Submariner (2008) (27 page)

‘So what’s different from
Una
’s effort is the landing-point up-coast and the attack from inland.’

‘If the terrain allows it, yes sir. And if they’ll wear it – I mean, in the light of their own military principles. Need to
leg it a bit, of course.’

‘We can try it on them anyway. What about the others?’

He leant to the chart, used a pencil as a pointer. ‘Cape Scalambri – Gela, and Comiso. No matter what, the Comiso team has
a dozen miles to cover from whatever beach we land them on. And as we can’t launch them until dark, and they then have to
paddle about a mile and hide the folboats, if the assaults are to take place twelve miles away at 0200 it’s less a matter
of legging it than split-arsing it. That’s irrespective of terrain, obstacles, guard-posts or whatever. Whether they’d take
that on – well, their business, and they must have maps and/or special knowledge of the area. Maybe I’m wrong, but Comiso –
well, the only way I can see of managing it is to land them the night before – giving them the rest of that night to find a
hide to lie-up in.’

‘And Gela?’

Shrimp was glancing over the page of notes, while Mike explained them. Cutting in with ‘Sending that bunch across-country
too?’

‘It might make more sense than having them land bang on target, sir, where defences might be on their toes and – anyway, unpredictable
as far as
we
know. I’m suggesting we put them down
here
– ten miles west of Cape Scalambri, while the Comiso team’s landing ten miles east of it. Giving them – Gelas – about the
same distance to their airfield – route up to them to work out.’

‘Soundings aren’t so convenient for you – or them – at either of those points.’

‘I know, sir. Have to paddle a fair distance. But closer to Gela’d be worse – in fact much worse. And only fifteen miles the
other side of Gela is Licata with its Mas-boats.’

‘All right. And after the airfield actions both teams get back to their hides, lie-up until dark and then have – what, four
hours for withdrawal?’

‘About that, sir. More like five if you include a four- or five-mile paddle and R/V at say 0300.’

Shrimp was checking Mike’s figures against distances on the charted coastline, measuring them with dividers. Mike guiding
him, with ‘R/V positions are noted there, sir. Bearings and distances on Cape Scalambri – the lighthouse – for both of them.
Obviously won’t be lit, but it’s prominent enough. Then for the Comiso team, this headland; Gela force, just a bearing on
Scalambri and distance offshore. From mid-week on they’ll have a moon – so given a reasonably clear sky – well, may suit them
or may not, but –’

‘Most likely
not
. But alternative rendezvous twenty-four hours later, same positions?’

‘Yes – I suppose –’

‘Gives them a second chance which they might well need. Overall, Michael, this is a very tricky operation – primarily for
the pongos. I’d imagine that pretty soon after they launch their attacks the whole district’ll be swarming with patrols. Even
if the attacks coming from inshore confuses the buggers initially. And from our angle we can reasonably expect Mas-boats and
E-boats out of Licata for instance, or even Gela. That’s on the night of the assaults and the following day, by the second
night A/S forces from – wherever … Tell me – these pick-ups, the Gela and Comiso teams – if either or both failed to show
up, you wouldn’t be tempted to close the beach on the surface and hunt around for them?’

‘Might well be
tempted
, and they might expect it, but –’

‘It’ll be covered in your orders – minimal distance offshore
to be maintained no matter what circumstances. And I’ll make clear to the Chief Pongo – who’ll be joining us on Saturday,
by the way –’

‘
Ah
…’

‘– flying in from Cairo. I’ll make clear to him that in our view and our C-in-C’s a submarine and her crew is a lot more valuable
than half a dozen soldiers, and that if they don’t turn up on time at the R/V your orders preclude any search inshore where
it may be impossible to dive. This one does look quite unusually hazardous to me, Michael. I’d say your proposals go some
way to make the object of the exercise achievable –
just
, as long as the pongos are bloody good at their jobs
and
very lucky … All right, the shoreside stuff’s not strictly our business, we’re advancing these ideas only for discussion,
set out what we can and can’t do, see how that fits in with whatever plans they have. Otherwise we rethink, collectively.’
Consulting paperwork of his own … ‘Chief Pongo’s a major by name of Ormrod and his 2 i/c who’ll be with him is a Captain Haigh.
Other parties are scheduled to arrive during the week – twenty-four commandos in all, including Ormrod and Haigh, three teams
of eight.’

