[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
glass.
To Moyer, the sailors were not so much individual men
who drank and fought and complained and held opinions but
rather a collective mysterious component that was the
Pilgrim's soul. He loved hearing gossip about the crew and
always had some interesting story to tell. It was unclear
where he got his information because he never revealed his
sources.
Grady entered, and the officers fell silent as he removed
the plates and brought in dessert. He placed a plate with a
wedge of Bavarian cream pie and two scoops of coconut ice
cream in front of each. The pie had slivers of toasted almonds
on top and trembled next to the ice cream. He also set a
cheese plate with flakes of sharp cheddar and warm baguette
slices in the center of the table, then served each officer a
cup of green tea.
The captain shook his head.
61
The Lonely War
by Alan Chin
"Gentlemen, we've hit pay dirt." Laughter filled the room
as he nodded at Moyer. "Otis, you were about to say?"
Moyer swallowed a mouthful of pie. "Well, Skipper, as you
can imagine, these new men have caused quite a stir among
the crew. They don't like fraternizing with Waters or
Washington. They call them 'The Dirty Ws.' The good news is
the new men are bringing the crew together, bound by a
common hatred."
Mitchell felt heat gathering about his scalp, and knew it
was not caused by the curry.
Bitton frowned. "And the bad news?"
"The crew has organized a betting pool. They're betting on
which W gets thrown overboard first."
Mitchell slammed his fist on the table hard enough to rattle
the china.
"God dammit! I won't stand for this." His voice quivered,
and veins bulged in his neck. "Spread the word that if
anything happens to either of those boys, I'll rip this crew a
new asshole. If they so much as stub a toe, this crew won't
see liberty for the duration of this war. I'll put them all on
bread and water!"
The captain's face flushed, and his voice rose above
Mitchell's.
"I couldn't agree more. A gift from God drops in our laps, a
real chef, a man who takes pride in his work, not to mention
Washington, who is a perfectly capable steward. I'm not
losing either of these boys because of ignorant bigotry. I pity
the poor son of a bitch that tries to harm them. By God, I
do." He stared into each officer's face, as if to insure they
62
The Lonely War
by Alan Chin
understood the seriousness of his threat. The silence became
deafening.
Grady returned, balancing a tray on which he carried a
bottle of Jack Daniels, a bowl of ice and five tumblers. He
placed the tray next to the cheese plate then stacked the
dirty dishes. The subordinate officers stared at the captain as
tension sizzled the air.
"Where the hell did he find that?" Bitton muttered, his
voice returning to normal. "Washington, tell Seaman Waters
to report to me immediately."
"Yes, suh."
Two minutes later, Andrew hurried into the room and came
to attention.
"Seaman Waters," Bitton said. "Dinner was superb except
for one thing."
"Yes, sir, I know. I should have served a variety of cheeses
with dessert, but I couldn't find any. If we moor at a French-
Polynesian island, I'll find some brie, camembert, and perhaps
a fine bleu."
Bitton was visibly flabbergasted, and Mitchell had to
suppress a smile.
Bitton recovered himself and said, "I'm talking about the
whiskey. Transporting liquor aboard a US warship is a
criminal offense. I'm responsible for everything that happens
aboard the Pilgrim. We can both be court-martialed."
"Sir, I didn't know. I'll throw it overboard." Andrew leaned
forward to grab the bottle.
"No!" the captain barked. "Now, that it's here it's navy
property, and we have an obligation to use it wisely."
63
The Lonely War
by Alan Chin
The junior officers visibly relaxed. Tedder slid his tongue
over his lower lip.
"I appreciate a stiff drink after dinner as much as any
man," Bitton said. "But only at anchor and only when the
engines are shut down. Is that clear?"
"Yes, sir."
"Where did you find a bottle of fine whiskey? God knows
it's worth its weight in gold."
"Sir, there's a thriving black market on the island. I traded
fourteen cases of Hershey bars for one case of whiskey, and I
got two cases of burgundy wine in exchange for ten cases of
cigarettes. I would have served wine with dinner, but I
couldn't find where they stowed it. Would the captain care for
wine with dinner at sea, or is that restricted to being served
at anchor as well?"
A full minute passed before Bitton, visibly stunned,
mumbled, "Restrict the serving of all alcohol to in-port
dinners. There's one other issue. I must say that if you were
trying to make a good first impression, you overshot the mark
by a nautical mile. Based on your performance tonight,
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]