“While she’s doing that,” Fine said, “what about transport of the team from here to Cairo? If they’re going to Cairo?”
“What do you mean by that?” Stevens asked.
“I thought perhaps Malta,” Fine said.
“Oh,” Stevens said.
“We’ll send them to Cairo,” Bruce said.
“They’ll attract less attention there.
And we’ll send them on the ATE courier. There’s a daily flight. If we send one man a day, starting right now, they should attract no attention at all. Wilkins is good at distracting attention.”
“Mr. Bruce,” Fine said, almost hesitantly.
“I’m afraid that you will think I’m rephrasing a request that has already been denied–” “What, Fine?
“Bruce asked impatiently.
“Project Aphrodite has two new B-17s,” Fine said.
“One of which you would like to fly to Cairo?” Bruce asked, icily sarcastic.
“May I explain my thinking, Sir?”
“No,” Bruce said.
“I would like to hear it,” Charity said.
Bruce glared at her and opened his mouth to speak. Before he could, there was a knock at the door, and instead of saying what he’d intended, Bruce said, his voice angry and impatient:
“We are not to be disturbed!”
“Operational Immediate Eyes Only for you, Sir,” Capt. Harrison’s voice came through the door.
“Oh, hell,” Bruce said, “now what?” He raised his voice.
“Bring it in, Harrison!”
Harrison came into the room, extended a clipboard with a Receipt for Classified Document on it, and, when Bruce had signed it, handed him a document with a top secret cover sheet on it.
“Thank you,” Bruce said.
“I didn’t mean to snap at you, Paul.”
“No problem, Sir,” Harrison said. He made no move to leave.
“That’ll be all, thank you,” Bruce said.
“An action is required, Sir,” Harrison said.
Bruce snorted, and lifted the cover sheet.
TOPSECRET
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OSS WASHINGTON
FOR OSS LONDON EYES ONLY BRUCE STEVENS ]
FOR OSS CAIRO EYES ONLY WILKINS ;
RELAY FOLLOWING CANIDY MOST EXPEDITIOUS MEANS:
QUOTE jOSS LONDON AND CAIRO DIRECTED AS HIGHEST PRIORITY TO l
SUPPORT WITH ALL MEANS AVAILABLE ATTEMPT FREE EX LAX AND “3
TIN CAN ONE. I
2. RESCUE WILL BE ATTEMPTED AT EARLIEST POSSIBLE TIME AND 1
IN ANY CASE NOT LATER THAN TEN REPEAT TEN DAYS FROM
RECEIPT OF THIS MESSAGE.
3. IN EVENT ATTEMPT IMPOSSIBLE OR ATTEMPT FAILS EX LAX AND
TIN CAN ONE WILL BE TERMINATED REPEAT WILL BE TERMINATED.
4. NO DISCUSSION OF THIS ORDER WILL BE ENTERTAINED.
UNQUOTE
BUD QUOTE
STATION CHIEFS LONDON AMD CAIRO WILL ACKNOWLEDGE RECEIPT
AND COMPREHENSION OF CANIDY MESSAGE.
STATION CHIEF CAIRO ADDITIONALLY WILL REPORT TIME AND
PLACE OP DELIVERY OF MESSAGE TO CANIDY WITH INFO COPY TO
DOMO VAN
Bruce handed the message to Colonel Stevens, and then looked at Capt.
Harrison.
“Would you please message Colonel Donovan that Colonel Stevens and myself acknowledge receipt and comprehension of this message?” he said, almost formally.
“My God!” Stevens said, when he had read the message. He extended it to Bruce.
“May I see that, please?” Charity Hoche asked.
“Oh,” Stevens said, as if he had just remembered she was present.
“Sure.”
When she had read it, she handed it to Fine. He frowned when he read it, but said nothing.
“You were saying, Stan,” Charity said, “something about new B17s?”
lONE]
First Lieutenant Robert Jamison found First Lieutenant Ferenc Janos where he thought he would be at this time of day, in the bar, at the piano, with a drink adding yet another scar to the varnished finish of the piano, and with two of the WRAC drivers listening to him play.
“Freddy, could I see you for a moment?” Jamison asked.
“Ladies,” FreddyJanos said, “duty calls.”
“Not here, Janos,” Jamison said.
Janos’s eyebrows rose in curiosity, but he didn’t say anything. He hoisted himself from the piano stool with a grunt, reached for his drink, finished it, and then squatted on his one good leg to pick up his crutches from the floor.
He followed Jamison down the center corridor of the first floor of the left wing of the mansion to the dispensary, which had been set up in what had been the ballroom. There were sixteen beds, eight on each side of the highceilinged room. Eleven of them were occupied.