The Circle

by David Poyer

  WHEN Dan hauled himself upright, sweat poured down his ribs beneath his blouse. The Court seemed to be proceeding chronologically, calling first Bryce for an overview, then establishing conditions on Reed’s watch, then Nor-den’s. Rich Norden should be up next, then. He saw the lieutenant’s fresh blond crew cut in the front row, beside Bryce.

  But if that was how they were going, he’d be about the last man called. If he could hold out that long. Would there be a break for lunch? He wormed his wrist around to see his watch, gasping a little as the pain, which had been growing slowly beneath it, suddenly tore through the Saran Wrap coating of the opiate.

  And when were they going to get to the important questions—why it had happened, why Ryan had been rammed, why so many had died and so few been saved? When would they ask what had happened in Ryan’s whaleboat after she cast off? Norden and Bryce hadn’t mentioned it. The remaining officers hadn’t talked at all about it while they were in Newport, just done the routine things, getting clothes and places to sleep for the men, writing the letters to the next of kin.

  He sat sweating, tasting metal again, as he had on the deck of a burning destroyer.

  Were they going to leave it all up to him?

  * * *

  LIEUTENANT Richard Norden was then called as a witness by the counsel for the Court. He was sworn and examined as follows.

  Q. State your name, rank, branch of service, and duty station.

  A. I am Richard N. Norden, lieutenant, U.S. Navy, weapons officer of RYAN.

  Q. What was your duty station on the morning of 25 December?

  A. I had been called off watch to deal with matters internal to the ship, at the request of the executive officer. I notified the senior watch officer that I might be late relieving him. This was Lieutenant Evlin. He proposed that we swap watches, that I get some sleep and relieve him at 0400.

  Q. Have you any objection with regard to the narrative read by the senior survivor?

  A. No.

  Q. Have you anything to lay to the charge of any officer or man with regard to the loss of USS RYAN?

  A. [Witness hesitated.] No.

  Q. Do you have any objections to the narrative submitted by the senior survivor, or any charges to lay to the account of any of the officers or men of RYAN?

  A. No, sir.

  COUNSEL FOR CDR PACKER: I would like to ask one question of this witness before he steps down.

  Permission was granted. Cross-examination took place as follows.

  Q. Mr. Norden, what was your opinion of Commander Packer’s professional competence?

  A. Sir, he handled the ship well, and he was always in possession of himself, though at times he would get angry when we made what he felt was a mistake. But he was fatigued and sick and quite possibly in that condition, could have made an error.

  Neither the counsel for the Court, the Court, nor the parties desired further to question this witness. He took his seat.

  The Court decided unanimously to adjourn till 1230, resume questioning until 1500, and then adjourn for the day.

  * * *

  THE yeoman’s clatter ceased. Dan went past his table on the way to the door. He was telling some of the others where to eat. There were satellite cafeterias nearby where you could get fast food, sandwiches, burgers, and drinks. There was the main cafeteria, with steam tables and a buffet. Then there was the executive dining room. He didn’t feel like going far.

  “Where you headed, Mark?”

  “Grab a sandwich.”

  “That’s all I want. That and a glass of water. Wait up, damn it.”

  “We’re not supposed to talk.”

  “We don’t have to talk, I just want somebody around in case I fall down.”

  Silver relented, or at least didn’t say anything else. Dan limped after him along the endless receding corridors. Floors, rings, bays … he’d better figure out how things were laid out, or if he took a wrong turn, he’d be doomed. He had a ham and cheese on white cardboard, a Sprite, and, washed down with it, the noon pill. Silver sat at the same table but looked away, out into the corridor, crunching the ice out of his drink. “Nice ass,” he said.

  “Say what?”

  “The one in pink. You see her?”

  “Oh. No, I missed her.”

  “Your eyes are like zonked. You done? We better get back. We only got half an hour.”

  He felt a little better now. He chugged the rest of the Sprite and got up. In the corridor he saw a phone booth and stopped suddenly. “I got to make a call.”

  “Suit yourself. Just go down this corridor till you see the flag display, remember that? Then turn right and you’re there.”

