that he just might pass out. His uncle moved closer and peered over his shoulder, then swore quietly.
Tomboy’s face, bloody and grim, stared back at them. The picture captured her from the waist up, and it was clear from her posture that her hands were tied behind her. Tombstone saw her iron will etched into every line of her face, and knew by the hard set of her eyes and the tightness in her muscles that she was an unwilling participant in this photo shoot.
A hand intruded into the picture right at about chest level. It held a newspaper — Tombstone held the photo closer, and made out the words NEW YORK TIMES. The date was almost too blurred to read.
Almost. A fresh shock reverberated through him, and his breath froze in his throat.
The man nodded, fresh sorrow in his eyes. “Yes. This was taken last week.”
“Where?” Tombstone gasped, struggling for the words, not daring to trust the fresh hope blossoming in his chest. “She’s alive!” Joy coursed through him, followed immediately by the deepest anger he’d ever experienced. She was alive — and she was captive.
“I think we should sit down,” the man said gently. “It is a long story.”
GLOSSARY
0–3 LEVEL: The third deck above the main deck. Designations for decks above the main deck (also known as the damage control deck) begin with zero, e.g. 0–3. The zero is pronounced as “oh” in conversation. Decks below the main deck do not have the initial zero, and are numbered down from the main deck, e.g. deck 11 is below deck 3. Deck 0–7 is above deck 0–3.
1MC: The general announcing system on a ship or submarine. Every ship has many different interior communications systems, most of them linking parts of the ship for a specific purpose. Most operate off sound-powered phones. The circuit designators consist of a number followed by two letters that indicate the specific purpose of the circuit. 2AS, for instance, might be an antisubmarine warfare circuit that connects the sonar supervisor, the USW watch officer, and the sailor at the torpedo launcher.
C-2 GREYHOUND: Also known as the COD, Carrier Onboard Delivery. The COD carries cargo and passengers from shore to ship. It is capable of carrier landings. Sometimes assigned directly to the airwing, it also operates in coordination with CVBGs from a shore squadron.
AIR BOSS: A senior commander or captain assigned to the aircraft carrier, in charge of flight operations. The “boss” is assisted by the mini-boss in Pri-Fly, located in the tower onboard the carrier. The air boss is always in the tower during flight operations, overseeing the launch and recovery cycles, declaring a green deck, and monitoring the safe approach of aircraft to the carrier.
AIR WING: Composed of the aircraft squadrons assigned to the battle group. The individual squadron commanding officers report to the airwing commander, who reports to the admiral.
AIRDALE: Slang for an officer or enlisted person in the aviation fields. Includes pilots, NFOs, aviation intelligence officers and maintenance officers and the enlisted technicians who support aviation. The antithesis of an airdale is a “shoe.”
AKULA: Late model Russian-built attack nuclear submarine, an SSN. Fast, deadly, and deep diving.
ALR-67: Detects, analyzes, and evaluates electromagnetic signals, emits a warning signal if the parameters are compatible with an immediate threat to the aircraft, e.g. seeker head on an antiair missile. Can also detect an enemy radar in either a search or a targeting mode.
ALTITUDE: Is safety. With enough air space under the wings, a pilot can solve any problem.
AMRAAM: Advanced Medium Range Anti Air Missile.
ANGELS: Thousands of feet over ground. Angels twenty is 20,000 feet. Cherubs indicates hundreds of feet, e.g. cherubs five = five hundred feet.
ASW: Antisubmarine Warfare, recently renamed Undersea Warfare. For some reason.
AVIONICS: Black boxes and systems that comprise an aircraft’s combat systems.
AW: Aviation antisubmarine warfare technician, the enlisted specialist flying in an S-3, P-3 or helo USW aircraft. As this book goes to press, there is discussion of renaming the specialty.
AWACS: An aircraft entirely too good for the Air Force, the Advanced Warning Aviation Control System. Long-range command and control and electronic intercept bird with superb capabilities.
AWG-9: Pronounced “awg nine,” the primary search and fire control radar on a Tomcat.
BACKSEATER: Also known as the GIB, the guy in back. Nonpilot aviator available in several flavors: BN (bombardier/navigator), RIO (radar intercept operator), and TACO (Tactical Control Officer) among others. Usually wear glasses and are smart.
BEAR: Russian maritime patrol aircraft, the equivalent in rough terms of a US P-3. Variants have primary missions in command and control, submarine hunting, and electronic intercepts. Big, slow, good targets.
BITCH BOX: One interior communications system on a ship. So named because it’s normally used to bitch at another watch station.
BLUE ON BLUE: Fratricide. U.S. forces are normally indicated in blue on tactical displays, and this term refers to an attack on a friendly by another friendly.
BLUE WATER NAVY: Outside the unrefueled range of the air wing. When a carrier enters blue water ops, aircraft must get on board, e.g. land, and cannot divert to land if the pilot gets the shakes.
BOOMER: Slang for a ballistic missile submarine.
BOQ: Bachelor Officer Quarters — a Motel Six for single officers or those traveling without family. The Air Force also has VOQ, Visiting Officer Quarters.
BUSTER: As fast as you can, i.e., bust yer ass getting here.
CAG: Carrier Air Group Commander, normally a senior Navy captain aviator. Technically, an obsolete term, since the airwing rather than an air group is now deployed on the carrier. However, everyone thought CAW sounded stupid, so CAG was retained as slang for the Carrier Air Wing Commander.
CAP: Combat Air Patrol, a mission executed by fighters to protect the carrier and battle group from enemy air and missiles.
CARRIER BATTLE GROUP: A combination of ships, airwing and submarine assigned under the command of a one-star admiral.
CARRIER BATTLE GROUP 14: The battle group normally embarked on
CBG:
CDC: Combat Direction Center — modernly, replaced CIC, or Combat Information Center, as the heart of a ship. All sensor information is fed into CDC and the battle is coordinated by a Tactical Action Officer on watch there.
CG: Abbreviation for a cruiser.
CHIEF: The backbone of the Navy. E-7, 8, and 9 enlisted paygrades, known as chief, senior chief, and master chief. The transition from petty officer ranks to the chief’s mess is a major event in a sailor’s career. Onboard ship, the chiefs have separate eating and berthing facilities. Chiefs wear khakis, as opposed to dungarees for the less senior enlisted ratings.
CHIEF OF STAFF: Not to be confused with a chief, the COS in a battle group staff is normally a senior Navy captain who acts as the admiral’s XO and deputy.
CIA: Christians in Action. The civilian agency charged with intelligence operations outside the continental United States.
CIWS: Close-In Weapons System, pronounced “see-whiz.” Gatling gun with built-in radar that tracks and fires on inbound missiles. If you have to use it, you’re dead.
COD:
