"He is with the family."
When Peter walked to him, he explained, "Mi Capitan, I am Enrico. If you will come with me, please, Sir, I will take you to el Coronel."
"Gracias," Peter said.
Enrico did not look entirely at ease in his blue business suit, and he had the somewhat stiff walkas if on paradeof the long service sergeant.
Enrico was almost certainly Suboficial Mayor Enrico,Peter thought. Clete told me about him, an old soldier who worked for el Coronel Frade from the time el Coronel was a teniente. They are a type. For twenty-five years, my father had Oberfeldwebel Manntz running his errands, taking care of him, until Manntz's luck ran out in Norway.
Enrico marched him past the door of the house, where people were checking invitations against a typewritten list, then through the foyer, where the late Capitan Duarte's casket rested on a catafalque, and into a small sitting room.
If the Capitan would be so good as to wait here, I will tell el Coronel that you have arrived."
Enrico headed for a man wearing an ornate uniform that looked like a costume for a Viennese light opera about shenanigans in some obscure Balkan dukedom. Jesus Christ, he realized somewhat belatedly, that's Cletus's father!
Beatrice Frade de Duarte, wearing a black silk dress, a hat with a veil, and a single strand of enormous pearls, saw him first. She came quickly across the room, took his arm, and led him into the presence of Cletus's father.
Capitan von Wachtstein, she said, as if they were at a dress ball, "may I present my brother, el Coronel Jorge Guillermo Frade?"
"A sus ?rdenes, mi Coronel," Peter said, then clicked his heels and bowed, which caused him to feel alarmingly light-headed.
"Capitan von Wachtstein is the officer who brought Jorge home, Jorge," Se?ora de Duarte said.
"So I have been informed," el Coronel Frade said. "Might I have a word with you, Capitan?"
"Of course, mi Coronel."
Frade took his arm and led him out of the foyer down a corridor into the kitchen. He went to a refrigerator, took out a lemon, sliced it into thirds, and handed one of the thirds to Peter.
"If you eat the whole thing, skin and all, it will probably mask the fumes of the cognac," Frade said.
Oh, shit!
"Apologies are in order. I extend them. And I thank you," Peter said, and put the piece of lemon in his mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it.
"I cannot ask an apology from you for doing exactly what I have been doing," Frade said. Peter looked at him in surprise. "I required the same liquid courage," Frade went on. "If I had not arranged for the Ministry of Defense to approve my nephew's idiot notion to go to Germany, neither of us would be here."
What an astonishing thing to say!
"Oh damn you, Jorge, you promised!" a very striking middle-aged woman said, mingled anger and resignation in her voice. "And don't try to tell me that lemon is for tea."
"That is exactly what it's for," Frade said. "El Capitan von Wachtstein and I are about to have a cup of tea. And then I thought I would offer the Capitan a little liquid courage to help him through this .. . this obscene ceremony."
"Jorge!"
"Capitan, may I present Se?ora Carzino-Cormano, who has the odd notion that she is entitled to treat me like a child."
"Encantado, Se?ora," Peter said, and clicked his heels and bowed again.
"If you are visibly drunk, I will never forgive you," Claudia said to Frade, ignoring Peter.
"I am never visibly drunk."
"Cletus just arrived," Claudia said. "Just as you came in here."
"The Se?ora, Capitan," Frade said, "refers to my son, late Teniente of the U.S. Corps of Marines aviation service. He served with great distinction at Guadalcanal. Presumably, you have heard of Guadalcanal?''
"Jorge, my God!" Claudia protested, and turned to Peter. "You must excuse el Coronel, Capitan. He mourns the death of his nephew more than he is willing to admit."
Alicia Carzino-Cormano walked up to them.
Remarkably beautiful young woman!
"Cletus is here," Alicia said to her mother, then turned to Frade: "I think he's looking for you."
"Captain, this is my daughter, Alicia," Claudia Carzino-Cormano said.
"Hauptmann Freiherr von Wachtstein at your service, Se?orita."
Isabela Carzino-Cormano walked up and smiled dazzlingly at Peter.
"I don't believe I have the privilege of this gentleman's acquaintance," she said.
Frade, ignoring her, took Peter's arm.
Perhaps you would like to meet my son," he said.
"Jorge, damn you!" Claudia said. "How much have you had?" Then she turned and smiled at Peter. "And my other daughter, Capitan, Isabela," Claudia said.
"Encantado, Se?orita," Peter said.
Not nearly as beautiful as the sister.
Frade tugged at his arm.
"I have the privilege of the Herr Lieutenant Frade's acquaintance, mi Coronel."
"The privilege of his acquaintance?" Isabela asked incredulously. "Isn't he your enemy?"
"I met him briefly," Peter went on, "when enjoying the hospitality of your Guest House, mi Coronel."
Not briefly. We got drunk together. We were not enemies, but pilots talking about flying.
"Though el Capitan and my son, Isabela," Frade proclaimed, "are officers of opposing military services, they are first and foremost officers and gentlemen. They bear each other no personal animosity. Isn't that so, Capitan?"
"S?, mi Coronel."
"That's outrageous!" Isabela said. "The Capitan is agreeing with you to be polite."
Frade snorted.
"Tell her, Capitan. She has her mother's inability to conceive that she could possibly be wrong."
"No tea for you," Claudia said. "Coffee. Several cups. Right now. You must again forgive el Coronel, Capitan. His behavior is inexcusable."
"Forgive me, Se?ora," Peter said. "El Coronel is quite correct. I bear Herr Lieutenant Frade no ill will. In other circumstances, I feel sure we could become friends."
On the other hand, I am obviously perfectly willing to sit here with my finger in my ass doing nothing to warn him that he's going to be murdered.
But, of course, I can't do that. From the moment Gr?ner told me his plans, I knew I wouldn't be able to just let things happen. I will warn him.
But how?
Perhaps if I went to von Lutzenberger and told him, he would order Gr?ner to call off his thugs. But Gr?ner would certainly work out where von Lutzenberger got his information. And if von Lutzenberger decides that Cletus is expendable, and that I should just stay out of it, then I could not warn Cletus; Gr?ner and von Lutzenberger would both know I told him.
And Gr?ner would call that "giving aid and comfort to the enemy.''
Enrico appeared.
"Mi Coronel, there is a German officer looking for el Capitan. I put him in the small office off the library."
Gr?ner with the Knight's Cross and the goddamned pillow,Peter thought.
"I will take you to him," Frade announced.
"No, you won't," Claudia said. "You will stay here and have coffee. Alicia, would you please take el Capitan to the library?"
Alicia took von Wachtstein's arm.
"Yes, of course, Mother," she said, smiling sweetly at her sister.
Chapter Sixteen