Secret Honor (Honor Bound 3) - Page 62

“Yes, sir,” Pelosi said.

Clete walked into the larger building, and the chief and Ashton followed him.

In the center of the room were a sturdy table and simple chairs; two identical tables were against the walls. One of them held a communications receiver, a transmitter, and a battered Underwood typewriter. The other held an assortment of radio technician’s tools and test equipment.

An ancient safe was under this table. Sitting neatly on top of it were two thermite grenades, to be activated in case of unwanted guests. The safe contained the radio codes.

The chief knelt by the safe, worked the combination, and handed Clete a single sheet of paper.

* * *

URGENT

TOP SECRET LINDBERGH

DUPLICATION FORBIDDEN

FROM AGGIE

MSG NO 133 1915 GREENWICH 30 APRIL 1943

TO TEX

BACARDI

BACARDI AT FIRST OPPORTUNITY WILL EXFILTRATE BY ROUTE OF HIS CHOICE TO CARIOCA REPORT

ING UPON ARRIVAL THERE-AT TO MILITARY ATTACHÉ US EMBASSY FOR FURTHER ORDERS.

POLO WILL ASSUME COMMAND DURING BACARDI ABSENCE.

INTEREST AT VERY HIGHEST LEVEL IN IDENTITY OF GALAHAD AND IN ALL DETAILS OF LINDBERGH CONTINUES.

NO ACTION REPEAT NO ACTION WILL BE TAKEN WITH INTENT TO DISRUPT LINDBERGH WITHOUT SPECIFIC AUTHORITY FROM AGGIE ONLY REPEAT AGGIE ONLY.

ACKNOWLEDGE

AGGIE

* * *

Aggie was Colonel A. F. Graham, USMCR, Deputy Director of the Office of Strategic Services, who was a graduate of the Texas Agricultural and Technical Institute at College Station, Texas. Tex was Major Cletus H. Frade, USMCR, whose home of record was Big Foot Ranch, Midland, Texas. Bacardi was Captain Maxwell Ashton III, AUS, whose roots were in Cuba, known for its fine rum. Carioca was Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Polo was 1st Lieutenant Madison R. Sawyer III, AUS, who had graduated from Yale University, where he had been captain of the polo team; he was now Executive Officer of OSS Western Hemisphere Team 17. Galahad was Major Freiherr Hans-Peter von Wachtstein. Lindbergh was the code name chosen to refer to the German ransoming of concentration camp inmates.

“What do you think your orders from the attaché in Rio will be?” Clete asked.

“If God is in his heaven, there will be a letter from the War Department telling me the war will be lost unless I return to Bell Labs, and I will proceed there immediately.”

Before entering the service, Ashton had been an engineer at the Bell Telephone Laboratories.

Chief Schultz laughed. “What it says is ‘during Bacardi absence,’” he said. “To a simple old sailor like me, Captain, sir, that means you’re coming back.”

“Taking a man’s dreams is worse than taking his life, Schultz,” Ashton pronounced solemnly. “And very, very cruel.”

“What I think they’re going to do is hand you a diplomatic passport and a ticket on the next Panagra flight to Buenos Aires,” Clete said.

“After, probably, the Attaché works you over to find out who Galahad is,” Clete.

“Who?” Ashton said.

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