“Yes, sir,” Finton said, and got up from the table.
“What did you fly up here, Pappy?”
“A Mohawk. I wanted to be able to get home for supper.”
“I want you to take Lowell to Hood, and stick around there until he sees the III Corps Commander, and then take him to Rucker.”
Pappy nodded his acceptance of the order.
Felter finished putting the spoonful of clam chowder in his mouth.
Waiters were just about finished clearing the table.
“You and Pappy might as well head for Hood, Craig,” Felter said. “There’s really no reason for you to sit in on this.”
“Was that an order, or is it open for discussion?” Lowell asked.
Felter visibly thought that over.
“You can stay, which means you won’t be able to see the III Corps CG today.”
“I don’t know,” Lowell said. “If I was the III Corps CG, and my aide told me there was a light colonel from the White House who wanted to see me at my earliest convenience, I don’t think I’d make him wait until tomorrow morning.”
“Let’s hope you’re right,” Felter said. He raised his voice slightly. “Okay, everybody but Captain Portet, Lowell, Finton . . .”
He looked at Jack Portet for a moment, and then went on: “. . . and Lieutenant Portet, take your coffee into the living room.”
When they had filed out, Felter waited patiently until the waiters had finished clearing the table and had pushed the steam tables out of the room. Then he went to the door and closed it.
“Talking to Captain Portet about Mobutu was worth the effort getting him up here, Jim,” Felter began.
Finton nodded but said nothing.
“What do you know about Dr. Dannelly?” Felter asked.
“One of the CIA backgrounds said that he is close to Mobutu,” Finton said, “that’s all.”
“Captain Portet tells me that he is very close to Mobutu,” Felter said. “And that he is a devout member of the Church of Latter-Day Saints.”
“That wasn’t in any of the CIA backgrounds,” Finton said.
“Captain Portet also tells me that without the approval of Dr. Dannelly, it is unlikely that Mobutu will change his mind about helping us to get around Kasavubu’s refusal to let us operate over there.”
“The backgrounds said that Captain Portet was very close to Mobutu,” Finton said, but it was a question.
“Jacques Portet needs to be involved with our operations, and Mobutu needs to approve of that, too.”
“The backgrounds also said that Lieutenant Portet is on a first-name basis with Mobutu,” Finton said, another question phrased as a statement.
“Dr. Dannelly is not one of Jacques’s admirers,” Felter said.
“Why is that?” Finton asked.
Felter cocked his head, then smiled.
“I was tempted to sugarcoat the situation by saying he disapproved of Jacques’s sowing of wild oats,” Felter said. “But it’s worse than that.”
“Specifically?”
“You tell him, Jacques,” Felter said.
“I was in the Hotel Leopold in Kolwezi with a lady who was not my wife. Dannelly told me I was a disgrace, and I told him to go fuck himself,” Jack said.
“I don’t like to pry into your personal affairs, Lieutenant. . . .” Finton said.
“Ask him anything you want,” Felter said.
“Was alcohol involved?” Finton asked.
Jack nodded.
“And was the lady someone else’s wife?”
Jack nodded again.
“I thought it had to be something like that,” Finton said. “The Bible teaches us, ‘Judge not, lest ye be judged,’ and we try to follow that teaching. Our church teaches us that a man’s sins are between him and God. In this case, I would say that Dr. Dannelly believed not saying something to you, to try to turn you from your wicked ways, would be a sin of omission—‘we have not done those things we ought to have done’—and tried to counsel you.”
“Jacques has turned from his wicked ways,” Felter said. “How do we convince Dr. Dannelly of that?”
Jack thought: That’s the first time I have ever heard anyone say “wicked ways” in absolute sincerity, in a conversation. And they both did it. And I’ll be damned if Felter didn’t mean it just as sincerely as this Mormon bishop.
“Have you, Lieutenant?” Finton asked. “Have you turned from your wicked ways?”
Jack saw from his father’s raised left eyebrow that he was amused by the exchange.
Jack thought: That’s three times. And if I blow this answer, I’m really going to fuck things up.
“I hope so,” Jack said. “I think so. The day before I got married, I took Holy Communion with my fiancée. We’re Anglican. There is a prayer of confession, with the same line you quoted before—‘we have done those things which we