Antony Trew

TWO HOURS TO DARKNESS

Producer's Note

Trew, Anthony (1906–1996)

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'Two Hours to Darkness," © copyright 1962 by Antony Trew, is published by Random House, Inc.

* * *

WHY IS Commander Shadde so concerned about discipline on board Her Majesty's Polaris submarine Retaliate, cruising in Scandinavian waters within easy missile range of Leningrad? Could the ship's company contain a saboteur?

The time is 1964. Britain has bought the latest nuclear submarines from the United States, put them under the command of the Navy's most experienced officers, and sent them off on routine summer duty. But something is wrong on Retaliate. There are tensions among the crew. The captain suspects the loyalty of his staff. The threatened breakup of his marriage obsesses him.

From its first uneasy moments, Antony Trew's story rises with terrifying crescendo to a moment of decision when the fate of men everywhere is at stake.

COMMANDER SHADDE, Captain

LIEUT. COMMANDER CAVAN, First Lieutenant

LIEUT. SYMINGTON, Navigating Officer

SURGEON LIEUT. O'SHEA, Doctor

LIEUT. COMMANDER (E) RHYS EVANS, Chief Engineer

LIEUT. COMMANDER GALLAGHER, U. S. N. Nuclear Weapons Control Officer

CHIEF P.O. TELEGRAPHIST GRACIE

MR. BUDDINGTON

TWO HOURS TO DARKNESS

It was dark and cold and there was a fine drizzle. Pools of rainwater gathered in the dents on the chart-table screen, overflowed and splashed onto the steel deck. In the glare of the running lights the rain hung like fine muslin, green to starboard and red to port.

Sublieutenant Keely called the bearings and Lieutenant Symington plotted them with cold and fumbling hands. Drops of water from his oilskins fell onto the chart and left dark smudges of damp. He dabbed at them with a towel.

"Great Karlso one-six-eight; Vastergarn zero-five-seven." Keely's voice was deep and sonorous, much older than his years.

"Five point two," Symington muttered. "Five point two from Great Karlso — making good sixteen point three — slight set against."

Symington copied the position from the chart of Gotland onto the general chart of the eastern Baltic and moved across to the voice pipe. The dreaded moment had arrived. The sighting of the light must be reported. That might bring Shadde to the bridge, and that meant trouble.

"Captain!" He spoke quietly. There was silence; then Shadde's voice came back, cold, incisive: "What is it?"

"Sighted Great Karlso light, one-six-eight, five miles, sir." "What's the time?" "O-one-sixteen, sir."

"Visibility?"

"Poor, sir."

"Weather?"

"Fine drizzle — light breeze — gentle swell."

"Very well, I'm coming up."

Symington moved to the forepart of the bridge. "Skipper's coming up, Keely. Tell the lookouts."

There was a call from the control room. "Captain's coming up, sir." The quartermaster's voice was urgent and conspiratorial.

"Very good." Involuntarily, Symington shuddered.

Shadde lifted his angular body up the conning-tower ladder, massive in his oilskins. As he stepped out onto the bridge, the rain struck into his face, sudden, chilling. Eyes not yet accustomed to the dark, he felt his way back past the periscope standards to the chart table. The flashlight flicked on, then off. "Symington!"

"Sir."

"Only one fix on the chart — why?"

Symington stiffened. "In fact, sir, there are. ."

"Don't 'in fact' me, Symington," Shadde interrupted. "I can assess the facts for myself. You've been officer of the watch since midnight. It's o-one-twenty-one. Retaliates steaming at sixteen and a half knots. We're in sight of land. My standing orders require the officer of the watch to plot a fix every half hour. There's only one on the chart. Why?"

Symington cleared his throat. "There are three fixes, sir."

Shadde's voice was cold. "Are you suggesting that I'm a liar?"

"No, sir, but. ."

"But what?"

"When we picked up the light, I used the large-scale chart, sir." He was quiet, deferential, anxious to avoid a scene. "All three fixes are on the general chart. . Chart twenty-eight-forty-two."

"Where is it?" snapped Shadde.

"On the table, under the large-scale chart, sir."

Shadde glared through the darkness at the younger man, fingers clenching and unclenching. "Symington, is it too much to ask you to see that the appropriate chart is always uppermost on the chart table when I come onto the bridge?" Without waiting for a reply he turned and disappeared down the conning-tower ladder.

Keely swore eloquently. Then came Symington's nervous, unsure laugh. "It's the hangover from that night at Skansen. Number One warned me. Said Shadde was after my blood."

"Always is, isn't he? Doesn't need you, does he?"

"No. Can't think why. When my old man heard I was coming here he was very bucked. Said Shadde was first-class."

"When did he know him?"

"In the war. In Sabre. He was skipper and Shadde was his Third Hand. Best he'd ever had, he said."

"Unpredictable cuss," Keely muttered. "Gay one moment, chewing you out the next."

"Can't be fun being that moody," Symington said. "Makes such a fool of himself. That display just now. What do the lookouts and signalman think? Vulgar. Bloody unnecessary."

They stood together at the bridge screen, caught up again in the routine of the watch. The messenger with hot cocoa; reports from the lookouts; voice pipes and instrument repeaters calling and chattering. Ranges and bearings from radar and asdics; soundings from fathometers; sea and air temperatures; air analyses in compartments; position by Ship's Inertial Navigation System, by long-range radio, by direction finder; signals from the wireless-telegraphy, or W/T, office; reports from the engine room, from the reactor-control and missile rooms.

Bustle and activity reached a peak as Symington handed over to Lieutenant Commander Cavan, the first lieutenant. Tired and wet, Symington wrote up the logbook. Keely compared a line of soundings from the fathometer with those charted. Then they went down a steel ladder to the small cabin in the officers' quarters that they shared with the torpedo officer, Lieutenant Allistair.

They undressed. Symington knelt and said his prayers, then climbed into the bunk below Keely. He lay awake, tired and unhappy. Why did Shadde hate him so? He thought about the party at Skansen. That had triggered off this latest business.

Retaliate should have left Stockholm the day before, but there'd been condenser trouble. She had been in harbor for five days on a routine showing-the-flag visit. For security reasons she was not alongside but at a buoy in the Strommen. She was closed to the public, but many people gazed out curiously, even apprehensively, to where she lay. There was something sinister about her long whalelike steel hull and immense conning tower.

The round of official entertainment had ended the day before. On this unexpected extra day in Stockholm the submarine's crew were left to their own devices. In the evening, after dinner, Symington and the doctor, with Cavan and Keely, had taken a taxi out to the park at Skansen. They wandered among quaint medieval farmhouses, mills and belfries, looked in on some folk dancing, and then made for the Solliden for a drink.

Keely went ahead to get a table, but the restaurant was packed. The headwaiter waved his arms desperately. "Impossible!"

"We're visitors from Britain."

The Swede shrugged. "Everybody at Skansen is a visitor."

Keely reported his failure to the others.

Surgeon Lieutenant O'Shea, his Irish courage fired by schnapps, said, "Stand back. I speak Russian."

Cavan yawned. "Very dramatic, Doc. This is Sweden."

O'Shea went through the glass doors. In gruff, broken Russian he made his explanations. The political deputation was visiting Stockholm from Moscow; they were waiting in the foyer; they must have a table. He did not smile.

The headwaiter knew some Russian; he looked hard at the doctor, speculating, his hands spread despairingly.

"A table? Where?" Russian pig, he thought; but there would be complaints to the ministry, then to the manager. Always trouble. He found them a table.

Half an hour later Shadde and Rhys Evans turned up and joined them. The Welshman was engineer officer of Retaliate. Aged thirty-nine, Evans was the oldest man on board. He and Shadde had commissioned her and put her through her trials.

The two men liked and respected each other, though they were so different. Shadde, very much the product of Dartmouth and the Naval Staff College; Rhys Evans, still the quiet, stocky man from the Rhondda Valley, who had traveled the hard road from warrant and commissioned engineer to lieutenant commander (E).

Shadde was in high spirits. He talked endlessly, racing from one subject to the other. Sometimes he laughed. Then they would laugh with him. Cavan eyed him warily. How long would this mood last? Shadde told the waiter to bring champagne.

How can he afford champagne, thought the first lieutenant. Not on his service pay. And why champagne, anyway? Showing off?

Keely walked by with a Swedish girl on his arm, laughing gaily. Shadde jerked his head toward them. "How does he meet them?"

"Pretty basic approach, I think," said the first lieutenant.

Shadde shook his head. "Beats me. He's such an oaf. How'd you get the table?" he went on. "We couldn't."

"The doctor speaks Russian," Cavan said.

"Why give it to the Russians and not to us?" Rhys Evans asked.

Shadde looked at him sadly. "Swedes are scared stiff of the Russians."

"I'm sorry for them," said Symington. "Nice chaps with nasty neighbors. How'd you…"

"I don't blame them for fearing the Russians," interrupted Shadde. "Plenty to fear."

Evans winked at the doctor. "Look here now, sir. Things are not so bad for them. They can count on the West."

Shadde's gaiety fell from him. "I don't think so. The West's had it too good too long. We're suffering from fatty degeneration."

The chief was contrite, sorry to have changed the captain's mood. "Maybe, sir. But our side has brains and punch too."

Shadde shook his head. "Not enough. We need guts. Risks have got to be taken if we want to survive."

"Meaning, sir?"

Shadde put his glass down and leaned forward, his eyes dark and gleaming. "We're afraid. Our politicians, I mean. Always trying to play it safe. You don't get anywhere that way."

"The West can't just declare war on Russia like that," said O'Shea. "That sort of thing isn't done anymore."

Shadde looked at him suspiciously. "Exactly. The West can't. It's hamstrung by your 'it's not done' stuff. That's why we may go to the wall. Any bloody fool can see our choice."

"What choice?"

"Preventive war against Russia now, or submission later." His voice had risen. People at nearby tables were watching.

Symington yawned. He had heard Shadde on this subject before. The captain had a bee in his bonnet about Russia.

People left their tables to dance. Symington stood up. "Going to see a man about a dog," he explained.

When he came back there were — two familiar figures at a table on the far side. He walked across. "Hullo, Gracie, Springer!"

Gracie, the submarine's chief PO telegraphist, leaned forward. "Care for a beer, sir?"

"Love one," said Symington and sat down. "What sort of a day'd you have?"

"Fine," said Springer, the chief electrical artificer. "Ted's been shooting the place to pieces with his Leica."

Gracie nodded. "Got some good shots, especially around Katarinahissen.''

"I was there yesterday," said Symington. "We'll compare results. I expect yours are better; usually are."

Shadde saw Symington go over to the chief petty officers' table and the incident built up in his mind. First Symington's yawn during the conversation about Russia; then his excuse to leave the table. Now this gesture to make it clear that he preferred the company of Retaliates chief petty officers to that of her captain and wardroom officers. Shadde turned to the others. "Does Symington normally hobnob with our chiefs and POs ashore?"

"I expect he's only being friendly, sir," the doctor said cheerfully. "After all, they are shipmates."

"Your naval experience is somewhat limited, O'Shea." Shadde's voice was ice. "It's not a custom of the service for wardroom officers to mix with chiefs and POs ashore. Not good for discipline. Both sides dislike it. The chiefs and POs suspect patronage." Shadde looked at the first lieutenant. "I take it you would agree with me, Number One." Clearly it was meant to be the last word on the subject.

Cavan failed to sense this. Shadde irked him. "I don't know, sir. I don't think Symington patronizes anyone. He's too well bred. He and Gracie like each other. That's all there is to it."

Shadde's dark eyes smoldered as he faced Cavan. His hands on the table clenched and unclenched. He stood up. "Come on, Chief. Let's get back on board before I'm told I don't know how to run my bloody boat." His voice was thick with anger.

Before Cavan could think of anything to say Shadde had gone, followed by Evans. The first lieutenant took the champagne bottle from the ice bucket, filled the doctor's glass, then his own. "Tell me, did I say anything offensive?"

"You took my side, Number One, when he was laying down the law about the customs of the Royal Navy. Not very bright."

"Think that was it?" Cavan made a gesture of impatience. "That bull about Symington and the CPOs!"

"I couldn't agree more," said the doctor, "but Shadde's allergic to Symington. That makes a difference."

Cavan emptied his glass and took a long look around the room. Keely was still dancing with the Swedish girl. For the first time Cavan realized that she was very pretty.

"Here comes Peter Keely with the body beautiful," sighed the doctor. "Must have seen the champagne."

"Hullo!" said the sublieutenant. "I saw the captain go and thought you'd like to meet Greta Garbo." He poured her some champagne. "Greta," he said, "meet my chums."

"I'm Anita," giggled the girl. "Are all the English so silly?"

"Yes," said the doctor amiably. "They are."

The girl lifted her glass with both hands and looked up at Cavan. "You are very handsome," she said.

He pulled her to her feet. "Stop talking nonsense and come and dance," he said. But the remark did his ego good.

When Symington came back, they told him of the captain's outburst. He looked surprised. "Unbelievable," he said, but after that he changed the subject and gaiety returned to the party.

At midnight a taxi took Cavan, the doctor and Symington back across the bridge to the naval base at Skeppsholmen. Peter Keely refused their offer to help him see Anita home.

Elizabeth felt dizzy when she got up to go to the sideboard. Must be the whisky, she thought. She put her glass down so hard it broke. Lucky he wasn't home! This was the sort of thing that would have sparked off a terrible row. Well, there weren't going to be any more rows, because she wasn't going to be there anymore. She took another glass and handled it with exaggerated care.

She hiccuped and giggled. I'm tipsy, she thought, but I'm not frightened anymore. I've written that awful letter at last.

She felt her way carefully back to the easy chair. The letter on the table beside it was addressed to Commander John Shadde, R.N., HMS Retaliate, GPO London. "Darling John," she said unsteadily and burst into tears. "What have you done to us?"

She buried her face in a cushion and sobbed, loudly at first, then catching her breath like a child crying himself to sleep. Finally she got up and stood in front of the mirror. I used to be pretty once, she thought. She made a mouth in the mirror. "Awful!" she said. "Sterile cow! If only you'd given him babies."

The letter would reach him in Copenhagen. What would he think when he read it? It didn't really matter. She had made her decision. She was thirty-three; any personality, any character she'd ever had he'd crushed and subdued. She had to get away from him. The legal things were being seen to and the passage to Australia was booked.

But it was hopeless; she couldn't stop thinking of him. Tall, dark, immensely rugged and masculine. Inscrutable brown eyes that never really let you know what thoughts were going on inside. She remembered the night he'd proposed. It was coming back from a dance three weeks after they had met. Somehow or other they ended up in a funny little lane between high hedgerows. He said he'd lost his way.

When the car stopped, he said: "We're lost!"

She laughed. "Better turn the car and get unlost."

"Lots of time. Look at that moon."

"Where? It's all cloudy."

"Of course you can't see it. Just imagine it."

They both laughed. He put one arm around her and kissed her for the first time. Rather a timid kiss; she remembered thinking he'd not had much experience. Then he said, "Have you ever thought of joining the Navy?"

"As a Wren?"

"No. As my wife."

Her heart had leaped. She was twenty-five. Behind her was a hopeless tangle with a married man. And now this large, frightening but attractive naval officer was asking her to marry him.

"If that's a proposal, John…" She felt his arms go around her, and she finished in a whisper. "I'd love to join the Navy."

But all that was long, long ago. She settled back into the armchair, and picked up her glass again. She didn't really like whisky, but without it she would never have had the courage to write those letters. Neither the one to Oslo, nor this final one. He had written a rather shocked, contrite letter in reply to the Oslo letter. It told her how deeply attached he was to her, and how she mustn't make any decision until they had discussed things. She knew what that meant; a monologue. John laying down the law.

I am terrified of him, she thought. I'm broken and cowed.

For the first six years their marriage had been a success. She had found from the start that he was a moody man. But in his good moods he could be gay and charming. Lately, however, they had been few and far between, and in recent months he'd been quite impossible. She knew he'd never tell her why, but she supposed it was because of her failure to give him children.

The climax had come during that last dreadful leave in March. For days he just sat and brooded. When she suggested golf or walks or the pictures, he'd say angrily, "Stop fussing! If I wanted to go for a walk I'd go."

"John, what's wrong?" He would turn around, his mouth set in that hard, tight line. "Nothing's wrong. All I want is privacy. Surely you don't grudge me that?"

After a week of leave he went up to London for the day. He left in a black and desperate mood without saying good-by. At nine o'clock that night she heard the Rover come into the garage. Fearfully, she went out to meet him. But the moment he said, "Hullo, darling!" she knew his mood had changed. He kissed her and they went into the house arm in arm. "Lisbet, I've got a surprise for you." He didn't often call her Lisbet nowadays, but when he said "a surprise" she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The last surprise had been two months ago when he bought the Rover and she had borrowed five hundred pounds from her mother to get them out of the financial scrape it landed them in.

Now she was smiling, but apprehensive. "What is it, John?"

"Spain," he said. "You, me and the Rover. We'll chase the sun. Get away from this bloody rain."

"John," she whispered. "How can we afford it?"

He laughed. "Don't worry about that, old girl. Look!" From his pocket he produced a paper travel wallet. "Here are the tickets. It's not necessary to book at hotels this time of year. We'll just jog along and stop where we like. Should be absolute heaven."

She looked at him compassionately. "Where's the money to come from, John? We haven't got it."

He laughed. "Installment-plan place in the Haymarket. They've paid for the tickets and given me hotel vouchers and cash for the balance. The whole thing'll cost us about a hundred and twenty pounds including interest. Pay it off over twelve months at about ten pounds a month."

Desperately, she had said, "But we can't remotely afford ten pounds a month, John. Think of what we owe already."

He looked puzzled, as if he'd not understood. Then he frowned, the veins on his forehead stood out, and his jaw muscles began to work. "I see," he said. "Your customary appreciation of anything I try to do." He flung the tickets violently across the kitchen. "Very well, we'll stay and rot in this godforsaken, rained-out bloody place." For three days after that he didn't speak to her.

Now, sobbing again, she picked up the letter and let herself out the front door. It was raining and almost dark when she reached the mailbox.

When Shadde and Rhys Evans got back on board the captain suggested a nightcap in his cabin. It was more an order than an invitation. They raised their glasses and drank, but Shadde sat hunched and withdrawn, barely replying to the Welshman's attempts at conversation. Worried by this gloomy preoccupation, the engineer officer at last muttered apologies and left.

Shadde slumped back into the chair and sat there, head sunk, for upwards of two hours before he got onto his bunk. It was going to be difficult to sleep. All his problems would clamor at him in the dark. The row with Number One at Skansen. How had that started? Over Symington. No, the beginning was the flippancy about Russia. Couldn't they see what was happening? What did they think they were in Retaliate for? Why didn't they sense the danger? He felt his heartbeat quicken. The forces of darkness were gathering. The testing time was coming nearer. But England was soft, having it too good. People laughed when you talked about mortal danger. High patriotism was needed. A man would have to come forward. There had always been a man to save England.

His thoughts went back to Skansen. Symington's offensive behavior. How dare the first lieutenant support Symington and the doctor? Discipline in the submarine was not what it should be. In the morning he would talk to Cavan.

Then with a sick feeling he thought of Elizabeth. She had been his sleeping and waking thought since he had received that incredible letter in Oslo. It was ten days now since he had answered it. Why hadn't she written again? He'd not taken seriously her threat to leave him, at first. But slowly it had dawned on him that she might actually do it.

It had been a shock to learn that she was unhappy. Why? Because they had no children? For years he had taken Elizabeth for granted, and the thought of losing her terrified him. She was all he had. She must know that. But what if she didn't? He could never tell her. Those were things that couldn't be said.

He turned uneasily in his bunk, torn by doubt and anxiety, falling finally into a disquieting sleep.

At about the time when Retaliate's officers were in the restaurant at Skansen, Engineering Mechanic Ernest Kyle found himself in a more modest establishment in another part of Stockholm.

He had gone ashore that evening with his fellow libertymen, but as so often happened he was odd man out. His messmates had broken up into small cheerful parties, but they had not invited him to join them. Well, if they didn't want him, he'd just as soon be on his own. Of course he felt a bit lonely, but that was because he was in a foreign country. He wished he were back home in Southsea chatting with Mum in the kitchen. Always warm and friendly in there. Dad was no good; usually around at the pub boozing. But Mum was a real good sort. Always kind and helpful and pleased to see you. "You ought to find yourself a nice girl, Ernie," she'd say. "I don't want no nice girl, Mum," he'd answer. "I've got you."

Well, perhaps he'd take her advice in Stockholm. He didn't know too much about girls, but he could always learn, and if he found one this evening it would help him to forget the submarine, and Chief Shepherd, who made his life a flipping misery. He'd fix Chief Shepherd sometime if it was the last thing he ever did.

At about 2100 that night he was in a tavern near the docks, feeling a lot better. Stockholm wasn't so bad after all. Some of the people around him seemed to speak English. Sven was a good chap, a sailorman, too, from a Swedish tramp steamer. Didn't mind standing his round either. That reminded him; how was the old money lasting out? He looked through his wallet. Still plenty. And there was the money he was keeping for Mum's present.

"Sven ole pal—'ave another pint." He slapped the Swede on the shoulder.

The Swede shook his head. "Ve hed enough; better you stop now, Ernie."

"C'mon Sven," he insisted, "one fer the road."

"Ernie, you like meet that nice girl Ingrid I tell you about?" said Sven with a wink.

He wagged his finger at the Swede. "Look, Sven, you think I'm drunk. Well I'm not, see. An' I don't believe there's any Ingrid."

"I go fetch her." Sven disappeared and, to Ernie's astonishment, was back five minutes later with Ingrid; large, blond and friendly.

"Cor," said Ernie with undisguised admiration. "Smashin'." He bought her a soft drink. Got himself a nice girl now. They laughed and chatted until Ingrid said in a low voice, "Better we go to my home. There we can talk and hear what we are saying." She smiled archly at him. Ernie couldn't believe his luck.

They got into a taxi. Ernie had no idea where they were going, but he had his arm around Ingrid and gave her a squeeze which she returned.

Ingrid's flat turned out to be a sort of bed-sitting room. Nice place, Ernie thought. He stretched out his legs and lit a cigarette. He felt warm and at home.

"I'll make some coffee," Ingrid said. "You wait."

Soon she came back carrying a tray. The blood went racing to Ernie's head. She had changed into a silky pink affair, like the movie stars wear. As she leaned forward to put down the tray, the wrap fell open and Ernie saw her breasts, full and inviting. He experienced a sense of delicious shock. Roughly he pulled her down beside him. She struggled, but not too hard.

Moments later, as waves of passion broke over him, Ernie was startled by the door opening and the sound of a man's voice.

"So," said the stranger softly.

Ernie saw something in the man's left hand, and turned quickly to look at Ingrid, who was standing there smiling in a strange way. So it was a trap. The man moved toward him. Ernie raised his arms to defend himself, but he was too late. There was a shattering, crashing sound and blinding white lights danced in front of his eyes.

Next morning after breakfast the first lieutenant was summoned to the captain's cabin. Shadde was writing at his desk. He nodded distantly. "Kyle still adrift?"

"Yes, sir. We're landing a patrol at ten hundred to see if we can find him."

Shadde frowned. "Can't make it out. Our people don't do that sort of thing. Quite a good type, isn't he?"

"The chief thinks so, sir."

Shadde shook his head. "Hope they find him. I don't like leaving a man behind. That's not happened to us before."

"I expect we'll get him back, sir."

The captain seemed not to hear. "Got your program for Copenhagen ready, Number One?"

"Yes, sir, all lined up."

"Good. Now close the door and sit down. There's something else I want to talk to you about." Shadde looked at the first lieutenant for some time before continuing. "Last night at Skansen." He puffed at his cigarette.

So that's what he's leading up to, thought Cavan.

"I would have expected you to support me when I explained the customs of the service to the doctor. You know as well as I do that Symington behaved badly. Nothing wrong in exchanging pleasantries with Gracie and Springer. But sitting there drinking with them! Apart from the fact that it's damn bad naval discipline, it was damn bad manners toward me." Shadde glared at Cavan. "And yet you supported him. Why?"

The younger man looked him straight in the face. "Frankly, sir, because I saw nothing wrong in what he did. Nowadays—"

Shadde raised his hand. "I'm not interested in your views, Number One. I sent for you so that you'd be in no doubt about mine. There's more to it than you probably realize," he added. "Symington's attachment to Gracie is undesirable. Because of their differences in rank, social standing and — er — background, the friendship is— Well, to put it bluntly, it's odd."

"Odd?"

"Yes, odd. You've noticed, haven't you? Symington's effeminate. And Grade's a bit pink and boyish, you know. Damned good chief PO telegraphist — but he's only human, Number One. Symington's an officer; he's rich, and he's very much a member of the upper classes, wouldn't you say?" Shadde's voice was mocking. "Don't pretend you can't see what I'm driving at."

"Only too clearly, sir." Cavan's measured voice was dangerously near to insult.

The captain ignored the innuendo. "In fact, I think they're a couple of queers."

Cavan struggled with his indignation. It was difficult to believe Shadde was serious. "I couldn't disagree more," he said.

"Well, it may surprise you to know that not so long ago I saw Symington and Gracie come out of the W/T office together—"

Cavan's contempt was now plain. "Everybody knows they're keen on photography, sir. They use the office for a darkroom."

Shadde quickly challenged him. "How do you know? Been in there with them? I'm not impressed with that story, Number One. Prefer to rely on my own observations."

"And jump to incorrect conclusions," said Cavan rashly. He was getting angry, and that was unwise. He got up.

Shadde's eyes narrowed. "Now look here, Number One, I know you think you could command this submarine better than I do. But while I'm in command, Retaliates going to be run my way. We're going to have discipline with a capital D. This is eight thousand tons of submarine. Four hundred and twenty-five feet long. Three decks. Officers' cabins. Air conditioning. A ruddy doctor. Cinema shows. One hundred and five officers and men." He stood up and faced Cavan, eyes smoldering. "You know the importance of this submarine. You know that our U.S. friends stung the British taxpayer close to thirty million pounds for each Polaris boat. That money wasn't spent for fun. If you think hard, it may even occur to you that we only did it because we want to survive. Or d'you prefer not to think of these sordid things?"

I'd like to tell you what I think of you, Cavan thought.

"It's necessary for me to talk like this, Number One, because you and others here don't seem to realize what's happening. What we do, and how we do it, can be vital to our side one of these fine days. And how we do it will depend on our discipline. That" — he shot the word at the first lieutenant—"is why I won't have any officers hobnobbing with chiefs and POs ashore."

For a moment they stood locked in silent antagonism; then Shadde walked over to his desk and sat down. "You will always support me in future in matters of discipline, no matter what you think. Understand that? No matter what you think!"

When the first lieutenant had gone Shadde wearily stubbed out his cigarette. The depression of the night was still with him, and this discussion had fanned his inner tensions. Cavan was smug. Never put a foot wrong. King's Cadet at Dartmouth. Rugby for the Navy. Served on the Royal Yacht. It would be the Staff College next. I'll shake him up, thought Shadde, by God, I will!

But it was Symington at the bottom of it all. Why in God's name did they have to send him, of all people?

That day they showed him the signal! It was burned into his brain: "Lieutenant G. A. F. Symington (N) to Retaliate for navigating and watchkeeping duties." When Symington joined, the first lieutenant brought him down — an elegant young man, pale and tall. Shadde looked hard at him.

"Any relation of H. H. F. Symington?"

"Yes, sir, my father. He sent you his regards, sir." Shadde thought he saw a flicker of amusement.

When Symington and the first lieutenant had gone, Shadde paced furiously to and fro. His tormented thoughts took him back to that night in Sabre. They were passing through the Lombok Strait to their base at Fremantle, Australia. They had sunk a schooner by gunfire a few days before, but otherwise it had been quiet, too quiet for the brand-new sublieutenant on his first wartime patrol.