‘Eight …’

It meant four folboats, and nowadays they didn’t dismantle them. You could get two into a reload torpedo rack, with other
gear such as weaponry and explosives stowed inside them. So he’d need to leave two fish behind. Might have thought of this:
but no problem, just two fewer for the port watch of torpedomen to load tomorrow – to the satisfaction of Wiggy Bennett and
Sunny Warne, no doubt.

Shrimp was saying, ‘We’ll be accommodating Ormrod and Haigh in Lazaretto, by the way, and the rest – oh, there’s another officer,
hang on …’ Flipping through pink signal forms in a spring-back file: ‘Here we are – Captain Flood. One officer to each team,
presumably. Flood will be arriving
a day or two after Ormrod and Haigh, with a staff sergeant, four troopers and weaponry, and finally a Royal Marine colour sergeant
with the rest of them plus folboats. That lot in a Sunderland, I’d guess.’ He shut the file. ‘Three officers in Lazaretto,
all the others in Ghain Tuffieha rest-camp, which they’ll have to themselves. That’s a point I won this morning; another is
they’ll have RAF transport laid on for them.’

‘Does this mean we can put a date on it, sir? On the convoy operation, even?’

‘No. And we aren’t talking about convoys, Michael. Not even between ourselves. We just had a convoy in, at huge cost, might
be a long time before we can mount another. Forget convoys. But – where were we …’ Checking his own notes again, then shutting
the file. ‘Anyway, you might join me in playing host to these chaps on Saturday – show ’em round, give ’em a drink or two,
set up a planning conference for Monday. There’ll be no sea exercises, by the way, they’ve done enough of that with the 1st
Flotilla, apparently, and we want as near total security as we can get. I’ll convey the gist of all this to your pal Melhuish
when he gets in tonight, but I’ll only tell him about his own part in it, not yours or Gerahty’s. You’ll be at the Gravies’,
will you?’

‘Yes, sir. If I might mention it – just a personal thing – Melhuish isn’t a particular friend of mine. I only happened to
know him and his wife socially – some time ago, as it happens.’

‘I see. Had the impression you were old chums. Not that it makes a shred of difference.’ Shrimp was lighting a cigarette,
Mike having declined the wordless offer of one. ‘So what else? Anything, while we’re at it?’

‘There is one thing, sir. My Number One – McLeod – is wondering about
his
Perisher. I don’t want to lose him, God knows, but in my view he’s overdue for it – and extremely sound. I couldn’t recommend
him too highly.’

‘Well.’Surprised look:expelling smoke. ‘I think we discussed this not long ago. As I remember it, we agreed that as
Ursa
’s time here would very soon be up, the best thing might be to take him home with you.’

‘Dead right, sir. But as he’s raised the subject himself now, I feel bound to support him in it, we
aren’t
on our way yet –’

‘I think you might be.’

‘Sir?’

Watching, guessing … Shrimp explaining, ‘I haven’t said anything about it until now, but as you know, Ruck was a patrol or
two ahead of you, and he’d have been on his way by now. After all, the flotilla’s well up to strength, and much as I’d like
to hang on to you, you
have
done your time. Our temporary evacuation – and the frightful losses prior to it – put such planning out of mind. But – there
it is, Michael. Taking it head-on, how d’you feel about it?’

It was quite a big issue. Which of course he
had
thought about, had known he’d be faced with before
much
longer. Whether he actually had any option, if he tried to exercise one – or even for that matter
wanted
to … Ann was somewhere on the periphery of his
private
thinking – or had been. Maybe still was?
Completely
private and incidental though, nothing to do with the issue at stake that had to be decided on here and now –
Ursa
and her crew, the job they’d done and the run of luck
he
’d had, the satisfaction there’d be in bringing them all home intact,
alive
.

More than just a successful outcome, one might say a small triumph, in its way.

Actually not
say
it – but feel it,
know
it.

‘You’re saying make this airfield operation our last outing, sir?’

‘What it comes down to, yes. Unless you’ve any – serious reservations?’

‘Well. No, sir. I don’t think I have.’

