Chapter 34
Sandusky Bay Naval Station
Ayanna got out of the car and felt the fresh breeze coming off of Lake Erie. The water was choppy and pleasant sounding. Erie looked like an ocean.
Ayanna looked back at the driver. "You know where I'm supposed to go?"
"Nope." Then he pulled the car away.
There were a number of vessels moored at several newly constructed piers. At a dry-dock was a huge ship that was under construction. She couldn't stop staring at it. She studied everything about it. Why would Ohio even need such a ship?
"Seaman!"
Ayanna turned around, seeing a man dressed in all white with a blue baseball style cap. "Me?"
"Yes. Report to that big white building over there."
Seaman? The very idea. . .Erie was not a sea, but a lake. She was not a man. There was nothing whatsoever right about being called a "seaman". "Lakewoman" made more sense.
Ayanna proceeded to the building. She wondered if everyone else was wearing white. She still had her desert pattern camouflage fatigues on. She went in and saw a bunch of twenty year-old men and women standing there in their underwear.
A older guy was buzzing off the hair of the next person in line. "Seaman, get your clothes off and get in line."
Ayanna sighed. She was in the process of following orders and noticed that she was being checked out by a couple of other seamen, who were actually men. How demeaning.
Ayanna got in line and used her arms to cover up what she could like everyone else was doing. The hair thing didn't bother her so much. She was not in love with her hair that much anyhow.
After the hair was done, she was handed two sets of clothes, a dark blue hat, and a duffle bag. She put on the clothes. Her head felt like it was freezing until she put the hat on.
The guy handing her the clothes didn't do too badly sizing her up. A little baggy, but okay. The man said something unclear,
"What?" Ayanna asked.
"I said go out back to the other building!"
Ayanna found her way to the other building after the snappish instructions.
The room was full of about fifty sailors, all dressed in white. Some older men were at the front waiting on the last ones to assemble.
"Attention!" someone shouted.
"All right. I am Captain Bernard, skipper of the big fish out there, the OSS Justin D. LeHew. You, ladies and gentlemen, are the crew."
"A hubbub went through the sailors."
"Quiet! The Captain is talking!"
"The job of everyone in this room is to help contractors construct the LeHew. Do a good job, because your life will depend upon it. The way you do this, is you do whatever you are told to do, and do it the way you are told to do it. The LeHew is going to help make Ohio the superior naval power in the Lake. The LeHew will help to plug up the Axis from sending vessels into the Lake, and possibly invading Ohio on the north shore. The mission of this ship is critical, and it is secret. For now you are not allowed to send mail to anyone. We are going to send mail to your primary family. So do not try to or you will be subject to discipline. The officers will come up now and read names. When you hear your name, go with that officer."
Ayanna heard her name called and went forward.
"Crawford?"
"Yes sir."
"I'm Lieutenant Kirkendahl."
"Nice to meet you, Lieutenant." Ayanna saluted. She noticed that the navy Lieutenant insignia was the same as the Army Captain insignia. How confusing.
"Yea, Go with Petty Officer Vinton." Kirkendahl saluted back. "Make sure you write your name on the name patch with your marker."
"Yes, sir. Yes, Petty Officer Vinton." Ayanna did not know what naval ranks were. This naval crap was going to be a pain to get used to, if ever.
Vinton said, "Its aye-aye around here, Crawford. And you can call me 'Vinnie'; just 'Vinnie'."
"Aye aye, Vinnie."
"That will work, Crawford. Follow me."
They went up the steep gangplank to board the LeHew.
Vinnie said, "I was told you could read."
"Aye Vinnie, but I can't swim."
Vinnie laughed. "Let's hope you never need to."
They walked by some beefy young guys who were heating up rivets to pound into place on the ship's all steel construction. What a horrible job. Certainly nothing Ayanna wanted any part of."
Ayanna asked Vinnie, "Is this ship going to bankrupt the State?" This project made Fort Wilcox at home look like nothing. They made their way to the front of the ship.
"Yes, its plenty expensive but it is a converted freighter with reinforced armor."
They continued to the bow of the ship.
"Here it is," Vinnie said.
"Whoooa!" Ayanna said, looking at an eight-inch deck gun.
Vinnie said, "This baby is not modern. In fact, it is new, but of a very old design. It came out of a foundry in Indiana." Vinnie pointed at one of the cannonballs. "But if this gun puts that on your boat, you will have a problem."
"How far will it shoot?"
"Five hundred yards, no problem."
Ayanna asked, "You've shot it?"
Vinnie said, "Not really. . .what we need is for you to know everything possible about how this sweetheart is made; how it works; how to hit the target; how to fix it; everything. We have drawings here and an operation manual for you to study. Know it front and back."
Ayanna thought, this is getting weirder by the minute. There was so much that she didn't know. She realized her jaw was still open. "Is that all?"
"That's your job Crawford. We're counting on you."
At least Ayanna figured she was not going to have to do anything as treacherous as metal working.