But he would never forget that night. In an agony of recollection he pressed his knuckles into his forehead. From his bunk he had heard the insistent call: "Captain on the bridge!" Within seconds the klaxon sounded for a crash dive. The officer of the watch and the lookouts came bundling down the conning tower into the control room as the captain raced in from the wardroom.

They leveled off at two hundred feet, reduced speed to two knots, stopped all fans and went into silent routine. Then the first chilling report from the asdic operator: "H.E.[1] closing rapidly — bearing Red one-six-zero, sir!" Seconds later Sabre was shaken by shattering blows. She thrashed and vibrated like a kicked drum. The hull plating whipped and squeezed and bounced, and men were thrown off their feet. He had never known depth charging before. It was fantastically terrifying. They were hunted for six indescribable hours. Toward the end he realized his nerve was going. For what seemed the hundredth time he heard: "H.E. closing rapidly, sir!" There was no way to get out. He was trapped! Without knowing what he was doing, he started to scream. He saw the astonishment on the faces of the men near him. Then the captain's voice, urgent, imperative: "Stop him, Number One!" Unbelievably, the first lieutenant had struck him full in the face. He had stopped screaming and slumped to his knees, sobbing, broken and humiliated.

No one in Sabre had mentioned the incident afterward. And when he left her at the end of the war the captain had said, "You're the best Third Hand I've ever had."

But Shadde could never forget the Lombok Strait; the scars of his burning shame would never heal.

And then the Admiralty had to send Symington's son to Retaliate. That supercilious manner must have behind it the knowledge of Shadde's shame. And of course Symington had spread the story in the wardroom. Shadde knew he was being crucified for that night in the Lombok Strait.

As the morning wore on, Shadde shook off the depression of the night. The prospect of getting to sea filled him with a sense of well-being. He could hear the hum of the submarine's auxiliary machinery and feel its vibrations, sounds and movements he knew and understood: the sedatives of all sailors.

Shortly before noon he gave Keely a signal for enciphering. It was to Flag Officer Submarines, repeated to the Admiralty and to submarine Massive, another Polaris submarine, at sea off Goteborg, giving notice of Shadde's intention to sail from Stockholm at two o'clock, one day after schedule. When Massive knew that Retaliate was at sea in the Baltic, she would enter Goteborg.

When Shadde walked into the wardroom the officers stood up, but he waved them down and told Target, the wardroom steward, to bring a sherry. He sat with one long leg over the arm of his chair, and it was evident that he was in a good humor. But how long would it last? Cavan and the doctor exchanged glances.

Shadde held his glass of sherry to the light and peered at it with one eye closed. "You chaps are lucky. Lovely day for the run down to Sandhamn. Came up in the dark, so you don't know what you missed. One of the most beautiful passages in the world. Islands, trees, summer villas, blue water. It's fabulous."

Cavan had made the journey in daylight, as had Dwight Gallagher, the American officer assigned to Retaliate as Nuclear Weapons Control Officer. But they both knew it would annoy Shadde if they said so.

He sipped his sherry and went on. "Pity it isn't Sunday or you'd see the water between here and Sandhamn stiff with sailing craft. Every Swede's a sailor. Lot of ruddy ducks." He rambled on, not addressing anyone in particular, jumping from one thing to the other. No one interrupted. Suddenly he turned to Cavan. "Any news of Kyle?"

"No, sir. The patrol couldn't find him. The Embassy's trying police stations and hospitals."

"Postman back yet?"

"He's coming off at thirteen hundred, sir," Cavan said.

"Hope he has a letter for me." Shadde examined his shoes.

"I guess no news is good news, Captain." Dwight Gallagher was trying to cheer him up.

Shadde looked past him with that glassy stare. Gallagher tried another tack. "Taking a pilot down to Sandhamn, Captain?"

The question annoyed Shadde. "No," he said curtly. "Didn't need one in the dark coming up. Why should I now?"

"That's right. Of course. I only asked because in the U.S. Navy, in the same situation, we would take one."

Shadde looked at him coolly. "Yes, I suppose you would."

There was a long, embarrassed silence. Gallagher was well liked in the wardroom. Shadde stared at him. Now he would get his own back. "A rather nice test of seamanship, you see, not taking a pilot. Like the smart way our destroyers pick up a buoy. U.S. destroyers make such a business of it, do it dead slow. Like a sea burial." The analogy rather pleased Shadde; he smiled, a quiet, self-assured smile. "A sad sight, I always think."

Gallagher's face tightened; then he shrugged. He wasn't looking for quarrels. "Maybe you're right, Captain."

After lunch Shadde went to his cabin. There was no letter from Elizabeth. In the pit of his stomach, apprehension gnawed. Then Rhys Evans reported the engines ready for sea.

Shadde went up to the bridge. Cavan and Symington and the leading signalman were there. "Steering gear tested and correct, sir. All main vents cottered," Symington reported. And from the control room the coxswain's voice came up the voice pipe: "Coxswain on the wheel, sir. Main engines ready."

The early afternoon was warm and crisp and Stockholm lay bathed in sunlight; a jumble of modern and medieval, of warm reds and browns, and here and there the green mold of copper spires and domes. Shadde looked at his watch and then at the first lieutenant. "Ready to slip?"

"Ready to slip, sir."

When the submarine was headed east down the Strommen, the captain gave the coxswain the course to steer, and she began to gather speed. Ahead of her, coming up toward the harbor, was a small pleasure steamer, its rail lined with passengers looking at the big submarine. Watching them Shadde failed to notice the slow, at first barely perceptible swing of Retaliates bow to port until he heard Symington's warning.

In a flash he was at the voice pipe. "Starboard twenty!" he ordered sharply. But the bow continued to swing toward the steamer.

Shadde's voice was like a lash. "Hard astarboard!"

The coxswain's voice came up urgently from the control room. "She won't answer, sir!" At the same moment the Swedish ship sounded a single urgent blast indicating that she was altering course to starboard. Shadde winced. Had she altered to port they might have cleared. He roared down the voice pipe, "Full astern!" And then to the first lieutenant, "The hatches — quick!"

But it was too late. Cries of alarm from the Swede's passengers were followed by the screech of metal as the submarine's bow struck the steamer well aft and scraped down the side. Fortunately it was an oblique blow, and seconds later the steamer had swung clear again, her captain shaking his fist and shouting.

Meantime the first lieutenant had raced down the conning tower to the control room, closing the hatches behind him. He jumped to the ship's broadcast, pressed the call push and shouted: "Collision stations! Close all watertight doors!" With feverish haste he got through to Rhys Evans and told him to send someone to the steering compartment to see what had happened. Then he ordered all compartments to report any flooding. Only the forward torpedo room reported a minor leak in the pressure hull. Luckily, the point of collision had been well forward of the buoyancy tanks.

Evans called back that the tiller head was locked in the hard-aport position; the telemotor system which actuated the steering gear had apparently broken down. For some reason there'd been a pressure failure on the port ram cylinder.

On the bridge Shadde was maneuvering the submarine with the main engines. He had reported the collision to the port authorities and soon a tug appeared. Shadde shouted to it to lay off. He then proceeded to give a remarkable display of seamanship, returning to his buoy and picking up moorings without the tug's assistance.

As soon as they had secured, Shadde sent signals to the Swedish naval authorities asking for divers and dockyard officials to examine Retaliate's underwater damage. Lieutenant Allistair was landed by the tug to report to the British Naval Attache. "Tell him I'll see him later," said Shadde grimly. Signals were sent to Flag Officer Submarines, repeated to Massive, reporting the delay in sailing.

All that done, Shadde went to his cabin and sent for the first lieutenant. He shot one scowling glance at Cavan and his voice shook. "There'll be no shore leave. Double up sentries fore and aft. Apart from the Swedish officials, there's to be no communication with the shore." He rang for the messenger. "Tell the engineer officer to see me at once."

While he waited Shadde paced furiously. When Rhys Evans came in the captain exploded in a mixture of recrimination and despair. "What the bloody hell happened to that steering engine?"

The Welshman looked hurt. "It was a failure in the hydraulics, sir. We are making an examination now."

"Who told you to make an examination?" stormed Shadde. "Stop it at once! I'm going to have an official inquiry. Today. Soon as I've seen the Naval Attache. Get everybody out of that steering compartment and have it locked. You know what this is, don't you? It's sabotage." He seemed lost in thought for a moment. Then he looked up, frowning angrily. "What are you waiting for? You've heard my orders. Get on with them," he barked.

The collision delayed Retaliate in Stockholm for three days. The leak in her forward torpedo room was not serious; but because it was in the pressure hull she had to be put into dry dock.

Then reports had to be prepared for Swedish port authorities and Flag Officer Submarines. There would be a court of inquiry in Portsmouth on their return, and Lloyds was interested on behalf of the Swedish ship. Though the failure of Retaliate''s steering gear was the prima facie cause of the accident, it might well be shown that there would have been no collision had the Swedish captain altered course to port and not to starboard when the collision was imminent.

Shadde's own inquiry took place late in the afternoon of the accident. Before it started he unlocked the steering compartment, and had a look around. Sure enough, there was the tiller head jammed hard aport, and all over the steel deck was a large mess of sticky liquid, the mixture of water and glycerine which provided the pressure for the hydraulic system. A leak would explain why there was no pressure. But what had caused the leak? And who was responsible for it?

Just before he left the steering compartment the captain made an interesting find. Sticking out from behind a cluster of pipes which ran down the port side was a piece of oil-smeared gray silk, three sides scissor-cut and the fourth torn. He pulled it out and something dropped onto the steel deck with a clang. It was a brass locknut with a reverse thread, about an inch in diameter and half an inch long. Shadde's eyes glistened as he wrapped it up in the gray silk and slipped the small bundle into his pocket.

He sent a private signal to Flag Officer Submarines, Missile class, though Burton, the Naval Attache, had suggested waiting.

"You'll be home in eight days. By then there'll have been time to sort out what went wrong…"

"I'll have that settled by this evening. I want Naval Intelligence to send somebody here right away — while the scent's still hot. This is sabotage, Burton, make no mistake."

"How can you be so certain, old chap?"

"Don't tell me you belong to the 'it can't happen here' brigade. I've had a bellyful of that since I commissioned Retaliate."

"Really, what d'you mean?"

"This is the third effort. First was soon after we'd finished working up. We went back to the yard with trouble in the main turbines. Found steel filings in the rotors. Court of inquiry sat for three days, then didn't know the answer. Said dirty work couldn't be excluded, but was unlikely."

"What did they think it might have been?"

"Oh! Workmen's carelessness when the turbines were assembled, or some such bull. You know how we hate to admit anyone might have it in for us."

Burton cocked his head on one side as if he were confronted with a new aspect of Shadde. "The second effort?"

"At Queensferry, months later. Explosion in the heat exchanger. Wad of cotton waste had been put into a steam pipe on the intake side. Someone who knew all about our nuclear plant. There was another court of inquiry. Same wishy-washy findings! Probably negligence 'on the part of some person or persons unknown. The court finds, however, that the possibility of malicious intent cannot be excluded.' Malicious intent! I ask you! It was sabotage at Portsmouth and Queensferry, and it's sabotage in Stockholm. That's why I'm sending that signal to FOS."

The signal had gone through the Embassy for security reasons. It was strongly worded because Shadde wanted quick action. He had referred to his earlier report on the collision, then said that he suspected sabotage and urgently requested that Naval Intelligence dispatch an investigator. The man should come incognito, Shadde insisted, and take passage with them back to Portsmouth.

So much had happened in the last two hours that Shadde had quite forgotten about Kyle until the first lieutenant reported he had been found and a patrol was being sent to fetch him from the police station.

Now, with a start, Shadde wondered if Kyle's missing the boat had any connection with the steering failure. Why hadn't he thought of that before? What more likely than desertion, if you knew the steering might pack up during that tricky passage through the Swedish archipelago? But he said only, "Good. Put him in the cells, with a sentry, until I've seen him."

Cavan sounded surprised. "Cells and sentry, sir?"

"Cells" referred to the one empty compartment on the submarine, an emergency storeroom. Occasionally it was used for locking up libertymen returning the worse for liquor.

"Yes! Cells and sentry!" Shadde snapped. Cavan's eyes followed him as he walked out. Cells and a sentry for a rating who'd gone adrift! What next? The collision must have rattled the captain more than he had suspected.

The inquiry into the steering failure began at 1745 behind closed doors in the wardroom with Shadde presiding.

For an hour and a half he examined and cross-examined. The coxswain testified that the steering gear had worked perfectly when tested at 1345, shortly before they slipped from the buoy. Symington, who had been on the bridge, confirmed this. Chief Engine Room Artificer Shepherd was called next, and he explained how the steering-gear and telemotor systems were maintained. The day before sailing he had carried out routine maintenance, assisted by two mechanics. On completion the system had worked perfectly.

Shepherd had been sent to investigate immediately after the collision: the tiller head had been jammed in the hard-aport position and the deck on the port side flooded with liquid from the hydraulic system. Later, the engineer officer had sent him back with a working party to find the trouble, but they had not been there long when they were told to leave the steering compartment and to lock it. "But," said Shepherd, "by then we knew what the trouble was, sir. The liquid had drained out through the plughole on the port ram cylinder."

"So the liquid drained out through the plughole." Shadde leaned over the table. "How was that possible?"

"The drain plug had come out, sir. We found it lying on the deck where it had dropped."

"Dropped," said Shadde with a trace of sarcasm. "What would make a drain plug drop?"

"That's got me beat, sir. Impossible for it to drop off."

"Ah!" said Shadde. "Now we're getting somewhere. Perhaps you'll tell us why it's impossible."

"Well, there's a locknut, sir. It's reverse threaded. So long as that's on, the drain plug can't come away."

"So that on this occasion the impossible happened?"

Shepherd's good-natured face was puzzled. "There's something funny about it, sir. You see, we couldn't find the locknut. I mean, when we went there to see why the steering had failed."

"Perhaps it was never on?" suggested Shadde.

"It was on yesterday, sir. When we did the maintenance routine. We had to remove the plug and drain the cylinders. I put that locknut back myself."

"Can you prove this?" Shadde gave Shepherd a searching look.

"Yes, sir. Engineering Mechanic Finney will bear me out. When I'd put the locknut on he brought it up tight."

Finney was called, and corroborated all that Shepherd had said. "I put me spanner on an' brought it up tight. Couldn't've moved after that, sir, 'cepting someone put a spanner on it again."

Shadde looked at his officers, "I told you so" written across his face. "One final question, Shepherd. Who were your working parties, yesterday and this afternoon?"

"Yesterday it was me and Finney and Kyle, and today it was me and Finney and Stokes, sir." He paused. "Would've been Kyle again today, sir, but he's adrift."

Shadde's eyes glinted. "Yes," he said, "I know."

Kyle, brought back aboard by the patrol officer, was taken to Lieutenant Allistair, the duty officer, who heard his story and put him in the captain's report. He then sent him to Surgeon Lieutenant O'Shea.

Half an hour later O'Shea answered a summons to the captain's cabin. "You sent for me, sir?"

"Ah, yes, O'Shea. I hear you've examined Kyle. What's his condition?"

"Bad bruise on the temple, and the skin's split. I've stitched it. Nothing to worry about."

Shadde's eyes narrowed. "Could the blow have been self-inflicted?"

The doctor shook his head. "Possible but most unlikely."

"How d'you know?"

"Because I've heard his story, sir. He got tight in a pub yesterday evening. Near midnight a pimp put a prostitute onto him, and she took Kyle to her room. Then the accomplice turned up and coshed Kyle on the head."

"Motive?" Shadde's voice was full of doubt.

"Robbery. They took his watch, and wallet with about ten pounds in it."

"Lot for Kyle to go ashore with."

"It was money he was saving to get his mother a present."

"Very touching," said Shadde. "What happened then?"

"When Kyle came to he was in a large shed. He had a lot of pain, and retched violently. Then he slept again. Sometime this afternoon he attracted attention by banging on the door and shouting. When he was let out he gave himself up to the police."

"Tell me, O'Shea, d'you believe that story?"

"Yes, sir, I do."

"Cavan tells me that Chief Shepherd regards him as a bad hat."

The doctor met Shadde's piercing glance steadily. "I wouldn't say that, sir."

Shadde looked at him quickly. "Why not, may I ask?"

"I got him talking. He comes from a poor home. Despises his father, who drinks and who occasionally assaults his mother. Kyle's devoted to her, but it's the father who's done the damage. You see, boys look to their fathers for an authority figure. If that breaks down they become confused, and their normal drives are inhibited and destroyed. Kyle suffers from a strong sense of personal inadequacy and tries to compensate by—"

"That'll do, thank you," snapped the captain. "I have my own theories about Kyle. They're at least more intelligible than yours."

With a shock O'Shea realized that he had upset the captain. He was apologetic. "You told me Shepherd said he's a bad hat, sir. I was only trying to say that he needs help, not punishment."

"Do you really think so?" Shadde's voice was withering. "I'm not the least bit interested in your psychiatric mumbo jumbo. It's a threat and an affront to naval discipline."

During the next two days, while Retaliate was still in dry dock, Shadde stayed in his cabin. On the morning of the second day the first lieutenant reminded him that Kyle was still in cells. Shadde said: "I'm well aware of that." But he didn't snap; he just sounded tired. Cavan was shocked by the red-rimmed eyes set in dark shadows, and the dull, listless stare.

"Will you be able to see Kyle before we get to sea, sir?"

"I don't know. I'll let you know." Shadde's voice was blank; his thoughts seemed elsewhere.

Dusty Miller, the captain's steward, fared no better. Every attempt he made to break through failed. No, he didn't want anything to eat. No, not even a cup of tea. But Miller saw that the level in the whisky bottle fell steadily. All this worried him because he'd been with Shadde a long time, and he was attached to the captain in a strange way which he could never explain.

Nor could he explain what had happened to the captain in recent months, but whatever it was he didn't like it.

In Portsmouth, the Flag Officer Submarines was not pleased. "Most peculiar," he said to his chief staff officer. "Of course, Shadde's had this sabotage bug for some time. And I don't suppose the collision's done him any good."

But FOS/M knew he'd have to send an investigator. It would be tempting fate not to. There was always the outside chance that Shadde's hunch might be right. Still, that signal struck him as queer. He would keep an open mind about the collision until the full report arrived, but it was worrying. FOS/M had plans for bringing Shadde ashore later in the year. He wondered if he should accelerate them.

Mr. Buddington joined just before they sailed from Stockholm, a strange bleak little man in a dark suit and a bowler hat. Mr. Buddington was expected. It was known on board that the captain had had a signal from FOS/M about an official from the Director of Naval Construction's office. He was said to be doing research on air-conditioning problems in the Missile-class boats.

In the privacy of his cabin, Shadde lost no time in telling the little man exactly why he suspected sabotage and why he thought Kyle was responsible. Mr. Buddington was the only other man in the submarine who knew about the gray silk and the brass locknut that Shadde had found in the steering compartment. Only to the first lieutenant and the engineer officer did Shadde reveal the real identity and purpose of Mr. Buddington.

Retaliate sailed for Copenhagen from Stockholm on the afternoon of the third day after the collision. Three hours later the submarine passed the Revengegrundet buoy and then set a southerly course. It was at 0116, some six hours later, that Shadde had gone up to the bridge in response to Symington's report that Great Karlso light was in sight, bearing 168 degrees, five miles distant, through the mist and rain of a dark and cheerless night.

After the trouble on the bridge with Symington, Shadde went back to his bunk, but, as so often nowadays, his mind wouldn't let him rest. An endless succession of disquieting images floated before him. There was the moment of collision, with the hull of the pleasure steamer almost on top of him; and Kyle crouching by the port ram cylinder, easing off the locknut, hiding it away in the gray silk.

Next he saw the Flag Officer Submarines reading the dismal summary of damage prepared by the marine surveyor. Now it was the doctor's serious, ugly face and all that damn psychiatric nonsense. Any fool could see what was wrong with Kyle. Chip on the shoulder; dirty little crook. Then there was Symington. The muscles in Shadde's stomach contracted into a painful knot. And the first lieutenant, square-headed prig. Doesn't like me. Pro-Symington, of course. Knows all about the Lombok Strait, no doubt. Then Dwight Gallagher. Shadde choked with resentment. Why did one of Her Majesty's submarines have to carry an American Nuclear Weapons Control Officer to have the final say about firing? A dirty political trick thought up by gutless politicians. Shadde's palse beat in his ears like a drum. How could he sleep with that? Just one long night of sleep. Oh, God! Just one.

But now another face. Elizabeth, of course. Pale, sad and remote, that permanent question mark in the dark eyes. Sentence by sentence he reconstructed her Oslo letter. The concentration made his temples throb. Must get away from that. Suddenly there was the shattering "birr-birr" of the voice-pipe buzzer next to his head. The first lieutenant was reporting the bearing and distance of the light at Hoburgen Reef. Thank God for the interruption. He dressed and went up to the bridge.

Astern to port showed the first gray light of dawn. Looking ahead to the dark side of the horizon, Shadde saw the vague outline of the men on the bridge. He moved toward the tallest of them.

"That you, Number One?"

"Yes, sir."

"Speed?"

"Making good nineteen knots, sir."

"Hoburgen light?"

"You can still see the loom, sir. About thirteen miles astern now. There it is now. Period's about five seconds."

The light loomed and, as it doused, Shadde started counting: "One, two, three, four, five. ." On five it loomed again, barely visible against the dawn sky.

There were many steaming lights in sight and Shadde examined them carefully with binoculars. "Lot of traffic about."

"Yes, sir; mostly Baltic coasters, I imagine." Cavan was wary.

The captain was silent, engrossed in his examination of the lights. At last he said, "Three are fishermen."

Cavan used his binoculars. "Two in sight a moment ago. You must've found a third, sir." Then, "Ah, yes, I've got it."

Shadde experienced a mild surge of pleasure. He'd found a light both the lookouts and the officers had missed.

Cavan's voice broke in, "Like a cup of cocoa, sir?"

For a moment Shadde hesitated. "Yes, thank you."

He took a cup from the messenger, and its heat warmed his hands against the chill air of dawn. Switching on the light and leaning his elbows on the chart table, Shadde sipped cocoa and looked at the fixes: firmly drawn little circles with the lines of bearing intersecting at their centers, the time written neatly against each. Grudgingly he acknowledged that the first lieutenant was a good naval officer: thorough, conscientious, capable. The early gray of morning was changing to pink and Shadde's mood lifted. Dawn and the warm cocoa brought a sense of well-being, and in the freshness of the wind and sea he forgot the apprehension of the night. These were the things he understood, the real, substantial things that a man could see and feel. Nothing hidden or evil about them. He went back to the forepart of the bridge.

"Like a cigarette, Number One?"

"Thank you, sir."

They stood for some time in silence. Then Shadde said, "What's the good of a submarine like this if it's never used?"

"Isn't the fact that she exists enough? I mean, isn't that the point. . the deterrent? No one wants them to be used."

"That's the trouble, isn't it? This fantastic equipment; men trained to a high pitch of efficiency — yet everyone bloody well determined that it'll never be used. D'you think the Russians would hesitate to use one of these if they thought their survival depended on it?" He gave a dry laugh. "Well… do you?"

Cavan looked at the gaunt figure. There was a rocklike, compelling quality about him. Powerful forces seemed ever working in him. Cavan's voice was slow and hesitant. "I suppose — if it was survival — the Russians might. But would they? There wouldn't be any survival. Both sides know that."

"Number One," Shadde said earnestly, "you're an Englishman. Wouldn't you fight at any cost rather than submit to. . those thugs?" He pointed astern. For a moment the gesture puzzled the first lieutenant. Then he realized that Shadde was indicating the general direction of Russia.

Mr. Buddington was an early riser. Soon after seven he left his cabin for the wardroom. As he reached the door he saw and heard in a fleeting second something which stopped him in his tracks.

Target, the wardroom steward, and Miller, the captain's steward, were outside the pantry door, their backs toward him. Target held something in front of him which Miller was craning his head to see. He heard Miller's whisper: "The storeroom in ten minutes. Too risky to give it the once-over 'ere."

Mr. Buddington noted the time, 0708, cleared his throat and walked into the wardroom. With a mumbled "Good mornin', sir," the stewards moved apart. Dusty Miller, thrusting his left hand behind his back, had stepped backward into the wardroom pantry. But the movement had not been quite fast enough and Mr. Buddington had seen the brown envelope.

A few minutes later Miller came out of the pantry and left the wardroom. When Target followed, Mr. Buddington looked at his watch; it was 0713. At 0720 he moved quietly into the control room. Mr. Buddington always moved quietly. He was small and inconspicuous and wore rubber-soled shoes. Down the starboard ladder he went to the middle deck, where he edged his way along until he was near the door of the storeroom, opposite the notice board. While he read the notices on the board he could make out odd fragments of conversation through the open door. Target was talking."… Put the tins on top. . risky business. . agents. . two in Portsmouth. . big prices for these prints. ."

Then Miller spoke."… See 'ere. . blimey, what a weapon. . dockyard police. . worth it though. . man's got to live, ain't 'e. . see what we can do in Copenhagen…"

Mr. Buddington decided he had heard enough for his immediate purposes. Quietly he worked his way back to the wardroom.

At 0735 Shadde left his cabin for the control room. He walked down the starboard side past the men on the wheel and engine-room telegraphs. He went first to the W/T office and then to the missile-attack center. Then he crossed over to the port side and walked up forward, looking in on the asdic and radar compartments. Without a word to the men on duty he examined the instrumentation. This occasioned no surprise; it was Shadde's custom at sea to start the day with a stalk in tight-lipped silence, his dark eyes searching everywhere. Yet Shadde's men had an immense respect for him. His remote aloofness and great skill as a submariner surrounded him with an almost mystical aura of authority. From the asdic compartment the captain went on to the chart table. With a frown he studied the chart, then asked the asdic operator for a line of soundings from the fathometer. As these were called, Shadde compared them with those on the chart. Then he picked up a signal pad and wrote two messages on it. One he handed to Gracie in the W/T office for immediate transmission. It was to FOS/M giving the times at which Retaliate would dive and surface. The other sheet he folded and held until the signal had been sent. Then Shadde gave the folded signal to a messenger and told him to deliver it at once to the officer of the watch.

On the bridge, Lieutenant Weddy read the signal: "For exercise repeat exercise order emergency dive Stop Execute."

It took Weddy two seconds to reach the chart table and another two to check that the charted depths of water ahead were in the thirty- and forty-fathom range. With one hand he grabbed the chart and with the other slammed the chart table shut into the recess on the side of the bridge. He yelled, "Clear the bridge!" then down the voice pipe, "Dive! Dive! Dive!" At the same moment he pressed the alarm button, and instantly the harsh "ah-uu-uu-gah" sounded throughout the submarine. As the lookouts and the signalman bundled down the conning-tower ladder, Weddy took a last look around the bridge and then followed them, shutting off the voice pipe, closing the upper hatch behind him with a slam and ramming home the clips. Then he was through the lower hatch, and the signalman slammed it shut and fastened the clips.

As the crew hurried to diving stations, a signalman collided with a seaman who fell against the coxswain at the diving planes. The coxswain growled, "Watch your step and stop that skylarking."

The seaman grinned. "Sorry, 'Swain. Accident."

"That's right," confirmed the signalman.

Shadde's angry voice froze them. "Stop that bloody chatter." Then: "Forty feet! Up periscope! For exercise, bring all tubes to the ready." And a few seconds later: "Down periscope!"

The submarine took on a bow-down angle and the short, pitching movement ceased as she left the turbulent surface water. Symington was at the plotting table. Allistair, the Third Hand, was on the attack computer, where instruments were feeding in course, speed and other data. Cavan stood behind the seated planesmen, concentrating on the telltales and depth gauges, and giving pumping and flooding orders to get the trim right.

