At least it was private. Henry coated the space with Lysol. The dead doctor’s few belongings were in a plastic bag taped to the wall, and his clothes were laid out under the mattress. A pair of sneakers made it obvious that his clothes would never fit Henry, who was still wearing the garments that had gotten soaked when he jumped overboard. Murphy scavenged the wardrobes of the dying sailors and laundered a sack full of underwear and socks.
The sub had put into port to repair a damaged piston. The missing part to make the repair was not available, so the sub was going to have to make the long trek across the Atlantic with a damaged, noisy piston, the last thing a stealthy submarine needs.
There was no sense of motion on the submarine, but Henry’s ears popped as they submerged, and he found himself standing at a weird angle whenever the boat adjusted its bearings. The sailors didn’t seem to notice when they were no longer perpendicular. Henry expected that he would gradually grow accustomed to this narrowed, interior world, with its subtle gyrations, but he had to fight off moments of alarm. He slept fitfully, tossed about by disturbing dreams that left no trace in his memory.
* * *
—
HE AWAKENED ON his first morning to the smell of breakfast. He hadn’t realized until then how famished he was. The mess had the feeling of a clubhouse, with souvenirs from various ports and Navy pennants and a photo of Jimmy Carter, former governor of Georgia and the only submariner ever elected president. The sailors were loading up their plates with scrambled eggs, sausage, and biscuits with gravy. They were all so young, Henry thought. He took three pieces of toast and a bowl of dry granola.
Murphy was just finishing her meal when Henry sat down. “Hello, sir. I would think you’d be eating in the ward room with the officers,” she said.
“Is the food better?”
“Not a chance.”
“I think the commander regards me as an uninvited guest, which I suppose I am,” said Henry. “I’ve never been on a naval ship before, much less a submarine. I feel totally lost.”
“Boat, sir. A submarine is the only vessel in the navy we call a boat. And the commander, that’s his rank, but his billet is captain, so that’s how we address him, although skipper also works. You have to understand him. He treats everybody equally, which means he can be a tough SOB. But he’s the best officer I’ve ever served with.” Murphy flushed a bit when she said this.
“He looks a little too tall for this job.”
Murphy laughed. “Even me, I’m always bumping into those dang pipes and such, and I’m no giant. We get a lot of head injuries. But, yeah. I wouldn’t want to be up where he is.”
“So who are all these people?” Henry asked, indicating the twenty or so other people eating breakfast.
“Enlisted people, like me, sir. We actually run the boat, although nothing against the officers. Those guys”—she pointed to a knot of young men at a booth—“they’re the missile control operators. We like to think they’re the sane ones. But honestly, I see them all. They’re just as human as anyone else. If one of them receives a bad family-gram, like death or divorce, they get just as depressed as anybody else.”
“So what do you do?”
“My mom is a child psychologist, and she has these little furry balls with googly-eyes on them to give to the kids when they’re feeling blue. Maybe you saw the jar in the pharmacy that looks like a bunch of jawbreakers. They’re called warm fuzzies. I know it’s not real medicine, but I’ve been giving out a lot of them these days.”
“Always good practice to offer something. And who are those beefy gentlemen over there?”
“They’re SEALs. We have a contingent on board for reconnaissance or sometimes we drop off a landing party. They don’t do much except eat and work out. They’re sweethearts, but you know—don’t piss them off.” She cast a pitying look at them. “They came on the boat acting like Superman, like nothing could scare them. But this flu has them back on their heels. See how subdued they are? They seem more vulnerable than everyone else.”
“Aren’t you scared as well?”
“Hell, yes, I’m scared! Everybody’s calling this a death boat. And it is. We’re trapped. I feel totally useless. Reduced to my warm fuzzies. I just hope you can help us.”