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about ten miles behind them. He wondered how long they’d head northeast up the channel, called the Slot by the Americans, that ran all the way through the Solomon Islands chain to New Britain and the Japs’ big naval base at Rabaul, almost six hundred miles from Guadalcanal. As if in answer to his question, the signal bridge called down with another course change, this time to the southeast. Admiral Lee, embarked in the Washington, obviously suspected that the Japs were listening to American tactical radio frequencies, so he was staying off the radio until the action started. Sluff acknowledged the visual signal and then told the OOD to initiate the turn when the signal was executed. A minute later the bitch-box sounded off with a single word: “Execute.”
    The ship heeled gently as she came right to the newest course. The rest of the formation would do likewise, each ship turning in the same spot where King had put the rudder over until the entire column was steadied up on a southeasterly heading. He picked up the sound-powered phone handset next to his chair, dialed CIC, and asked for the exec.
    â€œXO, here,” Bob answered a moment later.
    â€œI think I need to tell the crew what’s going on,” Sluff said.
    â€œYes, sir?”
    â€œSo you’re in charge of the Combat Information Center. What the hell’s going on?”
    Bob laughed. “Um, well, we’re on course one three five, speed twenty, and it’s, uh, dark outside?”
    Sluff smiled. “Tell me something I don’t know,” he said. “Like: Has the boss transmitted a battle plan of any kind?”
    â€œNo, sir, not that we’ve seen. After what happened last night, I’m guessing they have intel that the Japs will be back, and hopefully our battleships’ll surprise them. But for right now, we’re in the mushroom mode for sure.”
    The mushroom mode: in the dark and up to their necks in manure. “Okay,” Sluff said. “I wish I had that radar display up here, but I don’t, so I’m depending on you and your radar guys to keep me informed as to enemy contacts and what the big boys are doing. If nothing else, when the battlewagons start to maneuver, I do not want to get in the way of either one of them.”
    â€œGot it, Cap’n,” Bob said. “Right now all the ships are on station and there are no unknown radar contacts. Washington ’s radar is mounted about a hundred feet higher than ours, so they should see any Japs first. I assume that’s when Admiral Lee will start using the radio instead of flashing light.”
    â€œYeah, I agree,” Sluff said. “It’s a pity they don’t turn the destroyers loose to go up the Slot and see what’s what.”
    â€œNo squad dog or divcom,” Bob pointed out. “I think the admiral’s pretty much winging it.”
    â€œSounds familiar,” Sluff said. “Okay, I’m gonna get on the 1MC and do the same thing.”
    He hung up the phone and told the bosun to pipe all-hands and then give him the 1MC microphone.
    â€œThis is the captain speaking,” he began. “As most of you know we’ve joined up with a formation of two battleships, the South Dakota and the Washington. Right now we’re steaming in a southeast direction headed down toward the eastern side of Savo Island. The admiral in the Washington expects the Japs to come down tonight to finish whatever they came for last night when they ran into our cruisers.”
    He paused to take a breath. “You saw our cruisers this morning. That fight did not go well for us, except for the fact that the Japs turned back when it was over. But they have to know they kicked ass last night and that our cruisers are not likely to be out here tonight. What they don’t know is that two battleships have taken their place, so hopefully we’re going to surprise them when they come. If they come, they