Black Ops (Presidential Agent 5)

He didn't. Delchamps answered for him: "Even though he had a direct order from Frank Lammelle, the DDCI, to call him--or the DCI--immediately and personally if he ever had any contact with you about anything ever again. And, of course, not to tell you about the order."

"I'll be a son of a bitch," Castillo said.

"And you thought good ol' Frank just came to see you in the hospital and wish you a speedy recovery from taking that hit in the tail, right? I think his primary purpose in coming down here was to fumigate his people who had been contaminated by you."

"He gave the same speech to the Sienos and Bob Howell," Darby said, mentioning the CIA station chief in Montevideo.

Delchamps said: "No witnesses. Nothing in writing. The sonofabitch even told the Sienos one at a time, so that it would be he-said/she-said." He paused, then went on: "And if you went to Montvale with this--I suspect that thought is running through your head--what would happen, Ace? Not a goddamn thing, and you know it. You could go to the President, and he would have the choice of firing the DCI, the DDCI, the ambassador, or Lieutenant Colonel Charley Castillo--and you know who would win that one."

Delchamps paused and waited until he saw that Castillo couldn't argue with what he had just said, then went on: "Okay, so getting back to why do we want you out of here: I told Alex I was going to stick around until this esc--situation--is resolved one way or the other, and then I'm really going to put in my papers."

"You ever hear 'great minds travel similar paths,' Charley?" Darby said. "I told Edgar that I've been thinking about hanging it up since I got the speech about you from Lammelle, and that, when I hadn't called the SOB when you drafted me again, it looked like I'd made up my mind."

"And that started the mutiny," Santini put in. "I said, 'Count me in. If they don't trust me to protect the President because I slipped on an icy step, then fuck 'em.' "

"And," Jack Britton said, "for much the same reasons as my distinguished comrade has offered, Colonel, I, too, have decided that my Secret Service career has been nipped in the bud. Somebody tried to whack me, and getting shot at is just not allowed."

Castillo shook his head. "And why did you think you couldn't, or shouldn't, tell me this?"

"I'm not through, Ace. Now, several things are going to happen when this situation is resolved. I think this factory is heavy. So does Alex. If we're right and something can be done about it, that's a very good way for Alex and me and Santini to be remembered.

"Worst-case scenario: We're wrong. It's bullshit. But it comes out--and it will--that you did indeed snatch Berezovsky and Sister from the CIA, aided and abetted in this criminal enterprise by renegade Clandestine Services and Secret Service agents. They would ordinarily try to make an example of us, but I don't think so. That might get in the papers,

and make the agency and the Secret Service look foolish. We'll all just retire--quietly fold our tents and steal away into the night."

"All of you? Two-Gun, for example?"

"Two-Gun can never go back to the FBI, no more than . . ."

He stopped.

"Finish what you were going to say," Castillo said.

"No more than you can go back to the Army, Ace, if the worst scenario is what happens. You know that you've been a pain in the ass to Montvale since this whole OOA business started. Now, when the DCI goes to him--or directly to the President--he has all the reasons he needs--you gave them to him when you snatched Berezovsky--to say, 'I knew all along, Mister President, that something like this was going to happen. Castillo is a loose cannon,' etcetera, etcetera."

"Yeah," Castillo agreed.

"Maybe you could walk on this, Ace, if you truthfully said that you never interrogated Colonel Berezovsky and that as soon as you could, you turned over him and his family to the CIA. You didn't even know that the sister was a spook."

"What makes you think I'd want a walk?"

"Because you're very good at what you do, Ace. You are far too young to retire, and can probably be very useful to the President in the future."

"You know goddamn well that's not going to happen," Castillo said. "Snatching the Russians was my idea. If everything goes sour, I'll take the lumps."

Delchamps nodded. "And lumps there will be, Ace. Whether or not it goes sour. I told you that in Vienna. Let's say we"--he gestured at the others--"are right. And we get Berezovsky to tell all. That would really put egg on the agency's face, and Montvale's. They would really come after you."

"You're all determined to quit, right?"

They all nodded.

"Charley, there's no other option," Darby said, and chuckled. " 'No good deed ever goes unpunished.' You never heard that?"

"Is Duffy here?" Castillo asked.

Delchamps shook his head.

"If I'm going to go to Bariloche, I'm going to need his friend's Aero Commander."