“So, we can replace the car. Is Nancy really okay? She must not be, why else would you both be here? What’s the problem?”
“She ran a red light, Will. Broadsided a couple of kids in a convertible. One of them died. She was drunk, Will. The manager of the bar she left said he tried to stop her. She fought with him, kneed him in the groin, and rushed out of the bar. Five minutes later the kid was dead.”
Will ducked his head and covered his face with his hands. “She went off again. Did she know about my getting wounded? That must have set her off. Damn, she must be in jail.”
“She is, Will. It only happened two days ago. Yesterday they had the arraignment. She’s being charged with second-degree murder.
Will had been sitting up. Now his face sagged, his eyes watered and then closed and he lay back on the bed.
“Will,” Murdock said.
“Get the hell out of here, both of you. Go. Just go. God damn it I thought she could hold it together a few more months. God damn it to hell. It’s my fault. I should have known it was coming. Happened often enough before. God damn it to hell, what the fuck am I going to do now?”
Murdock waved the priest out of the small room and sat in the chair beside the bed.
“Listen up, Chief, and I’ll tell you exactly what you’re going to do. I’ve arranged for you to fly out this afternoon on the COD to T’aipei. From there you catch an ambulance aircraft with a couple of stops and then you hit San Diego and Balboa in fifteen to twenty hours, something like that.
“When you get to San Diego, a lawyer I know who is a top man in criminal law in town and owes me a bunch of favors will take your case pro bono. Not a red cent. He usually gets twenty-five thousand down and three hundred an hour. He will tell you what he’s going to do. First he’ll get the bail knocked down from a million dollars to something like fifty thousand, since you’re Navy and Nancy is not a flight risk. Then he’ll get Nancy home and get you out of Balboa and she’ll settle down. Is every little thing clear?”
Will looked up. “Yes, sir, Commander, yes sir. Sorry I lost it there.”
“Next, the priest is coming back in here so you can apologize to him for your bad language and atrocious manners. Then we’ll see about getting you in motion.”
Coronado, California
Four days later, Senior Chief Dobler came out of the Balboa Naval Hospital in San Diego in a wheelchair and hobbled on crutches into Maria Fernandez’s Chevrolet.
“Good to see you, Will. Hear you’re healing like a whirlwind. That lawyer of yours is a dandy. I was in court yesterday. He pulled out all the strings and got the bail battered down to thirty thousand. We’ll drive by a bail bondsman. You said you could write him a check for three thousand, which is the ten percent. Then Nancy should be out and waiting for us to pick her up by noon tomorrow.”
Dobler eased into the cushion and tried to keep tears out of his eyes. “Everyone’s been so damn good to us. I certainly do appreciate it, and I know Nancy does.”
Maria looked over and smiled. “Hey, Chief, you’re family. We’re not gonna let our family down. Your kids have been at my place but they insisted they would be fine at home now that you’re going to be there. Helen says she’s fifteen now and can be chief cook until her mom gets home and Charlie will be bottle washer.”
Two hours later, the bail was posted and the process started at the Las Colinas Women’s Detention Center in nearby Lakeside. Maria drove over the Coronado Bay bridge from San Diego and up to the Dobler house. Both kids waited on the front lawn for him and rushed out and grabbed him. He used the crutches to get to the house, then spread out in his favorite recliner chair and the two kids hugged him again.
Maria went back to the car and drove home. Dobler had assured her that Miguel was fine, hadn’t been injured or wounded and was a good man to have on your side.
Will didn’t remember what Helen had fixed for dinner that night but be complimented her on it and she glowed. Then he settled down in his recliner, channel surfed the TV for a while, then took a nap. He was home. Nancy would be there tomorrow, and they would work through whatever problems faced them. Together, they would do it together. The lawyer had talked briefly with him that evening and said that if they didn’t want to go to trial there would almost certainly be some kind of a plea bargain they could make. The charges would get knocked down to manslaughter two but the chances of Nancy having to do at least two years in prison would be hard to get around. Dobler understood. A young man, twenty-two, had died and his girlfriend would be in a wheelchair for six months to repair the damage to her legs. He understood. He didn’t like it, but he knew there was no way around it. They would simply have to adapt.
