Under Water Secret

by Waggoner, Robert C.

  Brad said, "Let's go to your cabin admiral. This report is not for all ears."

  Once settled in the cabin, Brad said, "The sub is on its way. It will be here in about fourteen hours. I suggest admiral you set a trap for it. Now we will go back right away to let you prepare for battle stations."

  "Wait a minute. How do you know the sub will be here in fourteen hours? Are you clairvoyant or something like that. I think you're going to tell me that Chinese dragon man can see the enemy coming?"

  Secretary Pratt had had enough. "Admiral, you have no idea who you're dealing with here. Do you really think I would subject a carrier group with a wacked out Chinese? It's obvious that you think less of me and my son than a common man. Don't you know I'm your boss. I'll tell you what admiral, you can think about all of this while I have you flown off this carrier to Panama City. In plain words admiral, you're fired." Pratt turned to the Captain of the ship and said, "Call security Captain and have this bag of wind escorted to a waiting helicopter. He will not have time to pack his bags. Understood Captain?"

  "Yes sir. I'll take care of it Mr. Secretary," said the smiling Captain. It was clear to Brad that the admiral had few, if any, friends onboard.

  The admiral stormed off the bridge. He said, "I'm not through with you yet Pratt. After I talk to the President we'll see who is sucking eggs."

  Brad flew back with the Master to their smaller carrier. The Master had a smile on his face the whole time. Anyone else but Brad would think he was happy to see the admiral lose face, but in reality he was happy to see the world's biggest aircraft carrier. Besides he left the admiral with a broken finger to remember him by.

  Back on board the carrier JJ welcomed the two men back with a big wave. They'd only been gone a half day. The Master stopped and stood looking northwest; he was on to something. Brad noticed and waited patiently for him to either walk on or whisper in his ear. The Master nodded to Brad who leaned down to hear what he had to say.

  Brad said, "JJ let's go to your cabin for a meeting. Have Wade come too as this concerns us all." Billy and Rocky followed behind Brad.

  Once all were fairly comfortable; most were standing as the cabin was not overly large, but without a crowd, quite comfortable. Brad said, "We have about twenty four hours until our sub arrives. That give us plenty of time. JJ contact the Tridents and also the two destroyers hiding behind Archipelago de las Perlas. JJ let's move where your helicopters can reach the target in about ten minutes. I want to see that submarine blown to bits. I also would like you to make sure this is caught on video.

  The Romeo sub moved slowly towards the Canal. They'd waited until an oil tanker had come by going to the Canal. The noise of the ship would hide the sub. After that, as the tanker entered the locks, torpedoes would be fired at the stern of the ship. What they didn't know was the light carrier was in contact with the tanker. Brad had sent a helicopter to hover in front of the ship for the captain to plainly see it was a navy chopper. Brad told the captain of the tanker that in ten minutes he wanted the tanker's motors shut down. The ship was to coast until notified to continue. He also told the captain not to worry about all the explosions behind them.

  The captain replied that he understood as the news of refineries being blown up was still fresh news.

  The enemy sub was not far behind the tanker. The sonar man was alert but bored listening to the sounds of the tanker moving towards the Canal. Then suddenly the sonar man heard nothing. He banged the sending unit and looked at his head gear. He put them back on and turned the volume up. Nothing was heard. He said, "I've lost contact or the tankers motors just quit. I hear nothing------wait, I hear something now. Captain, I hear the sound of a Trident, no, wait, two Tridents. We're dead men as I hear torpedoes coming and I hear a splash from above which means depth charges."

  Those were the last words spoken on the Romeo sub. Six torpedoes struck the small submarine blowing it to smithereens. The conning tower was the biggest piece after the explosions.

  Brad called the tanker captain telling him to proceed on course as before; danger was over.

  JJ sent a coded message to fleet command and then a message was relayed to the President. The President smiled and said to no one, "Five down and one to go."

