Free Tidal Rip by Joe Buff Page A

try to move north or south.” Cruise-missile design always traded off range against speed, Jeffrey knew. Tactical Tomahawks, which went about as fast as a Boeing 747, had a range of nearly 1,500 miles; the North Atlantic was more than twice that wide. The von Scheer ’s Mach 2.5 Modified Shipwrecks, in contrast, ran out of fuel after 500 miles; the South Atlantic was up to ten times that far across.
    “I’m sure that’s exactly the Axis objective, Captain…. There are many levels to what’s going on here, wheels within wheels. We still don’t know quite what the Germans are up to in Latin America, but we strongly suspect their agents and moles and sympathizers are behind Brazil and Argentina being on the verge of open hostilities. It is definitely in the interest of the Axis Powers for fighting to break out in South America. It costs the Berlin-Boer nasties little, and costs the Allied cause a great deal.”
    “Everything’s happening at once.”
    “The masterminds of the Axis are too good at moving countries around like chess pieces. They’re also very good at seizing the initiative and forcing us to react defensively. One thing I learned as a West Point plebe is that if you keep losing the initiative and can’t regain it, you lose the war.”
    Jeffrey studied the map, with all its X s and question marks and intersecting lines, for a very long time.
    The president cleared his throat. “You’ll be filled in more on your specific role by your direct superiors shortly. I wanted to give you the overall picture myself. So I could see your face, know who you are as a person. I’ll feel a lot better, understanding what sort of man is captain of USS Challenger . I’m a big believer in personal relationships. A politician has to be. As a former military man, I’m a believer in knowing my key subordinates well. Your place in all this will be very key, and your ship is no ordinary submarine.”
    The president looked at the map, and for a moment his face was haggard and drawn. His eyes looked pained and sad, as if he was thinking of all the death and destruction to come in the next few days and weeks. The body count in this war was terrible already.
    Then the president set his jaw and his eyes cleared and grew harder. Jeffrey sensed the meeting was wrapping up. The president came closer. Jeffrey stood.
    “I see now why you’re such an effective commanding officer, Captain. You’re a very direct guy. You zero in on your mission, period. You don’t look over your shoulder when it’s your job to lead the charge…. When we win this war, ourcountry is going to need good men and women to pick up the pieces and help the world rebuild. If I’m reelected this November, and can steward the country into a thriving new peacetime somehow, there are going to be all sorts of important jobs to be filled here in Washington, inside and outside the military.”
    Jeffrey thought of that map again, the intersecting lines in the Atlantic Narrows. The impending clash of forces might determine the whole outcome of the war. Things might get so hot that atomic weapons would start to be used without restraint on land. The war, up to this point such a volatile trade-off between immensity of hitting power and compulsion for survival, could escalate in the days to come into a fearsome doomsday scenario.
    “I have to ask you again, Mr. President. Exactly what is it you want from me?”
    “Nothing you don’t want to give me.”
    “Please don’t be so cryptic, sir.”
    The president pointed at the easel map. “Just get out there, and win another resounding victory, and come home alive.”

CHAPTER 4
    W hen Jeffrey left the president, the crowd at the reception was just thinning out. Boy, if they only knew what I know now. Every nerve in his body felt electrified.
    Jeffrey tried to act as calmly as he could, to maintain the air of decorum befitting a Medal of Honor winner, and to protect the secrecy of what he’d just learned. There were