At noon the next day, Maria and Dobler picked up Nancy at the discharge point of the Detention Center in Lakeside, seven miles north and east of San Diego. Nancy had her head down as she walked to the car. Maria put her in the back seat with Will, but she sat on the side as far from him as she could get.
She wouldn’t talk. Will moved over toward her, then pulled her over to him and put her head on his shoulder. Slowly she relaxed and before they were at the bay bridge, Nancy Dobler began to cry softly, wetting his shoulder and bringing dampness to Will’s eyes as well.
By the time they pulled up in front of the Dobler home, Nancy had her head on Will’s chest and her crying had stopped. His arms were around here. Neither of them had spoken yet. Maria eased out of the car so the two could be alone. She walked up to the house and talked with the kids who had been waiting.
Will tried. “Baby, I’m so sorry.” The words came out softly yet smothered with so much emotion that he could hardly understand them himself. Nancy turned and looked up him.
“Sweetheart… I didn’t mean… I didn’t try to hurt that boy.” She broke down again and he held her while she sobbed.
It was a half hour later before Nancy opened the door and helped Will out of the car and onto his crutches. His right leg was still heavily bandaged, and he wore shorts to give the wrappings room. He eased onto the crutches and they walked slowly up the sidewalk and into the door.
Maria had been talking to the kids, and now Helen and Charlie waited inside, and let their mother come to them. She did, hugged each one and kissed them. Being home made her feel better. Yes. Holding the kids was what she needed. Nancy thanked Maria, hugged her and then walked her to the door.
When she came back Nancy felt like her old self. She looked around and then at the kids. “Okay, you guys, who have you hired to clean up this place? It’s practically spotless.”
“Dad pulled an inspection,” Charlie said. “Gave us all morning to get the place ready.”
Nancy laughed. It was the first time in almost a week. “Yep, that sounds like our Will. Navy right down to the old gonads.” That made them all laugh.
Helen had been making dinner. She continued. There would be broiled herb chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, frozen peas, a fruit salad, and ice cream sundaes for desert. Nancy watched her with amazement.
“Whoever taught you to cook, young lady?”
Nancy turned, a sparkle in her eye. “A wise old Hindu monk who came only when I was alone in the kitchen.” Then she smiled. “I’ve been watching you for years, Mom. You’re a great cook.”
Nancy felt the tears coming again and thanked her daughter and left the room to find a box of tissues. It was so good to be home if even for a short time.
The phone rang and Nancy grabbed it out of habit. She always got the phone because sometimes raucous shipmates from years before would call up and usually Will didn’t want to go meet them for a drinking bout.
“Yes, good afternoon.”
“Mrs. Dobler. I’m Harry Justin, your lawyer. We met briefly at your arraignment. We need to do a lot of backgrounding. Could I come over tonight for a couple of hours?”
“Mr. Justin I appreciate what you have done for me and are doing. But I just now made it home. I’d really like to have tonight with the family. Would that be al
l right?”
“Yes, but I’ll call tomorrow. There is a lot I need to know about the stress of being a SEAL wife on top of the normal Navy problems. Yes, let’s do it tomorrow. I’ll call you about noon and set up something.”
That night after dinner, they turned off the TV and played dominoes the way they used to when the kids were learning to add and subtract.
“Been a long time, Mom,” Helen said.
“You can talk, you’re a hundred points ahead,” Will cracked.
Later that night, Nancy tenderly made love to Will, being careful of his wounded leg.
“Yes it was good for me,” Nancy said, poking Will in the shoulder as they lay side by side relaxing. “Tonight was a wonderful time. Something to remember.”
“Baby, I think it’s time we talk about my getting out of the platoon. I want to stay in the SEALs, but I won’t be on field duty. We talked about it once before. I’ll be in a support group somewhere, maybe supply or the boats. Lots of spots where I can save my rate. Then I get in the rest of my twenty years and we’ll talk about me finding some other type of employment.”