Now Shadde's compelling voice: "Up periscope!" He made a rapid sweep of the horizon, bringing the periscope to rest on a cargo steamer a couple of miles away on the starboard bow.

"Down periscope! Start the attack!" He snapped the handles shut and stood back. "Starboard fifteen. Steer two-three-zero. Six knots." The helmsman and telegraphist repeated the orders and the hum of the main turbines took on a lower note as speed dropped. A few minutes later Shadde snapped, "Up periscope! Bearing is that! Range two thousand seven hundred! Down periscope! I'm fifteen degrees on his starboard bow. Port twenty. Give me a course for a thirty track."

Behind Shadde a petty officer read off the bearings to the Third Hand, who fed them into the attack computer. Within seconds Allistair reported, "Course one-eight-five, sir."

"Steer one-eight-five," from Shadde. The helmsman repeated the course. Then Shadde's voice again, cold, incisive. "For exercise-stand by all tubes."

At that moment there was a call on the engine-room telephone. An able seaman jumped forward to answer it, tripped and fell heavily. Somewhere in the after end of the control room there was a titter of laughter, cut off by Shadde's furious, "Break off the attack! Flood 'Q'! Hundred feet!" His face was contorted with anger as he looked quickly around the control room. But there was no sign of the titterer. Every man was absorbed in his duty as if nothing had happened.

The first lieutenant checked the submarine's dive at one hundred feet; on the plot Symington noted the time—0750.

Shadde, trembling with rage, increased speed to fifteen knots and asked Symington for a course to pass south between Bornholm and the mainland. "Give me a least depth of twenty-five fathoms," he said through clenched teeth. Then he turned to the first lieutenant. "Remain closed up at diving stations. Plot inertial-nav fixes every five minutes and run a continuous line of soundings. Report at once if the water shoals to less than twenty-five fathoms." With a final glare he strode out of the control room.

Cavan knew now that the captain intended to make life difficult. They would continue the passage submerged, close inshore and in water of no great depth; thus there was good reason for the navigational precautions. But this meant more work for more people, and no one realized that better than Shadde.

When the captain had gone, Symington plotted the position on the chart and laid off the new courses as ordered. That done, he went to the W/T office. He looked cautiously around to see if Shadde was back. Then he smiled at Gracie, faintly apologetic. "Something rather unpleasant I must tell you, Gracie." He paused. "The captain thinks we're too friendly." Gracie looked up. "Too friendly? What's he mean, sir?" Symington told him of Shadde's outburst at Skansen. "But where's the harm in you talking to me and Springer?" "Probably it's not that. I was tactless. Leaving his table when he was holding forth, not going straight back."

Gracie frowned. "Captain's always been good to me, sir. I think a lot of him. But he has carried on a bit strange these last few weeks. Like keeping us closed up at diving stations just because somebody laughed. I suppose he's a lot on his mind." He thought for a moment. "But surely it's not a crime to be friendly?"

Symington's embarrassment showed. "It's a bit more than that." He laughed dryly. "The captain thinks our getting together now and then on photography is something else." Grade's eyes widened. "Something else? I don't follow." Then Symington repeated what the captain had said to Cavan.

When he got to his cabin Shadde sent for the first lieutenant. "Fine bloody performance," he snapped, when Cavan came in.

Cavan thought, I'll say nothing. Keep my yardarm clear. Ever since he'd gone to Naval College at Dartmouth he'd followed his father's advice religiously. "Always keep your yardarm clear, my boy, if you want to get on in the service." As the years went on, while he'd gone forging ahead, he'd seen what had happened to others who hadn't kept their yardarms clear. If he didn't end up as Admiral Sir Benjamin Cavan it wouldn't be for want of trying.

Shadde's words tumbled out angrily. "So now I'm not permitted to carry out an exercise without its being treated as a turn by the Marx Brothers. Able seamen falling flat on their faces. Titters from the audience. The very idea that the captain should want to exercise a torpedo attack is so damned funny."

Cavan's silence angered him. "Told you yesterday what I thought of the discipline in this boat," he said thickly. "Now you know. Well, you're the first lieutenant. What have you to say?"

He's trying to bait me, Cavan thought. Wants me to argue. Seen him in these moods, but never one quite like this. Look at those veins! And all because somebody laughed. God, what a man!

Shadde was pacing now like something in a cage. "Forty-nine seconds to make an emergency dive," he barked. "Whoever heard of a submarine taking that long? And all that noise and chatter when we were closing up. But that's not all. Oh, no! Asinine laughter in the middle of the attack." His voice rose. "In the middle of an attack! Ye gods! In my boat."

The first lieutenant knew this was wild exaggeration. The dive hadn't taken anything like forty-nine seconds, and there had been nothing wrong with the exercise except for the snigger of laughter. He said quietly, "I'll try and find out who laughed, sir."

"You bloody well will find out, you mean," snorted Shadde. "If that sort of thing ever—" He stopped as if he'd forgotten something. "Order patrol routine, except for those in the control room. They can remain closed up until I give the word. This submarine's not the huge bloody joke they think it is."

Cavan looked at Shadde's cleft chin. It seemed bigger, more menacing than usual. "Is that all, sir?"

Shadde turned away. "That is all." Why couldn't this oaf of a first lieutenant look you straight in the eye?

During the morning Retaliate continued to the southwest at a depth of one hundred feet. At half past ten, when they were entering the waters between Sandhammaren and Bornholm, Kyle appeared before the captain as a defaulter.

Earlier Shadde had asked Mr. Buddington about the evidence linking Kyle with the sabotage attempt.

"There is no evidence, Captain," said Mr. Buddington mildly. "All that's been suggested against Kyle is either hearsay or circumstantial. And what in fact does it amount to? That he was one of three men who worked on the steering gear the day before sailing. That Shepherd says he's got a chip on his shoulder."

Shadde frowned. "But you might just consider that he is an engineering mechanic, and he was in the steering compartment. He had both access and the know-how. And he was ashore at the time the steering jammed."

"That fact may yet prove that he had nothing to do with it."

"I've a hunch you're wrong, Mr. Buddington. If it's not Kyle, who do you suspect?"

In his chair the little man clasped his hands around one knee. "I try and avoid suspecting anyone, Captain. It destroys objectivity." The watery little eyes moved away from Shadde's. "It's my job to observe, inquire and sift. That's the only way to solve a problem."

"Well, you haven't solved this one," retorted Shadde.

"Dear me! Perhaps I sounded rather boastful. I should have said 'try to solve.' You see, I sometimes fail."

Shadde regarded him coldly. "Yes… I imagine you do." He got up. "Mind if I make a suggestion?"

"Not at all."

"Find the owner of the gray silk and you've got your man."

Mr. Buddington regarded the captain thoughtfully. "Perhaps," he said gently. "Perhaps."

When Shadde got to the control room he went immediately to the small table at which the ritual of Captain's Defaulters was to be performed.

The coxswain called Kyle to the table. "Off caps!" he snapped, and Kyle removed his cap. Warily Shadde examined the drawn face, the erupted skin and the dark rebellious eyes. There was a large bandage over Kyle's temple. He was a slight, forlorn figure.

The coxswain read the charges. Kyle was accused of conducting himself to the prejudice of good order and naval discipline, in that he had remained ashore without leave and behaved in a drunken and disorderly fashion.

When evidence had been given concerning Kyle's apprehension ashore and return to the ship, Shadde said. "Well, Kyle, what've you to say?" His stare from under bushy eyebrows transfixed the young prisoner.

"Sir, it wouldn't be no good. Nobody'd believe me anyhow."

"I'll decide that, Kyle. What is your story?"

In short, disjointed sentences Kyle told of his night in Stockholm, skipping as delicately as he could over the events in Ingrid's apartment.

"Kyle," Shadde said, "why do you forage about ashore on your own? An English sailor alone in a foreign port is always fair game. You've been in the service long enough to know that."

Kyle was silent. He gazed into space.

Shadde turned to the engineer officer. "Lieutenant Commander Evans. What can you tell me about this man?"

Rhys Evans' kind, open face was distressed. "Indeed, he's a good man, sir. Diligent at his work and reliable."

Dear old Chiefy, Shadde thought. Always puts in a good word for any of his people in trouble. But he doesn't understand Kyle. Then Shadde's eyes met the doctor's. He could see what O'Shea was thinking, He needs help, not punishment. His mind shut with a snap. He wasn't going to be influenced by any psychiatric humbug. Kyle had missed his ship. That was a serious offense. And he was just the nasty little type who might try his hand at sabotage. When they got back to their base he must be drafted ashore. In the meantime an example must be made of him.

"Kyle, there's no place in submarines for men who don't know how to behave ashore, particularly in a foreign country. I'm going to stop your leave for twenty-eight days."

Kyle's lower lip trembled. They would be in Portsmouth in a week. This meant he wouldn't get the leave he'd planned to spend with Mum. His eyes filled with tears.

"On caps! About turn! Double march!" snapped the coxswain. Ernie Kyle replaced his cap and doubled from the control room.

Shortly before noon Shadde invited the engineer officer to his cabin for a glass of sherry. Officially, this was to discuss the submarine's coming refit in Portsmouth; unofficially, it was because Shadde needed company. They talked about the refit and then Shadde began to complain about the torpedo exercise.

"It's damned serious you know, Chiefy."

"Oh! It's not that bad, sir. You're worrying too much these days. A good rest you need."

Shadde frowned. "I'm not exaggerating. This boat's not the fighting unit she should be. Trouble with a long peace. Everything's a lark. Nobody believes the real thing will ever happen."

With a shock Rhys Evans noticed how gray Shadde's hair was going. He held his sherry up to the light and examined it carefully. "I'm not surprised at that."

"Even you don't take it seriously, Chiefy. Just this morning Number One said he couldn't believe we'd ever use Retaliate in earnest. My first lieutenant! Damn dangerous, this it-can't-hap-pen-to-us sort of idea. Like Pearl Harbor." Shadde searched the engineer's face intently. "Know what I think? Retaliate will be used — when we least expect it. And d'you know what worries me?"

"Be the end of everything?"

"No, not that," Shadde said irritably. "I'm afraid that when we are needed you'll find half the crew are ban-the-bomb rabble."

Embarrassed by the captain's vehemence, the engineering officer sipped at his sherry. Shadde frowned. "And the doctor'll explain that we're badly adjusted and need compensating."

Evans laughed, a small forced laugh. "You'll be taking leave in Portsmouth, sir?" he tried.

Shadde looked at him gloomily. "Yes, I suppose so."

"Taking the little lady motoring in France, didn't you say?"

Shadde got up and made much of putting a book on the shelf. "I haven't any plans."

"But only the other day you told me of them."

To Evans' astonishment Shadde rounded on him, blazing. "Will you kindly stop prying into my private life."

Seeing the hurt on the Welshman's face, he said thickly, "Sorry, Chiefy. . point is. . may not have a wife soon. She wants to leave me." Then his mouth shut in that final, implacable way. "Well, Chiefy, I've work to do. See you later."

Rhys Evans was shocked. An old friend of Shadde's, he had often met his wife, but never really got to know her. It had never occurred to him that they were anything but happily married, or that a man of Shadde's character and authority could be a victim of anything so untidy as marital trouble. But he knew from that sudden outburst that it must be serious.

After lunch they surfaced off Cape Arkona on the German coast. The wind across the north-going stream had piled up a short, confused sea which often broke over the submarine and drenched the watchkeepers on the bridge. The motion was distinctly uncomfortable, and at 1330, much to the crew's relief, Shadde reduced speed from eighteen to twelve knots. Because of Retaliate's deep draft he deemed it inadvisable to approach Copenhagen from the south through the shallow Sound, so he set about course instead for the west passage by way of the Great Belt, a journey of some two hundred and twenty sea miles. Having done this he went the first in a long while to his bunk and fell into a deep sleep. He was wakened about an hour later by an unfamiliar sound, the faint whine of a saxophone, and twined around it the husky voice of a woman crooning.

He stiffened. It was forbidden to use the wardroom radio at sea except in the dogwatches. There wasn't an officer in Retaliate who didn't know this. With a heave he was off the bunk and at the wardroom door, but the only person there was O'Shea, asleep in an easy chair. He went back to his desk and rang for the messenger.

"Beneath this sky, for you,

My love, I'll die, I'll die,"

the singer wailed, and Shadde choked with rage. If this could happen, discipline was indeed crumbling.

When the messenger arrived, he spoke with exaggerated calm. "Find out who is responsible for that — that filthy noise. Tell him to see me at once."

"Come back my heart, the spring is —"

the crooner pleaded and then, dramatically, stopped.

There was a knock on Shadde's door and Dwight Gallagher came in. "Understand you sent for me, Captain."

It had never occurred to Shadde that the culprit might be the American. He set his teeth and glared at him. "Were you responsible for that filthy noise?"

Gallagher looked at him coolly. "My record player, Captain?"

Shadde looked as if he would like to strike him. "You've been in this boat for two months, Gallagher. You should know by now that that sort of thing's forbidden."

"In the wardroom, yes. But this was in my cabin, with the door shut." Gallagher smiled. "I was trying out a little transistor job I bought in Stockholm." He spread out his hands in a gesture of apology. "Certainly sorry if I disturbed you, Captain. Seems it was doing a better job on volume than I imagined."

"Look here, Gallagher." Shadde choked. "I didn't send for you to discuss your — transistor. I—" He hesitated. "While in this boat you'll kindly observe the customs of the Royal Navy. One of them is consideration for men off watch. That may seem unnecessary in the United States Navy, but we attach some importance to it here." He waved Gallagher out of the cabin and slammed the door. He started a letter to Elizabeth, but after two or three paragraphs he tore it up, put his elbows on the desk and buried his face in his hands. After ten minutes or so he sent for the chief petty officer telegraphist.

"Come in, Gracie. Sit down."

Gracie was surprised. Never before had he been asked to sit down in the captain's cabin.

"Gracie, I'm worried. This submarine isn't the fighting unit she should be. Trouble with a long peace is that everything's an exercise and the crew knows it. I need your help."

Grade wondered what on earth the captain was leading up to. "How can I help, sir?"

Shadde's eyes narrowed. "Gracie, this ship's company's got to be confronted suddenly with what they think is the real thing. Of course, it won't be the real thing, but they won't know that until after the exercise. You, Gracie, are going to receive two or three important W/T signals."

"Where from, sir?"

Shadde smiled, humorlessly. "From you."

"I don't follow, sir."

"Simple. You'll transmit them and receive them."

"What sort of signals, sir?"

"Haven't worked out the details yet. Starting point might be a signal from Flag Officer Submarines ordering Retaliate to a certain position at a certain time. Next signal might order us to adopt the first degree of missile readiness. That'd seem pretty realistic, wouldn't it?"

"Couldn't do that, sir. It'd be top secret. Come in a cipher I don't know. Have to go to Mr. Keely for deciphering."

"That's no problem," said Shadde. "I'll encipher the signals myself, and hand 'em to you for transmission." He ran his fingers through his hair. "Tell me this, Gracie: can you transmit a signal and simultaneously receive it through one of our receivers? So that the message comes in this end through the teletype?"

Gracie thought for a moment. "Admiralty and other ships would read anything I transmitted on the regular frequencies. Don't see how it could be done, sir — unless…"

"Unless what, Gracie?"

"Unless I used the automatic transmitter. Put the message onto the tape first, fed it in and then let it transmit."

"On what frequency?" Shadde lowered himself into a chair.

"No frequency, sir. I wouldn't actually transmit."

"I don't get you, Gracie."

"I'd close the circuit, sir. Feed the tape into the transmitter, and switch it on to transmit direct into the teleprinter. We do that when we check a punched tape against the original message. Signal would come out of the teleprinter just the same as if we'd been reading the Admiralty or any other station."

Shadde rubbed his hands together. "Capital, Gracie, capital!"

Gracie showed no enthusiasm. "When d'you want this, sir?"

"Haven't yet decided," said Shadde. "But if and when I do, I'll let you know well in advance."

Grade got up. "Is that all, sir?"

"Not quite." Shadde's eyes bored into him. "Grade," he said, "absolute secrecy. Only surprise will create the atmosphere of the real thing. Not a word to anyone. D'you understand?"

"Yes, sir." He found the captain's eyes almost hypnotic.

"There's another reason, Grade, why secrecy is essential." The captain waited for the words to sink in. "We've a saboteur on board. That collision. The jammed steering. Under certain conditions he'll give himself away. Don't ask me why. Have confidence in my judgment. D'you understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"Thank you, Grade."

The ticking noise was first heard during the dogwatches. It became known officially at 1920 when CPO McPherson reported it to Weddy, who was on watch. By then Retaliate was heading into the outer reaches of the Great Belt.

Weddy at once called the captain. Shadde was on the bridge in a trice with a gruff, "What's the trouble?"

"McPherson's reported a ticking noise in the fore-ends, sir." Shadde spun around on the CPO. "What sort of ticking noise?" "Sort of faint noise, sir. Mechanical, I'd say. Seems to be very regular. Right up in the bows."

"Come along, McPherson, I'd like to hear it for myself." In the forward torpedo compartment the men stood aside as Shadde and McPherson went up to the tubes. Shadde stood listening. Then, very faintly, he heard it; an unmistakable, slow "tick". . "tick". . "tick." He looked at the second hand of his watch. The time interval was exactly three seconds. His face set grimly. "It's mechanical, all right."

For a moment he stood there puzzling, then in a flash he knew it was sabotage. Somewhere in the fore-ends was some form of time bomb. Easy to guess why the fore-ends had been chosen. There were twelve torpedoes there.

Shadde swung around to the men behind him. "Get aft to the control room! Shut those watertight doors behind you! At the double! You stay here, McPherson, and lend me a hand."

For the next ten minutes the two men searched feverishly; and all the time in the background they could hear that ominous tick. McPherson confessed afterward that in those minutes in the torpedo room with the watertight doors shut on them he felt "chilled to the marrow of ma' bones." But they found nothing.

Back in the control room Shadde ordered speed reduced to three knots, enough to maintain steerage way, and then he went to the broadcast. "This is the captain. Be ready to act quickly, and keep cool. There's an untraced ticking noise in the fore-ends. It's regular and mechanical. I propose to assume that it's something which threatens the safety of the submarine. There's no need for alarm. We're not far off land and I intend making for Korsor. All watertight doors forward of the control room are to be shut and all forward compartments are to be cleared. As many men as possible are to go up top and assemble on the after casing, where they will be under the charge of Mr. Keely. All hands, repeat all hands, are to wear life jackets. Those orders are to be executed at once. That is all. Carry on."

In a buzz of excitement men started to stream through the control room, pulling on life jackets as they went up the conning-tower ladder and aft to the casing. Rubber dinghies were laid out on the casings ready for inflation.

On the bridge Shadde found the first lieutenant had already joined Weddy, the officer of the watch. Signals were sent to FOS/M and to Danish naval headquarters in Copenhagen, giving Retaliates position, reporting that there was reason to think that an explosive device somewhere in the bows might detonate at any moment, and that sabotage was suspected. It was requested that a tug be sent out from Korsor to stand by.

Allistair was sent off with McPherson to the forward torpedo room to check whether the time interval between ticks had changed. Shadde believed that it would have. Since the ticks could only be heard very faintly in the fore-ends, and yet were not coming from any object there, they must be coming from outside the hull. A limpet charge, he felt sure, had been fixed to the bow below the water line while they were in dry dock in Stockholm.

If there were an arming device in the bow, reducing speed had been wise. The faster the submarine traveled through the water the quicker the device would arm itself. At the reduced speed Shadde would expect the intervals between ticks to have lengthened. They would soon know. But time was vital. At any moment the bow might erupt in a blinding flash of light.

Shadde looked at his watch; 1933—thirteen minutes since the noise had been reported. He called down to Symington in the control room for the distance to Korsor. "Five point three miles, sir," the reply came back.

Shadde realized suddenly that his fingernails were cutting into the palms of his hands. With a conscious effort he extended his fingers and started beating a tattoo on the bridge screen. Cold beads of perspiration rolled down the back of his neck. It annoyed him intensely that the first lieutenant, leaning against the bridge screen near him, should look so unruffled, almost bored.

As a matter of fact, the first lieutenant was feeling distinctly windy, but he had no intention of showing it. There was nothing he would like less than to be blown up, but he was determined to set an example of calmness. He wondered what chance he'd have on the bridge if the forward torpedo room went up in smoke. Probably get the full blast. He wished he wasn't there and he wished that Shadde would stop that senseless drumming.

Both men's thoughts were interrupted by Allistair, reporting that the time between ticks was now two seconds. This puzzled Shadde; he'd been so sure the interval would have lengthened. "I'm going out on the fore casing to see if anything's to be seen there," he said. "You look after the bridge, Number One."

Then he turned to Allistair. "You'd better come with me."

Allistair said, "Aye, aye, sir." He looked unhappy, but he had no option, so he followed the captain down the ladder inside the bridge casing until they reached the pressure hull. There they stripped to underpants, and retied their life jackets. Then they knocked loose the clips on the port door and swung it inboard. Suddenly the sea seemed unpleasantly close as it lapped and gurgled along the hull below them. Shadde went out first, with Allistair close behind.

From the bridge Cavan looked on with disapproval. This was undignified. Shadde should have sent Allistair and McPherson out on the casing; the captain's place was on the bridge. And why strip down to underpants? But this was like Shadde, dramatizing everything he did. Sardonically, Cavan watched them; Shadde with those long hairy legs, and Allistair insignificant beside him, no doubt bursting with apprehension. Soon they had made their way as far as they could go, to the point where the casing sloped down to form the whalenose bow, and the sea was beginning to lap at them. Now Shadde lay on the bows, leaning first to starboard and then to port, with Allistair astride his legs, acting as an anchor.

Damn funny, thought Cavan, if Allistair's not heavy enough and the shaggy baboon tips into the drink. He rather hoped it might happen; it would make Shadde ridiculous and give Cavan the kudos that goes with recovering your captain from the water.

Shadde was now pointing to something in the water on the port side. Allistair changed places with him and he now leaned over to port, peering at something below the water line. Minutes later Shadde was back on the bridge, his face white. "Slow astern!" he snapped, and when the way was off, "Stop the engines!" He took a quick look at the chart. "No sign of the tug?"

Cavan looked toward Korsor, now right ahead. "Not yet, sir. Did you find anything?"

Shadde's eyes were somber under black, bunched brows. "Yes, I did. An inch wire has fouled a shackle on an eye-plate below the water line. It leads aft into the water. Something heavy on the end. God knows what it is."

His underpants were wet and clinging now; above them his chest was a mass of tangled black hair. As he spoke he scratched it, and Cavan thought, My God! What an ape! Aloud he said, "What are you going to do, sir?"

"Look for it, of course. Get a dinghy inflated on the after casing. Shake it up!" he said sharply. "Every second counts."

A few minutes later Shadde and Allistair paddled off in a bright-yellow dinghy. As they pulled away, there was a high-pitched whistle from the after casing, where thirty or forty men were huddled in the cold. The whistle was followed by a cry of, "Any more for the shore?" Cavan could see from the jerk of Shadde's head that he had heard it.

Cavan summoned Keely to the bridge. "Find out who was responsible for that," he said angrily. "And if there's any more skylarking every man there will have his leave stopped."

The dinghy was nearing the bow now and soon it stopped on the port side. Shadde and Allistair could be seen leaning over the side, talking and pointing. Then they started pulling on something. The dinghy heeled over until it seemed it would capsize.

"It's the wire," said Weddy. "Hope there's nothing lethal on it."

The first lieutenant frowned. "Wonder what the hell it is?"

In the dinghy Shadde and Allistair had hauled in ten or twelve feet of wire when Shadde said: "Steady, I think I can see something on the end." He was peering, his face close to the surface of the water, but it was difficult to see. "Have to get it all the way up. Take it very easy," he cautioned. "Don't let it hit the side."

With the greatest care they pulled the wire up, inch by inch, until a dark, spherical object broke the surface.

For a few embarrassing moments they just looked at it. Finally, "Bloody dan-buoy sinker!" Shadde said with disgust. "That shackle must have been left by one of those workmen in Stockholm."

"Yes, sir." Allistair's relief was obvious. "We must have fouled a dan mooring put down by a fisherman."

It took another fifteen minutes to get the mooring wire, and the shackle into which it had jammed, clear of the eye-plate. They paddled back in silence. Allistair, in his relief, tried one or two cheerful remarks, but Shadde, tight-lipped and forbidding, merely glowered.

Without a word Shadde made his way through the men on the after casing to the bridge, where he told Weddy to resume course and speed for the passage through the Great Belt. Weddy reported that the tug had been sighted coming out from Korsor.

"Tell him by signal that we don't want him," Shadde said. "And thank him."

Then he handed Keely a signal to FOS/M to encipher, and that was the last any officer saw of the captain until after breakfast the next day.

It was twenty-seven minutes past four in the morning when Mr. Buddington decided that the moment had arrived to inspect the storerooms, the keys to which he had gotten from the captain. He knew that the watches changed at four, and it was still far too early for day-duty men to be about. Safely in the store, with the door locked, he switched on the light and had a good look around. The shelves were stacked with tinned foods and packaged foods. The only things there that weren't groceries were four silk lampshades on an upper shelf, conspicuous in their bright colors.

When Mr. Buddington remembered the fragments of conversation he'd overheard the day before, he looked at the stacked shelves in dismay: "… put the tins on top…" What tins and on top of what? There were thousands of tins. A shelf-by-shelf search it would have to be. The shelf which was at eye level seemed the logical place to start, and after half an hour he was rewarded. He could scarcely contain his pleasure. There it was, the brown manila envelope, under a pile of biscuit tins. The envelope was unsealed. He put his fingers in and brought out a dozen photographic negatives. He held them up to the light. "Dear me," Mr. Buddington said. "How very stupid of me. I might have guessed."

Disappointed but intrigued, he looked at the buxom women and mustachioed men frozen by the camera in postures to which their nakedness lent a ludicrous air of unreality. With a mild sigh Mr. Buddington put the envelope back on the shelf and stacked the tins on top of it.

By nine o'clock in the morning, Retaliate was steaming east along the coast of Denmark. Overhead the sun was shining from a blue sky scattered with wisps of cotton cloud. They were due in Copenhagen at two. The expectation of this, coupled with the fine weather, was probably responsible for the good humor of the crew. The incident off Korsor had become a treasured recollection for them, and such simple sallies as " 'Ow's yer tick-tocks this morning, Pincher?" caused gales of laughter on the mess decks.

In the wardroom after breakfast, Symington, Allistair and the doctor were reading, and Keely was deciphering a sheaf of signals Gracie had brought him. As he finished the third he whistled, jumped out of his chair and began capering about.

"George my boy. Look!" He thrust the signal in front of Symington. It was from the Admiralty, addressed to Commanding Officer, Retaliate. Symington read it out aloud. "The following appointments are notified: Commander G. L. Straker to Retaliate in command, Commander J. A. Shadde to Dolphin for duty as Staff Officer Operations to Flag Officer Submarines with effect from eighteenth May."

"Good old Second Sea Lord," said Symington. "Never leaves his chums in the lurch."

"What's Straker like? Anyone know?" Allistair asked.

"Met him in Malta," said Symington. "He looked reasonable."

"How long has the skipper had Retaliate?" O'Shea asked.

Symington thought for a moment. "He commissioned her in the States. Must be about ten months."

"Isn't a two-year commission normal?"

"Yes," said Symington. "But with all this new construction things are different. Shadde's the senior CO of this class. Expect the Admiralty think he'd be more useful ashore."

"So do I," said Keely.

"Shut up," said Allistair. "Even if his door is closed."

Keely lowered his voice. "Sorry. I can't pretend this doesn't give me a hell of a kick." He deciphered the last few signals and knocked on the captain's door. He heard Shadde's voice, and went in.

