pressed them hard to fly in this weather, even though they said
they’d rather not.” She shrugged. “Not a smart move, in retrospect. But
there was certainly no attempt to-”
“Shut up,” Tombstone said levelly. He turned his back on her to face
the JAG officer. “Read them their rights before we proceed.”
The lawyer stood and recited the Miranda warnings to the four people.
By then, the pilot and copilot were starting to turn pale. Yet nothing
appeared to affect Pamela Drake, ace correspondent from ACN, Tombstone
thought bitterly.
“Do you understand these rights as I’ve explained them to you?” the
lawyer concluded. All four nodded.
“I can’t hear you,” Tombstone said neutrally, pointing at the
recording equipment. One by one, the four people said yes.
“And, having these rights in mind, do you desire to speak to an
attorney,” the lawyer continued, “or do you wish to discuss this matter
now?”
“As I was saying, Admiral,” Pamela began.
Tombstone cut her off again. “I didn’t ask for a narrative yet, Miss
Drake,” he said coldly. “This is the way this matter will proceed–I will
ask questions, you will answer them. At the conclusion, I will permit you
a brief–and I mean very brief–period in which to add any amplifying
material that you might wish to. And, for the record, I’m not interested
in your conclusions at this point.”
Tombstone turned his gaze to the pilot. “There was no malfunction on
your helicopter,” he said bluntly. “That is true, is it not?”
The pilot cleared his throat and glanced uneasily about the room as
though trying to find the answer to the question. He looked at his
copilot, who shrugged. Finally, the pilot settled for staring at the deck.
“No, there wasn’t.”
“Are you aware that it is a federal felony to falsely utilize the
seven-seven-seven-seven emergency squawk?” Tombstone demanded.
The pilot nodded.
“I can’t hear you,” Tombstone said again.
“Yes.”
“The next question will require a yes or no answer only. Did you
falsely report an emergency condition in order to land on my ship, knowing
that had you asked permission through normal channels I would’ve said no?”
“Yes, but I-”
“Thank you. That answers the question. Finally, did you take this
action at the instigation of Miss Pamela Drake from ACN?”
The pilot, now thoroughly cowed, looked over at his former employer.
Perhaps his last employer, he thought bitterly, trying to remember why in
the world he’d ever been convinced this was a good idea. If he answered
the admiral’s question, no news organization would ever hire him for a
charter flight again. But if he didn’t, that would be the last time he was
ever allowed landing rights or any other courtesy from any military
installation. At this point, he wasn’t even sure that he would have a
license. “Yes.” He continued staring at the deck, waiting for the
explosion he was sure was coming.
“Admiral, I-”
“Miss Drake. One more outburst and I’ll have you gagged. If you do
not understand the full extent of my power on board this ship, then I
suggest you consult with an attorney before disobeying any more of my
orders. Is that perfectly clear to you?” And why should it be now, my
dear? he wondered bitterly. It never was before. In all our years
together, you never understood how absolutely compelling my power is over
every bit of this ship. If I wanted to have you locked up overnight and