Sea of Shadows eBook - Navy Thriller.com

88 JEFF EDWARDS
The 114mm Vickers gun was loaded and ready a split-second later. Its
barrel instantly slewed to a new position as it locked on the inbound
aircraft and tracked their radar returns through the night sky.
“Missiles at the rail, sir,” the Operations Room Officer reported. “The
gun is in anti-air automatic.”
“Good,” the captain said. “Ready all torpedo tubes for firing.”
“Aye-aye, sir,” Kensington said. He keyed his comm box and repeated
the order to the Operations Room Officer.
“Bring us around to two-six-zero,” the captain said. “Don’t let those
subs get past us.”
Lieutenant Bryce’s voice was loud, “Helmsman, right standard rudder.
Steady on course two-six-zero.”
“Helm, aye! Sir, my rudder is right fifteen degrees, coming to new
course two-six-zero!”
The Operations Room Officer’s voice came over the speaker.
“Bridge—Operations Room. Bogies will penetrate our inner defense
perimeter in five seconds! Request guns and missiles free!”
“Negative!” the captain said. “They’re just trying to scare us into
breaking formation so those submarines can get past us. We are not at
war, gentlemen. We’ll not fire the first shot!” His next words were
drowned out by an earsplitting roar that vibrated the thick bridge windows
like tuning forks.
The jets rocketed overhead, not more than ten meters above the
foremast. The shriek of their engines was deafening, literally rattling
Kensington’s teeth. The glass faceplate of a gyrocompass repeater
exploded into fragments under the sudden pressure.
A sliver of flying glass stung Kensington high on the right cheek,
burying itself deep under the skin. His involuntary yelp was lost in the
cacophonous scream of six pairs of jet engines running at open throttle.
And then the jets were gone, climbing away into the darkness, their
afterburners carving blue arcs of flame into the night sky.
Kensington touched his cheek and felt the moistness of his own blood.
His ears were still ringing from the fly-by.
“Steady, lads,” the captain shouted, obviously nearly deafened himself.
“We’ll not fire the first shot,” he repeated. “But if they do, I give you my
word that we will fire the last one!”
The Operations Room Officer’s voice came over the speaker again. It
was difficult to hear him because he wasn’t yelling like everyone else.