  The desk at the Marriott said no Susan Lenson had checked in yet. He left a message, that he’d be waiting at the river entrance of the Pentagon a little after three.

  He had just time for a pit stop on the way back to the conference room.

  * * *

  THE Court reconvened at 1240.

  The counsel for the Court then called Chief Petty Officer John Yardner. He was sworn and examined as follows.

  Q. State your name, rank, branch of service, and duty station, please.

  A. John Yardner, quartermaster chief, U.S. Navy.

  Q. Duty station?

  A. Leading QM on RYAN, duty QM for Watch Section Three, sir.

  Q. What was your duty station on 25 December of this year?

  A. I was on the bridge.

  Q. You have heard the narrative read by the senior survivor and the subsequent testimony. Have you any objection to these narratives?

  A. Well, they seemed sketchy, sir. A lot was happening on the bridge.

  Q. Everything that happened there will be closely reviewed. Do you have any other objections at this time?

  A. No, sir.

  Q. Have you anything to add?

  A. I would like to apologize for the loss of the quartermaster’s log.

  Q. The record of course and speed changes, and so forth?

  A. Yes, sir. What happened was, when “abandon ship” went, I took it down with me like I was supposed to. I had it buttoned inside my shirt. It must have slipped out somehow after that, when I was in the water, and I didn’t feel it.

  Q. Your explanation has been recorded. Have you anything to lay to the charge of any officer or man with regard to the loss of USS RYAN?

  A. No, sir.

  Neither counsel for the Court, the Court, nor the parties desired further to examine the witness. He resumed his seat.

  The counsel for the Court then called Ensign Daniel Lenson. He was sworn and examined as follows.

  * * *

  “I swear that the evidence I shall give in the case now in hearing shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. So help me God.” He lowered his hand slowly.

  “State your name, rank, branch of service, and duty station,” said Johnstone. He stood beside the witness chair, but he didn’t look at Dan when he said it.

  He took a breath so deep it hurt. “Daniel Lenson, ensign, U.S. Navy. I was first lieutenant on Ryan.”

  “What was your duty station at the time of the collision?”

  “I was the junior officer of the deck.”

  Johnstone turned away, addressing the admirals, and Dan let his breath ease out, trying to relax. “Neither the captain nor the officer of the deck having survived, Mr. Lenson is the senior remaining officer from the bridge team. Would you give the Court if you can, in the presence of the surviving officers and crew, a detailed narrative of events leading to the collision between Ryan and Kennedy?”

  Eyes swung back to him, refastened. This time he felt them on his skin. Sweat slid down his back. He groped into his blouse, forcing himself to speak slowly and distinctly, trying to ignore the katydid clatter of the stenographic machine.

  “Sir, I have written out a narrative that I would like to read.”

  “Proceed.”

  “On the morning of 25 December, I relieved Lieutenant (jg) Sil
ver as JOOD at about oh-one hundred. The OOD was Lieutenant Evlin. Seas were moderate. The night was overcast with no moon. The wind was westerly. Ryan was steaming in company with Kennedy, Talbot, Garcia, Dewey, and Calloosahatchee.

  “When I relieved our course was zero-one-zero, twenty knots. The ship was darkened, running lights were dimmed, and the radar was secured. Kennedy was bearing zero-six-five true. It was difficult to estimate the range, though, without radar. At a little after oh-two hundred, Kennedy signaled ‘Turn Niner.’ Mr. Evlin informed the captain, and he gave permission to make the turn. We then came right to one-zero-zero.”

  He wanted to wipe his forehead, but he had only one hand available. And it held the paper. “Shortly thereafter, the captain came on the bridge. He discussed with Mr. Evlin the maneuver we would make when Kennedy came to recovery course. Then he went below. A few minutes later, the OTC, the officer in tactical command, signaled ‘Flight course two-six-zero, speed twenty-seven.’ We rogered, then asked whether he wanted us to take plane guard station again. They replied in the affirmative, then executed the turn.” He paused. “Am I going too fast?”