Shadde was lying on the bunk, back to the door. "What is it?" he asked gruffly. He didn't turn around.

"Signals, sir. Just deciphered."

"Leave them on the desk," he said.

For a few minutes after Keely had gone, Shadde lay on his bunk, thinking. He hadn't slept all night, worrying about what had happened off Korsor. But he would have to read the signals — no escaping that — so he got up and switched on the desk light. When he came to the one appointing Straker to Retaliate, he dropped the others and sat down heavily at the desk with his head on his arms.

His mind traveled back over his long years in the service — from the very beginning when he had gone from school to Dartmouth, to the thrilling moment when he had been given his first command at the age of twenty-seven. He had commanded submarines for a number of years when finally, two years ago, his big moment had come. He had been sent to the States to study the operation of the Polaris missile. Ten months later Britain had taken over six new Polaris boats and he had been given command of one of them. It was this more than anything that had given him the dedicated feeling of mission which had since become a part of him. He felt that he had been put in command of Retaliate for some great but as yet hidden purpose.

Since he had taken Retaliate over in Groton, Connecticut, she had steamed twenty thousand miles under his command. The submarine had become a part of him and he a part of her. And now the Admiralty were going to stick him away to rot behind some bloody desk. The thought choked him. He was thirty-eight, the oldest commanding officer in the submarine service. He supposed they thought he was too old. Perhaps they'd tell him he was more valuable ashore. But whatever they said, he knew that it meant his sea service was ended. This was his last command. They would be in Portsmouth in five days, so he had exactly five more days afloat.

A month ago, he at least could have consoled himself with the thought of Elizabeth. But now? Would there be a letter at Copenhagen? And what would it say?

Suddenly he realized with a shock that if Retaliate were ever used in earnest now, he wouldn't be in command. Why were they pulling him out? Was it the collision? Was Symington somehow responsible? His father was an old friend of Flag Officer Submarines. Could it be that? Or had FOS/M heard that Shadde's wife might leave him? No, that was damn all to do with the Navy.

Perhaps it was those signals he'd sent when they'd first heard the tick. It had turned out not to be sabotage, but it might have been. Supposing Retaliate had gone up in smoke? At least they would have had some idea at the Admiralty of the cause. Shadde questioned again and again even 7 decision he'd made. To have handled it any other way still seemed to him unthinkable.

Well, all that mattered now was that he was to lose the two most important things in his life, Elizabeth and Retaliate. Things had gone wrong in recent months, badly wrong — ever since Symington had joined. Shadde's head ached fiercely, and an overwhelming feeling of depression and impotence settled on him.

In the chief petty officers' mess early that morning, discussion had ranged over a wide variety of subjects: the two days to be spent in Copenhagen, the refit in Portsmouth, and, of course, the fun and games off Korsbr the day before.

The coxswain clasped his hands behind his head. "Funny how certain the skipper was that it was sabotage."

McPherson looked up from the carpet he was making. "Maybe if you'd heard that wee tick like we did, you'd have thought so yourself. There was that dead regular time interval and all."

"How d'you account for that?" asked Springer.

"Lieutenant Allistair says it's easy to explain. The sinker was on the end of about fifteen feet of wire. As we went along, the pressure of seawater pushed it up till it hit the side. Then the force of the blow made it swing back like a pendulum." McPherson paused for a moment. "When we reduced speed there was less pressure against the sinker; it didn't hit the side so hard and that cut down the distance of the pendulum swing. So it sounded as though it had speeded up."

With needle and thread Shepherd was putting the finishing touches to a gray silk lampshade. The coxswain looked at it critically. "How many this time out, Sheppy?"

"This is the fifth."

"What'll that lot fetch you?"

"Fifteen quid. Materials cost four."

"Not bad. Nice hobby. Keeps the old lady in pin money and you out of mischief, I s'pose."

Shepherd frowned. "Money goes to the church," he said abruptly. Then he looked at Springer. "What d'you make of that little fellow Buddington?" he said.

"Creepy crawly sort of bloke." Springer sniffed. "And what he knows about the practical side of air conditioning is dangerous."

Shepherd looked up curiously. "Why d'you say that?"

"Remember that chat we had with him yesterday? About the air-scrubbing plant? He didn't sound no expert then, did he?"

"That's true." Shepherd looked thoughtful. "You know, that jammed steering could have been sabotage. What's more, when I look round our lot I don't have to think too hard who it might be."

The coxswain winked. "Sheppy's on to Kyle again."

"Of course I am. And for good reason."

"Think 'e's a Commie, Sheppy?"

"I don't know. But he hates the boat and everybody in her. Got a permanent grudge against life. It's people like that who do senseless things like sabotaging machinery."

There was a discreet cough in the doorway. Mr. Buddington stood there blinking, a black leather box containing thermometers and hygrometers slung over his shoulder. "May I come in, gentlemen? I'd like to read the temperatures and humidities."

All the chairs in the wardroom were now occupied.

The first lieutenant looked at Allistair and repeated the question. "But what did you make of the noise?"

"Same as the skipper. It's easy now to explain it. Wasn't then."

The doctor put down his book. "Skipper's very quick on this sabotage stuff, isn't he?"

"Got an obsession about it," said Allistair. "I've an aunt like that. Gets a headache and says she's got a tumor on the brain."

"They say," Symington said, yawning, "that one attracts the things one fears."

The doctor lit a cigarette. "Steward says the skipper's in a hell of a mood."

"Something gnawing at his vitals," said Symington.

Weddy was lying on the settee. He turned to the doctor. "What causes this gloom and depression act?"

O'Shea shook his head. "It's no act. No fun for him, you know." He turned to Allistair. "Was he always like this?"

Allistair shrugged. "Always been pretty rigid. But very just, really. He does seem to have changed in the last few months. Gayer and more talkative at times than he used to be. But also gloomier and more irritable."

Symington yawned again. "I've been in this boat for four months. Seems like four years. When Number One introduced me the day I joined you'd think it was Hamlet meeting the ghost. Since then it's been mostly gloom and anger."

"He's unutterable," Keely said. "I'm bloody glad he's going."

"Keely," Cavan said abruptly. "Pipe down! I won't have the captain discussed like that."

Keely bridled. "Sorry, sir, I was only saying what I thought."

"Well, don't. You're one of his officers. Pretty junior one, too. Discipline and loyalty are both involved."

Symington sighed. "Don't you think Shadde tries them rather hard, Number One?"

As Symington said it, the door of the captain's cabin slid open and Shadde walked in. The officers stood up in embarrassed silence. Shadde searched each face with his intense stare, ending on Symington. "What is it I try rather hard, Symington?" The captain's voice was ice cold.

Symington looked him in the eye, but said nothing. Shadde moved forward a few paces. The atmosphere was electric. "Come, come, Symington. You're not usually lost for words. Let's have it."

Symington's face was ashen. "It was a private discussion, sir."

"Surely it wasn't so private that I can't hear it? After all, it was about me."

"I'd prefer not to repeat it, sir."

Shadde stood quite still, his eyes fixed on Symington. Then he looked slowly from one officer to the other until he came to Cavan. "My first lieutenant," he said sardonically. "I might have known." He turned and walked off into the control room.

As soon as Shadde got to the bridge the submarine's speed was increased to sixteen knots. Half an hour later they entered the Sound and began the passage to the south.

Symington went to the bridge when they were off Landskrona. Ahead and to port the forts of Middelgrunden and Flak stood out of the sea, and beyond them lay Copenhagen, a forest of spires and roofs glittering in the morning sun. To Symington's surprise Shadde was talkative and affable, for all the world as if the scene in the wardroom had never taken place. The man was utterly unpredictable. Symington hoped the new captain would be an improvement.

Shortly before two o'clock Retaliate was secured to a buoy in Yderhavn. Over on Langelinie the lilacs were in bloom, and below them Hans Christian Andersen's Little Mermaid sat on her rock gazing serenely at the water. A naval launch brought off the Danish officer of the guard, the British Naval Attache, a representative of the mayor, two port officials, and a Danish naval postman with the mail. The official visit to Copenhagen had begun.

The postbag for Retaliate brought no letter from Elizabeth. Might this mean indecision? Shadde was filled with fresh hope. Perhaps his Oslo letter had caused a change of heart? But it did bring one from Flag Officer Submarines:

My dear Shadde,

You will have had the Second Sea Lord's signal about your appointment to my staff. It is now imperative to have you here where your experience of the Missile boats will be invaluable. I had intended to bring you ashore in September, but recent events make it advisable to do so now.

Straker has completed a month in Deterrent, so your turnover should be possible within forty-eight hours of Retaliate's return to Portsmouth.

I look forward to having you on my staff, to which you will be a most valuable addition.

Yours sincerely, Tom Bannering

Mr. Buddington received a communication he had expected. It came in a large brown envelope labeled "plans," with the seal of the Department of Naval Construction. In fact, it was from the office of the Director of Naval Intelligence. In the envelope were the leave records of certain members of the crew and some additional background information about them.

There was also a letter for Engineering Mechanic Kyle. It was from his mother, saying she had "busted" some of her savings on a new hat and other "glad rags" for the trip to London. If before he had been depressed, now he gave way to a hopeless rage.

There were also letters for Chief Shepherd from Dora, his wife, and Win, his sister-in-law, married to his wife's stepbrother, Arthur Hindle. The Shepherds and Hindles lived near each other, and there was much going and coming between the two households. But Dora Shepherd didn't really like Win Hindle. Win was too anxious to tell you how to put the world to rights and always throwing it in Dora's face that she was a poor churchgoer. She regarded herself as superior to the Shepherds because she'd had a university education, and besides was a schoolmistress and a leading light on the local ban-the-bomb committee.

Most of all Dora mistrusted Win's friendship with Tom Shepherd; Tom had a strong religious interest, too, and the fact that he and Win and Arthur went off to church together every Sunday while she had to mind two small children was gall to Dora. She was jealous of Win's influence on Tom and also afraid of it.

Tom Shepherd, for his part, thought a great deal of Win. He liked the way she talked about world affairs, the Bible and the Will of God. She'd shown him ways in which he could carry out the behests of the Almighty in a practical down-to-earth manner. Religion was not just a series of personal "don'ts and mustn'ts," she said. "It's the sum total of good and evil, the broad onward sweep of the human race." Often they sat talking into the late hours. And always for every doubt of Tom's Win had an answer. Now, as he folded her letter, he thought of seeing Win during his leave. He had much to tell her. As always, thinking of Win evoked mixed feelings of religious piety and physical anticipation, and left him with a nagging sense of insecurity.

The fact that Shadde couldn't stand cocktail parties didn't absolve him from going to them. This one at the British Embassy had been laid on in honor of Retaliate''s visit. Shadde's mood wasn't helped by overhearing Dwight Gallagher saying with a laugh, "That little tick certainly had the captain worried!" And, of course, his Danish listeners had to laugh too.

Shadde stood in a small circle with the Ambassador, a Danish admiral and the local Anglican curate, looking around the room discreetly and saying as little as possible. He saw Keely — with a pretty girl, of course — moving over to join the noisy mob around Gallagher. At the far end of the room by the bar table, Symington and the doctor were laughing together. Also about Korsor?

He was wondering where Cavan had got to, when he saw him come into the room with the Ambassador's wife. Trust him, thought Shadde; been looking at some art treasure or other and saying exactly the right thing, and leading up somehow to the fact that he had served in the Royal yacht. Then they would start swapping names and being astonished at how many distinguished people they both knew. The thought nauseated Shadde.

Then he saw Rhys Evans and beckoned him over. He felt better when the Welshman joined them, but his eyes continued to search the room. He saw Symington and the doctor exchange their empty glasses for full ones. He couldn't be sure but he thought they'd done that two or three times in the last half hour. It irritated him that they were not moving about talking to people. He supposed Symington felt it was all too much of a bore. He would have him on the carpet next morning.

Then the First Secretary came up with a good-looking young woman who turned out to be his Danish secretary and whose name was Margrethe. She had attractive, friendly eyes and a wonderfully infectious laugh, and Shadde liked her at once. She was easy to talk to, and in five minutes he had that strange feeling of elation and all his bad humor had gone. In these moods there was so much to say, the words simply came tumbling out.

Rhys Evans saw the change come over the captain, and blessed the Danish secretary. Soon he left them together, talking so animatedly that they didn't even notice his going.

Over at the bar table Symington nudged the doctor. "Do my eyes deceive me, Patrick?"

"You mean the skipper and the piece of crumpet? Excellent!"

At that moment Shadde asked Margrethe to have dinner with him after the party.

"I'd love to," she said. "But I can't tonight."

A surge of disappointment swept through him. "Boyfriend?"

She laughed, a delicious tinkling laugh. "No. Old friend." She gave him an enchanting smile. "But do ask me again. You're my favorite submarine captain." Then she waved to him gaily and was gone.

Shadde looked at his watch. He couldn't leave yet, but now that she'd left the fun had gone too. He liked everything about her: the gay laugh; the attractive accent and the eager compelling friendliness, as if she knew you would like her and as if she were tremendously interested in everything about you. He wondered when he would see her again, if ever.

His thoughts were interrupted by a crash at the far end of the room. He saw a waiter on his knees and above him Symington and the doctor. They were struggling not to laugh, and they seemed to be apologizing. Shadde was sure that they were somehow responsible for the accident. He burned with humiliation and anger. What a performance for officers of his to put on at an Embassy party. He beckoned to Cavan. "Tell those two," Shadde hissed, pointing at them with his chin, "to return on board at once. I'll see them in the morning."

"Do you mean Symington and the doctor, sir?"

Shadde's eyes froze. "Yes. Who the hell else, d'you think?"

When the captain and Rhys Evans got back on board after dinner, Shadde insisted on a nightcap. Before he poured the drinks, however, Shadde went to the desk and took out the letter from the Flag Officer Submarines. He tossed it over to the engineer officer. "What d'you think of that?" he said.

Everybody had heard of the transfer but Evans wasn't supposed to know officially, so he went to some trouble to look surprised. "I'm sorry you're going, sir. But indeed it's understandable. They'd not leave a man with your experience afloat much longer." Shadde's eyes narrowed and he looked at the Welshman intently. "Notice FOS doesn't say why he's bringing me ashore earlier than he intended? D'you see how he skates around that?" "He'll tell you, sir. No doubt there's a good reason." "No," Shadde said emphatically. "He's bringing me ashore earlier because of recent events. What does he mean by that?" "Changes in the construction program, perhaps, sir." Shadde gave a dark, knowing look. "I've a shrewd idea it's something quite different."

"You'll be glad to be ashore for a while, sir, won't you?" Shadde came bolt upright in his chair. "Glad?" he said incredulously. "I hate the bloody idea, Chief. D'you realize it means the end of my sea time? The nearest I'll get to the boats will be chatting to their COs when they come to see the gilded staff. Why couldn't they leave me where I belong?"

Shadde poured stiff tots into two glasses and passed one to Evans. "Cheers," he said, and looked at his companion challengingly. "Rejoicing on board. . about my departure?" It was more a statement of fact than a question. "Not true that, sir," said Rhys Evans.

"Oh, yes it is," said Shadde. "Didn't you notice Number One's embarrassment when I asked him to join us for dinner tonight? I'll wager he hadn't got another date. The whole thing is, he can't stand me."

Evans sighed. "He's not a man I'm liking much myself," he said. "But I've never heard him say a word against you."

"He's too careful to make that mistake," said Shadde. "The fact remains that I'm not liked by my officers, am I?"

The Welshman looked at him unhappily. "That's not true, sir," he protested, but he knew he didn't sound convincing.

"No! You can't bluff me, Chiefy. Nice of you to try. They hate my guts." Shadde leaned forward. "And d'you know what's at the bottom of it all?" Rhys Evans, pained that he couldn't help him, shook his head. "Symington!" said Shadde triumphantly. "When he joined the trouble started — and, of course, I know why. That bloody business in Sabre." "Sabre, sir?"

"You know. When his father was captain and I was Third Hand." The engineer officer was puzzled. "I don't know, sir." Shadde gave a dry laugh. "Nice of you to put on that act, Chiefy. But you do know. The night in the Lombok Strait."

"You're talking Greek, sir. I know nothing about the Lombok Strait."

Shadde looked up quickly. "Then you're the only officer in the wardroom who doesn't." He frowned. "Just possible they wouldn't tell you. They know you're pretty close to me."

"What is it you're talking of, sir?"

Shadde poured himself another whisky. "I think I'd better tell you. Perhaps you'd understand." In a disjointed, moving way he told the story. "It was a bloody awful thing to do," he ended hoarsely. "A cowardly thing. But I couldn't help it. I just couldn't help it, you know."

There was a long silence. Shadde sat hunched in the chair, head buried in his hands. "I'm sure Symington's not spoiled the story in the telling. And that's why my officers hate my guts."

Rhys Evans shook his head. "Never heard that story before, sir. Indeed, I doubt if anybody here has. Anyway, there's not a man would hold it against you. Every submariner knows it's easy to lose your nerve when you're young and inexperienced. It's happened to many fine men, too." There was sincerity in the Welshman's voice.

Shadde shrugged the remark away. "No good, Chiefy. I'll tell you something else. I wouldn't be surprised if FOS's putting me ashore hasn't something to do with Symington."

"With Symington?"

"His father's rich, influential. Knows the First Sea Lord. You can do these things if you know the top brass. How do I know what Symington's been writing to his father?" Shadde's eyes clouded with suspicion.

The engineer officer stood up and put his hand on the captain's shoulder. All the little Welshman's concern and affection showed in his face. "It's sleep you're needing, sir. You're a tired man and it's playing funny trucks with you."

Shadde brushed him away. "I don't imagine these things. They're facts."

Rhys Evans saw that there was nothing he could do. "I'll be getting along now. Have a good sleep, sir."

Retaliates postman returned on board soon after breakfast on the second day in Copenhagen. Shadde was in his cabin when Miller delivered the letter. When the captain saw the writing on the envelope he tore it open. He unfolded it, smoothing it flat on the desk in front of him. It read:

My dear John,

Your letter from Stockholm made me desperately undecided. That's why I've taken so long to write. Now I've made up my mind and I hope you're not going to be hurt too much. Yesterday I saw the lawyers about getting a divorce.

Your letter makes it clear that you haven't the faintest idea what life has been like for me during the last two years. Most of the time I've been alone. When we've been together you've usually been so absorbed in your work or so depressed that you haven't seemed to know I was there. I wonder if you realize what your moods are like and what they do to me.

I used to be very much in love with you, John, and perhaps I still am. But I don't think it's possible to go on loving someone you see very little of, particularly when you're afraid of that person.

I'm still young enough — and so are you — to be able to start again. I know I'm at fault too. I've failed to give you children— they might've made all the difference. At any rate, whoever is right or wrong, I just can't bear to go on like this.

At the end of this month I'm going out to Australia. Until then I'm going to Mother, and I won't be going back to Petersfield.

I hope you'll realize that what I'm doing is best for both of us. It's quite obvious that I've not succeeded in making you happy. I'm sorry. Anyway, I do hope you find real happiness in the future. There's not much point in life without it.

Elizabeth

Shadde stared at the bulkhead in front of him for perhaps five minutes. Then he got up; crumpled the letter into a tight ball and threw it into the wastepaper basket.

The doctor and Symington hadn't the faintest idea why they had been ordered to return on board from the cocktail party. When they asked what it was all about, Cavan said, "Haven't a clue. Says he'll see you in the morning."

"But what the hell about?" repeated O'Shea miserably.

"Don't ask me." Cavan shrugged. "But he's bloody angry. Expect you've fouled your yardarm somehow or other."

When the first lieutenant had gone, Symington clutched the doctor's arm. "I could vomit when that man says that."

"Me too," said the doctor. "Let's go. We're ordered off."

The summons to the captain's cabin didn't come until noon, just before they had to leave for the burgomaster's lunch. They found Shadde at his desk; he seemed unaware of their presence. Finally, he looked up and his dark eyes comprehended them slowly, as if he were having difficulty in focusing.

"Ah! You two. . yes. ." He stood up and glared down at them. But he spoke quietly. "Will you kindly tell me exactly what you were up to at that party last night?"

"I'm not sure what you mean, sir," Symington said.

"Please, Symington, don't put on that Christian-martyr act. It won't help in the least, you know."

The doctor said, "I'm sorry, sir, but I don't know, either."

"Don't you really," Shadde said sarcastically. "You bloody soon will." The remark sounded like a pistol shot. "You spent most of your time at the Embassy standing next to the bar table, swilling drinks as if you were a couple of bargees on a run ashore. . and then, not content with that, you tripped a waiter and created the sort of scene one expects in a third-rate music hall."

Careful, thought the doctor, look at those fingers; the gorge is rising. But Symington either hadn't seen the signs or was beyond caring. "We had nothing to do with the waiter's fall, sir, and I submit with respect that…"

The captain held up an imperious hand. "Stop that! I'm not here to listen to your respectful submissions. You listen to me." He swung around on the doctor. "And you, too! Please understand that when naval officers are invited to a party at a British Embassy they're invited as representatives of their ship, and as representatives of the Royal Navy. It's their duty to move around among the other guests and to do all that they can — repeat, all that they canto leave a good impression of the ship and the service. That's what they're there for, d'you understand?" He gave them another fierce glare. "Not to see how many free drinks they can swill and…" He stopped abruptly. "That will do. You may go."

The doctor signaled furiously to Symington not to answer, and they left the cabin in silence. In the wardroom the young man slumped into a chair. "My God! I can't stand much more of that."

The doctor nodded sympathetically. "I know how you feel, but he's the one to be pitied. Life must be hell for him."

"But that junk about tripping the waiter…" He was interrupted by the quartermaster's voice on the broadcast announcing the arrival of the launch alongside.

The doctor and the engineer officer liked and respected each other. Rhys Evans liked the doctor's warm kindliness, and the doctor liked the Welshman's sincerity. But because the engineer officer couldn't understand why Shadde disliked the doctor, and the doctor couldn't understand why Rhys Evans liked Shadde, the one person they never discussed was the captain. For this reason, the doctor was surprised when the engineer officer came to his cabin and broached the subject of Shadde. "I'm worried about the captain, Doctor. Known him a long time. There's a man, now, that's hard but just."

"You like him, don't you?"

"Indeed. He's a fine man, but.. you'll not tell a soul?"

"Of course I won't, Chiefy."

Rhys Evans lowered his voice. "He's a sick man these last months. Too much on his mind, and it's doing strange things to him."

The doctor lit a cigarette. "What's he worrying about?"

"Sabotage business, for one thing, but other things, too."

"Such as?" prompted the doctor.

The Welshman's eyes regarded him gloomily. "I'll have to be telling you the whole story. It's better that you should know."

"Poor chap," the doctor said gently after Rhys Evans had told him all he knew of Shadde's troubles and suspicions. "I'm certain Symington's never mentioned that Lombok Strait business."

"Can you not help him, Doctor?" the engineer officer asked.

"He's a difficult man to help, Chiefy. He's proud, you know. And he loathes me. Besides, from what you say — that his wife's clearing out — well, there's no medical answer to that."

"So we can do nothing for him?"

" 'Fraid not. He must sort out his own problems. We've all got them, you know. Perhaps he's got a bit of overload at present, but nature's a good healer. A staff job will at least mean a rest, and a change. And he won't be as lonely as he is here. That'll probably put him right."

The Welshman wasn't convinced. "I hope so, Doctor. I don't like to see a man suffer."

The doctor's smile was warm and sympathetic. "He's got a good friend in you, Chiefy."

The captain returned on board from the mayor's lunch at half past two. He went straight to his cabin and locked the door behind him. For ten minutes or so he worked on his report to FOS M about the Korsor incident. But he couldn't concentrate. He turned off the lights and lay on his bunk, his mind in a turmoil. He couldn't believe that Elizabeth was going to Australia. When he got back to Petersfield the house would be empty. That's how he would start life in the new job ashore.

He couldn't go on without Elizabeth. True, she'd changed. She'd become tense and frustrated. Couldn't leave him alone for a moment. Whenever he sat alone and tried to sort out things she'd come along and try to break into his thoughts. She couldn't seem to realize that there were some things that couldn't be shared. But she was closer to him than any human being had ever been, and what little security he could find in life was all centered in her.

It was six o'clock when he turned on the lights again. For three throbbing hours he'd been lying there. He knew if he stayed any longer these tormenting thoughts would get the better of him. But he was in no mood for the wardroom. It would be better to go ashore — he thought of Margrethe. Do ask me again, she had said. You're my favorite submarine captain. He would go ashore right away and telephone.

At the first telephone booth Shadde put a call through to the Embassy and soon had the number of Margrethe's flat. She sounded delighted. No, she was not doing anything. Yes, she would love to meet him. Where should they dine, he asked.

"At Langelinie," she said enthusiastically. "The pavilion is very good, and I like very much to look out over the harbor."

"So do I," agreed Shadde. "When will we meet and where?"

"We can dine at half past eight or nine."

"That's two hours off. Can't I meet you now?" He heard her laugh, that tinkling refreshing laugh he liked so much.

"I must change," she said. "That will be quite a business. I don't often dine with British submarine captains."

That made him laugh, too. "Seven fifteen, then. But where?"

"Come here. We will go in my car for a little drive before dinner. The country is beautiful outside Copenhagen."

"That sounds magnificent," Shadde said.

Margrethe had done it again. Just by hearing her voice and laughter, that inward excitement, that feeling of exhilaration, had come back.

The band was playing and from their table they could see the harbor framed in lilac trees. Across the water the gantries stood like sentinels over the unpainted steel hulls of two partially built ships. Opposite where they sat, Retaliate lay at her buoy.

"Like a huge whale with a sail on its back," said Margrethe.

Shadde smiled — a sad smile, she thought. "And I'm its Jonah."

"Never. You are not Jonah. But you are something strange."

"Strange?"

"You look so fierce, but you are not really fierce. You are kind. I think you are lonely."

Shadde laughed. "I doubt if my officers would agree."

He was enjoying himself. The drive had been a success; Margrethe was first-rate company; they liked the same things to eat and drink. Shadde had taken trouble in choosing the wines, and for once he had an appetite. They had cold salmon with a white C6tes-du-Rhone Hermitage, and a filet mignon with Grand Vin Clos de Vougeot. Then she'd suggested schaum torte.

"What's a schaum torte?" he had said.

"Ah! A Danish delicacy. Meringues that taste of almonds."

"I'm game. Let's wash it down with Chateau d'Yquem. That'll insure its success."

As they sipped their Yquems the band played something very smooth and romantic which exactly fitted Shadde's mood. Margrethe seemed to glow with charm and eagerness.

"What'll we do now?" he said.

"Do you like to dance?"

"My launch will pick me up at eleven thirty. Doesn't leave much time. It's a glorious night. Couldn't we go for a drive?"

There was a ghost of a smile in her eyes. "Yes, of course."

When they got to the car he said, "Can I drive?"

She looked at him doubtfully. "Do you know the little Morris?"

"Had one for years."

"Very well. We can go to Bellevue. I will show you the way."

He found, as he always did on the Continent, that it was strange at first having to keep to the right, but he soon got used to it. His exhilaration persisted and he chatted gaily while he drove. They had to swerve once to avoid a cyclist and Margrethe said anxiously, "Be watchful. You will be in trouble if you hit a cyclist."

"That, madam, will be the day," he said, and he began to sing the chorus from the "Toreador Song." At that moment they reached the busy traffic circle at Trianglen and he began to turn left.

"No! No!" she cried in sudden alarm. "Keep right!"

Instantly he turned the wheel to the right but it was too late. The screeching of tires was followed by a jarring crash as something hit the back of the Morris.

Shadde stopped at once and they got out. The driver of the other car was already in the street — a small, angry, excited man. Margrethe spoke to him in Danish but he brushed her aside and shrilled at Shadde in English. "Why did you turn to the left? It is not permitted. Then you swing right. No signals. Nothing."

