The taillights were barely out of sight when a figure stepped from the shadows and a familiar and unmistakable voice said, “That's gratitude for you. The least the navy could have done was call a cab to run you home.”

Austin glanced at the departing SUVs. “The navy doesn't like fly-by-night operations like us showing up their expensive intelligence services and aircraft carriers.”

“They'll get over it,” Admiral Sandecker said, with amusement. “Can I offer you a lift?”

“Best offer I've had all night.” Austin and Trout got into the Jeep Cherokee parked nearby. Sandecker deplored limousines, or any of the trap- pings of power for that matter, and preferred to drive a four- wheel drive from NUMA's agency pool. The pilot and copilot finished buttoning down the plane and Sandecker gave them rides home.

Austin had called Sandecker from Maine to tell him about the mission. As he drove onto the George Washington Memorial Parkway, Sandecker said, “I said it before, but you boys deserve a medal for getting aboard that ship.”

“It was getting off the ship that I preferred, although I may give up fishing forever now that I've seen a trawl from a cod's point of view,” Trout said with his understated New England humor.

Sandecker chuckled. “You're reasonably certain no one on board the Ataman ship will suspect the navy men were spirited away?”

“A few crewmen might remember seeing us and put two and two together with the missing dry suits and the open moon pool. I doubt they'd think anyone was crazy enough to do what we did, and get away with it.”

“I agree. They will report the missing navy men to Razov, but they'll assume they drowned or died from hypothermia. Even if they suspect an intrusion, I doubt whether they'd tell Razov, for fear of their lives.”

“He might learn the truth when the navy announces that all the NR-1 crew have been rescued.”

“I've asked the Navy Department to keep a lid on the announcement, which they were glad to do. The crew members will be reunited with their families and whisked off to a seaside retreat for some R & R.”

“That will buy us some time.”

“We'll need every minute. Get a good night's sleep, both of you, and we'll have a meeting first thing in the morning.”