He paused, and when he turned his body, Em had a hard time making out his words. “He knows we’re close, but he can’t find us. If we get too close while we’re getting Philip, we might jeopardize his mission. We have to get in there and get out. We have one chance, and then we have to abort. There will be no time to second-guess. If Philip isn’t there, he may be on his own.”
Em sat quietly and hoped they never came his way. All he could think of was the phrase “one chance.” Did Captain McVay really mean that? They would never leave Colonel Roth out here, would they? Something else for him to worry about. Now, all he wanted to do was tell Jack. Jack would calm him down. He still made Em see things in a different light.
When Jack returned from swimming and told Em how the sailors had fixed a sling that catapulted someone more than thirty feet, he was all smiles. Jack had made friends at an alarming rate. Every sailor on board was envious of him. He had spun a tale of intrigue involving a Japanese princess. Now all the sailors believed they were on a mission to save a princess. Jack was relishing every moment. Em could not get as excited as Jack. His old worrisome self was unrelenting. He went along with Jack’s story but never offered any details to any of the questioning. When October 22 came and went, Jack never missed a beat. He told them that the princess’s father found out that she wanted to come to America and put her in one of the caves on her island. He was so convincing that some of the sailors were getting their hair cut in anticipation of her arrival on board. When more than a week passed and no princess, Jack recovered nicely by telling them another story. Em was only sure of one detail. Jack asked him to go along with his story. He only told anyone who asked that when they did rescue the princess, she would be hidden from all foreigners. Her father was so dangerous that anyone who saw her might be in danger. Em was thankful no one wanted his opinion.
Now, as he lay in the bunk and wished that the sea would stop rolling, he wondered where Jack was. The way Jack had taken to the sea was nothing short of phenomenal. When the storm had surrounded them just forty-eight hours ago, Jack never missed a beat. He jumped right in and helped out wherever he was needed. Em had gotten sick immediately and had yet to recover. The captain told them it was just a small storm, and it would not affect their mission, but Em thought it was relentless. He had not eaten in two days, and yet he could still throw up. Every time he tried to drink some liquids, it would only take one good rolling wave to bring it back up. How could he ever be any help at all if there was a situation? He could not wait to get off this boat. Why on earth was it taking so long for Colonel Roth and Sergeant Cannon and Jeff to set up the rendezvous? Sergeant Cannon had assured him and Jack that this was a simple extraction. Now, they were two weeks overdue, and yet no one seemed worried. Captain McVay seemed preoccupied with someone other than Colonel Roth. Every time he and Jack heard anything about what the new captain was like, all the other sailors had to say was that he was very familiar with the Japanese navy. He had been fighting since December of ’41. It was personal with him and a particular few of the Japanese naval officers. There was even a few rumors of a vendetta he held against one Japanese submarine captain. Em did not want to think of a submarine chasing the boat he was riding on.
Just when his stomach was feeling a little more settled, he thought he might actually get up and try to walk. Sergeant Barnes was snoring. Em thought he was not as sick as he proclaimed. Sergeant Barnes had been around for over a month now, and Em was quite certain of his laziness. He lay in the bunk and continued to snore. Em got up slowly from the bunk and felt uneasy. He stood still for a minute and regained his balance. He wanted to make his way topside and find Jack. He thought that as long as he never ate anything else, he could make it through the night without any more vomiting.
He crossed the room and went through the door as quietly as he could. There was no need to wake Sergeant Barnes. When he entered the corridor and all was quiet, he looked for the familiar numbers that he had memorized. He could read his way around most of the ship by looking for certain letters and numbers. He had not gotten lost since the first week. Now that he had been aboard for more than three weeks, he was as familiar as he wanted to get. He climbed the narrow stairway that led to the top deck and felt the rolling deck as soon as he stepped onto the wooden planks. The rain was coming down in torrents. He tried to control his stomach, and just when he began to feel a little more settled, Jack came running from around one of the giant deck guns. He looked like he was out of breath.
“Hey, where have you been? I have to tell you what I heard.” Jack had been working beside the other sailors when Captain McVay hurried past. He was talking to Captain Murphy and a couple of his officers. Even Captain Murphy did not notice Jack. Jack had been wearing borrowed squid uniforms for two weeks. Even though he had become adept at laundry in basic training, he had no intention of continuing the practice. Now, instead of doing his own laundry and wearing clean clothes, he just wore whatever one of his new friends loaned him. Jack said that all four of the officers were entranced in conversation. He also said that he was sure that something was happening. Captain McVay was half mumbling when he said that they had to remain inside this squall. Jack had a hard time hearing his exact words, but he suspected that he was trying to hide from something. The navigation officer that was with him kept assuring him that they were right where they were supposed to be. Why they had not been able to contact Colonel Roth was bothering him now. Em wondered why it had taken so long. When Jack told Em that the captain was staying inside the storm on purpose, Em felt an overwhelming sense of nausea again. He told his officers and Captain Murphy that the storm was changing tracks and now was headed toward the Japanese coast. If they did not make contact by tomorrow morning, he would have to rethink their next move. The last thing that Jack told him was the most frightening. Captain McVay said that the submarine was out there, and he could feel that it was close.
When Jack finished his tale, he had the proud look on his face again that Em had seen a thousand times. Jack expected Em to be astonished. Em thought that Jack enjoyed being the center of attention just a hair too much. Jack just paused and waited for Em to speak.
“So what’s going to happen?” Em began. “We can’t just leave them out here. Has there been any contact at all?” He didn’t think that Jack would have an answer, but Jack surprised him again.
“I heard Captain Murphy say that things had not gone as smooth as Colonel Roth had anticipated. The last contact had been just twelve hours ago. Colonel Roth had radioed the Indianapolis that the rendezvous should occur tonight. The original plan was for the colonel, Sergeant Cannon, and Jeff and whatever cargo they were bringing to board the Indianapolis. Then they would be dropped off back in Hawaii, and the Indianapolis would proceed on to California.”
Em thought that Jack withheld information on purpose sometimes. The dramatic effect that his revelations had on Em seemed to amuse him. “You really make me angry. Couldn’t you have already told me some of this information?” Em wondered to himself if he would ever understand his friend. He knew that something drove him to push the limits on even the smallest details of his life. Em thought that his reckless abandon attitude probably had been with him most of his life. “Just once, I would like you to be straight with me. What exactly do you know for a fact? Are Colonel Roth and Sergeant Cannon and Jeff coming aboard tonight?” Em waited on Jack to answer.
“All I know is that whatever they went to get, they still don’t have. The radio operator told me that the last message he had received gave the rendezvous coordinates and estimated the time of intersection to be close to zero two hundred hours. You know that it is close to midnight now. We have to get close to the bridge and find out what’s going on.” Jack was wet from head to toe. The rain was relentless.
Em looked out across the deck and was temporarily blinded by a flash of lightning. He never heard the thunder. When he got his sight back and the ship steadied itself for a few brief moments, he looked out to see if he could see the horizon. It was so dark that he could only see a hundred feet or so from the deck. When the lightning flashed, he tried to get a glimpse of the rolling seas. He could see white foam waves rolling at least thirty or forty feet. “Even if we find them and get close to them, there is no way we can haul them aboard.” Em was not really talking to Jack. His mind was racing. He totally forgot about being sick. All he could think about was trying to align this big ship with a small fishing boat. The crew had assured them that they could get the job done; however, Em thought the storm had to