Black Ops (Presidential Agent 5)

teful to God that things in Marburg turned out the way they have, don't you?" Barlow said. "They could--so easily--have gone differently."

Castillo neither replied nor blinked.

But finally Barlow let go of his arms, and Castillo looked away.

Svetlana was squatting beside Max and Marina.

"Hey, Susie," he called. "Do want something to drink?"

She looked at him and smiled uncertainly. "Susie" hadn't registered.

"That's you, baby. 'Susie.' You'd better get used to it."

She got up and walked to him. He put his arm around her shoulder.

XII

[ONE]

Pilar Golf & Polo Country Club

Pilar, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina

1910 2 January 2006

"Then it is agreed, is it not," Tom Barlow said, "that tonight what we have is friends having dinner together, and we do not talk--or even think about--the business we will deal with tomorrow?"

I didn't hear any proposal to agree to, Castillo thought, but what the hell, why not?

"Fine with me," he said.

"You know a little about our family, Charley, but Susanna tells me she knows nothing of yours," Barlow said.

"There are nine of us," Castillo said. "There were ten, but my brother Fritz was hung a couple of years ago for cattle rustling in the Texas Panhandle."

Barlow shook his head.

"Aleksandr told me you have an . . . interesting sense of humor," Barlow said.

"If it's all right with you, Charley," Alfredo Munz said, "I'll pass on dinner. My wife has the odd notion that I should have dinner with her and the girls once in a while."

The translation of that is: Will I feel safe to be left here alone?

"Go ahead, Alfredo. The Marine is here and the situation is well in hand."

Davidson and Lester understood and both smiled. Lester looked pleased at what he took as at least some small recognition of his self-appointed role as Castillo's bodyguard.

Davidson also saw the look on Svetlana/Susanna's face.

"Susie . . ." he said.

"Susanna," she corrected him.

"We already have a Susanna. How about simply Susan?"

She looked at Castillo.

"Hello, there, Simply Susan," Castillo said, smiling.