  On the opposite side of the Canal, Secretary Pratt, if his son was correct, it was game time. He gave the orders to go to battle stations. Nancy thought this action was very impressive. Jet's, fully laden with bombs took off. Helicopters with torpedoes were seen flying much lower and slower towards the target. Destroyers steamed away at flank speed. The other ships tightened the ring around the giant carrier.

  At one point Nancy actually felt sorry for the crew of the enemy submarine. But that was only for a fleeting moment as the previous destruction justified the demise of the sub.

  Much like her sister sub, this Romeo was following a container ship. Unknown to the sub three helicopters were behind the container ship with sonar on a long cable dangling under the water. In addition, the two Tridents were focusing just behind the container ship. In reality the submarine never stood a chance. Once it was identified, torpedoes were fired from both the Tridents and helicopters. At the same time three jets dove down letting go their five hundred pound bombs. Parts of the sub were seen above the sea as it blew apart. The only thing left was an oil slick and a few floating parts of the sub, such as seat cushions.

  For the time being, the war on terrorism was at a standstill

  Brad, Billy, Rocky and the Master were flown to Panama City where the caught a flight to LAX. At LAX, the Gulf met Brad and team. The Master was booked to China and his heavy baggage was not questioned. Brad gave the Master a big low bow. The Master gave a lower than usual bow and Brad was astonished as the Master also sent him a wink. Brad knew he had a long ways to go before he could even come close to matching the skills of the Master.

  Chapter Fourteen

  All of the team members were back at the Round House. Nancy was the exception as she was temporarily assigned to the new Secretary of State Pratt. A meeting was taking place in the Situation Room in the White House concerning the responsibility of the terrorist attacks on the USA.

  The President looked around the room. All of his agencies pertaining to security were present. His eyes landed on the CIA director Phil Addie. He asked, "Phil, give me your assessment of the attack and who was behind it."

  "Mr. President, so far we have determined that Pakistan, Iran and possibly Venezuela are behind the attack. Pakistan and Iran want a pipeline from Iran to Pakistan. The idea or the reason for the attack on our oil refineries stems from the fact to simply drive up oil prices. That would result in a global economic hardship. Pakistan would get cheap oil from Iran and Venezuela both. The upshot is Pakistan, being a nuclear nation, would rise to the top of the Asian peak. China and India both would play a second fiddle to Pakistan. In addition sir, two subs came from Egypt. They were hoping we would blame Egypt and attack a relative defenseless country."

  The President mulled that over for a few seconds and then asked Eric Brown, of Homeland Security the aftermath of the attacks.

  "We mourn the loss of life Mr. President, but the damage was not as extensive as we originally thought. Indeed the cost is in the hundreds of millions, but rebuilding has already begun. We have the military to thank for limiting the damage. I've a meeting scheduled with Secretary Pratt to do an overview and restructure of our coastal defenses."

  The President said, "Let me introduce an old professor of mine at Harvard. This is Dr. Jones, noted economist and psychologist. He's here to give his reaction to the current and future crude oil prices and the motives from the terrorists. Please state your case Dr. Jones."

  Dr. Jones was not a young man, but highly respected. Like he said, "I could care less what you think of me, but my record speaks for itself." His battle began when Milton Freedman did his pencil trick. His idea of a free market economy without government intervention simply does not work.

  Professor Jones
said, "The price of crude oil has almost doubled in the last month. Not because of a shortage in the market, but the human reaction to a possible shortage. There's no magic or mystery here. What I'm saying is known to you all. Now having said that, let's look at the situation of involvement by Pakistan, Iran and Venezuela.

  The President is asking me to look into a crystal ball and see the future. No one but God knows what is going to happen. Indeed we had some great thinkers in the past. Lord Keynes comes to mind. Nothing is simple in economics as the human factor is unpredictable. For example, the public nowadays is fairly conservative. However, if a company puts a 50% discount on the window, the place is flooded with people going broke to save money.

  Let's cut to the chase. I see the three countries just mentioned as trying to maneuver both the supply and price of crude. It's true that the Saudis will pump more oil if needed, but it's not needed at the present time. Why then is the price to so high? Greed and speculation are at the root of this phenomenon.

