by David Poyer
No one had gained from this war, in the end. The two greatest countries on earth had striven to the very limits of their strength; and nearly destroyed each other. One coalition, one empire had fallen. The other still stood, but shaken to its foundations and nearly toppled.
What could he say to those who’d fought through it?
Only that this must never happen again.
But didn’t the leaders say the same thing after every war?
And hadn’t they been wrong, time after time? As the sacrifices and danger were forgotten, and the old habits of fear and aggression returned?
“It looks like this cease-fire might stick,” he told them.
Heads lifted. A muted cheer, and a few clapped. He waved them to silence. “Too soon to celebrate, okay? We still have to stay on our toes. I can’t emphasize that enough.
“But even if active hostilities terminate, we’ve still got a job to do. We need to start planning for a permissive landing and some kind of occupation. At least, a maintenance-of-order mission, until civilian authority can be reconstituted.”
He cleared his throat, looking down at the flight deck as a fighter catapulted off, engines howling at full power. When the noise lessened, the plane canting off over the sea, he resumed. “Look at the governing factors, evaluation criteria, and task elements for the post-combat stabilization phase. Hit Joint Pubs 3-07, 3-29. And 3-57 too, since we’ll probably have to transition to humanitarian operations. Both for the surrendering forces, as they disband, and the civilian population.
“In a lot of ways, this is going to be more complicated than war. But it’ll still have to be done. And since we’re here, it’ll probably be our job.”
He nodded curtly, looking past them to the rising sun. The symbol of new life. The symbol of regeneration.
At least now, maybe, the killing could stop.
“I think I’m going to bow my head,” he said. “And give thanks. Those who’d like to can join me.”
They still had their heads lowered, standing quietly in the sun and wind, when a lieutenant commander tapped on the bridge window, holding up a clipboard. Dan recognized Roosevelt’s comm officer. He gave it another moment, then beckoned her out.
The message fluttered on the board. He ran his eyes down it once, then again, more slowly.
CONFIDENTIAL
FM: CNO WASH DC
TO: CTF 91
INFO: NINTH FLEET
INDOPACOM
NAVPERS DC
1. (C) EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY ADMIRAL DANIEL V LENSON RELIEVED OF COMMAND TASK FORCE 91 BY ADMIRAL LEE C CUSTER.
2. (C) UPON RELIEF ADM LENSON RETURN WASH DC FIRST AVAIL REG SCHEDULED FLIGHT.
3. (C) SNM AUTHORIZED ONE WEEK COMPASSIONATE LEAVE. THEN PROCEED AND REPORT CNO STAFF WASH DC FOR TEMPORARY DUTY AS ASSIGNED.
CONFIDENTIAL/OADR
BT
“Need an initial on that, Admiral,” the commander said, offering a pen.
The staff began filing off the bridge. Dan stood aside, letting them pass. The comm officer handed Dan his copy, then turned to leave. Enzweiler lagged the others, glancing askance at his senior.
Dan didn’t respond, just settled his elbows back on the varnished teak rail atop the gray steel bulwark.
The rays of the rising sun struck deep into the passing sea, turning gold into emerald and emerald into a deep endless turquoise that fell away to a deeper violet blue. The rocking surface was furrowed, laced with foam. A brisk wind cooled his cheeks. A lone swallow skimmed the crests, dipping and weaving with unutterable grace.
So this was probably the last time he’d command. Or even go to sea, unless his sailboat was still in shape. He’d left it in Norfolk at the start of the war, moored at the Little Creek marina. He’d hoped to sail it again once peace came. Maybe the big circuit, through the Canal to the West Coast, and take Nan out with her friends … no.
It didn’t sound like the America he’d left would be the one he’d return to.
And he wouldn’t go sailing with his daughter. Ever again.
His eyes burned again, but he pushed the grief and anger back savagely. She was gone. But he’d never forget her. Never let a day pass without regret.
And now … he had to defend his actions? So be it. That had always come with command, in the service to which he’d given his life.
Whatever happened, he felt certain he’d done his duty. As he saw it, to the best of his ability.
The lean, gray-eyed, middle-aged man stood unmoving in the sea wind until it chilled his bones and blurred his sight. Then he turned away from the brightness of the dawn, and went below.
The story of the turbulent aftermath of the war with China will continue in David Poyer’s Violent Peace.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
EX nihilo nihil fit. I began this novel with the advantage of notes accumulated for previous books as well as my own experiences in Asia and the Pacific. In addition to those cited earlier in the series, the following sources were helpful for this volume:
Hector’s chapters were reviewed and commented on by Peter Gibbons-Neff, for which many thanks, as well as to Katie and Drew Davis. Other useful references included David E. Jones et al., “Placement of Combat Stress Teams in Afghanistan: Reducing Barriers to Care,” Military Medicine, 178, 2:121, 2013. “Combat and Operational Stress Control,” U.S. Department of the Army: Field Manual 4-02.51. TACT 3022, “Offensive Combat 1 and Combat Signs,” USMC Officer Candidates School, April 2011.
Blair’s Zurich, White House, and Pentagon scenes were based on personal experience. Other references that proved useful for her chapters included Keren Yarhi-Milo and George Yin, “Can You Keep a Secret? Reputation and Secret Diplomacy in World Politics,” Princeton Scholar. David Szondy, “Ministry of Defence Developing New Anti-Laser Eyewear,” New Atlas, October 14, 2012. Simon Saradzhyan, “The Role of China in Russia’s Military Thinking,” Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, May 4, 2010. Thanks also to the real Liz McManus for her cameo in this and the previous book.
