"Go to bed, Alejandro," Leibermann said. "Let's see what happens tomor-row."
Chapter Twenty-Five
[ONE]
Estancia San Pedro y San Pablo
Near Pila, Buenos Aires Province
0445 19 April 1943
Se¤orita Dorotea Mallin came into the library with Clete. She was wearing a man's silk dressing robe, and her hair was done up demurely in a loose braid hanging down her back.
Beautiful girl. Colonel A. F. Graham thought. Even at this hour of the morning, with no makeup, just out of bed, she sort of glows.
With that came insight: My God, she's pregnant! Of course. That's why Clete's marrying her, and now, rather than after the expected year of mourning for the late el Coronel Jorge Guillermo Frade.
And home for Clete Frade, he thought, remembering his conversation with Leibermann, is where the woman who will bear his child is.
"I didn't mean to disturb your sleep, Miss Mallin," Colonel A. F. Graham said. "Only Marines have to rise at this ungodly hour."
She met his eyes.
"I don't mind, Colonel. I thought I'd see that everybody had breakfast," Dorotea said.
"I'm sure Clete's-"
"I don't mind, Colonel," Dorotea repeated, smiling sweetly. "In fact, I in-sist."
Clete Frade looked amused.
"How much does Dorotea know?" Graham asked.
"We had a long talk last night," Clete said.
"That wasn't wise, Major," Graham said.
"Well, it occurred to me that since Goltz a
nd Gr?ner might try to kill her, I thought she had the right to know why."
He didn't say "Sir" or "Colonel." Obviously, he has been thinking about the same things Milt Leibermann talked about. He may already have made up his mind-certainly, that pregnant young woman has not spent the night en-couraging him to go out and do something that may get the father of their un-born child killed-and the worst thing I can try to do right now is order either one of them around. Or even order her out of the room. This is his house, and she's, for all practical purposes, his wife. All I can do is hope that when 1 tell him what I want him to do, he's willing to do it.
"On the strength of your assurance that your information about German ac-tivities this morning is accurate, Major, I've developed our plan of action," Gra-ham said.
"My information is good," Clete said.
"In addition to the radar Captain Ashton brought with him, there is an aer-ial camera," Graham said. "The latest word in aerial cameras, and in high-resolution film."
Clete didn't reply.
Suboficial Mayor Enrico Rodriguez entered the library.
What took you so long, Sergeant Major? Graham wondered. You usually appear no longer than sixty seconds after your master. Oh, I see now, you stopped for a quick shave.
"Good morning, Suboficial Mayor," Graham said.
"Buenos dias, mi Coronel," Enrico replied, and took up what Graham had come to expect as his usual stance, leaning against the wall.