“Sounds tempting. Put me down for a charter at the very least. Right now I could use some information. What do you know about Soviet sub bases?”

“Broad subject. Anything in particular you'd like to know?”

“Yes. How were they physically constructed?”

“To begin with, they were big. They had to be large enough to accommodate the babies like the Typhoon, with a length of five hundred fifty-seven feet. The beam alone was seventy-five feet. Those monsters were armed with twenty nukes a piece. The Soviets wanted them protected from a nuclear attack, so they built the pens deep. They learned from the German U-boat pen construction that held up pretty well under Allied bombing. Basically, they'd blast a tunnel out of a hillside and line it with several yards of reinforced granite.”

“Do you have any data on the where and how of these bases?”

“I can get it.” Austin heard an unspoken conditional in the answer. “It would really be a help if you could dig out what you can.”

“No problem. Lots of that stuff has been declassified anyhow. But I'll hold you to that promise to do a charter.”

Austin was relieved. He'd expected Leahy to say he would have to run the request through his higher-ups. “You provide the bait and I'll bring the beer.”

Austin gave Leahy his e-mail address, thanked him again and hung up. He worked out some logistical problems on his computer, then he went out to check on the preparations for his trip with Captain Kemal. The equipment he'd asked for was stacked in boxes on the deck and ready to go. A truck was on its way to run the equipment to the Turgut. Austin had done all he could until he heard from the Special Assignments Team. He didn't have to wait long. As he was taking an equipment inventory, his phone buzzed. It was Joe Zavala calling.

“We're at the airport,” Zavala said.

“What took you so long?”

Zavala sighed loudly. “That's gratitude for you. You yanked me out of the arms of the most beautiful woman on the planet.”

“Every woman you've ever been involved with was the most beautiful woman on the planet.”

“What can I say? I am a fortunate man.”

“One day you'll thank me for rescuing you from the bonds of matrimony.”

“Matrimony! A sobering thought. Don't even joke about it.”

“We can talk about your love life later. How soon will you be at the Argo?”

“Gamay is nailing down a cab and Paul is humping the luggage out to the curb. We'll be there sooner than you can spell Constantinople.”

Within the hour, Zavala and the Trouts arrived at the hotel. After a brief reunion, Zavala said, “Not that it matters, but we were wondering if you could give us a hint why we raced halfway across the world at warp speed.”

“I missed your smiling faces?”