  “You’re doing fine, Ensign,” said one of the admirals. “Go on, please.”

  “Yes, sir … Mr. Evlin then began heading for station as directed by the captain, coming right smartly to one-three-zero and increasing speed to twenty-seven knots.

  “The captain came back a few seconds later. He must have felt us heel to the rudder. He asked if we’d started the maneuver. Mr. Evlin said we had. He then went out on the port wing for a little while. When he came in, he suddenly ordered, ‘Come left to zero-nine-zero,’ and increased our speed to flank.

  “Mr. Evlin asked if he had taken the conn, since the helmsman was executing the order. The captain said he had. I went out to the wing to check on the carrier. Mr. Evlin apparently also had misgivings, because he went to see what zero-nine-zero would do on the maneuvering board. All this time, I had been taking bearings on the carrier. I took another now and reported, ‘Guide bears zero-eight-zero.’ The captain expressed surprise.

  “Mr. Evlin had finished plotting the course change and he now told the captain it would take us too close to the carrier. Commander Packer seemed to make a decision, and instructed the helmsman to put his rudder to left full.

  “Just as Coffey reported his rudder was there, the captain ordered ‘left hard’ and ‘ahead emergency flank.’ We ran out on the wing and saw the carrier bearing down on us. Mr. Evlin called out, ‘stand by for collision.’ Pettus passed that over the 1MC and hit the alarm.”

  Sweat was streaming down his face. A picture was forming between him and the shaking paper. He felt the night wind again, smelled vanilla-scented tobacco. No one said anything. He could feel all their eyes on him, like some penetrating radiation.

  He swallowed, blotted his face with the side of his sleeve, and went on hoarsely, blinking down at the words.

  “Kennedy hit us at a ninety-degree angle at about the location of the after engine room. We were thrown around the bridge. When she steadied up, the carrier was already through her—had cut right through her and went on—and a fire had started aft. I think a fuel line or aviation gas line on the carrier must have been sheared by our mast and dumped fuel on us as she went through.”

  “Please go on,” said Johnstone.

  “Yes, sir. The captain and I and Mr. Evlin assembled on the starboard wing. We asked Commander Packer if we should abandon. He said, ‘We never got the flank bell’—I think those are his exact words. He seemed calm. After a short discussion, he said the fire would show the other units where we were, and to abandon ship. He said to make sure all hands got the word.

  “I then left the bridge, went along the main deck, and told everyone I met to abandon ship immediately. It had to be passed by word of mouth since power was out. The ship was down by the stern and I felt it might go any minute. I wanted to leave. Lieutenant Evlin, whom I met on the main deck just then, restrained me. I then recovered myself, went below, and released one of my men who was in the brig. I stayed below to direct more survivors topside for several minutes, then returned to the main deck. After that I went forward and abandoned ship from the forecastle.”

  He wiped his sleeve over his face again. His mouth was so dry. He ran his tongue around his lips and went on. “Shortly thereafter, Kennedy came in a second time, as previous witnesses have said. It struck the forward section of the ship, capsizing it, and it sank. This action puzzled me as it undoubtedly contributed to the heavy loss of life. The only reason I can think of is that the collision may have jammed her rudder.

  “After that in the water, we were just trying to stay afloat and stay out of the burning oil. I never saw the ship’s whaleboat. I was picked up fifteen or twenty minutes after the capsizing by Garcia’s gig.

  “That is my narrative of the collision and loss.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Lenson,” said Johnstone. “It will be appended to the record. Have you any objection to the dispatch sent by Commander Bryce to the Secretary of the Navy?”

  He sat rigid for a moment. “Not to the dispatch.”

  “Or anything to lay to the charge of any officer or man with regard to the loss of Ryan?”

  “Yes, sir. I believe the loss was due to—”

  “We will address that question in detail later. For the moment, I need to know if you feel anyone acted in a negligent or criminal manner.”

  He licked his lips again. Why did Johnstone keep interrupting him? “Yes,” he said again, looking at the men in the front row. Bryce. Norden. Lassard. They stared back at him.

