Chapter Fourteen

Brief Summary-  For the next step of Ryan's plan he needs a grow of men who are fluent in Russian.  When he calls the President asking for permission to use several men, and brief them on the current situation he is allowed one.  Owen Williams, a long time submariner with a degree in Russian is briefed five minutes later.

          On the Red October, the situation is looking bleak; with the repairs going the way they are the submarine will only have battery power in a matter of hours, and that shouldn't last them more than a few more hours.  Ramius is still keeping up his act of strict Soviet allegiance and declares that the Red October shall never fall into Imperialist hands.  He tells the crew that they cannot call for help this close to the United States.  A few hours later Ramius announces that they must abandon ship; they are too far from Cuba to ask for help and there is not chance of help from Russia.  The crew will abandon ship with the United States submarine who is following them, and has offered assistance.  The officers shall stay on board and, when the crew is off the sub, the officers shall set of the scuttling charges, destroying the Red October.

          Ryan and Williams now enter the USS Mystic, a submersible designed to link up with submarines.  They descend to the depth of the Red October and join with her.  Once inside they begin evacuating the crew with the Mystic, and in the commotion, no one notices the cook disappear.

          Later on, once the crew has been has been evacuated, Ryan thinks he hears gun shots coming from the missile room.  Ryan and Ramius go to investigate the noise and learn that there is a soviet spy on board who learned of Ramius's plan after the crew was evacuated.  He now plans to detonate on of the war heads and destroy the Red October.  When they find him he shots Ramius in the leg.  Ryan throw on of the clips for his pistol, and when the agent looked in the direction of the noise, Ryan jumped out and shot the man.

          Moments later the USS Ethan Allan exploded after all those aboard were evacuated with the USS Mystic.

Journal-  This chapter was defiantly my favorite so far, I read it all in one sitting.  The climax was defiantly everything I was expecting.