Lt. Cdr. William Jamison (US Navy Reserves), M.D., F.A.C.S., was trying to wrap his head around his new job – as a major player at the medical center for the Nelson Institute of Marine Research in Santa Barbara, California. He and his wife had been in serious need of a change of scene following the death of their only child in a diving accident and Admiral Nelson’s offer had seemed just what they needed. Once Will had toured the medical facility, referred to as Med Bay, and met the staff, he’d been immediately impressed. Nelson wanted a fully-equipped and staffed hospital to handle as much as possible of the employees’ and their families’ needs, and that’s exactly what Med Bay was – staffed with a variety of doctors from pediatricians to geriatric specialists and also housing dentists’ and opticians’ offices. Will felt right at home and knew that he would love working here.
What
he wasn’t in love with was the other half of the position – as CMO aboard
NIMR’s research submarine, Seaview. All
of Will’s previous posts with the Navy had either been on land or on surface
vessels. While he easily swam and
enjoyed snorkeling, he absolutely hated being totally underwater. However, one job came with the other. He and his wife had discussed it at length,
and eventually decided that they needed to get on with their lives. Lu-Tsi, a retired nurse, had loved the people
she’d net at NIMR, and already made instant connections with several other
wives. So, Will had gritted his teeth
and accepted the position.
He
didn’t immediately have to ‘get his feet wet,’ as it were. The submarine was undergoing some repairs so
Will spent the first week and a half getting acclimated to Med Bay, and
familiarizing himself with staff. He
also spent a couple of days going over the medical records of those employees
he’d be responsible for aboard the sub, and in particular the officers. He had, of course, already met them. The XO, Lt. Cdr. Morton, seemed a likeable
enough man. Will wasn’t so sure about
the CO. Cdr. Crane, while apparently
getting along perfectly well with Nelson and Morton, had seemed standoffish to
Will. Not rude. Just…distant.
Will had seen a few looks pass between Morton and Crane during their
initial meeting that he’d wondered about.
He noticed that Nelson had seen them as well and seemed almost amused by
them. Will didn’t let it bother him – he
knew that it would take him a bit to settle into the politics of staff hierarchy.
Today
he had scheduled to acquaint himself with the submarine. Admiral Nelson himself had walked down to the
sub pen with him and given him a general tour.
Will’s first reaction had been amazement. He had, in his years in the navy, heard
stories about Nelson and his unique submarine.
But the stories really didn’t compare to reality. Will couldn’t quite believe the wide
corridors and large cabins. Sick Bay was
spacious and so well equipped that Will almost forgot that he was on a
submarine. Nelson left him there to meet
with his two full-time corpsmen, and Will was instantly impressed with their
knowledge and abilities. Nelson had also
left him with a detailed schematic of the boat, and encouraged Will to familiarize
himself with the layout. He mentioned
that, while there were staff aboard at all times, with Seaview not scheduled
out for almost a week it would be a good time for Will to find his way around.
Eventually
Will made it to what his map called the Observation Nose. Will knew, of course, that one of Seaview’s
most unique features was front windows.
But he still wasn’t quite prepared for their expanse; he was thinking
they’d be more on the scale of portholes.
He could only stand there and stare.
“They
won’t break,” came from behind him, startling him, and he spun around to find
Cdr. Crane standing there, a soft smile on his face and a clipboard in one
hand.
Will
grunted. “Wouldn’t be much of a
submarine if they did. However…”
“They
take some getting used to,” Crane admitted.
Will
thought he looked like he had something else to say. When he remained quiet, Will gave him a
nudge. “Yes?”
At
that Crane sent him… Will would have
sworn that the man was embarrassed and Will had to carefully control his own
expression, figuring that he was totally off base. From NIMR’s new employee paperwork Will knew
that Crane had graduated first in his class at Annapolis, had been the youngest
man ever to command a fast attack sub, and Admiral Nelson was extremely pleased
to have coerced him into the reserves so that he could command Seaview. He’d looked young to Will when they’d first
met, although Will knew his age from going through his medical records. Will carefully controlled a frown. Crane was one of those disgusting people who
would probably never show his years!