  “You do so feel?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Johnstone faced the Court again. “I have further questions to ask of this witness, too. He is obviously one of the keys to the causality of the accident. But it seems best to defer this line of inquiry, which will require detailed exposition and cross-examination, until the remaining witnesses have been heard.”

  Dan gaped at him. “But, sir—”

  “Thank you, you may step down.”

  * * *

  HE sat with his chin propped on his fist as Johnstone called the next witness. What was going on? They hadn’t let him speak, said he’d be called back. But when?

  Johnstone was calling the remaining survivors assembly line—fashion now, going through the regulation questions with each man. Only two made Dan sit up and listen. The first was Pettus.

  * * *

  THE counsel for the Court called Boatswain’s Mate Third Class M. Martin Pettus. He was sworn and examined as follows.

  Q. State your name, rank, branch of service, and duty station.

  A. Martin Pettus, sir, boatswain third, U.S. Navy.

  Q. What was your station on the morning of 25 December?

  A. I was boatswain’s mate of the watch, sir.

  Q. You have heard the testimony of the senior survivor and of other survivors from the bridge team. Have you any objection with regard to these narratives?

  A. No, sir.

  Q. Have you anything to add?

  A. If it is all right, I would like to add something to what Mr. Lenson just gave.

  Q. You may.

  A. He mentioned that the captain said, after the collision, that we never got the flank bell, or words to that effect. It’s part of my job to watch the lee helmsman, make sure he rings up the right speed and the engine room answers properly. From where I stand, I can see the little indicator that tells how many turns the screws are actually making. The rpm indicator, yeah. Anyway, Popeye, I mean BM2 Rambaugh, he had the watch before me; he told me the engines was answering slow. So I was watching that, and I noticed that after the captain came to flank, it just hung back where it had been when he had twenty-seven rung up. And then when he went to emergency flank, there at the end, it didn’t move at all. I don’t think the snipes even got around to answering that one.

  I was about to bring this to somebody’s attention, but everything went to [expletive deleted]
before I got a chance. Anyway, I think that’s what he had in mind, and if he thought he was getting twenty-nine or thirty knots when he was only getting twenty-seven, it might have made the difference between making it or not. See, if we’d gone another couple hundred feet before she hit us, we’d have been okay.

  Q. Do you have anything more?

  A. No, sir.

  Q. Have you anything to lay to the charge of any officer or man with regard to the loss of USS RYAN?

  A. No sir, I think all the guys were doing their jobs, we just got our [expletive deleted] caught in a crack.

  THE COURT: This is not a reprimand. I would however like to remind all present that we are dealing with matters of observed fact. Witnesses will refrain from uttering personal opinions.

  A. Yes, sir, I’m sorry if I was out of line.

  Neither counsel for the Court, the Court, nor the parties desired further to examine the witness.

  Q. State your name, rank, branch of service, and duty station.

  A. DC1 Xavier Traven, USN. In charge of Repair Two, midships.

  Q. What was your station at the time of the collision of USS KENNEDY and USS RYAN?

  A. I was up on the mess decks when the alarm went. Lucky I was, because very few of the men in engineering berthing got out alive. When I heard it, I got up and ran for my DC locker.

  Q. Why were you on the mess decks?

  A. I was eating pudding they had there. I couldn’t sleep because of some physical problems.

  Q. You have heard the narrative of the senior survivor. Have you any objection with regard to it?

  A. No, sir.

  Q. Have you anything to lay to the charge of any officer or man with regard to the loss of USS RYAN?

  A. No, sir. All my guys arrived on station within about four minutes and we all tried our best to save the ship.

  THE COURT: Are you the senior surviving damage controlman?

  A. Yes, sir, I was the senior DC man on RYAN.

  THE COURT: It would be of interest to hear your estimate of the damage and the measures taken to keep her afloat.

  A. Well sir, when we got hit we were at condition Zebra, which means most of the watertight scuttles and doors were dogged. The hatches were not in good condition. We had bad gaskets, loose dogging mechanisms. We had put in a work order in the yard but they never got to it.