Kat,” he said, breaking the silence with a sigh. “Truly, I do. Can you imagine how many times Fve had the same thoughts myself over the years? A normal job, a house in the suburbs, a couple of kids?
“But that’s not for people like us. We’ve got a different path to follow. Different responsibilities. We’re the ones who keep those people safe so they can have those lives ... and stay alive to enjoy them.”
Lynch paused. As usual, his face gave little indication of the thoughts running through his mind.
“Where would you kids be today if I had chosen that route years ago?” he continued. “Where will countless other people be if you try to choose it now?”
No sooner had Lynch finished than the words poured out of Kat in a rush. “I hear what you’re saying, Mister
Lynch—really,” she said. “But with all due respect, that’s a load of bull!”
Lynch reacted with surprise. He wasn’t used to hearing even such mild euphemisms from Kat.
“First of all,” Kat said, “you and I are not the same. I’m not about to go spend my life as some sort of government super-spy. I want to help people, sure. But you’re not going to find me running some ultra-top-secret unit at
I.O. for years and years. I respect you—a lot—and we share some of the same values, but there’s no way that we’re the same person or that we’re going to make the same decisions.
“Second of all, like I told the team, I have no intention of leaving. Taking a job is not the same as busting up Gen 13 . I’ll be here when you need me. But it can’t be all that I do.”
Lynch shook his head impatiently. “Kat, you have to be practical. If you think this through . .
“I have thought it through!” she answered. “I mean, think back to when we moved to New York. Weren’t you the one who said that, now that we didn’t have to run anymore, you wanted us out there living our lives?
“Well, that’s what I’m doing. I’m living my life. And you know what? In its own way, it’s scarier than facing a hundred I.O.’s!”
Kat’s voice trailed off. She stared down at her feet, and her words grew more quiet. “That’s why I need you to understand. See, even if you don’t agree. ... Even if you can’t be happy for me ...
“... I could really use your support right now ...” Lynch frowned. He thought long and hard.
“Your mind is made up, isn’t it?” he said.
“Yes.”
“There’s nothing I can say to change it.”
“No.” ' '
“All right then,” he said. “I still think it’s a bad idea. However, if it’s that important to you, then go do what you have to do.”
Kat rushed forward and threw her arms around her surprised mentor. “Thank you!” she yelled, before releasing him and dashing off down the hall. “I’ve got to go write a resume!”
Off in her bedroom, Roxy took her ear away from the door. She lifted her hand and, with a sniffle, wiped away a tear.
CHAPTER 4
The fleet ballistic missile submarine USS Kolodny was not a small ship. The Kolodny was three stories tail and, if you could stand it up on end, it would be taller than the Washington Monument. For the past two months, it had been home to about one hundred and sixty crewmen, who had spent almost all of that time underwater.
Apart from the crew, the sub was also home to a fully-functional nuclear reactor, which provided its power, as well as twenty-four Trident ballistic missiles. That translated into twenty-four nuclear ICBM missiles, every single one of which had an effective range of more than four thousand miles and the capacity to destroy a city.
Essentially, the mission of the Kolodny was to avoid human contact. In the time since the sub had left its home port in Groton, Connecticut, it had crisscrossed the North Atlantic, over and over, along a variety of routes. It wasn’t that the ship was going somewhere in particular. The idea was for the submarine and its cargo to avoid being found.
Many of the crewmen
“But that’s not for people like us. We’ve got a different path to follow. Different responsibilities. We’re the ones who keep those people safe so they can have those lives ... and stay alive to enjoy them.”
Lynch paused. As usual, his face gave little indication of the thoughts running through his mind.
“Where would you kids be today if I had chosen that route years ago?” he continued. “Where will countless other people be if you try to choose it now?”
No sooner had Lynch finished than the words poured out of Kat in a rush. “I hear what you’re saying, Mister
Lynch—really,” she said. “But with all due respect, that’s a load of bull!”
Lynch reacted with surprise. He wasn’t used to hearing even such mild euphemisms from Kat.
“First of all,” Kat said, “you and I are not the same. I’m not about to go spend my life as some sort of government super-spy. I want to help people, sure. But you’re not going to find me running some ultra-top-secret unit at
I.O. for years and years. I respect you—a lot—and we share some of the same values, but there’s no way that we’re the same person or that we’re going to make the same decisions.
“Second of all, like I told the team, I have no intention of leaving. Taking a job is not the same as busting up Gen 13 . I’ll be here when you need me. But it can’t be all that I do.”
Lynch shook his head impatiently. “Kat, you have to be practical. If you think this through . .
“I have thought it through!” she answered. “I mean, think back to when we moved to New York. Weren’t you the one who said that, now that we didn’t have to run anymore, you wanted us out there living our lives?
“Well, that’s what I’m doing. I’m living my life. And you know what? In its own way, it’s scarier than facing a hundred I.O.’s!”
Kat’s voice trailed off. She stared down at her feet, and her words grew more quiet. “That’s why I need you to understand. See, even if you don’t agree. ... Even if you can’t be happy for me ...
“... I could really use your support right now ...” Lynch frowned. He thought long and hard.
“Your mind is made up, isn’t it?” he said.
“Yes.”
“There’s nothing I can say to change it.”
“No.” ' '
“All right then,” he said. “I still think it’s a bad idea. However, if it’s that important to you, then go do what you have to do.”
Kat rushed forward and threw her arms around her surprised mentor. “Thank you!” she yelled, before releasing him and dashing off down the hall. “I’ve got to go write a resume!”
Off in her bedroom, Roxy took her ear away from the door. She lifted her hand and, with a sniffle, wiped away a tear.
CHAPTER 4
The fleet ballistic missile submarine USS Kolodny was not a small ship. The Kolodny was three stories tail and, if you could stand it up on end, it would be taller than the Washington Monument. For the past two months, it had been home to about one hundred and sixty crewmen, who had spent almost all of that time underwater.
Apart from the crew, the sub was also home to a fully-functional nuclear reactor, which provided its power, as well as twenty-four Trident ballistic missiles. That translated into twenty-four nuclear ICBM missiles, every single one of which had an effective range of more than four thousand miles and the capacity to destroy a city.
Essentially, the mission of the Kolodny was to avoid human contact. In the time since the sub had left its home port in Groton, Connecticut, it had crisscrossed the North Atlantic, over and over, along a variety of routes. It wasn’t that the ship was going somewhere in particular. The idea was for the submarine and its cargo to avoid being found.
Many of the crewmen
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