  What do we do about it? Well, there're some options. We could go to war with Pakistan and Iran. We could put a naval blockade on Venezuela. And then what? I'd speculate we'd be looking at another world war.

  My recommendation would be to do nothing. Let it develop. We need to look at other countries and especially the continent of Africa. Development and education is what is needed. Anyway, my time is up gentlemen; I've not said anything you haven't heard before. We really need to find another source of energy. I'll end by saying this: we will never be absent of government intervention in the economy."

  The President ended the meeting and, for the most part, it was business as usual. However, behind the scene a meeting was being arranged with the present power countries, such as China, India, Russia, and Brazil. Not to be left out, the major players in Europe and the UK.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Brad was satisfied with the way things turned out. He doubted if an attack would occur anytime soon on the Round House. All the team members were kicking back and relaxing. Wendy and Agent Jones were walking hand in hand on the beach. It was a beautiful May day.

  Agent Jones said, "I missed calling my mother on the one day of the year when we celebrate Mother's Day. I feel like a bad boy. Wendy I know we face an uphill battle as a mixed race couple, but I'd like to get married and have a few kids. What do you think?"

  Wendy stopped behind a large rock that blocked the wind and said, "Jones, I love the hell out of you. I'd like nothing better than to marry you. But do we throw caution to the wind with the idea of a mixed marriage. I think we should talk to Brad and Sujin about this. Come on Agent Jones and make love to me right now on the beach. I don't see anyone watching and I really don't care."

  Billy was outside puffing away watching Park work in the garden. Brad brought a chair and sat beside him; upwind of course. Brad said, "Billy do you remember me saying that there was another train load of gold that went missing in Vermont or somewhere."

  Billy looked up at the sky seeing some billowy clouds drift by. His Birkenstocks were being chewed on by Sandy. It didn't matter to him as he had a new pair just waiting for his feet. He said, "What I remember is you saying that a whole train disappeared and was never found."

  "Yup, that's what I said. Are you game to solve the mystery?"

  "Indeed I am boss. I'm bored already. Can you give me a couple hints to go on?"

  "Do some research on Barre, Vermont and the historic site of the English Tudor Mansion known as The Carver House. Also the White River plays a part of this mystery. After you've done your research let's get back together."

  Billy made it a double as he lit one from the other taking a big drag of satisfaction in his life. Brad inwardly smiled as he knew Billy loved a challenge. He noticed Billy's longish, thin brown hair whipped in the wind. His pale skin was evident that it had lost its luster due to the copious amount of tobacco he consumed. Be that as it may, Billy Ricker was a vital part of the Batt Team.

  Billy stood up, fought Sandy for his sandals, put out his Marlboro in the sand can and went to his computers. Brad sat watching Park tend the garden. He was impressed that sprouts were growing very well.

  Meanwhile Sujin was watching through the window. As if by telepathy, Brad turned to see her waving for him to come in. He rose and told Park he really like the garden. Park gave a bow and went back to his hoeing.

  Sujin gave him a hug and then she said, "Mike called. He has a line on a pair of goats if we're interested."

  Brad's head snapped back and opened his mouth but nothing came out. Sujin laughed and then he said, "Why not. Park would probably like the little things. Brian will soon be walking around outside. We could put little bells on around their necks. He might like the sounds. First I'll ask Park and then call Mike back. I need to talk to him anyway."

  Brad went back outside to see Park. Park said he would be happy to have some goats around. Brad called Mike as he walked around the back of the house and looked down at the black area where the terrorist were cremated. It wouldn't take long; this coming winter would erase the evidence. Mike answered all out of breath. Brad asked, "You out jogging or running from Julie?"

  "Very funny Brad. Actually, our new twin calves escaped and I had to run them down. What's up doc?"

  Brad said, "When can you be ready to find a missing train loaded with gold?"

  "Ah, you won't let that one go huh? Well, give me a day or two and I'll be good to go."