But
Will sensed that the younger man did have something that he wanted to say so he
waited – semi-patiently. “I was
surprised that you agreed to take the position,” Crane finally told him –
quietly, softly, with his head slightly lowered and looking at Will practically
through his eyelashes.
“Why?” Will was honestly curious.
“When
I went through your record, your swimming proficiencies were okay but you
barely passed your original scuba class and you’ve never re-certified.”
Will
started nodding partway through his new captain’s comments. “I will admit, I’m not looking forward
to that.” He hesitated, not really
knowing how much to say – he’d only met Crane once. He finally settled on, “My wife and I talked
about it. I really like NIMR’s Med Bay
facility. And the other wives have made
Lu-Tsi feel so welcome.” He
grunted. “I’ll manage,” he assured his
new captain.
It
was Crane’s turn to nod, seeming comfortable with Will’s explanation. But Will sensed that he still had more to say
and once more waited. “I took the
liberty…ah…I thought that you might be more comfortable…well…” He sent Will another almost shy look. “I asked COB Jones if he could find a couple
hours tomorrow to meet with you in the practice pool. There won’t be anyone else there
tomorrow. I just thought that you might
be more comfortable if he gave you a refresher course…” Crane sent him a bit of a grin. “Curley might appear a bit clumsy at times
but he’s a fish in the water. And an
excellent teacher.”
Will
frowned slightly. “I was told that XO
Morton was responsible for my certification.
I have a note to that effect, for day after tomorrow.”
“Chip,
ah, Mr. Morton, does the actual test.
COB will merely be helping you get ready for it.” Again there was a flash of
embarrassment. “I just thought…well, I
wondered if your hesitancy to dive might be connected to how your son was
killed.” Again he paused. “I was just trying to make things a bit
easier…” The embarrassed look totally
took over his face. “If I’ve
overstepped…”
“Not
at all,” Will cut him off. He was
actually somewhat stunned that the young man would be concerned for a new
employee’s well-being instead of simply making sure that compliance to NIMR’s
regs was maintained. And he knew that he
needed to say ‘something’, but wasn’t quite sure what. “Thank you,” he finally settled on, decided
that wasn’t enough, and continued. “I’ve
never liked being underwater,” he admitted.
“My son loved it. Lu-Tsi teased
him about being half fish.” That caused
Crane to grin. While the memories were
still painful, Will was happy that he could make the younger man smile.
“You
don’t know what you’re missing,” Crane said, still smiling.
“Yes,
I do,” Will assured him. “Sharks, eels,
jellyfish…” He didn’t continue because
Crane all but giggled.
“A
very wise man once told me that there’s nothing wrong with enjoying looking at
the surface of the ocean itself, except that when you finally see what goes on
underwater, you realize that you’ve been missing the whole point of the
ocean. Staying on the surface all the
time is like going to the circus and staring at the outside of the tent.”
Will
grinned. “Your dad?” he guessed.
Crane
shook his head. “Admiral Nelson. Well,” he amended, “he was Capt. Nelson then. He was an occasional instructor at Annapolis
all four years Chip, Mr. Morton, and I were there.” They were interrupted as the intercom went
off.
“Engineering. Skipper, are you still aboard?”
Crane
grabbed the closest mic. “Crane. What’s up, Mr. O’Brien?”
“I’ve
got the latest specs you wanted from the engine tests, sir.”
“Be
right there. Crane out.” He glanced at Will
Will
shook his head, gave the man another quick thank you, and Crane headed back
into the bowels of the boat. Will
continued to stand, looking out the windows for another few minutes. So, Crane and Morton had known each other for
quite some time. That would help explain
a few of the looks Will had seen pass between the pair. And, also, some of Nelson’s as well. He was
still a bit surprised at what Crane had arranged. And grateful as well. He just might make it through this first
challenge after all.
As
he made his way back toward Sick Bay he chided himself on thinking that Crane
was standoffish. He had every confidence
that he and his new captain were going to get along just fine.
~ ~
~ ~ ~
Note
: Lu-Tsi Jamison and her background with Will used with permission of her
creator, Cris Smithson.