Wilson noticed Christine on the wharf and waved; she waved back. This was the second time America had relied on Captain Murray Wilson, and she felt obliged to offer her appreciation in person. A brow was soon in place and men began hustling across in both directions. Christine would wait for Captain Wilson to debark, but Harrison would join his unit aboard the submarine.
During the days spent waiting on Guam, neither she nor Harrison had mentioned it. His passionate embrace before she stepped onto the ledge outside the Great Hall of the People had been nothing more than a good-luck kiss. At least that’s what she told herself, each time her thoughts wandered. Harrison was a married man, and whatever feelings he had for her were irrelevant, as were her feelings for him. Still, she enjoyed spending time with him, and she went out of her way to arrange lunches and dinners together. She caught herself stealing glances at him, thinking about what might have been. But that was over twenty years ago. They had chosen separate paths, and there was no going back.
Speaking of going back, Christine had been debating whether to ask Harrison to return to Washington with her, purportedly to help debrief the president on the SEAL team mission. Up to now, she had opted against asking him. But with the arrival of Michigan—and Harrison’s departure only minutes away, she finally gave in. She turned toward Harrison.
“Jake, I’ve been thinking, and I’d like you to join me at the White House to debrief the president. I think he’d appreciate the perspective of someone with a more tactical background.”
Harrison was silent for a while, his eyes probing hers, and Christine hoped he hadn’t seen through her thinly veiled plan. Finally, he replied, “Thanks for the offer, but I don’t think that’s necessary. You were with us the whole time, and you were the one who completed the mission. You’re more than capable of debriefing the president without me. Plus, it’s not my call. I belong with my unit, and Commander McNeil would be the one to authorize my absence. You’d have to ask him. But if it’s all right with you, I’d rather just decline now and leave it at that.”
Christine let out an inward sigh. It wasn’t the answer she had hoped for. “All right, Jake. But if you change your mind, let me know.”
Harrison said nothing for a while, then returned his attention to Michigan. There was a break in personnel crossing the brow, providing a path for him to board the submarine. He turned back to Christine.
“Any last words?”
Christine shook her head.
“Then I think this is where we say good-bye.”
Christine smiled. “Again.”
She resisted the urge to reach out and touch his arm, to give any indication of how she felt. He stared into her eyes for a long moment, and it looked as if there was something he wanted to say, but then he turned and headed toward the submarine without another word. Christine watched as he crossed the brow and disappeared down the Missile Compartment hatch.
COMPLETE CAST OF CHARACTERS
CHINESE CHARACTERS
WEDDING PARTY (PROLOGUE)
BAI JIAO, prime minister’s daughter
HUANG FU, Bai Jiao’s fiancé
FENG DAI, Bai Jiao’s bodyguard
ADMINISTRATION
XIANG CHENGLEI, president and general secretary of the Party
HUAN ZHIXIN, chairman, Central Military Commission
BAI TAO, prime minister
SHEN YI, Politburo senior member (Huan Zhixin’s uncle)
DENG CHUNG, Politburo junior member
WANG QUI, national security advisor
XIE HAI, President Xiang’s executive assistant
YANG MINSHENG, head of President Xiang’s security detail
MILITARY
TSOU DESHI (Fleet Admiral), Commander, People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy
GUO JIAN (Admiral), Commander, East Sea Fleet
SHI CHEN (Admiral), Commander, North Sea Fleet
CAO FENG (General), Commander, Fourth Department
ZHANG ANGUO (General), Commander, Nanjing Military Region
SHAO JINHAI (Vice Admiral), Admiral challenging plan during operations brief
ZHOU PENGFEI (Captain), Commander, 34th Hong Niao Missile Battery
CHENG BO (Captain), Officer-in-Charge, East Sea Fleet Command Center
ZENG YONG (Commander), Commanding Officer, submarine CNS Chang Cheng
ZHAO WEI (Commander), Commanding Officer, submarine CNS Jiaolong
LIANG AIGUO (First Lieutenant), Xian H-6F bomber pilot
JIANG QUI, Chinese soldier landing on shore of Taiwan (Baishawan Beach)
XIULAN, Jiang Qui’s girlfriend
FENG, Jian Qui’s best friend
CIVILIAN
PENG YAOTING, CIA agent in Beijing
TIAN AIGUO, CIA agent in Beijing
YUAN GUI, driver who takes Christine and SEALs to the Great Hall of the People
PENG WEIJIE, Baishawan Beach grandmother
XIAOTIEN, Baishawan Beach granddaughter
