Chapter 6 Summary

As Pickering arrives in Brisbane, it occurs to him that he failed to notify anyone of his arrival. He spots some of his staff on the wharf. He learns that McCoy had notified them of his arrival. They will go to his residence, the Water Lily Cottage where his men, Second Lieutenant John Moore, First Lieutenant Hon Song Do, called Plouto, and First Lieutenant Joseph Howard are. The other Sergeant Steven Koffler, lives a few blocks away. Koffler's girlfriend, Australian Yeoman Daphne Farnsworth, is pregnant.

At the Cottage, the men have prepared a briefing for Pickering, complete with maps. They have been analyzing the MAGIC intelligence. The three men tell Pickering that they feel that the Japanese will attack Guadalcanal the next day. They discuss the size of the Japanese strike force and how overpowered the Marines will be. As they talk, the...