CHAPTER 58
General Rafael Garriga looked up as Allita showed Major Cardenas into the office. When the visitor was safely ensconced in a comfortable chair, the secretary gave Garriga a polite bob of her head, then made her exit from the room.
The major’s head swung around like it was mounted on a swivel, his eyes never leaving the lush curves of the woman’s retreating backside.
By the time the idiot managed to get his head turned back around in the proper direction, Garriga was ready with a conspiratorial leer — as if to say, ‘yes, she’s every bit as exciting in bed as you think she is.’
In point of fact, Garriga didn’t know what Allita was like in bed, and he didn’t care. He cultivated rumors that she was his mistress, because such indulgences were expected of men with his position and power. He had no intentions of subjecting the woman to his unwanted advances, but he did draw a measure of satisfaction from the knowledge that his supposed interest kept Allita shielded from the grasping slobbering attentions of men who thought with their genitalia.
The lower left drawer of his desk was already unlocked. He lifted the lid of the mahogany humidor and drew out two Hoyo de Monterrey double coronas, keeping one for himself and holding out the other to Cardenas. “Welcome, Major. Please make yourself at ease.”
The major accepted, and the next few minutes were devoted to the rituals of lighting a fine cigar.
When Garriga’s was properly lit, he slid the desk drawer shut without reaching for the bottle of rum behind the humidor. Cardenas was just barely important enough to rate the cigars, and it was only his position as an officer of Dirección de Inteligencia Militar that made him worthy of a direct conference with the General of the Army.
Garriga blew a long plume of smoke and smiled toward the halfwit seated on the other side of the desk. “Tell me Major, what can the Army do for our compañeros in Military Intelligence this morning?”
“Today,” said Cardenas with an overly solicitous expression, “it is about what we can do for the Army.”
Garriga thumped a length of ash into a small porcelain bowl on his desk. “Very well, Major. Then what can Inteligencia Militar do for the Army this morning?”
The major’s eyes darted sideways toward the door to the outer office, and lingered there for several seconds. When he looked back around, one of his eyebrows was raised in a suggestive manner. Could the imbecile be hinting at some kind of barter? Perhaps an hour with the general’s secretary in exchange for whatever scrap of sordid information that the half-wit was carrying?
Garriga entertained a brief image of reaching across the desk to pound the life out of this little pulga. But the pleasure of snapping the man’s neck would be fleeting, and there would be complications afterwards.
Cardenas repeated the eye motion, just in case the general hadn’t caught the meaning the first time around.
“You seem to be reluctant to continue,” said Garriga. “I’ll be happy to speak to General Piñeiro if you’re not comfortable talking directly to me.”
“Oh, not at all!” Cardenas blurted. “I’m just concerned that someone could overhear through the door.”
The lie was transparent. “If your information is as sensitive as that,” Garriga said, “perhaps I should hear it from General Piñeiro. I’ll have my secretary make the appointment.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Cardenas said a little too loudly.
He lowered his voice. “It’s the Yumas. They’ve infiltrated the north coastal region with military scouts. Marines, from the base at Guantanamo. They have orders to locate North Korean missile sites on our soil. Possibly for bombing strikes.”
Garriga tried not to show his surprise. If this was true…
“How do you know this?” he snapped. “Where does your information come from?”
“I am not at liberty to say,” said the idiot.
“In other words,” Garriga said, “you don’t know where the information comes from. Which tells me that it might be nothing more than rumor. Someone with an overactive imagination.”
Major Cardenas shook his head. “No, General. The information is reliable. It comes from a trusted source.”
“Pendejadas!” said Garriga. (Bullshit!) “If I act on this intelligence and it turns out to be false, I will nail your cojones to my door! And just so you understand, I do not mean that as a metaphor. I will personally nail them to my door, just before I have you shot!”
“The information is reliable,” Cardenas said again. “DIM has a source inside the American base!”
Garriga snorted. “If your sources are so good, why are they spying on the Yumas? The Americans are not the ones hiding nuclear missiles in our country!”
Major Cardenas started to respond, but Garriga waved him to silence. “Is that it? Do you have more information for me, or is that all?”
Garriga stubbed out his cigar in the porcelain bowl. “Then you are dismissed!”
Cardenas left the room at a pace just below a run.
Sitting among the slowly swirling cigar smoke, Garriga thought about this latest revelation. If it was true — if it didn’t turn out to be a pile of sheer pendejadas — then the Yumas might try to destroy the launch sites before the North Koreans could fire their missiles.
He looked at the wall clock. His next prearranged call with the Korean was still more than three hours away. Unscheduled calls always made the Asian angry. That couldn’t be helped.
Garriga stood up, went to the old phonograph, and flipped the power switch. When the hissing crackle of bolero music filled the air of his office, he walked quietly to the door and slid the locking bolt into place.
CHAPTER 59
//TTTTTTTTTT//
//TOP SECRET//
//FLASH//FLASH//FLASH//
//051459Z MAR//
FM COMSUBLANT//
TO COMSUBRON SIX//
USS ALBANY//
INFO COMFOURTHFLEET//
USS BOWIE//
SUBJ/CHANGE IN TASKING/IMMEDIATE EXECUTE//
REF/A/RMG/COMSUBLANT/260653Z FEB//
NARR/REF A IS ASW TASKING ISSUED BY COMSUBLANT FOLLOWING 250408Z FEB ATTACK ON USS MAHAN IN CARIBBEAN SEA.//
1. (SECR) REF A IS CANCELLED AND RESCINDED.
2. (TS) SUPERCAVITATING SUBMARINE OPERATING IN YOUR AREA CONTINUES TO DEMONSTRATE SUSTAINED SPEEDS EXCEEDING THREE-HUNDRED (300) KNOTS.
3. (TS) BASED ON USS ALBANY’S AFTER-ACTION REPORT OF 02 MAR AND SIMILAR ATTEMPTS BY AIR AND SURFACE PLATFORMS, SUCCESSFUL ENGAGEMENT OF THIS CONTACT USING CURRENT INVENTORY ASW WEAPONS IS CONSIDERED HIGHLY UNLIKELY.
4. (TS) USS ALBANY IS DIRECTED TO AVOID DIRECT ENGAGEMENT OF SUPERCAVITATING SUBMARINE CONTACT. IF THE CONTACT IS DETECTED, USS ALBANY WILL MAINTAIN STANDOFF RANGE AND PROVIDE ACOUSTIC TARGET CUEING TO USS BOWIE OVER TACNET VIA UHF SATCOM.
5. (TS) IF ENGAGEMENT BY SUPERCAVITATING SUBMARINE APPEARS TO BE LIKELY OR IMMINENT, USS ALBANY IS ORDERED TO BREAK OFF CONTACT AND WITHDRAW TO A SAFE AREA AS DETERMINED BY THE TACTICAL SITUATION.
6. (TS) ALL DIRECT ENGAGEMENTS WILL BE CONDUCTED BY USS BOWIE USING NON-STANDARD WEAPONS AND TACTICS.
7. (SECR) SUBOPAUTH WILL ISSUE ADDITIONAL ORDERS AND AMPLIFYING INTELLIGENCE.
8. (SECR) SUBJECT CHANGE IN TASKING DOES NOT REFLECT LACK OF CONFIDENCE IN USS ALBANY’S READINESS, SKILL, OR CAPABILITY. THIS A NEW KIND OF THREAT AND NEW METHODS MUST BE EMPLOYED TO COMBAT IT.