Shadde towered over the small man. "I am not deaf," he said coldly. "Why didn't you look where you were going?"

A small crowd had gathered, and a policeman appeared. The little man spat a torrent of words and the policeman listened patiently. Then he took out his notebook and questioned Shadde and Margrethe. Yes, it was her car. Yes, he was the driver. Yes, he had a license, an international one. No, it was not with him. Where was it? On board his ship in the harbor. What ship? Retaliate. The policeman looked up with new interest. The big British submarine? There was a murmur from the crowd.

"Did you try to turn left?" asked the policeman.

"Yes, I did," said Shadde.

"You see. It was his fault," the little man shouted.

"Kindly stop shouting," Shadde said with contempt.

The policeman looked at Shadde inquiringly. "Did you have anything to drink tonight?"

Shadde turned to Margrethe. "Can't you do something about this? It's most humiliating being quizzed in front of this crowd."

Margrethe spoke to the policeman in Danish. "He says we must go to the police station. Also, you must produce your driving license."

"How can I? We're sailing at eight thirty tomorrow morning."

"I told him. He says that makes no difference. The little man wishes to make trouble. He says you've been drinking."

"I have," said Shadde irritably. "But not the way he thinks. Anyway, let's go to the ruddy police station."

The damage to the cars was no more than crumpled bumpers and fenders. Margrethe took the wheel, and the policeman got in behind. The little man climbed into his car and followed them doggedly. Shadde's high spirits had gone.

At the police station a surgeon took a specimen of blood from Shadde's forearm for a blood-alcohol test. An inspector told him it would be in order if his driving license were sent by messenger between seven and eight next morning. No, he could not say if there would be a prosecution. It would depend on the blood-alcohol test. Yes, the other man had laid a charge. Commander Shadde might be required in court on the following day.

From the police station they trailed off to Margrethe's apartment, where, on her advice, they telephoned the First Secretary. He was concerned but helpful. "Wait there," he said, "until I ring you back." Twenty minutes later he reported that Shadde wouldn't be required in court the next day. But the Embassy had been forced to promise that he would return to stand trial if summoned.

"Does a minor collision justify all this fuss and bother?" asked Shadde icily.

"It's not that alone, unfortunately. Seems the blood-alcohol test wasn't too hot from your point of view."

Shadde protested that he was far from being tight, and explained exactly what he had had to drink all evening.

"I'm sure you weren't," said the First Secretary sympathetically. "But you evidently dined and wined pretty well, and the Danes take their blood-alcohol tests rather seriously. However, we'll do what we can tomorrow and I hope they'll drop it."

Gloomily Shadde thanked the First Secretary for his help.

"Don't mention it, my dear chap. Of course," he chuckled, "if you will go gadding with my pretty secretary you must expect this sort of thing."

Shadde was far from amused.

On that second afternoon in Copenhagen, the first lieutenant had gone to watch the soccer match between teams from the Danish naval base and the submarine. Cavan was a rugger man who found soccer boring, but he never missed a game in which Retaliate was playing. Early in his naval career he had learned that this was one of the things which the successful naval officer did, and so his tall figure on the sidelines and his booming "Come on, Retaliates!" had become an indispensable part of the team's effort.

After the match he went back on board and changed into uniform. Looking through the file of signals on his desk he found one from Massive notifying her intention to enter Oslo at 0900 the next day, and another from Deterrent reporting her departure from Loch Ewe at 1630.

He then settled down at the desk to write a letter to his mother. He mentioned briefly that he was finding the captain a little difficult, but on rereading he decided that this was risky; mothers were apt to talk and it was unwise to have it known that you were not getting on with your captain. He crossed out the offending sentence. Then he went to the wardroom, where he accepted the drink Weddy offered him.

"Where's Symington and Keely?" he asked.

"On a run ashore with the doctor and Gallagher."

"Wine, women and song again? The eternal search."

"Could be," said Weddy. "They went off in great style."

Just then Mr. Buddington came diffidently into the wardroom and said, "Good evening, gentlemen."

Weddy smiled. "Hullo, Mr. B. What'll you have to drink?"

"That is very kind of you. A glass of sherry, please." He cleared his throat. "What time are we sailing tomorrow?"

"O-eight-thirty," said the first lieutenant.

Mr. Buddington picked up the Daily Express and pointed to a headline, Commons Uproar on A-Subs. "Did you read it?" he asked Weddy.

"Yes. Usual tripe about unauthorized firings."

"I suppose those who bring this matter up in the House are reasonably well informed?" Mr. Buddington asked.

Weddy shook his head. "Lot of ignorant B's — take it from me. Unauthorized firings are impossible."

"Impossible?" said Mr. Buddington.

"Yes, impossible. The security precautions look after that. You'd need collusion between too many different people in too many different places for an unauthorized firing."

"That's very reassuring," said Mr. Buddington. "What are the precautions, or is that a state secret?"

"There's no secret about the general procedure. There are checks and controls on firing at all stages. They start at NATO and run down through FOS's operations room to the final control here."

"What happens at NATO?"

"Roughly this: There are always several senior staff officers on duty in the ops room representing the NATO chiefs of staff. In the case of the Polaris boats there's also a bloke representing the U.S. chiefs of staff. Our operational authority is Flag Officer Submarines. He can only order us to fire if he's told to do so by NATO. Then there's another sort of three-way control. NATO can only order us to fire by means of a special transmitter, and FOS can only order us to fire by the same means. The NATO transmitter won't work unless the NATO staff officers, and the U.S. chap, too, set the control dials with readings which only they know. FOS's transmitter to us won't work unless the NATO transmitter has actuated it first, and even then three different people in FOS's ops room have to put special settings on their control dials."

Mr. Buddington wasn't altogether satisfied. "How would we know if an ordinary W/T transmitter had been used to send the firing signal to us?"

Weddy nodded. "Good point! Because the firing signal contains special address, prefix and target coordinate groups, which are top-secret ciphers. Only NATO and the firing submarine have them."

"I see," said Mr. Buddington. "And what would happen if someone on board — you, for example — decided to fire a missile? What could stop you?"

"Lots of things," said Weddy. "Takes a lot of people to fire a Polaris — they'd have to agree first. Then the firing circuits can't be actuated until our local control has approved the firing."

"And the local control is….?" prompted Mr. Buddington.

"Firing signal has to be seen, and its import agreed upon, by the four different people on board who control our firing circuit. Unless each puts his own secret setting on a control dial, it's mechanically and electrically impossible for the missile to be fired."

"Remarkable. Who are the four people on board who do this?"

"Captain, first lieutenant, me, as gunnery officer, and Dwight Gallagher, representing the United States chiefs of staff. You know that they gave us these boats subject to their right to veto firings at all control levels. That's why we cart Dwight around the ocean with us."

"I must confess I feel happier now," Mr. Buddington said. "The possibility of unauthorized firings is something I have always worried about. I expect most thinking people do."

Target came in from the wardroom pantry. "Dinner's ready, sir," he said to the first lieutenant. "Care to 'ave it served now?"

The first lieutenant stood up, stretched his arms and yawned. "Yes, please, Target. Come on, chaps, to the trough."

At ten thirty that evening, while the captain was still happily sipping liqueurs with Margrethe, Mr. Buddington was deep in the reports that had come from Naval Intelligence. Then he set his alarm clock, put it under his pillow and fell into a sound sleep.

It seemed only a moment later that he was jangled awake although his watch showed three thirty. With the black leather box over his shoulder, he left the cabin. Outside the storeroom he looked around to make sure the coast was clear before opening the door and locking it behind him. From the top shelf he took a silk lampshade, and from his pocket a magnifying glass. When he compared the silk of the lampshade with the piece of gray silk in his hand, he found that the scissor marks on the cut edges corresponded exactly.

A few moments later Mr. Buddington was back in his cabin doing some hard thinking. Shadde had said, "Find the owner of the gray silk and you've got your man." Shadde might be right. The case against Shepherd, weak and fanciful at first, was becoming substantial. He was the maker of the silk lampshades; he had been in charge of the men in the steering compartment in Stockholm; he had access to the machinery and the technical knowledge necessary. Lastly, the confidential material received by Mr. Buddington the day before contained the ingredients of a motive: it revealed that Shepherd was having a clandestine affair with his sister-in-law, a Mrs. Hindle, and that she was a prominent member of the ban-the-bomb movement.

But Mr. Buddington never jumped to conclusions — particularly when the evidence was circumstantial. Besides, a great deal depended on the outcome of some tests he planned to make in the steering compartment. There were others who might be implicated.

Chief Shepherd returned on board just before midnight. As soon as he reached the CPOs' mess the duty petty officer reported to him. "We can't find Kyle. He was on watch in the engine room with Dobbin, but he's disappeared."

"Disappeared? What d'you mean?"

"Told Dobbin he was off to the heads about half an hour ago. Fifteen minutes later he hadn't shown up, so Dobbin went looking for him in the stokers' mess. He wasn't there."

"Reported this to the duty officer yet?"

"No. Not had a proper search yet. I've checked on the machinery spaces. I'm just off now to the forward compartments."

"Carry on forward. I'll do a double check aft. If we don't find him chop-chop we'll report it. He may have gone over the side."

As he searched, Shepherd noticed that the clips on the watertight door between the mess deck and the steering compartment were not secured. When he entered, the lights were off and he sensed at once that something was wrong. He switched them on and there at the far end of the compartment was Kyle, sitting on a folded watch coat with his back to the bulkhead. In his right hand was a half-empty bottle which he was raising to his lips. He blinked at Shepherd with bleary, hostile eyes and waved the bottle feebly.

'"Ullo, Mr. Bloody-nosey-parker-Shepherd," he mumbled.

"That'll do, Kyle," Shepherd said sharply. "You come along to the duty officer. You're supposed to be on watch."

Kyle hiccuped. "Flip the flippin' duty officer."

Shepherd snatched away the bottle. It was Courvoisier. Kyle clambered laboriously to his feet.

"Kyle, this looks like wardroom stock."

Kyle's face was twisted with contempt. "It does, does it? Well, you c'n shove it up, Chief," he said thickly.

Shepherd seized Kyle, who shook himself free. "Take yer flippin' paws off me!"

This was too much for Shepherd. He moved in swiftly, and as he came Kyle lashed out. It was a crude drunken blow, but Shepherd was not expecting it and it caught him full in the mouth. He stopped in his tracks, his eyes unbelieving, then put down the bottle and hit Kyle twice in rapid succession. Shepherd was a strong man and Kyle went down like a felled ox.

Shepherd half carried, half dragged him to the mess deck, where he wakened two men and got them to help him carry Kyle to the control room. There he handed him over to the duty petty officer. "Keep him here while I go and report to the duty officer."

The petty officer looked down at Kyle. "Don't look as if he needs much keepin'. He's in dreamland. What hit 'im?"

"I did," said Shepherd grimly. "In self-defense."

The petty officer's eyes went wide with surprise. "Blimey. Striking a chief petty officer. What's the Navy coming to?"

Weddy, the duty officer, was in the wardroom. He whistled. "Struck you, did he, Chief? That's serious. I'll come along at once."

In the control room, Kyle was still dazed and in no condition to take any interest in the proceedings. Weddy said to the duty petty officer, "Lock him up in the sick bay and let him cool off. You'd better give him a hand, Shepherd. Then bring me that bottle. We'll investigate this in the morning."

Weddy went to Cavan's cabin and told him what had happened.

"Good God!" Cavan said. "Must be round the bend striking a chief PO."

Weddy shook his head. "Don't envy him when he comes up before the skipper."

The first lieutenant's face was grim. "Nor do I," he said.

It was five minutes past midnight by the time Shadde got into the launch to go back to the submarine. He was in a ferment of worry and anger. For the captain of a British nuclear submarine to appear in the Danish courts on a charge of drunken driving would be worse than humiliating. The bills for damage to Margrethe's car and legal costs would involve more than he could afford. And worst of all were the possible consequences to his naval career. If the case went to court the press would jump at it.

When the launch came alongside the submarine, the sentry on the after casing hailed, "Boat ahoy." The Danish coxswain answered, "Retaliate." But there was no duty officer or petty officer to see him on board, and Shadde set his mouth grimly. Down in the control room he found a quartermaster, but no one else. Finally, in the wardroom, he found Weddy and Shepherd with a bottle of liquor between them. They stood aside as he came in, but he ignored them and went on into his cabin. He sent for Cavan.

"Why weren't the duty officer and duty petty officer on the casing to meet me when I came on board?" Shadde demanded.

"They were down below, sir. The duty officer was—"

Shadde raised an imperious hand. "I'm perfectly well aware of that. I've just observed Weddy and Shepherd in the wardroom with a bottle. Drinking my good health, no doubt."

"They weren't drinking, sir, they were—"

"Are you suggesting that I'm a liar, Number One?"

"No, sir, I'm not. But Weddy and Shepherd are investigating a charge against Kyle, and the duty petty officer has…"

Again Shadde interrupted. "What charge?"

"He's drunk and he struck Chief Shepherd."

"Drunk? How can he be drunk? He's under stoppage of leave."

"He must have pilfered a bottle of brandy from the wardroom."

"This is all most interesting," Shadde said, "but it doesn't explain why the duty officer didn't meet me on the casing when the launch came alongside. Why wasn't he there?"

"I imagine because he was dealing with Kyle, sir."

"You imagine, do you?" Shadde mimicked. "Possibly you can also imagine why the duty petty officer, at least, was not there?"

"He was guarding Kyle, sir."

"I see," said Shadde. "Everybody was so bloody busy that it didn't matter a damn about the captain coming off. After all," he added sarcastically, "he knows his way about the boat, so let him find his own way on board."

Cavan was beginning to have difficulty with his temper. I must keep calm, he told himself. He said nothing.

Shadde picked up a sheaf of signals and began to turn them one by one. "Anyone adrift?" His tone was ominously casual.

"Yes, sir. Holmes and Brown."

"Hm," said Shadde, "I'm not surprised. This boat's so bloody slack nothing surprises me." His voice rose. "I'm not used to arriving alongside without a duty officer to receive me on board. And I'm not used to boats where ratings strike chief petty officers after helping themselves to wardroom liquor. I'm handing over to a new commanding officer. I can assure you I don't intend to hand over a slack boat. I have only a few days left but I intend to shake this boat up in no mean fashion. D'you understand?"

The first lieutenant still made no reply.

"For a start, you'll inform Weddy that I shall require him to be duty officer every day for the first ten days in Portsmouth."

At this, Cavan looked him square in the face. "He's due to go on leave as soon as we reach Portsmouth, sir."

Shadde threw the signals onto the desk. "I don't give a damn what he's due for. You heard my orders. Carry them out."

Shadde was behaving monstrously, but Cavan knew it would be dangerous to argue. He was due for promotion to commander and he was going to keep his yardarm clear whatever it cost. He left the captain's cabin without a word.

It was five minutes past one when Shadde turned off the cabin lights. He was exhausted but sleep wouldn't come. He lay there tormented by his thoughts: the wreckage of his private life and, after tonight, his prospects of promotion, too; his difficulties with his officers. One by one the foundations of his world were crumbling.

The muscles in his stomach knotted into a tight, painful ball, and his head ached until the pain seemed unbearable. Hysterically he said aloud, "I must sleep! I can't go on like this!" He turned on the lights again and saw that it was after three. He rang for the quartermaster and said that he wanted to see the doctor.

When O'Shea arrived, a raincoat over his pajamas, hair tousled and eyes bleary with sleep, the captain was at the desk in a dressing gown.

"I can't sleep, Doctor," he said brusquely. "Can't do my job properly without sleep."

"Have you been sleeping badly for some time, sir?"

"It's become very bad. My mind's too active."

"How's your appetite, sir?"

"Poor. Don't feel like food much."

"And your bowels, sir?"

Shadde glowered from under beetled brows. He disliked the doctor intensely and the question struck him as too personal.

"What the hell have they to do with it?"

"A good deal, sir. Are they functioning regularly?"

"They're very irregular," said Shadde awkwardly.

"Headaches, sir?"

"Acute ones. Got one now. Always have when I can't sleep."

The doctor warmed with sympathy for this suffering, aloof and highly complex man. "When we get back you should see a Fleet specialist at Haslar, sir."

Shadde's mouth set grimly. "What specialist, may I ask?"

"Someone who specializes in diagnosis, sir." He'd like to have said a psychiatrist, but he dared not.

Shadde stood up. "I sent for you, O'Shea, because I can't sleep. We go to sea at o-eight-thirty. I want to sleep now, do you understand? I can't wait for Haslar and your quack friends."

The doctor's face was grave. "I could give you a sedative, sir. But it's too late. You'd feel drugged at o-eight-thirty."

"Thank you," Shadde said icily. "I see you're not anxious to help. You're like so many of the officers in this boat. You've all got a great deal to say, but when it comes to doing things you're not an impressive bunch. You don't really know what's the trouble, do you?"

The doctor hesitated. He couldn't tell the captain what Rhys Evans had said to him that morning so he said, "I can tell you, sir, that your nerves are in bad shape."

Shadde went white. "Nerves" meant Sabre and the Lombok Strait. So this filthy little medico was trying to get at that, was he? He moved quickly to the door and slid it open.

"Get out," he shouted. "Get out before I throw you out."

As soon as the doctor had gone Shadde sent for Gracie and made him sit down. Hollow-eyed and disheveled, the captain started pacing the cabin floor. "You remember our talk about those signals, Gracie?" Shadde watched him closely. "I shall want them today. When we're at sea."

Gracie rose; it was awkward sitting there while the captain was on his feet. "Since you first mentioned it, sir, I've thought of some snags," he said uneasily.

Shadde stopped pacing. "Snags? Snags?"

"Signals about missile states of readiness and firings are top secret, sir. I don't know the address groups and prefixes."

Shadde gave him a dry smile. "Don't worry about that. I'll prepare the signals. All you do is transmit them on that closed circuit you told me about and get 'em through your teleprinter."

Grade's forehead puckered. "A genuine firing signal would give the target coordinates, sir. They're top secret, too."

Shadde went on pacing, head thrust forward, hands clasped behind his back. "That's not your worry either. I'll look after it."

There was a long silence. "Anything else, sir?"

The captain seemed to be listening to something far away. "Anything more?" he said, as if he were trying to remember something. "No! Except—" his eyes bored into the telegraphist " — not a word of this to anyone, d'you understand?"

Ten minutes before the submarine sailed from Copenhagen, the engineer officer and Mr. Buddington went into the steering compartment and shut the watertight door behind them. They devoted the next hour to the port ram cylinder, constantly loosening and tightening, and sometimes just observing the drain plug and the brass locknut which secured it. They did these things while the steering gear was at rest; while it was moving; while it was being tested hard aport and hard astarboard; while the submarine was slipping from her buoy; and finally as she turned into the Sound. At last Mr. Buddington said, "Well, thank you very much. That will do very nicely."

The engineer officer scratched his head. "Indeed, and I have no idea what you're after, but I hope it will help you."

"Oh! It has already," said Mr. Buddington with unusual enthusiasm. "You know I spent some time in here between Stockholm and Copenhagen, and it was then that I had this idea. And now these tests have really given me what I was looking for."

The engineer officer darted a keen look at him. "Not trying to poke my nose in, but. . d'you think you've got your man?"

"No, no!" said Mr. Buddington hastily. "But I've got a useful line to work on."

They were leaving the steering compartment when Rhys Evans noticed a dark object lying on the deck on the far side of the steering gear. He went across and picked up a folded watch coat. He looked at the name tab. "Kyle's! That explains it. Must have been sitting on it here when he was on the drunk last night."

But Mr. Buddington was seeing something else: a piece of oil-smeared gray silk, with one side torn, hanging out of a pocket.

By nine o'clock Retaliate was northward-bound up the Sound, running on the surface in a gray sea. She was on the last lap of her voyage, and the crew's spirits were high. In two days' time they would be steaming into Portsmouth, and Portsmouth meant leave, wives, girl friends and families. In every compartment, men were exchanging grins and lighthearted chaff. Another patrol was coming to an end, and England, home and beauty lay ahead.

Down in the wardroom pantry Dusty Miller was confiding some astonishing information to his friend "Bullseye" Target, and the doctor, sitting in the wardroom, could not help overhearing. "Skipper rings for me at half past seven and says, 'Miller, take this driving license into the police station and show it to Inspector Jensen. Make it sharp,' 'e says. 'And Miller,' 'e says, 'I would appreciate your treating this matter as confidential!'"

"Blimey, Dusty, what's the old man been up to?"

Miller cleared his throat importantly. " 'Old on a minute and I'll tell you. When I get to this Inspector Jensen, 'e looks at the license and writes something in a logbook. Then 'e asks me about our missile lot and what my job is. I told 'im I don't know nothing about missiles because I'm the captain's steward, and then 'e says, quietlike, 'Tell me, does your captain drink much?'"

"What did you say?"

"I said, 'Well, the old man likes a snort now and then like any naval officer.' Then this bloke says, quite nasty, 'How many drinks does your captain 'ave in one go?'"

"Stone the crows," said Target. "Nosey parker."

"'E was and all. Anyway I closed up then and said, 'The captain's a man what's very moderate with 'is drink. Never known 'im have more than a couple at one session.'"

"Goodo, Dusty. But what's 'is lordship been up to?"

"Ah," replied Miller. "I knew you'd ask that one, Bullseye. I said to the inspector casual-like, 'Captain asked me to ask you what's going to 'appen?' 'E said, 'Tell him the charge ain't framed yet but it'll probably be something like reckless and negligent driving while under the influence of alcohol.'"

"Cor, strike a light!" Target's breath came heavily. "Skipper up for drunken driving. Where'd 'e get the flipping car?"

"Ah!" said Miller triumphantly. "Inspector told me it belongs to a young Danish lady. What's more, when the skipper 'ad the accident — with a Danish bloke — she was in the car with 'im!"

Target chortled hoarsely. "Blimey, if the Daily Mirror gets hold of that lot! Can't you see the 'eadlines, Dusty? 'Atom-sub captain drunk in car smash with Danish model.' "

After an alteration of course off Halsingborg, Shadde left the bridge and went to his cabin. Soon afterward Mr. Buddington came in. At Shadde's invitation he sat down primly, feet and knees together. From his pocket he produced two pieces of gray silk.

"Ah!" said Shadde. "Rhys Evans told me. What's the verdict?"

"It's certainly the other half of the piece you found."

"Is it, by Jove! So Shepherd was right. And it was in Kyle's watch coat. We've got him now, haven't we?"

Mr. Buddington coughed. "I'm afraid we haven't, Captain. I admit that this looks suspicious, but other factors suggest he's not our man."

"Such as?" said Shadde dryly.

"At this stage, sir, I'd prefer to mention only one of them. The same man was presumably responsible for all three incidents of suspected sabotage. Well, on the two previous occasions — Portsmouth and Queensferry — Kyle had been on leave for at least ten days when the incidents occurred."

"That doesn't necessarily clear him of the Stockholm business. Surely that gray silk in his watch coat is damning evidence? And his outbursts about fixing this boat?"

Mr. Buddington's voice was firm. "No, Captain, it's not damning. I am, I admit, puzzled, but I don't think Kyle is the man."

Shadde was displeased. "See here," he said. "I think you're making this unnecessarily complicated. Somebody hid that lock-nut in one half of that piece of gray silk. D'you accept that?"

"I do," said Mr. Buddington.

"And this morning you found the other half of the silk in Kyle's watch coat, and there were traces of hydraulic fluid on it?"

"That is correct," Mr. Buddington agreed.

"And Kyle worked on the steering the day before sailing?"

"He did."

"And you say it's unlikely to be Kyle!"

"That is correct, Captain."

"Then how did he come by the silk?"

"Ah!" said Mr. Buddington. "That's what I'd like to know."

The captain yawned. "You soon will. I propose to ask him when he comes up before me this morning. Any objections?"

"None at all. Indeed, it is essential that we should know."

"Would you like to be present when he comes up?"

Mr. Buddington's eyebrows arched. "Oh, dear me, no. What would an air-conditioning expert be doing at such an investigation?"

Shadde frowned. "Of course. Stupid of me!"

CPO Telegraphist Grade sat in the wireless office checking the W/T log, but his thoughts were far away. That interview with the captain had landed him in a dilemma. His training and instinct revolted against using the submarine's complicated communications system to produce make-believe signals, for any reason whatever. The signals the captain had suggested might compromise the security measures on real missile firings. Gracie didn't really know what these measures were, but he had a shrewd idea about the communications side of them.

On the other hand, years of naval discipline and his personal loyalty to the captain left him, he felt, with no option. How could he, a young chief petty officer, tell the captain that he wasn't prepared to cooperate? He wished there was somebody he could talk to, somebody who could settle his doubts for him. The more he thought about it, the more certain he became that he must get advice. The captain had told him to keep it to himself, but he just couldn't. There was one man who had never let him down, the navigating officer. Gracie decided to go to him at once.

He found Symington in the gyro room. Without wasting time he told him about the discussions with the captain and of his own doubts. "D'you see the trouble, sir? I mean, I don't quite like it."

The navigating officer did some hard thinking. Finally he looked at Gracie. "You'll have to do what he wants, Gracie. The responsibility's entirely his. After all, he's the captain."

The CPO telegraphist looked relieved. "Thank you, sir. That's what I thought, but I feel better now you say the same thing."

"But if the captain hands you those signals for transmission, you must tell me at once. Before you put them onto your teleprinter."

Gracie nodded. "I'll do that, sir. You won't breathe a word, will you, sir? It'll ruin the skipper's plan for a realistic exercise if it gets around, and he'll know it was me."

Symington smiled sympathetically. "I won't let you down."

On the captain's orders the wardroom was cleared at half past nine. Shadde was seated at the head of the table, with Cavan on his right and the engineer officer on his left. Shadde had decided to limit this investigation to the question of how the gray silk had come into Kyle's possession. The charges against him would be dealt with in Portsmouth.

Kyle came into the wardroom followed by the coxswain. He was pallid and dejected, with a black eye and a bruised cheek.

The captain stared at him. "I've had you brought before me, Kyle, to answer questions about a matter of some importance. In your own interests I want you to realize how important it is that you tell the truth. You may be in serious trouble if you don't."

Kyle's face showed no emotion. Shadde produced a watch coat and pushed it across to him. "Is that yours?"

Kyle opened it and looked inside. "Yes, sir."

"Ah!" said Shadde. "And when did you last use it?"

"'Ad it with me in the steering compartment last night, sir."

"I see. And before that?"

Kyle thought for a few moments. "Took it ashore on me last liberty in Stock'olm, sir. Night I was coshed."

"Where was the coat kept between that night and last night?"

"In me locker, sir."

"In that case," said Shadde, with a note of triumph in his voice, "you may be able to explain how this—" he threw across a piece of oil-stained gray silk " — came to be in the pocket?"

Kyle looked at the silk. "Yes, sir. I put it there."

"And can you tell me when you did this?"

"In Stock'olm, sir. Day before sailing."

"Ah," Shadde said. "And where were you at the time?"

"In the steering compartment, sir."

There was a deathly silence in the wardroom and Shadde gave Rhys Evans a quick I-told-you-so look. Then he said to Kyle, very softly, "And what were you doing there, Kyle?"

"Working on the port ram cylinder with Chief Shepherd and Finney, sir. Draining the 'ydraulic."

From the way Shadde put the next question, Rhys Evans knew he was closing in for the kill; he suddenly became casual and leaned back, as if the discussion were at an end. "Thank you, Kyle," he said. "That's been very helpful. Just one thing before you go — where did you get that gray silk?"

"Chief Shepherd gave it to me, sir," said Kyle. "To wipe my hands with. We'd forgotten to bring along any cotton waste."

The first lieutenant could see the shock of disappointment on Shadde's face. That's floored the old buzzard, he thought.