  Brad turned around to see Wendy and Agent Jones walking up to him. Both had a serious look on their faces. Brad was ready; he knew what they wanted. Agent Jones said, seeing the look on Brad's face, "Give us your sage advice please."

  "I presume you are talking marriage here?"

  Wendy said, "Yes we are. My hormones are running rampant and almost out of control. Once again we'd like your opinion and advice about a mixed racial marriage."

  "Most of what you fear is very real and evident. Behind the back comments will try your patience. Remember, you're training makes you lethal and deadly. Both of you are a very important part of our team. I'd hope you'll stay the course if you decide to marry. I guess my best advice is, if you don't have a best man Jones, I'd like to be that person?"

  Wendy had tears flowing while she hugged her boss. Brad was a bit taken back, but then relented circling his arms around her. Then he shook Agent Jones's hand and gave him a brief hug.

  Brad said, "June is coming and that is the month of choice for marriage."

  That night as Brad and Sujin lay on the floor playing with Brian in the living room, Billy came up with a file under his arm walking quickly out the front door with Rocky following him. Sujin said, "He looks serious tonight husband."

  Brad smiled and as little Brian sat on his chest, he said, "We are back looking for a train and some lost gold again. Mike found out in Canada that two trains left carrying Norwegian gold bullion. No one knows what happened to the train as it never showed up anywhere. It's a mystery I'd like to solve. Mike told me that his father told him that when he was a young man a TV show call Banacek starring George Peppard had an episode where a whole train went missing. Of course he solved the mystery. I love to solve mysteries, as you well know. Besides I've run out of gold to give the Master."

  Sujin said, "My husband, are you aware of how the Master went from Fish Rock to the submarine?"

  "I know he ran on top of the water. The mind and body can do some amazing things. I'd like to be there someday. I'm not so sure you can't do the same thing with some prior training."

  They had to leave that conversation as Billy came back in. He politely asked if he was intruding and was told no; to sit down. Billy sat down and opened his file folder. He said, "Are you ready boss?"

  "Let's hear it please. I'm dying to know about the caves beneath the house."

  Billy's mouth flew open and eyes got bigger. He said, "You cheated boss. You already know this stuff."

  "No I just have an overview on Wikipedia is all."

  "Okay her
e goes. This estate is now registered on the Historical record. We'd have to get special permission to go looking about for missing gold and a missing train."

  Sujin said, "I'm lost. Start at the beginning please so I can understand."

  Brad said, "In Vermont, not so far from Montpelier, is a famous granite rock quarry by the name of "The Rock of Ages." A man by the name of George Carver founded the mine back in 1885. He was one smart guy and dabbled in many things that made him a lot of money. He built a Tudor Mansion. It stayed in the family until the late 1960s."

  Brad nodded to Billy as Brian needed his attention. Billy continued saying, "This dude built a home unrivaled for the times. It had 15 bedrooms, 5 massive fireplaces, and all the rest that goes with that type of style. Under the first floor are some caves that provide the house with water and other things like a wine cellar. That part of the house is off limits nowadays. Old George was also a train buff. Strangely enough there are parts of a train locomotive all through the house; tastefully placed like a sculpture or wall painting would be. I'd guess that is where are missing train went?"

  Brad said, "Maybe so Billy. Chances are most of the gold is still hidden in a cave under the house. Anyway, we shall go cave exploring very soon."

  A few days later the Gulf left North bend for a stopover in DC and then on to Vermont. Aboard were Mike, Billy, Wendy and Agent Jones. Sandy was the dog of choice for this trip. Brad dearly missed the Master and his nose for gold. But, it was now time for him to show his stuff. Hidden doors, false walls, were all cleverly used for the last thousand years. It would be a major challenge to find the stash of golden treasure.

  Steve met them at the airport. A van was prepared and waiting with a marine driver. Small weather talk ensued on their way to the X Office. Steve told him that Nancy was back but Brad's father sorely missed her. Brad chuckled with a good feeling about how things worked out.