Chapter 1
"Heave in all lines!" Echoed the order from bow to stern. I quickly stepped onto the Destroyer Escort's quarter deck as four seamen pulled the brow in from the pier. Snapping the heels of my spit-shined oxfords, I smartly saluted the watch officer.
"Request permission to come aboard, Sir!"
His eyes shifted to the brown briefcase I held tightly in my left hand. Although his expression was curious, I knew he would not question the contents. A junior officer would obey orders from the ship's commander and allow me to board without being subject to search.
He returned my salute. "Permission granted."
I let out a breath and the Seventh Fleet research documents on Vietnam began their journey. Turning, I faced the pier. The staff car, which had secreted the highly classified papers and me to the to the ship, drove away.
The ship's air horn blasted a warning to other vessels. The high pillars of the wooden pier seemed to drift by as the USS Stevens roared to life. I balanced steady as the stern swept towards the marked channel of Subic Bay, Philippines. The water churned under the fantail into a boiling mass of bilged debris. As the hidden engines increased power, the gray steel deck vibrated, sending tremors up my legs. Black diesel smoke drifted low, casting a cloud against the early morning sun. My eyes watered. I searched across the bay towards the dark green Zambales Mountains, but the particles of soot blurred my vision.
Leaving the cool morning breezes, I stepped into an open hatch and the dark shadows below decks. Under the sheet of metal, the air turned stale and hot mixing with the odors of lube oil and sweaty socks. Someone above me closed the steel, water-tight cover-plate to secure the ship for sea.
After passing between the bunks of the berthing compartment, I followed the dimly lit corridor to the companionway that would lead me close to the ship's office. The top secret documents had to be secured in a locked compartment. My safe in the ship's office would serve that purpose. I chose to take the long route through the interior of the ship to avoid questions from the crew about my assignment. The less anyone knew about me arriving in a staff car, the less I would have to avoid answering.
Stepping over the lip of the hatch, I let the cover-plate drop. One turn of the wheel secured it. A few steps across the tiled deck placed me in front of the caged window of my office. I reached through the open top half of the door and unlatched the bottom half.
Yeoman Third Class Teddy Rhodes sat at the typewriter with his back to me. Without greeting him, I hurried to the wall-mounted metal table and knelt to open the large floor safe welded to the deck underneath. My fingers turned the dial to the numbers of my father's date of birth.
The clicking of the typewriter stopped. "Made it back, eh, Pencils?"
"Yeah, Teddy. You get the ship's diary ashore?"
"Sure did. I took a chance you'd be aboard before we got under way. Everyone's present and accounted for. So that's the classified shit, eh?"
After checking the intact seal on the manila envelope, I glanced at my signature under the cap words "TOP SECRET" dated 20 June 1963. Placing it inside, I slammed the door and spun the dial. I tossed my white hat on my desk before replying.
"Yeah. What are you typing?"
"I'm getting started on the Plan of the Day. We got a good movie tonight, and I don't want to miss it. Before I forget, Lieutenant Barnes called a second ago and wants to meet you on the mess decks as soon as you get here."
"What in the hell does he want?"
"He didn't say."
Teddy returned to his typing as I checked my clipboard for duties that had to be completed. Looking over the top edge of my notes, I watched Teddy a moment. His blond hair touched the edge of his ears and his wrinkled dungaree shirt hung over his bony frame. The ship took a slight roll to starboard as we entered the breakwater at the end of the channel in Subic Bay. I threw my clipboard aside.
"Teddy, why didn't you get a haircut?"
"I didn't have time."
"You had plenty of time to chase the Olongapo whores and come in drunk every night. The ship was in port for four days. What in the hell were you thinking?"
"Sorry, Pencils. I'll see if Jerry can trim it tonight."
"And your shirt looks like you slept in it. You've got two hours extra duty tonight."
I waited for a reply, but knew he wouldn't say anything. He would rather take the punishment from me than go before the mast. Teddy returned to his typing. I checked over my white uniform. Finding no spots or dirt, I squared my hat and stepped towards the door. The sway of the ship increased as the first breakers rolled under the hull.
After four years in the tropics, I still wasn't used to the heat between decks. The metal made it look and feel like an oven. Stepping over the curved bottom lip of the door, I entered the mess decks. To my surprise I found the portholes had not been secured. The welcomed breeze carried hints of the Zambales beaches, but also the smell of spoiled fish and sewage from the port town of Olongapo.
Lieutenant Junior Grade Lawrence Barnes sat at a table holding a mug of coffee. His dress khaki uniform looked starch-pressed perfect. Both of us had recently reached our thirtieth birthdays, but the deep lines across his forehead made him look older. While my dark hair remained thick and wavy, his had begun to thin at the crown.
"You get the documents secured, Coleman?"
"Yes, Sir."
He pushed his hat aside so nothing occupied the tabletop between us. Why would he be interested in that classified envelope? Barnes was only the Ordnance Officer. My duties allowed me to answer only to the Executive and Commanding Officers. And why isn't he on the bridge with the Special Sea Detail? He wouldn't be relieved until the watch section came on duty.
Removing my white hat, I placed it next to his. He lit a cigarette. His eyes squinted from the smoke as he closed the cap to his Japanese-made lighter. "You want a smoke?"
"No thanks, Sir. I don't smoke. Is there something you wanted, Sir? I have a lot of work in the office."
"I know, Coleman. I want some advice. But, first, tell me something about yourself. How long have you been in the Navy?"
"Ten years."
"Only ten years and you're a Yeoman First Class? Didn't you take the Chief's test last time around?"
"Yes, but I don't think I made it. Is there something wrong, Sir?"
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