‘When Ogden forms up with Task Force 77, we cross-deck medical personnel over to her,’ Maxwell said. ‘Cas is on his way there now to brief the people in. CTF-77 is one of my people, and he’ll play ball. Ogden’s a pretty large boat. We’ll have everything we need to care for them, medics, intel guys to debrief, the works. She sails them right to Subic Bay. We hop them out of Clark ASAP. From the time the rescue choppers get off, we’ll have them in California in … four and a half days.’
‘Okay, this part of the mission looks fine. What about the rest?’
Maxwell handled the answer. ‘Constellation’s whole air group will be in support. Enterprise will be farther up north working the Haiphong area. That should get the attention of their air-defense net and their high command. Newport News will be trolling the coast shooting up triple-A sites for the next few weeks. It’s to be done randomly, and this area will be the fifth. She lays ten miles out and lobs in heavy fire. The big antiaircraft belt is within the range of her guns. Between the cruiser and the air group, we can blast a corridor for the helos to get in and out. Essentially we’ll be doing so much that they oughtn’t to notice this mission until it’s already over.’
Ritter nodded. He’d read through the plan, and had only wished to hear it from Maxwell – more to the point, to hear how he expressed himself. The Admiral was calm and confident, more so than Ritter had expected.
‘It’s still very risky,’ he said after a moment.
‘It is that,’ Marty Young agreed.
‘What’s the risk to our country if the people in that camp tell everything they know?’ Maxwell asked.
Kelly wanted to step back from this part of the discussion. Danger to country was something beyond his purview. His reality was at the small-unit level – or, more recently, even lower than that – and though his country’s health and welfare started at that lowest common denominator, the big stuff required a perspective he didn’t have. But there was no gracious way for him to withdraw, and so he stayed and listened and learned.
‘You want an honest answer?’ Ritter asked. ‘I’ll give you one – none.’
Maxwell took it with surprising calm that concealed outrage. ‘Son, you want to explain that?’
‘Admiral, it’s a matter of perspective. The Russians want to know a lot about us, and we want to know a lot about them. Okay, so this Zachary guy can tell them about SAC War Plans, and the other notional people there can tell them other things. So – we change our plans. It’s the strategic stuff you’re worried about, right? First, those plans change on a monthly basis. Second, do you ever think we’ll implement them?’
‘We might have to someday.’
Ritter fished out a cigarette. ‘Admiral, do you want us to implement those plans?’
Maxwell stood a little straighter. ‘Mr Ritter, I flew my F6F over Nagasaki just after the war ended. I’ve seen what those things do, and that was just a little one.’ Which was all the answer anyone needed.
‘And they feel the same way. How does that grab you, Admiral?’ Ritter just shook his head. ‘They’re not crazy either. They’re even more afraid of us than we are of them. What they learn from those prisoners might scare them enough to sober them up, even. It works that way, believe it or not.’
‘Then why are you supporting – are you supporting us?’
‘Of course I am.’ What a stupid question, his tone said, enraging Marty Young.
‘But why then?’ Maxwell asked.
‘Those are our people. We sent them. We have to get them back. Isn’t that reason enough? But don’t tell me about vital national-security interests. You can sell that to the White House staff, even on The Hill, but not to me. Either you keep faith with your people or you don’t,’ said the field spook who had risked his career to rescue a foreigner whom he hadn’t even liked very much. ‘If you don’t, if you fall into that habit, then you’re not worth saving or protecting, and then people stop helping you, and then you’re in real trouble.’
‘I’m not sure I approve of you, Mr Ritter,’ General Young said.
‘An operation like this one will have the effect of saving our people. The Russians will respect that. It shows them we’re serious about things. That will make my job easier, running agents behind the curtain. That means we’ll be able to recruit more agents and get more information. That way I gather information that you want, okay? The game goes on until someday we find a new game.’ That was all the agenda he needed. Ritter turned to Greer. ‘When do you want me to brief the White House?’
‘I’ll let you know. Bob, this is important – you are backing us?’
‘Yes, sir,’ replied the Texan. For reasons that the others didn’t understand, didn’t trust, but had to accept.
* * *
‘So? What’s the beef?’
‘Look, Eddie,’ Tony said patiently. ‘Our friend’s got a problem. Somebody took down two of his people.’
‘Who?’ Morello asked. He was not in a particularly good mood. He’d just learned, again, that he was not a candidate to be accepted as a full member of the outfit. After all he’d done. Morello felt betrayed. Incredibly, Tony was siding with a black man instead of blood – they were distant cousins after all – and now the bastard was coming to him for help, of course.
‘We don’t know. His contacts, my contacts, we got nothin’.’
‘Well, ain’t that just too fuckin’ bad?’ Eddie segued into his own agenda. ‘Tony, he came to me, remember? Through Angelo, and maybe Angelo tried to set us up, and we took care of that, remember? You wouldn’t have this setup except for me, so now what’s happening? I get shut out and he gets closer in – so what gives. Tony, you gonna get him made?’
‘Back off, Eddie.’
‘How come you didn’t stand up for me?’ Morello demanded.
‘I can’t make it happen, Eddie. I’m sorry, but I can’t.’ Piaggi hadn’t expected this conversation to go well, but neither had he expected it to go this badly, this quickly. Sure, Eddie was disappointed. Sure, he had expected to be taken in. But the dumb fuck was getting a good living out of it, and what was it about? Being inside or making a living? Henry could see that. Why couldn’t Eddie? Then Eddie took it one step further.
‘I set this deal up for you. Now, you got a little-bitty problem, and who you come to – me! You owe me, Tony.’ The implications of the words were clear for Piaggi. It was quite simple from Eddie’s point of view. Tony’s position in the outfit was growing in importance. With Henry as a potential – a very real – major supplier, Tony would have more than a position. He would have influence. He’d still have to show respect and obeisance to those over him, but the command structure of the outfit was admirably flexible, and Henry’s double-blind methods meant that whoever was his pipeline into the outfit had real security. Security of place in his organization was a rare and treasured thing. Piaggi’s mistake was in not taking the thought one step further. He looked inward instead of outward. All he saw was that Eddie could replace him, become the intermediary, and then become a made man, adding status to his comfortable living. All Piaggi had to do was die, obligingly, at the right time. Henry was a businessman. He’d make the accommodation. Piaggi knew that. So did Eddie.
‘Don’t you see what he’s doing? He’s using you, man.’ The odd part was that while Morello was beginning to understand that Tucker was manipulating both of them, Piaggi, the target of that manipulation, did not. As a result, Eddie’s correct observation was singularly ill-timed.
‘I’ve thought about that,’ Piaggi lied. ‘What’s in it for him? A linkup with Philadelphia, New York?’
‘Maybe. Maybe he thinks he can do it. Those people are getting awful big for their pants, man.’
‘We’ll sweat that one out later, and I don’t see him doing that. What we want to know is, who’s taking his people down? You catch anything about somebody from out of town?’ Put him on the spot, Piaggi thought. Make him commit. Tony’s eyes bored in across the table at a man too angry to notice or care what the other man was thinking.
‘I haven’t heard shit about that.’
‘Put feelers out,’ Tony ordered, and it was an order. Morello had to follow it, had to check around.
‘What if he was taking out some people from inside, reliability problems, like? You think he’s loyal to anybody?’
‘No. But I don’t think he’s offing his own people, either.’ Tony rose with a final order. ‘Check around.’