Next Shadde sent for Shepherd, who confirmed Kyle's story in every detail. When Shepherd had gone, Shadde said to Evans, "This thing's got me beat. Somebody put that gray silk and the locknut behind those pipes. If it wasn't Kyle, who?"

The more he thought about what Gracie had told him, the more convinced Symington was that he should tell the first lieutenant. This was something outside his experience, and he didn't know what to make of it. He spent a frustrating fifteen minutes trying to get Cavan alone, eventually running him to earth in the control room. "Number One," he said in a low voice. "Can I see you alone, now!" Without lifting his eyes the first lieutenant said, "Of course. In my cabin in two minutes."

Cavan shut the door and looked at Symington curiously. "Very mysterious, George. What's the score?"

Symington told him of his conversation with Gracie. At first Cavan was skeptical, but the navigating officer soon convinced him that Gracie was not making the story up. "Incredible, though, isn't it? A bogus signal from FOS to start a ruddy exercise."

The first lieutenant nodded. "Incredible's the word. Do you realize that it could compromise the security measures?"

Symington sat on the corner of the desk. "I know. He must be round the bend. Surely their Lordships wouldn't approve?"

Cavan shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows?"

There was a long silence. "I suppose you'll tell Gallagher, won't you?" prompted Symington.

Cavan thought for a moment. "Not Gallagher. He's U.S.N, and this is our affair. He'd go and have it out with Shadde — quite rightly too. But Shadde would know that Gracie had talked."

Symington nodded. "Couldn't agree more. If Shadde knows Grade's spilled the beans, he'll hammer him."

"And you, my boy. The whole story would come out and all hell would break loose." He was silent again for a moment. "In some ways, I'd like to tell the chief. He's a sound little chap. But he's too close to Shadde. He'd go straight back to the captain."

"What are you going to do?" Symington asked.

Cavan looked at him quickly. "You mean what are you going to do? It's your problem, you know. Gracie confided in you, not me. But of course I'll give you all the help I can."

Symington darted a curious look at him. "I see," he said slowly. "That's very decent of you, Number One."

The first lieutenant patted him on the shoulder. "You can count on me. Just one thing though. No one — and that includes Gracie — is to know that you've spoken to me. I'm not going to put myself in a position where I can be charged with conniving against the skipper if anything goes wrong. Got that?"

"Yes, I see what you're driving at," Symington said tightly. But his tone didn't seem to worry the first lieutenant.

"So you accept my condition?" he asked.

Symington shrugged his shoulders. "I've no option."

"Good," said Cavan. "Now I'll put my thinking c£.p on."

The doctor was lying on his bunk, dressed, looking as though he had just waked up. "Sorry, Doc," said Cavan. "Didn't expect to find you asleep. Mind if I sit down?"

The doctor rubbed his eyes. "Please do. What's the trouble?"

"I want your advice, Doc — your medical advice. But first I want your solemn word that you'll not repeat this discussion, unless I ask you to."

"It's quite unnecessary to ask that in any medical matter."

"This is a little different, Doc. It's not my health. It's the skipper's. There's a strange state of affairs. What I want to know is: can Shadde be going round the bend?"

"Going mad, you mean? Are you serious? Why?"

The first lieutenant told him about the signals Shadde wanted from Gracie. "I know it sounds damned silly, Doc, but, to put it at its worst, when he's received those bogus signals, what's to stop him firing a Polaris? What's the answer to that one?"

"You," said the doctor promptly. "The thing can't be launched until you've set your control dial. You'll know the signal's bogus, so you refuse to approve the firing. Where's the problem?"

Cavan shook his head. "Not that easy. The firing drill requires us to put on our settings before the captain uses the firing plunger. In an ordinary exercise, nothing happens when he depresses the plunger, because the control dials would never have been set. But he's told Gracie he wants to simulate the real thing. So if a bogus firing signal arrives the control dials will be used. We must presume that in that case Shadde won't use the plunger. But, if he were round the bend, who could guarantee that he wouldn't? You say I can stop him. How can I tell Shadde, before the control dials are set, that I know the signals are bogus?"

"Why not?" challenged the doctor.

"Because he'd know at once that Gracie had talked. There'd be hell to pay. But that's chicken feed compared to what else. What about me? I'd have refused to obey an order. Challenged the commanding officer's authority, integrity, sanity — the lot. It would be the end of my naval career. I'd be court-martialed."

"Would you?" said the doctor doubtfully.

"Of course. If my commanding officer decides to start an exercise with a bogus signal, who am I to say he can't? / reckon he shouldn't. But their Lordships might take another view. There's a nasty word for officers who disobey their captain's orders — it's called mutiny. How could I convince a court-martial that he was planning to launch a missile? We couldn't be sure ourselves."

"Couldn't you put the wrong setting on your dial?"

"No. Weddy and Gallagher, who follow me, wouldn't be able to move their dials at all if I did that — they'd remain locked."

"So what d'you propose to do?"

"It's a hell of a problem, one of those cases where whatever's done may be wrong. Very difficult to know how to keep one's yardarm clear." He looked at the doctor unhappily. "You see, I'm pretty sure it is just an exercise. It's the sort of odd, unpredictable thing Shadde does. Only there's the nagging thought that it mightn't be. That he might really press the button."

"Isn't that really rather farfetched?"

Cavan nodded. "It is. But isn't it rather farfetched for the captain to get together with his chief telegraphist and connive bogus signals about missile states of readiness?"

"Shadde's motives are plausible enough. He wants a realistic exercise, because he thinks the ship's company needs it."

Cavan shook his head. "Surely you don't compromise top-security precautions on missile firings just to shake up the crew."

"Shadde is an odd type," said the doctor. "Anyway, what would he fire a missile at?"

"I know it sounds crazy, Doc, but if he were off his rocker, he might fire it at a Russian target. You've heard him nattering about the West being taken for a ride by the Russians and all that bilge. If he talks about it so much when he's normal, mightn't he try and do something about it if he were crackers?"

The doctor pursed his lips. "I don't think he's crackers."

"You think he's perfectly normal, then?"

"Not normal. But you're suggesting he may be insane."

"Well, if he's not normal, what is he?" insisted Cavan.

"He's a neurotic. There are plenty of sane, lucid people, carrying great responsibility, who are neurotics. But that's very different from being a psychotic."

The first lieutenant raised his arms in despair. "Those are just words to me. What d'you mean?"

"A neurotic suffers from minor nervous disorders. There's nothing seriously wrong with his perceptions. Outside the area of his symptoms, he's in normal touch with reality."

"And the — the other one?"

"He's out of touch with his environment, can't distinguish between fantasy and reality, because his judgment's grossly impaired. What you call round the bend — insane."

Cavail sighed. "What makes you think Shadde's a neurotic?'"

"Sharp mood swings. Fits of extreme depression, and irritability. Sleeplessness. Loss of appetite. Those are symptoms."

Cavan was thoughtful. "Yes. He's got most of those, only I didn't know he couldn't sleep or eat. What's gnawing at him?"

"Basically fear, I suppose. What psychologists call excessive anxiety."

The first lieutenant looked at O'Shea with fresh interest. "What's Shadde afraid of?"

"What most of us are," said the doctor. "Insecurity."

"Why should he feel insecure? He's done damn well. Certain to be a flag officer, I'd say."

The doctor shook his head. "For professional reasons I'd prefer not to go into that, Number One. Shadde's got his problems, some real, some imaginary. I'll tell you one, but you must keep it to yourself." He paused. "His marriage is on the rocks."

Cavan's face remained blank. "Poor chap," he said in a matter-of-fact voice. "I'd no idea." He got up. "So you think my fears are exaggerated?"

"I think so, but I'm no psychiatrist. Maybe I'm wrong."

Cavan was halfway to the door; he turned around quickly. "So you don't exclude the possibility that he's a… psychotic?"

"No. Not absolutely. All I can say is that his symptoms appear to me to be those of a neurotic."

Cavan's eyes flickered. "Thank you, Doc," he said. "Remember what you've just said. May be important later. In the meantime this conversation has not taken place. O.K.?"

Mr. Buddington was pleased and puzzled when Shadde told him the result of the investigation in the wardroom that morning. He was pleased to have his judgment about Kyle confirmed; but he was puzzled that Shepherd had so readily confirmed Kyle's story about the gray silk, because it made the case against Shepherd all the blacker. He proceeded to do some very solid thinking about the two pieces of gray silk which had originally been one. One piece had been found in the steering compartment with the locknut in it, the other in Kyle's watch coat. Shepherd was the owner of the gray silk and he had admitted giving Kyle the one piece. What had he done with the other? Mr. Buddington discussed this problem with Rhys Evans, who agreed to tackle Shepherd about it.

The first lieutenant knew he would have to work quickly. It was already well into the forenoon and at any moment the captain might hand Grade the signals. He would have to play it very safe. He must take the steps necessary to forestall the unpleasant possibility, and yet do it in such a way that if things went wrong he wasn't implicated. After all, it was really Symington's problem. Cavan began to feel that he was really being rather decent in helping Symington with this thing at all.

Having thus settled the moral issue for himself, he got busy with the technical problem. That wasn't so hard, because he remembered in detail the lecture on the Polaris firing circuit they'd been given when they were training in the States. Half an hour later he had not only briefed Symington thoroughly on what to do; he had even undertaken to see that the coast was clear.

"But," he said firmly, "make no mistake, George. If you're nabbed, I can't come to your assistance. I want to be terribly frank about this. Even under oath I'd have to deny that I'd any knowledge whatever of what you were doing."

"You're rather franker than you think, aren't you?" said Symington in a bored way.

In the missile attack center, Symington found two men working on the equipment. He chatted with them for a moment while his eyes followed the run of the firing circuit to the point where it entered the next compartment and the black and yellow tracing bands disappeared. He opened the watertight door and went through it into the missile control room, securing the door behind him. As he had expected, it was empty, and he quickly looked through the observation port to make sure that there was nobody in the launching compartment. Once again he traced the black and yellow bands before opening the airtight door and letting himself into the small space, six feet by four, which was the air lock between the missile control room and the launching compartment.

With great care he shut the door and secured the clips. It was pitch-dark in the air lock and he had to grope for the switch, but finally he found it and the lights went on. When he opened the junction box he saw that the black and yellow bands were on the third cable from the left. Slipping on rubber gloves, he took some long-nosed pliers from his pocket. Within seconds he had turned the milled ring on the cable holder until it came clear. Then he jerked the cable out of its socket and was binding the end back with insulating tape when he heard the clips moving on the airtight door. A cold chill swept through him as he looked down and saw them turn. In a flash he switched off the light and pressed into a corner, waiting with bated breath in the darkness. There was a creak as the door opened and the air pressure increased; then the thud of the door shutting, the sound of heavy breathing and the metallic squeak of the clips being pulled tight. In the confined space of the air lock he could hear every movement the newcomer made— he could even feel the warmth of his body. He shrank back, fearful that the man might brush against him. If he would just open the foremost door and leave the air lock without switching on the light, all would be well.

With thumping heart Symington froze against the bulkhead. There was a click and the air lock was a blaze of light. Within inches of him stood the engineer officer, eyes wide as they traveled from the navigating officer's rubber-gloved hands to the open junction box.

The look of blank astonishment was quickly followed by one of suspicion. "What's this, Symington?" Evans said sharply.

The navigating officer knew exactly how dangerous his position was.

"It's a long story, Chief. Can I come to your cabin?" The engineer officer's eyes narrowed. "What is it you've done?" Symington shut the junction box. "Broken the circuit on the firing plunger," he said, as he tightened the wing nuts.

Rhys Evans said incredulously, "What? You're mad, man!" Symington's composure was returning and his brain was beginning to work again. "Let me tell you the story, Chief."

Tight-lipped and suspicious, the engineer officer sat stiffly in a chair while Symington told him his story. Rhys Evans was the last person he would have chosen to tell; the Welshman was far too close to the captain. Symington was counting on one person now — the doctor. Cavan had sent him to see O'Shea, and at this very dangerous moment he realized what a sound move this had been.

"Well, that's the position, Chief," Symington said wearily. "What I've done hasn't been for myself. I've taken a hell of a risk. Obviously I wouldn't do that unless something vital was at stake."

The Welshman's mouth tightened. "Or unless your story's a pack of lies. How do I know it's not sabotage you're after?"

"Test the story for yourself. Ask the doctor what he told me this morning. But please, Chief, not a word to anyone else. Don't you see? If the signals are only for an exercise, then no harm's done, because the firing plunger won't be used. Alter the exercise I'll reconnect it. The only way the skipper could know that the circuit is broken would be if he did use the firing plunger, and if he did you'd all thank your stars I'd made it unserviceable."

There was still a gleam of suspicion in Rhys Evans' eyes. He got up abruptly. "I'll have a talk with the doctor and then decide. You'll know what I'm about soon enough."

The doctor was doubtful. "I know you've got the skipper's interests at heart, Chief, but d'you really think it's wise to tell him about this now?"

"I do think so."

"Let's look at it carefully. If you tell Shadde you caught Symington red-handed, you'll have to tell him why Symington did it. That he knew about the signals and had doubts about Shadde's sanity. What d'you think the skipper'll do when he hears that?"

"Deal with Symington at once, he will. And rightly too."

The doctor nodded. "Yes! And that means a court-martial for Symington. And d'you realize what his defense will be?"

The engineer officer's eyes looked doubtful. "No."

"That he considered the bogus signals to be a gross irregularity, because they could compromise the security measures; so much so that he even had doubts about the captain's sanity; that he consulted me, and that on the strength of what I told him he couldn't exclude insanity as a possibility. He'd call me as a witness and I'd have to confirm what I have told him and describe the captain's symptoms. An eminent psychiatrist would certainly be called by the defense. Can you imagine what that might lead to?"

Rhys Evans shook his head. The doctor went on. "I'm a G.P. and no psychiatrist. I've said I think it's unlikely from his symptoms that he's anything more than neurotic. An expert witness might say that psychosis could reasonably have been inferred. That would be equivalent to saying he was insane. D'you see the danger for Shadde now?"

The Welshman's silence encouraged the doctor. "The court-martial would no doubt finish Symington's naval career. Shadde might be cleared technically. But the mud would stick and he'd probably be finished too."

Rhys Evans' eyes widened. "Finished? What are you saying?"

"Finished," said the doctor. "At the very least he'd be passed over for promotion and retired early. The court-martial would be headline news and the Admiralty wouldn't dare take any chances with Shadde after that. He'd be a ruined man, all right."

With bowed head Rhys Evans brooded over this. "I'd do nothing that could harm the captain, be sure of that."

The doctor looked at him sympathetically. "Leave things as they are, Chief. If it's just an exercise, Shadde will never know about the broken circuit. If it isn't, and he does fire…"

"You're talking nonsense, man," interrupted the engineer officer. "The captain's as sane as I am."

"You may be right, Chief. But sane or not, that court-martial's likely to be the end of him. I strongly advise you to leave matters as they are."

The engineer officer looked away from the doctor's compelling eyes. "Very well. He has troubles enough just now, poor man. I'll not be adding to them."

There was a note of relief in the doctor's voice. "Thank you, Chiefy. I'm certain your decision's the right one."

At noon Symington and Keely took over the watch. To starboard the coast of Sweden rose out of the sea, a long, low rampart running north and south. Symington found it difficult to concentrate on his duties. At any moment he expected a summons to the captain's cabin. He could only pray that O'Shea had succeeded in persuading the engineer officer to say nothing.

Just before coming up to the bridge he had broken the news to the first lieutenant. "My God!" Cavan breathed. "Caught you in the act, did he?" For a moment his face seemed to fall apart and then he pulled himself together and clutched at Symington's arm. "You didn't let on that I knew, did you?" His voice was hoarse.

"I did not," said Symington. "Your yardarm's clear, Number One." There was contempt in his voice.

But Cavan looked relieved. "What's the chief going to do?"

"Check my story with the doctor and then decide."

"Good. That's why I told you to talk to O'Shea. So that you'd have that to fall back on if you were nabbed."

"Very considerate of you," said Symington dryly.

Now, standing on the bridge, filled with apprehension, Symington wondered why this all had to happen to him. Two more days and Shadde would leave them for good. Why had he hit on that fantastic idea? And what was going to happen now? That was the burning question.

In answer to the captain's bell, Miller slid the cabin door open and poked his head inside. "You rang, sir?"

"I shan't be lunching in the wardroom," Shadde said. "Just bring me a cup of tea and some biscuits… and that Danish Camembert."

Miller's eyes gleamed with apprehension. "Aye, aye, sir."

When he came back he found the captain looking at an atlas. To Miller's surprise he smiled. "This is a great day, Miller. The sixteenth of May. On this day in 1803 England declared war on Napoleon. . the archtyrant. He held a dagger at the heart of England, Miller. He would have destroyed our people."

Miller was surprised again. The captain had never spoken to him like this before. But Shadde didn't look at him, and Miller had an unpleasant feeling that the captain didn't know he was there.

"Yes," said Shadde. "A man had arisen to save England. Two years later Nelson at Trafalgar crippled the combined fleets of the French and Spanish. . the threat to England was broken!"

Miller waited patiently. The captain drew his hand across his eyes, then looked up as if he were seeing the steward for the first time. "Ah! Miller." He smiled. "I'm tired. Not enough sleep, I daresay. But there's much to do. You can carry on, Miller."

The steward was about to slide the door open when he heard Shadde say curtly, "What cheese is this?"

"Piece of fresh cheddar, sir." Miller's voice was anxious.

Shadde glared. "That it's a cheddar is perfectly evident. Where's the Danish Camembert you got for me on Wednesday?"

Miller cleared his throat. "Haven't got it no more, sir."

"What the hell d'you mean, you haven't got it?"

Miller lowered his eyes. "Gone, sir. Eaten by mistake."

The captain's eyes flashed. ''Whose mistake, may I ask?"

"Wardroom officers, sir." Miller almost whispered the words.

"Eaten by mistake by the wardroom officers… my cheese! I've never heard such goddam poppycock in my life." Shadde breathed heavily. "Eaten or not eaten, go and find that cheese and don't rest until you've bloody well found it." He took a step toward Miller, a towering, menacing figure. "And now get out!" he shouted.

Back in the pantry Miller told Target what had happened.

"Blimey!" breathed the wardroom steward. "Who lifted the flippin' cheese?"

"Lieutenant Commander Gallagher, the doctor, Lieutenant Symington and the Subby. Two o'clock this morning, when they come off shore."

"Cor, love a duck! 'Ow d'you know, Dusty?"

"Mr. Symington told me before breakfast. Said 'e hoped I 'ad no objections. I told him it was 'is lordship's cheese."

"Cor! What did'e say?"

"'E blooming near fainted."

Target looked at the captain's steward with a sympathetic eye. "Don't envy you, Dusty, I must say."

Miller took out his handkerchief and mopped his forehead. "Wish me mother'd never 'ad me," he said sadly.

When he came off watch Symington went to the doctor's cabin. "Has the chief seen you?" he asked anxiously.

The doctor looked at the pale, worried face and nodded. "Yes. Before lunch. Told me how he found you in the air lock."

"What's he going to do?"

"Keep it to himself."

Symington sighed with relief. "Thank God for that!"

"I put the wind up him," said the doctor. "Explained how a court-martial would probably finish Shadde."

The navigating officer looked puzzled. "Court-martial?"

"Yes — yours!" said O'Shea, and he told him what he'd said.

Symington smiled faintly. "Thank you, Doc. That was good of you." But in spite of the doctor's reassurance Symington went back to his cabin sick with a feeling of impending disaster.

It was three o'clock in the afternoon and the first lieutenant was due to go on watch at four, but rest was out of the question now; he was far too worried. It had been a devastating shock to learn that Symington had been found in the air lock. Although he had done everything he could to protect himself, Cavan wondered desperately if his complicity would be discovered. He was pretty sure of Symington. But the doctor might have his suspicions, and now Rhys Evans was to be reckoned with. Every new person involved added to the danger. If Shadde is genuine about his exercise, he thought, and my part in the plunger business comes out, I've had it. Their Lordships will have no mercy on a first lieutenant who has not only conspired against his captain but connived at interference with the main armament of one of Her Majesty's ships.

He had visions of arrest and court-martial. If it did come to that, the line he'd take would be that he was certain Shadde was exceeding his authority in using bogus signals for an exercise. It might be a bit tricky explaining why he'd not consulted Gallagher. Fortunately Gallagher was not the sort to make difficulties. Anyway, there was nothing to do now but wait and see. If Shadde was going to have his exercise, he'd have to have it soon.

When Cavan got to the bridge at 1600 they were steaming at twenty knots toward the deeper waters of the Skagerrak. The northwesterly wind had freshened and the submarine's movements were lively under a darkening sky and heavy banks of cloud.

Gracie was in the W/T office when the messenger came for him. With a sick feeling at the pit of his stomach, he knocked at the captain's door.

"Come in. Ah! Gracie, sit down." The captain leaned forward, hands on knees, and the telegraphist had to look away from the dark eyes — they did something funny to him. "What time are you on watch tonight, Gracie?"

"Eighteen hundred to twenty hundred, sir."

"Good. I've been working on those signals."

Grade's heart sank. "Yes, sir."

"Of course, they're in cipher. It's been a laborious job. Had to use the books." Shadde spoke quickly, as if there were little time. "I want the exercise to start at half past seven. I've penciled in under its date-time group the exact time you are to receive the first signal. That's on the signal marked 'A.' You'll see I've marked it 'emergency' precedence. I've put nineteen thirty-three as the time of receipt. We'll dive soon after it's received… be in deep water by then. The first signal orders us to a position in the Skagerrak by midnight. To reach it we'll have to reverse our course."

The captain smiled, an impersonal smile. "I've added rather a clever little frill. The signal also orders Massive to leave Oslo before twenty thirty and to reach a position in Bohus Bay by midnight, to the north of us. Deterrent left Loch Ewe yesterday afternoon— you saw the signal?"

The young man nodded. Shadde's eyes were riveted on his.

"For the purposes of this exercise," went on Shadde, "we'll assume she's somewhere near the Shetlands now. The point is, signal 'A' orders her to be in a position off Alesund by midnight. What do you think of that?"

Gracie shivered as if someone had walked over his grave.

"The object, you see, is to suggest a situation that requires all available Missile boats to be alerted and ordered to special positions. That should impart a touch of realism, don't you think?"

He didn't wait for Gracie to reply. "The second signal." He took it off the desk. "This one — is marked 'B.' When you receive it, we'll go to periscope depth. I want you to receive it at twenty-one twenty-nine. I've penciled that in below the date-time group. Got that?"

"I come off watch at twenty hundred, sir," said the telegraphist. "Cartwright will be on twenty to twenty-two hundred."

"I've thought of that. You must tell Cartwright — once you've got the first signal — that you're going to remain on watch for the time being. Important occasion, you know. Tell him you'll send for him when you want to be relieved. D'you understand?"

The young man nodded slowly. "Yes, sir."

"Good! Now signal 'B': like signal 'A' it's addressed to Retaliate, Massive and Deterrent. It's commendably brief." There it was again, that impersonal smile. "It orders the first degree of missile readiness." Shadde spoke so quickly that Gracie could hardly follow. "That'll impart more reality to the exercise. It'll be interesting to see how the crew react to what they believe to be the real thing. Buck up their ideas a bit."

He jumped up, folded the signals and handed them to Gracie. "Put these in your pocket, Gracie. Mustn't be seen carrying them. You've been in here discussing W/T refit matters. Got that?"

"I have, sir."

"One final thing, Grade. When that first signal has been received and the word has got around" — his eyes were mysterious—"keep a sharp lookout for odd behavior. See what I'm getting at?" "Yes, sir."

From the captain's cabin Gracie went for a minute to the W/T office, then on to look for Symington.

"So it's tonight, is it?" Symington was thoughtful. "Jolly time we'll have." The CPO telegraphist looked worried. "I'll say, sir." "First signal comes about nineteen thirty, and the next about twenty-one thirty?" "That's right, sir."

"And we're to reach the position in the Skagerrak at midnight?" "That's what the captain said, sir. Uh, one thing, sir." The navigating officer's left eyebrow lifted. "Yes, Gracie." "Now that you know about the signals… what will you do?" Symington shook his head. "Leave that to me. Don't worry."

When Gracie had gone, Symington went to the wardroom. It was nearly five o'clock. He was anxious to talk to the first lieutenant, but he would have to wait until Cavan came off watch.

Soon after half past five Shadde made another visit to the bridge. He was cheerful and communicative and there was no trace of the gloom of recent weeks. The coast of Sweden was out of sight now and they were well into the Skagerrak, pitching and rolling. To the west lightning played against the horizon.

Using binoculars, Shadde made a careful examination of everything in sight. Then, after studying the chart for some time, he said, "Ask the control room for a line of soundings."

The first lieutenant went to the voice pipe and asked for the soundings while Shadde's finger beat a tattoo on the chart table.

"Tell them to shake it up." His voice was impatient.

"Stand by," said Cavan. He looked at the captain and Shadde nodded. The first lieutenant repeated the soundings as they came up the voice pipe: "122–120—123—126–126—128—130—"

"That'll do." Shadde rejoined Cavan at the front of the bridge. "I see we're to alter course to the southwest at eighteen forty. Who relieves you at eighteen hundred?"

"Weddy, sir."

Shadde's voice went on. "Lot of cloud about. Might be a storm."

"Yes, sir, looks like it."

"Glass is dropping slowly but it doesn't make any odds." The captain looked aft. "We're in deep water now. We'll dive at twenty hundred. I'm all for a quiet night."

Out of the corner of his eye Cavan looked at Shadde's rugged face. If he's acting, thought the first lieutenant, he's certainly shooting a hell of a convincing line.

The captain went below and the rest of the watch passed quickly. At six o'clock Weddy took over.

Cavan had just taken off his jersey and begun to wash when there was a knock on his cabin door. Symington came in and looked at him coolly. "Skipper's handed the signals to Grade."

Cavan stopped in the middle of toweling his face. Why he was so surprised he couldn't imagine. He'd been expecting this all day, and yet it hit him now like an open hand. Perhaps because of Shadde's remark about diving for a quiet night.

"Good God! He has, has he? Any details?"

When Symington had told him of Grade's report Cavan said, "A stickler for realism, isn't he? Reversing our course for a few hours will cost the British taxpayer a quid or two."

"Odd business, isn't it?" Symington shook his head. "But he's an odd chap, let's face it."

"I asked Shepherd," said the engineer officer, "and he says he gave the other piece to Finney in the steering compartment the day before sailing from Stockholm. Said he tore it in two and gave one piece to Kyle and the other to Finney. To wipe their hands."

Mr. Buddington rubbed his chin. "Very interesting. Did Shepherd seem at all… er. . put out when you asked him?"

"No, he did not."

"I think we're getting somewhere at last." The watery eyes turned away shyly. "Would you mind making another small inquiry for me? Ask Finney what he did with his piece?"

The metallic clatter of the teleprinter stopped for a moment and the carriage slid back to the left; then the keys rat-tat-tatted to life again and in their wake followed the date-time group.

Gracie tore the paper off against the cutter bar. Before logging the signal he looked again at the unfamiliar address and prefix groups and the precedence and security classifications. In the wardroom the officers were at dinner, with the first lieutenant at the head of the table. Gracie went up to him.

"Beg your pardon, sir. Emergency signal for deciphering."

Keely got up and took it. "I'll whack it through, sir."

The first lieutenant's face was drawn. "Yes," he said. "Do that." He looked to see how Rhys Evans, Symington and O'Shea were taking it. None of them seemed happy.

Keely, at the cryptograph, whistled softly. "NATO ops signal from FOS. Wonder what's cooking?" He knocked on the door and went into the captain's cabin.

