Warshot (The Hunter Killer Series Book 6) by Don Keith (dark books to read TXT) 📕

It was only natural that when Donnegan stepped down, he made certain Jon Ward took over the job.

“You’re right, Papa Tom. I’m going to blame it on the requirements of the job, but I know that’s a pretty shabby excuse.”

“Yeah, the job,” Donnegan said with a nod. “Seem to remember it chewed up and spit out a lot of my time and attention, too.” He grabbed Ward’s valise from his hand and motioned for him to follow him into the house. “But how’s Jim-boy doing? I heard he got himself winged again. Just like his dad. Not smart or quick enough to duck when the shooting starts.”

“The boy has a real knack for falling into a pile of it and then finding a rose,” Ward said with a laugh. “Is that even a metaphor? Anyway, last time I talked with him, he was set up in some high roller’s suite in Taipei. He has some Taiwanese muscle at his beck and call, involved in an operation with...well... I’ll spare the old retired dude the details for the time being.”

Besides, something smelled wonderful.

“Louise is fixing us a pupu platter and mai tais. Speaking of spouses, when the hell are you bringing Ellen out for a vacation? We got a whole suite set up for you downstairs.”

“She’s ready, believe me. But somebody who shall remain nameless quit his job and left me so much work to do that...”

Donnegan waved for him to stop his complaining and motioned for Ward to follow him out onto the lanai. Ward stepped through the sliding screen door onto a shaded stone deck.

“Wow! This is beautiful!” The deck was crowded with orchids of all varieties, and it seemed that they were all in bloom, covering every square inch in vivid purples, reds, yellows, and vibrant whites. The tropical perfume was intoxicating. And beyond the flowers, the view was spectacular. Pearl Harbor and the submarine base stretched out far below them. From here, Donnegan had an unobstructed view all the way past Hickam Air Force Base to the broad, blue Pacific Ocean beyond. And just to reinforce the myth that Donnegan still kept close tabs on his beloved SUBPAC submarines from his lofty perch, a large spotting telescope rested on a tripod at the lanai’s edge.

Ward touched one of the orchids.

“Man, Ellen would be in heaven here.”

Ward’s wife—and Jim’s mother—was a botany professor and specialized in the Orchidaceous family of flowers.

Donnegan waved Ward to a pair of wicker chairs sitting on either side of a small matching table. The old top spook pointedly put Ward’s valise in the middle of the table. Though Ward had not told him the reason for his trip, Donnegan appeared to be fully aware this was not merely a social stopover.

Ward took a deep breath before resignedly opening his briefcase. He, too, would like to visit and tell sea stories a bit longer. He pulled out some files.

“Papa Tom, you told me if I ever needed some help, I’d know where to find you.”

“So, I’m not just an excuse for a free trip to paradise, huh?”

Ward handed a thick file folder to Donnegan. He riffled through the papers. As always, the old top spy was a quick study.

“Yep, this is interesting, and not in a good way,” he mumbled as he read. “This Taiwanese woman, Li Min Zhou, she came to visit me a few months ago. She was looking for some advice, too. She is one very well-connected woman. And not bad on the eyes, either.”

Donnegan looked to the door quickly, making sure Louise, his wife of more than fifty years, had not heard his last comment.

Ward smiled. “Yeah, she told me about her visit with you. I’m not sure that I can totally trust her, but she seems to have some spectacularly good resources in China. And it appears she is heading up this deal they have Jim working on. That, of course, involves me and my office on a number of levels.”

Donnegan nodded. “One thing you can be sure of, she is on your side only as far as it helps Taiwan and confounds the military and government of the People’s Republic of China. So, I’d say as long as our interests remain aligned with hers, we are good. But if they ever aren’t, she is Taiwanese. And, I suspect, she’s somebody we do not want to get crosswise with. Something tells me she could carve you up and have you filleted before you ever started bleeding. Anyway, from what I’m hearing, she’s probably somebody who can help us, considering.”

Ward nodded his agreement. He was not surprised Donnegan was still plugged in. “Yep. That’s about the way I figured it. And with all the elephants dancing around on this Dongsha thing, I’m just trying to keep from getting trampled. We have been playing this ‘Taiwan-Two Chinas’ game for long enough. I think we can work it out. And you have confirmed my feelings on Li Min Zhou.” He pulled another file out and offered it to Donnegan. “This is what I really want to talk to you about. It’s way, way out of my field. But it has landed squarely in the middle of my desk.”

Donnegan leafed through it as Louise brought out the mai tais. She gave Ward a long hug and asked him about Ellen, then told him the food was coming soon and disappeared back into the house. She, too, knew the drill, that business took precedence.

The old spy whistled softly as he read. “Is this estimate real? This guy, this Dr. Smith—I've heard of him—he’s estimating that there’s something like a million tons of gold down there. Jon, do you know what this means? There has only been something like two hundred thousand tons of gold mined in all of human history. This is five times that much. Even if he is off by a power of ten...”

Jon Ward was shaking his head, perplexed.

“I slept through