“SCARFACE”, Ringleader of teenagers stopping Christine O’Connor in hutong
CHRIS STEVENSON, Chinese agent in Panama
LIJUAN, President Xiang’s mother (referenced only)
BOHAI, President Xiang’s father (referenced only)
AMERICAN CHARACTERS
ADMINISTRATION
BOB TOMPKINS, vice president
KEVIN HARDISON, chief of staff
CHRISTINE O’CONNOR, national security advisor
NELSON JENNINGS, secretary of defense
LINDSAY ROSS, secretary of state
STEVE BRACKMAN (Captain), senior military aide
LARS SIKES, press secretary (referenced only)
JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF
MARK HODSON (General), Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff
MEL GARRISON (General), Chief of Staff, Air Force
GRANT HEALEY (Admiral), Chief of Naval Operations
ELY WILLIAMS (General), Commandant of the Marine Corps
MAJOR MILITARY COMMANDS
VANCE GARBIN (Admiral), Commander, Pacific Command
CARL KRAE (Major General), Commander, Cyber Warfare Command
TIM MOSS (Rear Admiral), Program Executive Officer (Submarines)
JOHN STANBURY (Rear Admiral), Commander, Submarine Force Pacific (referenced only)
USS MICHIGAN (GUIDED MISSILE SUBMARINE)
MURRAY WILSON (Captain), Commanding Officer
PAUL GREENWOOD (Lieutenant Commander), Executive Officer
KASEY FAUCHER (Lieutenant Commander), Engineering Officer
KELLY HAAS (Lieutenant Commander), Supply Officer
KARL STEWART (Lieutenant), Weapons Officer
STEVE CORDERO (Lieutenant), Junior Officer
KRIS HERNDON (Lieutenant), Junior Officer
ROBERTA CLARK (Lieutenant Junior Grade), Junior Officer
JOE ALEO (Commander), Medical Officer
JEFF WALKUP (Chief Electronics Technician), Radioman
SAM WALSH (Machinist Mate Second Class), Torpedoman
BILL COATES (Electronics Technician Second Class), Quartermaster
SAM MEADE (Mess Specialist First Class), Night Baker
USS NIMITZ (AIRCRAFT CARRIER)
ALEX HARROW (Captain), Commanding Officer
HELEN CORCORAN (Captain), Air Wing Commander
SUE LAYBOURN (Captain), Combat Direction Center (CDC) Operations Officer
MICHAEL BERESFORD (Lieutenant Commander), Officer of the Deck
NATHAN REYNOLDS (Lieutenant), Conning Officer
USS RONALD REAGAN (AIRCRAFT CARRIER)
CHARLES “CJ” BERGER (Captain), Commanding Officer
EMIL JONES (Captain), Air Wing Commander
TIM POWERS (Captain), Executive Officer
DEBBIE KENT (Captain), Combat Direction Center (CDC) Operations Officer
ANDREW FELLOWS (Commander), Chief Engineer
USS ANNAPOLIS (LOS ANGELES CLASS FAST ATTACK SUBMARINE)
RAMSEY HOOTMAN (Commander), Commanding Officer
TED WINSOR (Lieutenant Commander), Executive Officer
DON MILLER (Lieutenant), Weapons Officer
MIKE LAND (Lieutenant), Junior Officer
ARMANDO HOGARTH (Lieutenant), Junior Officer
USS JACKSONVILLE (LOS ANGELES CLASS FAST ATTACK SUBMARINE)
RANDY BAUGHMAN (Commander), Commanding Officer
BECK BURRELL (Lieutenant), Officer of the Deck
USS TEXAS (VIRGINIA CLASS FAST ATTACK SUBMARINE)
JIM LATHAM (Commander), Commanding Officer
JOHN MILLIGAN (Lieutenant Commander), Executive Officer
COLBY MARSHALL (Petty Officer First Class), Fire Control Technician
USS LAKE ERIE (TICONDEROGA CLASS GUIDED MISSILE CRUISER)
MARY CORDEIRO (Captain), Commanding Officer
SHVETA THAKRAR (Lieutenant Commander), Tactical Action Officer
MARIO CAITI (Senior Chief Fire Controlman), Combat Systems Coordinator
NAVY SEALS
JOHN MCNEIL (Commander), SEAL Team Commander
JAKE HARRISON (Lieutenant), SEAL Platoon Officer in Charge (OIC)
DAN O’HARA (Chief Special Warfare Operator), SEAL Platoon Chief
DREW GARRETSON (Special Warfare Operator First Class), Communicator
TRACEY MARTIN (Special Warfare Operator Second Class), Breacher
KELLY ANDREWS (Special Warfare Operator Second Class), Rappeller
MARLON CRANE (Special Warfare Operator Second Class), Replaced by Christine
OTHER CHARACTERS—MILITARY
LELAND GWENN, call sign Vandal (Lieutenant), F/A-18 Pilot
LIZ MICHALSKI, call sign Phoenix (Lieutenant), F/A-18 Pilot
STAN BORUM, call sign Shrek (Lieutenant Colonel), F-35B Pilot
JULIE AUSTIN (Lieutenant Commander), E-2C Combat Information Center Officer (CICO)
DEBRA DRIZA (Captain), Commander, Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard
OTHER CHARACTERS—CIVILIAN
MICHAEL RICHARDSON, U.S. Ambassador to China
DANIEL DEVOR, Panama Canal Supervisor
CALEB MALCOM, Bluestone Security mercenary
ALICE LOWEECEY, Brandon County judge
TINA DILL, Shemya Island Radar Operator
DIMITRIOUS LOUPAS, Shemya Island Radar Supervisor
CINDY PON, Office of Naval Intelligence Analyst
JINA HONG, Office of Naval Intelligence Analyst (night shift) (referenced only)
JAY WOOD, Office of Naval Intelligence Cryptologist
JAPANESE CHARACTERS
MILITARY
SUZUKI KOKI, Japanese Army Major
AUTHOR’S NOTE
I hope you enjoyed reading Empire Rising!