"What is it?" snapped the captain. As he read the signal, the bushy eyebrows lifted. "I'm going to the control room. Tell the navigating officer I want him there."

When Symington got to the chart table Shadde showed him the signal. "Read that," he said in a strained voice.

Big act, thought Symington, but he noticed that Shadde's hands were shaking. The signal was from FOS/M addressed to Retaliate, Massive, Deterrent, repeated SACLANT[2] and NATO and Admiralty.

It read:

Retaliate to position 58°30′ N: 09°52′ E by midnight Stop Massive to clear Oslo by 2030 and to position 58°50′ N: 10°12′ E by midnight Stop Deterrent to position 62°40′ N: 03°00′ E by midnight Stop Proceed submerged and with dispatch Stop Execute

"Very interesting, sir." Symington had to say something.

"Give me course and speed to reach that position by midnight."

Symington got busy with the dividers and parallel rulers, and Shadde switched on the fathometer. He watched the trace for a moment and then went to the W/T office and told Grade to make a diving signal to FOS/M. "Diving time nineteen forty-one. Surfacing twenty-two hundred."

"Aye, aye, sir."

Shadde dropped his voice. "Did you go through the motions of acknowledging that FOS signal?"

"Yes, sir."

Back in the control room, Shadde called into the voice pipe, "Bridge!"

Weddy's voice came back at once. "Control room!"

"Diving stations… clear the bridge! Open main vents!" Shadde barked. The klaxon sounded and the crew went into diving routine.

"Take her down to two hundred feet," ordered Shadde.

The submarine's bow slanted down and the slow pitch and roll ceased as she dived to the calm water below the surface.

"What's that course, Symington?" Shadde was irritable.

"Zero-five-one, sir," the navigating officer said quietly.

The captain looked at the coxswain: "What are you steering?"

"Two-four-six, sir."

"What speed, Symington? Come on! Shake it up!"

"About eight knots, sir. If we turn now."

Shadde's fingers tapped on the table. "What time's it dark?"

"Sunset's at twenty forty, sir. Nautical twilight ends at twenty-three fifty-eight."

"Dark at midnight. Good." Shadde stared at him. "When should we alter course if we're to be forty miles from the midnight position two hours before dark?"

"Forty miles away, two hours before dark." Symington worked at the chart while Shadde watched. "There's the point of turn, sir, off Kristiansand. We'll reach it at twenty-one hundred."

"And the course from there to the midnight position?"

Symington put the parallel ruler against the penciled course line and rolled it across to the compass rose. "Zero-six-one, sir."

"Good! We'll alter to zero-six-one at twenty-one hundred." Shadde penciled the time and course on the chart. "Now," he said, "how far is the nearest land from the midnight position?"

With one leg of the dividers on the midnight position, Symington swung the free leg until it just touched the Norwegian coast at Risor off Sandness Fjord. He transferred the dividers to the latitude scale and said, "A fraction under twenty-four miles, sir."

"I see," said Shadde. "And at two hours to darkness?"

Symington was puzzled. "Two hours to darkness?"

"Yes, yes." Shadde frowned. "Two hours before midnight. You know, forty miles away from the midnight position. How far off the land then?"

"Here, sir. Thirteen point eight miles off Homboro light."

"Hm. Good position for a radar fix. We'll surface off Homboro at twenty-two hundred." He went over to the first lieutenant and saw that the depth gauges were showing two hundred feet. "Trim all right, Number One?"

"Bang on, sir."

"Good! We'll go to periscope depth at twenty hundred — and every half hour after that. For W/T reception."

"Aye, aye, sir."

"Come to my cabin, Number One," Shadde said.

He shut the door behind them. "Tell the officers to keep a sharp lookout for any odd behavior in the next few hours." His eyes held the first lieutenant's in a compelling stare. "Got that?"

"Yes, sir."

"I'll talk over the broadcast shortly. Our saboteur friend may feel a bit queasy then. Might give himself away."

You poor bastard, Cavan thought, looking at the strained face with dark bags under the eyes.

"I've got a hunch he may," went on Shadde. "Now, kindly inform the officers. I'll talk to the crew in ten minutes' time." He rarely used the broadcast. It would be clear to all that these were very special circumstances.

In a few minutes the captain's voice sounded throughout the submarine. "This is the captain speaking. I want to tell you about a signal we've received from Flag Officer Submarines. It's a NATO operational order and requires us to be at a position in Bohus Bay, off Sandness Fjord, by midnight. It also orders Massive to clear Oslo by twenty thirty and reach a position about twenty miles north of ours by midnight. Finally, it orders Deterrent to a position off Alesund by midnight." He sounded tense. "Orders of this sort suggest that an unusual situation may be developing. But there's nothing to be gained by conjecture, so don't indulge in it."

The captain cleared his throat. "To arrive by midnight in the position assigned to us, we'll alter course to o-six-one at twenty-one hundred. That'll more or less reverse our present course. We'll continue at twenty knots, and go to periscope depth for W/T purposes at half-hour intervals. At twenty-two hundred we'll surface for a few moments off the Homboro light on the Norwegian coast. I'll keep you informed of any further developments. That is all."

All over the submarine the captain's broadcast was the burning topic of conversation. Conjecture, of course, was rife. A theory which found a good deal of, favor was that this was an exercise laid on by bored staffs at NATO headquarters anxious to justify their existence. Another, less widely held, was that an ultimatum of some sort was due to expire at midnight, and that this stationing of the Missile-class submarines was a precaution in case the balloon went up. But underlying the conjecture there was a rumbling of displeasure because of the threat to arrangements for leaves, and the ears of FOS/M's and NATO's staffs would have burned had they heard what was said about them.

Soon after half past eight Symington went to Cavan's cabin for a hurried consultation. It was their first opportunity since the captain's broadcast.

"Have to make it snappy," Cavan said. "Skipper's on the prowl. Let's have a quick recap. The skipper's given two signals to Gracie. The first's been received" — he drawled the word—"and the second's due at about twenty-one thirty. So the exercise is launched. By the way, what did you think of the broadcast?"

Symington shrugged his shoulders. "Very good. And you?"

Cavan made a circle with his thumb and index finger. "Superb!"

"He sounded excited, I thought."

"Probably is exciting for him. Don't forget he's the principal actor in this little drama."

Symington folded his arms. "And his motives now, Number One?"

"Ah! The sixty-four-thousand-dollar question. Well, we know he intends to shake up the ship's company and that he knows that Kyle's not the saboteur. Apparently he believes the exercise may produce…"

"That's moonshine," Symington said. "Why would a saboteur give himself away because he's suddenly confronted with what Shadde calls the real thing? Doesn't begin to make sense."

"Couldn't agree more, George. But everybody, including Shadde, keeps quoting it as one of his motives. Anyway, we've done the right thing."

"We?" said Symington dryly. "That's rich."

Cavan frowned. George was getting too big for his boots.

At nine o'clock the captain went into the control room and course was altered to 061°. Two minutes later the submarine came to periscope depth, and after a careful sweep around the horizon Shadde reported rain and poor visibility. Soon afterward they returned to two hundred feet.

It was past nine o'clock that night when the engineer officer told Mr. Buddington that Finney said he had thrown his piece of silk over the side in Stockholm harbor soon after they had finished working in the steering compartment.

"Threw it over the side?" Mr. Buddington said. "That's interesting. Could you take him down to the steering compartment? I'll be there waiting for you." The little man was eager now, like a terrier after the bone. Rhys Evans looked puzzled, but he nodded.

Mr. Buddington was indeed waiting for them. The chief came in first, followed by a fresh-faced young man with blue eyes set wide apart. When he saw the air-conditioning man from the Admiralty, the blue eyes showed surprise.

"This is Engineering Mechanic Finney." Evans sounded bleak. He liked Finney and wasn't happy about the situation that seemed to be developing.

"Ah!" said Mr. Buddington. "Perhaps he can help me."

"Aye, sir. If I can." Finney smiled.

Mr. Buddington produced the oil-stained gray silk. "It's about this," he said apologetically. "Have you seen it before?"

"Yes, sir. That's a piece of Chief Shepherd's gray silk." Finney's eyes sought the engineer officer's. "Like the bit you asked me about just now, sir."

Rhys Evans nodded gloomily.

"There were two pieces, sir," the stoker explained. "The chief gave me one an' Kyle the other, for wiping our hands. Threw me piece over the side in Stockholm, sir." He seemed quite happy and confident, and Rhys Evans felt that the man from the Admiralty didn't quite know what to make of it. Mr. Buddington just stood there wiping his glasses with a silk handkerchief. When he had finished, he put them on again very slowly and carefully. "You're lying, you know, Finney, and that's a great pity."

The stoker smiled. "It's no lie, sir. That's the truth."

"I wish it was," said Mr. Buddington mournfully. "It would make my task much easier. Now see here, Finney," he said, and his voice made it clear that he wasn't going to stand any nonsense. "Since you won't tell the truth, I'm going to tell it for you." The watery eyes moved from Finney to Rhys Evans and back. "The afternoon before sailing from Stockholm you and Kyle, with Chief Shepherd, worked on the port ram of the steering gear. Right?"

"Yes, sir."

"And the next day Retaliate was in a collision because her steering gear jammed in the hard-aport position. Yes?"

"Yes, sir."

"Immediately after that, Chief Shepherd was sent down here by Mr. Evans with you and Stokes to see what the trouble was?"

"That's right, sir."

"You found that the steering gear had jammed because the hydraulic fluid had drained out of the port ram cylinder. You all knew that, because you all saw the fluid covering the deck and you saw the drain plug lying there. Am I right?"

"Quite right, sir," said Finney.

"But you, Finney, saw something else. Something which the others didn't see. You saw the brass locknut lying there, the lock-nut which you were supposed to have tightened the day before."

Mr. Buddington's voice softened. "Then you got a terrible fright. You realized that you had forgotten to tighten the lock-nut, that it had fallen off, that the drain plug had turned in its slot as the steering gear worked, until it too fell off." Mr. Buddington sighed. "For your information, Finney, that must have taken about ten minutes. Then the fluid leaked out and the steering gear jammed. The collision took place a minute afterward."

Mr. Buddington blew his nose. "You realized all that in a flash, Finney, and then you did a very foolish thing. You picked up the locknut and hid it in the gray silk you had in your hand. Your last act was to push the piece of silk behind that cluster of pipes."

All the color had gone out of Finney's face, but he still shook his head. "Could be what happened, sir, but it wasn't me. I threw me silk over the side. That bit there must've bin Kyle's."

"No, Finney. It's not Kyle's. His piece is here." He pulled it out of his pocket. "It fits exactly here where Chief Shepherd tore it. See? Now if your piece had been thrown over the side we'd only have one half, wouldn't we? And that, Finney" — Mr. Buddington's eyes were mournful—"is why I knew you were lying."

Finney's face collapsed and he started to sob. To Evans' surprise Mr. Buddington went over and patted him on the shoulder. "Come, come, Finney. You were foolish, but it's not the end of the world. You got a bad fright because your mistake had very serious consequences. Then you tried to protect yourself, but you did it the wrong way. It's always better to tell the truth. But never mind, lad. It won't go too badly with you."

Finney shook his head, his arm still over his eyes.

"Carry on with your watch now, Finney," said the engineer officer. "We'll deal with this in the morning."

When he had gone, Rhys Evans said, "How do you know Finney made a mistake? That it wasn't deliberate?"

"Because he has an excellent record and because it's not the way saboteurs go about things. First of all, Shepherd should have checked that the locknut was tight. How could Finney know that Shepherd would forget to make that check? Secondly, the jamming wouldn't have been serious if there hadn't been a steamer in that position at that precise moment. Thirdly, Finney's motive in hiding the locknut was to cover up his mistake by giving the impression that it was sabotage."

When he had punched the second signal onto the tape, Grade fed it into the automatic transmitter. Then he turned the switch from "Antenna" to "Teleprinter," and saw from the clock on the bulkhead that it was 2128. He could hear Shadde's orders in the control room as they came to periscope depth. After the final "Up periscope!" he looked at the clock again, and at 2129 he switched on the transmitter and watched the teleprinter type the incoming signal onto the moving roll of paper.

It was, as the captain had said, commendably brief. The priority address and prefix groups were followed by only six cipher groups and then, in plain language, "Acknowledge" and the date-time group.

After he had logged it, he took it to Keely. "Signal for deciphering, sir. Same address and prefix groups as the last." Keely almost snatched it from his hand.

In the control room Shadde was standing by the periscope well, and the first lieutenant was behind the diving-plane operators. The depth-gauge needles were moving. . 140. . 150. . 165… as they went deeper.

In the wardroom Keely muttered, "My God, this is getting serious."

"Indeed," Symington said coldly, and he trembled.

Shadde came in from the control room and went to his cabin.

" 'Assume first-degree missile readiness,'" Keely read in a hoarse whisper. He knocked on the captain's door. "Signal, sir. Emergency — operational.' '

Shadde took the signal, his hands shaking. "Tell the first lieutenant and the gunnery officer to see me at once."

When they arrived, Shadde passed the signal to Weddy. "Read that." He stared at Cavan, then at the gunnery officer. Weddy's eyebrows lifted. "Something serious on the go, sir?"

There was a steady one-two, one-two beat from Shadde's fingers on the desk. "Looks like it." He frowned at Weddy. "Means four missiles to be ready at three minutes' notice, doesn't it? What does that involve?"

The gunnery officer's face was pale. "We'll prime one and two in the starboard bank, sir, and fifteen and sixteen in the port bank. Activate their inertial-guidance systems, and couple them to the fire control."

Shadde's tense face was working. "Anything else?"

"Yes, sir. We'll have to build up pressures in the launching tubes, and check the ignition and control circuits on the motors and on the warheads and launching gear." He looked at Cavan. "And, of course, Number One will have to check the firing-plunger circuit."

Cavan's eyes flickered. "Of course," he said quickly.

The captain's eyes burned into Weddy. "How long'll that lot take?"

"Under ten minutes, sir."

"Get cracking." Shadde's voice was dry and husky.

Shortly afterward Shadde and Cavan heard Weddy broadcast: "Missile launching parties, close up."

Shadde smiled at the first lieutenant, a humorless smile with a shade of malice. "So much for your judgment, Number One."

"What was that, sir?"

"You couldn't believe Retaliate would ever be used in earnest." There was a note of elation in his voice. Cavan thought, Wait, my friend. We'll see whose judgment was at fault.

For the second time that night the crew heard the captain's voice over the broadcast. He spoke with great urgency and barely suppressed excitement. "We've just received a second NATO operational signal from FOS. It's very brief. It orders Retaliate, Massive and Deterrent to assume the first degree of missile readiness. This requires us to be ready to launch four missiles at three minutes' notice. The missile parties are now preparing numbers one and two and fifteen and sixteen."

Again there was that hard, dry cough, and then the voice resumed, "It's evident that our three boats wouldn't have received these orders unless a most unusual situation was developing. However, I would like to make it very clear" — he emphasized the words— "that the order to assume the first degree of readiness is normally a precautionary measure. It does not mean that we will launch missiles, although that's a possibility which can't be excluded."

He paused dramatically. "As I told you earlier, we'll surface for a few minutes at twenty-two hundred for navigational purposes. That will be in approximately twenty-three minutes' time. I'll keep you informed of any further developments. In the meantime, keep calm. . don't listen to rumors. . concentrate on your duties. That is all."

While Shadde was speaking the first lieutenant had opened the test panel on the firing pedestal and gone through the motions of testing the circuit. "Firing-plunger circuit tested and correct, sir," he reported to Shadde.

A few minutes after the second broadcast the doctor went to the captain's cabin to report that Lieutenant Musgrove had collapsed in the reactor control room. He had been taken to his cabin, and the doctor had attended to him there.

"What caused the collapse?" snapped Shadde.

The doctor shrugged his shoulders. "Difficult to say, sir. Your announcement about the missile state of readiness must have triggered it off. He probably collapsed from sheer fright. . that's shock. When I revived him he was incoherent and babbling."

Shadde paced up and down the small cabin. "My God! What an officer! If that made him pass out, what the hell would he do in real trouble? Incredible! What have you done with him?"

"Given him a sedative. He'll sleep for a long time."

"Sure he's not putting on an act?"

The doctor watched the captain carefully to see the reaction. "Quite sure, sir. His nerve broke under stress."

Shadde looked as if he had been slapped in the face. His chin went up and he gave the doctor a furious stare. O'Shea braced himself for an outburst. But it never came; instead Symington's voice crackled in the speaker. "Captain to the control room. Twenty-two hundred, sir."

"Very good," Shadde called back. "I'm coming through."

Hurriedly he pulled on seaboots and an oilskin and went through to the control room. He checked with the asdic operator; there were no ships in the area. He called, "Diving stations." The order was passed on the broadcast and the crew quickly went to stations. "Forty feet!" rapped out Shadde.

The diving-plane operators turned their wheels and the forepart of the submarine began to lift. "Up periscope!" Shadde took a quick sweep around the horizon. "Stand by to surface."

"Stand by to surface! Shut main vents!" called the first lieutenant. There were muffled thuds as the vents were closed.

"Surface!" barked Shadde.

"Blow main ballast!" called the first lieutenant.

The diving planes were put to hard arise and there was the hissing of high-pressure air expanding into the ballast tanks. The signalman opened the clips on the lower hatch and Shadde lifted his big body up the conning-tower ladder.

The submarine began to move about in the seaway as she broke surface. Shadde released the clips on the upper hatch, swung it open and climbed out onto the bridge, followed by the lookouts, the signalman and the officer of the watch.

A steepish sea was running. The plunging bow threw spray back across the bridge; this and the rain and the lowering clouds which darkened the northern twilight made the visibility less than a mile. Above the men on the bridge, the radar scanner was searching the horizon, providing the control room data for the reports of bearings and distances of ships and the land.

Lookouts were posted, but the navigation lights were not switched on. Position data was checked and reestablished on the Ship's Inertial Navigation System and computers; lastly, a diving signal was made to FOS/M. Not many minutes after she had surfaced Retaliate was back at two hundred feet, and course was set to reach the position in Bohus Bay.

One hour before midnight Gracie was called to the captain's cabin. Shadde was pacing like a caged tiger, but he was beaming. "Splendid, Gracie! You've done a magnificent job. Quite remarkable! The exercise is a roaring success!"

The hollow-ringed eyes were bright with excitement. "Thanks to you, Gracie, there's not a man on board who doesn't believe that a most serious situation is developing. Except for us, of course. The whole crew faced with what they think is the real thing. It's first-class experience. Magnificent training!"

Gracie hadn't said a word. He just stood there waiting.

"There's one thing needed to complete the exercise. A third signal!" Shadde's eyes flashed. "Here it is. . You'll receive it at five minutes to midnight. I've marked the precedence 'flash' this time. We'll go to periscope depth at twenty-three fifty-five."

There was a deep sigh and an upward jerk of the captain's head. "This third signal will crown a remarkable performance. End on a dramatic note." Shadde laughed gaily. "After that— we'll turn for home, and I'll tell the crew over the broadcast what it was all about." His face turned somber again. "Shan't leave it at that, though. I'll draw attention to the lessons learned. And they'll be considerable, I can assure you. Now that's all, Gracie. Once again, congratulations on a first-class performance."

"Thank you, sir," Gracie said uneasily. Then he left the cabin and went straight to Symington to tell him that the captain had given him a third signal — contents unknown.

At five minutes to midnight the submarine went once more to periscope depth, and down in the W/T office Gracie sat with hunched shoulders as the third signal came through. He took it to the control room. Shadde was at the periscope and near him stood Symington and Keely, who were about to take over the watch. Gracie answered Symington's questioning look with an almost imperceptible nod. He handed the signal to Keely.

Keely looked at it and his eyes bulged when he spoke to the captain. "Signal, sir. 'Flash' precedence."

Shadde stiffened, then said: "Decipher it at once."

The sublieutenant went quickly to the wardroom.

Keely noticed that this time the address groups did not include Massive and Deterrent. When he read the deciphered message he felt as if he'd been kicked in the pit of his stomach.

"Execute Thunderbolt four repeat Thunderbolt four at 0010 repeat 0010 Stop Targets KPF 18/19 repeat KPF 18/19 Stop Thereafter retire into the North Sea Stop Guard this channel at each hour Stop Acknowledge"

The wardroom clock showed two minutes to midnight. Pale and excited, Keely ran back and thrust the signal into the captain's hands. "It's to execute Thunderbolt, sir," he said huskily.

The red glow of the control-room lights accentuated Shadde's hawklike appearance as he went to the broadcast to call Cavan, Gallagher and Weddy to his cabin.

When he spoke to the three officers his voice quivered. "Gentlemen, read this quickly, please. There's little time to spare." He handed the signal to Gallagher, and the three men read it.

There was a tense silence, and then Gallagher said, "That's certainly something."

Weddy had been expecting this ever since the order to assume the first degree of readiness. All the same he had a tight, dry feeling in his throat, and thoughts of his mother crowded out everything else. He hoped fervently that she wasn't in London.

Shadde questioned them abruptly. "Well, gentlemen? Do you agree the import of the signal? Four Polaris missiles to be launched at ten minutes past midnight?"

Weddy felt slightly dazed, but he nodded with the others.

Shadde ran his fingers across the open page of a black code book. "Target coordinates, KPF eighteen and nineteen. Here they are: KPF eighteen — naval base and dockyard, Kronstadt." He looked up. "Thank God it's a military target." Then his finger moved on. "KPF nineteen — industrial complex, Leningrad. See that, gentlemen, do you? Those are our targets."

With quick, jerky movements he marked the target coordinates with a pencil and handed the book to Weddy. "Two-sector spread on both. You'll find all the data there. Look sharp! Get that onto your computers right away. It's already midnight! We've got ten minutes! Sound off missile launching stations, Number One."

In the control room Cavan turned the wheel on the alarm panel until the pointer stopped at "Missile Launching Stations." While the clamor of the buzzers vibrated throughout the submarine, the crew hurried to their stations. Some men looked calm and normal, but most showed alarm, many of them fear. Shadde ordered a shift from automatic to hand steering and depth keeping. The scene was one of intense activity, and reports poured in from the missile attack center and the missile control room and launching area.

The clock above the chart table showed 0002—two minutes past midnight. Shadde ordered Symington to plot the firing position at 0010, and Keely to pass the data to the attack center. Then he was back at the broadcast, his voice hoarse. "This is the captain. We've just received a NATO 'flash' message." He paused, and there wasn't a sound except the crackling of the loudspeaker and Shadde's breathing. "We're to launch four Polaris missiles at ten minutes past midnight. That's in about six minutes. The targets are Kronstadt, Russia's principal naval base, and the industrial area around Leningrad. These are about twenty-five miles apart."

Shadde paused and cleared his throat. "Range from the firing position to the targets will be about seven hundred and fifty miles. That means our warheads should reach them about three minutes after firing. Immediately after launching we'll go deep, and retire into the North Sea at maximum speed and await further orders."

Again he stopped, and his listeners wondered what there was left to say. There was a dreadful, numbing finality about what they had heard that left little to the imagination. But the captain went on, his voice rising with what might have been exultation. "I'd like to remind you that in these waters the Royal Navy once broke the power of a mighty alliance which threatened England. Nelson's victory at Copenhagen smashed the confederacy of Prussia, Denmark, Sweden and. . Russia. We are about to do for England what Nelson did at Copenhagen." He paused. "May we do it as well. That is all. God bless you." This wasn't the cold, calm Shadde the crew was used to; the occasion had choked him with emotion.

Symington tapped the doctor on the shoulder. O'Shea turned from watching Shadde and saw Symington's eyebrows raised in silent question. He gave the slightest of shrugs and shook his head.

Though the broadcasts had prepared the crew to some extent, Shadde's last statement came as a profound shock. This was it; the much talked about, much prepared for, it-can't-happen-here nuclear war with Russia had started. There were thoughts of wives and children and parents and girl friends, of homes in towns and villages and countryside. And unspeakable, inadmissible nightmares about what might already be happening in England.

Keely touched the captain on the arm. "Attack center reports missiles ready for launching, sir." The sublieutenant's face was bathed in perspiration and his eyes seemed larger than usual.

"Very good," said Shadde. "Confirm firing time — o-o-ten— six and a half minutes to go."

The night's events had shattered Mr. Buddington. It was now unmistakably clear to this intelligent and unbelligerent little man that he was caught in the van of a nuclear war. His thoughts flew to the little house near the river where Mrs. Buddington and Annabelle and Rosemary lived. Life had been good to Mr. Buddington, and he was blessed with its greatest gift: utter contentment with his wife, his daughters, his home and his work. But now, in five minutes, this submarine would fire four Polaris missiles on Russian targets, and he had no illusions about what that would mean.

Sick with anxiety, he sought the company of someone with whom he could talk. One look into the buzzing control room, however, made it clear that nothing could be done there. Then he thought of Rhys Evans — calm, friendly, sound as a drum. Mr. Buddington sped aft to the engine room. There was the engineer officer standing on the control platform, surrounded by a maze of machinery, the main turbines purring rhythmically below him. Mr. Buddington raised his voice above the sound of the machinery. "I'm sorry to worry you, but I feel I must speak to someone."

Rhys Evans nodded, smiling. "Certainly, Mr. Buddington."

"You see," panted the little man, "I'm gravely concerned about my wife and children in London."

"Indeed, and who is not worried, Mr. Buddington?"

"Nuclear war with Russia," he stammered. "May already have started."

"Better not to think of that," said Rhys Evans.

"Impossible not to." Mr. Buddington's eyes rolled. "What happens when a missile's fired? Is there a loud explosion?"

Evans shook his head. "No explosion. It's fired from the launching tube by compressed air. No sound unless you're in the launching compartment. Rocket motor doesn't ignite until it's clear of the water. Nothing to be heard of that either, down here."

"So there's no noise?" Mr. Buddington said with relief.

"Little enough, anyway. When the launching tubes flood, just after the missiles have gone, you'll hear the roar of water and the hiss of escaping air. They're flooded automatically to keep the trim on the boat. We'd pop up like a cork otherwise."

Mr. Buddington was not listening now. Annabelle and Rosemary were running down the garden path toward him. "Daddy! Daddy!" they were calling. With a heavy heart he turned away.

For the two stewards this was a deadly time of watching and waiting; at least the other crew members had duties to perform which distracted their attention, but not these two. All they had to do was to stand by in the wardroom, on immediate call. Target picked his teeth with a match, his eyes on the wardroom clock. "O-o-o-four," he said. "Six minutes to go."

Miller nodded. "Glad I ain't a flippin' steward serving gin in Kronstadt."

Target eyed him. "'Ave the Commies got wardrooms?"

"Sure to 'ave. They got officers, ain't they?"

There was a long silence. Target blew his nose. He looked utterly miserable. "Bit of a cold," he explained.

"That's right," said Miller absently.

Another long pause was broken by Target. "These Polaris jobs doesn't 'alf nip along. Hear what the skipper said? Seven 'undred and fifty miles in three minutes."

Miller sighed. "It'll be flippin' lights-out in Kronstadt."

"Flippin' lights-out for the 'ole world. Mark my words."

The clock over the chart table showed 0005: five minutes past midnight. Tension in the control room was mounting. The faces of the men at their stations were strained and apprehensive. A constant stream of reports flowed in and voices rose and fell above the hum of the main turbines and the chattering of the instruments.

Suddenly came an urgent report from the asdic operator: "H.E. dead ahead, sir! Fast twin screws. Range about two miles. Closing at about twenty knots. Bearing steady, sir!"

In a quick movement Shadde was at the plot. He nudged Symington. "Bloody thing's on our firing course." His voice was husky and anxious.

The navigating officer did some rapid mental arithmetic. "If our combined speeds are forty knots, we're closing at the rate of about a mile every one and a half minutes, sir. In three minutes we'll meet. When we reach the firing position at o-o-ten we'll be about one and a half miles past him."

