o o o
The news ran late. Bobby's segments ran long.
Littell went "home." Littell called room service. Littell ate dinner and watched TV
Home-_suite_-home. Room service and valets.
He missed Jane. He pressed her to come for Thanksgiving. She agreed. It scared her. The Boys owned the town.
She told lies. It disturbed him in L.A. He missed her and wanted her here.
Bobby praised LBJ. Bobby praised his programs. Bobby praised Dr. King.
He played his Bobby tapes. He played them most nights. Sometimes Jane overheard. He punted. He lied. He described depositions.
_Lies_:
Bayard Rustin pressed him-meet Dr. King-Bayard proposed a dinner. He declined. He _lied_. He stressed nonexistent engagements. He _lied_. He never said "distance."
Distance balanced his risk. Distance balanced his commitment. He subverted King. He aided King. He worked for a balance.
Personal moments would kill it. Affection would blitz respect. Compartments would burn. The risk would grow exponential.
Bobby promised legislation. Bobby promised hard work. Bobby did not mention organized crime. Bobby did not mention Jack.
He _knew_ Bobby. Bobby _knew_ the Boys killed Jack. Bobby on tape: "When the time's right I'll jump on it, and devil take the hindmost."
Don't. Please. Don't risk your safety. Don't risk yourself.
Littell flipped channels. Littell saw LBJ. Littell saw Blatz beer and Vietnam. U.S. advisors. More troops pledged. Buddhist monks on fire.
Pete called him this morning. Pete pitched a plan: Call Drac/_work_ Drac/help me work _this_ new plan.
He agreed. He called Drac and snowed him. Drac agreed to Pete's "plan." Pete dropped the name Clark Kinman. Bypass Wayne Senior through him.
He called Kinman. He pitched a meet. He deciphered the gist of Pete's "plan."
Heroin/Vietnam. "Ordnance"/hfdden dope/cosmetic donations.
It meant one thing. The Boys waived the no-dope rule. The Boys never told him.
Pete sounded happy. Pete came off engaged. Pete built airtight compartments. There's Betty Mac. There's heroin. There's the partition.
Littell flipped channels. Bobby waved. Bobby hugged his kids.
o o o
Kinman served drinks. Littell sipped club soda. Kinman sipped scotch himself.
"I know about you. You brought the Hughes charter deal to Wayne Senior."
The den was stuffy. The den was GI. Airplane models and airplane wall plaques.
Littell smiled. "I hope your compensation sufficed."
Kinman sipped scotch. "I'm an officer in the United States Air Force. I'm not going to tell a perfect stranger if, where, or how I was compensated, if in fact I was."
Littell twirled his coaster. "You could call Wayne Senior for a reference."
"We're not on good terms. He told me he doesn't like you, which refers you pretty good these days."
A door slammed upstairs. Music kicked on. A female voice hummed along.
Littell stirred his drink. "Do you know who I work for?"
"I was informed that it was Howard Hughes, who folks say has designs on Las Vegas. I figured he was good for the town, which is why I facilitated the charter deal."
"For which you were or were not compensated."
The music dipped. Footsteps tapped downstairs. A woman hummed along.
Kinman smiled. "I've got a friend here. That means you've got five minutes to state your case and skedaddle."
Littell toed his briefcase. "Mr. Hughes wants to donate U.S.-supplied Vietnamese Army surplus to the Air National Guard. He wants to publicize the donations and credit you with inspiring the gift. All he requires is expanded ground clearance for periodic courier flights from Saigon."
Kinman chewed ice. "With no contraband checks?"
"He would appreciate that courtesy, yes."
"'That courtesy' will cost $5,000 per month, in cash, nonrefundable."
Littell popped his briefcase. Littell dumped forty grand. Drac gave him fifty. He kept and tithed ten.
Kinman whooped. Janice Tedrow walked in.
She limped. She swung a cane. She rubbed a scar on her lips.
