“Gentlemen,” Farr continued to the freighter captains watching from the starboard wing of the bridge, “as senior military officer present, I’m asserting federal control over your vessels. You will dock—”
“You can’t do that!” Captain Cooley said.
“I have done it, Captain,” Farr said without raising his voice. “And if you want to return to Santander in the brig of this vessel, just open your mouth once more.”
Cooley started to speak, took a good look at the commodore’s face, and nodded apology.
Bells rang through the McCormick City’s compartments. A gun fired a blank charge as an attention signal; yeomen tugged at the flag halyards, relaying the commodore’s orders to the rest of the squadron.
“You will take on board as many civilians as possible,” Farr resumed. “By that I mean as many as you can cram on board with a shoehorn. I don’t care if you’ve only got a foot of freeboard showing—it’s just eighty miles to Dubuk and the forecast is for calm. Mr. Cargill—”
“Yes.” There was a trace of a smile on the consul’s worn visage.
“Your personnel will direct civilians onto the transports. Any processing can be done after we dock in Dubuk. I’ll leave you forty men for traffic control, which I trust will be sufficient.”
“Giving those poor wops their lives back should be sufficient in itself, sir,” Cargill said. “Thank you.”
“The remainder of the shore party will be broken down into five twelve-man detachments, Grisson,” Farr said. “They will board the federalized transports in order to aid the civilian crews in recognizing naval signals.”
“In view of the need for haste, sir,” Grisson said, “I assume the signal detachments will proceed directly to their new assignments rather than returning to their home vessels to deposit their sidearms?”
“That’s correct,” Farr said. Grisson was a nephew of Farr’s first wife; a very able boy.
“Commodore,” Captain Fitzwilliams said, “I don’t guess I’ve forgotten the signal book in the twenty years I been out. Don’t short your gun crews for the sake of the Holyoke. We’ll be where you put us.”
Farr returned his attention to Lieutenant Weiss. The Land officer’s face had somehow managed to become even harder and more pale than it had been when he arrived.
“Lieutenant,” Farr said, “I regret that I will be unable to comply with Commander Eberdorf’s request because it conflicts with my orders to aid the consular authorities to repatriate Santander citizens from Salini. As you’ve heard, I’ve taken measures to streamline the process. I’m afraid the loading will nonetheless continue until after nightfall.”
Weiss’ eyes were filled with cold hatred. Farr suppressed a wry smile. His own feeling toward the Chosen officer were loathing, not hatred.
“Until the process is complete, I must request that Land military forces treat Salini as an extension of the Republic of the Santander,” Farr continued. With age had come the ability to sound calm when the world was very possibly coming apart. “I regret any inconvenience this causes Commander Eberdorf or her superiors. Do you have any questions?”
“I have no questions of a man who doesn’t know his duty to his country, Kommodore,” Weiss said.
“When I have questions about my duty, Lieutenant Weiss,” Farr said in a voice that trembled only in his own mind, “it will not be a foreigner I ask for clarification.”
Weiss began to put on his oilskins methodically. His eyes were focused a thousand miles beyond the bulkhead toward which he stared.
The freighter captains had been exchanging looks and whispers. Now Captain Cooley spat over the railing and said, “Commodore? The rest of us reckon we can figure out naval signals, too, until this business gets sorted out back home.”
He nodded toward the waterfront and added, “Only don’t count on that lot being on board by nightfall. If we’re not still at the dock at daybreak, then my mother’s a virgin.”
The Land officer strode for the companionway without saluting or being dismissed.
“Lieutenant Weiss?” Farr called. Weiss stopped and nodded curtly, but he didn’t turn around.
“Please inform your superior that if she’s dead set on having a battle,” Farr said, “we can offer her a better one than her colleagues appear to have found at Corona.”