The Shooters (Presidential Agent 4)

"And what did the ambassador tell him?" Castillo asked.

"That Lorimer was involved in the drug trade, and that he had heard nothing about Special Forces operating secretly in Uruguay. The senator then asked him to discreetly inquire again, and the ambassador agreed to do so.

"As it happens, the ambassador and I are old friends-Uruguay is a small country, and we have a saying, 'Don't worry if you don't know someone, he'll marry into your family by the end of the week.' But the ambassador and I are friends from school, and you'll remember it was he who I turned to for help in identifying the 7.62mm National Match cartridge case we found at Shangri-La.

"So, unofficially, I called him to see what else Senator Johns had had on his mind. He told me that the senator had told him he'd gone to see Ambassador Charles W. Montvale, who as your director of National Intelligence could be presumed to know about such things, and that Montvale had denied any prior knowledge of Lorimer's involvement in the drug trade and denied any knowledge of a Special Forces operation in Uruguay."

Ordonez looked more intensely at Castillo.

"I've always suspected Montvale is the man you answer to, Colonel. Do you?"

Castillo shook his head.

"I thought we were agreed to tell one another the truth," Ordonez said.

"I don't work for Ambassador Montvale."

"For whom, then? The secretary of Defense?"

Castillo shook his head again.

"Ah, then, the secretary of State," Ordonez said, clearly pleased with himself. "Of course. I should have thought of that. It explains a great deal. The authority you wielded in your embassy in Buenos Aires; the decision to keep Ambassador McGrory in the dark about your operation."

"I don't work for Secretary Cohen, either," Castillo said.

Ordonez's face showed that not only did he not believe that, but that the denial offended him.

Munz caught that, and said, "He doesn't, Jose."

"Well, who does he work for? Do you know?"

Munz was quiet a moment, then laughed.

"Yes, I do," he said. "But if I told you, I'd have to kill you."

"What did you say?" Ordonez asked incredulously.

"It's a useful phrase I've learned working for Carlos," Munz said.

"It's not said seriously?"

"You never know, Jose," Munz said. "You're not going to put it to the test, are you?"

"I may not be Sherlock Holmes," Ordonez said to Castillo, "but after we eliminate Montvale and your secretaries of State and Defense, there's not many people left, are there, from whom you could be taking orders?"

"What else did you learn from your old pal the ambassador?" Castillo asked, ignoring the question.

Ordonez looked at him for a long moment, as if deciding whether or not to pursue the question of who gave Castillo his authority and orders. Finally, he said: "He said that he had the distinct feeling that Senator Johns would like nothing more than proof that there had been a secret Special Forces operation in Uruguay and that Montvale had lied to him about it."

"Perhaps he doesn't like Ambassador Montvale. A lot of people don't," Castillo said. "I don't like him much myself. But I would hate to see him embarrassed by Senator Johns."

"And so would I," Ordonez said. "Because that would mean the decision Alvarez and I made about everything would come to light. The Cubans-and probably the Russians, too-would go to the United Nations to righteously denounce Uruguay-"

"I get the picture," Castillo interrupted. "And you're right, of course."

"-for not only permitting the imperialist Yankees to send their infamous Special Forces to murder innocent Cuban tourists and Czechoslovakian businessmen on Uruguayan soil, but then to shamelessly deny it."

Castillo was silent for a moment, then he said: "Just for the record…oh, hell."