“I got here as fast as I could,” Whitlock said breathlessly. “How is he?”
“He’s going to be OK,” Graham replied, patting Whitlock’s arm reassuringly.
“What did the doctor say?”
“The bullet entered his side and exited through his back. Amazingly, there’s no real damage other than a couple of cracked ribs. And he needed twenty-two stitches for the gash on his head.”
“But no brain damage?”
“No.”
“Thank God for that,” Whitlock said with a relieved sigh. “So have you been in to see him yet?”
“No, not yet. He’s still under sedation. The nurse said she’d call me when he came around.”
Whitlock sat down on the bench and dabbed his forehead with his handkerchief. “I’ve been on the phone to Sergei for the last forty minutes. That’s why I’m so late. He’s been taking some heavy flak since the news broke over there, and not only from the Secretary-General. He’s also had a call from the White House. The man himself.”
“You’d think Scoby was already worm bait judging by the reaction,” Graham snorted.
“Most of this is down to Tillman. He’s been on the phone ever since they got back to the hotel. And he’s not being very complimentary about UNACO.”
“What do you expect?” Graham retorted, his lips curled in disgust. “He’s been on our case from the start. But what can you expect from a lackey? He’s kissing butt wherever he can to keep on Scoby’s good side. He knows Scoby’s on the up. And he’ll do anything to stick with him.”
“The remains of the chopper have been found in the Thames,” Whitlock said. “But still no sign of Tanner and Falconer.”
“The missile scored a direct hit on the cockpit,” Graham said grimly. “There’s no chance they survived that.”
“I still don’t understand why she killed Mullen,” Whitlock said, scratching his head.
“All I know is that she must have pumped a good twelve rounds into him before she went over the side,” Graham replied. “But what got me was how cool she was. She just turned the Skorpion on him and gunned him down. Hell, he didn’t stand a chance.”
The door opposite swung open and a nurse emerged into the corridor. She smiled at Graham. “Mr. Paluzzi’s just regained consciousness. You can go in now if you like. But not for long. He’s still very weak.”
“Can we both go in?” Whitlock asked.
“Yes. Is either of you called C.W.?” she asked.
“Yes, I am,” Whitlock replied in surprise. “Why?”
“He’s been asking for you ever since he came round. I’ll be back in a few minutes to give him another sedative.”
Whitlock waited until the nurse had left then pushed open the door and peered into the ward.
“It’s not contagious,” Paluzzi said in a croaky voice. His face was pale and his eyes were still glazed from the effects of the anesthetic. He managed a weak smile when Graham entered the room behind Whitlock. “Hey, Mike, how you doing?”
“Better than you by the looks of it,” Graham replied, pulling up a chair and sitting down. “How you feeling, buddy?”
“How do I look?”
“Like a stiff,” Graham replied with a grin.
“Then you know how I feel.” Paluzzi looked at Whitlock. “Did Gallagher get away?”
Whitlock nodded. “Yes.”
“And what about Scoby?” Paluzzi asked.
“He’s fine,” Whitlock replied. “He asked me to send you his best wishes for a speedy recovery.”
“What can I say?” Paluzzi retorted facetiously.
“Say it in Italian,” Graham said disdainfully. “That way you won’t offend any of the nurses.”
“That’s enough, you two,” Whitlock said with a reprimanding scowl.
“Where’s Sabrina?” Paluzzi asked.
“She’s at the hotel. Somebody has to keep an eye on the senator,” Whitlock told him. “But she did say she’d be along to see you sometime before we go over to the ambassador’s house tonight.”
“Does Claudine know I’m here?”
Whitlock shook his head. “I thought it best to talk to you first about that. Do you want me to call her?”
“I would rather do it myself,” Paluzzi replied. “If I know Claudine, she won’t take it well. But if I can reassure her personally that I’ll be OK, it’ll help to soften the blow.”
“If she wants to fly out, tell her to book the flight and UNACO will reimburse her for the ticket.”
“I’ll tell her, thanks,” Paluzzi replied.
The door opened and the nurse entered the room.
“I’m sorry, gentlemen, but you’ll have to leave now. You can come back again during visiting hours.”
“Of course,” Whitlock replied.
“C.W., wait,” Paluzzi said. He looked across at the nurse. “Could you give us another couple of minutes, please? It’s very important.”
“The doctor was very insistent that you get as much rest as possible,” the nurse replied.
“Please, it’s very important,” Paluzzi pleaded weakly.
“OK. Two minutes. But then I’m coming back to give you another sedative.”
Paluzzi waited until the nurse had gone before looking up at Graham. “Mike, I need to talk to C.W.”
“Sure thing,” Graham replied, getting to his feet.
“Wait a minute, Mike,” Whitlock said, putting a restraining hand lightly on Graham’s arm. He turned back to Paluzzi. “You’re going back to Italy, aren’t you? It’s OK to talk in front of Mike, he’ll find out about it soon enough.”
“Yes,” Paluzzi said softly. “How did you know?”
“I’ve known since you first mentioned it to me,” Whitlock replied with a smile. “You’d have been crazy to have turned it down. And obviously what happened earlier this afternoon has made the decision that much easier for you.”
“Hey, could somebody tell me what this is all about?” Graham cut in before Paluzzi could reply.
“You remember my boss at the NOCS, Brigadier Michele Pesco?” Paluzzi asked Graham.
“I heard about him but I never actually met him,” Graham replied. “He was one of the reasons why you left the NOCS to come over to us.”
“That’s right,” Paluzzi agreed. “Well, he was relieved of his command two days ago. The Joint Chiefs-of-Staff offered the job to me. It’s something I’d always wanted ever since I joined the NOCS. And much as I want to stay with UNACO, I know the chance may never come again.”
“C.W.’s right, you’d have been crazy to turn it down,” Graham said. “Have you told Claudine yet?”
“She doesn’t even know I’ve been offered the position. I’ll tell her when I see her. I know she’ll be thrilled. She’s never really settled in New York.”
“He made the right decision,” Graham said once they were in the corridor.
“I know.”
“Who’ll be sent out to replace him?”
“Nobody’s being sent out,” Whitlock replied.
“Give us a break, C.W.,” Graham shot back. “We were stretched as it was even before Fabio was injured. How do you expect Sabrina and me to carry the workload by ourselves?”
“I never said Fabio wasn’t being replaced,” Whitlock corrected him. “What I did say was that nobody’s being sent over to replace him.”
Graham stopped in his tracks and eyed Whitlock suspiciously. “You?”
“It was the obvious solution. I cleared it with Sergei before I came over here.”
“Does Sabrina know?”
“Not yet. But then it’s not for me to tell her. That’s your job as head of Strike Force Three.”
“What are you talking about, C.W.? You’re still the senior man around here.”
“I’m still the Deputy Director of UNACO, but you call the shots in your team. And I’m now part of your team.”