"Thank God for that," snapped Shadde. "Now, soundings, please."

"Aye, aye, sir." Symington switched on the fathometer. When the trace appeared he started calling: "307–305—306—306. ."

"That'll do," said Shadde.

Keely reported, "Missile control wants to know what time the launching caps should be opened, sir."

Shadde looked at the clock. "In two and a half minutes' time. Distance to the firing position, Symington?"

Symington was ready for the question. "Twenty-two hundred yards, sir."

When the clock showed six and a half minutes past midnight, Shadde snapped, "Wake up, Keely! Give the attack center and missile control the three-and-one-half-minute standby."

From the chart table Symington and the doctor kept a covert watch on Shadde. There was only one thought in their minds: Would he use the firing plunger? Normally his demeanor on duty was calm, but tonight he seemed restless and excited. All part of the act, the doctor said to himself, and then his thoughts were interrupted by Symington's voice. "Eleven hundred yards to the firing position. Three minutes to go, sir."

Through his headphones Keely heard: "Inspection hatches on launching tubes shut." He repeated the message to the captain.

"Good," said Shadde. "Revolutions for four knots," and his tone was sharp. "Stand by to open launching caps!"

The sublieutenant repeated the order to missile control and then reported to the captain, "Attack center reports all checks and lineups complete, sir. Ready for launching."

"Very good," said Shadde.

"Seven hundred and fifty yards to the firing position — two and a half minutes to go." Symington wondered how his voice could sound so calm and clear.

Shadde looked at the clock. "Give the attack center the two-and-a-half-minute standby."

"Launching area cleared. Watertight doors shut," said Keely.

Symington reported: "Speed nine and a half knots, sir."

"Open launching caps." Shadde's voice was dry and hoarse.

Standing by the trim control panel the first lieutenant tried to concentrate on the depth gauges, but all his senses were keyed to what Shadde was doing and saying.

"Revolutions for ten knots." Now Symington sounded shrill. The note of the main turbines rose to a higher pitch.

"Four hundred and twenty-five yards to the firing position, sir — one and a half minutes to go!"

Shadde's voice sounded peculiar; it had a sort of hoarse tremble. "Control officers to the firing pedestal."

The first lieutenant joined Gallagher at the pedestal. Then Weddy came in from his post in the attack center. With quick strides Shadde reached them. He opened the stainless-steel door on the pedestal and the four control dials reflected back the red glow of the lights. Shadde leaned down and turned the top dial several times. When he straightened up, there was no mistaking the excitement in his voice as he said, "Put on your control settings."

Cavan quickly set the second dial, Weddy the third, and finally Gallagher bent down. There was a slight delay while the American put his setting on the bottom dial with calm concentration.

Shadde was irritated. "Quickly please, Gallagher."

The American stood up. "O.K., Captain. All settings on now."

Weddy raced back to the attack center and Shadde to the plot. Cavan was at the trim control panel again, and Gallagher remained by the pedestal. The clock snowed nine minutes past midnight.

"Two hundred and ninety-five yards to the firing position — one minute to go, sir!"

He's feeling the strain, the doctor thought, as he listened to Symington's voice.

Symington jerked upright. "One hundred and sixty-five yards to go. . thirty seconds, sir!"

The doctor looked across at the captain. Beads of perspiration had run down Shadde's face, leaving shiny streaks. The eyes were wide and staring and the facial muscles never stopped working. The tousled black hair was moist with sweat. As O'Shea watched, Shadde shouted to Keely, "Start the telemeter count!"

The first strike of the firing gong sounded, strident and chilling. The count had started. All eyes watched the repeater over the pedestal. At each second the gong struck and the figure in the repeater changed, showing the number of seconds to launching.

Gong!… 10 Gong!… 9 Gong!… 8

With a quick sideways thrust Shadde brushed Gallagher out of the way and put both hands on the T-piece of the firing plunger. He watched the repeater with fierce concentration.

How he's loving it, thought the first lieutenant. Every silly, overacted, dramatic bloody second of it!

But O'Shea was reacting differently. He was looking at Shadde's eyes and all he could think was, Those eyes! My God! Those eyes!

Gong!… 5 Gong!… 4 Gong!… 3 Gong!… 2

Symington's voice shrilled: "On! On! On!"

With a heave of his shoulders Shadde pushed the firing plunger away from him, away and across the full travel of the metal arc until the pointer came to a quivering stop under the word "Fire."

There was a stunned silence in the control room. From the launching area the loudspeaker relayed the same shrill whistle of high-frequency sound, the hiss of escaping air and the whirr of compressors. There was no change in trim, no sound of the flooding of the launching tubes. Nothing had happened.

Frantically Shadde seized the plunger, wrenched it back across the arc to the "Off" position and then rammed it across to "Fire" again. Still nothing happened.

With wild eyes he turned to Keely. "What's the delay? What's happened?" Lunging at the astonished sublieutenant he wrenched the headset away. "Give it to me, you dumb idiot!" Then he roared into it, "Weddy! Attack center! What's the delay? I've depressed the plunger twice! Order them to fire, man! Order them to fire!" There was hysteria in his voice and he waved his arms.

The first lieutenant dashed past Shadde into the attack center. "Check! Check! Check!" he yelled to Weddy. The gunnery officer pulled off the headset and stared at him in amazement.

"Weddy!" panted Cavan. "There'll be no firing. Those NATO ops signals were bogus! Shadde's off his rocker!"

"But what. .? But why. .? He's depressed the firing plunger!" Weddy stammered.

"The whole thing's a fraud. I'm telling you, man! The signals were bogus! Order missile control to secure!"

"But what about the captain?"

"He's round the bend! Mad as a hatter! I'm taking over command." He tore back into the control room.

Shadde had seen Cavan run through to the attack center and concluded that he'd gone to find out why the missiles hadn't been launched. "What's happened, Number One?" he cried. Perspiration poured from him and his voice cracked.

The first lieutenant stopped a foot away from Shadde and looked him squarely in the face. "Nothing's happened, sir. But there'll be no firing," he said firmly. "Those signals were bogus."

Shadde's eyes seemed to leave their sockets, then he sprang at the first lieutenant with such violence that Cavan, big as he was, fell back against the chart table. "You bloody traitor!" the captain screamed. "This is mutiny! You're under arrest!" He swung around to Allistair. "This officer's under arrest. He's to be confined to his cabin. Coxswain! Assist Lieutenant Allistair!"

Shadde was still clutching Keely's headset, and now he shouted into it, "Weddy! Weddy! In the control room at once!" Then he turned back, and with flaming, incredulous eyes he saw Symington, the doctor, Keely and Cavan slowly closing in on him. "Keep off, d'you hear? You mutinous swine! Interfere with history in the making, would you?" He danced in an excess of rage. "Allistair! Coxswain! Arrest these officers at—"

Before Shadde could finish the sentence Keely made a flying tackle which brought him to the deck, legs pinned; and Cavan, the doctor and Symington piled in. The struggle was fierce and bloody; Shadde was powerful and he lashed out devastatingly with feet and fists. While they fought, he fumed and shouted. "You bloody traitors! Betray England, would you! Wait for the court-martial! Aah!. . aa!" he panted, and lay there gasping for breath.

The sublieutenant was down on the deck, arms locked about Shadde's legs; the first lieutenant sat astride the captain's chest, and the doctor and Symington each pinned an arm to the deck. Shadde turned his head to one side and saw Symington. His eyes rolled. "You. . you. .!" he exploded, and started to struggle again with fresh energy. "Unspeakable little cad! This is your doing… all yours. ." With a groan he relaxed and began to babble incoherently. "Lombok Strait!… Fitzhugh Symington… dogged by that bloody family." For a moment he lay silent; then, his eyes wild and staring, he was off again. "Ah! Nelson. . happy band of brothers! Forgive me, Nelson, forgive me!"

"Take it easy, sir." Cavan's breathless voice was meant to be soothing, but it drove Shadde into another frenzy.

"You're mad… all of you. . wait for the court-martial! Call yourselves Englishmen!. . My God! You've sold her, I tell you. Stupid swine!… I could have brought Russia to her knees. . ended the threat once and for all!. . You stopped me!. . You stopped me!" There was a chilling scream; then he lay back breathless, exhausted by his exertions.

By now others were crowding into the control room. Weddy and Mr. Buddington and Gracie were there and the two stewards. Their faces were agitated and perplexed.

From the beginning Gallagher had watched the astonishing performance with openmouthed wonder, but he had taken no part in it. Now he pushed his way through the circle of men around Shadde. "What's going on?" he asked quietly.

Still sitting astride Shadde and panting for breath, Cavan said, "That can wait. Allistair, look after the boat! Watch the trim! Keep this course and speed." He stopped to regain his breath. "Weddy, close the launching caps. Pump out and get those Polaris run down as quick as you can."

The doctor gasped, "If someone will hold this arm for me, I'll get some morphia and…"

"How dare you!" Shadde interrupted with a shout, and he wrestled again furiously. "Filthy little medico! Don't you try your quackery on me!" Then he went limp, but a moment later he gave a violent heave which nearly unseated the first lieutenant. "Gallagher! Allistair! Coxswain!" He summoned them all in hoarse desperation. "Lend a hand! Pull these men off! Arrest them! They're mutineers! This is. ." His voice trailed away again and he lay back groaning and gasping.

In a few moments O'Shea was back with a syringe. He bared the captain's forearm and with a quick jab injected the morphia while Shadde struggled again to free himself. But it was not long before the drug took effect, and in the middle of a fresh outburst of hysterical rambling he lost consciousness.

The first lieutenant, Keely and the two stewards carried the captain to his cabin and laid him gently on the bunk. With Miller's help, the doctor took off Shadde's uniform coat, shoes, collar and tie. Sadly, O'Shea looked at the unconscious man; he tried to smooth back the thick tangle of hair from the moist forehead. "Poor old chap," he said softly. "You've been through hell, all right." He looked at Miller. "See that he's kept warm. He'll be out for hours. We'll keep him that way until we get to Blockhouse. Then the hospital will take him over."

When the doctor had gone Miller stood over the bunk looking at the strong pale face, blood-smeared and sweating. With a moist cloth he gently wiped the blood marks away; then he stood listening for a while to the labored and irregular breathing, broken from time to time by sobs like those of a tired, sad child.

Miller put two blankets over the captain, and then turned the lights out. At the door he stopped for a moment and looked back. "Blimey, sir," he whispered. "What've they done to you?"

Back in the control room Cavan went to the broadcast and pressed the call push. "This is the first lieutenant. Secure missile launching stations. The captain's had a breakdown and is under the doctor's care. I have assumed command.

"You can't have known that tonight's happenings were, in fact, just an exercise. The so-called NATO operational signals from FOS — which the captain told you about — weren't real signals. They were his idea for an exercise under realistic conditions. But…" Whatever Cavan was going to say, he changed his mind. "You've all, I'm sure, been very worried and concerned. I can only say how sorry I am for that. I must ask you, out of loyalty to the captain — and to the service — not to mention this when you're ashore. Let's do all we can to keep it in this boat" — he cleared his throat—"or at least in the naval family.

"I'll inform FOS by signal of the captain's illness, and we'll alter course for Portsmouth. We should arrive there on Sunday morning. That is all."

Course was altered, and ten minutes later the submarine surfaced and steamed to the southwest at sixteen knots. It had stopped raining, and the northwesterly wind and sea were now abaft the starboard beam. The steady rolling of Retaliate, the gusts of fresh air which blew down into the control room, and the noise of the sea washing along the casing reminded the men below how good it was to be alive in a world at peace.

The next morning after breakfast, when the stewards were finished clearing away, the first lieutenant said: "There are one or two things about last night which I think we should discuss. Bound to be an inquiry and we'd better tie up some of the ends now."

There was the sound of a nervous cough and Mr. Buddington said, "Would you like me to leave, Mr. Cavan?"

"Not at all — but I'd better tell them who you are."

There were exclamations of surprise when Cavan explained, and Weddy asked curiously, "Any clues about the saboteur?"

"There isn't one, gentlemen. There wasn't any sabotage, you see. It was… it was. ." he stammered, "a powerful obsession with your captain. Not that he wasn't perhaps entitled to. . er. . think that." He told them about Finney.

"How is the skipper, poor man?" It was Rhys Evans' mournful voice.

"Still out," said O'Shea. "We'll have to keep him under sedation until we get in."

Gallagher looked at the first lieutenant. "What d'you say we get on with that discussion you mentioned just now?"

Cavan nodded. "We'll do that." He moistened his lips. "Thing is, we must put the best possible face on this for the skipper. But it's going to be difficult after last night."

"I'll say," agreed Gallagher, and he sounded pretty grim.

"I'd better tell you the thing from the beginning," Cavan said. "It started the second day out of Stockholm. . " He told them how Shadde had sent for Grade and set up the bogus signals; that Gracie, worried about the whole idea, had gone to Symington; and, finally, that Symington had come to him.

"I knew this could be damned serious." He looked around at the expectant faces. "The threat to the security measures was fantastic. Shadde's moods had been getting more and more peculiar and. . well" — he held out his hands—"I knew something had to be done. I had to think pretty hard and quick. It was a hell of a responsibility, I don't mind saying."

"Quite," said Symington, and he looked up at the deckhead. The first lieutenant gave him a shrewd look.

"I knew I had to play the thing damned carefully, because otherwise a number of innocent people were going to be in serious trouble. I had to make sure the security measures weren't defeated, and at the same time I had to protect Symington and Gracie. So I hit on this idea of disconnecting the firing circuit." His smugness was obvious to all.

Cavan went on to tell them that he had been to see the doctor to get an opinion of Shadde's mental condition and that consequently he had told Symington how to disconnect the firing plunger, and sent him to ask the doctor about Shadde for himself.

"That stood him in good stead later when the chief bumped into him in the air lock. Didn't it, Symington?" Cavan asked the question with a smile, but there was no amusement in it.

"Brilliant bit of forethought," said Symington dryly.

Lastly, he told them how the doctor had persuaded Rhys Evans to stay silent, and added, "Thank you, Chiefy, for playing ball." But the Welshman seemed not to have heard; he just sat there gloomily, head sunk on his chest.

"You know the rest," Cavan finished. "You saw it happen."

Nobody said anything for a moment, until Gallagher spoke. "Why did you send Symington to break that circuit? Why didn't you do it yourself?"

Cavan nodded. "Good point. You see, if I'd been caught at it, I'd have had no one senior to myself to turn to. By sending Symington it was different. I was always in the background to protect him if it came to a showdown."

"I see," said the American slowly. "And perhaps—"

"What beats me," interrupted Allistair, "is Shadde's motive. Fantastic bloody thing to do."

Cavan looked at the doctor. "Over to you, Doc."

The doctor shook his head. "Nothing that we'd understand. I'm being wise after the event, but Shadde's insane — manic-depressive — with a bit of the compulsive obsessive thrown in, I'd say.", "t "What's a manic-depressive?" asked Weddy's shocked voice.

"In the extreme condition, it's a form of insanity quite often found in people of high ability. Goethe, for example."

"What are the symptoms?"

"Rapid mood swings, from depression to elation. Rapid thinking. . flight of ideas. . overactivity. . overtalkativeness. . sleeplessness. Lots of people have these, but Shadde's have reached psychotic dimensions. He's lost touch with reality. His judgment is gone."

Gallagher puffed a smoke ring. "How did he get that way?"

"Difficult to say. Might be hereditary, or might be childhood trauma. Severe father. . bitchy stepmother, maybe. You'd have to know the family history." Then the doctor told them all he knew about the Lombok Strait business and the captain's other problems. "Shadde was obsessed with the idea that you'd spread that Lombok Strait story in the wardroom," he said to Symington.

Symington was pale. "My father never mentioned the Lombok Strait. He had the highest opinion of Shadde."

The doctor nodded sympathetically. "There's no doubt his condition deteriorated after you joined. Then came the breakup of his marriage and all the other things I've told you about. The car accident was probably the breaking point. Anyway, that's how I see it." He looked toward the captain's cabin. "Poor Shadde. We'll never know the hell he's been through."

"What are his chances of recovery?" Cavan's voice was matter-of-fact.

"Probably not too bad," said the doctor.

Gallagher cut in. "In your Navy, can he be promoted now?"

Cavan shook his head. "Afraid he's had it. Public opinion and Parliament are as sensitive as hell about Polaris — danger of unauthorized firings and that sort of thing. He'll be invalided from the Navy, I imagine. Couldn't be more sorry for him."

"What shakes me," said Weddy, "is what might have happened! All the ifs. If Gracie hadn't told Symington. If Symington hadn't told you, Doc. If you'd reassured Number One beyond all possible doubt that Shadde was sane. And of course the big if. ." He looked around the table. "If the firing plunger hadn't been disconnected. It's pretty frightening to think what might have happened by now."

"Nothing would have happened." Gallagher said it very quietly and simply, but if he had thrown a bomb into the wardroom it wouldn't have caused more surprise.

"Nothing?" said the first lieutenant. "What d'you mean? "

"Those missiles couldn't be fired, anyway."

Cavan's face was blank. "Are you serious?"

"I certainly am."

"Why couldn't they be fired?"

"There's only one setting on that bottom dial that could make the firing circuit alive. The odds against guessing it are seventeen million to one, in case any of you ever think of trying."

"So what?" said Weddy.

"I didn't put it on."

"But I saw you work the dial."

"I put a phony setting on it."

Allistair broke the stunned silence. "What made you do that?"

"Because I knew that firing signal was phony."

There was a challenge in the first lieutenant's voice. "How?"

Gallagher looked at him coolly. "That's a United States secret. We still have a few, I guess."

Cavan pulled at his ear. "Why didn't you say so when Shadde showed it to you? Might have saved that business last night."

"Might have saved Shadde too," said Rhys Evans.

Gallagher's eyes narrowed. "D'you mind waiting a minute? When that firing signal came in on top of the others, I was very interested. I knew it was a phony, all right. It shouted it at me." He knocked the ash off his cigarette. "But I figured that this must be some fancy British idea for putting on a tough exercise. We wouldn't do it in our Navy, but I thought. . well, you know, Royal Navy. . the oldest Navy… maybe they can do it that way. So I just sat and waited. And. . well" — he shrugged his shoulders—"I knew those missiles couldn't go, anyway." He got up out of his chair then and his face looked a bit grayer than usual as he leaned against the pantry hatch with his arms folded across his chest.

They were all looking at him now, but he was watching only the first lieutenant. Gallagher had an odd look on his face, and when he spoke it was to Cavan. "If you're finished," he said, "there's a question I'd like to ask you."

Cavan gave him a dry, unamused smile and said, "Go ahead."

"Why did you get Symington to cut that firing circuit instead of coming to me?" said Gallagher. "I'm the weapons control officer in this outfit. I'm assigned here for the express purpose of preventing unauthorized firings or any violations of security measures. You know that as well as I do, and yet when this situation comes up you keep right away from me. Can you explain that?"

Cavan's face was a bit pale, but he showed no concern.

"I don't much like your tone, Gallagher," he said, "but I understand what you must feel; and since you've asked for an explanation I'll give it to you. I did think of going to you at first. But then I realized this was a Royal Navy affair and we had to settle it our own way. I knew that once the circuit had been broken there was no danger of the missiles being fired.

"My problem was to make sure that nothing could go wrong, and at the same time handle things so that I could protect Gracie and Symington and" — he paused and took a deep breath—"and, of course, the skipper. If I'd come to you I'd have" — he smiled— "I'd have let the side down. Don't you see?"

Gallagher gave him a long, hard look, and then he came away from the pantry hatch and moved close to Cavan. "That's a very moving story, Cavan," he said, "but I'll tell you another one that's pretty sad, too, and it's about your captain." He stopped and there wasn't a sound in the wardroom. "He's quite a man, you know — or was. One of your top submariners. But he's been a pretty sick man lately. O'Shea's filled in the gaps about that, but I guess we've all known for some time now that Shadde's been having a tough time. With the exception of Rhys Evans, though, we haven't done a goddam thing about it… haven't tried to help him in any way or anything like that. . have we?"

The American looked around the wardroom and then turned back to the first lieutenant. "When you heard about those signals, Cavan, you had a pretty shrewd idea your captain was a sick man… so shrewd that you went and explained to O'Shea why you reckoned Shadde might be out of his mind. And O'Shea wasn't prepared to guarantee that he wasn't. Now if you'd come to me then — as you should have — and told me about the signals, I'd have told you how I could put on a phony setting — that is, if you didn't already know, which perhaps you did."

"I certainly did not," said Cavan, and his face was ashen.

"Anyway," went on Gallagher, "we'd have put our heads together and worked out things so that we could have given your captain the help he so badly needed. We knew he was leaving this boat in two days' time. I could have handled this thing so there'd have been no scene in the control room, no humiliation of Shadde in front of his officers and men, no certainty of disgrace and dismissal from the service."

He stopped and looked around at the puzzled, embarrassed faces. "I hope you gentlemen don't think that I'm presuming on your hospitality," he said. "I know I am, so to speak, a guest in this boat, but I've got a bit of a conscience about your captain, and I want to get this off my chest. Hope you don't mind."

He turned back to the first lieutenant. "The thing is, you aimed to handle it rather differently, didn't you, Cavan? You aimed to play it dead safe on a heads-I-win, tails-Shadde-loses basis.

"So you fixed it that whichever way it broke you'd be O.K. If it had been an exercise, you were O.K. If Symington was caught on the job, you were O.K. If it wasn't an exercise — which it wasn't— you were O.K. What's more, you'd get the kudos for having prevented the worst — so you'd be very O.K. . "

Cavan pushed back his chair and stood up, his face as white as a sheet, but Gallagher went on, ". . which is why you've been polishing your marble so goddam hard in this wardroom for the last ten minutes." Gallagher's hand waved in an airy gesture of contempt. "Protecting Symington. . protecting Grade. . protecting Shadde. My eye! The only person you were protecting was Benjamin Cavan. You were at your old game, Cavan, all that matters to you — keeping your yardarm clear. And what you've done is to push Shadde so deep in the manure that, cure or no cure, he's a ruined man."

When Gallagher stopped there wasn't a sound in the wardroom except the hum of the turbines.

''And in case you think what you've done is smart," he went on, "I'd like you to know that at the court of inquiry I'll be saying pretty much what I'm saying now."

Cavan was the bigger of the two men, and for a moment it appeared that he was going to hit the American. Gallagher must have thought so too, because he stood there waiting, tense and wary. But the first lieutenant just looked at him, then shrugged his shoulders and left the wardroom.

After a long silence the others departed in ones and twos. At the end Gallagher was left standing there alone.

Later in the forenoon, Gallagher pushed back the desk chair in his cabin and reread the letter he had just typed.

TOP SECRET

From: Lieutenant Commander Dwight Gallagher, U.S.N. (Nuclear Weapons Control Officer, H.M. Submarine Retaliate).

To: Supreme Commander Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia, U.S.A.

Subject: Attempted violation, control measures, Polaris missiles.

Enclosure: Report on events May 16/17, while on passage Copenhagen-Portsmouth.

1. In accordance with Navy Department Instructions NWC 18–43/17 (para. 3) enclosure is submitted for information and action.

2. It will be noted that omission from the firing signal of the U.S. Control Group (indicating prefix and six-digit setting for combination dial of firing key) testified to invalidity of the signal and precluded implementation of the instruction by undersigned.

3. Even if the existence of the system of U.S. Control Groups had been known to the commanding officer of Retaliate, he would not have been able to validate the signal, since he did not have access to the Groups.

4. Attention is drawn to the failure of the executive officer, Lieutenant Commander B. W. Cavan, R.N., who had prior knowledge of the attempted violation, to inform the undersigned, as was his clear duty.

5. In terms of subsection iv of para. 3 of the reference instructions, undersigned observes that the control measures worked admirably under circumstances possibly never envisaged: namely, collusion between the commanding officer of the ship and the head of his communications department.

Dwight Gallagher

Just after midnight the doctor went up to the bridge. He couldn't sleep and he longed for fresh air.

Symington was officer of the watch, and O'Shea stood with him in the forepart of the bridge, looking out into the North Sea.

The doctor sighed. "I'm glad this patrol's nearly over."

"So am I," said Symington. "Dreadful about Shadde, isn't it, Doc?"

"Yes. . another war casualty, really."

They were interrupted by a call on the voice pipe. Symington answered it.

"That was Cavan," he said.

O'Shea broke a long silence. "You know, there's a hell of a lot more to Dwight Gallagher than I realized."

"Good type," said Symington softly. "Very good type."

Beneath them the sea lapped and gurgled, and the fore casing shone wetly in the moonlight.

The room was littered with clothing — and in the middle of it all, a cluster of half-filled suitcases. Elizabeth was determined to take only the essentials, so the pile of things that were to be left behind got steadily bigger. She drew her hand across her forehead and sat on the bed. She had packed often enough, of course, but it had never been so terribly final. You weren't only leaving clothes behind — and England — but your life.

She sighed. She was running away, no denying that. She kept thinking of that letter of his from Stockholm, so proud and yet so urgent, like a small boy who had been too stubborn to say "sorry." And for that matter, why should he say he was sorry? It was probably her fault as much as his. But what was the use of talking about whose fault it was; it was much too late for that.

Of course he would find someone else. Someone who'd give him babies, and that would make all the difference, and they'd be madly happy. How she hoped he would be happy. It was the only thing she felt certain about now: that she wanted him to be happy. It would help her conscience, and it was the least that was necessary [to justify her decision. And apart from anything else, she wanted him to be happy because he'd had so little of it in his life.

The telephone was ringing downstairs and she heard her mother answering it.

"Yes, certainly. I'll call her. . Elizabeth! Telephone, dear. It's Portsmouth."

A thrill of excitement surged through her. Could it be John? What would he say? And what could she say? But she must go, even if only to hear his voice once more.

She ran down the stairs and picked up the telephone. For a moment she held it until she got back her breath, then said guardedly, "Elizabeth Shadde speaking." She tried to sound calm, but her heart was pounding.

"Who did you say?… Oh! Surgeon Lieutenant O'Shea. Yes! Yes! Yes, of course."

She caught her breath sharply. "In Haslar Hospital! Why? What's happened to him?"

As she listened her head started to swim, and from far away she heard O'Shea saying, "It's most important that you see him. He keeps asking for you."

When she put the phone down she felt weak and her body seemed to go limp. For a few moments she sat there in an agony of indecision; then she dialed a number. When they found the clerk she wanted, she was tongue-tied for an instant, terrified that her voice would fail her. But she was surprised at its firmness when she said, "I've had to change my plans. I shan't be needing those tickets after all."

Then she put the telephone down and burst into tears.

End of book

About the Author

Antony Trew has lived much of his life at sea. He was born in Pretoria, Transvaal, in 1906, and shipped out on the Union-Castle line when he was fifteen, later becoming a sublieutenant in the South African Naval Service. At twenty-four, he decided to live ashore in Johannesburg, and tried his hand at a wide variety of jobs until in 1932 he went to work for the Automobile Association of South Africa, of which he has been Secretary-General since 1946.

During World War II he went back to the Navy as senior officer of the 22nd Anti-Submarine Group, Mediterranean Fleet. He was transferred, in 1943, to the Royal Navy and sent to Staff College at Greenwich, England. For the rest of the war, he was commanding officer of HMS Walker, a destroyer principally employed on convoy-escort duty in northern waters. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.

Since he returned to South Africa, Mr. Trew has lived in the country outside Johannesburg. He began writing at night as a cure for insomnia. Two Hours to Darkness is his first novel.

Notes

1

H.E. Hydrophone Effect — the noise made by a ship's propellers as heard on underwater listening devices.

2

Supreme Commander Atlantic, Norfolk, Virginia.

Content

Antony Trew
TWO HOURS TO DARKNESS

Producer's Note

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TWO HOURS TO DARKNESS

About the Author

Notes