on something, and the colonel was backing him all the way. Whoever they went after had to be someone he was close to.”
Em’s eyebrows raised without him being aware of it. “How do you know it was a someone and not a something?”
Em thought that he had caught the sergeant revealing confidential information, but Sergeant Barnes just continued to talk. “I thought you boys knew. The colonel told us—you was there—that there would be an extra head when we picked them up.” Em could tell by the look on the sergeant’s face that he honestly thought that they did know.
Em and Jack just looked at each other and simultaneously asked, “Who?”
“I don’t know who. You guys were there. We…No, now I know when it was. Right before you two tried to sneak into camp. Yeah, Jeffrey told me. I guess I just thought you heard.” Now the sergeant finished tying his laces and stood and crossed the room. Em had more questions, but the sergeant was on his way out.
“Who in the world did they go get?” Em asked no one in particular.
“It had to be some high-ranking officer. No one else would be worth the risk.”
Jack looked like he was already going over some plan in his head. Jack was always thinking about how things would affect him. Em was glad that his friend was always thinking about the situation. He hoped that Jack’s instincts would always lead them in the right direction. “I bet he will have some secrets with him. That submarine is probably not supposed to come back without sinking this ship.” Jack had that look on his face that Em had come to know so well. “If this guy is coming aboard this ship, then that sub will never give up. I sure hope this new captain is as good as they say he is.”
An hour later, things had become a little clearer. Captain Murphy had come and got them and filled them in on the latest. He had just come from the radio room and had spoken to Colonel Roth. They had only spoken for a few brief minutes. Captain Murphy was hesitant to tell them what he now knew. He paused before he informed them that the plans had been altered. Now, instead of picking up the colonel and Sergeant Cannon and Jeff, the Indianapolis would be unloading a couple of passengers. Em could not believe what the captain was saying. Sergeant Barnes, Jack, and he would be hauled off the Indianapolis and dropped aboard the tiny boat. It would happen in the next hour. The colonel had told him that the plans had been altered. They would now have to take an alternate route. He had come up with a plan and needed all of them to pull it off. Captain Murphy would stay aboard the Indianapolis and coordinate some new transportation. Em started to panic. The only thing he wanted to do was ask questions, but the captain kept assuring him that he would be informed as soon as the details became clearer.
Em noticed the look on Sergeant Barnes’s face. He could tell the sergeant was nervous. “What the hell is Philip up to? He’s gonna get us all killed, goin’ into the nips nest. If he’s talking about goin’ all the way to Hiroshima, he’s crazier than I thought.” He did not laugh after he spoke. Em truly thought that this was the first time he could remember the sergeant with a continuous serious expression.
“The crew assures us that it is safe. We can get all of you from deck to deck in minutes. Kevil, you might take a couple of extra straps, but I promise it won’t be too painful. The real bad part will be once you guys are on board. That little tug will be tossed around in this storm like—” He abruptly stopped talking when he saw the looks on the three airmen’s faces. Captain Murphy instead got up and straightened his uniform, before he walked out into the night again.
“This just keeps getting better. I thought I was getting off of this tub, but now I’m getting on a smaller one.” Once again, Em was talking to no one in particular. For some reason, all he could think of doing was writing to Irene. However, this was not the time.
Jack was packing what few things he had back into his bag. He suggested that the other two get busy. He told them that no matter what and how long they discussed it, the fact remained that they were getting off this ship in just a short time. He tried to explain the boom and how it worked, but Sergeant Barnes kept telling him to hush. Jack now laughed a little. “How long have you been flying around with Colonel Roth? You should be used to things like this, shouldn’t you? This can’t be the first time this has happened.” He finished closing his duffel bag and effortlessly threw it over his shoulder. Sergeant Barnes was muttering something. He still did not smile.
Jack was the first to volunteer. “When we get close, tie me into that thing and let me fly.”
Em thought Jack was showing off in front of his new “friends.” Captain Murphy looked at him rather strange when he told the sailors he was going to rescue the princess. When the boom lifted him over the railing and into the darkness, Em felt a sense of impending doom. He shook it off as fast as it took for the boom to come back over the rail. It had not taken but a minute or so. Jack had ridden in the harness before when he had been launched from it. Em had now heard him talk about the swimming experience for a few days. He wished he had gone with him. Now, however, he had to help Sergeant Barnes secure himself as comfortable as possible in the harness. The sailors who strapped him in wanted only to be finished so they could get off the deck out of the rain. The sergeant was as pale as Em had ever seen him. Even with only the lights from the deck, Em could tell his face was ashen. Maybe he was still a little seasick.
Just when he was about to be lifted, a sailor approached Captain McVay and did not seem at all concerned. When he stopped whispering in the captain’s ear, the captain just reached up and touched his chin. The boom operator had stopped what he was doing, and the captain waved his hand and said, “Go ahead, Simmons. Let’s get them over there.”
Em looked at Sergeant Barnes and noticed the sweat on his forehead. Em could tell it was not rain because it was running down from under the bill of his hat. “You all right, Sergeant?” Em was really starting to worry about the sergeant.
“I’m fine. You just hurry the hell up and get over there with us, and we’ll get the hell out of here.” Sergeant Barnes tried to look like he was not worried, but Em had no trouble seeing right through his thin facade. “Hold on tight and don’t look down.” Em laughed again as he saw the fat sergeant lifted over the rail.
Before he was the last one to get ready, Em looked at the captain and said, “Excuse me, sir. Should we be worried about that submarine?”
“Don’t you worry about that sub, son. She won’t get too close. She’s running deep right now. You will be running with this storm all the way inland. You’ll be all right. Besides, she don’t want you. She wants me. I expect she’ll follow me all the way to California. She won’t even know you’re out here.”
Em looked around the deck of the Indianapolis and began to get nervous himself. He had not noticed it when Jack and Sergeant Barnes were being lowered onto the small boat, but now that it was his turn, anxiety overwhelmed him. When the straps enclosed around him, he felt constrained so bad that he thought he would not be able to free himself. When his feet left the deck and he felt the harness lift him up, he felt very small. When he could no longer see the deck and the light began to fade and the side of the ship loomed so large in front of him, it felt like he would slam into it and be drug into the foamy sea.
Then he looked down, and all he could see were whitecaps. The waves looked so much larger from right above them. The boat below him was approaching fast. He could see the small group of men on the tiny deck. All of a sudden, a wave at least thirty feet high slammed into the small craft. It was tossed sideways in a flash of lightning. Em lost sight of it entirely for a second. A wall of water was obscuring his view. He kept descending and hoped that the crew aboard the Indianapolis were more aware of his surroundings than he was. When he could see the deck again, he was surprised to see that all the men were still