For Nan’s passages: Jon Cohen, “Why Flu Vaccines So Often Fail,” American Association for the Advancement of Science, September 20, 2017. Han Altae-Tran, Bharath Ramsundar, Aneesh S. Pappu, and Vijay Pande, “Low Data Drug Discovery with One-Shot Learning,” ACS Central Science, 2017, 3 (4), pp. 283–93. “Transition State Analog,” Wikipedia, accessed March 1, 2018. Food and Drug Administration, “Impact of Severe Weather Conditions on Biological Products,” accessed August 30, 2018. Also Karl Haugh for Harley details.
For Navy passages: Previous research aboard USS San Jacinto, USS George Washington, USS Wasp, Strike Group One, and USS Rafael Peralta. A deep bow and “fair winds” to all! The following additional sources were valuable as background for tactics, mind-sets, and strategic decisions, with Phil Wisecup and Matthew Stroup being especially generous with their advice. Forrest E. Morgan et al., Dangerous Thresholds: Managing Escalation in the 21st Century, RAND Corporation, 2008. “Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense,” Missile Defense Agency, accessed January 22, 2018. John Harper, “Pentagon Examining Options for Space-Based Missile Interceptors,” National Defense Magazine, June 30, 2017. David Hambling, “What Is an EMP, and Could North Korea Really Use One Against the U.S.?” Popular Mechanics, September 28, 2017. Rebecca Perring, “Kim’s Fortress,” Daily Mail, November 11, 2017. Japanese Ministry of Defense, “Ballistic Missile Defense,” accessed July 20, 2018. Ronald O’Rourke, “Navy Virginia (SSN-774) Class Attack Submarine Procurement: Background and Issues,” Congressional Research Service, June 29, 2018. “Satellite Study Proves Global Quantum Communication Will Be Possible,” Scienmag, December 20, 2018.
For Teddy Oberg’s strand of the story, the references listed in the previous volume, plus “China Uses Facial Recognition to Fence In Villagers in Far West,” Bloomberg News, January 17, 2018. “Apartheid with Chinese Characteristics,” The Economist, June 2, 2018.
For overall help and encouragement along this lengthy pilgr
image, I owe recognition to the Surface Navy Association, Hampton Roads Chapter; to Charle Ricci and Stacia Childers of the Eastern Shore Public Library; the ESO Writers’ Workshop; with bows to Bill Doughty, James W. Neuman, Alan Smith, John T. Fusselman, Dick Enderly, and others (they know who they are), both retired and still on active duty, who put in many hours patiently leading me down the path of righteousness. If I left anyone out, apologies!
Let me reemphasize that these sources were consulted for the purposes of fiction. The specifics of tactics, units, and locales are employed as the materials of story, not reportage. Some details have been altered to protect classified capabilities and procedures.
My deepest gratitude goes to George Witte, editor and friend of over three decades, without whom this series would not exist. And Sally Richardson, Sara Thwaite, Young Jin Lim, Steve Gardner, Ken Silver, Naia Poyer, Sally Lotz, Fred Chase, and Sarah Schoof at St. Martin’s/Macmillan.
And finally to Lenore Hart, trenchant critic, anchor on lee shores, and my North Star when skies are clear.
As always, all errors and deficiencies are my own.
PREVIOUS BOOKS BY DAVID POYER
Tales of the Modern Navy
Deep War
Hunter Killer
Tipping Point
The Cruiser
The Towers
The Crisis
The Weapon
Korea Strait
The Threat
The Command
Black Storm
China Sea
Tomahawk
The Passage
The Circle
The Gulf
The Med
Tiller Galloway
Down to a Sunless Sea
Louisiana Blue
Bahamas Blue
Hatteras Blue
The Civil War at Sea
That Anvil of Our Souls
A Country of Our Own
Fire on the Waters
Hemlock County
Thunder on the Mountain
As the Wolf Loves Winter
Winter in the Heart
The Dead of Winter
Other Books
Heroes of Annapolis
On War and Politics (with Arnold Punaro)
The Whiteness of the Whale
Happier Than This Day and Time
Ghosting
The Only Thing to Fear
Stepfather Bank
The Return of Philo T. McGiffin
Star Seed
The Shiloh Project
White Continent
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
DAVID POYER’s sea career included service in the Atlantic, Mediterranean, Arctic, Caribbean, Pacific, and Pentagon. Overthrow is the nineteenth novel in his widely popular series featuring Daniel V. Lenson. Poyer’s work has been required reading in the Literature of the Sea course at the U.S. Naval Academy, along with that of Joseph Conrad and Herman Melville, and he has received the Distinguished Award from the Surface Navy Association for his fiction. He lives on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Epigraphs
Part I: What Matters Death
1. Brunei Bay, Brunei
2. USS Savo Island, Hawaii Oparea
3. The Pentagon
4. Taiwan
5. Seattle
6. Xinjiang Province, Western China
Part II: No Flags are Fair
7. The South China Sea
8. Taipei
9. The Karakoram Mountains
10. Anacostia, District of Columbia
11. 13º, 12' 46" N, 133º 46' 43" E; the Sea of Japan
12. Seattle
Part III: Who Fights for Freedom
13. The Sea of Japan
14. Zurich, Switzerland
15. Northern Xinjiang
16. USS Liscombe Bay, the Eastern Sea
17. Andersen Air Force Base, Guam
Part IV: The Fires of Hell
18. Task Force 91, the South China Sea
19. Hainan, China
20. The Pentagon
21. In the Golden Mountains
22. USS Savo Island
23. Seattle, Washington
24. USS Franklin D. Roosevelt, the South China Sea
Acknowledgments
Previous Books by David Poyer
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
First published in the United States by St. Martin’s Press, an imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group
OVERTHROW. Copyright © 2019 by David Poyer. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Publishing Group, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.
www.stmartins.com
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-1-250-22056-1 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-250-22057-8 (ebook)
ebook 9781250220578
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First Edition: December 2019