62
(Dak Sut, 11/7/64)
Heat. Bugs. Bullshit.
Dak Sut featured peasants. Dak Sut featured clay-mud. Dak Sut featured thirty-three huts.
ARVNs called peasants _que lam_. Chaffee called ARVNs "Marvin." Pete called them "Marv." Chuck called them "Marv." Bob Relyea called them "Sahib."
Wayne itched. Wayne slapped bugs. Wayne scoped Dak Sut. He saw pigs. He saw rice bins. He saw the Dak Poko River.
A bridge. Brown water. Thick jungle ahead.
They flew up. Three Marvs came along. Chaffee hired a Huey. The pilot slurped wine. Chuck and Bob tossed hate tracts out.
Wayne itched. Wayne slapped bugs. Wayne wore fatigues and a.45. Wayne packed a 12-gauge pump.
GI gear-kadre kustomized. Dum-dums and beehive rounds-steel darts encased.
Laos was close. The Marvs knew the way. The Marvs had _their_ guide-some ex-Cong stashed in a hut.
Tran Dinh camped near Saravan. Tran Dinh had men. Tran Dinh had two Hueys prepped. They'd fly to Joe Warlord's camp. They'd "negotiate."
Wayne itched. Wayne slapped bugs. Wayne scoped Dak Sut. Peasants hovered. Mesplиde dispensed Kools. Pete hit hut 16. Pete hauled the Cong out.
Chuck deshackled him. Bob rigged a collar. The Marvs leashed him up. _Nice_ collar-poodle-sized and spiked.
Chuck fucked with the leash. Chuck laid some slack in. Chuck cinched the Cong up.
Wayne walked over. The Cong wore black pj's. The Cong wore torture cuts.
Chuck said, "Bow wow."
Bob sang "Walkin' the Dog."
o o o
They moved out.
They walked single-file. They crossed the Dak Poko. They hit the province hut. The Marvs greased the hut boss-five bucks U.S. The hut boss swooned.
They hit Laos. They walked foot trails. Hills and brush cover. Krazy Glue clay.
The Cong walked ahead. Chuck snapped his leash. Chuck named him "Fido." Fido tugged. Fido walked barefoot. Fido stretched his leash.
Wayne walked rear point. My craaaazy life-Army Airborne to _this_.
He killed time in Saigon. He read his chemistry texts. He hit the USO. He ordered the Vegas and Dallas papers. He moved into the lab. He stored his Durfee file.
He filed tips. He summarized tips. He ate at the Go-Go. He dug on the weird food. He offered the owner some help.
The fried monk caused damage. The fried monk burned beams. The fried monk scorched the paint job.
Wayne repainted. Wayne redrilled beams. The pimp hung around. Wayne watched him. Wayne learned his stats:
Maurice Hardell/aka Bongo/ex-QM PFC. Stockade time and a pervert DD.
He watched Bongo. He watched the kadre men. The kadre men watched him. They knew _his_ stats. They dug on them. Chuck spieled them out.
He got _their_ stats. Pete supplied them:
Guйry hated Reds. Mesplиde hated Reds. They killed Congo rebels. They killed Algerians. Chuck hated Reds. Chuck was ex-CIA. Chuck killed Fidelistos.
Flash hated Reds. Flash killed Reds. Flash used to pimp girls in Havana. Flash split Cuba. Flash hit the U.S. Flash robbed liquor stores.
Flash knew Guйry. Flash met Pete. Flash met John Stanton. Chuck knew Bob. Bob pushed hate tracts. Bob mailed hate tracts to prisons.
Chaffee was a blueblood. Chaffee went Army. Stanton was a blueblood. Stanton went to Yale. Stanton knew Chaffee's dad. Stanton owned United Fruit stock. The Beard kicked UF out of Cuba. The Beard fucked with their stock.
Cuba drove them. Cuba drove Pete. Cuba drove the dope plan. Cuba drove Viet ops. Something said Cuba drove Dallas.