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asked him the same question. As I said, there’s more to the story. Rumors about the Awa Maru ’s cargo have been circulating for years; people don’t just give up when there’s five billion dollars worth of treasure out there for the taking. In 1976, the American astronaut Scott Carpenter, and Jon Lindbergh—the son of Charles Lindbergh and a former Navy frogman—discovered the Queenfish ’s log, which pinpointed the location where the sinking occurred, and a few years later the Chinese government announced that they had found the wreck, but no treasure.”
    “They had the wrong wreck? ”
    “According to the SECNAV, the Queenfish ’s log book was a fake, part of an elaborate ruse to probe China’s defensive posture in the Taiwan Strait. Carpenter and Lindbergh were part of the deception. The Chinese ran them off the site, which was not completely unexpected, and then took over. Whatever ship they found, or claim to have found, wasn’t the Awa Maru . Loughlin’s actual log book indicates that the ship was sunk several hundred miles away and remains undiscovered.”
    “ Which brings me back to my original question: why does the Secretary of the Navy want us to go looking for buried treasure? Budget cuts?”
    “It’s political.” Maxie’s nose wrinkled, as if saying the word had been distasteful, but then he continued. “China has the best claim for the treasure, particularly the Peking Man, which is an invaluable piece of history. And in case you haven’t been reading the news, China holds our markers. Our national credit rating isn’t what it used to be. If China calls that debt in, we’re done, and a lot of folks think maybe that’s what the Chinese want. The President believes that pointing them to the real treasure would earn us some political capital with Beijing, but since we hoodwinked them once before, he wants to make sure that the ship is actually there before passing on the location. That’s why your job will be to find it and make sure it’s really the Awa Maru . Recon only. Under no circumstances are you to attempt recovery of the ship or its cargo.”
    “And then when it’s politically expedient, the President can hand the Awa Maru to China, wrapped up in a bow. But why now? Why a middle of the night phone call?”
    “SECNAV didn’t say, and I didn’t ask.” Maxie crossed his arms, signaling that he was done entertaining questions. “He made it very clear that this is a favor, Dane. It’s not such a bad thing to have the Secretary of the Navy owe you one, if you catch my drift. Particularly at this crossroads in your career.”
    It took a moment for the significance of the last statement to sink in. “You know about the Valley Forge ?”
    “ I may have mentioned your name in passing to Admiral Long.”
    Dane suddenly felt numb. “I don’t understand, sir. You want me to leave the team?”
    Maxie recoiled a little. “Hell no. You’re an excellent officer. I’m not cutting you loose; I’m trying to set you free to realize your potential. If you stay with the teams, the best you can hope for is to someday have my job. And in case you haven’t noticed, my job amounts to pushing papers, riding herd on drunken sailors, and taking late night phone calls from political appointees. If you ever want to wear a star on your collar, you’ve got to seize every opportunity that comes your way. That’s just the way the Navy works, and I don’t want to be responsible for holding you back. Or, I might add, depriving the service of a damned fine leader.”
    D ane wanted to protest, tell Maxie that he wasn’t interested in being an admiral, much less playing the political games necessary to achieve that goal. But there was a part of him that wondered if maybe that was exactly what he should be doing.
    A good leader knew the importance of listening to what his NCOs had to say, but sometimes—particularly with guys like Bones—that tested the limits of military discipline. Not to mention