This was a more difficult book for me to write than The Trident Deception, for two reasons. The first was that it covered areas where I was not a subject matter expert and I had to rely heavily on the expertise of others. The second reason was the scenario itself—war with China and the potential outcome. Some of you will no doubt take exception to the way the U.S. Navy responded, and are convinced there is no way China could destroy virtually all of the Pacific Fleet. I offer you this in my defense—I think you’re right!
My personal opinion is that an all-out naval war between the United States and China would be one-sided in the United States’ favor and resolved rather quickly. Unfortunately, this would result in a pretty short book. So I “tweaked” a few things so China could go toe-to-toe with the Pacific Fleet, which hopefully made for more exciting reading. Although I try to keep things as grounded in reality as possible, there is no secret Chinese base at Yin Bishou, no sonar pulse that will dud our MK 48 torpedoes, and no malware in our Aegis Warfare System software. (At least, I hope not!) Additionally, I am aware of our war plans with respect to China and therefore cannot replicate them in Empire Rising. Or maybe I did. (Gotta keep ’em guessing, right?) Whether our carrier strike groups would actually swing inside the Taiwan Strait, for example, I leave for you to decide.
Also, some of the tactics described were generic and not accurate. For example, torpedo employment and evasion tactics are classified and cannot be accurately represented in this novel. The dialogue isn’t 100% accurate either. If it were, much of it would be unintelligible to the average reader, the book filled with Navy acronyms and terms that even I had a hard time following, particularly in the aircraft carrier scenes. (Command and control aboard aircraft carriers is incredibly complicated compared to submarines, with multiple spaces—Combat Direction Center, Air Ops, ID Ops, the Tactical Flag Communication Center, Bridge, Tower—and it would take several chapters just to explain who does what to whom.) To help the story move along without getting bogged down in acronyms, weapon systems, and other Navy jargon, I simplified the dialogue and description of shipboard operations and weapon systems. Those of you who are sticklers for everything being 100% correct will hopefully forgive me.
For all of the above, I apologize. I did my best to keep everything as close to real life as possible while developing a suspenseful, page-turning novel. Hopefully it all worked out, and you enjoyed reading Empire Rising.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
RICK CAMPBELL, a retired navy commander, spent more than twenty years on multiple submarine tours. On his last tour, he was one of the two men whose permission was required to launch the submarine’s nuclear warhead–tipped missiles. Campbell is the author of The Trident Deception and lives with his family in the greater Washington, D.C., area. You can sign up for email updates here.
ALSO BY RICK CAMPBELL
The Trident Deception
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Principal Characters
Prologue
Opening Moves
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
The Gambit
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Gambit Accepted
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
The Sacrifice
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
En Passant
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Middle Game
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Chapter 52
Chapter 53
Chapter 54
Castle
Chapter 55
Chapter 56
Chapter 57
Chapter 58
Chapter 59
Chapter 60
&nbs
p; Chapter 61
Chapter 62
Chapter 63
Chapter 64
Chapter 65
Chapter 66
Chapter 67
End Game
Chapter 68
Chapter 69
Chapter 70
Chapter 71
Chapter 72
Chapter 73
Chapter 74
Chapter 75
Chapter 76
Chapter 77
Chapter 78
Epilogue
Complete Cast of Characters
Author’s Note
About the Author
Also by Rick Campbell
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
EMPIRE RISING. Copyright © 2015 by Rick Campbell. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
Cover design by Young Jin Lim
Cover photo-illustration by Steve Gardner/Pixelworks Studios, Inc.
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The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-1-250-04046-6 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-4668-3580-1 (e-book)
e-ISBN 9781466835801
First Edition: February 2015