"General McNab told me," Crenshaw said, and looked at his aide. "Find accommodations for them, Richardson. They should start arriving tomorrow. Eight pilots and four crew chiefs."
"Yes, sir," Richardson said.
"And some supplies from Fort Bragg," Castillo added. "Which will have to be stored somewhere secure until they can be loaded on the Hueys."
"What kind of supplies?" Richardson asked.
"The kind that need someplace secure to store them," Castillo said, pointedly avoiding details.
"General McNab said they're coming by truck tonight," Crenshaw said to Richardson. "They'll probably be here by morning. Have the truck put in the MP impound lot until you can make better arrangements in the morning. And make sure the MPs are guarding the impound lot."
"Yes, sir," Richardson said.
"And as soon as possible, Neidermeyer has to get his radio up," Castillo said.
He saw the questioning look on Crenshaw's face.
"It's in the suitcase," Castillo said, nodding at it. "It doesn't take long, but I'd rather not do it here."
"May I ask what kind of a radio?" Richardson asked.
I am tempted to tell you, "None of your fucking business."
But resuming hostilities with you, Righteous, would be counterproductive.
"It's a rather amazing system developed by AFC," Castillo said. "Bounces signals-voice and data, both really deeply encrypted-off satellites. When we get to Magnolia House, I'll show you how it works."
"I'd like to see that," Crenshaw said. "I just thought of something. How are you going to pay for the Flying Hearse?"
"American Express," Castillo said, reaching for his wallet. "Never leave home without it."
He took his AmEx card from his wallet and handed it to Crenshaw, who examined it. He then looked at Castillo.
"The Lorimer Charitable amp; Benevolent Fund," the general said.
Castillo nodded and grinned. "Yes, sir."
"I won't ask what that is," the general went on, "but will simply repeat what I said before, that mysterious indeed are the ways of the Special Operations Command and those in it." He paused. "I can call from the car on the way to the post, if you'd like. I'm driving my own car, but Richardson's got a van."
I'll be damned if I'm stuck riding the bus with Righteous.
"If you've room in your car, and I'm not an imposition, that'd be great, sir," Castillo said. "Thank you."
[TWO] "Would you like a drink, Charley?" General Wilson asked when they were inside the Magnolia House. "Under the circumstances, I'm going to allow myself to have one. And I might even allow my dear friend General Crenshaw here a little taste."
"Indeed, I would," Castillo said. "I have been a good boy all day, and it's been a very long day."
And I just drove past the Daleville Inn, which triggered a flood of not at all unpleasantly lewd and lascivious memories.
Neidermeyer came into the living room carrying a DirecTV dish antenna.
"You want a drink, Jamie?" Castillo said.
"Wait 'til I get this thing up, sir. What I need now is a stepladder or a chair, so I can stick this thing on the roof."
"Try the kitchen," General Wilson said, and pointed, then asked, "DirecTV?"
Neidermeyer looked at Castillo for guidance. Castillo nodded.
"Actually, sir," Neidermeyer said seriously, "I have a much better one, but it says Super Duper Top Secret Delta Force Satellite Antenna and the colonel won't let me use it. He says it makes people curious."
The general chuckled.
"It took only a couple of small modifications to this," Neidermeyer said. "Mostly the installation of a repeater, so we don't need the coaxial cable to connect to the box. It ought to be up in a minute or so."
"Need any help, Jamie?" Castillo said.
"No, sir. Thank you."
Richardson came in as Castillo, Crenshaw, and Wilson touched glasses.
"Your man is installing a cable TV dish on the roof," Richardson announced.
"And any minute now, we can get Fox News," General Crenshaw said with a straight face.
Castillo chuckled, and Richardson shot him a look, wondering what that was about. Then Richardson turned his attention back to the general.
"Sir, the field-grade OD has been advised of the truck coming from Bragg. They'll be expecting it at the gate, and there will be an MP escort to guide it to the MP impound lot, where it will be under guard until Colonel Castillo tells me what he wants to do with it."
"First thing in the morning, Randy," General Crenshaw said, "go out to Hanchey Field and take over a hangar large enough for four H-models. Arrange for the MPs to guard it, then move this equipment into it. That sound about right, Castillo?"
"Yes, sir, that sounds fine."
"Sir," Richardson said, "am I to sign a receipt for this equipment?"
"Good question," Castillo said. "I didn't think about that. Well, when the truck gets here"-he stopped as Neidermeyer came back in the house, then went on-"Neidermeyer here will happily get out of bed and sign for it. Right, Jamie?"
"The stuff from Bragg?"
Castillo nodded. "Tonight it goes into an MP lot. In the morning, Colonel Richardson will have it moved to a guarded hangar at Hanchey-one of the airfields."
"Yes, sir. Am I going with you tomorrow, sir?"
"You and the magic box."
"Sir, it might be a good idea if we had our own wheels."
"I didn't think of that," Crenshaw said. "What would you like?"
"Sir, vans are pretty inconspicuous. And I don't think we need a driver."
"Randy?" the general said.
"I'll have one here in fifteen minutes, sir."
"This should take me about ninety seconds, sir," Neidermeyer said to Castillo, and walked out of the room.
Richardson walked to a telephone on a credenza, took a small notebook from his pocket, found what he was looking for, and dialed a number.
"Colonel Richardson, Sergeant. General Crenshaw desires that a van be sent immediately to the Magnolia House. A driver will not be required.
"Yes, Sergeant, I'm aware that it's unusual. But that is the general's desire."
He listened a moment and said, "Thank you," and hung up.
For Christ's sake, Righteous!
You're a lieutenant colonel. You can give orders for a lousy van all by yourself.
You didn't have to hide behind Crenshaw's stars.
Castillo caught General Wilson's watching eye.
And that wasn't lost on him, either.
"A van has been laid on, sir," Richardson announced.
"Thank you."
Neidermeyer walked back into the living room and handed a handset to Castillo.
"They say twenty-five feet max with no wire, but give it a try."
Castillo looked at the handset, saw H. R. MILLER, JR. on its small screen, pushed the loudspeaker button, and said, "So I shamed you into not taking off early?"
"Where are you, Charley?"
"In Magnolia House at Rucker. And guess who's with me?"
"No, thanks."
"General Wilson and Randy Richardson."
"You're on loudspeaker?"
"Yeah."
"Good evening, sir. Dick Miller, sir. Hey, Righteous, how they hanging?"
"Hello, Dick," General Wilson said. "Good to hear your voice."
Restraining a smile, Wilson added softly to General Crenshaw: "That's Dick Miller's son. He's also a classmate of Randy's."
"Hello, Miller," Richardson said without enthusiasm.
"Anything happen?" Castillo asked.
"I made the deposit to the bank where you were earlier," Miller said. "That airplane's back from you know where. The pilot thereof is crashing in suburbia. He says if you need to go anywhere in the next twenty-four hours, take a bicycle. The copilot's on his way you know where, and the plane that took him will bring J. Edgar Hoover, Jr., back here. That's about it."
"In the morning, I'm going to Mississippi to see the ambassador. Then back here."
"How are you going to get to Mississippi?"
"I rented a T206H."
"You'll be flying right over what used to be Pascagoula and Biloxi."
"Yeah, I guess."