would you ask Major Pickering and Captain Stuart to come in, please?”
After a polite knock at the door, the two officers entered. The taller of them had the newspaper tucked under his arm, where his cover would normally be. His cover, if any, was not in sight.
“Good morning, sir,” he said to General Taylor, adding, “How goes it, Red?” to Lieutenant Colonel O’Halloran.
“You are?” General Taylor inquired, somewhat icily.
“General Taylor,” O’Halloran said. “This is Major Malcolm S. Pickering.”
Major Pickering offered General Taylor his hand.
“How do you do, sir?” he asked, adding, “My friends call me ’Pick.’ ”
General Taylor was about to comment that he had virtually no interest in what Major Pickering’s friends called him, when Pickering went on:
“You’ve seen the paper, Red?”
O’Halloran shook his head, “no.”
“Guess who’s already in Korea?” Pickering said.
O’Halloran indicated by gesture and shrug that he had no idea.
“The Killer,” Major Pickering said. “The story’s on page one.”
“No kidding?” O’Halloran said, as he reached for the newspaper. He then remembered General Taylor, and added: “Major Pickering is referring to a mutual friend, sir. A Marine officer.”
“Is that so?”
“Killer McCoy, sir,” O’Halloran said.
“What I really would like to know, Colonel, as I’m sure you would, is why Major Pickering is some fifty hours late in reporting as ordered.”
“I’m sorry about that, sir,” Major Pickering said. “When I got the word, I came—Stu and I came—as quickly as we could.”
“And that took fifty hours?”
“Actually, sir—I figured it out just a couple of minutes ago—from the time we got the word, it took us thirty-one hours.”
“Where were you? In Siberia?”
“Scotland, sir.”
“Scotland?”
“Prestwick, Scotland, sir.”
“I reviewed your records a day or so ago, Major. I found nothing indicating that you had permission to leave the continental United States.”
“We don’t need permission, sir,” Pickering said. “We’ve got a waiver.”
“That’s the case, General,” Colonel O’Halloran said.
“I’m fascinated,” General Taylor said. “Who granted a waiver? Why?”
“Eighth and Eye, sir. They chose to interpret the regulation as not applying to us. As much time as we spend out of the country, it would be a real pain in the ass for them, as well as for us, to have to fill out those permission requests, and go through the routine, every time we left.”
“I see. Colonel O’Halloran, I assume you’re familiar with this?”
“Yes, sir, I am.”
“Why didn’t you inform me?”
“Sir, the subject never came up.”
“Why, Major, do you spend as much time as you tell me you do out of the country?”
It was obvious from the look in Major Pickering’s eyes that he was surprised at the question.
“Sir, we’re in the airline business,” Pickering said.
“And your duties as ‘flight coordinator’ require extensive travel outside the country? What exactly is a flight coordinator? ”
For the first time, there was a crack in what General Taylor thought of as an offensive degree of self-confidence in Major Pickering’s demeanor.
Major Pickering looked nervously at Lieutenant Colonel O’Halloran.
“In the case of Captain James and myself, General,” he said, carefully, “it means that we sort of supervise the flight activities of Trans-Global Airways.”
“Sort of?”
“Sir,” Colonel O’Halloran said, “Major Pickering is president of Trans-Global Airways and chief pilot. And you’re what, Stu?”
“Standardization pilot,” James replied.
President and chief pilot? Standardization pilot? That’s not what it says in their records.
“Major, I’m a little curious. Why does it say ‘flight coordinator’ on your records?”
“A year or so ago, sir, there was concern that, in the event of mobilization, some pilots would try to get out of it by saying that they were essential to an essential industry. The phrase ‘airline pilot’ raised a red flag at Eighth and Eye. So we got around that by changing our job titles.”
“You didn’t consider that deceptive? Perhaps even knowingly causing a false statement or document to be issued? ”
“Well, sir, since it was not my intention—or Captain James’s—to try to get out of being mobilized, we didn’t think it mattered.”
“And your employer went along with this deception?”
“Sir, I figured I could call myself a stewardess if I wanted, and it got the chair-warmers at Eighth and Eye off my back.”
Prior to his attendance at the War College, General Taylor had spent a three-year tour in administrative duties at Eighth & Eye.
It is beyond comprehension that an Annapolis man, even a Marine aviator, would have knowledge of something like this, and not only do nothing about it, but, by not doing anything about it, lend it respectability.
“Colonel O’Halloran,” General Taylor said. “I will wish to discuss this with you at some length.”