‘Good. We’ll take it as read, then. Talk again, obviously, but I think you’re wise. In any case it couldn’t have been postponed
by more than perhaps one patrol. So – coming back to the more immediate future – I should have mentioned that our landing
operation now has the code-name “Backlash”. Saves frequent references to airfields?’

‘“Backlash”. Right … Will you hang on to those notes, sir?’

‘I’ll keep them on file for the Chief Pongo to peruse. Better not call him that, I suppose. He
is
, but in the contingent as a whole there are more Royal Marines than soldiers. I think you’ve done a good job there, Michael,
as far as it goes. Can’t say I like it, but I don’t see any good alternatives either.’ He checked the time, added, ‘To be
slightly more frank, I think it’s a bastard. Let’s hope
they
’ve some answers. Anyway … On your way back to Lazaretto now, are you? May see you at the Gravies’ tonight, may not – depends
on
Unsung
. I might bring Melhuish along with me, if he’s up to it.’

‘One other thing I’d raise, sir.’ On his feet, and scooping up his cap. ‘You said no exercises, which is fine as far as I and
Dan Gerahty are concerned, we’ve both launched and recovered folboats a few times – but
Unsung
quite likely hasn’t?’

‘That
is
a point.’ Thoughtful, rubbing his blunt jaw. ‘Yes, damn it, should have thought of that. Well – we’ll give him a dummy run
with Taylor and a few of his chaps.’ Meaning Captain Taylor of the Liverpool Scottish, OC Shrimp’s private army, who occupied
barracks adjoining the quarantine building and would no doubt be quietly seething at other commandos being brought in to do
a job they’d reckon should be theirs. Once they heard about it. They’d have a point, too, Mike thought. Except if they heard
the details of it they might be glad they
weren’t
being used. Shrimp was saying, ‘The decision to do without exercises was based on the security aspect. Similar to hiding
most of them in Ghain Tuffieha. But – yes, good thinking, Michael.’

‘And about McLeod, sir – I’ll tell him we’re homebound after this next one, but in the interim will you recommend him for
COQC?’

‘Yes. You can tell him I’m doing so.’

‘Thank you, sir. May I also let him in on the fact this one’s a commando operation, folboats and eight passengers? Some practical
considerations, and he’ll be wondering in any case – leaving two racks empty, for instance.’

‘Yes again. But no mention of the operation as a whole.’

Write Ann, tell her ‘See you very soon’?

He hadn’t heard from her in what seemed like quite a while. Not really surprising – she wouldn’t have had his answer to her
last one yet, could well be steeling herself against writing again until she did hear.

Hold on anyway, let Charles tell her?

Write again to the Old Man, though, tell him ‘Home soon, touch wood.’ If one sailed for this operation in about a week, spent
say a week or so at sea and another week back here preparing
Ursa
for the trip home – then five days to Gib and a couple
in
Gib – embarking amongst other things a few cases of Tio Pepe – then twelve or fourteen days across Biscay and through the
Channel into the Solent, swinging her into Haslar Creek at the top of the tide, the dead water known as the Ten Minute Stand,
sliding into a berth on the concrete quay there with the Jolly Roger flying, doubtless some welcoming cheers drifting in the
autumn rain or sleet and bitter wind – and no doubt three or four days there before one could get away. So tell the Old Man
‘See you in something like seven weeks, d. v.’, and to Ann when or if one
did
write, ‘Might be a ring on your bell in approx two shakes …’

Abigail cheered: ‘You made it!’

It was a little after four p.m. Greta had left a message with McLeod to the effect that she and Abigail would be swimming
from the Lido rocks until about five and he was welcome to join them if he could get away that early. So after a quick late
lunch he got the letter done to his father, telling him that with luck and good management he’d see him in about eight weeks.
Putting it further ahead than he hoped it might be, so the Old Man wouldn’t lose too much sleep if for some reason it took
longer. In making such an estimate even in one’s own head one tended to shut out awareness that things could go totally, wildly
wrong, that there couldn’t possibly be any certainty – rather as this morning Shrimp had described Operation ‘Backlash’ as
a bastard from the commandos’ point of view while seeing it as nothing other than straightforward, almost routine, as far
as his submarines’ end of it was concerned. Commandos might not make it to the rendezvous, in which case one or more boats
might come back without any; but the ‘coming back’ wasn’t in doubt – or if it was, you didn’t take it into account.