“But you love the SEALs, sweetheart. You’ve told me a dozen times that if you had to leave the platoon, you’d just as soon quit the Navy. I don’t want you to have to make that decision. Not on account of me. Look, Will. I understand this DUI I’ve got and the murder charge or manslaughter two, or whatever it comes down to. I know that means I’m going to have to do some time. That fancy lawyer is good, but he can’t get me a walk. We both know that. So, no more talk about quitting the platoon. Your wound won’t keep you out. You’re only thirty-seven. You’ve got another two good years with the kids out there swimming around. Now keep quiet. Has Big Boy down there had a long enough rest? I’m still just as horny as hell and there’s only one way to stop that itch.”
“Damn, sexy woman, it’s only been a half hour.” He laughed. “Hell, yes, Big Boy is coming up again and raring to go.”
* * *
The next morning, Will drove over to the SEALs base. It was only a little over two miles and he proved to Nancy that he could drive. He braked with his left foot.
Nancy went back inside the house and sat a moment looking around the place. Then she did a clean-up, putting everything in place. She laid out the menu for dinner that night, and made sure that all of the food was in the refrigerator or on the shelf. The kids were in school and would be home about three thirty.
Then she went into the bedroom, picked up a leather bag from the night stand, and took it into the bathroom. She cleaned the room until it sparkled, then sat down in the tub, and pulled the shower curtain so it hung inside the tub.
Nancy took the .45 caliber automatic pistol from the leather pouch and racked the slide back the way Will had taught her years ago. Yes, a round moved into the chamber. She flipped off the safety and put the muzzle up to the side of her head just above her ear.
Nancy said a short prayer, then pulled the trigger.
21
South China Sea
John C. Stennis, CVN 74
The SEALs had struggled through two whole days off. They hardly knew what to do with themselves. Ed DeWitt found a new chess opponent in the ward room and they had a best-three-out-of-five series going.
Murdock tried to follow the war. Bangladesh and Nepal were entirely subjugated. Nobody could figure out why. Then word came that ten divisions of Chinese infantry with armor support had moved into Pakistan with the country’s blessings and were concentrating on the Iranian border. Speculation was all over the place about China’s intentions. Murdock couldn’t figure it out. If they wanted territory, why not go for Afghanistan or India? No, India would retaliate with a nuclear weapon and end it in a rush. So Why Iran? True, those Arabs have some oil. Murdock looked it up. Iran has a little over ninety billion barrels of oil reserves. But they also had 1.4 million men under arms.
India was still hot over the resupply of Chinese forces in Bangladesh. The Chinese planes had to fly over a small strip of India to get to Bangladesh. The shortest route was sixty miles across India between China and Bangladesh. Twice India had threatened to shoot down any more transports. Then a day ago they did, downing three large transport planes that had no fighter escort.
Today, China announced that MiG fighters would now escort their unarmed supply transports across the line into Bangladesh. India had asked for U.S. assistance, calling on the mutual defense treaty with the United States. They asked for an AWACS plane to monitor the area for Chinese flights, and for fighter aircraft to help counter the MiG escorts. Washington was taking the request under advisement. India said they must have the help within four days or it would not be of any value.
Murdock put down a confidential bulletin he had from Don Stroh and shook his head. “What the hell are we doing in this mess anyway, Stroh? Do we really have a mutual defense treaty with India?”
“Of a sort. It’s a broad multinational thing that covers many areas, and it could be interpreted as being for military aid when attacked. That’s what State is churning around about. No worry about that for a while. What the Washington boys are really wondering about is China and Pakistan. Word leaking out is that China is not looking at Pakistan as a partner in this crazy war. We’re not sure why, but relations between the former allies seem to be weakening and could collapse.”
“That with three hundred thousand Chinese troops now inside Pakistan where they were invited guests?” Murdock asked. “That’s like inviting a fox into your chicken coop.”
