Loyalty and Betrayal
When the unimaginable happens, Lee and Chip find out how far loyalty can take them.
Chapter one
Lee Crane, captain of the submarine Seaview, was fresh from a badly needed two week shore leave and was eager to get back to work. With a little spring in his steps, he ran up the stairs leading to the Administration Building of the Nelson Institute of Marine Research, took the elevator to the top floor and walked down the long hallway that led to the office of his friend and boss Admiral Harriman Nelson, head of NIMR. Looking forward to a little time spent catching up with his best friend before settling down to work, he eagerly opened the door to the Admiral's outer office and stepped just inside. Stopping, he leaned against the door frame, smiling as he watched the admiral's secretary, Angie Wood, unobserved for a moment as she tapped a pencil quite angrily on her desk.
"Well, let me know as soon as you hear anything. And I mean anything," she said into the phone she held to her ear. "No! I won't calm down! It's been too long. Yes, I do understand but...all right, yes, yes, I... No! I've been patient! Just find out something!"
Slamming the phone down angrily, she let out a loud curse word much to the astonishment of Crane.
"Angie! Where did you learn to swear like that?" he said as he pushed away from the door and stood watching her in pretend shock.
"Humph. Comes from hanging out with sailors," she said with a slight smile. "When did you get back?"
"Late last night. Just wanted to check in with the admiral, get caught up on what I missed while I was off relaxing and get back to work. What has you all worked up?" he asked as he walked to her desk and sat on the corner.
"I've been getting the run around from too many people and right now I don't know what to do," she said, her voice tight with suppressed emotion.
"Tell me what's wrong," Lee said gently, knowing Angie wasn't one to fall apart easily. Working for a world renowned scientist such as Admiral Harriman Nelson required her to be cool, calm and collected at all times. For her to be so out of sorts was unusual for the young woman.
Angie sighed heavily and put her head in her hands briefly before looking up into Lee's concerned eyes. "It's the admiral," she said finally.
"What? Has something happened to him? Is he sick?" Lee asked, standing abruptly and casting a quick look to the admiral's closed office door as concern for his friend flared through him.
"That's just it, Lee...I just…I don't know how he is."
"What do you mean you don't know? You see him every day when we're not out on Seaview, you must know…"
"Normally, yes. When Seaview is in port I do see him almost every day, but I haven't seen him in two weeks!"
"What? Why not? He had plans to work here at the Institute for the whole time we were going to be on leave! He said there were too many projects behind schedule and that's why he wasn't taking any time off!"
"I know that, Lee," she said exasperated. "But two weeks ago he had some kind of meeting with Admiral Johnson from ONI. Johnson had been calling the admiral every day for almost a week before that. Whenever he would take a call from him, he would get angry. I could hear the admiral shouting at him a few times. He finally told me not to accept any more calls from him. Well, a day later, Admirals Johnson and Starke show up at the security gate asking to be let in. The admiral was furious. But after a half hour, he finally told security to let them up."
"Admiral Johnson came here to see the admiral? Did he ever say what the calls or the meeting were about?"
"No, no he didn't but it was obviously something the admiral didn't want to discuss. Anyway, both Admirals Starke and Johnson and two men dressed in suits—government types-came in and headed to his office. The admiral was waiting at his office door when they came in. His face was red and it was obvious he was angry about them being there. They were in his office for a couple of hours, then all four of them left. A bit later, the admiral called me into his office, said he was going away for awhile and gave me instructions for the crew and for some of the scientists and researchers on various Institute projects he was working on. He left shortly after that and that's the last I've seen of him. I'm worried, Lee."
"Did you ask him where he was going?"
"Yes, I did but he said it wasn't important and to not worry about it or him. Said he would be back in a week, ten days tops. It's been way past that time frame. I'm afraid something's happened," she said with a frown. "Something bad."
"Did he take the Flying Sub?"
"No, no he didn't. And he didn't have me make any plane reservations for him either but I…well, I checked the airlines and he made a reservation on United Airlines for the same day he had the meeting with Johnson and Starke."
"Where to?"
"Washington…Dulles International," she said quietly.
"Washington," Lee said pensively. "Let me contact Johnson. Maybe I can get him to tell me what was so important and where the admiral is."
"Well good luck," she said, her frustration showing in her voice. "I've been calling him and Starke and anyone else I can think of trying to find someone to tell me where he is. No one will say anything. They just say they don't know where he is or where he went."
"Well, they'll talk to me," Lee said angrily, a ball of dread beginning to form in the middle of his stomach. "One way or another, I'll find out what's going on."
