Smith chewed thoughtfully. Her willingness to throw herself at things full guns was her greatest strength. In truth, though, sometimes a hammer wasn’t the right tool for the job.

“He wasn’t involved in Fukushima,” she said. “So I got him killed for nothing.”

“Jesus, Randi. You’re acting like he was the pope or something. On top of everything else he’s done in his career, he just tried to assassinate the head of Japan’s military and managed to take out a lot of innocent people in the process.”

“Yeah. But I’m guessing a bunch of Chinese politicians came up with the bomb idea. Not his style. And I’m not sure Takahashi doesn’t need killing. All he seems interested in doing is throwing gas on this thing.”

Smith shrugged. “Are you even sure you got Kaito killed? He botched the assassination. You might have just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Another blonde bimbo holed up in his apartment when the Chinese government decided he’d outlived his usefulness.”

She threw a fortune cookie at him, bouncing it off his chest. “Bimbo, huh?”

“I meant that in the most positive way possible.”

“I have a bad feeling about all this, Jon. You know how these things can go: one minute everyone’s flipping each other the bird from the deck of their ship, and the next a million people are dead. Delicate situations just aren’t my forte.”

When he laughed, the pain wasn’t quite as bad as it had been over the last few days. “You said a mouthful there.”

27

27

Off the Coast of the Senkaku Islands
East China Sea

Contacts?” Captain Isao Matsuoka asked.

“No change, sir.”

He looked out at the calm water for a few more seconds, then turned to scan the bridge of Japan’s newest battleship. It was magnificent even by American standards—a testament to flawless design manned by sailors he believed to be unparalleled in all the world. And yet it meant nothing.

The truth was that the JDS Izumo was little more than twenty thousand tons of scrap metal—an antique before the first steel plate had been welded into place at the shipyard. Still, it had been his honor to command her. And it would be an even greater honor die with her.

He returned his gaze to the glass, examining the helicopters lined up on the flight deck and the open sea beyond. The sun had risen from the water only half an hour ago and he squinted into it, searching for the enemy along the horizon.

Both Japan’s forces and those of the Chinese had retreated to safer distances on the orders of their governments. It created a deceptively peaceful scene of blue skies and gentle swells. The calm before the storm.

“Captain,” his XO said, coming up behind him. “We have a secure call coming in for you on the satellite link.”