“I’m fine, how are you?”
“What are you into?” he said.
“What have you heard?”
“How did you get involved in this?” she asked.
“That address, so far as we’re concerned, doesn’t exist,” Brandon Chambers said.
“Do you take my point?”
“No, I don’t,’ she said.
“It’s a government installation,” he said. “We don’t know it’s there.
We don’t write about it.”
“Oh,” she said.
“When you signed my name to that service message, they checked with me.”
“I didn’t sign your name to it,” she said.
“My name for the time being is Chambers, too.”
She beard him sigh in exasperation, but he chose not to argue about that.
“I have to know, honey,” he said, “what you’re working on. “I was looking for Dick Canidy,” she said.
“I got that address from his father.” There was a long pause.
“Eddie returned from China with an unpleasant report on Mr. Canidy,” Brandon Chambers finally said.
“That he was a coward,” Ann said. “Eddie told me.”
“And Canidy’s father gave you the Q Street address?”
“And two telephone numbers,” Ann said.
“I called both of them, and they said they had never heard of Canidy.”
“What’s behind your deep interest in Canidy?”
“I swore Mother to secrecy,” Ann said, “but I thought she’d tell you anyway. I’m going to marry him.”
“For Christ’s sake!” he said.
“This is not a joking matter, Ann,” “Who’s jokin&” “Now, listen to me,” he said.
“Drop your inquiry right now. Right here. If you don’t, you can do us a great deal of harm. I’ve come to an agreement with certain people-” “It’s a military secret, right?” she challenged, “And I’m a Nazi agent.”
“It is a matter of military secrecy, Ann,” her father said. “Odd, wouldn’t you say, that a coward is involved with military secrets?” she said. “Just drop it, Ann, okay?” he said.
“I want your word.”
“Or what?”
“Or you’re fired, This moment.” He’s absolutely serious.
“It’s that important?”
“It is.”
“All right, then,” she said. “And I don’t want you talking to anybody-even Eddie or your girlfriend-” “Mrs. Edwin Howell Bitter, you mean?” Ann said. “Goddamn it, I’m serious.”
“I know,” she said.
“Okay, Daddy, you’ve made your point.”
“I really hope so, Ann,” he said. Thirty minutes later, Ann walked into the office of the Advocate’s managing editor and told him her father wanted her to come to Washing ton for a couple of days, and she was thinking of going Saturday afternoon after they’d gotten most of the Sunday edition to bed. She hated to ask, but if she could have a business travel priority certificate for an airplane ticket, that would get her back to work that much quicker. “Yeah, sure, Ann,” he said.
“We can work that out.” Being in love does strange things to you.
Sofar this morning I have tied to an Episcopal priest, my father, and my boss.
And I’m not at all ashamed of myself Then she called Sarah Child Bitter at the Willard Hotel in Washington and announced that she would be in Washington on Saturday and needed a place to stay. Sarah and Ed Bitter were living in Sarah’s father’s suite in the Willard. Ed was probably going to be more than a little annoyed when she showed up, since they had been married only a few days. Having Ann around would be like having your sister on your honeymoon. To hell with him, Ann thought.
He owes me for taking care of Sarah.
[ ONE I Lakehurst Naval Air Station Labehurst, New Jersey June 27, 1942
While Canidy was doing the preflight on the Beech D18S, Commander Reynolds’s Plymouth staff car drove into the hangar and stopped beside the aircraft. “I didn’t know where you were going, Major,” he said.
“But I thought you could use a thermos of coffee and a couple of sandwiches.”
“Washington,” Canidy told him.
“Thank you.” Commander Reynolds was impressed.
There is something about Washington that impresses professional naval officers, Canidy thought, as if the place were the residence of God.
“I’m glad you’re here,” Canidy went on.
“I didn’t know about starting the engines inside the hangar.”
“We push aircraft to the center lane,” Reynolds said, “and make sure that both hangar doors are open. Then you might as well be outside.