Black Ops (Presidential Agent 5)

"Anything else I can do for you, Colonel?" the sultry voice asked suggestively.

"Uh, no," Hamilton replied somewhat uneasily, then in a stuffy tone added, "That will be all, thank you."

Castillo looked at Davidson, who said: "Well, Colonel Castillo, sir, I guess we'll just have to wait and see, but I would not be surprised if Colonel Hamilton ignores you vis-a-vis not being too hard on Uncle Remus and Phineas. He will lecture them both severely and probably reduce them both to tears. But nice try."

[FIVE]

0200 12 January 2006

"Otto Gorner for Colonel Castillo, Data Transmission Not Encrypted," the sultry voice of the AFC announced.

Davidson pushed the VOICE TRANSMIT button.

"John Davidson. Colonel Castillo available in five minutes."

"Hold one, Sergeant Davidson," the voice said, then twenty seconds later added: "Not Encrypted Data Transmission begins. Pass to Colonel Castillo when available."

Davidson hadn't even reached the printer when it started to whir and the voice--which, or who, Davidson very privately had begun to think of as "Sexy Susan"--announced: "Not Encrypted Data Transmission complete."

Three seconds later a hard copy of the data came out of the printer.

Davidson read it, then began to push keys on the printer keyboard.

The printer monitor showed what he'd typed: TRANSLATE GERMAN TO ENGLISH DRAFT.

The translation began to appear on the printer monitor.

Davidson studied it, made a few minor corrections--the AFC translator was good but not perfect--then typed, FILE AS GORNER 0203 12 JAN PRINT 3 COPIES."

The printer began to spit out the three copies.

Davidson stapled the German original and the translation together, then said, "Sorry, Casanova, duty calls," and walked out of the library.

Svetlana answered his knock in a few seconds.

"He's asleep," she said.

Davidson held out the papers.

"Sweaty, I think he'd want to see this."

She took them from him, stepped into the corridor where there was enough light to read, then scanned both versions, and sighed. "Dmitri was afraid of something like this would happen. I will wake Carlos."

Davidson went back to the library.

Castillo, wearing his West Point bathrobe, came in almost immediately behind him.

"Goddamn that Edgar Delchamps!"

"You're not really surprised, are you, Charley?"

"Pissed is the word that comes to mind. At Delchamps, and at me for not seeing this coming."

Dmitri and Svetlana came into the library. Berezovsky was wrapped in a terry-cloth bathrobe.

"Have a look at social notes from all over," Castillo said, gesturing to the papers.

"Svetlana told me," Berezovsky said.