Sahara (Dirk Pitt 11)

"It reads, `Tell the Admiral that when I return to Washington, I'll take him to see Harvey's girlfriend Judy sing at the AT&S saloon.' Is this a crude joke, or what?"

"Dirk is not known for crude jokes," Sandecker said definitely. "He's trying to tell us something with some sort of riddle."

"Do you know this Harvey?" asked Bock blankly.

"The name isn't familiar," murmured Sandecker. "I've never heard Dirk mention anyone called Harvey."

"Is there such a place in Washington as the AT&S saloon with a singer by the name of Judy?" Bock inquired.

"Not that I've ever been in," Sandecker answered, searching for a clue in the recesses of his mind. "And the only singer I ever knew named Judy was--"

The answer struck Sandecker with all the suddenness of a slap in the face. The ingenious simplicity, the elementary code was obvious to anyone who was an old motion picture buff like the Admiral. He might have known, he might have guessed Pitt would have played on that knowledge. He laughed.

"I fail to see the humor," Bock said sternly.

"They're not running for the border into Algeria," Sandecker stated triumphantly.

"What did you say?"

"Colonel Levant's force is heading south toward the railroad running between the sea and Fort Foureau."

"May I ask what brought you to that conclusion?" Bock asked suspiciously.

"Dirk's thrown us a conundrum, a common riddle that Kazim is unlikely to solve. Judy the singer is Judy Garland and Harvey represents a movie she starred in called The Harvey Girls."

"How does the AT&S saloon fit in the picture?"

"Not a saloon, but a song. The hit song Judy Garland sang in the movie. It was called The Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe. The name of a railroad."

Bock said slowly, "That explains why Levant sent a report that Kazim's communications people could easily intercept. He misled them into believing he was heading north into Algeria."

"When in fact they're traveling in the opposite direction," Sandecker finished.

"Levant has rightly assumed that crossing the Mali/ Algeria border did not guarantee safety. Men as ruthless as Kazim have no qualms about ignoring international law. He will pursue our force until they are all slaughtered."

"The next question is what do they do after reaching the railroad?"

"Perhaps steal a train," suggested Bock.

"Makes sense, but in broad daylight?"

"There is more to the message from your man, Pitt."

"Please go on."

"The next part reads, `Also inform the Admiral that Gary, Ray, and Bob are going over to Brian's house for fun and games.' Can you interpret this?"

Sandecker thought a moment. "If Pitt is still coding in movies then Gary must be Gary Cooper. And I'll guess that he means Ray Milland."

"Do you recall a picture they starred in together?"

"I do indeed," Sandecker fairly beamed over the telephone. "Dirk might just as well have hung out a neon sign. They starred with Robert Preston and Brian Donlevy in a 1939 epic called Beau Geste."

"I saw it when I was a boy," said Bock. "The story was about three brothers who served in the French Foreign Legion."

"The reference to Brian's house suggests a fort."

"Certainly not the Fort Foureau hazardous waste facility. That would be the last place Levant would go."