“Could well be. In the meantime, State and New Delhi are whipping up a new wrinkle. They want to launch what looks like an attack on Nepal and see how the Chinese react. Will they fight to hold the country or was that just a warm up for the rest of the war? We could find out fairly soon.”
“A fake attack, timed charges, loudspeakers, tapes of machine, and mortar fire, the whole thing,” Murdock said. At least we won’t have to worry about that one.”
“Didn’t I tell you?” Stroh asked. “Something is coming through channels right now, but then I can’t talk about it.”
Murdock sat up straighter in the ward room where he and Stroh were working on coffee. “Of course you can’t talk to me about it, but if you were simply thinking out loud…” The men looked at each other and laughed.
“Yeah, I think out loud a lot. That’s what gets me in trouble with the brass around here. Remember I was thinking about that fake attack on Nepal and the Chinese. I didn’t tell you but there could be the SEALs’ name tag on that one. If it comes through. Hell, a walk in the park. Anyway, you guys are getting bored just sitting here eating three times a day, sleeping ten hours. Hey, your men must be going nuts.”
“Yeah, that’s straight. Me too. Nepal. Why don’t they just base us in Calcutta for a while? We’ll be a lot closer to the action.”
“You could be a lot closer tomorrow.” Stroh held up both hands. “Hey, you didn’t hear it from me. I’m just having a cup of java here with some wild-assed SEAL. I know nothing.”
“Yeah, you and Sergeant Schultz from the old Bob Crane TV series about the Stalag Seventeen WW two prison camp.” They both chuckled.
“Well, guess I better get busy and see if my guys are up on their shots and everything.”
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, Sailor. Me, I got to go see a movie.”
Murdock finished his coffee and headed for the SEAL compartment. He had some getting ready to do.
He stopped by at the hospital. Every day he visited Vinnie Van Dyke. He was improving. The red tag was off his chart. In another week he should be well enough to be flown back to Balboa Hospital.
“Vinnie, you didn’t miss a thing in Hong Kong. We didn’t even get shore leave.”
“You guys took down a whole damn luxury liner?”
“Just the bad guys onboard, about thirty of them as I recall. They weren’t special troops. China has some good ones. These were just soldiers, and didn’t know what they were
doing.”
“Hey, docs say I might get out of here and back to Balboa in another week, isn’t that great!”
“Yeah, in Balboa those three girls you have on strings can come see you. Just be sure they come on different days.”
“Hey, Cap, not three. Just two and one of them I’m trying to dump. Yeah, I’m looking forward to going home.”
Murdock left and checked over his remaining men. The sixteen-man platoon was down to fourteen. Jaybird had been filling in for Dobler doing the senior chief’s chores. He hated to lose men, even for a few missions.
If they did do a show for China along the border, it wouldn’t be much. They would need a pair of trucks and would have to go in after dark and set up the whole thing to launch a night attack on the next day at dusk. That would leave Mr. Chinaman twelve hours of darkness to worry about an attack.
At 1400 the messenger came. Murdock and planning team wanted in the admiral’s cabin. Murdock, DeWitt, and Jaybird went to the meeting.
Captain Robertson and two more Captains faced the three SEALs. Don Stroh came in late and took a seat.
“SEALs, you’ve heard about the idea of sending in a team to create the illusion of a massive attack on the Nepal border at one of the roads that leads into the mountains.”
“Yes, sir,” Murdock said.
“Good, what’s your reading on the idea?”
“Can be highly effective if done right and at the right time of the day. We did a good one during Desert Storm in the Gulf. Pulled several divisions out of the primary target to defend a beach that was never invaded.”
“I know about that one,” one of the other captains said. “Will it work here?”
Murdock considered it a moment. “Yes, sir, but it will take a mile of frontage and a platoon of forty Marines to help us plant the explosives and run the generators and loud speaker systems. It’s a hell of a big job.”
“How much explosives?”
“Fifty pounds every one hundred feet. That’s five hundred times fifty. That’s twenty-five thousand pounds. Twelve and a half tons.”
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