3. They are bound for Kigoma in the Western Province. They are in civilian clothing and armed with Belgian 7-mm automatic rifles and Israeli Uzi 9-mm machine pistols, but have no heavier arms, hand grenades, explosives, or other war matériel.
4. They will travel by a circuitous route, off major highways and possibly only at night. Estimated time of arrival in Kigoma before midnight 23 April 1965.
Howard W. O’Connor
HOWARD W. O’CONNOR
SECRET
“What I think we have here, Mary Margaret,” Felter said, “is the exception to the rule. The CIA station chief in Dar es Salaam seems to have all his ducks in a row.”
She chuckled.
“Extract the pertinent points and satellite it to Lunsford.”
“Right away. Would you like some coffee?”
“Is there any chocolate milk?”
“Coming right up.”
[ FOUR ]
The Hotel du Lac
Costermansville, Kivu Province
Republic of the Congo
2215 22 April 1965
Specialist Five Charles K. Anderson, who was drawing extra proficiency pay for being both an Army Security Agency high-speed intercept operator and an ASA ultrahigh-frequency radio communications technician, and who was wearing the uniform of a lieutenant of Congolese paratroops, did not look much like the popular image of a paratroop officer, Congolese or any other kind.
He was five feet five inches tall, two months past his nineteenth birthday, and weighed 165 pounds. Among his peers he was known variously as “Tubby,” “Fatso,” and “Lumpy,” and was privately thought of by Major George Washington Lunsford as “the fat kid from East Saint Louis.”
Lunsford had been genuinely concerned—for the purposes of Operation Earnest, he really needed the fat kid’s technical skills, and for the fat kid himself—when Anderson had shown up, displaying a wide array of white teeth for the irregular course in parachute jumping conducted at Camp Mackall.
Lunsford was absolutely convinced that Anderson could never have made it through the first week—much less the whole parachute course—at Fort Benning, but he had made it through the one at Camp Mackall.
And now he took great pride in being a paratrooper. He had confessed to Doubting Thomas that he could hardly wait to get back to East Saint Louis wearing his wings and Corcoran jump boots.
Anderson found Major Lunsford/Lieutenant Colonel Dahdi sitting at a table with Master Sergeant Thomas/Major Tomas, and the two white officer pilots and their wives on the hotel patio overlooking the lake. Lunsford and Thomas and the wives were drinking beer. The two pilots were drinking lemonade.
Anderson marched up to Lunsford, came to attention, saluted crisply, and announced:
“Just off the satellite, sir.”
Lunsford—who was not particularly fond of saluting—returned the salute with parade-ground precision.
“Stand at ease,” Lunsford ordered, and reached for the sheet of paper. He read it, then handed it to Geoff Craig.
OPERATIONAL IMMEDIATE
TOP SECRET
EARS 0007 2140 ZULU 22 APRIL 1965
VIA WHITE HOUSE SIGNAL AGENCY
FROM: EARS SIX
TO: HELPER SIX
1-FOLLOWING RECEIVED LANDLINE 2105 ZULU 22 APRIL 1965 QUOTED VERBATIM
BEGIN QUOTE
TRANSMIT OPERATIONAL IMMEDIATE FOR BAREFOOT
BOY FROM KATHARINE HEPBURN START IF YOU HAD
SHOES WE COULD TAKE A MIDNIGHT DINNER
CRUISE TONIGHT WITH DESI ARNAZ AND HIS
FRIENDS. BEST WISHES END
END QUOTE
EARS SIX
TOP SECRET
“Anderson,” Lunsford ordered. “Search out Colonel Supo, present my compliments, and ask the colonel if he would be good enough to join me.”
Anderson popped back to attention, said “yes, sir,” saluted, waited for Lunsford to return it, did what he thought was a perfect about-face movement, and marched off the patio.
“Thomas,” Lunsford said. “You know what’s faster than a corporal going to his first noncom’s call?”
“I’ll bet you’re going to tell me,” Thomas said.
“A brand-new paratrooper looking for somebody to show how tough he is,” Lunsford said.
“That’s not nice, Father,” Marjorie Bellmon said. “He’s a nice kid.”
“I know,” Lunsford said. “That’s why I don’t want him trying to stomp somebody; he’d lose. Have a word with him, Sergeant Thomas.”
Thomas chuckled.
“He went to Coizi,” Thomas said. “Asked him, the next time the Congolese jump, could he jump with them.”
“No goddamn way! I don’t want him breaking a leg, or worse. You have a word with him.”
“I already did.”
“Then have another one,” Lunsford said. “You have the map in your pocket?”
Thomas dug for it.
“Can I see that?” Marjorie asked her husband, to whom Geoff Craig had passed the message.
“Ask the boss,” Jack said.
“Why not?” Lunsford said.
Jack passed it to Marjorie, who read it and passed it to Ursula.
“What’s this Barefoot Boy/Katharine Hepburn business?” Marjorie asked. “What’s it all about?”
“It was love at first sight,” Jack said. “You could hear the violins playing, and our beloved commander was drooling all over the consulate floor.” He chuckled, and added, “All over his bare feet.”